1. The actual word used here, tabāraka, is hard to translate even in one sentence, let alone in one word. Its root is B R K from which we have two infinitives: barakah and burūk. Barakah suggests growth, plentitude and abundance. As for buruk, it signifies permanence, continued existence, and indispensability. The word tabaraka conforms to the verbal form tafa'ul which conveys the nuances of intensity and perfection. The word thus denotes growth, plentitude, utmost abundance, and a high state of permanence. It is used in a variety of contexts to denote, in different ways, the permanence or abundance of an object. (Ibn Manzūr, Lisān al-'Arab, q.v. B R K. - Ed.) It is also used to signify a "great height". For example, the expression tabarakat al-nakhlah means: "the date-palm grew very high". Al-Asma'i says that a bedouin climbed a high mound and said to his companions: "tabāraktu 'alaykum" ("I have become higher (or taller) than you.") (See Ālūsi, Rūḥ al- Ma'ānī, Vol. 18. p. 230 - Ed.) Sometimes it is also used to denote greatness and eminence: on other occasions, excellence in virtue, goodness and generosity; and still on other occasions, a high degree of purity and holiness. The same holds true for its other meaning, namely permanence and perenniality. It is, however, the context that indicates in each instance which one of its several meanings the word is being used in.

The present context seems to suggest that tabaraka is being used here in respect of God to stress not one but several ideas:

(i) That God is Bounteous and Omniscient. He has, therefore, bestowed the great blessing of the Furqan ("criterion") upon His servant Muḥammad (peace be on him), and thereby devised an arrangement to warn all mankind.

(ii) That God is Most Exalted and Most Glorious since the dominion of the heavens and the earth belongs to Him.

(iii) That God is Most Hallowed, that He is free of every imperfection. Hence, there is no basis for the notion that anyone has a share in God's Divinity. No one belongs to God's genre, and hence no one can be His peer, nor can anyone bear any resemblance to Him. God is not subject to death or extinction, to change or transformation. Being Everlasting, He is in no need of any offspring to succeed Him. (iv) That God is the Highest, the Most Supreme because Kingdom and sovereignty wholly belong to Him, and no one has the power that would enable partaking of God's power and authority.

(v) That God is Absolute in His creative power for He is the Creator of everything in the universe and the sole determinator of its destiny. (For more details see Towards Understanding the Qur'an, Vol. VI, al-Mu'minun, 23: n. 14, p. 88. See also n. 19 below.)

2. That is, the Qur'ān. Furqan is a derivative from the root FR Q which means to separate between two objects or, to separate two parts of the same object. (Ibn Manzūr, Lisān al-'Arab, q.v. F R Q - Ed.) This word is used in respect of the Qur'an either in the sense of fariq (the separator) or mafrug (the separated). It is also used to emphasise that the Qur'an is such an exceedingly potent means of separating between two things that it might be considered separation par excellence. Taken in the first and the third senses, the appropriate translation of the word Furqan would be "criterion" or "touchstone". In its second meaning, the statement would mean that the Qur'ān is composed of many separate parts which were revealed on different occasions. Thus the Qur'an is al-Furqan in both sets of meanings of the term.

3. The word nazzala suggests that the Qur'an was revealed in fragments. The relevance of this introductory remark will become fully evident when we come to verse 32 which addresses an objection made by the unbelievers of Makka as to why the Qur'an was not revealed in one piece.

4. That is, a warner, one who alerts people and draws their attention to the dire consequences of their negligence of the Truth and their becoming enmeshed in error. The word nadhir used here could refer either to "al- Furqan" (i.e. the Qur'an) which was revealed by God, or to "His servant" to whom the Qur'an was revealed. Such are the words of the text that both interpretations would be valid. Now since the purpose of revealing the Qur'an and raising the Prophet (peace be on him) was one and the same. it would be appropriate to say that here both are meant.

It may also be noted that the verse presents both the "warner" and the "warning" as of universal import; that the Message of the Qur'an and the teachings of the Prophet Muḥammad (peace be on him) are not meant for any particular country or any specific period of time. They are meant, instead, for the whole world and for all times. This is stated many times in the Qur'an. The following verses would illustrate this: "O men, I am Allah's Messenger to you all" (al-A'raf, 7:158); "... and this Qur'ān was revealed to me that I should warn you thereby and also whomsoever it may reach" (al-An'ām 6:19). "We have sent you only as a bearer of good tidings and as a warner to all mankind" (Saba' 34:28) and "We have sent you forth as a mercy to all men of the world" (al-Anbiya' 21:107). The Prophet (peace be on him) has himself also repeatedly stressed this universal aspect of his Prophetic office:

I have been sent to all men, the white and the black (Muslim. K. al-Masajid wa Mawāḍī al-Ṣalah' and Ibn Hanbal, Musnad. Vol. 1, p. 250 - Ed.

Before me a Prophet would be sent only to his own people but I have been sent to all mankind. (Bukhārī, 'K. al-Ṣalāt', and 'Bab Qawl al- Nabi Şallalahu 'alayhi wa Sallam ju'ilat li al-Arḍ Masjidan wa Tahūran' - Ed.)

I have been sent to all mankind and with me the [raising of the] Prophets was put to an end. (Muslim, 'K. al-Masäjid wa Mawāḍī al-Salah' Ed.)

5. Alternatively it may be translated as follows: "The kingdom of the heavens and the earth is His alone." That is, He alone has exclusive right over the heavens and the earth. None other has any legitimate right over, nor any share in, the kingdom of the heavens and the earth.

6. That is, neither God has any familial ties with anyone, nor did He take anyone as His son. There is none in the universe who has the right to become a deity either on the grounds of sharing God's descent, or on the grounds of being God's offspring. God is absolutely unique; there is none like Him. There is no common stock of gods which would provide any reason to believe that a whole race of gods had come into existence. Therefore, the unbelievers who considered angels or jinn or any human beings as God's offspring and mistook them to be their gods are victims of ignorance and error; equally so are those who believe that God has taken someone as His son because of the latter's inherent qualities, if not owing to someone being in actual fact the latter's son.

No matter how one looks at it, the idea of God taking a son is absolutely absurd. Those who invented this idea or took it over from others are simply incapable, as a result of their own pettiness of comprehending God's greatness. They imagine God - Who is peerless and beyond all needs - to be like human beings who adopt children either for love of them or for fear of their own loneliness in case they have no issue or because they want an heir so that their name and work might continue. These are the three motives which prompt human beings to think of adoption. Ascribing any of these motives to God is simply ignorance, stupidity and blasphemy.

(For further explanation see Towards Understanding the Qur'an, Vol. IV, Yunus, 10: nn. 66-8, pp. 50-1.)

7. The word used here - mulk - means kingship, supreme authority, and sovereignty. (Ibn Manzūr, Lisän al-'Arab, q.v. M L K. Ed.) The verse means that God alone is the Absolute Sovereign of the whole Universe and no one has the least share in His sovereignty. This necessarily means that none other than God is worthy of worship, for human beings worship only those who, according to their understanding, have the power either to do good to them or conversely to bring harm upon them and who can influence their destiny. For none, not even the most stupid person, would seek refuge in a powerless being. When it is recognised that no one except God has the real power and authority in the universe, it seems only natural that no one will bow before anyone other than God, no one will stretch out his hands with. offerings to anyone other than God, no tongue will sing hymns for or supplicate before anyone other than God. Not even the most ignorant of human beings will submit to any except the One True God, and none will regard any but Him as the real Sovereign. This interpretation is supported by the first part of the verse which affirms that it is God "to Whom belongs the kingdom of the heavens and the earth" (verse 2).

8. Another rendering could be: "He determined everything according to an exact measure" or "He set out an exact measure for everything". No translation of the verse, however, can convey its full meaning which consists. of affirming that God has not only brought into being all that exists in the universe, but that He has also determined the form, size, potentialities, attributes, characteristics, functions as well as the modes and terms of their existence, the limits of their growth and development, and all other details pertaining to them. Moreover, God has created for everything in the universe the means and the resources by dint of which it is able to perform, in its own sphere, the functions assigned to it.

This one verse contains the complete doctrine of tawhid. It belongs to that category of comprehensive Qur'anic verses which succinctly encompass a vast range of subjects. In just a few words it encapsulates a rich treasure store of meaning. According to a hadith, the Prophet (peace be on him) himself taught this verse to every child of his family as soon as he or she was able to speak. (See Abu Bakr Aḥmad ibn Muḥammad ibn al- Sinni, Amal al-Yawm wa al-Laylah', Bab ma yulaqqan al-Ṣabī idhā Afṣaḥa bi al-Kalam', tradition no. 424. See also Ibn Abi Shaybah, al- Musannaf.. Kitab Faḍā'il al-Qur'an'. Bāb fi al-Ṣibyan matā yata'allamun al-Qur'an, Vol. 10, p. 556. (This ḥadīth occurs with reference to Surah Bani Isrā'il. verse 111.) This serves to underscore the fact that the present verse is an excellent means of inculcating the doctrine of tawhid, and every Muslim should impress its content on the minds of his children as soon as they begin to develop consciousness.

9. These are comprehensive words which cover all false gods. They embrace all God's creatures - the angels, the jinn, the Prophets, the saints, the sun and the moon and the planets, and the trees, rivers and animals, all that were set up as deities by human beings despite the fact that they were only God's creatures. At the same time, they also embrace those deities that were contrived by human beings, namely pieces of stone and wood.

10. The essence of the matter is that Allah sent down al-Furqän on His servant so that he might invite people to the Truth (which they had forsaken because of their heedlessness) and to warn them against the evil consequences of the folly into which they had fallen - the folly of setting up deities beside the One True God. God also revealed the Criterion to the Prophet (peace be on him) gradually so that he might make the true distinct from the false, the sound distinct from the counterfeit.

11. An alternative rendering could be: "an act of grave injustice".

12. This is the same objection which contemporary Orientalists raise against the Qur'an. It is intriguing that during the lifetime of the Prophet (peace be on him), none of his enemies ever asserted that he had acquired the substance of his teaching from Buḥayra the monk whom he met in his childhood. Nor did they ever say that he had taken over all his teachings from Christian monks and Jewish rabbis during the trade journeys he made in his youth. This is understandable because they knew that the Prophet (peace be on him) did not undertake those journeys all alone but went along with the caravans. Even if they had levelled such a charge, they would have been refuted by many of their own people who had accompanied the Prophet (peace be on him) on those journeys. Everyone in Makka had seen the Prophet (peace be on him) live in their midst for many years and so they knew him quite well. Hence such a charge would have been violently rejected by the people. For if he had really received all the information from Buḥayra the monk, either when he was only twelve, or thirteen, or twenty-five years old when he went on these trade journeys, then why had no one ever heard anything from him throughout these years about any of the matters which form part of the Qur'ān?

It is for this reason that the Makkan unbelievers did not dare to hurl such a baseless and impudent charge at the Prophet (peace be on him) and this slanderous fabrication was left for the more audacious people of later times. What they said did not concern the pre-Prophetic period of Muḥammad's life, but rather the period that followed his designation as a Prophet. The argument they advanced amounted to the following: Being unlettered, the Prophet (peace be on him) could not possibly have acquired any new information by himself by reading the relevant books, nor had he shown any sign of knowing the things that he preached during the first forty years of his life before he was designated a Prophet. What, then, was the source of his information? They claimed that in such an event the Prophet (peace be on him) must have had recourse to some old books which had been translated for him and were read to him. They contended that it was fragments of these that he had memorised at night and which he subsequently recited to people during the day. It is known from various traditions that certain individuals who were among the relatively more knowledgeable among the People of the Book and who lived in Makka were considered to be the source of the Prophet's scriptural information. They included 'Addās, a freedman of Huwaytib ibn 'Abd al- 'Uzza, Yasar, a freedman of 'Ala' ibn al-Haḍrami, and Jabr, a freedman of 'Amir ibn Rabi'ah.

This is quite a weighty charge. What better objection could there be to the Prophet's claim of receiving revelation from on high than to pinpoint the very persons who were the sources of his information? It seems astonishing that this charge was not even refuted in the Qur'an. Instead, it was simply stated that it was an impudent lie; that the Prophet's detractors were altogether unjust in bringing such a false charge against him because the Qur'an was the Word of God, the Word of Him Who knows all the secrets of the heavens and the earth. Is not it odd that in such a hostile environment this accusation was summarily and contemptuously dismissed without any attempt to refute it? Was it really such a baseless charge that it could be rejected by merely saying that it was a lie and unjust? What is even more astonishing is that after this curt response, no one ever demanded a more detailed response - neither the unbelievers nor the newly converted Muslims. No one said that the charge had not been effectively answered, that it had simply been parried.

The difficulty is solved if we were to bear in mind the milieu in which the detractors of Islam had raised this objection. The following points may be mentioned in this regard.

First, it was not at all difficult for the nobles of Makka, who ruthlessly persecuted the Muslims, to raid the houses of the so-called "assistants", of the Prophet, of those who were allegedly involved in translating certain materials for him. It was not even difficult to raid Muḥammad's (peace be on him) own house. They could easily have seized the relevant texts and placed them before the public in order to show what the true source of the Prophet's Message was. This would not have been at all difficult for those who felt no compunction in dragging the converts of Islam, like Bilal along the blazing sands of the Makkan streets. They could easily have done so because they were hardly bound by any moral code. By seizing those texts they could easily have jeopardised Muḥammad's (peace be on him) Mission for ever. But they did not go to such lengths and resorted instead to mere verbal jibes.

Second, the alleged "assistants" of the Prophet (peace be on him) were not strangers; they were Makkans whose level of learning was known to everyone. Anyone with even an iota of intelligence could tell that what was presented by Muḥammad (peace be on him) as revelation was a unique and sublime message of the highest literary excellence, and that it would have been impossible for his so-called "assistants" to produce anything like it. This is why no one took this charge seriously. Even those who were not acquainted with these so-called "assistants" could at least appreciate that if they really were such literary prodigies, why had they not claimed the credit for this wonderful Book, the Qur'an themselves? Why did they remain in the background and refrain from claiming the credit for their composition of verses of such exquisite beauty?

Third, all the alleged "assistants" were freed slaves who had originally come from abroad and were still attached, as clients, to their former masters. This for the simple reason that in the tribal system that prevailed in Arabia, none could have survived without the protection of an influential tribe. Now, God forbid, if the claim of Muhammad (peace be on him) to be a Prophet was false, those people would not have continued to function as his faithful "assistants". Is it conceivable that they would be sincere companions and reverent devotees of a man who had learned certain things from them at night and had then passed them on to others during the daytime as revelations from God? In such a case, their involvement with the Prophet (peace be on him) could only have been in consideration of some material benefit. But no one with even an iota of rationality can believe that they would have offended their patrons and joined hands with Muḥammad (peace be on him) in a venture which they knew to be a hoax. After all, Muḥammad (peace be on him) was the main target of the wrath of their patrons. Why would they court the animosity of their former masters for the sake of illusory gains that might come from such a person? Moreover, their former masters could always have persecuted them in order to extract confessions from them. Why did they not do so? And why did they not let them tell the public that they were the real people behind this "forged" prophethood? Furthermore, is it credible that those persons, who spent most of their time with the Prophet (peace be on him), would not have known about this forgery, if indeed there was forgery at hand?

It is equally inexplicable for the material of this revelation to have been prepared in this clandestine manner when the likes of Zayd ibn Ḥārithah, 'Ali ibn Abi Talib, Abu Bakr and others who were with the Prophet (peace be on him) most of the time; in other words, they at least would have known about it. And if there was any truth in this charge, how could these men believe in the Prophet (peace be on him) with such fervour and devotion and be willing to incur all kinds of losses and expose themselves to all kinds of dangers for his sake? On account of such reasoning, none during the lifetime of the Prophet (peace be on him) took this charge of forgery seriously. In like manner, presumably, the Qur'an did not respond to this charge in any detail. The charge was merely cited so as to show the extent to which the opponents of Islam were blinded by their hostility to the Truth, and the depths of depravity to which they would stoop in fabricating sheer lies and acting injustices.

13. This is a very meaningful statement in the context in which it has been made. How very Merciful and Forgiving is God Who grants respite even to those who concoct such atrocious lies to oppose the Truth. This statement, however, also contains a nuance of admonition. It says, in effect: "O unjust people, give up your enmity to the Truth and accept it and We shall forgive you for your past misdeeds."

14. It seemed strange to them that God should send a human being as His Messenger, a mortal who like themselves also needed to eat to exist. They thought that if God really wanted to send a human being as His Messenger, such a person should at least have been from among the kings and mighty ones of the world. He should not be someone who walked about the streets as ordinary people do. He should have been beyond the reach of ordinary mortals. After all, who would listen to a man who walked around like ordinary people, and who was devoid of splendour and regalia? In their view, the task of God's Messenger was not so much to provide guidance as to impress people with his pomp and splendour. (For more details see Towards Understanding the Qur'an, Vol. VI, al-Mu'minun, 23: n. 26, p. 92.)

15. If a human being was a Messenger, at least an angel, with a whip in his hand, should have been made his companion so that he could overawe people with his warning: "Obey or else I'll scourge you." It was indeed strange, so they thought, that the Lord of the Universe should appoint an ordinary human being as His Prophet and then leave him alone to helplessly suffer the abuse and persecution of his enemies.

16. If nothing else, God should have at least made some arrangement for the livelihood of His Messenger. How strange then that God's Messenger was worse off than the ordinary nobles of Arabia. He had neither money, nor a garden of whose fruit he could partake, and yet he laid claim to being a Messenger from the Lord of the entire Universe.

17. In other words, "insane". The Arabs thought that there were three possible causes for a person's madness: either he was bewitched by a jinn, he was under the influence of an enemy's magic, or he was under the curse of a god or goddess. From time to time, the Makkan unbelievers so labelled the Prophet (peace be on him). At the same time, they also held him to be a very clever man who had established a bureau where ancient texts were translated to support his enterprise of Prophethood. Not reasoning the folly behind their own contradictory statements, they would sometimes argue that the Prophet (peace be on him) was a magician and in the next breath identify him as someone who was under a magic spell. Additionally they declared him to be a poet.

18. These objections to the claim of Prophethood are not described here in order to refute them. Rather, they are mentioned simply to show the extent of the opponents' blindness which arose from their spite and prejudice. Indeed the charges so made against the Prophet were not even worth refuting. Rather, it was sufficient to mention them in order to demonstrate that they had no logical argument to support their contentions, and that they were opposing a sound and reasonable message with nothing more than vile and stupid statements. When they were told that polytheism, on which their faith and culture rested, was erroneous and devoid of every basis, they made no effort to marshal any rational arguments in support of their beliefs. Instead, they sought to decry the Prophet (peace be on him) by saying that he was a man bewitched. When the Messenger of God (peace be on him) demonstrated that monotheism was the operating principle of the whole universe and when he pointed to the manifest proofs which supported this truth, they merely rebutted his claim by saying that he was no more than a magician: Furthermore, when the Prophet (peace be on him) told them that they had not been created without any end and purpose, and that they were bound to return to their Lord and render an account of their deeds in the Life to Come, and when he advanced an array of rational, moral and historical evidence in support of these truths, they tried to refute him by identifying him as a poet. The Prophet (peace be on him) advised them that he brought a clear and true Message from God, but they did not so much as consider it. Instead, they accused him of plagiarising it. As proofs of his Prophethood, the Messenger of God drew their attention to the miraculous Word of God, to his own unblemished life, to the excellence of his conduct and character, and to the moral transformation that had come about in the lives of his followers under his influence. Yet still they paid no heed. Rather, they would ask him irrational questions, such as follows, in order to support their erroneous standpoint: "Why do you eat? Why do you walk about in the bazaars? Why does not an angel accompany you wherever you go? Why do not you own a treasure or a garden?"

19. Once again the word tabäraka (for its earlier usage see verse 1 above) has been used and the context here indicates that it means: "vast resources and unlimited power". Hence, were God to decide to confer a favour on someone, none could prevent Him from so doing.

20. The word sa'ah means "time" or "hour". With the prefix "al", it refers to that particular moment in the future about which man has been forewarned. (Ibn Manzūr, Lisän al-'Arab, q.v. SW. - Ed.) The Qur'an repeatedly uses this word to denote the promised Hour of Resurrection, when everyone will be raised from the dead and will be gathered before the Almighty Who will judge them according to their beliefs and actions and Who will then either reward or punish them.

21. These objections were not raised because of any reasonable doubt they entertained about the authenticity of the Qur'an. Nor were they based on their conviction that certain freed-slaves had indeed vouchsafed the Qur'an to the Prophet (peace be on him). It was not that they did not believe in his Prophethood simply because he ate and walked about in the bazaars. It was also not the case that they were inclined to disbelieve him because they did not see an angel accompanying him or because he did not possess any treasure.

None of these represented the true reason behind their negative attitude. The true reason, however, was that they did not believe in the Hereafter and, hence, they did not take the whole question of Truth and falsehood seriously. For, when one denies the Hereafter, there is no need to earnestly search for the Truth. No wonder, then, that the unbelievers resorted to absurd arguments so as to deny the Truth of the Prophet's Message. They had no concept of Life after Death, the Life in which they would be made to appear before God and account for their deeds. Rather, they believed that after this ephemeral life they would simply die and their bodies would crumble to the same end. Thus, everyone, whether idol-worshipper or a true devotee of God, would be reduced to dust and nothing would matter after death. So what difference did belief or disbelief make?

The only criterion they accepted to distinguish between right and wrong was a person's success or failure in this worldly life. Such worldly success or failure, they observed, was not inexorably contingent upon a person's having faith and being possessed of good conduct. They saw, instead, that the atheists, the fire-worshippers, the followers of Jesus and Moses, the worshippers of idols and stars, were all subject, from time to time, to spells of fortune and misfortune, of prosperity and adversity. They also observed that there was no religion whose followers were immune to misfortune or, conversely, whose deniers were uniformly condemned to misfortune. They also observed that the righteous and the wicked did not consistently meet with a good and evil end respectively. One person might enjoy the bounties of life and another might suffer for his or her misdeeds. One righteous person might be living a life of hardship while another might have attained notable prestige and esteem among his fellow men. Hence, as far as worldly success is concerned, those who disbelieve in the Hereafter are not sure as to which faith or moral code is right. Therefore, they neither pay much heed to nor take seriously a call to faith no matter how convincing its supporting arguments might be.

22. The statement: "When it [i.e. the Blazing Fire] sees them from a place afar" could be either metaphorical or literal. In a metaphorical sense it would mean something similar to: "The minarets of the mosque are observing you." Literally, it would seem to suggest that the Fire will be invested with the ability to perceive. In other words, the Fire of Hell will not be bereft of consciousness like the fire of this world. Therefore, it will not burn indiscrimately, but rather burn only those who deserve to be burned.

23. The Qur'anic expression wa'dan mas'ulan means a promise whose fulfilment can be asked for.

At this point one may well ask: How can the promise of Paradise, and the threat of Hell be effective against those who deny the Day of Judgement, and who reject accountability. At first glance, the Qur'ānic statement made here may appear irrelevant and out of context. Yet if one ponders on it a little, the logic of the statement would become obvious. If one were trying to convince an opponent about one's beliefs, one would use a certain line of argument. But if this were not the case and all one sought to do was ask others to consider a doctrine from the vantage-point of their own interests, even the most stubborn of its opponents are likely to pay attention to it. Here recourse is made to this second kind of reasoning.

The core of the statement runs something as follows: if there is no definite proof of Life after Death, then there is also no definite proof to refute it. At most, one can say that both the existence and non-existence of Life after Death lie within the range of possibilities. If a person who does not believe in the Hereafter were to die and become dust, just like the one who believes in the Hereafter, then both would, ultimately, end up the same. But, if what the Prophet (peace be on him) was saying was true, then the one who did not believe in the Hereafter was totally doomed.

Such a line of argument can easily make a dent in the stubbornness of the unbelievers. The, opening that it creates gradually develops into a vast chasm whereby the entire scenario of the Day of Resurrection - the bringing together of all mankind and their standing before God to account for their lives, and Heaven and Hell is vividly portrayed as if it were an eyewitness account. (For more details see Tafhim al-Qur'ān, Vol. VI, Ḥā Mīm al-Sajdah 41:52, n. 69. See also al-Ahqaf 46:10.)

24. Here the word "deities" does not mean idols, as the discourse which follows would indicate. Rather, it means the angels, the Prophets, the martyrs and the pious persons whom the polytheists of different communities had set up as objects of worship. Apparently the expression wa ma ta'budūn refers to idols because in Arabic mã is generally used for non-rational beings whereas the word man is used for those who possess the faculty of reasoning. Since the comparison here is between choosing Allah or His creatures as deities, mā has been used instead of man because even the angels and the most pious, notwithstanding their worldly rank and status, obviously amount to nothing when compared with God.

25. We encounter this theme on numerous occasions in the Qur'an. For example, it is said in Surah Saba': "On the Day when He will gather them all together and say to the angels: 'Did these people worship you?' They will say: 'Glory be to You! You are our Protector not they; they in fact worshipped the jinns [i.e., Satan]. Most of them believed in them"" (34:40-1). Likewise, it is said in Surah al-Ma'idah: "And imagine when thereafter Allah will say, 'Jesus, son of Mary, did you say to people: "Take me and my mother for gods beside Allah?" and he will answer: "Glory to You! It was not for me to say what I had no right to ... I said to them nothing except what You commanded me, that is: 'Serve Allah, my Lord and your Lord"" (5:115-17).

26. They were an ungrateful and mean people. God gave them the provisions necessary for life so that they would show gratitude to Him, but they became thankless and ignored all the good counsels given to them by the Prophets.

27. On the Day of Resurrection, the religion of the unbelievers will prove to be false. Their deities whom they are sure will intercede with God on their behalf will not do so; in fact they will bear witness against them. These deities will seek their own acquittal and contend that the unbelievers themselves were responsible for their own errors. They will contend that they neither asked anyone to consider them as deities, nor required offerings to be made to them, nor had they promised anyone that they would intercede with God on their behalf. Contrary to their fancies, the unbelievers have no assurance from any angel or saint in this world and they will not be able to produce any such promise on the Day of Resurrection. Rather, the deities they themselves have set up will deny such beliefs in the unbelievers' very own presence.

28. "Wrong" here means the wrong done to Reality and Truth - that is, the wrongfulness of disbelief and of associating others with God in His Divinity. The context shows that it is those who did not believe in the Prophet (peace be on him) and took as their gods others than the One True God, and who denied the Hereafter that are declared to be guilty of committing a grave wrong.

29. This is a rejoinder, to the objection made by the unbelievers of Makka who would ask what kind of Prophet is this who eats and walks about in the bazaars?

It may be recalled that the Makkan unbelievers not only knew about Noah, Abraham, Ishmael, Moses and several other Prophets, but they also believed in their Prophethood. Hence, why they are here being asked to explain why they object to Muḥammad (peace be on him) on the grounds that he ate and walked about in the bazaars. For according to the Gospels, even Jesus whom the Christians had taken as the son of God (and whose image the Makkan unbelievers had placed in the Ka'bah), ate like any other mortal as also walked about the bazaars. (See Bible, Mark 2:15-17).

30. The Messenger and the believers are a means by which to test the unbelievers, and vice versa. The unbelievers persecuted the believers relentlessly, but in the end this stance only served to further the cause of Islam. For after the believers had successfully passed through the crucible of persecution, the Prophet (peace be on him) and his sincere followers would have been transmuted into pure, solid gold. As for those of his followers whose Faith had any element of insincerity, they would fail the test of adversity. In this way, only those who were sincere in their Faith, would remain with the Prophet (peace be on him). They would, thus, become a force against whom no power could stand its ground. It is evident that but for the fierce persecution to which the Prophet (peace be on him) and his followers were exposed, all kinds of people might have gathered around him. In such an eventuality, the community of Muslims would not have become as strong and powerful as it did.

On the other hand, the Prophet (peace be on him) and the believers also served as a test for the unbelievers. As we know, the Prophet (peace be on him) was, in the material sense of the term, an ordinary person among them who had suddenly been elevated to the rank of Prophet. This, combined with the fact that the Prophet (peace be on him) was not backed by either a powerful army or abundant wealth or for that matter by any. other extraordinary thing except the Word of God and his own noble character, was also significant. Likewise, was the fact that most of those who believed in the Prophet (peace be on him) during the early years of his mission were either poor, slaves, or people of tender age. These were the people whom God seemed virtually to have left without any mentionable support in the midst of a pack of wolves. Had the Prophet (peace be on him) been endowed with worldly power and glory, or had his followers easy access to abundant wealth, the rich and mighty of the world would have rushed to join hands with this powerful potentate and those sincere devotees of Truth would have been pushed behind the scenes.

31. Once the underlying wisdom behind making the unbelievers a test for the believers and vice versa is grasped, the believers should be patient and appreciate that the hardships to which they are exposed are a very useful way of achieving the lofty purpose for which they are working. They would then be ready to face tests of even greater magnitude.

32. This carries two meanings, and perhaps both are meant. First, that whatever God does, He does according to a considered plan rather than arbitrarily. Second, that God is well aware of the believers' sincerity and devotion in pursuing the difficult and arduous mission of Islam. God is also aware of the excesses to which the believers are subjected. The overall hostility characterising the attitude of the unbelievers towards them is also fully in God's knowledge. Hence the believers should feel assured that they will receive full recognition and appreciation from God, whereas the unbelievers will not be able to escape punishment for their excesses.

33. The unbelievers argued that if God really wanted His Message to be conveyed effectively, it was not enough to just choose a person as a Prophet and send an angel to him with His Message. Instead, God should have sent an angel to him with the charge that he convey God's Guidance to each person individually. Or, at least, a delegation of angels should have come to convey God's Message publicly.

It is pertinent to recall that the same objection was mentioned in Surah al- An'am: "Whenever there comes to them a sign from Allah they say: 'We will not believe until we are given what was given to the Messengers of Allah.' Allah knows best where to place His Message" (6:124).

34. In other words, God should appear before them in person and make a public appeal to them to submit to His Guidance.

35. Another translation could be: "They considered themselves to be persons of great import".

36. This idea appears in greater detail in Surah al-An'ām 6:8; and Surah al- Hijr 15:7-8 and 51-64. (In Surah Bani Isrā'īl 17:90–5, we find it along with several other strange demands made by the unbelievers whereafter the matter was explained. They are told to submit to God for so long as the present order of the universe remains intact and that if human beings were to come face to face with angels their arrival would spell the unbelievers' doom - Ed.)

37. For an explanation, see Towards Understanding the Qur'an, Vol. IV, Ibrāhīm, 14: nn. 25-6, pp. 262-3.

38. On the Day of Judgement, those who deserve Paradise will be treated differently from those who are sinners. The former will be treated with deference and will be protected from the scorching hardship of the Last Day. As for the latter, they will meet with all manner of hardship. According to one ḥadīth, the Prophet (peace be on him) said: "By Him in Whose Hand is my life [the long and awesome Day of Judgement] will be made lighter for the believer than the time [needed] for offering an obligatory Prayer in this world." (Aḥmad ibn Hanbal, Musnad, on the authority of Abu Sa'id al- Khudri. See Vol. 3, p. 75. - Ed.)

39. In the Next Life, all the pomp and glory, and power and wealth which delude people in the present life will come to an end. There, only one kingdom will endure and that will be the kingdom of God, the true Sovereign of the entire Universe. It has been stated in Surah al-Mu'min: "On that Day they will stand exposed and nothing will be hidden from Allah. [It will then be asked]: 'Whose is sovereignty today?' [The response from everywhere will be:] "Allah's, the One, the Omnipotent" (40:16). One ḥadīth further elucidates this point. The Prophet (peace be on him) said: "God will hold the heavens in one Hand and the earth in the Other, and say: 'I am the Sovereign, I am the Dominant Ruler. Where are the sovereigns of the earth? Where are the tyrants? Where are the vainglorious?"" (Aḥmad ibn Hanbal, Musnad, Bukhārī, Muslim and Abū Dā'ūd have all reported this with slight variations in wording.) (Bukhārī, 'K. Tafsir Surat al-Zumar'. 'Bab Qawlihi: wa ma qadaru Allah haqqa qadrihi'; Muslim, 'K. Ṣifat al-Munafiqin wa Aḥkāmihim'; 'K. Şifat al- Qiyamah wa al-Jannah wa al-Nar'. Abū Dā'ūd, 'K. al-Sunnah, Bab Fī al- Radd 'ala al-Jahmiyah', Aḥmad ibn Hanbal, Musnad, Vol. 2, p. 72.)

40. Maybe this is a part of the unbeliever's lament. Alternatively, it may be God's response to the unbeliever's statement in which case the appropriate translation would be: "Satan is indeed a betrayer of man."

41. The Arabic word mahjur has more than one meaning. Taken as a derivative of hajr, it means that which is ignored. (Ibn Manzur, Lisän al- 'Arab, q.v. H JR - Ed.) In this sense of the word, the verse would mean that the unbelievers will be blamed for not regarding the Qur'an as worthy of due attention. They neither accepted the Qur'an, nor allowed themselves to be influenced by it: Alternatively, if mahjür is taken as a derivative of hujr, it means (i) that they considered the Qur'an to be a delirious discourse, a nonsense; and (ii) that they made it the target of their ridicule and mockery.

42. The Prophet (peace be on him) is told that the unbelievers' enmity towards him is nothing new. The unbelievers had always been inimical to the Prophets. Whenever any Prophet called people to the Truth, the evil- doers of the time ganged up in opposition. The same point is made in Surah al-An'am 6:12-13.

The statement, "Thus did We make for every Prophet enemies from among those immersed in evil", means that this is the Divine Law. Hence, one ought to be patient and face the inevitable adversities with a cool head and firm determination. Moreover, one should do so without expecting that hosts of people will rush forward to embrace the Truth and that the evil-doers will hasten to repent and instantly take the fealty.

43. To say that God is the Guide does not simply mean that He grants people knowledge of the Truth. It also means that He provides directives by means of which the Islamic movement is enabled to function properly. He also gives timely Guidance to the Islamic movement so that it is able to defeat the designs of its enemies.

In like manner, to say that God is the Helper means that God provides every kind of help to the believers. No matter how many fronts are opened in the battle between Truth and falsehood, God provides help in each respect. If it is a matter of altercation, God assists the believers with persuasive arguments. If it is a battle to determine a superior moral stature, God helps the believers by endowing them with excellent moral qualities. If the believers' victory is contingent upon unity in their ranks, God unites their hearts and causes dissension in the ranks of the votaries of falsehood. If it is a battle requiring of manpower, God aids His devotees by providing them with suitably qualified people. If material resources are needed, God blesses the scant resources of the believers and makes them ample. In short, God's Help and Guidance is always sufficient for the believers; they have no need for any other assistance. The only requirement in this regard is that the believers should have full Faith and absolute trust in God. Then, instead of sitting idle, they will do their utmost in their encounter against falsehood in order to make Truth prevail.

Note that without the second part of the statement, the first part would have been very discouraging for the Prophet (peace be on him). For what could have been more disheartening for someone than to learn that he had been entrusted with a task which would arouse fierce opposition and enmity? But the dread that such a Message might inspire is removed by God's assurance that He will provide help and support in the battle that will ensue. What would be more inspiring for the believers than to know that God Himself undertakes to provide all possible Help and Guidance to them? After such an assurance, only those who are weak in Faith and faint-hearted would hesitate to enter the fray.

44. This was the Makkan unbelievers' favourite objection which they repeated over and over again. The Qur'an also mentions this in several places and then refutes it. (See Towards Understanding the Qur'an, Vol. IV, al-Nahl 16: nn. 101-6, pp. 363-70.) The objection, couched in the form of a query, contended that if the Qur'an was not fabricated by the Prophet (peace be on him) with the help of others, and if it was not copied or translated from other works, then why did God not send down the whole Book all at once? Since the whole Book would be in God's knowledge - if it really were He Who sent it down - why was it dispatched over such a long time? For the unbelievers, this seemed a self-evident proof that the Qur'an was a forgery.

45. An alternative translation could be: "So that We may strengthen your heart by it" or "encourage you by it". The words of the verse suggest both meanings. Thus, in one sentence many good considerations underlying the piecemeal revelation of the Qur'an were explained. The reasons for this mode of revelation being as follows:

(i) This manner of revelation made it possible for people to retain the Qur'an in their memory, word for word. This was necessary for it was sent down in the form of a verbal discourse through an unlettered Messenger; a Revealed Guidance addressed primarily to an illiterate people.

(ii) In order to make the teachings of the Qur'an fully comprehensible it was imperative to impart it slowly, in small instalments. These often conveyed the same idea but employed a variety of expressions. (iii) This mode of revelation also made it possible for people to become firmly convinced about the way of life that the Qur'an expounded. If the commandments and the entire way of life prescribed by Islam were to be revealed all at once along with a requirement that they be put into effect, this could have left people baffled. Moreover, if an injunction is revealed at the proper moment in response to an actual problem of life, that injunction is more likely to be understood along with its true spirit and underlying wisdom. (iv) This mode of revelation was also adopted in order to strengthen the hearts of the believers who were engaged in the struggle between

Truth and falsehood. It was, thus, more effective to receive Messages from God at intervals rather than to receive the whole Book all at once which would have left them unaided against the onslaught of opposition and hostility. The manner in which the Qur'an was actually revealed makes a person feel that God has not forgotten him; that He is right there beside him, watching him, guiding him through the difficulties that he faces, providing him with counsel at each critical moment, and honouring him by constantly attending to him and addressing him. This provides encouragement and strengthens the nerve of those to whom the revelation was primarily addressed.

46. This provides yet another reason for the gradual revelation of the Qur'an. God did not desire to write a book on the subject of Guidance and then have it published through the agency of a Prophet. If that had been the plan, the demand made by the unbelievers that the whole book should have been given to the Prophet in one go would have been reasonable. But the reason behind revealing the Qur'an was quite different. God revealed the Qur'an because He desired that a movement be launched against Ignorance, disbelief and transgression - a movement which sought to promote the true Faith, to promote obedience to and fear of God. It is for this purpose that He raised a Prophet so that he might become the herald and leader of that movement. God took it upon Himself to guide both the leader and the followers of this movement and to clarify any objections raised by its opponents and to elucidate and explain any doubts and misperceptions which arose.

The Qur'an is nothing but the collection of God's own Words spoken for all these reasons. It should be clear, however, that this is not a text-book of philosophy, ethics or constitution, but a Book which seeks to guide the Islamic movement. The most natural way for the Book to come into existence was that it appear at the time the movement was launched and that it be able to guide its followers through its various phases with revelations that were sent down as and when needed. (For further elaboration see Towards Understanding the Qur'an, Vol. I, pp. 7-17.)

47. Those who misconstrue a straightforward message and derive from it meanings that are quite contrary to its true meaning and purpose are those whose minds are warped. They are those who distort the evident facts which testify to the Truth of the Qur'an and who strain instead to show them as evidence of its falsity. It is precisely for this reason that they will be dragged upon their faces through Hell.

48. Here "the Book" most probably does not refer to the Torah which was given to Moses after the Israelites' exodus from Egypt. It refers, instead, to the whole body of Guidance which was given to Moses after his designation as a Prophet until the exodus. These include the statements made by Moses in Pharaoh's court and the various instructions given to him by God during his struggle with Pharaoh. These are mentioned several times in the Qur'an. But presumably, these are not included in the Torah which begins with the Ten Commandments that were given to Moses on stone tablets on Mount Sinai. (For the Ten Commandments see the Bible, Exodus 20:1-17; Deuteronomy 5:6-21.)

49. This is an allusion to the verses which had reached those people through the Prophets Jacob and Joseph (peace be on them) and which continued to be preached by pious Israelites.

50. Note that Noah's people rejected the very idea that a human being could be raised as a Messenger. Hence, when they denied his Prophethood, it was not simply a denial of Noah but a rejection of the institution of Prophethood itself.

51. This refers to the chastisement to which they will be subjected in the Hereafter.

52. It has not been fully established who "the people of Rass" were. (See Ibn Manzur, Lisan al-'Arab' q.v. RSS - Ed.) Different Qur'ānic commentators refer to different traditions about them, but they do not provide any definitive information as to who they were. The most that one can say is that they were a people who had slain their Prophet by casting him into, or hanging him over, a well. It is also worth noting that in Arabic the word rass literally means an old or dry well.

53. This refers to the habitation of the Prophet Lot. As for the "evil rain", this is the rain of stones which is mentioned on many occasions in the Qur'ān. (See for instance Hūd 11:82, al-Hijr 15:74, al-Shu'ara' 26:173.) The trade caravans from the Hijaz used to pass by this site en route to Palestine and Syria. They would not only observe these ruins during their journeys but also hear from the local inhabitants narratives about the tragic events leading to the annihilation of the people of Lot.

54. Since they did not believe in the Hereafter, they did not learn any lesson from observing those archaeological sites which exemplified the punishment meted out to some of the iniquitous nations of the past. Those who believe in the Hereafter learn a moral lesson from their observations and from these are led to insights about realities that lie beyond the present life. Those who do not believe in the Hereafter observe the ruins of the nations of ancient times simply as spectators and are either entertained by what they see or, at most, are able to weave historical narratives on the basis of their observations.

55. These two statements made by the unbelievers contradict themselves. The first gives vent to a contemptuous attitude towards the Prophet (peace be on him), and suggests that he claimed for himself a position and status higher than what he warranted. The second, however, betrays that whilst they, themselves, were being swayed by the force of the arguments and the moral strength of the Prophet's personality, their prejudice and adamance nonetheless prompted them to hold on to their idol-worship. These contradictory statements are an obvious proof that the Islamic movement had pulled the rug from under the unbelievers' feet. As a result, they were so bewildered that even when they sought to mock, their tongues involuntarily said things which betrayed how overawed they were by the power and moral superiority of Islam's Message.

56. To deify one's carnal desires means to worship those desires, just as one worships an idol or takes some creature as one's deity. Abū Umamah reports that the Prophet (peace be on him) said: "Of all the false gods that are worshipped on earth, the worst in God's sight is one's carnal self". (See Tabarani, al-Mu'jam al-Kabir, Vol. 8, ḥadīth no. 7502. For more details see: Towards Understanding the Qur'an, Vol. V, al-Kahf, 18:51, n. 50, p. 113.)

The person who keeps his desires under the control of reason and who decides in its light, what is right and what is wrong can be expected to revert to the Right Way even if he were to slide into polytheism or disbelief. Such a person can also be expected to firmly keep to the Straight Path after consciously opting for it. But the person who is a slave of his carnal desires is like an unfettered animal who moves in whichever direction his desires prompt him. Essentially, he is not interested in distinguishing between Truth and falsehood, between right and wrong. So who can persuade him to commit himself to the Truth? Even if he were to accept the Truth, there is no guarantee he would maintain himself by it.

57. Cattle do not know whether they are being driven towards a pasture or a slaughter house. The same is true of most people: they continue moving ahead under the influence of the satan within them - the satan of desire - and under the influence of their leaders who are wont to misguide them so that they do not know whether they are being driven towards their success or destruction. Woe to such people, for unlike the cattle, they have been endowed with reason and the ability to think and judge for themselves. Hence, their state is worse than that of cattle.

Let it be clear that this verse is not meant for the Prophet (peace be on him), for if it were, it would mean that the Prophet (peace be on him) was being asked to desist in his efforts to convey his Message to the unbelievers. Rather, the verse is meant for the unbelievers. It asks the unbelievers to waken from their state of negligence and heedlessness and to change their ways which are like those of dumb driven cattle. This they should do for they have been endowed with the ability to think and to reason.

58. The word dalil has been used here in exactly the same sense in which the word "pilot" is used in English. In seafaring terminology, dalil is the person who guides the boats. To say that the sun is a dalīl of the shade means that the lengthening and shortening of the shade is dependent on the rise and decline of the sun. 'Shade', here denotes the state between light and darkness, the state that we observe before sunrise, or which we find during the day by the side of buildings or under trees.

59. To "roll up that shade unto Us" means to cause a thing to vanish, to drive it out of existence, for whatever vanishes or becomes extinct returns to God. From Him everything issues and to Him everything ultimately returns.

There are two levels of meaning in this verse. In its exoteric sense, it is addressed to the unbelievers who are immersed in heedlessness and negligence and it tells them: If you had not been living like cattle and if you had even carefully observed the movement of the shade you would have realised that the Message of the Oneness of God which the Prophet (peace be on him) has brought to you is true. Your own lives depend on the lengthening and shortening of the shade. Now, had the shade been made permanent, no life or vegetation would have been left on earth for life's continuation requires both the heat and the light of the sun. In like manner, were there to be no shade, there would be no life. Constant exposure to the light and heat of the sun would kill everything. No living being or vegetation would have survived perpetual sunshine; and water too would have vanished. Additionally, were there to be dramatic changes so that sunshine and shade suddenly alternated with one another, this too would not have allowed life to continue. So it is the Creator and the Lord Who by dint of His infinite Power and Wisdom has established such a sustained correlation between the earth and the sun that each moves strictly in its orbit, and shade gradually passes through the phases of lengthening and shortening, and sunshine too gradually increases and decreases. This delicate system could not have come into existence by itself, nor could it have been the outcome of the blind working of nature. Nor could it have continued with such precision had there been a multiplicity of gods each endowed with some degree of power and authority.

Behind this apparent meaning there is a further subtle undertone which suggests that the present dark shade of ignorance and unbelief will not endure. The sun of guidance has appeared in the person of Muḥammad (peace be on him) and although the dark shade apparently embraces a vast territory, it is bound to be rolled up as the sun of guidance rises. One needs, however, to be patient because God's Law does not bring about sudden changes. In the physical world we see that both the sun rises and the shade shrinks slowly. The same will happen in the realm of thought, belief and morality: as the sun of guidance slowly rises, the dark shade of error will begin to shrink slowly and will gradually disappear.

60. The term "garment" denotes that which covers and hides.

61. This verse contains three meanings. First, it is an argument in support of tawhid. Second, it has recourse to common human observation and experience to prove that Life after Death is possible. Third, it is a subtle hint to the tidings that the night of ignorance has come to its end, and that the bright day of knowledge, guidance and wisdom has risen. Hence, it is now inevitable that all those who are presently in slumber will sooner or later wake up, all except those whose sleep is the sleep of death. However, those who fail to wake up will suffer loss, for the business of the day will continue, without them.

62. That is, God sends water from the sky which is free from impurities, harmful elements, and germs. It cleans and purifies whatever it comes into contact with, and also serves as a source of life and nourishment for humans, animals and plants.

63. This verse also carries the same three aspects of meanings as the preceding verse. It furnishes arguments for tawhid and the Hereafter. It also contains a subtle suggestion to the effect that the time of ignorance was, in fact, a time of famine and drought in which humanity was struck by barrenness. God has now sent down the clouds of Mercy through Prophethood and the pure water of revelation has begun to pour down. If not all, then at least a great many of God's creatures will benefit from this.

64. La-qad ṣarrafnāhu ("We present this wondrous phenomenon to them over and over") has three possible interpretations. First, that God has repeatedly mentioned rainfall in the Qur'an as the cause of the resurrection of the land that had become dead to drive home certain truths to them. Second, that God shows, over and over, the wondrous results of the interplay of heat and drought, and of cloud and rain which causes life to bloom in all its splendour. Third, that God constantly keeps the rainfall rotating. Sometimes He sends it down in one place in abundance, sometimes in just the right quantity, and sometimes He does not send any rain at all, and sometimes He sends down water in huge quantities, causing floods. All of these give rise to diverse results.

65. There are three aspects to this verse. As an argument for tawhid, it invites the unbelievers to ponder over the whole system of rainfall. Even this simple phenomenon provides so many proofs of God's existence, of His different attributes, and of His being the only Lord of the Universe that nothing else is needed to persuade people to believe in the message of tawhid brought by the Prophet (peace be on him). However, despite the repeated invitation to reflect on this Message and despite the fact that the people frequently witness this wondrous system of water distribution throughout the world, they learn no lesson from their observations. Nor are they persuaded to believe in the Truth and Reality. Nor are they thankful for the cognitive abilities that God has granted them nor for the favour that the Qur'an explains to them whatever had eluded their understanding.

In its second aspect, the verse furnishes an argument for the Hereafter. Considered in this context, it explains to the unbelievers several observable realities: every year they observe the death of many plants and insects and small creeping animals due to heat and drought. This is followed by their rebirth as a result of rainfall. Yet even after observing this, they remain. adamant in their rejection and disbelief and continue to hold the After-Life as impossible. They also continue to be thankless for God's endowment of reason and understanding. Nor do they gratefully respond to the Truth even though God has adequately imparted it to them and duly reminded them of their duty towards it.

The third aspect of the verse associates drought with ignorance and rain with Revelation and Prophethood. Seen in this context, the verse means that whenever humanity was bereft of the blessings of Divine Books and Prophets, it became barren and devoid of lofty ideals and a wholesome body of morals derived from that source. Conversely, whenever mankind turned to revelation and Divine Guidance, human life blossomed, ignorance was replaced with knowledge, injustice with justice and immorality with the observance of moral virtues.

The coming of the Prophets has always been of immense benefit to mankind. It has always heralded a new era characterised by righteousness and has inspired a revolution in the moral and intellectual life of society. Never in human history has the coming of a Prophet led to any evil. On the contrary, humanity has always suffered by ignoring and denying the Message of the Prophets. This is a truth which is well borne out by history and the Qur'an repeatedly asserts it. But even though this Truth is testified to by thousands of years of human history, the unbelievers continue to deny it. Not surprisingly, the same happened in Arabia. When the people of Arabia were blessed with a Prophet and a Divine Book, instead of being grateful to God they seemed bent on remaining ungrateful to Him.

66. It was not beyond God's power to do so. Had He so willed, He would have raised a Prophet in every nook and corner of the world. But He did not do so and instead raised a Prophet for the whole world. Just like one sun is enough for the whole earth, this one sun of guidance was deemed sufficient for the whole of humanity.

67. The "mighty striving" mentioned in this verse has three connotations: (i) to exert one's utmost, sparing no effort; (ii) to launch a vigorous struggle to which all one's resources are devoted; and (iii) to engage in a pervasive striving in which one leaves nothing to chance but to which one pays attention to all its fronts devoting one's available resources. "Mighty striving", thus, means to fight the enemy on all fronts in order to raise the banner of Truth regardless of whether that involves fighting with the pen or the tongue, fighting with one's wealth or life. Such a fight is not confined to but does include armed struggle.

68. This happens wherever a larger river flows into the sea. There are springs of sweet water at several locations in different seas where the sweet water remains separate from the salty water of the sea. Sayyidi 'Ali Ra'īs, a Turkish admiral of the sixteenth century, mentions in his work. Mir'at al-Mamālik, one such place in the Persian Gulf. He writes that he found springs of sweet water under the salty water of the sea and drew drinking water from them for his fellow sailors. In more recent times, when the Arabian American Oil Company began drilling oil wells in Saudi Arabia, they used the water of the same springs of the Persian Gulf as drinking water until the wells in the vicinity of Dhahran were dug. Also, near Bahrain, there are springs of sweet water under the sea from which people have drawn upon for ages.

This verse identifies this wondrous manifestation of God's omnipotence as evidence of His Unicity. But there is an additional, albeit more subtle, meaning implicit in the verse too. No matter how bitter and salty the ocean of human society may become, God can always produce a righteous group of people in the same manner that He can produce a spring of sweet water in the depths of a salty ocean. This spring of sweet water cannot be gulped down by the waves of salty water no matter what.

69. That is to say, it was enough of a wonder to create human beings out of a mean and abject drop of liquid. But wonder upon wonders, God created not one but two kinds of human beings - male and female. They are similar insofar as the nature of each is human, but different' in their physiological and psychological characteristics. Furthermore, the differences that exist between the two, instead of making them mutually opposed in fact make them into complementary entities characterising mutual harmony and consonance. It is by the union between these two that God has created millions of men and women who are bound to each other in relationships ranging from spouses to children to grandchildren and to in-laws. Additionally, God has created unifying bonds among them in such a way as gives rise to races, civilisations and empires. There is also a subtle point here which hints at the wisdom behind the interplay of the opposites in the universe. The fact that results are obtained by the union of opposites should strengthen the believers' hearts by reminding them that opposition to their message will eventually lead to some positive result.

70. Wherever efforts are made to exalt the Word of God and to put His Law into effect, the unbelievers always oppose such efforts; they are the rebels against God. If someone tries to do something in accordance with the Law of God, the unbelievers resist, discourage and oppose such efforts even if it be no more than raising their brow in displeasure. Every news of disobedience to God brings them joy; conversely, every news of obedience hits them like an arrow.

71. It is not part of the Prophet's task to reward the believers or to punish the unbelievers. A Prophet is not appointed to force people to believe. His responsibility is no more than to give good tidings to those who would accept the Truth and warn those who would adamantly persist in their evil ways, thereby inviting God's punishment.

Wherever such things are mentioned in the Qur'an, the real addressees are the unbelievers. Verses such as these are meant to drive home to them that a Prophet is merely a selfless reformer whose only task is to convey God's Message to people and to inform them of the good and bad consequences of their deeds. God does not force people to accept His Message. If people believe, it will be to their own good; if they do not, it is they who will suffer the loss. Their attitudes, no matter what they might be, will not harm the Prophet for he has done his duty and now the matter rests between each individual and God.

Sometimes confusion arises when people fail to understand that the Prophet's (peace be on him) duty towards the Muslims too is no more than to simply convey God's Message and to announce good tidings. The Qur'an, however, repeatedly states that the role of the Prophet (peace be on him) in respect of the Muslims is not only that of a warner and bearer of good tidings, but also that he guides them, teaches them, purifies their lives and serves as their role model. He is also their magistrate, their judge and ruler whose command they are required to follow. Every command that he pronounces has the force of law which they should accept cheerfully. Hence, anyone who defines the relationship between the Prophet (peace be on him) and the Muslims in light of those verses which state that he "is bound only to deliver the Message" (for example, al-Ma'idah 5:99) or such as the present one which identifies him only as "a bearer of good tidings and a warner" is altogether mistaken.

71(a). For more details see Towards Understanding the Qur'an. Vol. VI, al- Mu'minün 23: n. 70, pp. 115-16.

72. For more details about God's ascension of His Throne see Towards Understanding the Qur'an, Vol. III, al-A'raf 7: nn. 41-2, pp. 33-4; Vol. IV, Yūnus, 10: n. 4, p. 7, and Hüd, 11: n. 7, pp. 82-3.

This verse, where the creation of the heavens and the earth in six days is mentioned belongs to that category of ambiguous verses (mutashābihāt) and it is difficult to ascertain its true meaning. Perhaps the word "day" signifies a whole period of time, or denotes the same amount of time as we presently understand. (For more details see Tafhim al-Qur'an, Vol. IV, Ḥā Mim al-Sajdah 41: nn. 11-15.)

73. They said this in insolent playfulness and in a stubbornness rooted in staunch disbelief. This resembles Pharaoh's query to Moses: "Who is the Lord of the universe?" For quite evidently the Makkan unbelievers were not unaware of al-Rahman (the Merciful One) which the present query might be considered to imply, nor was Pharaoh unaware of the Lord of the Universe.

Some Qur'anic commentators have explained this statement by saying that use of the word al-Rahman for God was not wide spread among the Arabs at that time and hence why this query was raised. The tone of the verse indicates that the objection was not raised because of lack of knowledge but rather from defiance. For had the former been the case, God would not have chastised them for it; rather, He would have gently informed them that al-Rahman was one of His names. Besides, historically it is known that the word al-Raḥmān for God was commonly used among the Arabs from ancient times. (For more details see Tafhim al-Qur'an, Vol. IV, al-Sajdah 32: n. 5 and Saba' 34: n. 35.)

74. Scholars are agreed that anyone who recites or hears this verse recited should prostrate themselves. Prostration is enjoined here even though it is not considered obligatory. It is also a Sunnah that when one hears this verse one should say: "Zādanā Allāhu khuḍūʻan mā zāda li al- a'dā' nufüran" ("May Allah cause humility to grow in proportion to the growth of repugnance in the enemies"). (See Qurtubi, Tafsir, comments on Surah al-Furqan 25:60 - Ed.)

75. For more details see Towards Understanding the Qur'an, Vol. IV, al-Hijr 15: nn. 8-12, pp. 284-6.

76. This alludes to the sun. That the sun has been made a lamp is explicitly stated in Surah Nuḥ 71:16: "And He made the sun a lamp."

77. These are two intrinsically different but inter-related states. The first result of reflecting on the alternation of day and night is that one should believe in the Unicity of God and, if one had been oblivious of God this reflection should act as a reminder. The second result of such reflection is that one should become conscious of God's absolute and unbounded Lordship and this should generate feelings of gratitude and humility towards Him.

78. All human beings are born servants of the Merciful One and they are called to prostrate themselves before Him. Many, however, fail to respond to this call. His true servants, though do respond by consciously submitting to God and striving to develop desirable qualities in themselves. The good effects of this prostration manifests itself in believers' lives. Likewise, the evil effects of rejecting the call to prostrate before God become manifest in the unbelievers' lives.

Here a comparison is drawn between two modes of conduct. The first emerged in the lives of the followers of Muḥammad (peace be on him) while the second was prevalent among those who stubbornly followed the traditions of the Jahiliyah.

There is subtlety in the manner in which this comparison is made: only the characteristics of the believers are mentioned while the conduct of the unbelievers is left for discerning eyes and minds to ponder upon, their manner being abundantly visible.

79. True servants of God do not strut about arrogantly like haughty tyrants. On the contrary their gait is gentle, the gait of noble and upright people. However, the gait of the "gentle" does not mean the gait of the weak or sickly, nor the gait of the hypocrites who adopt it artificially to demonstrate their humility and fear of God. The Prophet (peace be on him) used to walk with firm and quick steps as if he were walking down a slope. It has been reported that 'Umar once saw a young person walking like a weak and sick person. "Are you sick?" he asked him. So saying 'Umar raised his whip in a threatening posture and rebuked him: "Walk like a healthy man." This shows that walking "gently" signifies a natural way of walking rather than an artificial gait which impresses people with humility, or which betrays one's utter feebleness and indigence.

So, what is it in one's gait that is considered of such importance that it is the first attribute to be mentioned at prerequisite for a true servant of God? A little reflection reveals that one's gait is the first indicator of one's whole character and personality. The gait of a cunning man is different from the gait of a tyrant, which is different from that of a civilised and upright person, which again is different from that of someone who is arrogant or criminal. In fact, one can tell a lot about a person by simply looking at the way he walks. The verse suggests that one can recognise the true servants of the Merciful One by just looking at the way they walk. Their obedience being evident even from their gait. Their being good, decent, forbearing and compassionate people who would never be instrumental in the spread of evil and mischief is also evident. (For more details see Towards Understanding the Qur'an, Vol. V, Bani Isra'il, 17: n. 43, p. 44 and Tafhim al-Qur'an, Vol. IV, Luqman 33; n. 33.)

80. "Ignorant" does not mean illiterate; or one deficient in knowledge. Instead, it implies an ill-mannered person, one who behaves with decent people in a rough and insolent manner. On the contrary, true servants of the Merciful One do not behave like "ignorant" people. They do not respond to abuse by hurling abuse in return; they do not respond to indecency by themselves resorting to indecency; nor do they respond to calumny by recourse to similar calumnies. Rather, they prefer to turn away from those who so behave by simply saying "peace be to you". This is also made clear elsewhere in the Qur'an: "And when they hear vain talk, they turn away from it, saying, our deeds are for us and yours for you; peace be on you; we have nothing to do with the ignorant." (Al-Qaşaş 28:55. For details see al-Qaşaş 28: nn. 72-8 below.)

81. What was said in the previous verses portrayed their lives during the day. What follows depicts how they spend their nights. Believers do not spend their nights in the unfettered pursuit of pleasure nor in dancing and music, nor in gossiping and telling tales. They are spent instead in Prayer and supplication - standing, sitting, and reclining. This aspect of their lives is repeatedly presented throughout the Qur'an: "Their backs forsake their beds and they invoke their Lord in fear and hope" (al-Sajdah 32:16). "And these people (of Paradise) slept but little during the night and sought forgiveness at dawn" (al-Dhariyat 51:17-18). "Is he who worships devoutly during the night, prostrating and standing, who dreads the Hereafter and places his hope in the mercy of his Lord [like him who does not do so]?", (al-Zumar 39:9).

82. The worship of these sincere devotees to God does not make them proud. They do not suffer from the illusion that they are God's favourites and that Fire cannot touch them. On the contrary, in spite of their many virtues and their supplication and devoted worship, they tremble with fear lest any lapse on their part causes them to be condemned to punishment. They do not consider their piety a sure ticket to Paradise. Instead, conscious as they are of their human weaknesses, they deem it sufficient to be able to escape punishment, and even for that, they place their reliance solely on God's Mercy and Compassion rather than on their own deeds.

83. This is another distinguishing characteristic of the believers: they are not extravagant. They do not squander their wealth on vain and evil things like lavish weddings, or on drinking and gambling, or on unjustified festivities and amusements. Nor do they spend beyond their means for show on food, houses, clothing, and decor, etc. At the same time, they are not those miserly folks who are wont to count pennies, who neither spend on their families nor give anything away to a noble cause or as charity. Both of these types were then found quite commonly in Arabia. There were, on the one hand, those who spent recklessly on their own comfort and luxury or to demonstrate their affluence and social status. On the other hand, were those whose miserliness was proverbial. Very few people lived moderately. This moderation was a distinguishing characteristic of the Prophet (peace be on him) and his Companions.

It is important to know what is meant by extravagance and miserliness in Islam. Extravagance consists of (i) spending money on unlawful things, no matter how small be the amount so spent; (ii) over-spending on lawful things in the sense that one spends more than one can afford to or one goes about continually spending out of his abundant resources on one's luxurious living; and (iii) spending on charity but in order to make a display of one's charitableness rather than to please God.

In contrast, miserliness involves (i) a refusal to spend on one's own genuine needs or those of one's family commensurate with one's resources, or (ii) a refusal to spend on charity.

Islam has inculcated a golden mean between these two extremes. This has been alluded to in a tradition from the Prophet (peace be on him): "Moderation in

living is one of the signs of a man's wisdom." (Aḥmad Ibn Hanbal, Musnad, Vol. 5, p. 194-Ed.)

84. True believers shun the three cardinal sins which were prevalent among the Arabs: shirk (associating others with God in His Divinity), murder, and adultery. The Prophet (peace be on him) stressed the gravity of these sins in many of his sayings. For instance, 'Abd Allah ibn Mas'ud states that once the Prophet (peace be on him) was asked: "What is the gravest sin?" The Prophet (peace be on him) said: "To set up someone as an equal in rank with God though He is the One Who has created you." When asked about the next gravest sin, the Prophet (peace be on him) said: "That you kill your child for fear that he will share your food with you." When asked about the third gravest sin, the Prophet (peace be on him) said: "To commit adultery with your neighbour's wife" (Bukhari, 'Tafsir, Surah al-Furqän', Bāb walladhīna la yad 'ūna ma' Allah ilāhan ākhar... yalqa athāmā.) (See Muslim, 'K. al-Imān', 'Bab, Kawn al-Shirk Aqbaḥ al-Dhūnūb wa Bayan A'zamihä Ba'dahū'; Tirmidhi, "Tafsir al-Qur'an', 'Bāb wa min Surah al-Furqan 25 and Aḥmad ibn Hanbal, Musnad, Vol. 1, p. 380 - Ed.) Though there are many other major sins, these were the most common in the Arabian society of that time. Muslims are marked out from others by stating that they refrain from these sins.

It may be argued that the unbelievers considered avoidance of shirk to be an evil rather than a desirable quality. Why, then, is it presented as one of the Muslims' great virtues? The answer is: though the Arabs were polytheists. polytheism had not struck any deep roots among them. Even otherwise. polytheism has no deep roots in human nature. On the contrary, pure monotheism is deeply entrenched in peoples' minds and hearts. All that is needed is for the surface to be scratched a little bit in order to bring it out.

The superficial roots of polytheism in Arabia are borne out by many well- known events of pre-Islamic Arabia. For instance, when Abrahah attacked Makka everyone in the city was well aware that the attack could not be repelled by the idols that had been placed in the Ka'bah. They knew that it was only Allah, Whose House it was, Who could repel the attack. History has preserved the poems and panegyrics of the poets of the time which testify to the fact that the Makkans fully believed that it was by God's power that Ahrahah's army was beaten back.

The Quraysh and the unbelievers of Makka also knew well that when Abrahah reached Ta'if, its inhabitants offered to guide his expedition aiming at the demolition of the Ka'bah. They did so out of fear that Abrahah might destroy. even inadvertently, the shrine of their deity al-Lat in Makka. By helping Abrahah they wanted to ensure that al-Lat was spared. Hence their guide led Abrahah through the mountain passes to Makka. The Quraysh retained bitter memories of this incident and for long they pelted the grave of the expedition's guide with stones.

It may also be recalled that the Quraysh and other Arabs traced their religion to Abraham (peace be on him). They considered many of the religious and social rituals in vogue among them, especially the rites of Hajj, to be integral parts of the Abrahamic Faith. They also recognised that Abraham was a true monotheist who never worshipped idols. Their traditions preserved the history of idolatry among them and they knew when and from where each of the idols was brought as also who brought it. Their scant respect for idols is also evident from the fact that it was common for an ordinary Arab to insult the idol he worshipped. They also refrained from making offerings to it in case something contrary to their wishes and prayers occurred. It was reported, for example, that an Arab who wanted to avenge the murder of his father, went to an idol by the name of Dhu al-Khalaṣah and drew an omen. (Ibn Hisham, Sirah, Vol. 1, p. 86 - Ed.) The response he received was that he should not proceed with his revenge. Flying into a rage at this, he composed the following lines:

لو كنت ياذا الخلص الموتورا

مثلي وكان شيخك المقبورا

لم تنه عن قتل العداة زورا

("Dhu al-Khalaşah, had you been in my place and had someone murdered your father, you would never have stopped from murdering the enemies)".

Another example which has been preserved in Arabian traditions is that of an Arab who took his herd of camels to the shrine of an idol named Sa'd so as to invoke its blessings. It was a towering idol smeared with sacrificial blood. On seeing this blood, the camels were terrified and ran helter-skelter. When the Arab saw this he was enraged. He pelted the idol with stones and shouted: "May God destroy you. I came to receive blessings from you and you have scared away the remaining camels I had."

There were also idols such as Asaf and Na'ilah whose origins were associated with obscene stories and whose images were placed on Ṣafa and Marwah. As regards their origins it was said that they were a man and a woman who had committed adultery in the Ka'bah and hence, God had turned them into stone. (Ibn Hisham, Sirah, Vol. 1, p. 82 - Ed.) It is obvious that such idols could not have inspired any reverence in the hearts of their worshippers.

If one were to bear all this in mind, it is evident that there was a fair degree of respect for monotheism in Arabia. However, this respect was overlaid by the rampant ignorance and blind conformity to ancestral traditions. Moreover, the priests, themselves, were also prone to raise storms of prejudice against monotheism because they feared that monotheism would put an end to their status in the Arabian society and that their income too would dwindle. It was evident that shirk (polytheism), which rested on ignorance and prejudice, had no solid basis with which it could face tawḥid. Hence why the Qur'an, has clearly and unambiguously, proclaimed that one of the things which distinguished the followers of Muḥammad (peace be on him) from the polytheists was their adherence to pure monotheism and their total alienation from anything else. The polytheists may not have acknowledged the superiority of Muslims in this respect with their tongues, but they felt it in their hearts.

85. This possibly has two meanings: (i) that the punishment will be perpetual, that it will continue without interruption; (ii) that the person burdened with the sins of murder, adultery and other such vices in addition to shirk (polytheism) or atheism will be punished separately for his principal act of rebellion - shirk or atheism - and then also for each of his other sins. Even lesser sins will be counted, and nothing will be forgiven. There will not even be just one punishment for murder if more than one act of murder were committed; rather, such a person will be punished separately for each act of murder. In like manner, if a person has been guilty of adultery on more than one occasion, he will be punished for each and every act so committed. The same will apply to all other sins.

86. This is good news for those whose life has been stained with various kinds of sin in the past but who later repent and firmly decide to amend their behaviour. The present verse amounts to a proclamation of general amnesty which for millions of sinners provided a ray of hope and prompted them to reform themselves. Had they been told that there could be no escape from punishment for the sins they had committed, they would have succumbed to utter despair and would have been left with no hope of salvation. It is only the hope of forgiveness which can save a sinner and bring him out of the vicious circle of sin. A man in despair can easily turn into a devil.

The extent to which this provision of repentance saved the Arabs who were otherwise given to many a vice is evident from a number of incidents during the life of the Prophet (peace be on him). Let us consider the following example, narrated by Ţabari on the authority of Abu Hurayrah who said: "One night when I returned from the Prophet's Mosque after offering the 'Isha' Prayers, I saw a woman standing outside my door. I said, 'Peace be on you' and went in my room, closed the door, and began to offer Nafl (supererogatory) Prayers. After some time, she knocked at the door. I opened the door and asked her what she wanted. 'I have come to ask you a question. I committed adultery and became pregnant. Then a baby was born and I killed him. Now I have come to ask you if there is any chance that my sin be forgiven?' I said: 'Absolutely not'. At this she went away grief-stricken, exclaiming: 'Alas, this piece of beauty was created for the Hell-fire.'

"The next day, after the Fajr Prayers, I narrated the whole incident to the Prophet (peace be on him). He said: 'How wrong an answer you gave, O Abū Hurayrah! Have you not read those verses in the Qur'an: "Those who invoke no other deity along with Allah nor take the life which Allah has forbidden - save justly; who do not commit unlawful sexual intercourse and whoso does that shall meet its penalty, his torment shall be doubled for him on the Day of Resurrection and he shall abide in it in ignominy - unless he who repents and believes and does righteous works. For such Allah will change their evil deeds to good deeds. Allah is Ever Forgiving, Most Compassionate. Whosoever repents and does good, he returns to Allah in the manner he should" (al-Furqan 25:68- 70). Upon hearing this answer from the Prophet (peace be on him), I went out and searched for the woman. I met her after the 'Isha' Prayers and told her what the Prophet (peace be on him) had said. She prostrated herself and said, "Thanks be to God, Who has opened the door of forgiveness for me.' Then she repented and freed a female slave and also the son of that slave." (See Ţabari, 'Tafsir', comments on Surah al-Furqan 25:68-71 - Ed.)

A similar incident about an old man has also been reported in a ḥadīth. Once an old man came to the Prophet (peace be on him) and said: "O Messenger of God, my whole life has been spent in sin. There is no sin which I have not committed. Even if I distribute my sins among all the people on the earth, each one of them will receive a share which would be enough to ruin him. Is there still a chance for my salvation?" The Prophet (peace be on him) asked: "Have you accepted Islam?" He said: "I testify that there is none worthy of worship except Allah and I testify that Muḥammad is Allah's Messenger." The Prophet (peace be on him) said: "Go, Allah is Most Forgiving, He may change your sins into good deeds." He inquired: "All of my sins and crimes?" "Yes, all of your sins and crimes", replied the Prophet (peace be on him). (Ibn Kathir, on the authority of Ibn Abi Ḥatim. See Ibn Kathir, Tafsir, comments on al-Furqan 25:70-Ed.)

87. This has two meanings. One, that when a person repents and gives up his evil actions from the days of disbelief and begins to perform virtuous deeds, in this new phase of life, of Faith and righteous conduct, his good deeds will replace the evil deeds of his past. Second, that as a result of his repentance, not only are the evil deeds which he committed during this period of disbelief and sinful living forgiven, but each person will be rewarded for having given up a life of disbelief and transgression and for replacing it with obedience and Faith. Moreover, for as many times as such people feel ashamed of their past evil deeds, they will be rewarded that same number of times for having asked for forgiveness from God. Feeling ashamed of one's sins and asking for forgiveness is, in itself, a good deed. In this manner, all of one's evil deeds will eventually be replaced by good deeds and one will not only be saved from punishment, but will also be amply rewarded.

88. Man's nature prompts him to return to God for He alone is his last and real refuge. Morally speaking, too, man ought to return to Him. Pragmatically, too, it is good to return to God for there is no other way to save oneself from His punishment and to receive His rewards. This also means that such a person returns to a place worthy of returning to a place where he finds the best of rewards, where penitents are not disdainfully repulsed because they had sinned but are favoured with forgiveness and rewards are lavished upon them because they repented; a place where there is no desire to count sins but instead there is an eagerness to see how far people are able to reform themselves after repentance; a place where one encounters a Lord Who, far from being bent upon punishing, greets all penitent sinners with infinite Mercy and Compassion.

89. This also carries two meanings. First, that the true servants of the Merciful One are those who do not bear witness to any falsehood, who do not regard a thing as real and true unless they know it to be so. Second, that they do not go out looking for falsehood; they do not intentionally become spectators fond of observing lies and untruths. In this sense, the word zur is equivalent to evil and falsehood. One either goes towards an evil in pursuit of pleasure or one is lured to it because Satan has made that evil look beautiful and beneficial by having coated it with veneer. Therefore, every evil, every sin and every misdeed is a falsehood because it attracts human beings by dint of its artificial glamour. But since a true believer has an insight into Truth, he recognises falsehood in all its forms and shuns it, no matter how attractive its apparent form might be.

90. The Arabic word laghw includes the kind of falsehood explained above. It encompasses all that is vain, meaningless and useless. God's righteous servants never intentionally go after such things. Instead, whenever they pass by vanities and untruths, they walk away from them without even casting so much as a glance at them. It is only the evil and the corrupt who draw pleasure from obscenity and fifth. A civilised and refined person cannot even think of coming close to such things. (For more details see: Towards Understanding the Qur'an, Vol. VI, al-Mu'minün 23: n. 4, pp. 79-80.)

91. The words used here are: "lam yakhirrū 'alayhā ṣumman wa ‘umyānā'. Literally these words mean: "They do not fall at them as would the deaf and blind." However, in this context, "fall" is used in its literal meaning. (See Ibn Manzur, Lisän al-'Arab' q.v. Kh R R - Ed.) Rather, its idiomatic implication of "not moving ahead for engagement in jihād is what is intended". Therefore, the verse means that His true servants are not those who remain unmoved after hearing His Word; rather, they are deeply touched by it and follow whatever Guidance is provided. They carry out whatever has been made obligatory, refrain from whatever has been forbidden, and shrink at the very thought of the punishment with which people have been threatened.

92. That is to say: "Grant them Faith, excellent moral conduct, and the ability to do righteous works." This is so because a true believer does not draw joy for his eyes by the fact that his or her spouse and offspring are physically attractive, or from the mere fact that they are enjoying a life of ease and luxury. Instead they are delighted if they are blessed with moral excellence. Nothing is more tormenting for the believers than the realisation that those who are dearest to them are engaged in acts because of which they are likely to become fuel for the Hell-fire. Hence, the attractiveness of their spouses or the vibrant youth and outstanding abilities of their children become even more tormenting for them because they are conscious that, in spite of these qualities, their dearest may possibly not escape God's punishment.

It is noteworthy that at the time when these verses were revealed, there were none among the Makkan Muslims who would claim their close relatives were not unbelievers. If a husband was a Muslim, his wife was an unbeliever; and if a woman had accepted Islam, her husband was a non-Muslim. In like manner, there were young men who had become Muslims but whose parents, brothers and sisters were still non-Muslim and there were fathers who had become Muslims but whose grown-up children were strongly attached to disbelief and Ignorance. Therefore, every Muslim was going through an intense spiritual torment. Their Prayer is best expressed in the present verse.

The expression "joy to the eyes" accurately depicts this situation. To see one's dear ones stubbornly adhering to Ignorance and disbelief was a constant source of torment for the believers; it was like a painful soreness to their eyes. Their state of mind and feelings are well expressed here. The purpose of this statement seems to emphasise that these people had embraced Islam in complete sincerity. They are unlike those who join each and every religious and political group out of some nepotistic desire for influence and power.

93. They prayed that God may enable them to surpass everyone in piety, obedience, righteousness and good deeds; nay, that they may become leaders of the pious, and that they may become a source for the promotion of goodness and virtue and piety in the world. Again, this is stated here to demonstrate that these people do not compete with one another in wealth, power and worldly glory. They rather strive to excel in acts of piety. In our times, some people have misconstrued this verse to mean the sanctioning of unbridled competition for worldly gain and political leadership, as if the verse says: "O Allah, make us rulers over the pious and the God-fearing!"

94. The word sabr (patience, fortitude) is used here in its most comprehensive sense. Variously, it means to endure persecution at the hands of the enemies of Truth with courage and to bear whatever hardships come one's way while striving for the establishment of the true Faith of God. It also means to remain steadfast against all fears and to refuse to succumb to enticements; to resolutely fulfil one's obligations in spite of Satan's temptations and one's own carnal self; to shun the unlawful and to remain within the bounds of the lawful set by God; to spurn all pleasures and benefits that might accrue from acts of sin, and to cheerfully put up with difficulties and losses in order to follow the Path of righteousness and virtue and to accept every trial and adversity that one might encounter. In sum, this one word embraces a whole universe of meanings regarding true Faith, a truly religious approach to life, and good moral conduct inspired by religious Faith.

95. Ghurfah means a lofty building. (Ibn Manzūr, Lisän al-'Arab, q.v. GH RF - Ed.) It is generally translated as the "upper chamber" which brings to mind a two-storey building. In fact, however, the most excellent and loftiest buildings that human beings have constructed in the world - the Taj Mahal in India and the skyscrapers of America - are all merely caricatures of the palaces of Paradise whose dim outlines are imprinted on the unconscious of every son and daughter of Adam.

96. If one does not worship God, if one does not supplicate to Him for one's needs, and does not seek His help, then one is not worth anything in God's sight. For God does not care for people just because they are His creatures. In this regard, they are no different from stones and quite obviously God stands in no need of them. Hence, if they do not obey Him, this will certainly not endear, such persons to God. Nevertheless, were someone to stretch out his hands to Him in supplication, he will instantly find God turning to him in compassion. As for those who arrogantly refuse to worship God or pray to Him, then they are liable to incur God's punishment and He can certainly dispose of them, if He wills, just as one disposes of rubbish.