WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.600 In the name of Allah, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful. 00:00:02.600 --> 00:00:32.140 "The Gentle Commentary 00:00:32.140 --> 00:00:35.140 on the Book of Introductory Profiles 00:00:35.140 --> 00:00:38.140 to the Surahs of the Noble Qur'an," 00:00:38.140 --> 00:00:42.140 by Dr. Muhammad ibn 'Abd al-'Aziz ibn 'Umar Nasif, 00:00:42.140 --> 00:00:44.229 may Allah preserve him. 00:00:44.229 --> 00:00:46.229 Surah Fatir. 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, 00:00:49.729 --> 00:00:53.229 and may peace and blessings be upon the Seal of the Prophets and Messengers, 00:00:53.229 --> 00:00:56.229 and upon all his family and Companions. 00:00:56.229 --> 00:00:59.229 We continue with the gentle commentary 00:00:59.229 --> 00:01:01.229 on the introductory profiles, 00:01:01.229 --> 00:01:03.490 specifically with Surah Fatir. 00:01:03.490 --> 00:01:07.489 "His face only grows in beauty the more you gaze upon it." 00:01:07.489 --> 00:01:10.579 This line of poetry was spoken about a created being, 00:01:10.579 --> 00:01:13.579 yet the reality is that such words are truly deserved 00:01:13.579 --> 00:01:16.579 by the magnificent Qur'an, the speech of Allah, 00:01:16.579 --> 00:01:19.030 which is uncreated. 00:01:19.030 --> 00:01:23.030 "His face only grows in beauty the more you gaze upon it." 00:01:23.030 --> 00:01:27.060 Whenever you reflect deeply upon the Qur'an, 00:01:27.060 --> 00:01:30.060 it offers you more of its beauty, 00:01:30.060 --> 00:01:32.060 majesty, and perfection. 00:01:32.060 --> 00:01:36.060 Regarding Surah Fatir, I have three points of reflection. 00:01:36.060 --> 00:01:38.060 The first point 00:01:38.060 --> 00:01:41.060 pertains to dating the revelation of the surah. 00:01:41.060 --> 00:01:44.060 He noted that there is an indication suggesting a relatively late revelation. 00:01:44.060 --> 00:01:46.060 This inference is not derived, 00:01:46.060 --> 00:01:48.060 as is customary 00:01:48.060 --> 00:01:50.060 when dating revelations, 00:01:50.060 --> 00:01:54.060 from historical reports, hadiths, or transmitted narrations; 00:01:54.060 --> 00:01:56.060 rather, it is deduced 00:01:56.060 --> 00:01:58.060 from the very wording and thematic content of the verses. 00:01:58.060 --> 00:02:02.060 Allah said: ﴾So do not let yourself perish over them in regret.﴿ 00:02:02.060 --> 00:02:05.099 It is most probable 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, 00:02:07.099 --> 00:02:09.099 or from the earliest stages of revelation; 00:02:09.099 --> 00:02:11.099 rather, such comfort comes only after enduring rejection. 00:02:11.099 --> 00:02:15.099 That is why I said it may suggest a later revelation— 00:02:15.099 --> 00:02:16.099 not necessarily for the entire surah, 00:02:16.099 --> 00:02:18.099 but certainly for some of its verses: 00:02:18.099 --> 00:02:20.099 ﴾So do not let yourself perish over them in regret. 00:02:20.099 --> 00:02:22.099 Indeed, Allah is Knowing of what they do.﴿ 00:02:22.099 --> 00:02:24.159 The second point 00:02:24.159 --> 00:02:27.219 concerns the complementarity 00:02:27.219 --> 00:02:30.219 between Surah Saba' and Surah Fatir. 00:02:30.219 --> 00:02:32.219 In discussing the correlation between the two, 00:02:32.219 --> 00:02:35.219 I previously mentioned that both begin with praise (hamd). 00:02:35.219 --> 00:02:38.219 In fact, there is a deep complementarity between them. 00:02:38.219 --> 00:02:40.219 Observe: 00:02:40.219 --> 00:02:42.219 Surah Saba' begins with praise, 00:02:42.219 --> 00:02:45.219 yet it focuses on the disbelievers 00:02:45.219 --> 00:02:47.219 who failed to praise Allah, 00:02:47.219 --> 00:02:50.219 while also stating: ﴾Work, O family of David, in gratitude.﴿ 00:02:50.219 --> 00:02:53.219 The very name 'Saba'' serves as a thematic title for that ungratefulness. 00:02:53.219 --> 00:02:56.219 Here, this surah speaks of praise 00:02:56.219 --> 00:02:59.219 to draw out praise from the servants 00:02:59.219 --> 00:03:01.219 and urge them toward gratitude 00:03:01.219 --> 00:03:04.219 by coming to know Allah, 00:03:04.219 --> 00:03:06.219 the Originator of the heavens and the earth, 00:03:06.219 --> 00:03:08.219 Glorified and Exalted is He. 00:03:08.219 --> 00:03:11.219 Thus, this surah introduces Allah's attributes, 00:03:11.219 --> 00:03:15.379 while that surah refutes the doubts of the disbelievers. 00:03:15.379 --> 00:03:18.379 Each leads to praising Allah, 00:03:18.379 --> 00:03:20.379 but from a different approach. 00:03:20.379 --> 00:03:22.379 Praise in Surah Saba' comes through 00:03:22.379 --> 00:03:24.379 warning against the states of the disbelievers 00:03:24.379 --> 00:03:27.379 and highlighting the stories of the grateful, such as David 00:03:27.379 --> 00:03:29.479 and Solomon; 00:03:29.479 --> 00:03:31.509 whereas here, in Surah Fatir, 00:03:31.509 --> 00:03:35.509 there is a mention of Allah's bounties and blessings, 00:03:35.509 --> 00:03:38.509 and His governance of the universe, 00:03:38.509 --> 00:03:42.509 in a manner that directly inspires praise and gratitude. 00:03:42.509 --> 00:03:45.509 Thus, the two surahs complement one another. 00:03:45.509 --> 00:03:48.509 We also notice that both surahs 00:03:48.509 --> 00:03:51.610 open with praise consecutively, 00:03:51.610 --> 00:03:54.610 whereas the other surahs that begin with praise 00:03:54.610 --> 00:03:57.610 are dispersed: first al-Fatihah; 00:03:57.610 --> 00:04:01.830 then, after a number of surahs— 00:04:01.830 --> 00:04:04.830 six surahs later—comes Surah al-An'am; 00:04:04.830 --> 00:04:07.830 then Surah al-An'am, 00:04:07.830 --> 00:04:10.830 which is roughly in the second quarter of the Qur'an; 00:04:10.830 --> 00:04:13.830 then comes Surah al-Kahf 00:04:13.830 --> 00:04:16.829 at the midpoint of the Qur'an; 00:04:16.829 --> 00:04:19.829 and then, near the end of the third quarter, 00:04:19.829 --> 00:04:22.829 right around there, come these two consecutive surahs of praise. 00:04:22.829 --> 00:04:25.829 The surahs opening with praise are five in total; 00:04:25.829 --> 00:04:28.860 two of them appear consecutively—namely, these two— 00:04:28.860 --> 00:04:31.860 and there is a thematic harmony between them. 00:04:31.860 --> 00:04:34.860 This brings me to the third point: 00:04:34.860 --> 00:04:37.860 this consecutive occurrence of praise reminds me 00:04:37.860 --> 00:04:40.860 of the pairing of two magnificent surahs, 00:04:40.860 --> 00:04:43.860 the two radiant ones: al-Baqarah and Al 'Imran. 00:04:43.860 --> 00:04:46.860 Both open with Alif-Lam- 00:04:46.860 --> 00:04:49.860 -Mim. Then, other surahs 00:04:49.860 --> 00:04:53.019 that begin with Alif-Lam-Mim appear 00:04:53.019 --> 00:04:56.019 consecutively in another place: al-'Ankabut, 00:04:56.019 --> 00:04:59.019 ar-Rum, Luqman, and as-Sajdah. 00:04:59.019 --> 00:05:02.019 Here, I am reminded of the insightful remark of Imam Ibn Malik, 00:05:02.019 --> 00:05:05.019 even though he was discussing a grammatical issue: 00:05:05.019 --> 00:05:08.019 "A desire for good is good; and an act 00:05:08.019 --> 00:05:11.019 of piety adorns; so analogize what has not been mentioned." 00:05:11.019 --> 00:05:14.019 He was discussing rules regarding the subject and the predicate, 00:05:14.019 --> 00:05:17.019 and when he finished giving his examples, he said: 00:05:17.019 --> 00:05:20.019 "So analogize what has not been mentioned." 00:05:20.019 --> 00:05:23.019 The Prophet, peace be upon him, nurtured his Companions and his Ummah, 00:05:23.019 --> 00:05:26.019 teaching them that religion involves sound analogy. 00:05:26.019 --> 00:05:29.019 When the Prophet, peace be upon him, mentioned— 00:05:29.019 --> 00:05:32.149 as found at the beginning of Surah Yunus— 00:05:32.149 --> 00:05:35.149 the surahs opening with similar introductory letters, 00:05:35.149 --> 00:05:38.149 and encouraged learning them together, 00:05:38.149 --> 00:05:41.439 or studying several of them in conjunction, 00:05:41.439 --> 00:05:44.439 and then pointed out that al-Baqarah and Al 'Imran 00:05:44.439 --> 00:05:47.439 share an intrinsic connection, 00:05:47.439 --> 00:05:50.470 establishing a common bond between them, 00:05:50.470 --> 00:05:53.470 as both are radiant, which is why they are called the two radiant ones— 00:05:53.470 --> 00:05:56.470 we can draw an analogy from this: 00:05:56.470 --> 00:05:59.470 just as the surahs opening with praise, 00:06:00.470 --> 00:06:03.470 like those opening with Ha-Mim or the glorifying surahs (al-Musabbihat), 00:06:03.470 --> 00:06:06.470 were specifically highlighted by the Prophet, peace be upon him, 00:06:06.470 --> 00:06:09.470 we should likewise reflect upon the fact that two consecutive surahs 00:06:09.470 --> 00:06:12.540 sharing the same opening must share a profound connection. 00:06:12.540 --> 00:06:15.540 Just as there is a link between al-Baqarah and Al 'Imran, 00:06:15.540 --> 00:06:18.759 so too is there an undeniable link 00:06:18.759 --> 00:06:21.759 between these two surahs, Saba' and Fatir. 00:06:21.759 --> 00:06:24.759 I will conclude with this 00:06:24.759 --> 00:06:27.759 for this segment, and I ask Allah for His help and support. 00:06:27.759 --> 00:06:30.759 May Allah send blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and all his Companions, 00:06:30.759 --> 00:06:31.759 and all praise is due to Allah, the Lord of all worlds.