النص المفهرس

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Surah Al-Anfal : 8 : 20 - 24
Based on a narration from Sayyidna Abu Hurairah e l ),
Tirmidhi and Al-Nasa'i have reported that on a certain day, the Holy
Prophet sent for Sayyidna Ubayy ibn Ka'b _ dn yo,who was busy
with his Salah at that time. However, he completed his Salah sooner
than he would have normally done and presented himself before the
Holy Prophet . He asked: 'Why did you come so late despite that I
called you?' Sayyidna Ubayy ibn Ka'bare Llo, submitted his excuse: 'I
was in the state of Salah.' He said: 'Did you not hear what Allah Ta'ala
has said in :ُإِسْتَجِيبُوا لِلَّهِ وَ لِلرَّسُولِ إِذَا دَعَاكُم (Respond to Allah and the Messenger
when He calls you)?' Sayyidna Ubayy ibn Ka'b at Ul >, said: 'I shall
obey it from now on. If you call me, even when I am making my Salah,
I shall present myself before you immediately.'
It is on the basis of this Hadith that some Muslim jurists have said
that anything done during Salah in obedience to the command of the
Messenger of Allah would not be taken as interference in Salah.
However, there are other jurists who say that Salah would though be
terminated due to doings contrary to the standard rules governing
Salah and it would have to be offered later as qa da' (replaced for the
missed or terminated Salah). But, the proper thing to do is that should
the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم call someone, even if he is in the state of
Şalah, then, he should terminate his Salah and obey the call.
As for this form of obedience, it is exclusive to the Rasul of Allah
. But, there are other occasions when one may apprehend the
danger of serious loss coming to someone, then, at that time too, Salah
should be terminated and amends be made later by offering qada'. For
example, if a person in the state of Salah sees that a blind man is
about to reach and fall in a well or ditch, then, he should immediately
terminate his Salah and go to save the handicapped man.
At the end of the verse, it was said : وَاعْلَمْرُاَ أَنَّ اللَّهُ يَحُولُ بَيْنَ المُرَءِ وَقَلْبِه (and be
sure that Allah intervenes between man and his heart). This sentence
can have two meanings, and both vibrate with great wisdom and good
counsel, something one should always remember and live by.
One possible sense of the sentence is: When you are blessed with

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Surah Al-Anfal : 8 : 20 - 24
the opportunity of doing something good, or staying safe from sin,
then, go ahead and do it immediately - make no delay and take the
lease of time so granted to be a blessing, because there are occasions
when Divine decree becomes an intervening factor between man and
his intention and he cannot succeed in doing what he intends to do.
May be, a sickness overtakes, or death itself does, or some pre-
occupation emerges out of nowhere and one just does not get the time
to do that good or avoid that sin. Therefore, human beings should
welcome the leave granted in terms of the years of life and access to
time and refuse to put off until tomorrow what must be done today -
for, who knows what is going to happen tomorrow?
ای زفرصت ہےخیر در هرچه باشی زود باش
من غمی گویم زیان کن یابفكر سود باش
I do not say that you run into some loss or go for your gain
Whatever be your option, O man unaware of time, be quick!
The second possible meaning emerges from the indication given by
the sentence that Allah Ta'ala is very near to His servant. In fact, in
تَحْنُ أَقْرَبُ إِلَيْهِ مِنْ حَبْلِ الْوَرِيْدِ :(50:16 ,another verse of the Qur'an (Qaf
says that He is close to man, much closer than his jugular vein.
Thus, the sense is that the heart of man is, in a special way, at the
discretionary disposal of Allah Ta'ala all the time. When He wills to
keep a servant of His protected from evils, He puts a barrier between
his heart and sins, and when misfortune is fated for someone, the
barrier is placed between his heart and any possible good deeds by
him. Therefore, the Holy Prophet صلى اللّه عليه وسلم used to include the
following prayer frequently when he prayed:
يَا مُقَلِّبَ الْقُلُوُبِ ثَبِّتُ قَلُبِىٌ عَلى دِيْنِكَ
O reverser of hearts! Keep my heart firm on the Faith chosen
by You.
The ultimate outcome of this too is no other but that one should
not delay doing what must be done in obedience to the injunctions of
Allah and His Rasul, rather, one should take the lease of time given to
him as a God-given opportunity and just go ahead and do it, for no one
knows whether or not the surge and urge of this good deed remains
active later on.

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Surah Al-Anfal : 8 : 25 - 28
Verses 25 - 28
وَاتَّقُوْا فِتْنَةٌ لَا تُصِيْبَنَّ الَّذِيْنَ ظَلَمُوْا مِنْكُمُ خَاصَّةً، وَ اعْلَمُؤْآَ
أَنَّ اللَّهَ شَدِيْدُ الْعِقَابِ ﴿٢٥﴾ وَاذْ كُرُواْ إِذْ أَنْتُمْ قَلِيلٌ
مُسْتَضْعَفُونَ فِى الْأَرْضِ تَخَافُونَ أَنْ تَتَخَطَّفَكُمُ النَّاسُ
فَاؤُكُمْ وَآَيَّدَكُمْ بِنَصْرِهِ وَرَزَقَكُمْ مِنَ الطَِّبْتِ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَشْكُرُوُنَ
﴿ ٢٦ ﴾ فَآَيُّهَا الَّذِيْنَ امَنُوا لَا تَخُوْنُوا اللهَ وَالرَّسُوْلَ وَتَخُوْنُؤَّاً
آَمْتُتِكُمْ وَأَنْتُمُ تَعْلَمُوْنَ ﴿٢٧﴾ وَاعْلَمُؤْاْ آتََّا آَمُوَالُكُمُ وَأَوْلَادُكُمْ
فِتْنَةٌ وَأَنَّ اللَّهَ عِنْدَةَ آَجُرٌ عَظِيمٌ ﴿٢٨﴾
And beware of a punishment which shall not fall on the
wrongdoers only, and be sure that Allah is severe at
punishment. [25]
And remember when you were few in number, op-
pressed on the earth, fearing that the people would
snatch you away. Then, He gave you shelter and forti-
fied you with His support and provided you with good
things, so that you may be grateful. [26]
O those who believe, do not betray the trust of Allah
and the Messenger and do not betray your mutual
trusts, while you know. [27]
And be aware that your wealth and your children are
but a trial and that with Allah there is a great reward.
[28]
Commentary
After having described some details of the battle of Badr and Di-
vine blessings conferred on Muslims therein, the Holy Qur'an has of-
fered words of good counsel to Muslims as based on the outcome of the
Battle. This presentation begins from :ِكَأَيُّهَا الَّذِيْنَ امَنُوا اسْتَجِدُبُوا لِلّهِ وَلِلرَّسُول (O
those who believe, respond to Allah and His Messenger - 8:24). The
verses cited immediately above appear in continuation to the same.
Out of these, the first verse (25) carries an instruction to stay safe
from a sin particularly, a sin the severe punishment of which does not
remain restricted to only those who commit sins in a society. In fact,
people who have committed no sin also get afflicted by it.

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Surah Al-Anfal : 8 : 25 - 28
Which sin is that? The answers given by commentators vary. Some
say: This sin is the forsaking of the struggle to Bid the Fair and Forbid
the Unfair (amr bi 'l-ma'ruf and nahy 'ani 'l-munkar). Sayyidna
'Abdullah ibn 'Abbas as Ul , said: Allah Ta'ala has commanded Mus-
lims that they should not allow any crime or sin to take roots in their
social environment because, if they failed to do so, that is, did not for-
bid it despite seeing such crimes and sins and despite having the abili-
ty or capacity to stop it or to forbid it, then, Allah Ta'ala will universal-
ize His punishment for all of them which will spare neither the sinners
nor the sinless.
The sinless mentioned here are people who are no accomplices of
sinners in their initial sin, but they have certainly committed the sin
of avoiding or abandoning the Divinely ordained duty of Bidding the
Fair. Therefore, let there be no doubt here about the statement made.
For example, here it is not valid to say that the passing on of the pun-
ishment of a sin committed by someone else to another person is injus-
tice and that it is contrary to the Qur'anic injunction: 358;Ussý (No
bearer of burden shall bear the burden of another person - 35:18) - be-
cause, here the sinners have been seized for the initial sin they them-
selves had committed while the sinless were seized for the sin of hav-
ing abandoned the obligation of Bidding the Fair. Thus, no one's sin
was placed on the shoulders of someone else.
According to a narration of Sayyidna 'Abdullah ibn Mas'ud a dle,
and Sayyidah 'A'ishah Que ul >, appearing in Sharh al-Sunnah and
Ma'alim of Imam al-Baghawi, the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم has been
reported to have said : Allah Ta'ala does not subject common people
with the punishment of some sin committed by a particular group
among them - unless, there emerges a situation in which they see sin
being committed around them and have the ability to stop it as well,
yet, if they did not stop it, then, at that time, the punishment from Al-
lah surrounds all of them.
Also reported authentically in Tirmidhi, Abu Dawud and elsewhere
is that Sayyidna Abu Bakr Le Al », said in one of his sermons: I have
heard the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم say: When people see an oppres-
sor and do not step forward and hold his hand from inflicting injustice,
then, the time is near that Allah Ta'ala makes His punishment fall on
all of them alike.

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Surah Al-Anfal : 8 : 25 - 28
According to a narration from Sayyidna Nu'man ibn Bashir report-
ed in the Sahih of al-Bukhari, the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said:
Those who commit the sin of transgressing the limits set by Allah and
those who ignore them knowingly or accomodate them psychophantly,
that is, they do not try to stop them from that sin, are like passengers
on two decks of a ship, the upper and the lower. People on the lower
deck come up to procure water from the upper deck which causes dis-
comfort for people there. Keeping this in view, the people of the lower
deck opt for making a hole in the bottom of the boat and get their sup-
ply of water from there. Now, if the people of the upper deck see this
misconduct and elect not to check and stop them from doing something
like that, then, it is obvious, the water will fill into the whole boat and
when the people of the lower deck will drown in it, those on the upper
deck will not remain safe either, for they too will drown with the oth-
ers.
It is on the basis of these narrations that many commentators have
declared that the word: & (fitnah) in this verse refers to this very sin,
that is, the forsaking of the obligation of Bidding the Fair and Forbid-
ding the Unfair.
It appears in Tafsir Mazhari that this sin means the sin of the
abandonment of Jihad specially at a time when a general call for Jihad
is given to common Muslims from their Amir, a call on which depends
the security and defence of Islamic hallmarks. The reason is that this
is a time when the curse of forsaking Jihad does not fall only on those
who forsake Jihad but it also falls on the whole body of Muslims. Be-
cause Kuffar run over Muslim areas, women and children and old peo-
ple and many innocent Muslims become victims of their killing and
plunder. Their lives and properties are endangered. If that be the situ-
ation, 'punishment' would mean worldly distress and hardships.
The factual evidence of this explanation is that those who forsake
Jihad have been condemned in the previous verses as well. Previous
verses, such as: ◌َوَإِنَّ فَرِيقًا مِنَ المُؤمِنِينَ لَكُرِمُون (while a group from the believers
(٥) بَيُّهَا الَّذِيْنَ امَنُوا إِذَا لَقِيْتُمُالَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ زَحُفًا فَلاَ تَوَّلَّوُهُمُ الْأَدْبَارَ :were averse to it - 8:5) and
those who believe, when you face the disbelievers marching to battle,
then do not turn your backs on them - 8:15) have appeared in support
of this approach to the problem.
The same thing happened at the battle of Badr when some Mus-

195
Surah Al-Anfal : 8 : 25 - 28
lims wavered with their choice of suitable conduct. They left their se-
curity post on the hills and came down. When this happened, the ill ef-
fects of their action did not remain restricted to those who had made
the error, in fact, they hit the entire Muslim army, so much so that the
Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم was himself injured in this battle.
The second verse (26) also mentions several things which could
make Divine injunctions easy on them. To pursuade them towards the
option of obedience to Allah, Muslims have been reminded of their past
weakness and of how Allah has blessed them with power and confi-
dence by changing surrounding conditions through His grace and mer-
cy. The text says:
وَاذْكُرُاْ إِذْ أَنْتُمْ قَلِيْلٌ تُشْتَضْعَفُوْنَ فِى الْأَرْضِ تَخَافُوْنَ آَنْ يَتَخَطَّفَكُمُ النَّاسُ
فَأُوْكُمْ وَآَيَّدَكُمُ بِنَصِْهٍ وَرَزَقَكُمُ مِنَ الَطِّّبْتِ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَشْكُرُونَ .
And remember when you were few in number, oppressed on
the earth, fearing that the people would snatch you away.
Then, He gave you shelter and fortified you with His support
and provided you with good things, so that you may be grate-
ful - 26.
In this verse, Muslims are being asked to remember the conditions
they were facing in Makkah during the pre-Hijrah period following
which they were given the finest sanctuary at Madinah. Not only that,
they were also blessed with Divine support, power and victory over ad-
versaries, as well as assets of great value. Then, towards the end of
the verse, it was said: 33 gia (so that you may be grateful). It means
that the purpose behind this great transformation of conditions
around them supported by the flow of Divine blessings was to give
them an opportunity to show their gratefulness as obedient servants of
Allah, for the finest demonstration of gratefulness, in the real sense,
comes through nothing but obedience to what Allah commands them
to do.
In the third verse (27), Muslims have been instructed not to commit
any breach of trust (khiyanah) in the dual rights due against them,
that is, in the rights of Allah (Huququllah) or in the mutual rights of
the servants of Allah as enjoined on each other (Huququl-'Ibad) - either
by failing to fulfill them totally, or by fulfilling them in a defective
manner leaving one or the other shortcoming behind. Then, by saying:

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Surah Al-Anfal : 8 : 25 - 28
BAGE1; (while you know) at the end of the verse, it was stressed that
they already knew that breach of trust was an evil conduct lined with
many a curse, therefore, going ahead to do something like that was not
what an intelligent person would choose to do - and, since the cause of
negligence or shortcoming in fulfilling the rights of the servants of Al-
lah is usually one's attachment to property and children, a warning
وَاعْلَمْوَا أَّا أَمْوَالُكُمْ وَأَوْلَادُكُمْ فِتُنَهُ وَّأَنَّ اللَّهَ عِنْدَةً أَجْرٌعَظِيمٌ :was given in verse 28 by saying
(And be aware that your wealth and your children are but a trial and
that with Allah there is a great reward).
The word: & (fitnah) used here carries the sense of 'trial' as well as
that of 'punishment.' Then, such things as become the cause of punish-
ment are also referred to as 'fitnah.' In different verses of the Qur'an,
'fitnah' has been used to carry these three meanings. At this place,
there is room for all three. There are occasions when one's own proper-
ty and children become a can of troubles for him and that they would
push him into negligence and disobedience and become the very cause
of punishment right here in this world is all too obvious. Firstly, the
sense could be that Allah aims to put you to test through your proper-
ty and children for these are His blessings. Now, you prove whether
you become grateful and obedient after having received these, or that
you choose to be ungrateful and disobedient. Also possible is the sec-
ond, even the third meaning, that is, should you become all engrossed
in your love for your property and children and bring upon yourself the
displeasure of Allah, then, these very children and property will be-
come your punishment. There are occasions within this mortal world
when one is engulfed into all sorts of hardships because of property
and children and he starts experiencing the heat of punishment right
here. Even if the case be otherwise, it stands settled that the property
which was acquired or spent by ways counter to the injunctions of Al-
lah Ta'ala will itself become, in the Hereafter, the active agent of pun-
ishment through snakes, scorpions and brandings by fire - as stated
clearly in several verses of the Qur'an and numerous narrations of the
Hadith. Finally, the third meaning is that these things become the
cause of punishment. As pointed out a little earlier, it is quite evident
that once these things become the cause of heedlessness towards and
disobedience to Allah Ta'ala and His injunctions, they automatically
become the cause of punishment. At the end of the verse (28), it was
said: phil ali (and that with Allah there is a great reward). In

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Surah Al-Anfal : 8 : 25 - 28
other words, one should understand clearly that for a person who is
not all-subdued by his love for property and children while doing his
duty of being obedient to the commands of Allah and His Rasul, there
is a great reward for him with Allah.
As for the thematic content of this verse, it applies to all Muslims,
but the cause of its revelation, according to the majority of commenta-
tors, is the event relating to Sayyidna Abu Lubabahar difus, as it
came to pass during the battle of Banu Qurayzah. As reported, the
Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم and the noble Companions kept the fort of
Banu Qurayzah under seige for twenty one days which compelled them
to make the request that they be allowed to leave their homeland and
go to Syria. In view of their wickedness, he did not accede to their re-
quest. Instead, he said that the only option of peace open to them was
that they should now agree to whatever decision Sayyidna Sa'd ibn
Mu'adh s Jl , gave in their case. Thereupon, they rquested that
Sayyidna Abu Lubabah ac Ul », be entrusted with this duty in place of
Sayyidna Sa'd ibn Mu'adh at Ulu>,. The reason was that the family
and property of Sayyidna Abu Lubabah Algo, were located in the
Banu Qurayzah area. He, they thought, would take a lenient attitude
in their case. The Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم sent Sayyidna Abu Luba-
bah a Jiyo, as they requested. When he reached there, men and
women from Banu Qurayzah assembled around him and started cry-
ing. They asked: If we were to surrender at the command of the Holy
Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم and come out of the fort, would he be lenient to
us? Sayyidna Abu Lubabah a Uly, knew that leniency was not the
settled policy in this matter. However, it was partly because of their
wailing and plaint and partly because of his own love and concern for
his family and children that he passed his hand sword-like over his
neck giving the signal that they shall be slaughtered. Thus, as one
.صلى الله عليه وسلم would say, he disclosed the secret of the Holy Prophet
The consideration of property and the love of children and family
made him do what he did. But, he was immediately alerted to what
had happened. He realized that he had committed a breach of trust re-
posed in him by the Holy Prophet صلى اللّه عليه وسلم .When he returned from
there, he was so overwhelmed by his sense of shame that he, rather
than return to his master, went straight to his Masjid and it was a pil-
lar of the Masjid that he tied himself to swearing that he will stay tied

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Surah Al-Anfal : 8 : 29 - 33
like that until his taubah (repentance) was accepted, even if he were to
die in that condition. So, for seven full days he stood there tied like
that. His wife and daughter used to attend to him. They would untie
him so that he could take care of his human compulsions and make his
Salah. When he had done that, they would tie him again. He would
usually avoid eating and drinking, so much so that he would faint out
of weakness.
When the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم got this news initially, he
said: If he had come to me first, I would have sought forgiveness for
him and his taubah would have been accepted. Now that he has gone
through this act of his, there is nothing left but to wait for the revela-
tion of the Divine acceptance of his taubah. So, it was after seven days
when, late at night, these verses relating to the acceptance of his tau-
bah were revealed. Some Şahabah gave him the good news and
reached out to untie him from the pillar. But, he said: Until such time
that the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم would not decide to untie me, I
would not prefer to be untied. Thus, when he came into the Masjid at
the time of the Fajr Salah, he untied him with his own blessed hands.
The real cause of the revelation of the cited verse which contains the
prohibition of becoming overwhelmed by the concern and love for prop-
erty and children and not fulfilling the trust of Allah is as stated
above. Allah knows best.
Verses 29 - 33
لاَيُّهَا الَّذِيْنَ امَنُوا إِنْ تَتَفُوا اللهَ يَجْعَلْ لَّكُمْ فُرْقَانًا وَيُكَفِّرُ
عَنْكُمُ سَّاتِكُمُ وَيَغْفِرْلَكُمْ، وَاللهُ ذُو الْفَضْلِ الْعَظِيْمِ ﴿٢٩﴾
وَإِذْ يَمْكُرْ بِكَ الَّذِيْنَ كَفَرُوا لِيُتْبِتُؤْنَ آَوْ يَقْتُلُوْكَ آَوْ يُخْرِجُوْنَهُ
وَيَمْكُرُونَ وَيَمْكُرُ اللّهُ وَاللَّهُ خَيْرُ الْمُكِرِيْنَ ﴿٣٠﴾ وَإِذَا تُخْلى
عَلَيْهِمْ الْتُنَا قَالُوا قَدُ سَمِعْنَا لَوْنَشَآءُ لَقُلْنَا مِثْلَ هُذَاء إِنْ
هَذَا إِلَّ أَسَاطِيْرُ الْآَوَّلِيْنَ ﴿٣١) وَإِذْ قَالُوا اللَّهُمَّ إِنْ كَانَ هذَا
هُوَالْحَقَّ مِنْ عِنْدِكَ فَاَمُطِرْ عَلَيْنَا حِجَارَةً مِّنَ السَّمَاءِ آَوَاتُّتِنَا
بِعَذَابٍ أَلِيْمِ ﴿٢٢) وَمَا كَانَ اللَّهُ لِيُعَذِّبَهُمْ وَأَنْتَ فِيُهِمْ ، وَمَا

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Surah Al-Anfal : 8 : 29 - 33
كَانَ اللَّهُ مُعَذِّبَهُمْ وَهُمُ يَسْتَغْفِرُونَ ﴿٣٣)
O those who believe, if you fear Allah, He will provide
you with a criterion (to distinguish between right and
wrong) and will write off your evil deeds and will for-
give you. And Allah is the Lord of great bounty. [29]
And (remember) when the disbelievers were plotting
against you to hold you (in detention) or to kill you or
to expel you. And they were plotting and Allah was
plotting, and Allah is the best of those who plot. [30]
And when Our verses are recited to them, they say, "We
have heard, if we wish, we can say something like this.
It is nothing but the tales of the ancient." [31]
And (remember) when they said, "O Allah, if this be in-
deed the truth (revealed) from You, then, rain down
upon us stones from the heavens, or bring upon us a
painful punishment." [32]
And Allah is not to send punishment upon them while
you are in their midst, nor would Allah send punish-
ment upon them while they are seeking forgiveness.
[33]
Commentary
The previous verse mentioned property and children as being a
trial for mortal man because these are things the concern and love for
which make one so overtaken that one would usually turn heedless to-
wards Allah, the Creator and 'Akhirah, the life-to-come - though, the
rational demand of this great blessing was that one should have
shown a far pronounced tilt towards Him because of this favour.
The first verse out of those quoted above completes this very sub-
ject. Here, it is said that the person who keeps his emotion subservient
to his reason, remains steadfast in this trial and sees to it that the
obedience to Allah Ta'ala and love for Him stay ahead of everything -
which is called Taqwa in the terminology of Qur'an and Shari'ah -
then, he is blessed with three things in return. These are: (1) Furqan
(the criterion of distinguishing between right and wrong), (2) Kaffarah
of Sayyi'at (the expiation of evils done) and (3) Maghfirah (forgiveness
from Allah).
Furqan and Farq are both verbal nouns having the same meaning.

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In usage, Furqan is the name of the thing which separates and makes
two things clearly distinct. Therefore, a decision is called Furqan be-
cause it makes the difference between true and false very distinct. The
help and support from Allah is also called Furqan because, through it,
the protagonists of truth are made to win and their antagonists are
made to taste defeat which makes the difference between right and
wrong and true and false loud and clear. In the Holy Qur'an, it is in
this sense that the battle of Badr has been called the Yowm al-Furqan,
the Day of Distinction (between right and wrong) ..
According to the majority of commentators, the sense of providing
Furqan to those who fear Allah is that the help and support of Allah
Ta'ala is with them. No enemy can hurt them and success goes with
them in all objectives they undertake:
ترسد ازوح جن وانس وهركه ديد
هرکه ترسید از حق و تقوی کزید
Whoever fears Allah and takes to piety (Taqwa)
Is feared at sight by Jinns and Humans of the world.
It appears in Tafsir Maha'imi that an indication has been given
here towards the slip made by Sayyidna Abu Lubabah as ill yo, be-
cause of his desire to provide protection for his family and children as
mentioned a little earlier in the event relating to him. He was in the
error particularly for the reason that the correct and the only method
of keeping his family and children protected was no other but that to-
tal obedience to Allah Ta'ala and His Messenger صلى الله عليه وسلم should
have been made his personal benchmark as a result of which whatever
belonged to him including his family and children would have come
under the security umbrella of Allah Ta'ala. Other than this, there are
other commentators who say that Furqan in this verse means the wis-
dom and insight through which it becomes easy to distinguish between
true and false, the genuine and the fake. Thus, the core meaning of the
statement would be that Allah Ta'ala arms those who observe Taqwa
with such insight and intelligence that it becomes easy for them to go
ahead and decide between the good and the evil.
The second blessing received in return for practising Taqwa is the
Kaffarah of Saiyyi'at which means that the errors and slips which get
to be committed by the practitioner of Taqwa are expiated and re-
placed right here in this mortal world, that is, he is blessed with the

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ability or Taufiq of doing such good deeds as pale out all his slips of
conduct. Finally, the third thing one is fortunate to receive in return
for Taqwa is forgiveness in the Hereafter and the ultimate pardon of
all shortcomings and sins.
At the end of the verse (29), it was said : وَاللّهُ ذُو الْفَضْلِ الْعَظِيم (And Allah is
the Lord of great bounty). By saying that Allah is limitless in His
grace and favour, the hint given is that the return of a deed follows the
measure of that deed. Here too, the good return mentioned as being
the reward of Taqwa in three things comes as recompense or return
but, Allah Ta'ala is the master-dispenser of great grace and favour.
When He gives, He is not bound by any measure, nor can anyone esti-
mate or guess His favour and reward. Therefore, for those who take to
Taqwa as their style of life, much greater hopes should be entertained
from the grace and reward of Allah Ta'ala in things other than the
three mentioned earlier.
The second verse (30) points out to a particular reward and favour
صلى الله عليه of Allah Ta'ala which has been conferred on the Holy Prophet
dw,, the noble Companions and, in fact, on the whole world. This came
to be before the Hijrah when the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم was encir-
cled by the disbelievers and they were planning to detain or kill him.
Then, Allah Ta'ala made their unholy intentions lick dust and made it
possible for the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم to reach the city of Madinah
in perfect safety.
The related incident has been reported in Tafsir Ibn Kathir and
Tafsir Mazhari on the authority of narrations from Muhammad ibn
Ishaq, Imam Ahmad, Ibn Jarir and others. According to details of this
incident, when the news about visiting residents of Madinah
embracing Islam became known in Makkah, the Quraysh of Makkah
started worrying about it. They thought that the matter of people
becoming Muslims was something restricted to Makkah upto that
point of time, an area where they held all power in their hands. But,
as Islam had started spreading in Madinah, many Companions of the
Prophet had migrated to that city, it went to prove that Muslims had
another center in Madinah where they could assemble a fighting force
against them and possibly decide to attack. Alongwith this, they also
realized that this was just the beginning when only some Companions
have migrated to Madinah. There was strong likelihood that

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Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم may also go and join them. Therefore, the
notable chiefs of Makkah called a special meeting for mutual
consultations at Dar al-Nadwah. This place called Dar al-Nadwah was
the home of Qusay ibn Kilab and was located close to al-Masjid
al-Haram. These people used it as the place where they met to consult
on national problems. During the Islamic period, it has been merged in
al-Masjid al-Haram. It is said that the present Bab al-Ziyadat was the
place known as Dar al-Nadwah.
As customary, the Quraysh chiefs met at Dar al-Nadwah for this
significant consultation. All known leaders from the Quraysh such as
Abu Jahl, Nadhr ibn Harith, 'Utbah, Shaybah, Umaiyyah ibn Khalaf,
Abu Sufyan and others participated. The agenda considered was how
صلى الله عليه وسلم to confront and block the rising power of the Holy Prophet
and Islam.
Before this consultative meeting could be called to order, there ap-
peared Iblis, the accursed, in the guise of an aged 'Arab Shaykh. Peo-
ple on the door of Dar al-Nadwah asked: Who are you and why have
you come here? The answer given was: I am a resident of Najd. I have
been told that you have assembled here to discuss an important na-
tional issue. So, as a well-wisher of our people, I am here in the hope
that I too may be able to tender some useful advice on the matter un-
der consideration.
His plea was heard. He was called in. Then, began the process of
suggestions on the subject. According to a narration reported by Su-
haili, it was suggested by Abu al-Bakhtari ibn Hisham that 'he'
(meaning the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم) should be chained and de-
tained in a house. The door should be locked and he should be left
there until he dies, God forbid, his own death. Hearing this, the
Shaykh of Najd - Iblis, the accursed - said: This proposal is not sound
for if you did that, this action is not going to remain hidden. In fact, it
will be publicized far too widely. Then, you already know how good his
Companions are in staking their lives for his sake. It is quite possible
that these people may get together, attack you and rescue their prison-
er from your detention. This caused voices to rise from all sides which
supported the view of the Shaykh of Najd as sound. After that, Abu al-
Aswad proposed that 'he' should be expelled out from Makkah. Let
him go out of here and do whatever he wishes to do. This will make

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Surah Al-Anfal : 8 : 29 - 33
our city safe from the disorder generated by him and, when we do so,
we shall be doing no fighting and killing.
Hearing this, the Shaykh of Najd once again said: This proposal
too is not sound. Do you not realize how soft-spoken a person he is?
When people hear him talk, they are totally charmed by him. If he was
left free like that, he would soon assemble a powerful group around
him and attack you and defeat you. Now, it was Abu Jahl's turn to
speak. He said: None of you seems to have understood what must be
really done. Here is my plan of action. I propose that we pick out one
youngman from each tribe out of all tribes of Arabia and arm each one
of them with a lethal sword. Then, all of them, moving jointly and sud-
denly, attack and kill him. This action will at least deliver us from the
problems engineered by him. Now, remains the aftermath of this
killing. His tribe, Banu 'Abd Munaf, may rise with their claim of
retaliation against the killing, something we are legally bound to face.
So, in such a situation, when the actual killing was done, not by one
single person, instead, by one person from each tribe, then, the claim
of Qisas, that is, taking life for life, cannot hold good after all. What
would remain valid will be only the claim for blood money or property
against diyah. That we shall collect from all tribes, give it to them and
be done with it.
When the Shaykh of Najd, Iblis, the accursed in disguise, heard
this, he said: This is it. Nothing else is going to work. The whole as-
sembly voted in his favour and it was resolved that this sinister plan
would be put into action exactly the same night.
What these ignorant people could not understand was the unseen
power of the prophets, may they all be blessed. As a consequence, two
things happened. On the one hand, Archangel Jibra'il informed the
Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم about everything that had transpired at
their meeting at Dar al-Nadwah giving him a counter-plan whereby he
would not sleep in his bed that night and telling him that Allah Ta'ala
has allowed him to migrate from Makkah.
On the other hand, by the fall of the evening, the Quraysh young-
.صلى الله عليه وسلم men put a cordon round the house of the Holy Prophet
When he saw this, he ordered Sayyidna 'Ali al-Murtada as dilys, that
he should sleep in the Prophet's bed that night giving him the good
news that the plan was though full of a danger to his life obviously, yet

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Surah Al-Anfal : 8 : 29 - 33
the enemies would not be able to harm him in any way.
Happy to be at his service, Sayyidna 'Ali e dla, went into his bed.
But, the problem was as to how the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم was to
get out of this siege. This difficulty was resolved by Allah Ta'ala
through a miracle when the Holy Prophet وصلى الله عليه وسلم acting under
the command of Allah Ta'ala, came out with a handful of dust in one of
his hands, responded to what his besiegers were saying about him, but
it so happened that Allah Ta'ala turned their sights and minds away
from him in a way that none of them saw him even though he passed
by them throwing dust on their heads. When he was gone, some visitor
asked them as to why were they standing there. They said that they
were waiting for the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم. Thereupon, the visitor
told them: You must be dreaming. He has already gone from here and
while going he had been throwing dust on the heads of everyone
among you. They all felt their heads with their hands which confirmed
the fact that everyone's head had a deposit of dust on it.
When they went into the house, Sayyidna 'All at July», was lying in
the bed of the Holy Prophet صلى اللّه عليه وسلم, but the way he was tossing
and turning in the bed made it possible for the besiegers to realize
that he was not Muhammad وصلى الله عليه وسلم therefore, they did not ven-
ture to kill him. After carrying out their operation of siege right
through the morning, these people went back disappointed and dis-
graced. This night and the event of Sayyidna 'All staking his life for
the sake of the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم therein is rated to be among
.رضى الله عنه special merits credited to Sayyidna 'Ali al-Murtada
The three suggestions made to deal with the Holy Prophet Jul
du Lle during the consultative meeting of Quraysh chiefs have been
وَإِذْ يَمْكُرُ بِكَ الَّذِيْنَ كَفَرُوْا ◌ِعْتُبِتُوُكَ اَوْ يَقُتُلُوكَ : mentioned by the Holy Qur'an in the verse
33;' (And [remember] when the disbelievers were plotting against
you to hold you [in detention] or to kill you or to expel you - 30).
But, Allah Ta'ala made all their plans and projections go to dust.
That is why it was said towards the end: a suies zur, (and Allah is the
best of those who plot - 30). It means that Allah is the best of planners.
His plan pales out all plans - as demonstrated in this case.
Lexically, the Arabic word: ≤. (makr: translated as 'plot') means re-
stricting one's adversary from carrying out his intention through some

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Surah Al-Anfal : 8 : 29 - 33
strategem or plan. Then, if this action is taken for a good purpose, this
type of 'makr' is commendable and good - and should it be done for
some evil purpose, it is blameworthy and bad. Therefore, this word can
be used for man, and for Allah Ta'ala as well. But, it is used for Allah
only in an environment where the context and contrast of speech does
not lend to any doubt of makr which is blameworthy (Mazhari) as it is
here.
At this place, it is also noteworthy that the words used at the end
of the verse are in the indefinite tense which denotes present and fu-
ture. It was said: "kuss ;<< " (And they were plotting and Allah was
plotting - 30), that is, they will keep plotting to hurt believers while Al-
lah Ta'ala will keep plotting to thwart and frustrate their plots. The
hint given therein is that this will continue to remain a lasting mark
of disbelievers that they go about engineering designs to hurt Muslims
- while, in the same way, the help and support of Allah Ta'ala shall
also keep repulsing their evil designs against true believers.
Mentioned in verses 31 and 32 is the absurd remark made by Nadr
ibn Harith, a participant of the same meeting at Dar al-Nadwah, with
its reply appearing in verse 33. Nadr ibn Harith was a businessman
who used to travel to different countries where he had repeated oppor-
tunities of seeing religious books of the Jews and Christians as well as
witnessing their modes of worship. When he heard about the accounts
of past communities appearing in the Holy Quran, he said: La Cina
-we have heard, if we wish, we can say some) لَقُلُنَا مِثْلَ هُذَا إِنَّ هَذَا إِلَّ أَسَارِيْرُ الْأَوَّلِيْنَ
thing like this. It is nothing but the tales of the ancient - 31). Thereup-
on, some of the Companions challenged him: If you can say something
like this, why would you not say it? The Qur'an had already spoken on
the subject and made it the very criterion of the true and the false.
The challenge of the Qur'an was beamed at the whole world. If its op-
ponents were true, let them come up with the like of even a very small
Surah. In contrast, those who claimed to stake their lives and sacrifice
their wealth and children for the sake of upholding their counter-
assertion could not even join up their abilities together and come out
even with a small Surah which could stand on its own against the
Qur'an. Now, after all this, to stand up and say that we too can say
something like this, if we so wished, is something no self-respecting
person would venture to say. Thus, when the Companions told him

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Surah Al-Anfal : 8 : 29 - 33
that the Qur'an was nothing but the Divine word, he tried to counter
the assertion by showing his own firm adherence to his incorrect faith
by saying:
اَللَّهُمَّ إِنْ كَانَ لهَذَا هُوَ الْحَقَّ مِنْ عِنْدِكَ فَأَمُطِرْ عَلَيْنَا حِجَارَةً مِّنَ السَّمَآءِ أَوِ
انْتِنَا بِعَذَابٍ أَلِيْمِ
O Allah, if this be indeed the truth [revealed] from You, then,
rain down upon us stones from the heavens, or bring upon us
a painful punishment - 32.
The answer to this was given by the Qur'an itself. First, it was
said : ◌ْوَمَا كَانَ اللَّهُ لِيُعَذِّبَهُمْ وَأَنْتَ فِيْهِم (And Allah is not to send punishment upon
them while you are in their midst [in Makkah] - 33). The reason is that
it is the customary practice of Allah Ta'ala with all blessed prophets
that He would not send His punishment over a habitation where they
are present until He takes out his prophets from there. This is as it
happened in the case of Sayyidna Hud, Sayyidna Salih and Sayyidna
Lut, may peace be upon them all. Punishment did not come as long as
they remained in their towns. Punishment came when they were tak-
en out from there. As for the Prophet of Islam , he was sent to this
world as universal mercy. That Divine punishment would come on him
while he was present in a town was an eventuality counter to his sta-
tion.
In a nutshell, the answer is: Because of your hostility towards
Qur'an and Islam, you very much deserve to have stones rain at you
but the presence of the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم in Makkah prohibits
it. According to Imam Ibn Jarir, this part of the verse was revealed at
a time when he was present in Makkah. Then, came Hijrah to Madi-
nah where the second part was revealed as follows: 32was5 5;
SBAMERK (nor would Allah send punishment on them while they are seek-
ing forgiveness - 33). It means that following his migration to Madinah,
though the preventive factor of a mass punishment stood removed as
he was not present there in Makkah, yet there did remain another fac-
tor preventing the coming of mass punishment even at that time since
many weaker ones among Muslims who were unable to migrate had
remained behind in Makkah and they were the ones who kept praying
to Allah Ta'ala for their forgiveness. It was for their sake that punish-
ment was not sent upon the people of Makkah.

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Surah Al-Anfal : 8 : 29 - 33
When, even these blessed souls migrated to Madinah, the sentence
appearing in the next verse (34) : ◌ِوَمَالَهُمْ اَلَّ يُعَذِّبَهُمُ اللَّهُ وَهُمْ يَصُدُّونَ عَنِ الْسُجِدِ الْحَرَام (And
what is with them that Allah should not punish them while they pre-
vent [people] from al-masjid al-haram) was revealed.
The sense is that there were two hinderances to the coming of pun-
صلى الله عليه وسلم ishment. They both have been removed. The Holy Prophet
was no more there in Makkah, nor there remained those forgiveness-
seeking Muslims in that city. Thus, there appeared to be no hinder-
ance to the coming of punishment. Particularly so, because the people
of Makkah were already deserving of punishment for their hostility to
Islam while on top of which - despite being themselves incapable of
any act of worship worth the name - they had started preventing peo-
ple who wished to go into al-masjid al-haram for 'Ibadah, 'Umrah and
Țawaf. So, at that stage, their entitlement to punishment had become
mature and complete. Consequently, it was through the Conquest of
Makkah that punishment was sent upon them.
The event relating to the preventing of people from entering al-
masjid al-haram took place at the expedition of Hudaibiyah when the
Holy Prophet صلى اللّه عليه وسلم had gone there with the intention of making
'Umrah with his Companions. The disbelievers of Makkah stopped
him from entering the city and compelled him and all his Companions
to undo their Ihram and return back. This happened in the Hijrah year
6. Two years later, in Hijrah 8, Makkah was conquered. Thus, it was
at the hands of Muslims that punishment was sent upon them.
This explanation given by Ibn Jarir rests on the assumption that
the factor of the Holy Prophet's presence in Makkah should be consid-
ered as the hinderance to punishment while others have maintained
that the presence of the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم in the world is itself
the prohibitive factor against any mass punishment. As long as he
graces the world with his presence, no punishment can come over his
people. The reason for this is obvious. The state of his call to prophet-
hood is different. It is not similar to that of other blessed prophets as
they were sent to particular areas or tribes. When they left these and
arrived at some new place, punishment would overtake the people
they left behind. This is contrary to the case of the Holy Prophet Jul
dy ude whose prophethood and messengership is universal until the
Last Day of this mortal life. So, the place of his blessed arrival and the

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Surah Al-Anfal : 8 : 29 - 33
scope of his mission as a Messenger of Allah extends to the whole
world. Therefore, as long as he is present in any part of the world, no
punishment can visit his people.
Based on this Tafsir, it would mean that the doings of the people of
Makkah demanded nothing less than that they be struck with a rain
of stones. But, two things became a hinderance to this punishment: (1)
The presence of the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم in the world and (2) the
seeking of forgiveness by the people of Makkah because they, despite
being polytheists and disbelievers, used to say: dlat dol # (we seek
Your forgiveness, we seek Your forgiveness) in their Țawaf. Though,
this seeking of forgiveness by them coupled with disbelief (shirk) may
not be beneficial in the Hereafter, but the benefit of doing that too in
this world which accrued to them was that they escaped punishment
in the mortal world. The standing truth is that Allah Ta'ala does not
let anyone's deed go to waste. If disbelievers and polytheists do some-
thing good, its return is given to them right here in this world. As for
what is said after that - 'and what is with them that Allah should not
punish them while they prevent [people] from al-masjid al-haram - it
would then mean that the absence of punishment in the world should
not embolden these people to become arrogant and complacent think-
ing that they were no sinners or that punishment would not come
upon them at all. May be, not in the mortal world, but there is just no
escape or deliverance from the punishment of the Hereafter. Given
this Tafsir, the punishment mentioned in: if Ju (and what is with
them that Allah should not punish them - 34) would be referring to the
punishment of the Hereafter.
To sum up, it can be said that the verses cited here leave beneficial
information for us: (1) That Allah Ta'ala does not send punishment
upon a locality in which people seek His forgiveness. This is His custo-
mary practice. (2) That no punishment would come upon the communi-
ty of the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم, believing or disbelieving, while he
is present among them. This is as it came to pass in the case of the
people of Sayyidna Nuh, Lut and Shu'ayb >JI +Je. Their people were
destroyed to the last person. Should some punishment visit individu-
als or a limited number of them, that would not be considered contrary
to it - as was said by the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم that the punish-
ment of us: khasf and ... maskh will visit his Ummah. Khasf means
to sink into the ground or be swallowed by it while Maskh means dis-

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Surah Al-Anfal : 8 : 34 - 38
figuration and transformation into an animal such as monkey or
swine. The intimation intended is that there will be those limited few
individuals of the community who would be visited by such punish-
ments as well.
As for the phenomenon of the presence of the Holy Prophet LlL.
Ly tle in this world, it will remain operative right through the Last
Day of Qiyamah because his mission of prophethood is operative till
then. In addition to that, the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم is alive even at
this time, though the nature and form of this life is different from his
previous life. Now, any effort at this stage to engage in the debate as
to what is the difference between these two lives will be ineffectual
and futile - because, nothing that this community of Muslims has to do
in terms of its religious or worldly duties depends on it. Neither has
the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم himself, nor his noble Sahabah have
liked such wasteful and unnecessary debates. In fact, they have pro-
hibited it.
The essence of the submission is that the marvel of the Holy
Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم being alive in his resting place and the unbroken
continuity of his prophethood right through the Last Day of Qiyamah
prove that he is in this world right through Qiyamah, therefore, this
community of his shall remain safe against any mass punishment un-
til that fateful Day.
Verses 34 - 38
وَمَالَهُمْ آَلَّ يُعَذِّبَهُمُ اللَّهُ وَهُمْ يَصُدُوْنَ عَنِ الْمُسْجِدِ الْحَرَامِ وَمَا
كَانُؤْا أَوْلِيَّاءَهُ إِنْ آَوْلَؤُةٌ إِلَّ الْمُّقُونَ وَلكِنَّ أَكْثَرَهُمْ لَا يَعْلَمُوْنَ
﴿٣٤ ﴾ وَمَا كَانَ صَلَاتُهُمْ عِنْدَ الْبَيْتِ إِلاَّ مُكَاءَ وَ تَصْدِيَةً،
فَذُوْقُوا الْعَذَابَ بِمَا كُنْتُمْ تَكْفُرُونَ ﴿٣٥) إِنَ الَّذِيْنَ كَفَرُوْا
يُنْفِقُونَ آَمْوَالَهُمْ لِيَصُدُّوْا عَنْ سَبِيْلِ اللَّهِ* فَسَيْنُفِقُوْنَهَا ثُمَّ
تَكُوُنُ عَلَيْهِمْ حَسْرَةً ثُمَّ يُغْلَبُونَ* وَالَّذِيْنَ كَفَرُؤْا إِلى جَهَنَّمَ
يُحُشَرُونَ ﴿٣٦) لِيَمِيْزَ اللَّهُ الْخَبِيْثَ مِنَ الَّتِبِ وَيَجْعَلَ الْحُبِيْثَ
بَعْضَهُ عَلى بَعْضٍ فَيَرْكُمَهْ جَمِيْعًا فَيَجْعَلَهُ فِىٌ جَهَنَّمَ +ُ أُوْلِكَ