In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
A Gentle Commentary on the Book of Identification Cards
on the Noble Qur'anic Chapters
by Dr. Muhammad ibn Abd al-Aziz ibn Umar Nassif,
may Allah protect him.
Surah Al-Balad
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
Praise be to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah,
and upon his family, his Companions, and his followers.
We continue with the Gentle Commentary on the Identification Cards,
and with Surah Al-Balad, and I have three points of reflection with it.
The first point of reflection is with the opening of the Surah.
It is mentioned in the book that it begins with an oath.
This is the fifth type of opening mentioned in Al-Itqan.
Then he said at the end of this section:
And it can be counted under the fourth type,
which is beginning with a report, as Al-Suyuti did.
This requires some clarification.
Al-Suyuti first mentioned the types of openings.
The fifth opening was the oath.
But he did not mention this Surah,
or this opening,
when he listed what falls under this type.
Rather, he mentioned it under the fourth type,
which is beginning with a report.
And what is the reason?
The reason is the existence of disagreement.
Some view it as an oath,
while others view it as not an oath.
So, whoever said it is an oath,
placed it under the fifth type of opening.
And whoever said it is not an oath,
but rather a report of not taking an oath,
placed it under the fourth type.
And the matter is simple.
What is truly more important, in reality,
is that Surah Al-Qiyamah resembles Surah Al-Balad
in this opening.
Then we find a similarity between them
in something else,
which is the phrase "Does he think?" that is repeated in both Surahs.
In each Surah, "Does he think?" is mentioned.
"Does man think that We will not gather his bones?"
Then he said at the end of the Surah:
"Does man think that he will be left aimless?"
And it was mentioned twice in Surah Al-Balad:
"Does he think that no one has power over him?"
“Thinketh he that none beholdeth him?” (90:7)
So, both Surahs draw attention to a mistaken assumption.
And both Surahs begin with the same type of opening.
This requires research and contemplation.
As for the second point of reflection,
it is with the theme of the Surah.
He said: Reminding man of Allah's power over him,
and the duty required of him in this life.
From where did we derive that the theme of the Surah
is reminding man of Allah's power over him?
In truth, it is apparent from more than one angle.
The first is these oaths at the beginning of the Surah,
which indicate Allah's power.
This city, Mecca,
how Allah placed it between these valleys,
where there is no cultivation, no forests, and no rivers,
and people come to it from all over the earth,
willingly, not under compulsion, seeking the pleasure of Allah, the Exalted.
This is a sign.
"And you are free in this city"
This is another sign indicating the power of Allah, the Exalted.
And the verse speaks about what Allah permitted for him on the day of the conquest of Mecca,
in the Sanctuary.
And when one contemplates, it is a great sign
of the power of Allah, the Exalted, and his parents and offspring.
Another matter besides the oaths:
what came afterward, "Does he think that no one has power over him?"
"Have We not made for him two eyes, and a tongue and two lips?"
And the third matter that indicates the Surah's theme is power,
and the explicit mention by the scholar Al-Baqai in his Tafsir.
So, these three indicators
were the reason for choosing this opinion
in defining the theme of the Surah.
The third point of reflection remains,
and it is related to the theme of the Surah.
For in the theme of the Surah and its duty,
what is required of him in this life,
what is the practical outcome of our knowledge that Allah has power over us?
And the Surah nourishes this meaning within us,
that Allah has power over us.
What is the practical outcome?
The practical outcome is that we strive with all our ability
to be saved from Allah's punishment,
by freeing a captive or feeding in a day of hunger,
or what is mentioned in the verses,
indicating the exertion of effort during hardship,
so that a person overcomes this obstacle,
and is saved and attains the mercy of Allah, the Exalted.
And Allah, the Exalted, has power over us in this world,
in the first life, and has power over us in the Hereafter.
We must exert effort to be freed from Allah's punishment.
We ask Allah to make us among the saved.
We ask Allah, upon our Prophet Muhammad,
and upon his family and all his Companions. Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the worlds.