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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-Ma'aarij
Soorah 70:36-44
Ayub A. Hamid
Whenever and wherever the Prophet sall Allaahu 'alayhi wa
sallam would recite the Qur-aan to people, they would come running in their own
group of friends to heckle, taunt and make nasty comments.
36 Now what is the matter with the disbelievers that they
rush madly towards you, 37 from the right and from the left, in groups? 38
Does every man of them aspire to enter the Garden of bounties? 39 Not at all!
Verily, We have created them from what they know.
"We have created them from what they know" refers to the
humble beginning of every human being and thus equality of human beings in
terms of their coming into existence and their natural potential. Thus, people
cannot expect Allaah Subhaanahu wa Ta'aala to treat them differently only
because they were born in a certain household. Human birth cannot be a deciding
factor because regardless of the family, every human being is exactly equal in
that respect. What makes people different are their views, choices, actions,
lifestyle and behaviour they adopt and practice when they grow up. That is why
those who possess the aforementioned attributes will be the only ones to be
honoured and admitted into Jannah.
As for their doubts about resurrection and the Hereafter, the
following was said for their reflection:
40 Thus, no! I swear by the Lord of the Easts and the Wests
that We are certainly able 41 to replace them with others better than them; and
We are not to be outdone. 42 So leave them to indulge in vain talk and play
until they meet their Day that they are promised - 43 the day on which they
will emerge from the graves rapidly as if they were rushing towards a goal, 44
their eyes cast down, disgrace covering them. That is the Day which they are
promised!
After negating their doubts by saying "NO", Allaah Subhaanahu
wa Ta'aala has sworn by Himself to present His absolute authority and control
over the earth and sun as a fact to ponder upon. The use of plurals for east
and west may refer to the rising and setting of the sun every day from a
slightly different angle on the earth's horizon or its continuous rising and
setting in a sequence of horizons at place after place around the globe. The
purpose is to indicate to the deniers that Allaah's power and authority is
infinite and absolute. If he wants, He can not only destroy them and raise them
from the dead, but He definitely has the power and authority to give honour in
the Hereafter to others who are better than them in their lifestyle and
behaviour[1]. It is the people with the qualities mentioned in verse 19-34 that
will be honoured. The disbelievers will be thoroughly disgraced.
The Soorah ends with a consolatory and supportive note to the
Prophet sall Allaahu 'alayhi wa sallam to let the disbelievers waste their time
and energies in senseless arguments, absurd comments and useless pursuits. As
compared to their current attitude, on that Day, they will be speedily running
toward their place of gathering for accountability in the same haste as a
sprinter races towards the finishing line or mark, but unlike a sportsman, they
will be covered by disgrace and humiliation. This description is also to
indirectly warn them so that they can change their attitude to avoid such fate.
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[1] Verse 41 itself does not specify whether the replacement
of disbelievers with those better than them is to happen in this world or in
the Hereafter.
While Amin Ahsan Islahi is of the opinion that here Allaah is
telling the disbelievers that He not only has the power to raise them in the
Hereafter but even the power to raise them in a better form or shape, the
context defies that meaning because the preceding verses are telling the
disbelievers that they would not enter Jannah and are criticizing them for
attacking the Prophet sall Allaahu 'alayhi wa sallam; while the subsequent
verses are talking about their disgrace in the Hereafter. In addition, there is
no support for this meaning anywhere in the Qur-aan; the mention of this power
of Allaah Subhaanahu wa Ta'aala does not contribute in convincing them to
believe in Resurrection; and there is no sense in raising those to be punished
in a better shape or form.
Many exegetes interpret it to mean that it is about their
replacement with people better than them in this world. However, that point is
totally foreign to the context here. The whole Soorah is about Hereafter, the
preceding paragraphs were talking about the honour to be bestowed upon the
Allaah-fearing believers and the negative reactions of Makkans on these
matters. Even this particular paragraph is specifically warning them about
Resurrection, so it is safe to conclude that it is about removing them from the
position of honour and replacing them in the Hereafter with the Allaah-fearing
people whose qualities have been listed in the previous verses. Also, it does
not make sense to threaten them about being replaced and then negate the threat
by telling the Prophet sall Allaahu 'alayhi wa sallam to let them do what they
are doing until the Day of Resurrection. In addition, in that early stage of
the mission when the whole thrust was on inculcating faith in and correcting
beliefs about the Hereafter, the threat to replace them with another species or
another nation was out of place. The earliest citation of the power of Allaah
Subhaanahu wa Ta'aala to replace people with another species (new creation) was
made in Soorah Al-Faatir, and then in Soorah Ibraaheem, both revealed many
years later. Only those people who claim to be believers but do not act
accordingly have been threatened to be replaced by another people if they do
not become true believers; and that was first mentioned in Soorah Muhammad,
which was revealed at the beginning of the Madeenan period. Then it was also
mentioned in Soorah At-Towbah and Soorah Al-Maaidah.
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Copyright © 2009 Ayub A. Hamid
All rights reserved
This document may be used, only with this copyright notice
included. Permission is granted to circulate among private individuals and
groups, to post on internet forums, and include in not-for-profit publications
subject to the following conditions: (1) Material used must be produced
faithfully in full, without alteration or omission; (2) The author's subject
title must remain unchanged, in whole or in part; (3) Material must be
attributed to the author Ustaadz Ayub A. Hamid. Contact the author for all
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 34 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
Al Qalam
Al Haaqqah
Al Ma`aarij 1-14/15-35
K a r i m a
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