In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
Concise commentary
on the book *Introductory Cards*
*for the Surahs of the Noble Qur'an*
by Dr. Muhammad ibn 'Abd al-'Aziz ibn 'Umar Naseef,
may Allah preserve him.
Surah al-An'am.
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.
We are still engaging with this concise commentary,
and today we arrive at Surah al-An'am.
I would like to make three brief points regarding it.
The first point
concerns the occasions of revelation.
The author mentions eight occasions for this surah.
Of course, I have explained before
that this is according to
the reference book adopted here, namely
*Al-Sahih min Asbab al-Nuzul* (The Authentic Occasions of Revelation).
It does not mean that
no other occasions of revelation were mentioned
except these eight across all books of
occasions of revelation—
that would be incorrect.
Rather, the intended meaning of the adopted reference text
is the authentic occasions of revelation.
However, I wanted to address
another matter, which is
that having only eight occasions
across more than twenty pages—
given the length of this surah, which
is not far removed
from Al 'Imran
and An-Nisa' in length—
why are there so few
occasions of revelation cited for it?
The truth is that occasions of revelation
in Meccan surahs are few
when compared to Medinan ones.
That is because in the Prophetic biography (Seerah),
we know
its details regarding the Medinan period far more
than we know of its details
regarding the Meccan period.
This brings us to the second point,
which is the dating
of revelation—a distinct issue,
as we agreed previously.
Dating revelation during the Meccan period
is difficult. It is easy
to date a Medinan surah in most cases;
indeed, sometimes you know that
an entire surah was connected
to a specific year,
even if the surah is long,
or medium-length spanning ten
pages, such as Surah al-Anfal.
But in Meccan surahs,
you might find a short surah,
such as al-Qari'ah or at-Takathur,
or others,
and yet you cannot determine
a precise date for its revelation.
Therefore, you often find
scholarly opinions regarding Meccan surahs
and their dating
that rely merely on
subjective taste and textual reflection,
which can contain flaws
or represent weak opinions
lacking solid evidence—
unlike Medinan surahs,
where the abundance of narrations
regarding occasions of revelation and other
biographical events makes it easy
for us to know
the date of revelation with precision.
For instance, consider the difference with the Isra' (Night Journey):
when did the Isra' occur?
There is a long-standing disagreement.
You do not find such disagreement regarding the timing of
Badr, Uhud, or other events;
if you do find disagreement, it is minor
or due to differences in terminology,
which is addressed elsewhere.
The point is that dating the revelation of Meccan surahs
is far more difficult. So when you see
someone speaking about a Meccan surah
and asserting that a certain surah was revealed in such-and-such a year,
exercise caution—
especially regarding Meccan surahs—
for overreaching has occurred
in a number of studies and books.
The third
and final point regarding Surah al-An'am
concerns its main sections.
It can be divided into two parts:
A part that introduces Allah
and expresses wonder
at the disbelief of the disbelievers,
which is evident from the very first verse of the surah:
"Praise be to Allah, who
created the heavens and the earth
and made the darknesses and the light."
It introduces Allah, then says: "Yet those who
disbelieve equate others with their Lord,"
expressing astonishment at the state of the disbelievers.
In the second part,
there is further introduction to Allah,
as well as astonishment at the prohibitions imposed by the disbelievers
and their legislating for themselves
things for which Allah sent down no authority,
along with an exposition of the true prohibitions.
Thus, both parts trace back
to the beginning of the surah.
I want to emphasize that the introduction
to Allah in this surah
is perhaps unmatched by
any other surah,
because it is a long surah—
among the longest Meccan surahs—
and it is filled with introducing Allah,
to the extent that some
scholars noted that it is
like Surah al-Baqarah
among Medinan surahs.
Surah al-Baqarah encompasses
most of the legal rulings, whereas this surah
encompasses the fundamentals of creed.
It is as if the Medinan surahs
are an elaboration of al-Baqarah, and as if
the Meccan surahs are all linked
to Surah al-An'am—a concept
truly worth pondering.
With this, I conclude my commentary
on Surah al-An'am.
I ask Allah to fill our hearts with His recognition,
and may Allah send blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad,
and upon his family and all his Companions.
Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds.