Indexed OCR Text

244
Surah 'Al-‘Imran 3 : 160-171
quality with 'believers' in the present verse is very much like saying
that the Holy Qur'an is 'guidance for the God-fearing' (pl) 2) while
the fact that the Holy Qur'an is a guidance for the whole humanity is
clearly proved by other verses of the Qur'an. However, there are places
where this universal status of the Qur'an has been particularized to
the God-fearing. There is a common reason operating at both places,
that is, the beneficial coming of the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم is a
great blessing and a great favour for the Muslim and the non-Muslim
alike, just as the Qur'an is a Book of Guidance for the entire humanity.
. but the true Muslims and the God-fearing are the only ones who
derived the fullest benefit out of these. At some places, therefore, the
blessing and the guidance, were particularized with them.
(2) In order to explain the primary statement in the verse which
declares that the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم is the greatest possible
blessing and favour for the believers or for the whole humanity, it can
be said that the statement hardly needed any explanation. only if
modern man was not all that blind to the spiritual side of life and, at
the same time, was sacrificing every good thing for the sake of naked
material gains. Had this not been so, every reasonable person would
have found out the reality of this great blessing all by himself without
anybody having to tell him about it. But, the problem is that modern
man has turned out to be no more than the smartest animal among
the animals of the world. Tell him about 'favour' and 'blessing and he
would immediately start seeing what fills his stomach and whets his
desires. He has practically stopped thinking about the basic reality of
his being which is ruh, his spirit. That something good should happen
to it and that something can go wrong with it are concerns he pays no
heed to, not in the least. Therefore, there is the need to explain that
man is not simply a being of bones and flesh. That is certainly not his
reality. The reality of man is his ruh, the spirit which is contained
within him. So far as this ruh is there in his body, man is what man is.
His claims to humanity stand proved. He may be weak or he may be
dying, nobody can dare usurp his property or take his rights away
from him. But, once this ruh leaves his body, he ceases to be man, no
matter how strong and well-built he may be with all parts of his body
in their ideal form and shape. His ceasing to be what he was means
that he now has no personal right in his own property and possessions.

245
Surah 'Al-'Imran 3 : 160-171
Prophets come into the world to nurture the human spirit
correctly, to make human beings out of men so that actions which
issue forth from their bodies turn out to be beneficial to humanity and
that they do not go about the world hurting other human beings like
beasts and snakes. Instead of that, they should also think about their
end and start working for the everlasting life of the Hereafter. Our
blessed Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم who leads the way among the great
company of prophets >JI+ has a unique majesty when it comes to
the mission of making men real human beings. This was exactly what
he did during his Makkan life. The men he turned out formed a society
of human beings which stands way ahead of even the angels. Never
had the earth, nor the heavens, seen such men, each one of them, a
living miracle of the Messenger of Allah, may the blessings of Allah be
upon him. What happens after them? The answer is that he left
behind his own footprints, and theirs, as well as teachings and the
methods to institute and promote, which can be followed and acted
upon. Those who do so sincerely and honestly can still reach the
stations that were reached by the noble Companions. These teachings
are there for the entire humanity to benefit from. Therefore, his
having graced this world and his being born generous is a great favour
shown to the universal kingdom of human beings, though true
Muslims are the ones who have reaped the fullest benefit from these
blessings.
The Wisdom behind the hardships of the Muslims at Uhud
The subject of verse 165, 'ult,i translated as, 'And how is it that,
when you suffered a hardship the twice of which you had inflicted
upon them ... ' has appeared in several previous verses. Here, it comes
for the sake of emphasis and further clarification because Muslims
were very much disturbed as a result of this incident, so much so that
some of them could not resist wondering why should they be suffering
in that manner (L ji) while they were in the company of the Holy
Prophet , doing Jihad.
In this verse, Muslims are being reminded that the hardship they
were facing that day was only half of what they had already inflicted
earlier at the battle of Badr, for seventy Muslims were martyred at
Uhud while seventy disbelievers were killed at Badr and seventy

246
Surah 'Al-'Imran 3 : 160-171
others from them were taken prisoners by Muslims. The purpose
behind this reminder is that Muslims should think positively in their
present state of depression in view of the fact that they had already
won a battle, inflicting a loss on the enemy twice as much as they had
themselves suffered at their hands. Now, a winner like this need not
surrender to sorrow and grief in the event defeat comes once, or less.
قُلُ هُوَ مِنْ عِنْدِ انْفُسِكُم ,Secondly, and primarily too, the purpose of saying
"This is from your ownselves' at the end of this verse, is to tell Muslims
that the hardship they have faced is not because the enemy is stronger
or his forces overwhelming, but all that has been caused by some of
their own shortcomings, that is, they fell short in obeying the
. صلى الله عليه وسلم command of the Holy Prophet
Immediately later, in verse 166, the words fa bi idhnillahi: Angius
indicate that whatever happened there was with the leave and will of
Allah Almighty operating behind which are many wise divine arrange-
ments, some of them having been explained earlier. One such wise
arrangement is that Allah will 'see' His true believers, and the hypo-
crites too, that is, the sincerity of Muslims and the hypocrisy of the
hypocrites will become so clear that everybody could see it for himself.
Here, the reference to Allah's knowing or seeing means seeing in the
perspective of our own sense-experience in the mortal world. Other-
wise, as far as Allah is concerned, He knows and sees everything, all
the time. So, the wise arrangement became all the more clear when, at
the time of the trial, the hypocrites bowed out of the harm's way while
true Muslims stood undaunted in the middle of the battle front. Inci-
dentally, there is another cause of comfort here in the martyrdom of
Muslims in the battle, for Allah has conferred such rewards on them
so that others should envy them. So, very appropriately, in: 301 3.225;
hned estis, the special merits of martyrs have been taken up in the
verse that follows (169).
The special merits and ranks of those who sacrifice their lives
in the way of Allah
In addition to this statement of the Holy Qur'an, the merits of the
martyrs have been taken up in great detail in sound ahadith.
According to Imam Al-Qurtubi, the shuhada' (martyrs) have different
ranks and states of being which should be taken into consideration

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Surah 'Al-‘Imran 3 : 160-171
while looking at descriptions in Hadith narrations.
The very first distinction of martyrs mentioned here is that they
have not died; rather, they have begun to live eternally. At this point,
it is worth noticing that their death and burial in a grave is something
physically witnessed and realized by many, yet the Qur'an has, in
several verses, clearly instructed that they should not be addressed or
taken as dead. What does this mean? If this was supposed to be an
interim state of life, after death and before resurrection, referred to as
the state of Barzakh in Islamic terminology, that would not take us
very far, for that is something commonly experienced by believers and
disbelievers both, when the spirit continues to live after physical death
and goes through a question-answer situation following which the true
and the righteous among Muslims are welcomed to comfort and the
disbelievers and the sinners are consigned to the punishment of the
grave. This is proved by the Qur'an and Sunnah. Now, that the
interim life of Barzakh is established as common to all, what is so
special about shuhada' (martyrs) ?
The answer is given by this very verse where it is said that the
shuhada', i.e., those killed in the way of Allah, are blessed with provi-
sions of Paradise from Him, and it is obvious that 'rizq' (provision or
sustenance) is needed by and given to the living. From here we know
that sustenance starts reaching the shahid (martyr) immediately after
the shahid leaves the frame of his life in the mortal world. In this
manner, the shahid enters into a special type of life right away from
that point of time, something which has a status distinct from that of
'the dead' of our common experience (Qurtubi).
There are no easy answers to questions such as - what is that
distinct status and what is the nature of that life? The only answer is
that its reality remains unknown to all except to the Creator of the
universe; nobody has the power to know what is it - nor is there, for
that matter, any need to know. Nevertheless, there are times when the
effect of their special life does show up on their bodies buried in this
world, that is, the earth they rest in does not eat them up but leaves
them good and intact (Qurtubi). There have been many incidents where
this phenomena has been physically witnessed.
So, in summation, their first merit as pointed out in this verse is

248
Surah 'Al-‘Imran 3 : 172-175
their distinct perennial life; the second is their being well-provided
from Allah and the third ('Lares) is that they shall always be
happy with Allah's blessings and grace. The fourth (1 300 39225
"pkk) merit is the good news given to them about their relatives and
circle of friends they left behind in the mortal world that they too shall
deserve the same blessings and ranks with their Lord if they remain
good in deeds and are active in Jihad (170-171).
Al-Suddi says that a shahid is informed beforehand when one of his
close friend or relative is about to die. The news that a certain person
was coming to them makes them as happy as one would usually be
when an old friend, long separated by time and distance, comes to
meet him.
The background of the revelation of this verse as narrated by Abu
Dawud on sound authorities from Sayyidna Ibn 'Abbas is as follows.
The Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said to the noble Companions: 'When
your brothers-in-faith fell martyrs at the battle of Uhud, Allah
Almighty placed their spirits in the bodies of green birds and set them
free. They get their sustenance from the streams and fruit-trees of the
Paradise following which they return to special candelabrums held
suspending for them underneath the 'throne' ('arsh) of the All-
Merciful. When they noticed the luxury of their life there, they said,
'Can anyone tell them (their grieving friends and relatives in the
world) about how we live here so that they stop grieving about us and
go about striving in Jihad as we did.' Allah Almighty said, 'We shall
let them know about this state of yours.' Thereupon, this verse was
revealed (Qurțubi).
Verses 172 - 175
الَّذِيْنَ اسْتَجَابُوْا لِلْهِ وَالتَّسُوْلِ مِنْ بَعْدِمَا أَصَابَهُمُ الْقَرْحُ،
لِلَّذِّيْنَ آَحْسَنُوا مِنْهُمْ وَاتَّقَوْا آَخْرٌ عَظِيْمَ ﴿١٧٢) الَّذِيْنَ قَالَ
لَهُمُ النَّاسُ إِنَّ الَّاسَ قَدْ جَمَعُوا لَكُمُ فَاخْشَوْهُمْ فَزَادَهُمْ
إِيْمَانَّةٌ وَقَالُوٌ حَسْبُنَا اللَّهُ وَنِعْمَ الْوَكِيلُ ﴿١٧٣) فَانْقَلَهُوُا
بِنِعْمَةٍ ◌ِنَ اللَّهِ وَفَضْلٍ لَّمْ يَمْسَسْهُمْ سُوْءٌ وَاتَّبَعُوْا رِضُوَانَ

249
Surah 'Al-‘Imran 3 : 160-175
اللّهِ، وَاللّهُ ذُوْ فَضْلٍ عَظِيْمِ ﴿١٧٤) إِنَّا ذَلِكُمُ الشَّيْطُنُ يُخَوِّفُ
أَوْلِيَاءَهْ ص فَلَا تَخَافُؤُهُمْ وَخَافُونٍ إِنْ كُنُهُمُ هُؤْمِنِيْنَ ﴿١٧٥﴾
Those who responded to the call of Allah and the
Messenger, even after they had received the wound, for
those of them who did good and feared Allah there is a
great reward [172] -- those to whom people said, "The
people have gathered against you; so, fear them." It
increased them in Faith and they said, "Allah is
all-sufficient for us, and the best one to trust in." [173]
So, they returned with bounty from Allah, and grace,
with no evil having even touched them -- and
submitted to the pleasure of Allah. And Allah is the
Lord of great bounty. [174]
It is none but that Satan who frightens (you) of his
friends. So, do not fear them. And fear Me if you are
believers. [175]
Commentary :
The subject of the previous verse was the battle of Uhud connected
with which is the battle of Hamra' al-Asad which forms the subject of
the present verse. Hamra' al-Asad is a place eight miles away from
Madinah.
The background of this event, mentioned briefly under introduc-
tory remarks about verse 151, is that the disbelievers of Makkah left
the battlefield of Uhud, reached a certain distance where they realized
that they had made a mistake by retreating. Since they had almost
won the battle, they should have gone for the final assault and
finished off the Muslim forces. The thought so gripped them that they
started getting ready to march back to Madinah. But, Allah Almighty
cast such awe and fear in their hearts that they found it more conven-
ient to march back home to Makkah. They still left a message with a
passing group of travellers to Madinah asking them to give a warning
to Muslims that they were coming back after them with all their
awesome strength. The Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم found this out
through a revelation and he reached Hamra' al-Asad in hot pursuit (Ibn
Jarir, cited by Ruh al-Ma'ani).
It appears in Tafsir al-Qurtubi that, on the second day of Uhud, the

250
Surah 'Al-'Imran 3 : 172-175
Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم made an announcement before his muja-
hidin that they have to pursue the disbelievers but the attacking
company will be composed of those who were active participants in
yesterday's battle. Two hundred mujahidin rose following this
announcement.
A report in Şahin al-Bukhari states that seventy people stood up
following the announcement by the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم as to
who was ready to go after the disbelievers. Among those were people
who had been severely wounded in the battle a day earlier, some even
had to be helped in walking. This blessed company marched to appre-
hend the disbelievers. When they reached Hamra' al-Asad, they met
Nu'aym ibn Mas'ud who told them that Abu Sufyan has assembled
together a much larger force once again and he is all set to invade
Madinah and eliminate its people. Injury-ridden and much weakened
Companions heard this disturbing news yet it was in one voice that
they said: "We do not know him":ُحَسْبُنَا اللَّهُ وَنِعُمَ الْوَكِيل (Allah is sufficient for
us and He is the best caretaker.)
On the one hand there was this news broken to Muslims so they
get terrorized, but nothing of this sort happened to them. On the other
hand, there was the instance of Ma'bad al-Khuza'i, a man from the
tribe of Bani Khuza'ah. He was on his way to Makkah. Though not a
Muslim, he was a well-wisher of Muslims - his tribe was an ally of the
Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم .So, when he saw Abu Sufyan repenting his
retreat from Madinah and all too resolved to go back and fight, he told
Abu Sufyan: 'You are making a mistake by thinking that Muslim
forces have become weak. I have just passed by a huge army of theirs
camped at Hamra' al-Asad. Armed with an array of men and mate-
rials, they are about to set out in hot pursuit against you.' This report
from him put the awe of Muslim forces in his heart.
This event has been related in three verses (172-174) given above. It
has been said in the first verse (172) that despite injuries and hard-
ships from the Battle of Uhud, when Allah and His Messenger called
them up for another Jihad, they were ready for that too. Worth
noticing at this point is the fact that the Muslims being praised here
مِنْ بَعْدِ مَا أَصَابَهُمُ had two distinguishing features. The first one appears in
gal (even after they had received the wound) which means that those

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Surah 'Al-‘Imran 3 : 172-175
who responded to the call of Allah and His Messenger were people
wounded at the Battle of Badr. Seventy of their brave companions had
met their martyrdom on the battlefield while they themselves were
riddled with injuries all over their bodies, yet when they were called to
serve again, they immediately agreed to join the Jihad.
The second distinctive feature has been mentioned in the words:
MAPA HETau (for them who did good and feared Allah) which estab-
lished that these people were not simply some great achievers on the
battlefield striving incessantly and staking their lives for a noble
cause, but they also imbibed in their person the highest virtues of
Ihsan (righteous conduct) and Taqwa (fear of Allah). Thus, this very
blessed combination of virtues is the cause of their great reward.
Removing a doubt
Let there be no doubt about the word: '&& (literally 'of them') used
here. It should not be taken to mean that all these people were not
armed with the virtues of Ihsan and Taqwa - only some of them were.
The simple reason is that the preposition 3 : min (of, some of) used
here is not divisive or partitive. It is, rather, doubtlessly narrative
which is confirmed by the very opening words of this very verse: 301
B'LI (Those who responded to the call). From this, it is clear that such
response and submission simply cannot materialize without having
the qualities of Ihsan and Taqwa ingrained in one's personality. That is
why most commentators have declared that the preposition 3 : min (of,
some of) has been used here in the narrative sense. In short, the essen-
tial meaning of the verse is that all these people had rewards waiting
for them.
Striving to achieve something good even at the cost of one's
life is not enough unless there is total sincerity behind it
Anyway, this particular mode of address leads us to an essential
rule of conduct which is: No matter how good is an effort made and no
matter how many sacrifices of wealth and life one makes to achieve
that end, it can be reward-worthy in the sight of Allah only when it is
simultaneously backed by Ihsan and Taqwa. Therefore, the essence of
the observation is that the deed undertaken must be for the good
pleasure of Allah alone. Otherwise simple feats of bravery, some of
which come even at the cost of one's dear life, are just about no lesser

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Surah 'Al-‘Imran 3 : 172-175
among disbelievers as well.
In its ultimate reality, the command of the Messenger of Allah
is the command of Allah.
In this event, it will be recalled that the command to pursue the
disbelievers was given by the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم . This does not
find mention in any verse of the Holy Qur'an. But, in this particular
verse, when the obedience of those people is praised, the command was
attributed to both Allah and His Messenger as evident from the words
of the text : ◌ِ172) الَّذِينَ اسْتَجَابُوا لِلَّهِ وَالرَّسُوْل): 'Those who responded to the call of
Allah and the Messenger. This proves very clearly that the command
which the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم gives is also the command of
Allah even though it has not been mentioned in the Book of Allah.
As for those irreligious deviants who reject Hadith and belittle the
status of the Messenger of Allah by restricting it to that of a courier
(God forbid), a simple statement, that Allah Almighty has openly
declared the command of the Messenger as His own, should be enough
to understand the truth - if understanding is what they seek. This
statement, moreover, also makes it clear that the Messenger can. also
by himself and at his discretion, set up rules in accordance with expe-
dient considerations, and all such rules have the same status as that
enjoyed by the commandments of Allah.
The Definition of Ihsan
Mentioned several times during the comments given above, the
word Ihsan generally means the performance of good deeds with the
best of effort and discretion. However, the basic definition of Ihsan was
given by the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم himself as reported in the well-
known 'hadith of Jibra'il'. The actual words are:
أَنْ تَعْبُدَ اللّهَ كَأَنَّكَ تَرَاهُ فَإِنْ لَمْ تَكُنْ تَرَاهُ فَأَنَّه ◌َرَاكَ
That is, worship Allah as if you are seeing Him; and if it is not
possible for you to (imagine that you) see Him, then, (imagine
that) He sees you anyway.
The Definition of Taqwa
The word, Taqwa, has been interpreted variously but the most
comprehensive definition is what was given by the blessed Companion
Ubayy ibn Ka'b رضى الله عنه when Sayyidna Umar رضى الله عنه asked him as

253
Surah 'Al-‘Imran 3 : 172-175
to what Taqwa really was. Sayyidna Ubayy ibn Ka'b said: 'O
Commander of the Faithful, you may have certainly passed by path-
ways full of thorns, have you not?' Sayyidna 'Umar as dlo, said,
'Several times, of course.' Sayyidna Ubayy ibn Ka'b _ Uly+, asked,
What did you do at that time?' Sayyidna 'Umar e Ji yo, said, 'I folded
the hang of my dress and walked carefully.' Sayyidna Ubayy ibn Ka'b
said, 'Enough. You said it. This is what Taqwa means. This mortal
world of ours is a bed of thorns, full of the thorns of sins, therefore, one
should live in this world in a way that one does not get entangled in
the thorns of sin. The name of this attitude to life is Taqwa, the
highest capital gain one can dream of.' The blessed Companion, Sayy-
idna Abu al-Darda' ar Algo, used to recite the following verse quite
often:
يَقُولُ الْمُرُ فَائِدَتِىُ وَمَالِىٌ، وَتَقُوَّى اللَّهِ اَفْضَلُ مَا اسْتَفَادًا
"People say, 'my gain' and 'my money' while, really, the fear of
Allah (Taqwa) is the best of what is gained."
In the second verse (173), more praises have been showered on the
noble Companions, may Allah be pleased with them all, who so coura-
geously stepped forward to join this Jihad. The words of the verse are:
الَّذِيْنَ قَالَ لَهُمُ النَّاسُ إِنَّ النَّاسَ قَدْ جَمَعُوالَكُمْ فَاخْشَرْهُمُ، فَزَادَهُمُ إِبْمَانًا
- those to whom people said, "The people have gathered
against you; so, fear them." It increased them in Faith ...
That is, blessed are such people who heard the news that the
enemy has assembled a big fighting force against them and also the
advice that they should fear them and avoid fighting - still, this news
further increased the fervour of their faith. The reason is simple:
When these blessed people had agreed to obey Allah and His
Messenger, they had realized right from day one that the path they
have chosen to travel on is full of dangers. There will be difficulties
and impediments at every step. Their passage will not be easy. They
will be stopped. Even armed efforts will be made to suppress their
revolutionary movement. Thus, when these noble people came across
such hardships, the power of their Faith increased to levels higher
than before and, as a result, they worked harder, more selflessly, more
than ever.

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Surah 'Al-'Imran 3 : 172-175
As obvious, the Faith of these noble souls was perfect from the very
first day they had embraced Islam, therefore, the reference to the
increase in Faith in these two verses (172-173) means the increase in
the qualitative contents and end-results of Faith. Even this state of
the Companions who readily responded to the call of Allah and His
Messenger has been specially mentioned at this point by saying that
they kept reciting: ◌ُ173) حَدْهُنَا اللّهُ وَنِعُمَ الْوَكِيُل) all along their march to the
Jihad mission. The sentence means: Allah is all-sufficient for us and
the best one to trust in.
Let us consider an important rule of conduct at this point. It is a
fact and we know it too well that no one in this world can claim to
have placed his trust in Allah, a degree more pronounced than the
Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم and his noble Companions. But, the form
and manner of such trust was different. He would never think of
sitting back forsaking all physical means available and end up saying:
Allah is all-sufficient for us - He will bless us with victory while we sit
out and do nothing! No. This did not work like that. Instead, he gath-
ered the noble Companions together, infused a new fighting spirit in
the hearts of those injured, prepared them for the Jihad, both materi-
ally and spiritually before marching out. It means that he collected
and used all physical means which were available to him and it was
only after that he said: 'Allah is all-sufficient for us.' This, then, is the
most authentic form of Tawakkul (Trust in Allah) taught by the Holy
Qur'an, personally practiced by the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم and this
was what he made others around him do. All physical means which we
have in the life of this world are blessings from Allah. Rejecting or
abandoning them amounts to being ungrateful to Him. Placing trust in
Allah after having forsaken available physical means is no Sunnah
(established practice) of the Messenger of Allah صلى الله عليه وسلم . However,
if there be someone comprehensively overwhelmed by his state of
being, he could be deemed as excusable while being unable to observe
this precept of the Shari'ah. Otherwise, the most sound practice is no
more than what has been curtly expressed in a Persian poetic line:
برتوکل زانوم اشتربه بند
Before placing trust, do tie your camel.
The Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم has himself stated the meaning of

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Surah 'Al-'Imran 3 : 172-175
this very verse : ◌ُ173) حَشُْنَا اللَّهُ وَنِعُمَ الُوَكِيل) 'Allah is all-sufficient for us, and
the best one to trust in,' while deciding a case reported in Hadith :
As reported by Sayyidna 'Awf ibn Malik as Algo, , a case involving
two men came up for hearing before the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم . He
gave his verdict. The man who lost the case heard the verdict in
حَسْبِيَ اللهُ وَنِعْمَ الْوَكِيلُ :perfect peace and started walking out with the words
(Allah is all-sufficient for me, and the best one to trust in) on his lips.
The Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم asked: 'Bring this man to me.'He said
to him:
إِنَّ اللَّهَ يَلُوُمُ عَلَى الْعِجْزِ وَلكِنُ عَلَيْكَ بِالْكَيْسِ فَإِذَا غَبَكَ آَمُرُّ فَقُلُ حَسْبِىَ
اللَّهُ وَ نِعُمَ الْوَكِيلُ
Allah censures inaction but it is your duty to use means,
following which, when you find yourself powerless against
odds, then say: 'Allah is all-sufficient for me, and the best one
to trust in.'
The third verse (174) recounts the blessings which descended upon
these noble Companions for their brave response to the call of Jihad
and for saying: ◌ُحَشْهُنَا اللّهُ وَنِعْمَ الْوَكِيل (Allah is all-sufficient for us, and the
best one to trust in). It was said:
فَانْقَلَبُوا بِنِعْمَةٍ مِنَ اللَّهِ وَفَضْلٍ لَّمْ يَمْسَسْهُمْ سُنَّهُ وَاتَّبَهُوْا رِضُوَانَ اللَّهِ
So, they returned with bounty from Allah, and grace, with no
evil having even touched them -- and submitted to the
pleasure of Allah.
Allah Almighty bestowed on them three blessings:
1. Such awe and terror was placed in the hearts of disbelievers that
they ran away because of which the Companions remained protected
against the rigours of fighting on the battlefield. Allah Almighty has
used the very word Ni'mah for what we refer to as blessing.
2. The second blessing conferred on them was the opportunity to
engage in trading in the market of Hamra' al-Asad. The benefits
yielded by such financial transactions were called 'Fadl' or the bounty
from Allah.
3. The third and the highest of the three blessings was the attain-
ment of the pleasure of Allah which these blessed souls received in

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Surah 'Al-‘Imran 3 : 172-175
this Jihad in a special manner.
Hasbunallahu wa ni'mal-wakil: A wonderful: حَسْبُنَا اللَّهُ وَنِعْمَ الْوَكِيُلْ
prayer for all of us
The blessings of this prayer cited by the Holy Qur'an were not
limited to the Companions of the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم in any
restrictive sense. The fact is that anyone who recites this prayer devot-
edly with a genuine sense of faith will share in such blessings.
Muslim scholars and spiritual masters have said that one who
recites this verse a thousand times with true faith, and prays, will find
that Allah Almighty has not rejected his prayer. Reciting this verse
under the stress of frustrations and difficulties is a proven panacea.
The fourth verse (175) tells Muslims that the real agent behind the
report that the disbelievers are coming back is Satan himself who
would love to see Muslims overawed. In other words, Satan is threat-
ening Muslims with the strength of his friends - his cohorts, the disbe-
lievers. Thus, one of the two objects of the verb & !: yukhawwifu
[frightens (you)] has been left out in the text. The one mentioned is in
auliya'ahu' (of his friends) while the one understood but not
mentioned is 'you' as it would be in ': yukhawwifukum (frightens
you).
In the end, the verse exhorts Muslims not to fear such threats.
What is necessary is that Muslims must continue fearing Allah, the
natural outcome of which will be that a true Muslim will always think
twice before embarking on anything that means disobedience to Allah.
The truth of the matter is that, with Allah's help and support on ones'
side, no harm can come from any si de.
The Fear of Allah: What does it mean?
The imperative in the present verse obligates Muslims that they
must always keep fearing Allah. In another verse, 432,But (They
fear their Lord above them-16:50) those who do so have been praised.
Some revered elders have explained it by saying that fearing Allah
does not mean that one should be scared stiff or sit back in tears. Far
from it, a God-fearing person is one who leaves everything which may
become a source of Allah's displeasure or punishment.
Abu 'Ali al-Daqqaq, may Allah's mercy be upon him, says that Abu

257
Surah 'Al-'Imran 3 : 176-178
Bakr ibn al-Fuwarrak was sick so he paid him a visit. When Abu Bakr
saw him, he was in tears. Abu 'Ali consoled him by saying that there
was nothing to worry about, Allah Almighty will give him health soon
enough. Abu Bakr corrected Abu 'All's impression and said that he was
certainly not weeping because of any fear of death. What he really
worried about was his fate after death lest he may be awarded some
punishment then. (Qurtubi)
Verses 176 - 178
وَلاَ يَُْنْكَ الَّذِيْنَ يُسَارِعُونَ فِى الْكُفْرِ، إِنَّهُمْ لَنْ يَضُرُوا اللَّهَ
شَيْنَاهُ مِئُهُ اللهُ الآ يَجْعَلَ لَهُمُ حَظًّا فِى الْآخِرَةِ وَلَهُمْ عَذَابٌ
عَظِيمٌ ﴿١٧٦) إِنَّ الَّذِيْنَ اشْتَرَؤُا الْكُفْرَ بِالْإِيْمَانِ لَنْ يَضُرُّوا
اللَّهَ شَيْئًا، وَلَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ ﴿١٧٧) وَلَا يَحُسَبَنَّ الَّذِيْنَ كَفَرُؤْاَ
آَمَا تُخُلِ لَهُمْ خَبْرٌ لِأَنْفُسِهِمْ. ◌ََِّا تُلِىُ لَهُمْ لِسَزْدَادُواْ إِنْمَّاء
وَلَهُمْ عَذَابٌ تُّهِيْنٌ ﴿١٧٨)
Those who hasten towards disbelief should not make
you grieve. They cannot harm Allah at all. Allah
intends not to spare for them any share in the Here-
after. And for them there is a mighty punishment. [176|
Certainly, those who bought disbelief in exchange of
Belief cannot harm Allah at all. And for them there is a
painful punishment. 1177] And those who disbelieve
should not think that the time We give them is good for
them. In fact, We give them time only that they may
increase in sin. And for them there is a humiliating
punishment. [178]
Previous verses mentioned the treachery and ill-will of the hypo-
, صلى الله عليه وسلم crites. The present verses comfort the Holy Prophet
asking him not to grieve over the mischiefs made by the disbelievers
for they cannot harm him in any way.
The last verse (178) carries a refutation of the false notion about
disbelievers: How can they, while obviously prospering in the present
World, be regarded as victims of Allah's wrath and rejection?

258
Surah 'Al-‘Imran 3: 179
Commentary
Material affluence of disbelievers is, after all, an extension of
Divine punishment
Let there be no doubt about the worldly well-being of disbelievers
for one may be tempted to believe that since Allah Almighty has given
respite, long life, security and comfort to disbelievers so that they go
on increasing in their crimes, they should, then, be taken as innocent.
Far from it, because the verse means that Muslims should not feel
upset about this temporary respite and affluence given to disbelievers
as all this worldly wealth and power in their hands - despite their
disbelief and disobedience - is nothing but a form of the very punish-
ment destined for them. Today, they do not realize it. But, once they
leave the mortal world, they would. They would discover to their
dismay that all those articles of comfort they acquired and spent in sin
were, in reality, the very embers of Hell. This is corroborated by
several other verses of the Qur'an. For instance, in 4 Let,
(Allah intends to punish them with it - 9:55) which means that the
wealth and power of disbelievers and their vulgarly luxurious consu-
merism should not be a matter of pride for them for this is nothing but
an instalment of that very punishment from Allah which will cause
their punishment in the Hereafter to increase.
Verse 179
مَا كَانَ اللَّهُ لِيَذَرَ المُؤْمِنِيْنَ عَلَى مَآ أَنْتُمُ عَلَيْهِ حَتَّى يَمِيْزَ
الْخَبِيْثَ مِنَ التَِّيِّبِ، وَمَا كَانَ اللَّهُ لِيُطْلِعَكُمْ عَلَى الْغَيْبِ
وَلكِنَّ اللَّهَ يَجْتَبِىُ مِنْ رُسُلِهِ مَنْ يَشَاءُ مْ فَامِنُوا بِاللّهِ
وَرُسُلِهِ وَإِنْ تُؤْمِنُوا وَتَتَّقُوا فَلَكُمْ أَجْرٌ عَظِيمٌ ﴿١٧٩)
Allah is not to leave the believers in what you are in
unless He separates the impure from the pure. And
Allah is not to inform you of the unseen. But Allah
selects from His messengers whom He wills. So, believe
in Allah and His messengers. And if you believe, and
fear Allah, then, for you there is a great reward. [179]
The previous verse (178) answered the question about disbelievers
as to why they, being the detested ones in the sight of Allah, are in
possession of all sort of wealth, property and other means of luxurious

259
Surah 'Al-Imran 3 : 179
living?
The present verse (179), in sharp contrast, removes the doubt about
true believers as to why they, being the favoured servants of Allah, are
tested with all sorts of hardships? Being favoured required that they
should have been the ones living in comfort surrounded by its para-
phernalia !
Commentary
The wisdom of making a believer distinct from a hypocrite
through practical demonstration rather than through a
revelation.
It has been said in this verse that Allah Almighty has His way of
making a sincere believer distinct from a hypocrite through which He
generates such situations of hardship as would expose the hypocrisy of
the hypocrites practically. This distinction, though, could also be made
by identifying hypocrites by name through a revelation. But, the later
course was not taken because it would have not been wise. The whole
range of wisdom behind what Allah does is known to Him alone.
However, one wise consideration in the present context could be: If
Muslims were told about a person being a hypocrite through revela-
tion, they would have had no difficulty in dealing with them carefully,
but this would have not provided them with a clearly demonstrated
proof necessarily acceptable to the hypocrites - for, they would have
still insisted: 'You are wrong. We are true Muslims.'
Contrary to this, the distinction was made practically. The intro-
duction of hardship put the hypocrites to test in which they failed and
ran away. Their hypocricy was demonstrated and exposed practically
and openly. Now they did not have the cheek to claim that they were
true, sincere and believing Muslims.
The manner in which the hypocrites were exposed yielded yet
another benefit for Muslims when their formal relationship was also
severed with the hypocrites. Otherwise, maintaining a state of discord
in the heart with a veneer of formal social dealing would have been
equally harmful ethically.
The Unseen when communicated to anyone is no Knowledge of
the Unseen as such
This verse tells us that Allah Almighty does not inform everyone

260
Surah 'Al-'Imran 3 : 180-186
about Unseen matters through the medium of revelation (Wahy).
However, He does inform His chosen prophets in this manner. From
this, let no one hasten to doubt that prophets too have become sharers
in the Knowledge of the Unseen or the knowers of the Unseen! The
reason is that the Knowledge of the Unseen which is particularly
attributed to the being of Allah Almighty cannot be taken as being
shared by any created being. Doing so is Shirk (the crime of ascribing
partners to Allah). The particular Knowledge is fortified by two condi-
tions:
1. This should be intrinsic to the being, not given by anyone else.
2. This has to be all-comprehensive, encompassing all universes,
the past and the future - a Knowledge that covers even the minutest
particle without any possibility of anything remaining hidden from it.
As for things of the Unseen the information of which is given to His
prophets by Allah Almighty through the medium of revelation (Wahy),
they are not, really, the Knowledge of the Unseen as such. They are,
rather, news of the Unseen given to prophets, something about which
the Holy Qur'an itself has used the expression .1, Ci (news or reports
of the Unseen) at several places :
مِنْ أَنْبَاءِ الْغَيْبِ نُوحِيْهَا إِلَيْكَ
... a part of the news of the Unseen We reveal to you. (11:49)
Verses 180 - 186
وَلَا يَحْسَبَنَّ الَّذِيْنَ يَبْخَلُونَ ◌َِّ اتُهُمُ اللَّهُ مِنْ فَضْلِهِ هُوَ خَيْرًّا
لَهُمْ، بَلْ هُوَّشَُّلَهُمْ+ سَيُطَّقُونَ مَا بَخِلُوا بِهِ يَوْمَ الْقِيْمَةِ وَلِلَّهِ
مِيْرَاثُ السَّمُوْتِ وَالْأَرْضِ ، وَاللَّهُ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ خَبِيرٌ ﴿١٨)
لَقَدُ سَمِعَ اللَّهُ قَوْلَ الَّذِيْنَ قَالُوا إِنَّ اللّهَ فَقِيْرٌ وَنَحْنُ أَغْنِيَاءُ
سَتَكْتُبُ مَا قَالُؤًا وَقَتْلَهُمُ الْآَنْبِيَآءَ بِغَيْرِ حَقِّ وَنَقُولُ ذُوُقُرًا
عَذَابَ الْحَرِيُقِ ﴿١٨١) ذُلِكَ بِمَا قَدَّمَتُّ أَبْدِيُكُمْ وَنَّ اللّهَ لَيْسَ
بِظَلَّامٍ لِّلْعَبِيْدِ ﴿١٨٣) الَّذِيْنَ قَالُوَّا إِنَّ اللَّهَ عَهِدَ إِلَيْنَا الَّ

261
Surah 'Al-'Imran 3 : 180-186
نُؤْمِنَ ◌ِرَسُولٍ حَتَّى يَأْتِيِّنَا بِقُرْبَانٍ تَأْكُلُهُ النَّارُ، قُلْ قَدْ بَجَاءَكُمْ
رُسُلٌِّنُ قَبْلِىٌ بِالْبَيِّئْتِ وَبِالَّذِى قُلُهُمْ فَلِمَ قَتَلْتُمُوْهُمْ إِنْ كُنُمُ
صُدِقِينَ ﴿١٨٣﴾ فَإِنْ كَذَّبُوُكَ فَقَدُ كُذِّبٍَمُ سُلٌ مِنُ قَبْلِكَ بِجَاءُ
بِالْبَِّئْتِ وَالُّيُرِوَ الْكِتْبِ الْنِيُرِ ﴿٠١٨٤ كُلُّ نَفْسٍ ذَائِقَةُ الْمُؤَّتِ،
وَإِّا تُوَقَّوْنَ أُجُرَكُمْ يَوْمَ الْقِيْمَةِ، فَمَنُ زُزِعَ عَنِ الثَّارِ
وَأُدخِلَ الْجَنَّةَ فَقَدْ فَازَ، وَمَا الْحَوَةُ الدُّنْيَآَ إِلَّ مَتَاعُ الْغُرُِ
﴿١٨٥﴾ لَيُبْلَوُنَّ فِّ آَمُوَالِكُمْ وَآَنْفُسِكُمُ نْ وَلَتَسْمَعُنَّ مِنَ الَّذِيِّنَّ
أُوُُّوا الْكِتْبَ مِنْ قَبْلِكُمْ وَمِنَ الَّذِيْنَ أَشْرَكُوَّا أَذَّى كَثِيْرًا، وَإِنُ
تَصْبِرُوا وَتَتَّقُوا فَإِنَّ ذُلِكَ مِنُ عَزْمِ الْأُمُوُرِ ﴿١٨٦﴾
And those who are miserly with what Allah has given
them out of His grace should not take it as good for
them. Instead, it is bad for them. They shall be forced,
on the Doomsday, to put on round their necks the
shackles of what they were miserly with. And to Allah
belongs the inheritance of the heavens and the earth.
And of what you do, Allah is All-Aware. [180]
Allah has surely heard the saying of those who said.
"Allah is poor and we are rich." We shall write down
what they said, and their killing of the prophets
unjustly: and We shall say. "Taste the punishment of
the flaming fire. 1181| This is due to what your hands
sent ahead and that Allah is not cruel to the slaves."
[182]
(There are) those who said, "Surely, Allah directed us
that we should not believe in a messenger unless he
comes to us with an offering to be eaten up by the fire."
Say, "A number of messengers have come to you, before
me, with clear signs and with what you have said. So,
why did you kill them, if you are true? [183]
Then if they belie you, so messengers have been belied
before you. They came with clear signs and the Scrip-
tures and light giving Book. [184!

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Surah 'Al-'Imran 3 : 180-186
Every soul has to taste death. And it is on the
Doomsday that you shall be paid your rewards in full.
So, whoever has been kept away from the Fire and
admitted to Paradise, he has really succeeded. And the
wordly life is nothing but an asset, full of illusion. [185]
Of course, you shall be tested in your wealth and your-
selves. And, of course, you shall hear much of what
hurts, from those who have been given the Book before
you and from those who associate (others with Allah).
And if you observe patience and fear Allah, then these
are among matters of determination. [186]
Anomalies in the conduct of Jews were mentioned at the beginning
of Surah 'Al-'Imran (21-25). The text now reverts back to the same
subject. The verses cited above carry related topics. In between, there
are words of comfort for the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم as well as those
giving good counsel to Muslims.
Commentary
The first (180) of the seven verses (180-186) appearing here repudi-
ates miserliness and carries a warning for those who practice it.
The Definition of Miserliness and the punishment it brings
In the terminology of the Shari'ah of Islam, miserliness (Bukhl)
refers to the act of not spending that which it is obligatory to spend in
the way of Allah. Therefore, miserliness is forbidden (haram). Besides,
it carries a stern warning of Hell for its practitioners. As for occasions
where spending is not obligatory (wajib) but only recommended
(mustahabb), then not spending there is not included under the miser-
liness which is forbidden. However, this too is called miserliness in its
general sense. As said earlier, this kind of miserliness is not forbidden
(haram) but against the preferred choice (khilaf aula) it certainly is.
Appearing in Hadith, there is another word - Shuhh - also used in
the sense of Bukhl or miserliness. By definition, it means not spending
what it was obligatory to spend - one may go even farther than that by
remaining consumed with greed to increase one's wealth. This then,
shall be a crime much more severe than ordinary miserliness. There-
fore, the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said:
لَا يَجْتَمِعُ شُعُّ وَ إِيْمَانٌ فِى قَلْبٍ رَجُلٍ مُسْلٍ أَبَدًا

263
Surah 'Al-‘Imran 3 : 180-186
That is, miserliness (shuhh) and faith ('Im an) can never
coexist in the heart of a Muslim. (Qurtubi)
The punishment for miserliness (Bukhl) mentioned in this verse:
"They shall be forced, on the Doomsday, to put on round their necks
the shackles of what they were miserly with' has been explained by
the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم in the following words reported by Sayy-
: رضى الله عنه idna Abu Hurairah
'Anyone Allah blessed with some wealth and who did not pay
the zak ah due on it properly will find his or her wealth turn
into a deadly snake shackled round the neck chomping at the
person's mouth from one to the other end of the lips and
saying: 'I am your wealth. I am your capital gain.' Thereafter,
the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم recited this verse (180), (Al-
Nasa'l, from Tafsir al-Qurtubi)
The second verse (18) warns Jews against their grave act of
effrontery and mentions its punishment. According to the background
of the event, when the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم presented the
Qur'anic injunctions relating to Zakah and Sadaqat (charities), the
arrogant Jews started saying that Allah had surely become poor and
needy while they were rich, or else why would He go about asking us
to give? We seek refuge with Allah from such effrontery. Obviously,
they would have hardly believed in the absurd statement they made
but, in all likelihood, they would have said so to prove that the Holy
Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم was God forbid, false in his statement. Their
argument was: If these verses of the Qur'an are true, then, it neces-
sarily follows that Allah be poor and needy! This absurd argument of
theirs being false in itself was not worth responding to because the
injunction of Allah Almighty was not for His benefit; it was, rather, for
the benefit of the owners of wealth themselves in this world and the
hereafter. But, it was termed as giving loan to Allah elsewhere
because repayment of a loan is necessary and certain in the sight of
every good person. Similar is the case of charity given by someone, the
repayment of which Allah Almighty takes upon Himself as if it was
the payment of loan taken from someone. Anyone who believes in
Allah Almighty as the Creator and Master of everything would never
stoop to entertain the kind of doubt from these words of the verse
which is there in the saying of the insolent Jews. For this reason, the