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 Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

0:30 The concise commentary

0:32 on the book *Profile Cards

0:35 of the Surahs of the Noble Mus-haf*

0:38 by Dr. Muhammad Ibn Abdul-Aziz Ibn Umar Nassif,

0:42 may Allah preserve him.

0:44 Surah ar-Rahman.

0:46 In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

0:47 All praise is due to Allah, the Lord of all creation,

0:48 and may peace and blessings

0:49 be upon the Seal of the Prophets and Messengers,

0:51 and upon all his family and Companions.

0:54 We continue with our concise commentary

0:56 on the profile cards, focusing today on Surah ar-Rahman.

0:58 I have three points of reflection regarding it.

1:00 The first reflection

1:02 concerns what is mentioned in the book regarding the name of the Surah,

1:05 and that among its names is

1:07 "the Bride of the Qur'an."

1:09 He stated that this is based on the report of the hadith: "Everything has

1:11 a bride, and the bride of the Qur'an is ar-Rahman."

1:14 It was noted in the footnote that this hadith is denounced (*munkar*),

1:17 cited, of course, from *as-Silsilah ad-Da'ifah*.

1:19 Here, someone might ask: "Why then do you mention this hadith?"

1:22 The truth is that this hadith was mentioned incidentally, not as an original proof.

1:25 It was not cited as primary evidence,

1:27 but rather to clarify why

1:30 some scholars called it

1:32 "the Bride of the Qur'an." As I mentioned

1:34 in the opening episodes,

1:36 with regard to the names of the Surahs,

1:38 reliance was placed on the book

1:40 *Masā'id an-Nazar* by al-Biqa'i,

1:42 alongside consulting his Tafsir.

1:44 Al-Biqa'i listed among its names

1:46 "the Bride of the Qur'an."

1:47 Where did this name come from?

1:49 It came based on this hadith,

1:52 which has been graded

1:54 as denounced (*munkar*).

1:55 I believe that this

1:57 clarifies the matter

1:59 in this manner. Likewise, for other Surahs,

2:01 where names were adopted

2:03 based on a weak report,

2:05 a denounced narration, or the like,

2:07 this is clarified simply to explain the origin of the name.

2:09 This contrasts with the virtues (*fada'il*), in which I only mention

2:11 what appears to me

2:13 to be authentic, as well as regarding

2:15 the occasions of revelation (*asbab an-nuzul*),

2:17 while relying on the specific book

2:19 designated for the occasions of revelation.

2:21 The second reflection

2:23 concerns the opening of the Surah. He stated:

2:25 "It opens with an informative declarative sentence."

2:27 We have previously seen that Surahs opening

2:29 with an informative sentence are numerous.

2:31 He noted: "And it is uniquely distinguished..."

2:33 Here one must pause whenever an opening is uniquely distinct;

2:35 it truly warrants reflection. He said: "It is uniquely distinguished by being

2:37 the only Surah

2:39 that begins with one of the names of Allah."

2:41 We saw recently in Surah al-Qamar

2:43 that its opening resembled

2:45 the opening of Surah al-Anbiya'.

2:47 Here, however, it is the only Surah

2:49 that opens with one of the names of Allah.

2:51 Such distinctiveness

2:53 in the Qur'an,

2:55 or textual uniqueness—

2:57 a story mentioned in only one Surah,

2:59 or a word mentioned in only one

3:01 specific place—

3:03 these matters are prime subjects

3:05 for study and contemplation,

3:07 because there must be profound wisdom

3:09 behind that.

3:11 Indeed, reflecting upon the opening

3:13 of Surah ar-Rahman

3:15 greatly aids in profound contemplation

3:17 of this noble Surah.

3:19 Furthermore, I would say,

3:21 within the bounds of my knowledge

3:23 —without claiming exhaustive research—

3:25 I say that those who discourse upon

3:27 Allah's name *ar-Rahman* (the Most Gracious)

3:29 do not give this Surah

3:31 its due share of attention in

3:33 explaining the meaning of the name *ar-Rahman*

3:35 and its manifestations.

3:37 This overlooks a tremendous resource

3:39 for understanding the name *ar-Rahman*.

3:41 It has a well-known linguistic meaning,

3:43 and so forth, as mentioned by

3:45 the scholars who wrote on the Most Beautiful Names of Allah.

3:47 But when we have an entire Surah

3:49 whose name is one of the names of Allah,

3:51 and which begins with this unique opening,

3:53 one ought to pause before this Surah

3:55 for a long time

3:57 to attain deep understanding (*tafaqqah*)

3:59 of the meaning of Allah's name

4:01 *ar-Rahman*.

4:03 Therefore, I believe

4:05 that regarding the central theme of the Surah, it is better

4:07 to add a word to the statement:

4:09 "A reminder of divine favors and blessings"

4:11 —this is obvious, as "So which of the favors of your Lord will you deny?"

4:13 is repeated throughout—

4:15 "urging

4:17 the worship of the Owner of Majesty and Honor."

4:19 Perhaps it is more fitting,

4:21 in a way that draws attention to the significance of the name *ar-Rahman* in the Surah,

4:23 to say: "urging the worship

4:25 of ar-Rahman, the Owner of Majesty and Honor."

4:27 "The Owner of Majesty and Honor" was explicitly mentioned

4:29 because it appears in the Surah

4:31 twice: once in the middle of the Surah,

4:33 “There remaineth but the Countenance of thy Lord of Might and Glory.” (55:27)

4:35 and at the end of the Surah: "Blessed is the name of your Lord,

4:37 Owner of Majesty and Honor." Meanwhile, *ar-Rahman*

4:39 is how the Surah opens,

4:41 and it is the name of the Surah.

4:43 Thus, it would be beneficial

4:45 here to insert the word

4:47 *ar-Rahman*,

4:49 so that the phrasing becomes: "urging the worship

4:51 of ar-Rahman, the Owner of Majesty

4:53 and Honor."

4:55 As for the third reflection,

4:57 it concerns the dating of the Surah.

4:59 I have previously noted that the term "order

5:01 of revelation of the Surah"

5:03 should ideally be amended to read simply

5:05 "the revelation of the Surah,"

5:07 and that the word "its dating,"

5:09 found in the diagram,

5:11 should preferably be written as "its era."

5:13 Here I would like to mention

5:15 that if you examine

5:17 the dating of the Surah's revelation

5:19 in the diagram, you will find it

5:21 often more abbreviated

5:23 than what is stated in the main text

5:25 of the book. In the main text,

5:27 Surah ar-Rahman is considered the ninety-seventh

5:29 according to the well-known view, revealed after

5:31 Surah ar-Ra'd and before Surah al-Insan,

5:33 though the preponderant view is that it is Meccan.

5:35 The correct view is that it is Meccan,

5:37 and reports indicate

5:39 that it was revealed before the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him)

5:41 openly proclaimed what he was commanded.

5:43 However, if we look at the diagram,

5:45 we find only the phrase: "Considered the ninety-seventh

5:47 according to the well-known view, after ar-Ra'd

5:49 and before al-Insan." This statement

5:51 is outweighed (*marjuh*),

5:53 for the preponderant view is that it is Meccan.

5:55 So when someone reads this text

5:57 in this abbreviated form,

5:59 it creates confusion for them.

6:01 This well-known report,

6:03 as we noted,

6:05 contains weakness, is subject to critique,

6:07 and has been debated;

6:09 it was mentioned solely due to its fame,

6:11 unless contradicted by stronger evidence,

6:13 and indeed it has been contradicted.

6:15 Perhaps this occurred in other Surahs

6:17 as well, where abbreviation

6:19 in the diagram led to

6:21 this issue. Allah willing,

6:23 it will be corrected in the upcoming edition.

6:25 So please amend it on your end

6:27 and add it to the diagram;

6:29 it ought to be added.

6:31 Note also that

6:33 the expression "and it has been reported"

6:35 indicates that

6:37 the matter is open to possibility,

6:39 and that the report is not decisively established

6:41 within the scope of my research, but rather subject to difference of opinion,

6:43 or that I was unable

6:45 to definitively evaluate

6:47 the chain of narration for one reason or another.

6:49 Therefore, the word "reported"

6:51 signals this nuance,

6:53 showing that the matter is not

6:55 firmly established, unlike when it is expressed

6:57 in other sections as "authentically established."

6:59 I ask Allah to grant success to me and to you

7:01 in all that He loves and is pleased with.

7:03 May Allah send blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family, and Companions.

7:05 All praise is due to Allah, the Lord of all creation.

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

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