B i s m i l l a a h i r R a h m a a n i r R a h e e m
Teachings of the Qur'aan
Al-Qalam
Soorah 68:17-52
Teachings and Commentary
Ayub A. Hamid
Teachings and Commentary
The Makkan chiefs were proud of their wealth and power,
behaved as if their prosperity was in their own control and acted as if it was
going to be with them forever. Verses 17-32 quote a parable to show them that
the reliance on material well-being is not a wise attitude, conditions can
change any time and human beings are helpless against Allaah's forces. The
reality is that people who are endowed with prosperity are being tested if they
submit to Allaah Subhaanahu wa Ta'aala, follow His guidance and become
charitable, or if their wealth gets to their head and they become arrogant and
miserly. The Makkan chiefs are also being tested with wealth and sons.
17 Surely We have them to test as We tested the owners of
the orchard, when they swore that they would certainly pick all its fruit next
morning, 18 without leaving any behind[1] (for the poor). 19 Then there came
upon it (the garden) an affliction from your Lord while they were sleeping. 20
So it became like a fully harvested desolate spot. 21 As the morning broke,
they called out to one another, 22 "Get out early to your crop if you want to
harvest it." 23 So they set out muttering to one another, 24 "No poor man shall
enter the orchard upon you today." 25 Enthusiastic and determined, they hurried
with confidence. 26 But when they saw it, they said, "We must be lost! 27
Rather, we have been deprived." 28 The best of them said, "Did I not say to
you, why do you not glorify Allaah?" 29 They acknowledged, "Exalted is our
Lord! We surely have been wrong-doers." 30 Then they started blaming one
another. 31 Then they exclaimed, "O woe to us! We were indeed transgressors! 32
Maybe, our Lord will give us better than this in place thereof, We do turn to
Him repenting!"
Their discussion after witnessing the destruction indicates
that when they were vowing to deprive the poor and needy some share from the
harvest, one of them did try to convince others to fulfil their obligations to
Allaah and warned them against displeasing Him, just as the Prophet sall
Allaahu 'alayhi wa sallam was doing so to the Makkan chiefs. After Allaah
Subhaanahu wa Ta'aala destroyed their orchard, they realized their wrongdoing
but it was too late. Learning from their example, the Makkans should listen to
the Prophet immediately, not after the punishment of Allaah had come.
The Makkans thought that the Prophet was crazy to be warning
them of a punishment from Allaah. After giving the parable, the next verse
warns them:
33 Such is the Punishment (in this life); but greater is the
Punishment in the Hereafter, if they only knew! 34 On the other hand, for those
who are infused with Taqwa, there are Gardens of bliss with their Lord.
However, if they listen to the Prophet sall Allaahu 'alayhi
wa sallam and adopt Taqwa, they will not only avoid punishment but also enjoy
wonderful eternal life in the gardens of bliss.
But they did not believe in the life Hereafter. If there was
no Hereafter, it would mean that:
§ Every human being ends up in the same way -- dies
and becomes dust!
§ Whether a person has been excellent or terrible,
both will end up without any consequences. No reward, no punishment, no
justice!
§ The personal sacrifices made by a person to excel
are futile;
§ A criminal goes scot-free for his or her crimes and
the victims of their crimes will have no compensation or redress.
Hence, the next verse asks them:
35 What! Shall We then treat those who are obedient like
those who are guilty? 36 What is wrong with you? How do you pass such judgments?
When the Prophet sall Allaahu 'alayhi wa sallam explained the
inevitability of the life Hereafter, they would retort that the way Allaah had
given them wealth and power here in this world, He would give it to them the
same way in the Hereafter. They did not understand that what was given to them
here was a test. Prosperity is not an indication of Allaah's pleasure. It is a
test. If they fail the test they will be punished with a humiliating and
painful punishment. It is foolhardy on their part to discount the Prophet sall
Allaahu 'alayhi wa sallam's advice without having any knowledge or proof to the
contrary. Thus, they were asked:
37 Do you have a book wherein you read 38 that there will be
for you in the Hereafter what you prefer? 39 Or do you have some pledge binding
upon Us until the Day of Resurrection that you will have whatever you decide
upon?
Some of them thought that the prophets, saints and other
personalities of the past whose idols they were worshipping besides Allaah
Subhaanahu wa Ta'aala, would intercede for them and thus they would be able to
get exactly what they would like. They were challenged to bring forth their
sureties, guarantors or partners:
40 Ask them which of them will stand surety for that! 41 Or
do they have any partners in Allaah's Divinity (to support them). Then let them
bring on their "partners", if they are truthful.
The next two verses give them a glimpse of what that Day
would be like:
42 The Day[2]of extremely severe affliction[3], they shall be
called upon to prostrate themselves to Allaah but they shall not be able to, 43
with their eyes cast down, disgrace will overtake them. It will be so because
of their attitude when they were called upon to prostrate while they were safe
and sound in the world.
When the people are gathered for Judgment and they are asked
to prostrate to Allaah Subhaanahu wa Ta'aala, those who were obedient to Allaah
in this world and were accustomed to prostrating to Him will prostrate as
usual. Those who refused to submit to Allaah in this world would be unable to
prostrate on that Day despite desiring to do so. This will disclose their
disobedient lifestyle in this worldly life and they will be ashamed of
themselves and feel disgraced.
From the next verse onwards, the address turns back to the
Prophet sall Allaahu 'alayhi wa sallam, but the message continues to focus on
warnings, responses and questions for his opponents to reflect upon.
The first verse advises the Prophet sall Allaahu 'alayhi wa
sallam that Allaah will take care of his opponents, so he should continue to
focus on his mission without worrying about them. This message was comforting
to the Prophet sall Allaahu 'alayhi wa sallam while serving as a dire warning
to his enemies.
44 So leave Me and them who reject this Message; We will
gradually lead them on to their terrible end such that they will not even know.
45 I am extending the leash, but surely My plan is firm.
One way Allaah Subhaanahu wa Ta'aala leads the evil people to
their terrible end is by continuing to let them have increases in
prosperity/wealth and other worldly lusts they cherish. With continued
successes in their endeavours, they feel encouraged and are more convinced that
their actions have divine approval -- especially when they see that good people
like the Prophet sall Allaahu 'alayhi wa sallam and his companions face more
and more difficulties, lack of resources and other kinds of hardships. What
they forget is that their approach is extremely short-sighted. With apparent
worldly successes, they are getting deeper and deeper into Hell in the eternal
life. What they also do not realize is that the delay in their suffering from
the consequences of their evils does not mean that they are beyond Allaah's
reach or that Allaah Subhaanahu wa Ta'aala does not care; the leash that has
been extended for them can be pulled in at any time and it will be pulled when
they least expect it.
The next two verses pose the questions that the opponents
need to reflect upon:
46 (Why are they averse to the message?) Do you ask them for
compensation, so that they are burdened with debt?
If the most truthful and honourable man of their society,
even according to their own admissions, is selflessly trying to tell them
something, without asking for anything in return or without deriving any
tangible benefit from it, how can they just summarily disregard it without duly
reflecting upon it.
Is it that they have access to the unseen and have noted that
the Prophet's claims are invalid?
47 Or do they have knowledge of the Unseen, so that they are
writing down?
After addressing all the issues raised by the opponents of
the mission, taking care of their guidance needs, defending the honour of the
Prophet sall Allaahu 'alayhi wa sallam and acknowledging the superb character
of the Prophet and the great work he had been doing, now is the time for advice
and direction to the Prophet himself. By this time, the Prophet sall Allaahu
'alayhi wa sallam had been working for his mission day-in and day-out so
tremendously, steadfastly and uncompromisingly perseveringly that he was dubbed
a mad man. All means of educating the Makkans and reasoning with them had been
exhausted. It was natural for the Prophet to think that it was time to move on.
Moving on by a Messenger of Allaah is not an ordinary thing. It means
destruction of the people who have refused to listen to the Messenger.
According to the knowledge and wisdom of Allaah Subhaanahu wa Ta'aala who is
extremely kind and merciful to people, despite the intensity of opposition and
rejection, the mission still needed to continue in Makkah. How long a mission
continues at one locality is something that Allaah decides according to His
knowledge and wisdom, not the messenger. To make these points, Allaah
Subhaanahu wa Ta'aala used the example of Prophet Younus (Jonah) who decided on
his own to move on because the people were not listening. As a consequence, he
had to suffer some trials and tribulations from Allaah. He was swallowed by a
fish (or more precisely, a fish like aquatic creature[4]) and then thrown on
the shore. Then Allaah Subhaanahu wa Ta'aala accepted his repentance and Du'aa
and restored him to his status as a prophet.
48 So wait patiently for the decision of your Lord, and be
not like the companion of the fish, when he called out while he was distressed.
49 Were it not that a favour from his Lord had overtaken him, he would
certainly have been thrown upon the naked shore, while he was censured. 50 But
his Lord chose him and included him among the righteous.
The next verse adds that Allaah Subhaanahu wa Ta'aala very
well knows the kind of looks they give to the Prophet sall Allaahu 'alayhi wa
sallam and what they say about him, but he must continue to ignore them as he
had been superbly doing and continue to remind them of the message of the
Qur-aan.
51 And those who disbelieve would almost make you slip with
their glares whenever they hear the Reminder (the Qur-aan) and say, "He indeed
is a mad man." 52 Yet it is merely a reminder to all people of the world.
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[1] The Arabic phrase literally means "they did not make any
exception". Some people think that it means that they did not say "Inshaa
Allaah" making an exception to their confident (sworn) intention. However,
"making exception" does not literally mean "saying Inshaa Allaah". To draw such
a meaning, there has to be some basis in the textual context, which does not
exist here. Rather the context suggests that "they did not make any exception"
be taken literally; that is, they vowed to pick ALL fruit - no exception - not
leaving any behind for the poor to pick, as against the practice of some
compassionate people who left some fruit unpicked for the benefit of the needy.
Also, there was no need to swear only to express their intention of picking the
fruit in the morning. They made a vow that they would not leave anything
behind. In addition, the latter meaning also fits with the objective for which
this parable is being described. The objective of the parable is not to teach
whether to say Inshaa Allaah or not. The objective is to teach people that
wealth is a test, that Allaah Subhaanahu wa Ta'aala does not like arrogance and
greed, and that people should not feel invincible because of their wealth and
power because Allaah Subhaanahu wa Ta'aala can take it away and punish them any
time.
[2] The Day of Resurrection
[3] The words of the verse literally mean "when the shin will
be uncovered" which is an idiom indicating the severity of hardship. This is
the opinion of Ibn 'Abbaas and Mujaahid, the most famous exegetes of the
Qur-aan.
[4] Keep in mind that the intent here is not to give a lesson
in biology about the exact nature of the creature, but to refer to an incident
using the terminology that the common people are familiar with and can relate
to. For general usage, any creature that has a fishlike body and that swims and
lives in the water is referred to as a "fish".
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Copyright © 2008 Ayub A. Hamid
All rights reserved
This document may be used, only with this copyright notice
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other rights, which are reserved.
Note: This series is providing the teachings of the Qur'aan,
not a literal translation. Instead of literal translation, it gives
interpretive meanings of the verses, along with their contextual details.
Please remember that any translation of the Holy Qur'aan is in fact only an
expression of the translator's understanding of the Word of Allaah Subhaanahu
wa Ta'aala, and hence cannot be equated with the Qur'aan itself. Only the
original Arabic text can be called the Holy Qur'aan.
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Ustaadz Ayub A. Hamid is a visionary and strategic Islamic
thinker residing in Canada for the last 33 years. His recently published books
are:
1. Islam - Does It Make Sense?
2. Unveiling the Commands-The Truth about Hijaab, Khimaar
and Jilbaab.
3. Finding A Soulmate - A Guide for Parents and Youth.
4. A Book Unlike Any Other.
5. Islam - Adopting Its Paradigms.
6. Exploring the Islamic Beliefs.
http://soundvisioncanada.com/shop/pbrowse.asp?Pg=3&Cat=10004
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The following soowar 'Teachings of the Qur'aan' series by
Ustaadz Ayub A. Hamid, are available on request:-
Al Faatihah
Al Baqarah
Aali 'Imraan
A Nisaa'
Al Maaidah
Al An'aam
Al A'raaf
Al Anfaal
At Teen
Al`Alaq
Al Qadr
Al Bayyinah
Al Zilzaal
Al Aadiyatt
Al Qaari`ah
At Takaathur
Al`Asr
Al Humazah
Al Feel
Al Quraish
Al Maa`oon
Al-Kowthar
Al Kaafiroon
Al Nasr
Al Lahab
Al Ikhlaas
Al Falaq
An Naas
Al Mulk - Aayaat 1-4/5-15/16-30
Al Qalam - Aayaat 1-7/8-16
K a r i m a
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