1 00:00:00,000 --> 00:00:02,759 In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. 2 00:00:02,759 --> 00:00:32,200 The concise commentary 3 00:00:32,200 --> 00:00:35,200 on the book *Profile Cards* 4 00:00:35,200 --> 00:00:37,719 *of the Surahs of the Noble Qur'an*, 5 00:00:37,719 --> 00:00:42,200 by Dr. Muhammad ibn 'Abd al-'Aziz ibn 'Umar Nasif, 6 00:00:42,200 --> 00:00:44,420 may Allah preserve him. 7 00:00:44,420 --> 00:00:46,420 Surah at-Taghabun. 8 00:00:46,420 --> 00:00:48,420 In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. 9 00:00:48,420 --> 00:00:50,420 Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, 10 00:00:50,420 --> 00:00:52,920 and peace and blessings be upon the Seal of the Prophets and Messengers, 11 00:00:52,920 --> 00:00:54,920 and upon all his family and Companions. 12 00:00:55,119 --> 00:00:58,119 We are still with the concise commentary on the profile cards, 13 00:00:58,119 --> 00:01:00,119 and we have arrived at Surah at-Taghabun. 14 00:01:00,119 --> 00:01:02,119 I have three observations regarding it. 15 00:01:02,119 --> 00:01:04,120 The first observation 16 00:01:04,120 --> 00:01:06,159 concerns the central theme of the surah. 17 00:01:06,159 --> 00:01:08,159 For it is stated here 18 00:01:08,159 --> 00:01:10,159 that its theme is the call to faith 19 00:01:10,159 --> 00:01:12,159 and its prerequisites, 20 00:01:12,159 --> 00:01:14,159 through introducing Allah, His attributes, and His actions. 21 00:01:14,159 --> 00:01:16,480 It is better to adjust this 22 00:01:16,480 --> 00:01:18,510 to state that 23 00:01:18,510 --> 00:01:20,670 its theme is 24 00:01:20,670 --> 00:01:22,670 the call to faith and its prerequisites, 25 00:01:22,670 --> 00:01:24,670 along with a warning 26 00:01:24,670 --> 00:01:26,670 against what hinders from it, 27 00:01:26,670 --> 00:01:28,670 and we remove "through introducing Allah, His attributes, and His actions." 28 00:01:28,670 --> 00:01:30,829 This 29 00:01:30,829 --> 00:01:32,829 is superfluous detail. 30 00:01:32,829 --> 00:01:34,829 There is no doubt that the call to faith includes 31 00:01:34,829 --> 00:01:36,829 introducing Allah and His attributes, 32 00:01:36,829 --> 00:01:38,829 and through this, the call to faith was made. 33 00:01:38,829 --> 00:01:40,829 Therefore, as is evident to us, this introductory prelude came 34 00:01:40,829 --> 00:01:42,829 at the beginning by introducing Allah, 35 00:01:42,829 --> 00:01:44,829 His attributes, and His actions. 36 00:01:44,829 --> 00:01:46,829 However, what I have proposed is better 37 00:01:46,829 --> 00:01:48,829 so that it encompasses the entire surah; 38 00:01:48,829 --> 00:01:50,829 for it contains a call to faith, 39 00:01:50,829 --> 00:01:52,829 and it contains a warning against what hinders 40 00:01:52,829 --> 00:01:54,829 from faith. 41 00:01:54,829 --> 00:01:56,829 The second observation relates 42 00:01:56,829 --> 00:01:58,829 to the surah's placement [in the Qur'anic order]. 43 00:01:58,829 --> 00:02:00,829 For it comes after Surah 44 00:02:00,829 --> 00:02:02,829 al-Munafiqun. It has been mentioned 45 00:02:02,829 --> 00:02:04,829 in the book regarding the placement 46 00:02:04,829 --> 00:02:06,829 of the surah, based on what is derived 47 00:02:06,829 --> 00:02:08,830 from the book of Imam as-Suyuti, 48 00:02:08,830 --> 00:02:10,830 that al-Munafiqun concluded 49 00:02:10,830 --> 00:02:12,830 with the urging to spend before the arrival of death, 50 00:02:12,830 --> 00:02:14,830 while this surah mentions mutual disillusion (at-Taghabun). 51 00:02:14,830 --> 00:02:16,830 Also among these connections is that the former 52 00:02:16,830 --> 00:02:18,830 urged remembrance, while this one mentions 53 00:02:18,830 --> 00:02:20,830 the continuous glorification of all creation. 54 00:02:20,830 --> 00:02:22,830 All of this is sound, and it can 55 00:02:22,830 --> 00:02:24,830 be added to this that 56 00:02:24,830 --> 00:02:26,830 this surah preserves 57 00:02:26,830 --> 00:02:28,830 faith, and preserving 58 00:02:28,830 --> 00:02:30,830 faith protects, by Allah's 59 00:02:30,830 --> 00:02:32,830 leave, from hypocrisy. 60 00:02:32,830 --> 00:02:34,830 Perhaps what was pointed out 61 00:02:34,830 --> 00:02:36,830 by Imam as-Suyuti—that the former, 62 00:02:36,830 --> 00:02:38,830 meaning al-Munafiqun, concluded 63 00:02:38,830 --> 00:02:40,830 with the urging toward remembrance, while this one mentions 64 00:02:40,830 --> 00:02:42,830 the continuous glorification of all creation— 65 00:02:42,830 --> 00:02:44,830 highlights here the benefit 66 00:02:44,830 --> 00:02:46,830 of the present-tense verb here. 67 00:02:46,830 --> 00:02:48,830 For the surah that opened with glorification 68 00:02:48,830 --> 00:02:50,830 using the present-tense verb is al-Jumu'ah, 69 00:02:50,830 --> 00:02:52,830 and it has already been discussed, as well as this surah. 70 00:02:52,830 --> 00:02:54,830 For after 71 00:02:54,830 --> 00:02:56,830 He said, "Let not your wealth 72 00:02:56,830 --> 00:02:58,830 or your children distract you from the remembrance of Allah," He said in this surah: 73 00:02:58,830 --> 00:03:00,830 "Whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on the earth glorifies Allah." 74 00:03:00,830 --> 00:03:02,830 It is as though He is pointing out 75 00:03:02,830 --> 00:03:04,830 that those who engage in remembrance 76 00:03:04,830 --> 00:03:06,830 are simply joining the procession 77 00:03:06,830 --> 00:03:08,860 of all creation that glorifies 78 00:03:08,860 --> 00:03:10,860 Allah, Glorified and Exalted is He. 79 00:03:10,860 --> 00:03:12,860 Therefore, the opening of the surah 80 00:03:12,860 --> 00:03:14,860 should be amended; of course, it is written here 81 00:03:14,860 --> 00:03:16,860 that it opened with a declarative sentence, which is an error; 82 00:03:16,860 --> 00:03:18,860 rather, it is among the surahs that open 83 00:03:18,860 --> 00:03:20,860 with glorification (Tasbih), 84 00:03:20,860 --> 00:03:22,990 and the glorification came 85 00:03:22,990 --> 00:03:24,990 in the present-tense verbal form. 86 00:03:24,990 --> 00:03:26,990 That is, the phrasing should be adjusted to match 87 00:03:26,990 --> 00:03:28,990 what was amended in Surah al-Jumu'ah. 88 00:03:28,990 --> 00:03:30,990 So let the section 89 00:03:30,990 --> 00:03:32,990 of the concise commentary on Surah al-Jumu'ah be consulted. 90 00:03:32,990 --> 00:03:34,990 There remains 91 00:03:34,990 --> 00:03:36,990 the third and final observation. 92 00:03:36,990 --> 00:03:38,990 We notice 93 00:03:38,990 --> 00:03:40,990 that the surah contains an introduction, 94 00:03:40,990 --> 00:03:42,990 a first passage commanding faith, 95 00:03:42,990 --> 00:03:44,990 and a second passage 96 00:03:44,990 --> 00:03:46,990 addressing the people of faith: "O you who have believed, 97 00:03:46,990 --> 00:03:48,990 indeed, among your spouses 98 00:03:48,990 --> 00:03:50,990 and your children are enemies to you, 99 00:03:50,990 --> 00:03:52,990 so beware of them." 100 00:03:52,990 --> 00:03:54,990 If you compare this 101 00:03:54,990 --> 00:03:56,990 second passage in Surah at-Taghabun 102 00:03:56,990 --> 00:03:58,990 with the second passage 103 00:03:58,990 --> 00:04:00,990 in Surah al-Munafiqun, you will find 104 00:04:00,990 --> 00:04:02,990 a similarity between them. There, 105 00:04:02,990 --> 00:04:04,990 it explained the states of the hypocrites, 106 00:04:04,990 --> 00:04:07,020 then directed 107 00:04:07,020 --> 00:04:09,020 an address to the believers 108 00:04:09,020 --> 00:04:11,020 urging them to remember Allah; 109 00:04:11,020 --> 00:04:13,020 and here, 110 00:04:13,020 --> 00:04:15,020 with an address to the believers 111 00:04:15,020 --> 00:04:17,019 and an urging toward faith: 112 00:04:17,019 --> 00:04:19,019 "So believe in Allah and His Messenger 113 00:04:19,019 --> 00:04:21,019 and the Light which We have sent down." 114 00:04:21,019 --> 00:04:23,019 Then He warned them, 115 00:04:23,019 --> 00:04:25,019 just as He warned them there: "Let not your wealth [or your children distract you]," 116 00:04:25,019 --> 00:04:27,019 “O ye who believe! Let not your wealth nor your children distract you from remembrance of Allah. Those who do so, they are the losers.” (63:9) 117 00:04:27,019 --> 00:04:29,019 so He said: "Indeed, among your spouses and your children 118 00:04:29,019 --> 00:04:31,019 are enemies to you." 119 00:04:31,019 --> 00:04:33,019 Thus we find that the two passages— 120 00:04:33,019 --> 00:04:35,019 the final ones in each surah— 121 00:04:35,019 --> 00:04:37,019 we find between these two passages 122 00:04:37,019 --> 00:04:39,019 a clear similarity. 123 00:04:39,019 --> 00:04:41,019 We also find them alongside 124 00:04:41,019 --> 00:04:43,019 the end of Surah al-Jumu'ah: 125 00:04:43,019 --> 00:04:45,019 "And when they saw a transaction or a diversion, 126 00:04:45,019 --> 00:04:47,019 they rushed to it and left you standing." 127 00:04:47,019 --> 00:04:49,019 These intertextual correspondences (munasabat) 128 00:04:49,019 --> 00:04:51,019 are endless to discuss, 129 00:04:51,019 --> 00:04:53,079 and I merely suffice here 130 00:04:53,079 --> 00:04:55,079 with such brief indications. 131 00:04:55,079 --> 00:04:57,079 Whoever explores further will find 132 00:04:57,079 --> 00:04:59,079 a great deal more than 133 00:04:59,079 --> 00:05:01,079 what I have mentioned. I ask Allah to grant opening to me and to you. 134 00:05:01,079 --> 00:05:03,079 May Allah send blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, 135 00:05:03,079 --> 00:05:05,079 and upon all his family 136 00:05:05,079 --> 00:05:07,079 and Companions, 137 00:05:07,079 --> 00:05:09,079 and all praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds.