Indexed OCR Text

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in the matter, and once you have taken a decision,
place your trust in Allah. Surely, Allah loves those who
place their trust in Him. [159]
Even though, the mistake made by Muslims and the abandonment
of the battle front by them had caused grief to the Holy Prophet &, he
did not reproach them for this because of his high morals and his
natural way of forgiving and forgetting. He did not even deal with
them sternly as may have been in order. But, Allah Almighty willed to
see that the Companions of His Messenger are comforted and the
sense of shock and shame they had for their mistake is washed away.
So, in this verse, the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم is being asked to deal
with them more gently and affectionately and consult with them in
matters of concern.
Commentary:
The traits of a patron
The Companions of the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم loved him far
beyond the concerns of their own lives and belongings. When they
made a mistake acting against his express instructions, there were
two dangers. Firstly, it could further increase their sense of shock and
affect their normal emotional-rational response. They could even lose
hope of mercy, especially when they realized what mistake they had
made and how disobedient they had been to the command of their
leader. This danger was already eliminated in the previous verse
where 'We awarded you sorrow for sorrow' means that the return of
this mistake has already been given right here in this mortal world
and the account in the Hereafter lies clean.
Secondly, the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم was hurt as a result of this
mistake, physically. The spiritual discomfort was already there. It was
likely that these two factors may contribute to making the Holy
Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم unhappy with his Companions which, in turn,
may become a hinderance in his mission to teach and train them. In
order to counter this likelihood, the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم was
asked to forgo their mistake, forgive their shortcoming from the depth
of his heart and deal with them gently and affectionately in the future
as well.
The subject has been taken up with unusual delicacy of style in the

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Holy Qur'an which, as a corollary, covers some important points of
guidance.
1. The diction used to convey the related command to the Holy
Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم is eloquently suggestive of his personal praise, as
well as that of his unique human majesty, that is, he has these attrib-
utes in him already built in.
2. The addition of 133 L. (So, it was through mercy from Allah)
before the statement is there to affirm that the presence of such attrib-
utes of perfection in his person is but through Divine mercy. This is no
personal perfection in its own right. Then, by placing the word,
'rahmah' (mercy) in an indefinite form, hint has been made towards
the great and extensive spread of Allah's mercy which, in turn, makes
it very obvious that this mercy is not restricted to the noble Compan-
ions only, but extends in full to the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم himself
for Allah has made him identified with such perfect attributes.
3. The third point made here establishes that the presence of the
qualities of gentle manners, good morals, forgiveness and generosity in
him serve a purpose. Had these been not there in him, the mission of
educating human beings with which he is charged would have never
been accomplished as desired. Rather than seek to correct and raise
the level of their morals in his company, people would have run away
from him.
The Etiquette of Da'wah:
By combining elements cited above, there emerges a set of distinct
qualities necessary for preaching, no matter what form it takes.
Anyone who embarks on the mission of inviting people to Allah,
explaining His guidance and calling people towards the right conduct
in their best interest, must first inculcate these qualities in him. The
reason is obvious. When a possible 'rough' or 'hard-hearted' approach,
even if it happens to come from the very dear Messenger of Allah
Almighty, has not been considered fit, who else can dare to gather
people created by Allah around him with hostility and negative morals
and still hope to seek a change in their behaviour.
In this verse, Allah Almighty has said: 'Had you been rough and
hard-hearted, they would have dispersed from around you.' This indi-

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cates that harshness, in conduct or language, is sheer poison for a
da wah worker or a leader conveying Allah's message to people. This is
a sure way to undo what one intends to achieve.
Then, the verse says: ' Get 'So, pardon them'. This indicates that
a da wah worker or reformer of people should never punish them for
their mistakes. Instead, he should forgive and forgo. It is important
that he does not get excited or angry when his listeners speak ill of
him. The truth is that he should rise higher and treat his tormentors
with compassion and leniency.
Soon, after that, the verse says: 'WAR21; 'And seek forgiveness for
them'. This seeking of forgiveness for them from Allah Almighty points
out to an unusual rule of behaviour. Not only that he should remain
patient in what is painful, the Messenger is being asked not to forget
seeking their good with utmost sincerity. The best that can be wished
for them is their salvation in the life-to-come, the good that waits for
them in Akhirah. So, the Messenger is being asked to pray for their
forgiveness in order that Allah spares them from His punishment.
Finally, it has been said: ◌ِوَشَاوِرُهُمْ فِى الْآَمُر :'And consult them in the
matter' which means that the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم is to seek
their advice in matters of concern so that they are fully satisfied and
emotionally at peace, as the Messenger of Allah, by following this
instruction, will be giving an external form to his intention of doing
what is good for them. Thus, the act of his asking them to sit in consul-
tations with him will become an act of mollifying grace.
After having asked the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم to consult with
his Companions, the verse concludes with the instruction on final deci-
sion-making. As regards consultation, the Holy Qur'an has given clear
injunctions at two places. The first one appears right here in the verse
under commentation while the second one appears in a verse of Surah
al-Shura (42:38) where one of the qualities of true Muslims has been
identified as ◌ُوَامْرُهُمٌ شُورِى بَيْنَهُم (Every matter of theirs is settled by mutual
consultation). There are places where the instruction to consult
appears secondarily, for instance, under injunctions relating to suck-
ling in Surah al-Baqarah (2:233) where it is said :ٍعَنُ تَرَاضٍ مِّنُهُمَا وَتَشَاوُر (Now, if
they want to wean, by mutual consent, and consultation, there is no
sin on them). The matter of consultation involves some important

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problems and rulings, therefore, it needs to be explained in some detail
which follows.
1. The Meaning of 21 : Matter and get : Consultation.
The word amr is applied for several shades of meaning in the
Arabic language. In common usage, it refers to any saying or doing
which is of great importance. It is also used to mean an injunction,
order, command, rule or authority, the last one being what is meant in
the Qur'anic expression _ _ (uli l'amr). Then, the word is also
applied to mean a particular attribute of Allah Almighty which finds
mention in several verses of the Holy Qur'an, such as: 2,35
(Beware, for Him alone is the creation and the command - 7:54); 23251
إِنَّ الْأَمْرَ كُلَّهُ لِّلَّهِ , (11:123 - To Him the whole matter shall be returned) الْآَمْرُ كُلُّ
(The whole thing belongs to Allah - 3:154); Ju gel (His matter is upto
Allah - 2:275) and according to authentic scholars, the use of the word,
amr, in قُلِ الرُّوحُ مِنْ آَمْرٍ رَبِّى (Say: "The spirit is by a command of my Lord')
(17:85) carries the same meaning as identified in the verses appearing
immediately above.
As far as the meaning of the word, amr, in the Qur'anic verses
وَأَمْهُمْ شُورِى بَيْنَهُمُ And consult them in the matter -3:159) and) وَشَاوِرُهُمُ فِى الْآَمْرِ
(And a matter of theirs is (settled) by a consultation between them-
selves -42:38) is concerned, it can be said that there is the possibility to
assign both the first as well as the second. If it is said that the word
has been used here in the first sense while the second meaning is
inclusive therein, that would not be something far-fetched since affairs
relating to command and authority are all very important. Therefore,
the word, amr as used in the verses quoted immediately above means
every matter or affair which is particularly important irrespective of
whether it belongs to the area of authority or mutual dealings.
The Arabic words, shura (counsel), mashwarah (consultation) and
Mushawarat (mutual consultation) mean the soliciting of advice and
counsel in something that needs deliberation. Therefore, the expres-
sion ◌ِوَشَاوِرُهُمْ فِى الْآَمُر in the present verse means that the Holy Prophet
has been commanded here to consult with or seek the advice of his
noble Companions in matters that need deliberation, which include
those of authority and government.

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Similarly, the verse from Surah al-Shura cited above - 425 33 395-
means that in every important matter (which) needs deliberation,
whether it belongs to the field of authority and government or to some-
thing important other than these, the customary practice of true
Muslims is that they work through mutual consultation.
2. The Status of Consultation in Islamic Law
From the statements of the Holy Qur'an cited above and from
related ahadith of the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم ,it becomes clear that
mutual consultation in a matter likely to have more than one opinion,
whether it be related to the concerns of authority or to an issue other
than that, is a sunnah of the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم and the noble
Companions s Jl, and is a source of blessings in the mortal world
and in the eternal life of the Hereafter. This view has the support of
the Holy Qur'an and the Hadith. As far as matters which relate to
people, such as the affairs of authority and government, are concerned
seeking consultation in them is obligatory. (Ibn Kathir)
In his Shu'bul-'Iman, al-Baihaqi has reported from Sayyidna
'Abdullah ibn 'Umar رضى الله عنه that the Holy Prophet صلى اللّه عليه وسلم has
said: 'A person who intends to do something, then goes in consultation
and comes up with a decision to do or not to do that, he gets from Allah
Almighty guidance towards an option which is correct and beneficial.
It appears in ahadith: 'When your rulers are from the best among
you and your rich people are generous and your affairs are decided
through mutual consultation, then, to live on the surface of the earth
is better for you. And should your rulers be the worst among you and
your rich people be close-fisted and your affairs be entrusted to
women, then, to be buried under the earth shall be better than your
continuing to live.'
It means that, when the worship of desires overpowers you, so
much so that you, ignoring all concerns of the good and the bad, the
harmful and the beneficial, simply to seek the goodwill of a woman,
entrust your affairs in her hands, then, for you, death is better than
living through those times. Otherwise, seeking the opinion of a woman
as well while making consultations is no taboo, and certainly not
prohibited. This is proved by the consistent practice of the Holy

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Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم and his blessed Companions. In the verse from
Surah al-Baqarah (2:233) cited a little earlier, the Holy Qur'an has said:
'Now, if they want to wean, by mutual consent, and consultation, there
is no sin on them.' Since this matter here concerns the woman, there-
fore, consultation with the woman has been specially made binding on
the man.
In a hadith, the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم has been reported to
have said: المستشار مؤتمن اذا استشير فليشره بما هو صانع لنفسه :The person whose counsel
is sought is a trustee. When he counsels, then, he must counsel with
what he would propose to his ownself (to do otherwise is a breach of
trust)'. This hadith has been reported with good authority from Sayy-
idna 'Ali by al-Tabarani in al-Mu'jam al-Awsat (see al-Mazhari).
At this point, it is necessary to bear in mind that consultation is an
act of Sunnah only in situations where some clear and categorical
injunction from the Qur'an or Hadith does not exist. Otherwise, in the
presence of a clear and categorical injunction of the Shari'ah, no
consultation with anybody is needed. This is not permissible either.
For example, if somebody went about consulting in - 'should I make
my salah or should I not?' 'Should I pay my zakah or should I not?' or
'Should I perform my Hajj or should I not?' - then, this would be
absurd. These are not things you consult about. They are absolutely
mandatory under the Shari'ah of Islam. However, the option of making
consultation about how to go for Hajj is open and one can seek advice
on questions like - should he go this year, or next; should he go by sea,
or by air; should he go by land, or by some other method.
The same holds true about zakah. One can consult about where and
on whom it has to be spent, for the Shari'ah has left these on the
choice of the payer.
In a hadith, the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم has been reported to
have explained this himself. Sayyidna 'Ali at Ulu, says that he asked
the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم :'If, after you, we are confronted by a
situation the injunction for which has not been explicitly revealed in
the Qur'an, and about which we have heard nothing from you as well,
what are we supposed to do?' The Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said: 'For
a matter like this, get together from among you pious men who are
consistently devoted to the worship of their Lord and who have deep

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and extensive understanding of the Faith (fuqaha') and decide the
matter following their mutual counsel. Do not decide on the basis of
someone's solitary opinion.'
The first, out of the two things that we learn from this hadith is
that consultation is not restricted to worldly affairs. Instead, the fact
is that mutual consultation in situations where clear nusus (plural of
nașș meaning textual authority) from the Qur'an and Hadith in
matters governed by the injunctions of Shari'ah do not exist is an act of
Sunnah. We can say that mutual consultation will be an act of Sunnah
if made in situations where textual authority from the Qur'an and
Sunnah is not available. The second rule we learn is that advice
should be taken from people who are known for their understanding of
the Faith and devotion to their obligations to Allah (Ruh al-Ma'ani) Al-
Khațib al-Baghdadi, to whom the deduction given above is credited,
has reported another hadith from Sayyidna Abu Hurairah e Ula,
which says: استرشدوا العاقل ولا تعصوه فتندموا (Seek counsel from the wise person
and do not act against it, otherwise you will regret.).
By putting the above two ahadith together, we learn that two quali-
ties are necessary for the members of the consultative council. Firstly,
they should be wise, perceptive and advice-worthy, and secondly, they
should be pious and devoted to 'ibadah. In other words, they should be
deserving of giving advice and should be God-fearing in their conduct.
If the matter to be discussed involves problems relating to Islamic
Law, it is incumbent that they be faqih (juriconsult: expert in Islamic
Law and Jurisprudence) as well.
Consultation of the Holy Prophet & with his Companions
The verse under discussion here orders the Holy Prophet
& to
consult his Companions e J _+) . This raises a certain difficulty here.
Is'nt it that he is the Messenger of Allah and the blessed recipient of
revelation? Why, then, should he need to consult anyone? Since, every-
thing can come to his knowledge through the medium of revelation
from Allah Almighty, some scholars interpret this command to consult
by saying that the Messenger of Allah was neither in need to be coun-
selled, nor anything he did depended on such counsel. The command to
consult given to him is simply to honour the blessed Companions and
mollify their broken hearts. But, Imam Abu Bakr al-Jassas does not

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agree with this view. According to him this is not correct, for being
involved in consultation - while knowing that one's counsel will not be
acted upon, nor would it affect any proceedings of the agenda - will
make the whole thing ineffectual. If so, no heart will be mollified and
no honour will be sustained. Instead, the truth of the matter is that a
course of action to be taken by the Messenger of Allah is identified
through revelation directly by Allah Almighty. This holds good in all
general matters. But, there are certain matters which, under the
dictates of the wisdom and mercy of Allah Almighty, are left to the
opinion and discretion of the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم . It is in such
matters alone where consultation is needed, and these are the kind of
matters in which he has been commanded to seek consultation. The
history of the consultative sittings of the Messenger of Allah confirms
this view.
When the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم consulted with the Compan-
ions about the battle of Badr, they said that should he ask them to
jump into a river, they would do just that; and if he commanded them
to march to a far out place such as Bark al-Ghamad, they will be with
him; and they would never act like the companions of Musa Alle
who said: 'Go, you and your Lord, and fight the disbelievers' - 5:24; on
the contrary, we shall fondly submit: 'You lead the way, we shall fight
the enemy with you, in front of you and in the rear and the right and
the left.'
Similarly, he consulted them about the battle of Uhud asking them
if they should defend Madinah by staying inside the city limits or
should they go out of the city limits and confront the enemy in the
open. The general opinion of the Companions was that they should do
the latter and this was what he accepted to do. In the battle of
Khandaq, the question of accepting peace under the terms of a partic-
ular treaty came up for discussion. Sayyidna Sa'd ibn Mu'adh and Sa'd
ibn 'Ubadahr dlo, opposed the proposed treaty on the grounds that
it was inappropriate. It was the opinion of these two Companions that
he finally accepted. When he went into consultations on a matter
pertaining to Hudaybiyyah, the opinion of Sayyidna Abu Bakr as Jul ,
was the basis of his final decision. The Companions were also
consulted following the incident of Ifk (false imputation against Sayy-

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idah 'A'ishah Qe Ul >,) but this and all other matters pointed out were
those in which no particular position to be taken by the Holy Prophet
.was determined through revelation صلى الله عليه وسلم
To sum up, being a prophet, a messenger and a recepient of revela-
tion is not a bar against consultation. Moreover, in the case of the Holy
Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم it cannot be said that his seeking of counsel from
the Companions was ever designed to please them artificially, or that
it was virtually ineffectual in the conduct of affairs. On the contrary,
the truth is that there were many occasions when he accepted the
opinion of those present during consultation even if it happened to be
against his own. In fact, in some situations where a particular line of
action had not been determined for the Holy Prophet &; through reve-
lation, and in its absence he had worked through consultation, there is
great divine wisdom. The objective is that the practice of the Holy
Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم comes to be established for all future generations
of Muslims. Thus, the seeking of consultation as a Sunnah shall
صلى الله عليه وسلم become binding on the whole ummah of the Prophet
Imagine when he himself has not been left free of the need of consulta-
tion who else can claim to be free of such need? For this reason, the
method of mutual consultation always continued to be operative
during the blessed times of the Holy Prophet & and his noble
Companions July», particularly in matters where there was no
clear injunction in the Qur'an and Sunnah. When the Holy Prophet
passed away from this mortal world, the noble Companions
continued following his practice. Still later, mutual consultation was
resorted to as the modality to deduce rulings of Islamic Law in matters
where clear injunction was not found in the Qur'an and Sunnah. This
was actually the method taught by the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم in
. رضى الله عنه answer to a question put by Sayyidna 'Ali
4. The Status of Consultation in an Islamic State:
As stated earlier, the Holy Qur'an has given clear instructions
about mashwarah or consultation at two places. One appears right
here in the verse under study; the other one comes up in verse 42:38 of
Surah al-Shura where one of the many qualities of true Muslims has
been mentioned as ''''kel, which means that their affairs are
settled by mutual consultation. At both these places the word, amr

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(matter) has been mentioned along with mashwarah (consultation).
Discussed in detail earlier, the word, amr, signifies any important
saying or doing, while at the same time, it is applied to injunction, rule
or authority or government. No matter which of the two meanings is
taken, consultation in the affairs of the government emerges as invari-
ably necessary, based on these verses. If one elects to take this to
mean the affairs of the government, then, the necessity is all the more
obvious. In case, the word is taken in its general sense, the affairs of a
government being important and far-reaching in effect, would still be
considered as affairs in which consultation will be inevitable. There-
fore, it is one of the duties of the Muslim Amir, the chief executive of
the community, that he should seek the counsel of those responsible
for the affairs of the government in matters that are important. The
verses of the Qur'an quoted above and the consistent practice of the
Holy Prophet وصلى الله عليه وسلم and of the rightly-guided Caliphs is a clear
proof of this requirement.
These two verses not only highlight the need for consultation very
clearly, they also point out to some basic principles of Islam's system of
government, and its constitution. The Islamic government is a govern-
ment by consultation in which the amir or chief executive is chosen by
consultation and definitely not as a matter of family inheritance. It is
a barakah of Islamic teachings that this principle is recognized all over
the world, in one or the other form, so much so that hereditary monar-
chies too are moving towards this arrangement, willingly or unwill-
ingly.
But, let us go back 1400 years in history when the super-powers
were Cyrus and Ceaser. The common factor between them was that
they both headed hereditary empires and the authority of government
was vested in their own persons. Thus, one man ruled millions, not on
the basis of ability or capacity, but on the strength of the cruel prin-
ciple of hereditary possession of sovereignty. This form of government,
an insult to all human beings, was the way all over the world except
Greece where the early teachings of a democratic order of life had yet
to translate into principles that would go on to establish a stable
government. Instead of that, these ideas relegated into a branch of
Aristotelian philosophy. As opposed to this, Islam demolished the

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unnatural principle of government through heredity and gave the
choice of appointing and dismissing the chief executive to the people -
a power they could use through their representatives shouldering the
responsibilities of the affairs of the state. The world, once stuck in the
quagmire of traditional monarchy, came to know bout this natural and
just system through Islamic teachings and this happens to be the
spirit of a system of government we now know as democracy.
But, modern democracies, since they appeared as a reaction to
cruel monarchies, came out with an equal lack of moderation. They
went on to give the masses the sense of being the absolute, the ulti-
mate entity, an unbridled sovereign of the system of government and
the law of state, to the extent that their minds and hearts became
alienated from the very concept of God, the Creator of the earth and
the heavens and of all human beings, not to say much about the
concept of His real Sovereignty and Rule, which comes as a result of
that cardinal belief. Now the situation has reached a stage where their
'democracy' has started taking the restrictions imposed by Allah
Almighty on public choice - which in itself was conferred on human
beings by Him - as something of a burden, contrary to justice and
equity (of their brand).
The way Islamic Law liberated the whole world from Cyruses,
Ceasers and other despotic monarchies, it has also shown the way of
God to western democracies trying to hide from Him behind secular
curtains. Islam's way is no more a secret. Its teachings clearly say that
the rulers and the ruled, the governments and their peoples are all
subject to the Law given by Allah Almighty. The masses, their repre-
sentative assemblies, law-making, appointment and removal of office-
holders must operate within the parametres set by Allah Almighty. It
is their duty to see that full consideration is given to ability and merit,
in the choice of the chief executive, holders of offices and responsible
positions. In addition to that, their honesty and trustworthiness
should be weighed and tested. When it comes to selecting the chief
executive of their government, they must select the one who is the best
of all in knowledge, fear of Allah, honesty, trustworthiness, ability and
political experience. Even this chief executive, elected though he may
be, is not totally free, unchecked and despotic. He has to seek counsel

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from those who are capable of giving such counsel. The Holy Qur'an
bears witness to this and so does the constant practice of the Holy
Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم and of the great rightly-guided Caliphs, may
Allah be pleased with them all. Who else can claim to be more just
than them?
Sayyidna 'Umar رضى الله عنه has said:
لَاَ خِلاَفَةَ إِلَّ عَنْ مَشْوَرَةٍ
There is no Khilafah (Caliphate) unless it be with consulta-
tion. (Kanzul-'ummal vide Ibn Abi Shaybah)
Government by consultation is a basic Islamic requirement so
much so that a chief executive or head of the state, if he ever unfetters
himself from the need for consultation or takes counsel from those who
are not fit to give counsel from the point of view of the Shari'ah of
Islam, has to be removed of necessity.
ذكر ابن عطية انّ الشورى من قواعد الشريعة وعزائم الاحكام ومن
لا يستشير أهل العلم والدّين فعزله واجب، هذا مالا خلاف له (البحر المحيط
لابى حيان)
It appears in al-Bahr al-Muhit of Abi Hayyan: Ibn 'Atiyyah
A said that Consultation is one of the basic principles of
Islamic Law and Faith. He who does not consult with those
who know must be removed as a matter of obligation. This is
what nobody differs about.
By making consultation mandatory, the blessings that would
benefit the Islamic state and its citizens could be measured by what
the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said about consultation. Ibn 'Adi and al-
Baihaqi have reported from Sayyidna ibn 'Abbas رضى الله تعالى عنه that
when this verse was revealed, the Holy Prophet said: 'Allah and
His Messenger do not need this consultation, but Allah Almighty has
certainly made it a source of mercy for my community' (Bayan al-Qur'an).
The purport is, if Allah Almighty had so willed, He would have
conveyed everything to His Messenger through revelation. It was
within His power not to leave any need for consultation in anything.
But, it was in the best interest of the Muslim community that Allah
Almighty helped establish the practice of consultation through His

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Messenger. This is why many matters were left without any mention
and about which no particular revelation was sent down. About these,
the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم was instructed to seek consultation.
5. Consultation: Decision-Making after a difference of opinion:
What happens when opinions differ on a certain matter? Would it
be decided on the contemporary parliamentary principle? Would the
chief executive be compelled to enforce the decision of the majority?
Or, would he have the right to take a course of action on the basis of
powerful arguments and obvious welfare of the state, coming from any
side, no matter whether in a majority or a minority? From the Holy
Qur'an and Hadith and from the constant practice of the noble Prophet
; and his Companions, it cannot be proved that the amir of Muslims,
their head of the state is helplessly bound by the decision of the
majority. On the contrary, some hints from the Qur'an and clarifica-
tions from the Hadith and the practice of the Companions make it very
evident that the Amir can, in the event of a difference of opinion, use
his discretion and go by any of the several courses of action, irrespec-
tive of the fact that it comes from the majority or the minority. There
is no doubt that the Amir will do his best to look into other opinions as
well to satisfy himself fully, but should the majority come to agree, on
one opinion, this could, at times, become a source of satisfaction to
him.
A close look at this verse would show that the Holy Prophet
after he has been commanded to seek counsel, is being told: 5332 150
tega : " ... and once you have taken a decision, place your trust in
Allah'. Here, the word, 'azm in "azamta' meaning a firm decision, one
way or the other, has been ascribed to the Holy Prophet . The text
does not say, 'azamtum, a second person plural, which would have
suggested the participation of the Companions in the final making and
enforcing of the decision. This hint proves that, once the process of
consultation has been completed, the decision and its enforcement is
the valid prerogative of the chief executive. There were times when
Sayyidna 'Umar ibn al-Khattab would give his decision based on the
opinion of Sayyidna 'Abdullah ibn 'Abbas, if his opinion was weightier
argument-wise, something done even when present there would be
Companions more senior than Sayyidna ibn 'Abbas in age, learning

237
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and seniority. There were many occasions when the Holy Prophet
has preferred the opinions of the revered Shaykhayn Abu-Bakr and
'Umar Li Ul > against the majority of other Companions to the limit
that people thought this verse was revealed for consultation with these
two only. Hakim reports from Sayyidna ibn 'Abbas in his Mustadrak:
عن ابن عباس فى قوله تعالى (وشاورهم فى الامر) قال ابوبكر وعمر
(رضى الله عنهما) (ابن كثير)
Ibn 'Abbas says, that the pronoun in 'shawirhum' (consult
them) refers to Abu Bakr and 'Umar رضى الله عنهما . (Ibn Kathir)
The narration of Kalbi is clearer than this:
عن ابن عباس قال نزلت فى ابى بكر وعمر وكانا حواربي رسول الله عز له
و وزيريه وابوى المسلمين
Ibn 'Abbas says that this verse has been revealed for
consulting with Abu Bakr and 'Umar. These two were special
Companions of the Messenger of Allah and his Ministers and
the patrons of Muslims. (Ibn Kathir)
The Messenger of Allah, may Allah's blessings and peace be upon
him, had once addressed Sayyidna Abu Bakr and 'Umar Las Ul ga, in
the following words:
لواجتمعتما فى مشورة ما خلفتكماط
When you agree on an opinion, I do not decide against you.
(Ibn Kathir with reference to the Musnad of Ahmad)
A doubt and its answer:
It is not likely that someone objects to this procedure of decision-
making saying that all this is against democracy, a model of one-man
rule and that this system might hurt the rights of the masses.
The answer is that the Islamic system of government has already
taken care of this problem, for it has not given the masses the absolute
right to make anyone they wish the amir of an Islamic state. On the
contrary, the mandate given to them requires that they must select a
person they think is the best of all in knowledge, conduct, functional
ability, Godliness and honesty, and then elect him to be the amir. Now
a person who has been elected in view of such elegant qualities and
attributes should certainly not be subjected to restrictions usually

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Surah 'Al-‘Imran 3 : 160-171
placed on the dishonest, the sinful and the debauch. Doing this would
be against reason and justice, an act of discouragement to the genuine
servant of people and a hinderance in the promotion of community-
oriented action.
6. Do what you can, then place your trust in Allah:
At this point, specially at the conclusion of the verse, it is very
important to bear in mind that this instruction has been given after
having prescribed consultation in all important affairs including those
of government. The crucial guideline given here is: Even after having
made all preparations, when you finally decide to go ahead and do
what has to be done, then that is the time when you do not simply
(place your) trust in your reason, opinion, plans or preparedness but,
instead of that, you should place your trust in Allah alone, for all these
considered plans are in the direct control of the supreme Planner of all
affairs and matters. With this in view, the less is said about human
beings and their plans is better. Man himself is witness to the futility
of his plans in the thousands of events in his life-time.
The statement, 'And once you have taken a decision, place your
trust in Allah' also clarifies that placing one's trust in Allah does not
mean that the efforts to provide means and make plans should be
abandoned. The fact is that placing one's trust in Allah while leaving
off means near at hand is contrary to the blessed practice of prophets,
and against the teachings of the Holy Qur'an. However, if one sits idle
dreaming about distant means and irrelevant concerns, or if one relies
solely on means and plans as effective agents and ignores the Prime
Causer of means and the Planner-par-Excellence of all affairs and
plans, then this would certainly be against tawakkul, the placing of
trust in Allah.
Verses 160 - 171
إِنْ يَّنْصُرُكُمُ اللَّهُ فَلَ غَالِبَ لَكُمْ وَإِنْ يَخْذُلْكُمْ فَمَنْ ذَا الَّذِى
يَنْصُرُكُمُ مِنْ بَعْدِهِ، وَعَلَى اللَّهِ فَلْيَتَوَكَّلِ الْمُؤْمِنُونَ ﴿١٦٠) وَمَا
كَانَ لِنَبِّ أَنْ يَغُلَّهِ وَمَنْ تَغُلُلُ بَأْتِ بِمَاعَلَّ يَوْمَ الْقِيْمَةِ، ثُمَّ
◌ُوَفَّى كُلُّ نَفْسٍ قَا كَسَبَتْ وَهُمُ لَا يُظْلَهُونَ ﴿١٦١) أَفَمَنِ

239
Surah 'Al-'Imran 3 : 160-171
اتَبَعَ رِضُوَانَ اللّهِ كَمَنْ بَاءَبِسَخَطٍ مِّنَ اللَّهِ وَهَأُولُ جَهَنَهُـ
وَبِئْسَ الْمُصِيْرُ ﴿١٦٢) هُمُ دَرَجُتُ عِنْدَ اللَّهِ، وَاللَّهُ بَصِيُّ ◌ِمَّا
يَعْمَلُونَ ﴿١٦٢﴾ لَقَدْ مَنَّ اللَّهُ عَلَى الْمُؤْمِنِيْنَ إِذْ بَعَثَ فِيْهِمْ
رَسُؤْلاً مِنْ أَنْفُسِهِمْ يَخُلُوا عَلَيْهِمْ الْتِهِ وَيُزَكِّيْهِمْ وَيُعَلِّمُهُمُ
الْكِتَبَ وَالْحِكْمَةَ، وَإِنْ كَانُوا مِن قَبْلُ لَفِىْ ضَلِلِ تُّبِيُنِ ﴿١٦٤﴾
آوَ لَ أَصَابَتْكُمْ تُصِيِّبَةٌ قَدْ أَصَبْكُمْ مِنْلَيْهَا" قُلْهُمْ أَنْثَى هَذَا ء
قُلُ هُوَ مِنُ عِنْدِ انْفُسِكُمُ ﴿ إِنَّ اللَّهَ عَلَى كُلِّ شَىءٍ قَدِيُ
﴿١٦٥﴾ وَمَا أَصَابَكُمْ يَوْمَ الْتَقَى الْجُمُعْنِ فَبِذُنِ اللَّهِ وَلِبَعْلَمَ
المُؤْمِنِينَ ﴿١٦٦﴾ وَلِبَعْلَمَ الَّذِيْنَ نَافَقُواْ وَقِيُلَ لَهُمُ تَعَالَوْا
قَاتِلُوا فِى سَبِيْلِ اللَّهِ أَوِ ادْفَعُوا قَالُوا لَوُ نَعُلَمُ قِتَالًاً
لَتَّعْكُمْءُ هُمْ لِلْكُفْرِ يَوْمَئِذٍ أَقْرَبُ مِنْهُمُ لِلْإِيْمَانِّ يَفُؤْلُونَ
بِأَفْوَاهِهِمْ تَا لَيْسَ فِى قُلُؤَِّهِمْ ، وَاللَّهُ أَعْلَمُ بِمَا يَكُنَ
﴿١٦٧ ﴾ الَّذِيْنَ قَالُوا لِإِخْوَانِهِمْ وَقَعَدُوا لَوْ اَطَاعُنَا مَا قُئِلُواءَ
قُلُ فَادُرَ مُوا عَنْ أَنْفُسِكُمُ الُوَتَ إِنْ كُنْتُمُ طَدِقِيْنَ ﴿١٦٨﴾
وَلَا تَحْسَبَنَّ الَّذِيْنَ قُتِلُوا فِى سَبِيْلِ اللَّهِ آَمْوَاتَاءُ بَلْ آَخِيَاءُ
عِنْدَ رَيِّهِمْ يُرْزَقُونَ ﴿١٦٩﴾ فَرِحِينَ بِّ اتُهُمُ اللّهُ مِنْ فَضْلِهٌ
وَيَسْتَبْشُِونَ بِالَّذِيْنَ لَمْ يُحَقُّؤْا بِهِمْ مِّنْ خَلْفِهِمْ الََّ خَوْفٌ
عَلَيْهِمْ وَلَ هُمْ يَحْزَنُونَ ﴿١٧) يَسْتَبْشِرُونَ بِنِعْمَةٍ مِنَ اللهِ
وَفَضْلٍّ وَاَنَّ اللّهَ لاَ يُضِيْعُ آَجَرَ الْمُؤُمِنِيْنَ ﴿١٧١﴾
If Allah helps you, there is none to overcome you. And
if He abandons you, then, who is there who could help
you after that? And in Allah the believers should place
their trust. [160]
And it is not (conceivable) for a prophet to misappro-

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priate the spoils. And whoever misappropriates, shall
bring forth, on Doomsday, what he misappropriated.
Then, everybody shall be paid, in full, what he has
earned. And they shall not be wronged. [161]
How then, could one who submits to the pleasure of
Allah be equal to him who returns with displeasure
from Allah? And his ultimate place is the Fire. And
what an evil end it is. [162]
They are of various ranks with Allah. And Allah is
watchful of what they do. [163]
And Allah has surely conferred favour on the believers
when He raised in their midst a messenger from among
themselves who recites to them His verses and makes
them pure and teaches them the Book and the Wisdom,
while earlier, they were in open error. [164]
And how is it that, when you suffered a hardship the
twice of which you had inflicted upon them, you say,
"Where did this come from?" Say, "This is from your
ownselves. Allah is surely Powerful over every-
thing."[165]
And whatever you suffered on the day when the two
troops faced each other was with the will of Allah and
in order to know the believers [166] and in order to
know those who are hypocrites. And it was said to
them, 'Come on, fight in the way of Allah, or defend."
They said, "Had we known it to be a fight we would
have certainly followed you." That day, they were
nearer to disbelief than they were to Belief. They utter
from their mouths what is not in their hearts. And
Allah is the most-knowing of what they conceal. [167]
Those who said about their brethren, while themselves
sitting, "Had they obeyed us, they would have not been
killed." Say, "Then repel death from yourselves if you
are true." [168]
And never take those killed in the way of Allah as dead.
Rather, they are alive, with their Lord, well-provided,
[169] happy with what Allah has given them of His
grace; and they feel pleased with the good news, about
those who, after them, could not join them, that there
shall be no fear for them nor shall they grieve. [170]

24.
Surah 'Al-‘Imran 3 : 160-171
They feel pleased with blessing from Allah, and grace,
and with the fact that Allah would not let the reward of
the believers be lost. [171]
In the first verse (160) here, the recurring sense of grief that
gripped the noble Companions after what happened at the battle of
Uhud is being removed through elegant counsel.
Verses 161-164 declare that the station of Allah's messenger is free
of failings, that he exhibits the highest standard of trustworthiness,
and that the very presence of his on the face of the earth is a great
blessing and a favour shown to the people of the world.
Verses 165-167 explain the reason why Muslims faced hardships at
Uhud, while refuting the view of the hypocrites alongwith it in verse
168.
Towards the end, in verses 169-171, it has been said that those who
lay down their lives in the way of Allah achieve the ultimate success,
real, permanent and full. Details follow.
Commentary:
The verse ◌ّمَاكَانَ لِنَّبِيِّ أَنْ يَغُل translated as, 'And it is not (conceivable) for
a prophet to misappropriate the spoils - 161', has a particular back-
ground of its revelation. As a corollary, the problem of 'Ghulul', that is,
misappropriation in the spoils, comes into focus.
Misappropriation in the spoils: A sin which cannot be ascribed
to any prophet by any stretch of imagination:
The background, as narrated by al-Tirmidhi, is that a sheet was
found missing from the spoils collected in the battle of Badr. Some
people said that the sheet may have been, perhaps, taken by the Holy
Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم . If those who said that were hypocrites, the
source speaks for itself. May be, this came from a less-initiated
Muslim thinking that the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم had the right to
do that. Thereupon, this verse was revealed which said that ghulul is a
great sin to be punished severely on Doomsday and that the very
thought of linking this sin to a prophet is an ugly audacity, for
prophets are free of all sins ( sau : ma'sum).
The word, ghulul is also used in the absolute sense for khiyanah, a
breach of trust, (misappropriation, pilferage and stealing). This is also

242
Surah 'Al-‘Imran 3 : 160-171
applied particularly to misappropriation in the spoils as the crime of
stealing from the spoils is far more serious as compared to common
thefts and filchings since spoils belong to the whole Muslim army as a
matter of right. So, whoever steals from it steals from hundreds and
thousands of people. Even if there comes the thought of making
amends at some later stage, it would be very difficult to give back to
everyone what was due to be given, or seek their forgiveness for the
injustice done. This is contrary to other types of thefts where the
owner of the stolen property is known. In this case, there is the chance
that one may repent, if Allah gives the ability to do so, and that which
was stolen could be returned back to the owner, or one could, at the
least, exonerate himself from the blame by seeking forgiveness from
him. This is illustrated by what happened at one of the battles fought
by Muslims. Someone who had secretly withheld a portion of wool
from the spoils thought about it after the distribution of the spoils was
over. He brought it before the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم hoping to
return it. But he, inspite of being 'mercy for the worlds' and far more
generous to his community than fathers and mothers could ever dream
to be for their children, he returned it back to him saying: How can I
distribute it over the whole army now? Now it is you who would
present yourself with it on the Day of Doom.
Therefore, the punishment for ghulul or misappropriation is more
severe as compared to common thefts. What else could be more severe
for the misappropriator when he, before the eyes of the whole creation
on the plains of resurrection and retribution, will find himself
disgraced with what he had stolen all stacked on his neck? A narration
from Sayyidna Abu Hurairah appearing in Al-Bukhari and Muslim
reports that the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said: 'Watch out, lest I see
one of you with a camel loaded round his neck (and the announcement
being made that this person had stolen a camel from the spoils). If this
person asks me to intercede on his behalf, I shall tell him frankly that
I had conveyed what Allah had commanded, now I cannot do anything
about it.'
May Allah protect us from this disgrace of the Day we rise again
which, according to some narrations, will be so hard on those who face
it that they would wish to be sent to the fires of Jahannam in lieu of
this terrible disgrace.

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Surah 'Al-'Imran 3 : 160-171
Misappropriation in Waqf properties and government Treasu-
ries comes under Ghulul: J,
The same rule applies to mosques, religious schools and institu-
tions, khanqahs and properties of awqaf (endowments) since they
represent the contribution of millions of Muslims. If an unfortunate
misappropriator was to go about seeking to be forgiven for his evil act,
how could he possibly go to each one of those millions. The same rule
holds good for public or government treasury (Bayt al-Mal) because all
citizens of a country have a right in it. One who steals from it steals
from everyone. But, the problem is that these very holdings are such
that a single owner does not sit over them. The caretakers become
negligent. Avenues of pilferage abound. It is in such moneys and prop-
erties that a lot of thefts and misappropriations have become rampant
all over the world with most people heedless to the evil end that
awaits them. They do not realize that this is a terrible burden to haul
onto the plains of Resurrection, not to speak of the punishment of Hell
that is bound to come as a result of this crime. Then, last but not the
least, comes the sad deprivation from the promised intercession of the
Messenger of Allah. Let us all seek refuge from such a fate !
The Prophet of Islam: a great blessing for the Humanity
Verse 164 speaks of the great favour Allah has shown to the
Muslims by sending the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم towards them. The
basic functions assigned to him are also mentioned in the same verse.
These are the same functions which were attributed to him in the
prayer of Sayyidna Ibrahim ,W JI be as referred to by the Holy Qur'an in
Surah al-Baqarah. The details of these functions have already been
discussed in the first volume of this book under the said verse (2:129).
What is new in the present verse is the statement: 'And Allah has
surely conferred favour on the believers'. Two points about this state-
ment are worth mentioning here:
(1) The words 'on the believers' in this verse apparently mean that
the advent of the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم was a favour conferred on
صلى الله عليه وسلم the Muslims only while at another place the Holy Prophet
has been held as zul 12; : 'the Mercy for all the worlds' which includes
both Muslims and non-Muslims. In order to resolve this apparent
contradiction one must understand that the particularization of this