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 Subtle Commentary

0:32 on the book "Identification Cards

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

0:38 by Dr. Muhammad Ibn Abdul Aziz Ibn Omar Naseef,

0:42 may Allah preserve him.

0:44 Surah Al-Jinn.

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

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

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

0:54 and upon his family and all his Companions.

0:57 We continue with the subtle commentary on the identification cards,

1:01 and today we are with Surah Al-Jinn.

1:03 I have three reflections regarding it.

1:07 The first reflection

1:09 is the placement of the surah,

1:11 for it comes directly after Surah Nuh.

1:13 It has been noted that perhaps its suitability in following Surah Nuh

1:16 is that this surah presents an example of those who believed,

1:19 considering that Surah Nuh

1:21 portrayed the disbelievers as a model of rejecting the message,

1:28 rejecting Islam, and rejecting Tawhid (monotheism),

1:31 whereas this surah is a model of those who believed.

1:33 Thus, it serves as a complement to that one.

1:36 Just as there are those who disbelieve despite

1:39 the preacher's utmost eagerness in calling them—as was the case with the Prophet of Allah, Nuh—

1:43 there are also those who believe without the caller specifically directing his call to them,

1:48 “Say (O Muhammad): It is revealed unto me that a company of the Jinn gave ear, and they said: Lo! we have heard a marvellous Qur'an,” (72:1)

1:51 so they said, "Indeed, we have heard an amazing Qur'an."

1:53 The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) recited the Qur'an,

1:55 and the jinn were guided.

1:58 Notice that the ones guided

2:00 were the furthest conceivable from guidance

2:03 in our minds.

2:05 Observe that regarding those in Surah Nuh,

2:08 Allah mentions about them

2:10 “If Thou shouldst leave them, they will mislead Thy slaves and will beget none save lewd ingrates.” (71:27)

2:12 what was recounted about Nuh (peace be upon him).

2:14 Yet here, we find the jinn

2:17 becoming callers to truth and goodness.

2:23 In truth, the comparison between the two cases

2:26 is subtle and full of profound lessons:

2:29 guidance is entirely in the hand of Allah, the Exalted,

2:34 and He guides whom He wills to a straight path.

2:37 As for the second reflection,

2:39 regarding what has been mentioned concerning the occasion of revelation of this surah

2:43 about the jinn listening to the Qur'an,

2:46 I say that, in truth, this matter

2:49 requires a broader scholarly investigation.

2:51 This is also hinted at regarding the chronological order of the surah's revelation,

2:54 as the well-known view is that it is the thirty-ninth.

2:58 However, the mention of eavesdropping

3:01 and the presence of shooting stars (shuhub)

3:03 might suggest that this occurred very early on,

3:05 and that the surah was revealed somewhat early.

3:09 This warrants further research,

3:11 especially given the numerous narrations

3:14 concerning the jinn listening to the Qur'an

3:16 and its mention in the Qur'an both in Surah Al-Ahqaf

3:20 and in Surah Al-Jinn.

3:21 This necessitates a study

3:23 that balances the verses here and there

3:26 with the hadith narrations,

3:29 examining the chains of transmission reported,

3:32 and harmonizing between those accounts

3:34 to discern whether this was a single incident or two separate incidents,

3:37 and when the first occurred and when the second took place.

3:42 One thing leads to another:

3:43 the end of Surah Al-Ahqaf, which contains

3:46 "And [mention] when We directed to you a group of the jinn...",

3:48 was preceded by mentioning the denial of 'Ad,

3:52 “And make mention (O Muhammad) of the brother of A'ad when he warned his folk among the wind-curved sandhills - and verily warners came and went before and after him - saying: Serve none but Allah. Lo! I fear for you the doom of a tremendous Day.” (46:21)

3:55 so after the denial of 'Ad, the jinn were mentioned,

3:58 and after the denial of Nuh, the jinn were mentioned.

4:00 All of this also requires reflection and contemplation.

4:04 I conclude with the third reflection,

4:08 which relates to the opening of the surah.

4:11 The surah, as mentioned here, opens with a command;

4:15 and it is perhaps appropriate to add:

4:20 specifically with the command to speak (say).

4:23 For surahs that begin with a command,

4:25 most of them begin with the word "Say" (Qul)—

4:28 the command to speak—

4:30 except for Surah Iqra' (Al-'Alaq),

4:32 which begins with "Read" (Iqra').

4:34 It was the first surah in the Qur'an,

4:36 and these were the first verses revealed,

4:38 wherein Allah said to the Prophet (peace be upon him):

4:41 "Read!"

4:43 We have five surahs

4:45 that begin with the words of the Almighty:

4:48 "Say" (Qul): Surah Al-Jinn,

4:51 Surah Al-Kafirun,

4:54 and the Mu'awwidhat (the surahs of seeking refuge).

4:56 If we ponder these surahs,

4:59 even though the Prophet (peace be upon him)

5:01 was commanded—as the scholars noted regarding such expressions—

5:03 to convey the entire Qur'an

5:05 and to proclaim it,

5:07 these specific surahs, upon reflection, have a unique distinction.

5:10 Surah Al-Jinn discusses a matter

5:13 of the unseen (Ghayb) from two angles:

5:15 it is unseen because the jinn belong to the unseen realm,

5:18 and it is unseen because the Prophet (peace be upon him)

5:21 did not know that the jinn were listening to him.

5:24 So Allah said to him: "Say..."

5:28 It is as if this teaches us that matters of the unseen

5:31 are received solely through divine revelation;

5:34 we do not speak of them based on our own opinions.

5:37 The same can be said regarding the stance toward the disbelievers:

5:41 “Say: O disbelievers!” (109:1)

5:43 the address could have been directed to them immediately,

5:46 but this alerts us that the Prophet (peace be upon him)—

5:49 and we follow in his footsteps—

5:51 proceeds in his dealings with the disbelievers

5:55 and his stances toward them

5:57 not out of mere reaction to what they do,

6:01 but by receiving revelation from Allah

6:05 and walking in its light.

6:08 I emphasize that we, too, ought to be like this:

6:12 proceeding in all our interactions with disbelievers

6:16 and our stances toward them guided by the light of revelation.

6:21 Likewise, if you look at the Mu'awwidhat:

6:23 "Say, He is Allah, the One"

6:25 teaches us about Allah,

6:27 and this is learned strictly from revelation;

6:29 while Al-Falaq and An-Nas teach us how

6:31 to take refuge in Allah and seek His protection,

6:33 and this, too, is known only through revelation.

6:36 Thus, these surahs share the common feature of addressing

6:39 specific subjects

6:41 in which one must be mindful

6:44 that such matters are derived exclusively from divine revelation.

6:47 I will suffice with this,

6:49 and I apologize for the length.

6:51 May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon

6:52 our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and all his Companions,

6:54 and 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 Al-Jinn

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