Abraham's Lifestyle

In the Name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful

Extract below is from Chapter 2 of QUR’AANIC STUDIES – A Modern Tafsir, on a reference to Abraham in the divine Book:

131. Ith qala lahu rabbuhu aslim qala aslamtu lirabbi alAAalameena
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131. When his Lord told him, "Submit", he obeyed: "I submit to the Lord of the worlds!" [Please see note 194 below]

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194. And that, in essence, was Abraham's lifestyle! It is indeed the essence of the Allah-approved Religion of Islam. Complete submission to His Will! Let us take note particularly of the Name, Allah made Abraham choose here, from among His Various Names: Rabbil aalameen. Lord of the worlds! (Please refer to Note 1:5* above to understand the comprehensive Qur'aanic meaning of the term aalameen.) Every person is a khalifa (representative) of Allah to his/her individual world, where he/she has to take his/her own decisions. It is the nature of these decisions that make or mar that person. If he/she is deluded into thinking that he/she is the lord of all he/she surveys and makes his/her decisions accordingly, then he/she is doomed. If, on the other hand, he/she realises that Allah is the real Rabb (see Note 1:4**) of his own world as well as of all other individual worlds, makes his/her decisions fearing Allah, and submits completely to the results that follow as being from Allah, he/she would be the one to get befitting reward from the Lord.

*Note 1:5: This is the dictionary meaning of the Arabic word aalameen. It is in plural: worlds, and not world. In most of the places where this word has been used in the Qur'aan, it is accompanied by the word Rabb, as in this place. But there are a few places where it isn't, as in Verses 2:47, 3:97, 6:86, 6:90, 21:107 and 29:6. A close study of these latter Verses would show that the word is used in the same sense as in the sentence, "My world is different from yours." Every individual life is one's own individual world in the sense that his/her environment, conditions of living, circle of contacts etc. are different from others'. One's own world is, in other words, one's own individual life. It is to these millions of individual worlds that the Qur'aan refers to as aalameen. Allah thus declares that He is the Rabb of every individual life. If every individual would but submit completely to His will and obey His commands as given in the Qur'aan, the Lord will surely nourish and lead the individual's life to Success and Salvation! In the phrase Rabbulaalameen, however, Aalameen would include jinns, angels, all living things (besides human) and all inanimate things in the entire universe as well. Refer in this context Moses’ reply to Pharaoh in Verses 24, 26 and 28 of Chapter 32 (Manzil V). Rabbulaalameen could as well be translated as the Lord of the Universe. 

**Note 1:4: The original Arabic word is Rabb. It is a very comprehensive word, covering the meanings of Master, Owner, Nourisher, Developer, Guide, Provider et al. For want of a befitting corresponding word in English, the word "Lord" is used, although it does not convey the same comprehensive meaning. For the purpose of this translation, therefore, "Lord" is redefined to have the comprehensive meaning of the Arabic word Rabb.

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Mohammad Shafi
Friday, the 19th of May 2017.

A Thing Abandoned

In the Name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful

Extract from Chapter 25 of QUR’AANIC STUDIES – A Modern Tafsir:

30. Waqala alrrasoolu ya rabbi inna qawmee ittakhathoo hatha alqur-ana mahjooran

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30. And the Messenger will say, “O my Lord! My people did indeed treat this Qur’aan as a thing abandoned.”⁵

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5. The Messenger (Muhammad, peace on him) might have said so, exasperatingly, when in the initial period of his mission the people of his own tribe would not believe him. But from the immediately preceding context it appears that this is what he would say on Judgment Day when he comes to know of the sorry fate of a large number of people who claimed to be his followers after he left this world. Have not most of the so-called Muslims of today (early part of the 21^st century A.D.) indeed abandoned the Qur’aan? Do they ever refer to it seeking guidance in the conduct of their day-to-day lives in this world? The Qur’aan urges them to stand by and abide by the Truth with patience and with trust in Allah. Do they do that? At the slightest perception of danger to any of their worldly assets, they will not hesitate to abandon the truth and thereby the Qur’aan. The Qur’aan asks them to worship none but Allah. But they run to the graves of dead saints for redressal of grievances and for bestowal of bounties. They fail to understand that such acts of theirs are tantamount to worshipping the dead saints and thereby committing the unpardonable sin of shirk. The Qur’aan asks them to believe in the Hereafter. They do profess that they believe, but they betray their disbelief in almost every act of theirs in this world. They would rather abandon their morning prayer than abandon their sweet sleep. They do not bother to study for themselves what the Qur’aan says. They will try their best to educate their children to earn a lot and to have a good status in worldly life, but they bother the least to prepare them for the Hereafter. They do many, many such things to prove the prophetic statement in this Verse right.

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Mohammad Shafi

Friday, the 12^th of May 2017

Abraham's Prayer

In the Name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful

An extract from Chapter 2 of QUR’AANIC STUDIES – A Modern Tafsir:

129. Rabbana waibAAath feehim rasoolan minhum yatloo AAalayhim ayatika wayuAAallimuhumu alkitaba waalhikmata wayuzakkeehim innaka anta alAAazeezu alhakeemu

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129. "O our Lord! Raise among them,¹⁹¹ a Messenger from amongst them, to recite to them Your Verses, to teach to them the Book and the Wisdom, and to purify them.¹⁹² Indeed, You are the One Omnipotent, the One Wise!"

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191. In the context of the preceding Verse, 'them' here obviously stands for the progeny of Abraham through his son Ishmael. And their progeny around the Kaaba are obviously the Arab people.

192. And we are aware that this prayer was heard, and responded to by the Wise and Almighty Allah several centuries later! HE did raise Prophet Muhammad (peace and Allah's blessings be upon him) for the very task Abraham and Ishmael had prayed for. During the intervening centuries, the Arab people had come to forget what their great forefather and Allah's Khaleel, Abraham, had stood for. They had fallen back to idol-worship, which Abraham had valiantly and steadfastly fought against! By Allah's grace, Prophet Muhammad recited His Verses to his people. He taught them the Book of the divine Verses, the Qur'aan, for 23 long years through numerous trials and tribulations. He thus convinced them of the wisdom of abiding by the divine commands contained in those Verses. He thus, through Allah's grace, purified a non-descript and utterly backward people into the most potent force that shook the entire world and brought about an ideological, moral and intellectual renaissance therein!

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Grant us the wisdom, Allah, to abide by Your Book & thereby get back our lost glory!

Mohammad Shafi

Friday, the 5^th of May 2017.

  

Allah has forsaken 'Muslims'

In the Name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful

An extract from Chapter 3 of QUR’AANIC STUDIES – A Modern Tafsir:

160. In yansurkumu Allahu fala ghaliba lakum wa-in yakhthulkum faman tha allathee yansurukum min baAAdihi waAAala Allahi falyatawakkali almu/minoona

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160. If Allah helps you, none can get the better of you. And if He forsakes you, who is there to help you thereafter? In Allah, then, believers should put their trust.

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Does that superb divine statement need any human explanatory note? None, at all! It tells us, in no uncertain terms, that Allah has forsaken the so-called believers, the Muslims, as a community in today’s world. The community has become the favourite whipping boy for every Tom, Dick and Harry. The divine Verse, therefore, conclusively tells us that the Muslims have generally failed to put their trust in Allah.

Mohammad Shafi

Friday, the 28^th of April 2017.

Ponder, Muslims!

In the Name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful

Extract from Chapter 23 of QUR’AANIC STUDIES – A Modern Tafsir:

105. Alam takun ayatee tutla AAalaykum fakuntum biha tukaththiboona

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105. Were not My Verses/signs recited to you and you rejected them? ¹⁵

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15. This is how Allah Almighty shall address those consigned to Hell-fire on the Day of Judgment. Muslims should ponder deeply, gravely and fearing whether they would be among those so addressed. Are they sure they do not reject the Qur’aanic Verses? Is not non-compliance of those Verses virtually and factually tantamount to their rejection?

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May we have the wisdom to understand properly and then comply with Qur’aanic Verses, Allah!

Mohammad Shafi

Friday, the 21^st of April 2017.

Allah has no son

In the Name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful

Excerpts from Chapter 2 of QUR’AANIC STUDIES – A Modern Tafsir, wherein the Qur’aanic reiteration of the subject matter is discussed:

116. And they say, "Allah has a son!" HE is much too glorified to have one!! HIS, on the other hand, is everything that is in the heavens and the earth!!! All are obedient to Him.

117. Originator of the heavens and the earth! And when He decides to accomplish anything, He just tells it, "Be!" And, it is!!¹⁷⁰

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170. And thus, in these two divine Verses (2:116 and 2:117), does the Creator logically demolish that man-conceived concept!! Everything in the heavens and the earth is His creation. He has just to say, "Be", and anything, He wishes, comes into existence. Why would He then come down to the level of His creatures to beget a son?! A human being may need a son to support him when he becomes weak in his old age, or to inherit and look after his worldly property when he is no more. But that obviously is not the case with Allah! There is no question of He ever becoming weak or being 'no more'!! The idea of a 'divine son' is therefore nothing but a figment of man's imagination. This idea places him on an entirely false, and therefore wrong, footing that would inevitably lead him astray in this world and make him completely lost in the next!

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Spare us from being succumbed to man-made innovations, Allah!

Mohammad Shafi

Friday, the 14^th of April 2017.

Wali

In the Name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful

Wali

Extract from Chapter 2 of QUR’AANIC STUDIES – A Modern Tafsir, discussing the meaning of the Qur’aanic term wali:

107. Alam taAAlam anna Allaha lahu mulku alssamawati waal-ardi wama lakum min dooni Allahi min waliyyin wala naseerin

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107. Are you not aware that, certainly, it is Allah who has absolute sovereignty over the heavens and the earth? And none is there for you, other than Allah, as a wali¹⁵⁴ nor anyone who can help! ¹⁵⁵

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154. I find it difficult to find an appropriate English word for this Qur'aanic word, wali (plural: awliya). Some translators have rendered it as 'guardian' or 'protector'. But in Verse 10:62, the Qur'aan has called some good human beings as awliya of Allah. Surely it would be preposterous to call human beings as 'guardians' or 'protectors' of Allah! Let us therefore go to the literal meaning of the three-letter Arabic root word wali, which is to be close or near. It is used in the Qur'aan in that very sense. So, when the Qur'aan says that good, Allah-fearing persons are awliya of Allah, it means that Allah is so pleased with such persons that He has kept them spiritually close to Himself. In Verse 2:257, we are told that Allah is the wali of the believers. In other words, Allah is so very close to the believers that He protects and guides them at every step they take in their worldly lives. In Verse 60:9, Allah forbids the believers from being close to (tawallaw) only those who fight with them on religion, etc. It is in this sense that in Verse 5:51, Allah asks believers not to take Jews and Christians as awliya. Otherwise, Allah makes it clear in Verse 60:8, that He does not forbid the believers to have normal good relations with them if they do not fight with them (the believers) in religious matters, etc.

155. In the Qur'aanic light delineated in the preceding Note, the obvious meaning of the latter part of this Verse is that if anyone were not to accept Allah as his/her wali, there could be no one else who could be that person's wali or helper. If one accepts, without any reservations whatsoever, Allah as one's wali, then there could be one's other awliya among living believers, by way of being one's confidants, advisors and helpers in worldly and spiritual matters. But there could be no question of any person, dead or martyred – or of any unseen being (jinn) – becoming a wali or helper of a living person. If one takes such a being as one's wali or helper, besides Allah, one is committing the sin of shirk (polytheism). Alas! A majority among the Muslims today are openly indulging in this unpardonable sin. Allah asks, "Do then those who suppress the Truth think that, other than Me, they can take My worshippers as awliya? ..." [Q: 18:102]

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Keep us away from the sin of shirk, Allah!

Mohammad Shafi

Friday, the 7^th of April, 2017.