The nice comment on the book of cards identifying the surahs of the Holy Qur’an | D. Muhammad Nassif

0:00 In the name of Allah, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful.

0:02 A Gentle Commentary

0:32 on the Book *Identification Cards

0:35 for the Surahs of the Noble Qur'an*

0:37 by Dr. Muhammad ibn 'Abd al-'Aziz ibn 'Umar Nasif,

0:42 may Allah preserve him.

0:44 Surah al-Tahrim.

0:46 In the name of Allah, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful.

0:48 All praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds.

0:50 Peace and blessings be upon the Seal of the Prophets and Messengers,

0:53 and upon all his family and Companions.

0:55 We continue with our gentle commentary on the identification cards,

0:58 and we have arrived at Surah al-Tahrim.

1:00 I have three points of reflection concerning it.

1:03 The first point relates to what was mentioned regarding the central theme of the surah:

1:06 namely, that it sets forth the ideal model

1:09 for the believing woman,

1:11 who serves as a fundamental building block in constructing a faithful home.

1:14 And what a magnificent building block she is!

1:16 For if it is lost,

1:19 or if what is required

1:21 of its essential qualities

1:23 becomes deficient,

1:24 the entire household is weakened.

1:26 Where do we find these qualities?

1:27 We find them in several places within the surah,

1:29 but I will focus on one passage in particular,

1:31 which is the words of Allah, the Exalted:

1:32 "Perhaps his Lord, if he divorces you,

1:33 will substitute for him wives better than you—

1:35 submitting [to Allah], believing,

1:36 devoutly obedient,

1:37 repentant,

1:38 worshipping,

1:39 given to fasting [or migrating],

1:40 both previously married and virgins."

1:42 This last part represents a natural classification:

1:44 a woman is either previously married or a virgin,

1:47 and this does not affect

1:48 the ideal spiritual depiction of a believing woman.

1:51 Consider how Allah chooses for His Prophet,

1:54 and how He addresses his wives:

1:56 "Perhaps his Lord, if he divorces you,

1:57 will substitute for him wives better than you."

1:59 So what are the qualities

2:00 that Allah chooses for His Prophet?

2:02 "Submitting [to Allah], believing,

2:03 devoutly obedient,

2:04 repentant,

2:05 worshipping,

2:06 given to fasting."

2:07 These are the characteristics upon which

2:12 believing women ought to be nurtured from an early age,

2:14 and they should be integrated into educational curricula.

2:17 The most important qualities of the woman—

2:19 the Muslim,

2:20 the believer—

2:21 are precisely those mentioned here;

2:23 they represent the foremost traits of the female believer.

2:26 Although we cannot do without other verses

2:29 found in other surahs,

2:30 these are focused, explicit verses

2:33 that every believing woman should heed,

2:36 and which ought to be carefully considered by

2:38 educational curriculum developers.

2:40 In educating the Muslim woman,

2:42 whom we want to emerge strong

2:44 and firmly holding

2:45 to her religion.

2:46 The second point of reflection

2:48 concerns what is mentioned in the second passage of the surah:

2:51 the mention of sincere repentance (*al-tawbah al-nasuh*).

2:53 Indeed, sincere repentance

2:55 is not mentioned except in this surah.

2:58 And topics that are mentioned only once

3:01 are worthy of special attention.

3:04 Some works have been written on this:

3:06 Why was this surah specifically distinguished

3:09 with the mention of sincere repentance,

3:11 even though repentance is mentioned in many other surahs?

3:13 And what is sincere repentance?

3:15 I believe this requires careful study; I do not possess a definitive answer to this, but

3:21 I wished to open the door to exploring sincere repentance in the light of Surah al-Tahrim, within its context,

3:27 its subtle nuances, and its contents, which can portray the true essence of sincere repentance. It is true

3:31 that the scholars explained sincere repentance, but interpreting it in light of

3:37 the entire Surah al-Tahrim reveals many profound insights that were perhaps left unaddressed

3:43 by the scholars who defined it. This broader understanding,

3:50 attained through examining the context and the whole surah, increases our yearning for

3:56 this repentance and deepens our prior knowledge of it. As for the third

4:00 and final point of reflection, it concerns what is mentioned at the end of the surah regarding the parables drawn for

4:06 good and evil through women of earlier times: the wife of Noah, the wife of Lot, and the wife of Pharaoh.

4:12 This leads me to an issue that I frequently emphasize: that a surah

4:19 is profoundly interconnected. A single surah constitutes a tightly knit unity. The parable

4:25 at the end of the surah has an unmistakably clear connection to its beginning

4:30 and to what occurred regarding the Mothers of the Believers at the start of the surah. Thus, the claim that the surah

4:36 lacks internal coherence is thoroughly refuted by such clear examples. At times,

4:42 the connection is subtle and requires further scholarly effort and reflection; however, in

4:47 a surah such as this, the link between its ending and its beginning is self-evident.

4:53 Here I stress that since the surah is interconnected and forms

4:58 an integral whole, it deserves to be recited in a single rak'ah, as

5:04 the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, used to do. His predominant practice in recitation was

5:07 to complete the surah, though he might occasionally divide it. Yet this is a short surah of merely two pages.

5:12 We find long recitations burdensome—and I marvel at myself and others when we feel burdened by

5:17 a prayer that lasts for twenty minutes. In our standard practice,

5:20 the obligatory prescribed prayer almost never lasts twenty-five

5:24 minutes. Perhaps if one were to recite Surah al-Sajdah and Surah al-Insan

5:28 deliberately and slowly, it might reach this duration. How much time do we spend on

5:32 other matters? What harm would come to us if every prayer

5:36 were performed in half an hour, so that we might recite what the Prophet used to recite?

5:40 His recitation was lengthy compared to ours. I am not speaking

5:45 of what the Prophet, peace be upon him, forbade regarding driving people away by

5:48 excessively prolonging the prayer to the point of undue hardship. No; I am speaking of a moderate recitation.

5:52 When an imam recites Surah al-Tahrim in one rak'ah and Surah al-Talaq

5:55 before it in the other, it is considered by the general public today

5:59 an excessive prolongation, though it is not. If you were to calculate the duration of the prayer in which

6:05 these two surahs are recited, for instance, you would find that ultimately

6:08 it would not exceed fifteen minutes or something similar, which is not much.

6:13 It is certainly not much when one recognizes that prayer is light, that it restrains

6:18 from shameful and unjust deeds, that it is a means of drawing near to one's Lord, and that it holds

6:22 whatever virtues you wish to enumerate regarding prayer. This may be

6:26 a digression, but I emphasize that completing the entire surah

6:29 in one rak'ah greatly aids in understanding it, and realizing that the end

6:34 of this surah is intimately tied to its beginning reveals many profound meanings

6:37 thereafter—a realization largely achieved only through reciting it as a whole.

6:39 But if the imam begins his recitation after al-Fatihah with: "Allah presents

6:44 an example of those who disbelieved: the wife of Noah and the wife of Lot...",

6:46 the question remains: why did Allah set forth this parable, and how is it connected

6:49 to what came before it? Such insight is lost in this type of permissible recitation,

6:53 which does not reflect the regular, consistent Sunnah transmitted

6:57 from our Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him. I will content myself with this,

6:59 and I invoke blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad and upon all his family and Companions.

7:01 All praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds.

The nice comment on the book of cards identifying the surahs of the Holy Qur’an | D. Muhammad Nassif | Surat Al-Tahrim

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