Part of The Gentle Commentary (series completed)
· Lesson 89 of 117
The nice comment on the book of cards identifying the surahs of the Holy Qur’an | D. Muhammad Nassif | Surat Al-Shu'ara
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Transcript
Machine translation — may contain errors
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In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
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Gentle Commentary
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on the book "Identification Cards"
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for the Surahs of the Noble Qur'an,
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by Dr. Muhammad Ibn Abd al-Aziz Ibn Umar Nasif,
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may Allah preserve him.
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Surah al-Shu'ara' (The Poets).
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In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Praise be to Allah,
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and may the peace and blessings of Allah be upon the Messenger of Allah.
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We continue with our gentle commentary,
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and with Surah al-Shu'ara'.
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There are three points of reflection.
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The first point concerns the name of the Surah.
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Naturally, its well-known name is "al-Shu'ara'" (The Poets),
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and it is also mentioned as "al-Zullah" (The Shadow).
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However, we will focus on "al-Shu'ara'",
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because some scholars,
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or one researcher in particular—
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whom I have mentioned to you before—
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who looked at all the Surahs in their entirety
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from the perspective of their names,
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examined them collectively,
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and found that "al-Shu'ara'" (The Poets) and "al-Qasas" (The Stories)
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cover
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what we call the field of literature.
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He pointed out that poets
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and storytelling
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are the pillars of literature.
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There are many literary forms and genres,
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but these two are the pillars
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of literature.
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When the Qur'an was revealed,
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poetry held a high status,
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and it still holds a status today,
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though it has diminished, while the importance
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of storytelling and fiction has increased.
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And the best of stories are in this Qur'an.
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We must not forget
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that when the Companions said
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to the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him,
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"Tell us stories," Allah revealed:
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“We narrate unto thee (Muhammad) the best of narratives in that We have inspired in thee this Qur'an, though aforetime thou wast of the heedless.” (12:3)
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The stories of the Qur'an deserve much attention.
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But the point is that naming
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these two Surahs,
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al-Shu'ara' and al-Qasas, alludes
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to two great
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pillars
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of literature. And literature
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has an influence on media;
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it has an influence on people's minds.
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We all know what
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the state of fiction
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and storytelling has become in terms of influence,
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even films and the like;
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they are originally stories
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that were turned into films,
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and thus they influenced
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entire generations
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at times.
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This is the first point of reflection.
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As for the second point,
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it concerns what is mentioned
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at the end of the history of revelation,
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regarding the chronological order of the Surah's revelation.
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It is said that this revelation is attributed
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to the time of the public proclamation of the message
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during the Meccan period.
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It is established in the Sahih that the saying of the Almighty:
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"And warn your closest kindred,"
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when it was revealed to the Prophet, peace be upon him,
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he gathered the people,
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spoke to them, and called them to Allah.
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So this revelation is attributed to the time
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of the public proclamation of the message in the Meccan period.
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This time was chronicled by
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Ibn Ishaq,
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and it is in the Seerah of Ibn Hisham, of course,
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that this was after three
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years of
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the call. There is
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research and discussion regarding this,
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and some have remained silent on the exact timing,
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but the well-known view
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is that it was three years
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from the beginning of the mission.
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During that time, the call was secret,
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then it became, with this verse,
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public.
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The third and final point of reflection
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concerns
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a passage in the Surah
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that relates to the science of "Munasabat" (thematic coherence),
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which some dear brothers ask about,
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saying: "Is there affectation in it,
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and how does one learn it?"
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I know Dr. Muhammad Umar Bazmul
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teaches the science of Munasabat;
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it is useful for establishing a foundation in this field,
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but the practitioner
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finds it broader than that.
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However, in terms of theory, it is good.
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Then I say, notice
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at the conclusion of the Surah's sections,
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there is an informative opening,
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which is His saying: "And indeed, it
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is the revelation of the Lord of the worlds."
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This verse
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refers back,
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as Imam al-Tabari explained,
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to the beginning of the Surah.
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For He mentioned the Book at the beginning of the Surah,
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then said after it,
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narrating all the stories.
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“And lo! it is a revelation of the Lord of the Worlds,” (26:192)
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Then the speech returned to the "Clear Book"
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mentioned at the beginning of the Surah.
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This confirms the importance of
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reading the entire Surah so that
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a person may take from its lights as much as
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possible.
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He said: "And the proof that the Qur'an is the truth,
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and the refutation of the doubts of the disbelievers."
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Among these is their counting the Qur'an as poetry—
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this leads to the reason for mentioning poetry.
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The Surah does not speak about poetry,
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yet at the end of the Surah, there is proof that the Qur'an
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is the truth. So what brought about the mention of
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poetry here? A seeker might ask this question.
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The Surah mentions the stories of the Prophets,
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so why were the poets mentioned at the end
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of this Surah?
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This is a question that crosses the mind.
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I point out that the refutation
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of the doubts of the disbelievers regarding what
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they describe the Prophet, peace be upon him, with,
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and the Qur'an that was revealed to him, was at the end
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of the Surah. Among the doubts was that [it was poetry],
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so the mention of the poets came
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for this reason.
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And notice that He said:
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"The poets—the deviators follow them."
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As for the followers of the Prophet, peace be upon him,
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they were not deviators; this contains praise
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for the Companions, that they
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are not among the deviators.
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Rather, it is the deviators who follow the poets.
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But here I wanted to
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point out a subtle,
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delicate issue that
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al-Tahir Ibn Ashur relied upon
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in explaining the relationship here.
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It is an issue that goes back to what
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scholars call—and it is important in the science of Munasabat—
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what is called in the science of rhetoric
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"the connector" (al-jami'), which has types.
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The intended meaning here is the connector
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that refers to people's customs
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and habits. In the custom of
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the Arabs to whom
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the Qur'an was revealed, they used to
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think that a poet had a devil
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who dictated poetry to him.
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Al-Tahir Ibn Ashur says this,
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and adds: "So it was appropriate," meaning
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he compared their falsification of the Qur'an—
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saying it is poetry—and their saying about the Prophet,
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peace be upon him, that he is a poet,
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with their saying that it is the speech of a soothsayer,
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just as he compared them
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in the verse of al-Haqqah.
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“It is not poet's speech - little is it that ye believe!” (69:41)
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“Nor diviner's speech - little is it that ye remember!” (69:42)
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You remember, then,
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I want to arrive at the fact that
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the connector that rhetoricians call
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"imaginary"—which is very important
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in the science of Munasabat—
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refers to knowing the conditions of those to whom
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the Qur'an was revealed, namely the Arabs.
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I knew the Arabs and I knew their view of poetry,
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and of soothsaying, and of devils.
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I knew the relationship that
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brought these verses
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to this place.
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I hope that this
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insight is clear.
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You may review the words of my master
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Ibn Ashur in his Tafsir
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at this passage, for he was brilliant.
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And al-Biqa'i was brilliant before him
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in explaining the description of the poets
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who are saved from this condemnation:
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"Except those who believe
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and do righteous deeds,
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and remember Allah
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often,
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and defend themselves
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after they were wronged.
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And those who have
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wronged
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will come to know
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May their hearts be turned [toward the truth].
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I ask Allah
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to grant me and you success in attaining what He loves and is pleased with.
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I ask Allah [to send blessings] upon our Prophet Muhammad, peace be upon him,
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and upon all his family and his Companions.
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And praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds.