النص المفهرس

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Surah Al-Baqarah 2 : 187
◌ُبَاشِرُوُهُنَّ وَأَنْتُمْ لُكِفُونَ فِى الْمَسْجِدِ* تِلُّكَ حُدُوُدُ اللهِ فَلاَ
تَقُرُوُهَاء كَذُرِكَ بَّنُ اللّهُ أَيْتِهِ لِلنَّاسِ لَعَلَّهُمْ يَتَّقُونَ ﴾
It is made lawful for you, in the nights of fast, to have
sex with your women. They are a cover for you and you
are a cover for them. Allah knew that you were
betraying yourselves, so He relented towards you and
pardoned you. So now you can have sexual intimacy
with them and seek what Allah has destined for you
and eat and drink until the white thread of the dawn
becomes distinct from the black thread; then complete
the fast upto the night, and do not have sexual
intimacy with them while you are staying in mosques
for I'tikaf. These are the limits set by Allah, so do not go
near them. Thus Allah manifests His signs to the
people that they may be God-fearing. (Verse 187)
Explained here in this verse are the remaining injunctions of
fasting including the injunction relating to I'tikaf.
Commentary
The opening words of the verse, 'S Li (uhilla lakum: 'It is made
lawful for you') tell us that the act made lawful through this verse was
unlawful before. According to a narration by the blessed Companion,
Bara' ibn 'Azib appearing in Şahin al-Bukhari, in the early days when
the fasts of Ramadan were made obligatory, the permission to eat,
drink and have marital intimacy with wives was subjected to the
condition that one does not sleep after breaking of the fast. So, as the
practice was, a post-iftar nap rendered all these conveniences
unlawful. Some Companions ran into difficulties due to this
restriction. The blessed Companion, Qays ibn Sarma al-Ansari is
reported to have reached home after a hard day's labour. The time of
iftar was near and there was nothing to eat. His wife said that she
would go out and somehow get him something to eat. When she
returned she found her husband asleep, obviously because he was so
tired from his day-long work. Now, when he got up, eating had
become unlawful. He went on to fast for the next day in the same
condition with the result that by afternoon, he fainted (Ibn Kathir).
Similarly, some Companions, may Allah be pleased with them, were

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embarrassed getting involved in marital relations with their wives
after they had taken a post-iftar nap. It was after such happenings
that the present verse was revealed in which the first rule was
cancelled and permission was given to eat, drink and have marital
relations, even if this was after getting up from the post-iftar nap. In
fact, the permission was extended much further when the eating of
suhur or sehri towards the fag end of the night, after getting up from
the night's sleep, was declared to be a sunnah. This has been clearly
stated in Hadith narrations. The present verse outlines this very
injunction.
The literal meaning of the Qur'anic word &, (rafath) is, no doubt,
general and covers everything a husband suggests, says or does in
making his wife consent to his desire, but there is a total agreement of
the Muslim Ummah that, at this place, it means sexual intercourse.
It is important to bear in mind that the order or rule which has
been abrogated by this verse, that is, the unlawfulness of eating and
drinking after having taken a nap, has not appeared in the text of the
Holy Qur'an anywhere. The noble Companions acted in accordance
with this rule as set by the Holy Prophet (as narrated by Ahmad in
his Musnad). This rule is abrogated by the verse only after giving it
the authenticity of a divine command. In other words, the verse first
establishes the rule in force as the divine command and then,it was for
the sake of convenience that it was abrogated. From here we find out
that some rules provenly set by the Sunnah can also be abrogated
through the Qur'an. So, in the Islamic law, the decision of the
Messenger of Allah has the same authority as the injunction of the
Holy Qur'an.
Eating Şehri :
The correct time when fasting begins and all eating and drinking
turns unlawful has been fixed through a delicate similitude in the
verse حَتْ يَتَبَيَّنَ لَكُمُ الْخَبْطُ الْأَبْيَضُ مِنَ الْخَبْطِ الْأَسْوَد (until the white thread of the
dawn becomes distinct from the black thread'). Here, the darkness of
the night has been likened to the black thread and the light of the
dawn to the white thread. In order to eliminate the chances of
extremism, the qualifier " (becomes distinct) was added which
means that one should not act like the chronically skeptical to believe

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all eating and drinking to be unlawful earlier than the break of dawn,
nor should one become so heedless as to go on eating and drinking
even after having become certain of the light of dawn. In fact, the
certainty of the break of dawn is the line of demarcation between
eating and drinking and the intended fast. Before one arrives at this
certainty, it is not correct to take eating and drinking as haram.
Similarly, after the certainty, any indulgence in eating and drinking
shall be haram, and is a source which may lead to the spoiling of the
fast, even if it exceeds the limit for a minute. The latitude and leeway
allowed in eating suhur remains valid only upto the time one is not
certain of the break of dawn. Particular incidents of this nature
attributed to some blessed Companions have been reported when they
continued eating and drinking well past the break of dawn. This was
because they were not yet 'certain' of the dawn and refused to listen to
those who favoured to stop much earlier.
In a hadith, the Holy Prophet & is reported to have said: 'The
adhan of Bilal should not stop you from eating suhur because he calls
the adhan well ahead in the night. Therefore, you continue eating and
drinking, even after having heard Bilal's adhan, until such time that
you hear the adhan called by Ibn Umm Maktum because he calls the
adhan precisely at the break of dawn' (Bukhari and Muslim).
Because of the partial reporting of this hadith, some
contemporaries misunderstood its provision when they suggested that
there is no harm if eating and drinking is continued for a little while
even after the adhan of Fajr and consequently, made it permissible for
a person, who woke up late while the adhan of Fajr was being called,
that he can hasten to eat something. The fact is that the hadith
quoted above has very clearly said that it was necessary to stop eating
or drinking with the adhan of Ibn Umm Maktum which was called
precisely at the break of dawn. In addition to that, the Holy Qur'an
has itself established the deadline which is the 'certainty' of the break
of dawn. Giving people the permission to eat and drink even one
minute beyond that is a contravention of the textual imperative of the
Holy Qur'an. As for the narrations reported from the noble
Companions and early elders of the community regarding the subject
of convenience in iftar and suhur, these can be explained, keeping the

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text of the Holy Qur'an in view, by saying that they aim to avoid
excessive precautionary self-restriction well before one becomes
certain of the break of dawn. Imam Ibn Kathir has also explained
these narrations as based on the factor mentioned above. Otherwise,
how could even a common Muslim tolerate an open contravention of
the Qur'anic command? One could not even dream of something like
this coming from the blessed Companions, specially so, when the Holy
Qur'an has right here at the end of this verse, emphasised special
precaution in this respect. Notice how 633v, (so, do not go near them)
has been added to J && &t (These are the limits set by Allah) which
explains the point made earlier.
Ruling :
All that has been said here is about people who are at a place from
where they could see the break of the dawn with their own eyes and
thus become 'certain' of it, moreover, if they have the additional
advantage of a clear horizon and the personal ability to recognize the
initial light of the dawn, then, it is necessary that they should act
directly by looking at the horizon. Where the case is other than this,
for example, the horizon is not in open view, or it is not clear, or one
does not know how to identify the break of dawn, people determine its
time by other signs or calculations. Obviously, for them there will be a
time when the certain break of dawn would not be that certain. If it
remains doubtful, what should people do then? Imam al-Jassas, in his
Ahkam al-Qur'an, has answered this question by saying that, in a
condition such as this, it will be desirable not to go ahead and eat or
drink with considered volition, but, should anyone eat or drink
something in a state of doubt, well ahead of becoming certain of the
break of dawn, he will not be a sinner. However, should it prove later
that dawn had set in at that time, keeping a fast as qada' will become
necessary. For instance, if moon is not sighted on the eve of Ramadan
and people do not fast, but the sighting of the new moon on the 29th
was proved later on through witnesses, then, in that case, those who
did not fast that day under the impression that it was the 30th of
Sha'ban did not become sinners thereby, however, the qada' of that
particular fast will become due on them, a position on which there is a
unanimous agreement of the community. Similarly, if someone breaks

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his fast close to sunset on a cloudy day and the sun turns out to be still
there on the horizon later on, then such a person, for that matter, will
not be a sinner but he has to do the necessary qada' for the spoiled
fast.
The explanation given by Imam al-Jassas makes it clear that one
who wakes up late and the usual calls of adhan were being made,
which necessarily makes it certain that dawn has appeared, then if
such a person eats anything knowingly, he will not only be a sinner
but also be bound to do gada'. If he eats in a state of doubt, the sin
will be committed but gada' will still be due with the added factor of
reprehensibility in a certain degree.
The worship of I'tikaf
Literally, I'tikaf means to stay at some place in seclusion. In the
terminology of the Qur'an and Sunnah, I'tikaf is the act of staying in a
mosque under particular conditions. The universality of the word
Ll ('in mosques') proves that I'tikaf can be performed in every masjid
(mosque). The juristic condition that I'tikaf can be done only in a
masjid where congregational prayers are regularly held and that
I'tikaf is not correct in a desolate masjid where congregational prayers
are not held, is really a derivation from the very sense of a masjid
since Salah with jama'ah (prayer in congregation) is the main purpose
of making a masjid, otherwise, individual Salah can be offered in a
house, a shop, anywhere.
Ruling
1. That eating, drinking and marital intimacy are all lawful in the
night of fasts has been stated earlier in the verse. In the state of
I'tikaf, the permission to eat and drink in the night remains the same
as it is for everybody else, but it is different when it comes to intimacy
with women which is not permissible in the state of I'tikaf, not even in
the night. Therefore, the verse gives the necessary injunction in this
connection.
2. The rules of I'tikaf, such as, doing I'tikaf while fasting and not
coming out of the masjid without pressing needs recognized by Islamic
law, are partly derived from the very word of I'tikaf and partly from
the sayings and acts of the Holy Prophet g .

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Observe the limits of Allah
Towards the end of the verse, by saying 1, 5x 5 32 au (These are
the limits set by Allah, so do not go near them'), it has been hinted
that the forbiddance of eating, drinking and marital intimacy while
fasting are the limits set by Allah. One should not even go near them
because, if you go near them, you may cross those limits. This is why
overindulgence in gargling while fasting is makruh (reprehensible) as
it holds the danger of water slipping into the throat; also makruh is
the use of some medicine inside the mouth; again, equally makruh is
the kissing and hugging of one's wife. Similarly, it is better to stop eat-
ing and drinking a couple of minutes ahead of the time allowed for
sehri or suhur just as a matter of precaution, and also, delaying the if-
tar a couple of minutes. Becoming heedless and ease-prone in these
matters is against this command from Allah.
Verse 188
وَلَا تَأْكُلُوْاَ آَهُوَالَكُمُ بَيْنَكُمُ بِالْبَاطِلِ وَتُدْلُوْا بِهَا إِلَى الْكَّاحِ
لِتَأْكُلُوا فَرِيُّقًا ◌ِنُ أَمْوَالِ النَّاسِ بِالْإِثْمِ وَأَنْتُمُ تَعْلَمُونَ )
And do not eat up each other's property by false means,
nor approach the authorities with it to eat up a portion
of the property of the people sinfully, while you know
(all that). (Verse 188)
Previous verses dealt with injunctions relating to fasting in which
the use of lawful things has been forbidden during a fixed period and
fixed timings. Now in this verse, the acquisition and use of haram or
unlawful wealth or property has been forbidden. This has a thematic
congruity since the real purpose behind fasting, an act of worship, is
nothing but to make man get used to abstaining from what is lawful
for him. If he can do that, there is every likelihood that abstaining
from what is totally unlawful will become all the more easier for him.
There is yet another correspondence here. It is necessary that one
must make an effort to break his or her fast with what is halal.
Anyone who goes through the rigours of fasting throughout the day
but ends up breaking his fast in the evening with what is haram shall
only find his fast unacceptable in the sight of Allah.

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Commentary
This verse forbids the acquisition and use of wealth and property
by unlawful means. It will be recalled that the acquisition and use of
things by lawful means has been stressed upon in Verse 168 of Surah
al-Baqarah as follows:
فَأَيُّهَا النَّاسُ كُلُوا مَِّ فِى الْأَرْضِ حَلَالاً طَيَِّا لَا تَّعُوا خُطُوَاتِ الشَّيْطِنِ إِنَّهْ
لَكُمْ عَدُوُمِيْنُ 0
O people, eat of what is in the earth, permissible and good,
and do not follow the footsteps of Satan; indeed, for you he
is an open enemy.
Again, the same command appears in Surah al-Nahl:
فَكُلُوْا مَّا رَزَقَكُمُ اللّهُ حَلَالاً طَيِّبَا وَاشْكُرُوا نِعْمَةَ الْلِهِ إِنْ كُنْهُمْ إِيَّاهُ تَعْبُدُوْنِ ٥
So, eat from what Allah has provided for you, permissible
and good, and be grateful for the blessing of Allah, if it is
Him you worship. (16:114)
The criterion of good and evil in earning
The whole world agrees that money and materials are needed and
that life depends on them. So does it agree that there are favoured and
permissible ways of acquiring them and there are undesirable and
forbidden ways as well. Virtually the whole world looks down upon
theft, robbery, and fraud, but people do not generally have some sound
criterion to determine if these means are permissible or impermissible,
may be this is just not possible since it relates to the well-being of the
peoples of the entire world and affects humanity as such. Therefore, a
universal criterion, sound and reasonable, can only come from the
Lord-Creator of all the worlds through the medium of revelation.
Otherwise, if human beings were themselves given the choice of
forging their own criterion, naturally, those who give it a legal
framework will think more about their nation, country or community
and, as customary, this would be different from what would be thought
about other nations and countries. Even if this exercise was done
through an international body representing the whole world, that too,
as experience shows, cannot satisfy all human beings. As a result,
there will be legal injustice ending up in nothing but wars and chaos.
The virtues of the Islamic economic system
The Law of the permissible and the forbidden enforced by the

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Shari'ah of Islam comes clearly through divine revelation, or is derived
from it. That law - reasonable, natural and comprehensive - is the only
law that can work for every nation, country and community and could
be the much wanted guarantee of peace. The reason is that everything
of common utility has been left as such under this divine law, specially
things to which all human beings claim equal rights, such as, the air,
water, vegetation, heat, unowned forests and the produce of
uninhabited mountain growth. These are the commonly shared
property of all human beings; it is not permissible for anyone to take
these over as an owner.
Then there are things which, if shared, would disturb human
society, or generate conflict and violence. For these the law of private
ownership is promulgated. The law that governs the initial ownership
of a land or its produce is different from the law of the transfer of
ownership. The law has been so formulated that no human being shall
be left deprived of the necessities of life, of course, on condition that he
puts in his effort to acquire these. Special attention has been given to
the consideration that no man usurps the rights of others, or brings
loss to them, and thereby, concentrates capital in the hands of a few
individuals. Under the law of the transfer of ownership - whether it is
in accordance with the divine injunctions relating to post-death
inheritance or takes effect through buying and selling as agreed upon
by parties concerned - it was made binding that there should be
absolutely no fraud or deception in the transaction and also, there
should remain no such ambiguity or insufficiency which might lead to
mutual bickering and dispute in the future.
Also taken into consideration is the factor of consent in
transactions. It has to be made sure that the consent given by parties
concerned is genuine and that such consent has not been extracted
under pressure. In Islamic law, all transactions known as void, invalid
or sinful have some defect inherent in the deal. At places, it could be
plain fraud, at others, a return for some unknown thing or act. On
occasions, someone's rights are usurped or self-interest is promoted by
bringing loss upon others, or the rights of the general public are
illegally disposed off. A very important reason why interest, gambling
and their likes have been prohibited is that they are harmful to public

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interest. As a result of their evil presence in a society, some
individuals get to grow as parasites while the whole community is
thrown into poverty. Even if such transactions were to be carried out
by a mutual consent of the parties involved, such transactions shall
not be permissible because they are nothing but a formalized crime
against the whole community. The present verse covers all such
impermissible situations and aspects. It is interesting to note that the
وَلَا تَأَكُلُواْ أَمُوَ اَلَكُمُ بَيْنَكُمُ amwalakum) in): أموالكم Holy Qur'an uses the word
Jul translated as 'and do not eat up each other's property by false
means' which basically means 'your property'. This expression has a
subtle indication to the fact that those who encroach upon the property
of others must think that the other person would also have the same
sort of love and concern for his property as the encroacher has for his
own. If the defendant was to encroach upon the offender's property
unlawfully, he would certainly be hurt.
In addition to this, the verse may be releasing yet another
suggestion. When someone encroaches upon the property of someone
else, and if everybody else started doing this as common practice, the
natural consequence would be that others would encroach upon his
property, giving him what he gave to others. Looked at from this
angle, encroaching upon someone's property unlawfully is really an
invitation to others to come and encroach upon the encroacher's
property, equally unlawfully. For a moment, imagine what would
happen to a society where the cult of adulteration in articles of daily
use becomes a common practice. There will be a dealer, who earns a
little more by adulterating butter with cheaper oil or fat, who will then
go to a milk shop and the milkman will give him milk adulterated with
water. If he needs spices, these will be adulterated. The same
experience will be repeated when he goes to buy medicines. So, one
person earns more by adulteration while the other person takes that
extra earning out of his pocket and the third person does the same to
the second and the vicious circle goes on and on ad nauseum. The
adulterer feels good about what extra he puts in his coffers but he
never looks at the hole under it for he keeps nothing of that extra in
reality. Therefore, anyone who snatches the other person's money or
property by false means, in fact, opens the door to the unlawful
plundering of his money and property.

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In relation to this verse, there is yet another point one should bear
in mind. The words of this divine injunction are general: 'And do not
eat up each other's property by false means'. This includes the
usurping of someone's property, and theft, and robbery, through which
money or property belonging to someone is taken away by force. Then,
there is interest, gambling, bribery and all defective sales and
transactions which are also impermissible under the dictates of the
Islamic law, even though, there be the certitude of consent given by
concerned parties. Again, any money or property acquired through
lying or a false oath, or earnings which have been prohibited by
Islamic law, even though one has personally sweated out to earn it,
are all haram, unlawful and false. Though the words of the Qur'an
forbid 'eating' quite clearly, but the drive of the meaning here is not
restricted to 'eating' as such, instead, it means 'using' in the absolute
sense; it could be by eating, drinking, wearing or by any other mode of
use. Metaphorically, all such uses are covered under the expression 'to
eat,' for instance, A ate up the property of B, which is only a manner of
saying, even though all that may not be what can be 'eaten',
The Background of Revelation
This verse was revealed in the background of a particular event
which relates to a land dispute between two of the noble Companions.
The case came up for hearing in the court of the Holy Prophet . The
plaintiff had no witnesses. The Holy Prophet & asked the defendant
to take an oath in accordance with Islamic legal norm. He was all set
to take the oath when the Holy Prophet a recited the following verse
before him as a matter of good counsel:
إِنَّ الَّذِيْنَ يَشْتَرْوُنَ بِعَهْدِ اللَّهِ وَاَيْمَانِهِمْ ثَمِنَّا قَلِيْلًا أُولَئِكَ لَ خَلَاقَ لَهُمْ فِى الْآخِرَةِ
Surely, those who take a small price out of the covenant of Al-
lah and out of their oaths, for them there is no share in the
Hereafter. (3:77)
When the Companion heard this verse which warns those who try
to take over someone's property through a false oath, he abandoned
his intention to take that oath and surrendered the land to the
plaintiff. (Ruh al-Ma'ani)
So, this was the background under which this verse was revealed.
To begin with, it forbids the acquiring of someone's property by

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unlawful means, then towards the later p& t, it warns against the
filing of false cases, taking of false oaths and the giving or commission-
ing of false witnesses. Forbidding all these, it has been said:
وَنُدْلُوا بِهَا إِلَى الْحُكَِّ لِتَأْكُلُوا فَرْقًا ◌ِّنْ أَمْوَالِ النَّاسِ بِالْإِثْمِ وَانْتُمْتَغْلِمُونَ
which means: 'Do not take property cases to the authorities, so that
through them, you eat up some portion of the property of the people
sinfully while you do know that you have no right therein and you are
simply putting up a false case.'
The words 3&l; : (while you know) at the end of the verse tell us
that a person, who claims something on the basis of misunderstanding
and files a suit in the court to acquire it, will not be covered by this
warning. In an event of this nature, the Holy Prophet & has said:
انما انا بشر وانتم تختصمون الى ولعل بعضكم ان يكون الحن بحجته من
بعض فاقضى له على نحوما اسمع منه فمن قضيت له بشئى من حق اخيه
فلا ياخذنه فانما اقطع له قطعة من النار (رواه البخارى ومسلم عن أم سلمة رضى الله عنها)
I am human and you bring your disputes to me. May be one of
you is more eloquent with his case than the other and I decide
in his favour on the basis of what I hear from him. So, should
he get anything from what is the right of his brother, he
should not take it because, in that case, I shall be alloting him
a plot from Hell. (Bukhari and Muslim from Umm Salmah (is All (e)
The Holy Prophet , has made it clear in his saying quoted above
that a Muslim judge may give a judgement under some misunder-
standing in which the legal right of one party is being unlawfully given
to the other, then, such a court judgment will not make the thing law-
ful for him. Also true is the converse, that is, it does not become un-
lawful for one to whom it is lawful. In short, the judgment of a court
does not make the lawful unlawful, or the unlawful lawful. If anyone
succeeds in grabbing something belonging to somebody else through a
court by means of fraud, false witness or oath, the curse of having
done that will weigh heavy on his shoulders and he should, thinking of
the ultimate accountability in the Hereafter and appearance in the
court of Allah, the All-knowing, the All-Aware, leave it off.
However, according to Imam Abu Hanifah, if in transactions
involving a contract or an annulment where the Qadi or judge have

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authority under Islamic law, the Qadi gives a judgment, even if it be
on the basis of a false oath or witness, that judgment will render the
contract or the annulment valid under the Islamic law. The rules of
lawful and unlawful will stand imposed on it, although, the curse of
lying and engineering false witnesses will hang round his neck.
Halal brings blessings; Haram produces evil:
There are several places in the Holy Qur'an where the abstention
from the unlawful and the acquisition of the lawful has been stressed
upon in many different ways. It has also been pointed out in a verse
that human deeds and morals are enormously affected by eating what
is lawful. If one does not eat and drink halal things, it is almost
impossible to expect good moral and righteous deeds coming from that
person. It was said in the Holy Qur'an:
فَيُّهَا الرُّسُلُ كُلُوا مِنَ الَّطَّتِّبْتِ وَاعْمَلُوا صَالِحًا إِنّهُ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ عَلِيْ
O messengers, eat of the good things and be righteous in
deeds. I am aware of what you do. (23:51)
In this verse, it will be noted that eating of the lawful has been
combined with the command to do what is righteous. The hint is that
righteous deeds can issue forth only when man eats and drinks what
is lawful. The Holy Prophet & has himself made it clear in a hadith
that the address in this verse is, no doubt, to prophets, but this
command is not restricted to them alone, instead, all Muslims are
charged with it. Towards the end of this hadith, he also said that the
prayer of a person who eats what is unlawful is not answered. The
Holy Prophet & adds that there are many people who take great pains
in their acts of worship, then raise their hands in prayer before Allah
Almighty and say, 'O Lord, O Lord' but what they eat is haram, what
they drink is haram, what they wear is haram, if so, how can this
prayer of theirs be answered?
A great portion of the teachings of the Holy Prophet has been
devoted to the great task of saving his ummah from the unlawful and
calling it to the use of what is lawful. He said:
'One who ate halal, followed the sunnah and people were not
hurt by him, he will go to Paradise.' The blessed Companions
said, 'O Messenger of Allah, right now these things are
common in your community. Most Muslims observe these

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strictly.' He said:' Yes! In future too, in every age, there will
be people who shall abide by these rules.' (This hadith has been
reported by Tirmidhi and he calls it sahih)
In another hadith, the Holy Prophet @ is reported to have said to
the blessed Companion 'Abdullah ibn 'Umar:
There are four traits, if these are in you and you have nothing
else in the world, they shall suffice you. Those four traits are:
Guarding a trust, telling the truth, good morals and being
particular in eating what is halal.
The blessed Companion Sa'd ibn Abi Waqqas s Jo, requested
the Holy Prophet & to pray for him so that he may become one of
those whose prayers are accepted. He said:
O Sa'd, make what you eat permissible and pure, and you
shall become one whose prayers are responded to. And by Him
in whose hands rests the life of Muhammad, when the servant
of Allah slips a morsel of what is haram into his stomach, no
deed of his is accepted for the next forty days. And a person
whose flesh is made of unlawful acquisitions, for that flesh the
fire of Hell is the only recipient.
The blessed Companion 'Abdullah ibn Mas'ud reports that the Holy
Prophet said:
By him in whose hands rests my life, no servant of Allah be-
comes a Muslim unless his heart and tongue become Muslim
and until his neighbours become secure from his distressing
deeds. And when a servant acquires the unlawful and then
gives it in charity, that is not accepted; and if he spends out of
it, it stays deprived of blessings; and if he leaves it behind for
his inheritors, it becomes his wherewithal for the trip to Hell.
Surely, Allah Almighty does not help an evil wash off another
evil, but He does help the washing away of an evil deed with a
good deed.
Questions man must answer on the Day of Resurrection
The blessed Companion Mu'adh ibn Jabal e July», reports that the
Holy Prophet said:
ما تزال قدما عبد يوم القيامة حتى يسأل عن أربع عن عمره فيما أفناه و
عن شبابه فيما ابلاه وعن ماله من أين اكتسبه وفيما أنفقه وعن علمه ماذا
عمل فيه (البيهقى ، ترغيب)

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Surah Al-Baqarah 2 : 189 - 191
No servant of Allah shall move a step on Doomsday unless he
is made to answer four questions; firstly, about his life, in
what did he spend it out; secondly, about his youth, in what
did he consume it; thirdly, about his wealth, where from did
he earn it and in what did he spend it; and fourthly, about his
knowledge, how far did he act in line with it.' (Al-Bayhaqi, Tar-
ghib)
The blessed Companion, 'Abdullah ibn 'Umar reports that the Holy
Prophet once gave a sermon in which he said:
O Emigrants, I seek the refuge of Allah Almighty against five
traits of character lest they should grow into you: firstly,
against immodesty, for when immodesty prevails in a people
they are hit by plagues, epidemics and ever-new diseases not
even heard of by their elders; and secondly, against cheating
in weights and measures, for when this disease grips a people,
they are hit by famine, price-hikes, rigorous labour and
over-work and oppressive rulers; and thirdly, against
non-payment of Zakah, for when people do not pay Zakah,
rains are stopped; and fourthly, against the religious apathy
of people, for when a community breaks its covenant with
Allah and His Messenger, then Allah Almighty makes alien
enemies sit over them who snatch away what belongs to them
without any justification; and fifthly, against the apathy of
ruling authority, for when the rulers of a people fail to decide
matters in accordance with the Book of Allah because the
injunctions revealed by Allah Almighty do not suit their
fancies, then Allah Almighty causes mutual hatred and
disputations descend upon them. (This narration has been reported
by Ibn Majah, al-Bayhaqi and others and al-Hakim has called it 'Şahin'
according to the standard set by Muslim.)
May Allah Almighty give us and all Muslims the most perfect
ability to stay safe against such unfortunate happenings.
Verses 189-191
يَسْئَلُونَكَ عَنِ الْآَهِلَّةِ قُلْ هِىَ مَوَاقِيْتُ لِلنَّاسِ وَالْحَجّ ◌َوَلَيْسَ
الْبِرُّ بِانْ تَأْتُوا الْبُيُوُتَ مِنُ ظُهُوُرِهَا وَلكِنَّ الْبِتَّ مَّنِ اتَّقْىٌ
وَأَتُوا الْبُهُوُتَ مِنْ أَبْوَابِهَا وَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُفْلِحُونَ )
وَقَاتِلُوا فِىُ سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ الَّذِيْنَ يُقَاتِلُوْنَكُمْ وَلَا تَعْتَدُوا إِنَّ اللّهَ

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Surah Al-Baqarah 2 : 189 - 191
لَا يُحِبُّ الْمُعْتَدِيْنَ ا وَاقْتُلُؤُهُمْ حَيْثُ تَقِفُّتُهُوُهُمْ وَأَخْرِجُوْهُمُ
مِنُ حَيْثُ أَخْرَجُوْكُمْ وَالْفِتْنَهُ أَشَدُّ مِنَ الْقَتْلِ وَلَا تُقْتِلُوُهُمْ عِنْدَ
الْمَسْجِدِ الْخَرَامِ حَتى يُقْتِلُؤُكُمْ فِيْءٍ فَإِنُ قُتَلُكُمْ فَاقْتُلُهُمْ "
كَذَلِكَ جَزَاءُ الْكُفِرِينَ )
They ask you about the new moons. Say: They are in-
dicative of time for the people, and of the Hajj. And it
is not righteousness that you come into your houses
from their backs but righteousness is that one fears Al-
lah. And come to the houses through their doors. And
fear Allah so that you may be successful. And fight in
the way of Allah against those who fight you and do not
transgress. Verily, Allah does not like the transgres-
sors. And kill them wherever you find them and drive
them out from where they drove you out, and Fitnah (to
create disorder) is more severe than to kill. And do not
fight them near Al-Masjid al-Haram unless they fight
you there. However, if they fight you (there) you may
kill them. Such is the reward of the disbelievers.
(Verses 189 - 191)
The theme of righteousness which started from Verse 177 still
continues. The six injunctions that have appeared so far relate to even
retaliation, bequest, fasting, I'tikaf and abstention from the unlawful.
Now come those of Hajj and Jihad prior to which it was clarified that
lunar months and days will be followed in Hajj and in other religious
obligations. Also erased here is a custom of jahiliyyah (days of
ignorance) which required people in Ihram to go into their houses, if
needed, from the back even if it had to be through a hole in the wall
bored for this purpose, as they thought it was prohibited to enter
houses from the front door when in Ihram. They even rated it as
'righteousness'. So, it is immediately after the mention of Hajj that
Allah Almighty tells them that entering the houses from the backs is
no righteousness. Real righteousness lies in abstaining from what has
been made unlawful by Allah. Since coming into houses through their
doors is not forbidden, the question of abstaining from it does not
arise. So, those who wish to go into their houses should enter through
their doors, but the center-piece of all principles is that people must

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Surah Al-Baqarah 2 : 189 - 191
keep fearing Allah so that they can hope to have the best of both the
worlds.
Verse 190-191 carry the injunction relating to fighting with
disbelievers. It was the month of Dhul-Qa'dah in the year 6 A.H. that
the Holy Prophet & began his journey to the sacred city of Makkah in
order to perform 'Umrah. Makkah was still controlled by the
mushrikin (the infidels). They did not allow him and his Companions
to go into the city and 'Umrah could not be performed as intended. It
took a great deal of negotiating to arrive at the agreement that the
Muslims would perform 'Umrah next year. This pact is known as the
'Peace of Hudaybiyyah'; a detailed explanation of the verse in this
context will appear later.
Commentary
Reported in the first Verse (189) there is a question asked by the
noble Companions and its answer given by Allah Almighty. Sayyidna
'Abdullah ibn 'Abbas says that the Companions of the Holy Prophet
had a distinct mannerliness of their own. On account of the great
respect they had for him, they asked very few questions from their
Prophet . This is contrary to the practice of the communities of the
past prophets who asked many questions and thus failed to observe
the etiquette due before a prophet. Sayyidna 'Abdullah ibn 'Abbas
adds that the total number of questions asked by the noble
Companions as mentioned in the Holy Qur'an is fourteen, one of which
has just appeared above: u ct isi : 'And when My servants ask you ... '
(186). The other question is right here. Other than these, there are six
more questions appearing in Surah al-Baqarah itself. The rest of the
six questions come up in various other Surahs.
It is mentioned in the present verse that the noble Companions
asked the Messenger of Allah about the new moon as it appears in the
early part of the month, having a shape different from the sun. The
new moon begins as a thin crescent slowly growing into full circle,
then, it starts reducing itself in the same manner. So, they asked
either about its cause or about the wisdom underlying its gradual
growth. Both possibilities exist. But the answer given states the
wisdom and benefit behind it. Now, if the question itself was
concerned with the wisdom and benefit behind the waning and waxing
of the new moon, then the answer obviously synchronizes with the

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question. But, if the question aimed at finding out the cause of the
waning and waxing of the new moon, which is far away from the
mannerliness of the noble Companions, then the answer, by electing to
state its wisdom and benefit rather than its reality, simply hints that
finding out the reality of the heavenly bodies is not an area under
man's control anyway, and then, for that matter, the knowledge of its
reality is not necessary for any practical purpose, neither in this world
nor in the Hereafter. Therefore, the question of reality is absurd. What
could be asked and what could be explained is that there are certain
benefits that accrue to us through the waning and waxing, the setting
and the rising of the moon in this manner. Therefore, in response to
this, the Holy Prophet Af was told that he should tell them that their
benefits tied to the moon are that they will find it easy to determine
the time factor in their transactions and contracts, and to know about
the days of the Hajj.
The Lunar Calendar is the Islamic choice
This verse tells us no more than that the moon will help identify
the count of months and days on which rest transactions and acts of
worship, such as, the Hajj. The same subject has been dealt with in
Surah Yunus in the following manner:
وَقَدَّرَةَ مَنَازِلَ لِتَعْلَمُوا عَدَدَ الِّنِيْنَ وَالْحِسَابَ
And determined it (the moon) by stations, that you might
know the number of the years and the reckoning. (10:5)
This tells us that the benefit of having the moon pass through dif-
ferent stages and conditions is that people may find out through it the
count of years, months and days. But, in a verse of Surah Bani Isra'il,
this count has been connected to the sun as well in the following
words:
فَمَحَرَّنَا أَيَّةَ اللَّيْلِ وَجَعَلْنَا أَيَّةَ الَّنَّهَارِ مُجْصِرَةً لِتَبْتَغُوا فَضْلاً مِنِّّْكُمْ وَ
لِتَعْلَمُوا عَدَدَ السّنِيْنَ وَالْحِسَابَ
Then We erased the sign of the night and brought out the sign
of the day to see, so that you seek the blessing from your Lord
and get to know the number of years and the reckoning.
(17:12)
Although this third verse proves that years and months can be
counted with the help of a solar calendar also, yet the words used by

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Surah Al-Baqarah 2 : 189 - 191
the Holy Qur'an with regard to the moon very clearly indicate that the
lunar calendar is a fixed choice in the Shari'ah of Islam, specially in
prescribed acts of worship which relate to a particular month and its
dates; for instance, the months of Ramadan and Hajj, as well as
injunctions related to the days of Hajj, Muharram and Lailatul-Qadr
are all tied to the sighting of the new moon, all this because in this
verse, by saying ◌ّهِىَ مَوَاقِيْتُ لِلنَّاسِ وَالحَج (They are indicative of time for the
people and of the Hajj), it has been established that the lunar calendar
is the one to be trusted upon in the sight of Allah, although, the count
of months can come out of a solar calendar as well.
The Shari'ah of Islam has opted for the lunar calendar because it is
based on something which every sighted person can see on the horizon
and be informed accordingly; the knowledge of it is equally easy for the
scholars, the ignorant, the villagers, the islanders and the dwellers of
the mountains. This stands in contrast with the solar calendar which
depends on meteorological equipment and mathematical computations
which cannot become the common personal experience of everybody so
easily. Then comes the matter of religious observances, the 'ibadat,
where the lunar calendar has been fixed as an obligation. This has
also been favoured in social and business transactions because it
serves as a basis for the acts of Islamic worship, and a symbol of
Islamic identity, notwithstanding the position of the solar calendar
which has not been prohibited juristically, the only condition being
that the use of the solar calendar should not become so widespread
that people forget all about the lunar calendar. If this happens, it
would necessarily affect the obligatory 'ibadat like Fasting and Hajj
adversely, a sampling of which is visible in our time, in offices and
businesses, government and private, where the solar calendar is being
used with such frequency that many people do not seem to even
remember all Islamic months by name. Apart from the juristic position
of the lunar system, this situation is a deplorable demonstration of our
lack of will to approach and uphold such a matter of national and
religious identity with a sense of self-respect. It is not difficult to use
the solar calendar only in office situations where one has to deal with
non-Muslims as well, but for the rest of office correspondence, private
dealings and daily requirements the lunar calendar may be used with

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advantage, that is, if this is done, the user will earn the thawab of
performing a fard 'ala al-kifayah (an obligation which, if performed by
some, suffices for others), and of course, national identity will be
preserved.
Ruling
From the verse كَيْسَ البُّ بِانْ تَاتُوا الْبُيُوتَ مِنْ ظُهُورُهَا (And it is not righteousness
that you come into your houses from their backs) comes the ruling that
something which the Shari'ah of Islam has not classed as 'necessary'
(wajib) or has not given it the status of an act of 'Ibadah, should not be
taken as 'necessary' or an act of 'Ibadah on one's own. This is not
permissible. Similarly, taking something to be a sin while it is
permissible under Islamic law is a sin in itself. This is exactly what
those people had done. Entering houses through doors was permissible
under religious law, yet they made it out to be a sin, while coming into
the house from its back by breaking through the wall was not
'necessary' under the religious law, yet they made it out to be
necessary. This was why they were admonished.
The reason why bid'at (innovations in religious matters) are not
permissible is that unnecessary things are taken to be necessary like
the obligatory - fard, or wajib. Or, things permissible are taken to be
forbidden or unlawful. This verse makes it very clear that doing so is
prohibited, and incidentally, this gives us the guiding rule in
thousands of acts in vogue.
Jihad: To fight in the way of Allah
That Jihad and Qital or fighting against disbelievers was
prohibited prior to the emigration to Madinah is a fact the entire
Muslim community agrees upon. All verses revealed during that time
advised Muslims to be patient against pains inflicted on them by
disbelievers, even to ignore and forgive when they can. It was after the
emigration to Madinah that the first command to fight against
them came through this verse (as said by al-Rabi' ibn Anas and
others). Another narration from Sayyidna Abu Bakr al-Siddique Je,
: أُذِّنَ لِلَّذِينَ يُقْتَلُونَ بِاتَّهُمْ ظلِمُوا : says that the first verse relating to this subject is
"Leave is given to those who are fought against because they were
wronged", but according to a majority of the blessed Companions and
their successors, the first verse commanding to fight the disbelievers is

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Surah Al-Baqarah 2 : 189 - 191
this very verse from Surah al-Baqarah while the verse which has been
identified as the first verse on this subject by Sayyidna Abu Bakr
al-Siddiq, that too, being among the very initial verses revealed, could
be called the first.
The command in this verse is that Muslims should fight only those
disbelievers who come to fight against them. It means that there are
other people too who do not take part in fighting, such as, the women,
the children, the very old, the priests and monks and others devoting
themselves to quiet religious pursuits, and the physically handi-
capped, and those casual labourers who work for disbelievers and do
not go to fight along with them; it is not permissible to kill such people
in a Jihad. The reason is that the command in the verse is restricted
to fighting those who come to fight Muslims. The kind of people men-
tioned above are not all fighters. That is why Muslim Jurists J., ,
have also ruled that should a woman, an old man or. religious person
take part in actual fighting along with disbelievers or be helping them
in any manner in their fight against the Muslims, then, killing them is
permissible because they come under the purview of 'lu? sul those
who fight you'. (Mazharī, Qurtubi and Jassās)
The battle orders of the Holy Prophet & given to the mujahidin of
Islam at the time of Jihad carry a good explanation of this injunction.
In a hadith from al-Bukhari and Muslim, as narrated by the blessed
Companion 'Abdullah ibn 'Umar, it is said:
نهى رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم عن قتل النساء والصبيان
"The Holy Prophet ¿ has prohibited the killing of women and children.'
The following instructions from the Holy Prophet & given to the
Companions going on Jihad have been narrated in a hadith from
Sayyidna Anas which appears in Abu Dawud: 'Go for Jihad in the
name of Allah adhering to the community of the Messenger of Allah.
Do not kill anyone old and weak, any young child or any woman.'
'Mazharī)
When Sayyidna Abu Bakr al-Siddiq sent Yazid ibn Abi Sufyan to
Syria, he gave him the same instructions. Also added there is the
prohibition of killing the religiously-devoted, the monks and priests,
and the labourers employed by disbelievers, specially when they do not
take part in fighting (Qurtubi).