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.

0:02 "The Graceful Commentary

0:32 upon the Book of Introductory Profiles

0:35 to the Surahs of the Noble Qur'an,"

0:38 by Dr. Muhammad ibn Abdul-Aziz ibn Umar Nasif,

0:42 may Allah preserve him.

0:44 Surah al-Jathiyah.

0:46 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.

0:51 We continue with our graceful commentary upon the introductory profiles,

0:54 and we arrive at Surah al-Jathiyah.

0:56 I have three points of reflection concerning it.

0:59 The first point of reflection—

1:01 which pertains to all the surahs beginning with Ha-Meem—

1:05 is that certain figures among the salaf (early generations),

1:08 as noted regarding the virtues of this surah,

1:10 explicitly stated in connection with the virtues of this surah

1:12 and the virtues of the other "Family of Ha-Meem" surahs preceding and succeeding it,

1:15 they observed that some of the salaf gave special attention to these surahs.

1:19 This special attention warrants scholarly study,

1:23 requiring both the compilation of the narrations and the examination of their chains of transmission.

1:26 The third matter, which is no less important than the previous two,

1:32 is the effort to derive fiqh from them and understand the secret and wisdom behind this keen interest.

1:40 In Ibn Kathir, at the beginning of Surah Ghafir,

1:43 there is a collection of such traditions, along with remarks

1:47 by Imam Ibn Kathir on some of those reports that truly merit deep reflection,

1:52 or rather, on one specific report among them.

1:54 I have explicitly emphasized these three dimensions

1:58 because many researchers restrict themselves merely to compiling narrations,

2:01 or, along with compiling, they evaluate the chains of transmission,

2:04 both of which are undoubtedly important.

2:07 Yet the research is only made complete by this third element:

2:10 clarifying the fiqh and deeper understanding of these traditions.

2:14 As for the second point of reflection,

2:17 it pertains to the occasion of revelation mentioned

2:20 or referenced in the book.

2:22 For this surah, according to the relied-upon reference,

2:25 has only one occasion of revelation cited.

2:27 The author noted that it might not actually constitute an occasion of revelation,

2:31 because the narrated report referenced from Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him and his father,

2:36 states: "An Arab man used to worship a stone;

2:39 when he found a better one, he would take it and discard the other."

2:43 Thereupon, Allah revealed the verse.

2:46 Now, among the fundamental criteria for an occasion of revelation to be validly considered as such—

2:50 as concluded in the book *Al-Muharrar*,

2:53 a work I repeatedly praise,

2:58 and which I only refrained from adopting because it restricted itself to the Nine Books,

3:01 whereas in terms of critical editing and meticulous precision

3:04 it is an invaluable work—

3:06 one of these criteria is that the occurrence must be an unprecedented event.

3:09 A new, specific incident must have occurred,

3:11 whether a spoken statement or an action,

3:13 to the end of what he stated.

3:15 Thus, there must be a novel event,

3:17 whereas this was an ongoing custom among the pre-Islamic Arabs,

3:19 or a practice well known among them

3:22 that the divine Law came to abolish;

3:24 hence, it cannot properly be called an occasion of revelation.

3:26 What further supports this view—

3:29 namely, that this narration does not constitute an occasion of revelation—

3:32 is that there is another narration in the book *Al-Isti'ab*,

3:35 graded as fair (hasan) by the author of the book,

3:37 *Al-Isti'ab fi Bayan al-Asbab*,

3:39 which does not contain the word "revelation" (nuzul) at all.

3:43 And knowledge belongs to Allah, the Exalted and Glorified.

3:45 The third and final point of reflection

3:47 concerns the thematic passages of the surah,

3:49 specifically in the second section.

3:52 The author stated: "In it is a digressive (idrabi),

3:55 transitional opening."

3:57 Of course, designating openings with such terms,

3:59 as previously mentioned, is a matter of scholarly ijtihad,

4:01 and it is intrinsically tied to linguistics.

4:04 Arabic linguistics is indispensable

4:06 for anyone studying the Tafsir of the Qur'an.

4:08 When you examine the opening of a verse

4:10 and wish to describe it,

4:12 you must employ the terminology of the linguists and rhetoricians.

4:14 Among these terms

4:16 is *idrab* (digression or retraction).

4:18 The most common way *idrab* is expressed

4:20 is through the use of

4:22 the particle *bal* (nay / rather).

4:24 Furthermore, *idrab* is of two kinds:

4:26 invalidating (*ibthali*), which refutes the preceding statement,

4:28 or transitional (*intiqali*),

4:30 which transitions to another discourse

4:32 without refuting the preceding one.

4:34 And this is what is employed here,

4:36 where it occurs as: "Or do those who..."

4:38 Here, "or" (*am*) serves the function of *idrab*,

4:40 an *idrab* of transition that does not invalidate

4:42 the preceding discourse.

4:45 I reiterate once more

4:47 that anyone who wishes to truly understand the Qur'an

4:49 is in dire need

4:51 of learning the disciplines

4:53 of the Arabic language:

4:55 syntax (nahw), morphology (sarf),

4:57 rhetoric (balaghah),

4:59 and others.

5:01 I conclude my remarks on this same point of reflection

5:03 with this verse:

5:05 ﴾Or do those who commit evil deeds suppose...﴿

5:07 “Or do those who commit ill-deeds suppose that We shall make them as those who believe and do good works, the same in life and death? Bad is their judgment!” (45:21)

5:09 ﴾...and do righteous deeds—﴿

5:11 ﴾—that their life and death will be equal?﴿

5:13 Regarding this verse,

5:15 the scholars have paused for profound reflections.

5:17 I relay to you

5:19 what al-Tahir ibn Ashur remarked,

5:21 which is an essential observation,

5:23 because the context of the verses is addressing the disbelievers,

5:25 yet despite that,

5:27 it contains an admonition for the believer.

5:29 The Shaykh, may Allah have mercy on him,

5:32 illuminate his grave, and elevate his status, says:

5:34 "Know that this verse,

5:36 even though its primary application

5:38 is to the respective states of the polytheists and the believers"—

5:40 meaning it was revealed for this reason

5:42 originally—

5:44 "the fact that the ruling is linked

5:46 to the relative clause 'those who commit evil deeds'..."

5:48 That is, the relative noun was used:

5:50 "those who commit evil deeds";

5:52 Allah did not say: "Or do those who disbelieve suppose...?"

5:54 “Or do those who commit ill-deeds suppose that We shall make them as those who believe and do good works, the same in life and death? Bad is their judgment!” (45:21)

5:56 Rather, He said: "Or do those who commit

5:58 evil deeds suppose...?" Thus, He tied the verdict

6:00 to this relative clause, namely, the committing

6:02 of evil deeds. Why?

6:04 He said: "Linking the ruling

6:06 to the relative clause 'those who commit evil deeds'

6:09 serves as an implicit allusion to

6:12 the disparity between the states of the wrongdoers and the righteous

6:15 among the people of faith."

6:17 For the wrongdoers among the people of faith commit

6:20 misdeeds, even if they do not reach the level of disbelief.

6:23 He said: "An allusion to the disparity between the states of the wrongdoers and the righteous

6:26 among the people of faith, even if none

6:29 among the believers would suppose such a thing"—meaning that both the believer

6:32 who falls into error and the righteous believer know that the righteous

6:35 is superior to the wrongdoer in reward in the Hereafter,

6:37 yet this rhetorical phrasing

6:40 drew attention to this distinction as a poignant reminder.

6:43 He added: "It is reported regarding Tamim al-Dari

6:45 that he spent an entire night reciting this verse, bowing,

6:48 prostrating, and weeping until the morning."

6:51 This report is found in Tafsir Ibn Kathir,

6:54 authenticated by the editor of Ibn Kathir, Dr. Hikmat Bashir.

6:58 He said: "A similar account is narrated on the authority of al-Rabi' ibn Khuthaym,"

7:01 until he said: "Thus, this verse used to be called

7:04 'the weeping place of the worshippers' (*Mubkat al-Abidin*)."

7:07 That is, as if it were the sanctuary where devoted worshippers weep.

7:11 Glory be to Allah! Even though it is a verse we might pass by,

7:14 and someone might assume—as al-Tahir pointed out regarding context—

7:18 someone might assume it only concerns the disbelievers:

7:20 a surah speaking about the disbelievers and their disbelief,

7:22 so a Muslim's mind relaxes, thinking it addresses only the heads of disbelief.

7:24 But Allah honored us by choosing the expression:

7:27 ﴾Or do those who commit evil deeds suppose...﴿,

7:29 so that it serves as an implicit hint and allusion to what may occur

7:33 of misdeeds among Muslims,

7:35 and that this impairs their standing before Allah.

7:37 This alerts us to rectify our affairs,

7:41 to remain heedful of our shortcomings,

7:43 and to remember that if we perform righteous deeds,

7:45 we will be raised higher in ranks.

7:48 And this, without doubt,

7:50 serves as a powerful incentive to righteous action.

7:52 May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon our Prophet Muhammad.

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

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