1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:02,600 In the name of Allah, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful. 2 00:00:02,600 --> 00:00:32,140 "The Gentle Commentary 3 00:00:32,140 --> 00:00:35,140 on the Book of Introductory Profiles 4 00:00:35,140 --> 00:00:38,140 to the Surahs of the Noble Qur'an," 5 00:00:38,140 --> 00:00:42,140 by Dr. Muhammad ibn 'Abd al-'Aziz ibn 'Umar Nasif, 6 00:00:42,140 --> 00:00:44,229 may Allah preserve him. 7 00:00:44,229 --> 00:00:46,229 Surah Fatir. 8 00:00:46,229 --> 00:00:49,729 In the name of Allah, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful. All praise is due to Allah, the Lord of all worlds, 9 00:00:49,729 --> 00:00:53,229 and may peace and blessings be upon the Seal of the Prophets and Messengers, 10 00:00:53,229 --> 00:00:56,229 and upon all his family and Companions. 11 00:00:56,229 --> 00:00:59,229 We continue with the gentle commentary 12 00:00:59,229 --> 00:01:01,229 on the introductory profiles, 13 00:01:01,229 --> 00:01:03,490 specifically with Surah Fatir. 14 00:01:03,490 --> 00:01:07,489 "His face only grows in beauty the more you gaze upon it." 15 00:01:07,489 --> 00:01:10,579 This line of poetry was spoken about a created being, 16 00:01:10,579 --> 00:01:13,579 yet the reality is that such words are truly deserved 17 00:01:13,579 --> 00:01:16,579 by the magnificent Qur'an, the speech of Allah, 18 00:01:16,579 --> 00:01:19,030 which is uncreated. 19 00:01:19,030 --> 00:01:23,030 "His face only grows in beauty the more you gaze upon it." 20 00:01:23,030 --> 00:01:27,060 Whenever you reflect deeply upon the Qur'an, 21 00:01:27,060 --> 00:01:30,060 it offers you more of its beauty, 22 00:01:30,060 --> 00:01:32,060 majesty, and perfection. 23 00:01:32,060 --> 00:01:36,060 Regarding Surah Fatir, I have three points of reflection. 24 00:01:36,060 --> 00:01:38,060 The first point 25 00:01:38,060 --> 00:01:41,060 pertains to dating the revelation of the surah. 26 00:01:41,060 --> 00:01:44,060 He noted that there is an indication suggesting a relatively late revelation. 27 00:01:44,060 --> 00:01:46,060 This inference is not derived, 28 00:01:46,060 --> 00:01:48,060 as is customary 29 00:01:48,060 --> 00:01:50,060 when dating revelations, 30 00:01:50,060 --> 00:01:54,060 from historical reports, hadiths, or transmitted narrations; 31 00:01:54,060 --> 00:01:56,060 rather, it is deduced 32 00:01:56,060 --> 00:01:58,060 from the very wording and thematic content of the verses. 33 00:01:58,060 --> 00:02:02,060 Allah said: ﴾So do not let yourself perish over them in regret.﴿ 34 00:02:02,060 --> 00:02:05,099 It is most probable 35 00:02:05,099 --> 00:02:07,099 that this was not among the very first passages revealed to the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, 36 00:02:07,099 --> 00:02:09,099 or from the earliest stages of revelation; 37 00:02:09,099 --> 00:02:11,099 rather, such comfort comes only after enduring rejection. 38 00:02:11,099 --> 00:02:15,099 That is why I said it may suggest a later revelation— 39 00:02:15,099 --> 00:02:16,099 not necessarily for the entire surah, 40 00:02:16,099 --> 00:02:18,099 but certainly for some of its verses: 41 00:02:18,099 --> 00:02:20,099 ﴾So do not let yourself perish over them in regret. 42 00:02:20,099 --> 00:02:22,099 Indeed, Allah is Knowing of what they do.﴿ 43 00:02:22,099 --> 00:02:24,159 The second point 44 00:02:24,159 --> 00:02:27,219 concerns the complementarity 45 00:02:27,219 --> 00:02:30,219 between Surah Saba' and Surah Fatir. 46 00:02:30,219 --> 00:02:32,219 In discussing the correlation between the two, 47 00:02:32,219 --> 00:02:35,219 I previously mentioned that both begin with praise (hamd). 48 00:02:35,219 --> 00:02:38,219 In fact, there is a deep complementarity between them. 49 00:02:38,219 --> 00:02:40,219 Observe: 50 00:02:40,219 --> 00:02:42,219 Surah Saba' begins with praise, 51 00:02:42,219 --> 00:02:45,219 yet it focuses on the disbelievers 52 00:02:45,219 --> 00:02:47,219 who failed to praise Allah, 53 00:02:47,219 --> 00:02:50,219 while also stating: ﴾Work, O family of David, in gratitude.﴿ 54 00:02:50,219 --> 00:02:53,219 The very name 'Saba'' serves as a thematic title for that ungratefulness. 55 00:02:53,219 --> 00:02:56,219 Here, this surah speaks of praise 56 00:02:56,219 --> 00:02:59,219 to draw out praise from the servants 57 00:02:59,219 --> 00:03:01,219 and urge them toward gratitude 58 00:03:01,219 --> 00:03:04,219 by coming to know Allah, 59 00:03:04,219 --> 00:03:06,219 the Originator of the heavens and the earth, 60 00:03:06,219 --> 00:03:08,219 Glorified and Exalted is He. 61 00:03:08,219 --> 00:03:11,219 Thus, this surah introduces Allah's attributes, 62 00:03:11,219 --> 00:03:15,379 while that surah refutes the doubts of the disbelievers. 63 00:03:15,379 --> 00:03:18,379 Each leads to praising Allah, 64 00:03:18,379 --> 00:03:20,379 but from a different approach. 65 00:03:20,379 --> 00:03:22,379 Praise in Surah Saba' comes through 66 00:03:22,379 --> 00:03:24,379 warning against the states of the disbelievers 67 00:03:24,379 --> 00:03:27,379 and highlighting the stories of the grateful, such as David 68 00:03:27,379 --> 00:03:29,479 and Solomon; 69 00:03:29,479 --> 00:03:31,509 whereas here, in Surah Fatir, 70 00:03:31,509 --> 00:03:35,509 there is a mention of Allah's bounties and blessings, 71 00:03:35,509 --> 00:03:38,509 and His governance of the universe, 72 00:03:38,509 --> 00:03:42,509 in a manner that directly inspires praise and gratitude. 73 00:03:42,509 --> 00:03:45,509 Thus, the two surahs complement one another. 74 00:03:45,509 --> 00:03:48,509 We also notice that both surahs 75 00:03:48,509 --> 00:03:51,610 open with praise consecutively, 76 00:03:51,610 --> 00:03:54,610 whereas the other surahs that begin with praise 77 00:03:54,610 --> 00:03:57,610 are dispersed: first al-Fatihah; 78 00:03:57,610 --> 00:04:01,830 then, after a number of surahs— 79 00:04:01,830 --> 00:04:04,830 six surahs later—comes Surah al-An'am; 80 00:04:04,830 --> 00:04:07,830 then Surah al-An'am, 81 00:04:07,830 --> 00:04:10,830 which is roughly in the second quarter of the Qur'an; 82 00:04:10,830 --> 00:04:13,830 then comes Surah al-Kahf 83 00:04:13,830 --> 00:04:16,829 at the midpoint of the Qur'an; 84 00:04:16,829 --> 00:04:19,829 and then, near the end of the third quarter, 85 00:04:19,829 --> 00:04:22,829 right around there, come these two consecutive surahs of praise. 86 00:04:22,829 --> 00:04:25,829 The surahs opening with praise are five in total; 87 00:04:25,829 --> 00:04:28,860 two of them appear consecutively—namely, these two— 88 00:04:28,860 --> 00:04:31,860 and there is a thematic harmony between them. 89 00:04:31,860 --> 00:04:34,860 This brings me to the third point: 90 00:04:34,860 --> 00:04:37,860 this consecutive occurrence of praise reminds me 91 00:04:37,860 --> 00:04:40,860 of the pairing of two magnificent surahs, 92 00:04:40,860 --> 00:04:43,860 the two radiant ones: al-Baqarah and Al 'Imran. 93 00:04:43,860 --> 00:04:46,860 Both open with Alif-Lam- 94 00:04:46,860 --> 00:04:49,860 -Mim. Then, other surahs 95 00:04:49,860 --> 00:04:53,019 that begin with Alif-Lam-Mim appear 96 00:04:53,019 --> 00:04:56,019 consecutively in another place: al-'Ankabut, 97 00:04:56,019 --> 00:04:59,019 ar-Rum, Luqman, and as-Sajdah. 98 00:04:59,019 --> 00:05:02,019 Here, I am reminded of the insightful remark of Imam Ibn Malik, 99 00:05:02,019 --> 00:05:05,019 even though he was discussing a grammatical issue: 100 00:05:05,019 --> 00:05:08,019 "A desire for good is good; and an act 101 00:05:08,019 --> 00:05:11,019 of piety adorns; so analogize what has not been mentioned." 102 00:05:11,019 --> 00:05:14,019 He was discussing rules regarding the subject and the predicate, 103 00:05:14,019 --> 00:05:17,019 and when he finished giving his examples, he said: 104 00:05:17,019 --> 00:05:20,019 "So analogize what has not been mentioned." 105 00:05:20,019 --> 00:05:23,019 The Prophet, peace be upon him, nurtured his Companions and his Ummah, 106 00:05:23,019 --> 00:05:26,019 teaching them that religion involves sound analogy. 107 00:05:26,019 --> 00:05:29,019 When the Prophet, peace be upon him, mentioned— 108 00:05:29,019 --> 00:05:32,149 as found at the beginning of Surah Yunus— 109 00:05:32,149 --> 00:05:35,149 the surahs opening with similar introductory letters, 110 00:05:35,149 --> 00:05:38,149 and encouraged learning them together, 111 00:05:38,149 --> 00:05:41,439 or studying several of them in conjunction, 112 00:05:41,439 --> 00:05:44,439 and then pointed out that al-Baqarah and Al 'Imran 113 00:05:44,439 --> 00:05:47,439 share an intrinsic connection, 114 00:05:47,439 --> 00:05:50,470 establishing a common bond between them, 115 00:05:50,470 --> 00:05:53,470 as both are radiant, which is why they are called the two radiant ones— 116 00:05:53,470 --> 00:05:56,470 we can draw an analogy from this: 117 00:05:56,470 --> 00:05:59,470 just as the surahs opening with praise, 118 00:06:00,470 --> 00:06:03,470 like those opening with Ha-Mim or the glorifying surahs (al-Musabbihat), 119 00:06:03,470 --> 00:06:06,470 were specifically highlighted by the Prophet, peace be upon him, 120 00:06:06,470 --> 00:06:09,470 we should likewise reflect upon the fact that two consecutive surahs 121 00:06:09,470 --> 00:06:12,540 sharing the same opening must share a profound connection. 122 00:06:12,540 --> 00:06:15,540 Just as there is a link between al-Baqarah and Al 'Imran, 123 00:06:15,540 --> 00:06:18,759 so too is there an undeniable link 124 00:06:18,759 --> 00:06:21,759 between these two surahs, Saba' and Fatir. 125 00:06:21,759 --> 00:06:24,759 I will conclude with this 126 00:06:24,759 --> 00:06:27,759 for this segment, and I ask Allah for His help and support. 127 00:06:27,759 --> 00:06:30,759 May Allah send blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and all his Companions, 128 00:06:30,759 --> 00:06:31,759 and all praise is due to Allah, the Lord of all worlds.