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Towards Understanding the Quran
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Tafsirs: Maarif | Dawat | Ishraq | Clear

 Surah Al-A'raf 7:73-76 [10/24]
  
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Verse Summary -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
وَإِلَىٰAnd to
ثَمُودَThamud
أَخَاهُمْ(We sent) their brother
صَـٰلِحًا‌ۗSalih.
قَالَHe said,
يَـٰقَوْمِ`O my people!
ٱعْبُدُواْWorship
ٱللَّهَAllah,
مَاnot
لَكُمfor you
مِّنْany
إِلَـٰهٍgod
غَيْرُهُۥ‌ۖother than Him.
قَدْVerily
جَآءَتْكُمhas come to you
بَيِّنَةٌa clear proof
مِّنfrom
رَّبِّكُمْ‌ۖyour Lord,
هَـٰذِهِۦThis
نَاقَةُ(is) a she-camel
ٱللَّهِ(of) Allah
لَكُمْ ءَايَةً‌ۖ(as) a Sign for you.
فَذَرُوهَاSo you leave her
تَأْكُلْ(to) eat
فِىٓon
أَرْضِ(the) earth
ٱللَّهِ‌ۖ(of) Allah,
وَلَاand (do) not
تَمَسُّوهَاtouch her
بِسُوٓءٍwith harm,
فَيَأْخُذَكُمْlest seizes you
عَذَابٌa punishment
أَلِيمٌpainful.`
﴿٧٣﴾
وَٱذْكُرُوٓاْAnd remember
إِذْwhen
جَعَلَكُمْHe made you
خُلَفَآءَsuccessors
مِنۢ بَعْدِafter
عَادٍAad,
وَبَوَّأَكُمْand settled you
فِىin
ٱلْأَرْضِthe earth.
تَتَّخِذُونَYou take
مِنfrom
سُهُولِهَاits plains
قُصُورًاpalaces
وَتَنْحِتُونَand you carve out
ٱلْجِبَالَthe mountains
بُيُوتًا‌ۖ(as) homes.
فَٱذْكُرُوٓاْSo remember
ءَالَآءَ(the) Bounties
ٱللَّهِ(of) Allah
وَلَاand (do) not
تَعْثَوْاْact wickedly
فِىin
ٱلْأَرْضِ(the) earth
مُفْسِدِينَspreading corruption.
﴿٧٤﴾
قَالَSaid
ٱلْمَلَأُthe chiefs
ٱلَّذِينَ(of) those who
ٱسْتَكْبَرُواْwere arrogant
مِنamong
قَوْمِهِۦhis people
لِلَّذِينَto those who
ٱسْتُضْعِفُواْwere oppressed -
لِمَنْ[to] those who
ءَامَنَbelieved
مِنْهُمْamong them,
أَتَعْلَمُونَ`Do you know
أَنَّthat
صَـٰلِحًاSalih
مُّرْسَلٌ(is the) one sent
مِّنfrom
رَّبِّهِۦ‌ۚhis Lord?`
قَالُوٓاْThey said,
إِنَّا`Indeed, we
بِمَآin what
أُرْسِلَhe has been sent
بِهِۦwith [it]
مُؤْمِنُونَ(are) believers.`
﴿٧٥﴾
قَالَSaid
ٱلَّذِينَthose who
ٱسْتَكْبَرُوٓاْwere arrogant,
إِنَّا`Indeed we,
بِٱلَّذِىٓin that which
ءَامَنتُمyou believe
بِهِۦin it
كَـٰفِرُونَ(are) disbelievers.`
﴿٧٦﴾


وَاِلٰى ثَمُوۡدَ اَخَاهُمۡ صٰلِحًا​ ۘ قَالَ يٰقَوۡمِ اعۡبُدُوۡا اللّٰهَ مَا لَـكُمۡ مِّنۡ اِلٰهٍ غَيۡرُهٗ​ ؕ قَدۡ جَآءَتۡكُمۡ بَيِّنَةٌ مِّنۡ رَّبِّكُمۡ​ ؕ هٰذِهٖ نَاقَةُ اللّٰهِ لَـكُمۡ اٰيَةً​ فَذَرُوۡهَا تَاۡكُلۡ فِىۡۤ اَرۡضِ اللّٰهِ​ وَلَا تَمَسُّوۡهَا بِسُوۡٓءٍ فَيَاۡخُذَكُمۡ عَذَابٌ اَ لِيۡمٌ‏  وَاذۡكُرُوۡۤا اِذۡ جَعَلَـكُمۡ خُلَفَآءَ مِنۡۢ بَعۡدِ عَادٍ وَّبَوَّاَكُمۡ فِى الۡاَرۡضِ تَـتَّخِذُوۡنَ مِنۡ سُهُوۡلِهَا قُصُوۡرًا وَّتَـنۡحِتُوۡنَ الۡجِبَالَ بُيُوۡتًا​ ۚ فَاذۡكُرُوۡۤا اٰ لَۤاءَ اللّٰهِ وَلَا تَعۡثَوۡا فِى الۡاَرۡضِ مُفۡسِدِيۡنَ‏   قَالَ الۡمَلَاُ الَّذِيۡنَ اسۡتَكۡبَرُوۡا مِنۡ قَوۡمِهٖ لِلَّذِيۡنَ اسۡتُضۡعِفُوۡا لِمَنۡ اٰمَنَ مِنۡهُمۡ اَتَعۡلَمُوۡنَ اَنَّ صٰلِحًا مُّرۡسَلٌ مِّنۡ رَّبِّهٖ​ؕ قَالُـوۡۤا اِنَّا بِمَاۤ اُرۡسِلَ بِهٖ مُؤۡمِنُوۡنَ‏  قَالَ الَّذِيۡنَ اسۡتَكۡبَرُوۡۤا اِنَّا بِالَّذِىۡۤ اٰمَنۡتُمۡ بِهٖ كٰفِرُوۡنَ‏  

Translation
(7:73) And to Thamud57 We sent forth their brother. Salih. He said to them: '0 my people! Serve Allah, you have no other god than Him. Truly there has come to you a clear proof from your Lord. This she-camel from Allah is a Divine portent for you.58 So leave her alone to pasture on Allah's earth, and touch her with no evil lest a painful chastisement should seize you. (7:74) And call to mind when He made you successors after 'Ad and gave you power in the earth so that you took for yourselves palaces in its plains and hewed out dwellings in the mountains.59 Remember, then, the wondrous bounties of Allah and do not go about creating mischief in the land.'60 (7:75) The haughty elders of his people said to those believers who had been oppressed: 'Do you know that Salih is one sent forth with a message from his Lord?' They, replied: 'Surely we believe in the message with which he has been sent.' (7:76) The haughty ones remarked. 'Most certainly we disbelieve in that which you believe.'

Commentary

57. The Thamud are another ancient Arab people, next only to the 'Ad in fame. Legends relating to them were quite popular in pre-Islamic Arabia. In fact poetry and orations of the pre-Islamic (Jahiliyah) period abound with references to them. They are also mentioned in the Assyrian inscriptions and in the Greek, Alexandrian and Roman works of history and geography. Some descendants of the Thamud survived to a little before the birth of Jesus. The Roman historians mention that they entered into the Roman army and fought against the Nabateans, their arch-enemy.

The Thamud lived in the north-western part of Arabia which is still called al-Hijr. In the present time there is a station on the Hijaz railway, between Madina and Tabuk. This is called Mada'in Salih, which was the capital town of Thamud and was then known as al-Hijr, the rock-hewn city. This has survived to this day and is spread over thousands of acres. It was once inhabited by no less than half a million people. At the time of the revelation of the Qur'an Arab trade caravans passed through the ruins of this city.

While the Prophet (peace be on him) was on his way, to Tabuk, he directed the Muslims to look upon these monuments and urged them to learn the lessons which sensible persons ought to learn from the ruins of a people that had been destroyed because of their evil-doing. The Prophet (peace be on him) also pointed to the well from which the she-camel of the Prophet Salih used to drink. He instructed the Muslims to draw water from that well alone and to avoid all other wells. The mountain pass through which that she-camel came to drink was also indicated by the Prophet (peace be on him). The pass is still known as Fajj al-Naqah. The Prophet (peace be on him) then gathered all the Muslims who had been directed to look around that city of rocks, and addressed them. He drew their attention to the tragic end of the Thamud, who by their evil ways had invited God's punishment upon themselves. The Prophet (peace he on him) asked them to hastily move ahead for the place was a grim reminder of God's severe punishment and he hence called for reflection and repentance. (See waqidi, al-maghazi, vol. 3, pp. 1006-8. See also the comments of Ibn Kathir on verses 73-8 - Ed.)

58. The context seems to indicate that the clear proof referred to in the verse stands for the she-camel which is also spoken of as 'a Divine portent'. In( al-Shu'ara' 26: 154-8) it is explicitly mentioned that the Thamud themselves had asked the Prophet Salih to produce some sign which would support his claim to be God's Messenger. Responding to it, Salih pointed to the she-camel.

This illustrates clearly that the appearance of the she-camel was a miracle. Similar miracles had been performed earlier by other Prophets with a view to fulfilling the demand of the unbelievers and thus of vindicating their claim to prophethood. The miraculous appearance of the she-camel reinforces the fact that Salih had presented it as a 'Divine portent' and warned his people of dire consequences if they harmed it. He explained to them that the she-camel would graze freely in their fields; that on alternate days she and other animals would drink water from their well, They were also warned that if they harmed the she-camel they would be immediatelv seized by a terrible chastisemen' from God.

Such statements could obviously only have been made about an animal which was known to be of a miraculous nature. The Thamud observed the she-camel graze freely in their fields and she and the other camels drank water on alternate days from their well. The Thamud, though unhappy with the situation, endured this for quite some time. Later, however, after prolonged deliberations, they killed her. Such lengthy deliberations demonstrate that they were afraid to kill the she-camel. It is clear that the object of their fear was none other than the she-camel as they had no reason to be afraid of Salih, who had no power to terrify them. Their sense of awe for the she-camel explains why they let her graze freely on their land. The Qur'an, however, does not provide any detailed information as to what the she-camel looked like or how she was born. The authentic Hadith too provide no information about its miraculous birth. Hence, one need not take too seriously the statements of some of the commentators on the Qur'an about the mode of her birth. However, as far as the fact of her miraculous birth is concerned, that is borne out bv the Qur'an itself.

59. The Thamud were highly skilful in rock-carving, and made huge mansions by carving the mountains, as we have mentioned earlier see (n. 57 )above. In this regard the works of the Thamud resemble the rock-carvings in the Ajanta and Ellora caves in India and several other places. A few buildings erected by the Thamud are still intact in Mada'in Salih and speak of their tremendous skills in civil engineering and architecture.

60. The Qur'an asks people to draw a lesson from the tragic end of the 'Ad. For just as God destroyed that wicked people and established Muslims in positions of power and influence previously occupied by them, He can also destroy the Muslims and replace them by Others if they should become wicked and mischievous. (For further elaboration see (n. 52 )above.