Indexed OCR Text

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been asked to decide, judge and obey in accordance with the Torah and
the people of the Injil have been asked to decide, judge and obey in ac-
cordance with the Injil - though both these Books and their Shari'ahs
stand abrogated after the appearance of the Holy Prophet . The out-
come is that the injunctions of the Torah and Injil which were not ab-
rogated by the Qur'an are obedience-worthy even today.
3. The third injunction which stands proved from these verses is
that ruling contrary to the injunctions revealed by Almighty Allah is
Kufr (disbelief in and rejection of Faith) under some conditions spe-
cially when it is combined with belief in its being not true. And under
some conditions, it is Zulm (injustice) and Fisq (disobedience, sin) -
when belief-wise, one does accept them as true, but, in practice, does
what is contrary to it.
4. The fourth injunction which appears in these verses is that tak-
ing bribe is absolutely Haram (unlawful) - specially, the taking of bribe
in a judicial case, which is far too grave.
5. The fifth injunction which emerges clearly from these verses is
that all prophets, may peace be upon them, and their Shari'ahs agree
in principle, but there is that difference in minute and subsidiary in-
junctions with them - a difference which is based on considerations of
great wisdom.
Verses 51 - 58
◌َيُّهَا الَّذِيْنَ امَنُوا لَا تَتَّخِذُوا الْبَهُوُدَ وَالنَّصْرِى أَوْلِيَاءَ م
بَعْضُهُمْ أَوْلِيَاءُ بَعْضٍ، وَمَنُ يَتَوَّلَّهُمْ قِّنْكُمْ فَإِنَّهُ مِنْهُمْ ءُ إِنَّ اللَّهَ
لَ يَهْدِى الْقَوْمَ الظُّلِمِيْنَ ﴿٥١﴾ فَتَرَى الَّذِيْنَ فِىْ قُلُوبِهِمْ مَّرَضُّ
◌ُسَارِ عُونَ فِيْهِمْ يَقُوُلُونَ نَخْشَى أَنْ تُصِيْبَنَا دَآنِرُ فَعَسَى
اللَّهُ أَنْ يَّأْتِىَ بِالْفَتْحِ آَوْ أَمْرٍمِنُ عِنْدِهٍ فَيُصُبِحُوا عَلى مَّا
آَسَتُؤْافٌِ آَنْفُسِهِمُ نْدِمِيْنَ ﴿٢﴾ وَيَقُوُلُ الَّذِيْنَ امَنُوْا أَهْؤُ لَا؟
الَّذِيْنَ آَفْسَهُا بِاللَّهِ جَهُدَ ايْمَانِهِمْ " إِنَّهُمُ لَعَكُمُ + حَبِطَتُ
أَعْمَالُهُمْ فَاصْبَحُوا خُسِرِينَ ﴿٥٣﴾ ◌َآَيُّهَا الَّذِيْنَ امَنُؤْا مَنُ

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بَرْتَدَّ مِنْكُمُ عَنْ دِيْنِهِ فَسَوْفَ يَأْتِى اللهُ بِقَوْمٍ تُحِبُّهُمُ
وَيُحِبُّونَةٌ آَذِلَّةٍ عَلَى الْمُؤُمِنِينَ آَعِزَّةٍ عَلَى الْكُفِرِينَ يُجَاهِدُوُنَ
فِى سَبِيْلِ اللَّهِ وَلَا يَخَافُونَ لَوْمَةً لَّتٍِ ذَلِكَ فَضْلُ اللَّهِ
يُؤْتِيْهِ مَنْ تَشَاءُ وَاللَّهُ وَاسِعٌ عَلِيمٌ ﴿٤﴾ ◌ِنَّا وَلِبُّكُمُ اللهُ
وَرَسُوْلُهُ وَالَّذِينَ آمَنُوا الَّذِينَ يُقِيْمُوْنَ الصَّلَوةَ وَيُؤْثُّونَ الزَّكُوَةَ
وَهُمُ رُكِعُونَ ﴿٥٥﴾ وَمَنْ يَّتَوَكَّ اللهَ وَرَسُوْلَهُ وَالَّذِيْنَ امَنُوا فَإِنَّ
حِزُبَ اللَّهِ هُمُ الْغُلِبُونَ ﴿٥٦﴾ ◌َيُّهَا الَّذِيْنَ امَنُؤْا لَا تَتَّخِذُوا
الَّذِينَ اتَّخَذُوا دِيْنَكُمُ هُوًا وَلَعِبًّا ◌ِنَ الَّذِيْنَ أُوُوا الْكِتْبَ
مِنْ قَبْلِكُمْ وَالْكُفَّارَ آَوْلِيَاءَ وَاتَّقُوا اللهَ إِنْ كُنْهُمْ تُؤْمِنِينَ
﴿٥٧﴾ وَإِذَا نَادَيُتُمُ إِلَى الصَّلوةِ اتَّخَذُوُهَا هُزُوًا وَلَعِبَاء ذُلِكَ
بِأَنَّهُمْ قَوْمٌ لََّيَعْقِلُونَ ﴿١١٥٨
O those who believe, do not take the Jews and Chris-
tians for intimate friends. They are friends to each
other. And whoever takes intimate friends from them,
he is one of them. Surely, Allah does not take the un-
just people to the right path. [51]
Now, you see those who have disease in their hearts
race towards them saying, "We apprehend that some
misfortune may overtake us." So, it is likely that Allah
may bring victory or a command from His own side,
whereupon they become regretful over what they con-
cealed in their hearts. [52]
And those who believe will say, "Are these the ones
who swore by Allah on emphatic oaths that they were
with you?" Their deeds have gone waste; hence they
became losers. [53]
O those who believe, whoever of you turns back from
his Faith, then, Allah shall bring a people whom He
loves and who love Him, soft on the believers, hard on
the disbelievers, who fight in the way of Allah and are

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not afraid of the reproach of any critic. That is a grace
of Allah. He confers it on whom He wills. And Allah is
All-Embracing, All-Knowing. [54]
Your only friend is Allah, and His Messenger, and those
who believe - those who establish Salah and pay Zakah
and bow before Allah. [55] And whoever takes to friend-
ship with Allah and His Messenger and those who be-
lieve, then, the people of Allah are the ones to prevail.
[56]
O those who believe, do not take as friends those who
have taken your Faith in jest and fun, those who have
been given the Book prior to you, and the disbelievers.
And fear Allah, if you are believers. [57]
And when you call for Salah, they take it in jest and
fun. That is because they are a people who do not un-
derstand. [58]
Explanation in Brief
The verses cited above take up three important subjects which are
the basic principles of unity among Muslims as a collectively organized
community.
1. Muslims can deal with non-Muslims in the spirit of tolerance,
sympathy, goodwill, equity, justice, favour and kindness, almost every-
thing within that line of conduct. In fact, they should do that for they
have been taught to do that. But, what is not permitted is the kind of
fast friendship and indiscriminating intimacy which may garble the
distinctive hallmarks of Islam. This is the issue known as the 'Tark al-
Muwalat' to refrain from deep (friendship) in Islamic terminology.
2. The second principle stressed upon is that should the Muslims
of any time and place shift away from the first principle stated above
and develop an intimacy of this nature with non-Muslims, then, let
them not be under the impression that their conduct could harm Islam
in any manner whatsoever - because Allah Almighty has Himself tak-
en the responsibility of seeing that Islam remains duly protected. It
cannot be eliminated by anyone. However, if a set of people still go out
of their minds, break the limits of Islamic modality of doing things
and, let us presume, decide to leave the very pale of Islam, then, Allah
Ta'ala will bring in another set of people who will uphold and establish

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the principles and laws of Islam.
3. Once we know the positive and negative aspects in perspective,
it becomes evident that the real friendship of a Muslim - deep, intense,
profound and reliance-worthy - can only be with Allah, the Highest of
the high, His Messenger, and with those who believe in them.
After this brief introduction of the subject, we can now move to the
detailed explanation of the verses.
Commentary
In the first verse (51), Muslims have been commanded not to enter
into "Muwalat" (deep friendship) with Jews and Christians as is the
customary practice of non-Muslims in general and, of Jews and Chris-
tians in particular, who reserve deep friendship for their own people
only. They do not deal with Muslims at the same wave length.
After this clear instruction, should a Muslim do otherwise and en-
ter into an intimate friendship with a Jew or Christian, then, in the
sight of Islam, he is fit to be counted as one of them - and not as a
Muslim.
The Background of Revelation
Reporting from 'Ikrimah, Ibn Jarir has said that this verse was re-
vealed in the background of a particular event. After the Holy Prophet
had settled in Madinah, he had entered into a treaty with Jews and
Christians living nearby which required that they would neither fight
against Muslims nor help any other tribe at war with them, rather,
they would join Muslims to fight against them. Similarly, Muslims
will not fight them nor help anyone against them, rather, would de-
fend them against the aggressors. For some time, both parties kept
adhering to the treaty. But, the Jews could not observe the terms of
the treaty any longer because of their conspiratorial nature and anti-
Islam temperament. They made a secret deal with the pagans of Mak-
kah against Muslims and wrote them a letter inviting them to their
fortress. When the Holy Prophet i came to know about this conspira-
cy, he despatched a posse of Mujahidin to confront them. These Jews
from Banu Qurayzah were, on the one hand, conspiring with the disbe-
lievers of Makkah, while on the other, having infiltrated among Mus-
lims, they had succeeded in making pacts of friendship with many of

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them. This was their front of spying for the disbelievers of Makkah
against Muslims. Revealed thereupon was this verse which stopped
Muslims from indulging in deep friendship with Jews and Christians,
so that they could be deprived of having access to sensitive informa-
tion about Muslims. At that time, some noble Companions, including
Sayyidna 'Ubadah ibn Samit, openly announced the cancellation of
their treaty obligations as well as their support for abandonment of
any close friendship in the future. As for the hypocrites who had their
pragmatic relationship with Muslims, or people whose hearts had yet
to taste the sweetness of genuine faith, they apprehended dangers in
breaking relationships with Jews and Christians lest the conspiracy
hatched by the disbelievers and the Jews succeeded and Muslims were
overpowered in which case it would be necessary that they keep their
relationships balanced bothways to avoid any problems for them later
on. It was on this basis that 'Abdullah ibn Ubaiyy ibn Salul had said
that he saw danger in cutting off relationship with these people and,
therefore, he cannot do that. Revealed thereupon was the second
verse (52):
فَتَرَى الَّذِيْنَ فِيْ قُلُوبِهِمْ تَرَضٌ تُسَارِعُونَ فِيْهِمْ يَقُولُونَ نَخْشَى أَنْ نُصِيْبَنَا
دَآتِرَةٌ.
Now, you see those who have disease in their hearts race to-
wards them saying, "We apprehend that some misfortune may
overtake us."
It means that after hearing the religiously binding injunction of
the abandonment of close friendships, people who have the disease of
hypocricy in their hearts started racing towards their disbelieving
friends saying that cutting off relationships with these people is dan-
gerous for them.
Answering them, Almighty Allah said:
فَعَسَى اللَّهُ أَنْ تَأْتِىَ بِالْفَتْحِ أَوْ آَمْرٍ مِنُ عِنْدِهٍ فَيُصُبِحُرْا عَلى مَا أُسَرُوا فِىٌ
أَنْفُسِهِمْ نُدِمِينَ
So, it is likely that Allah may bring victory or a command
from His own side, whereupon they become regretful over
what they concealed in their hearts.

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It means that these people are under the impression that the dis-
believers and the Jews will overcome Muslims. But, Allah has decided
that it will not happen. Rather, close is the conquest of Makkah. Or,
even before the conquest of Makkah, Allah may, by exposing the hypo-
cricy of the hypocrites, put them to disgrace. Then, at that time, these
people will regret thoughts they had concealed.
This has been clarified further in the third verse (53) where it was
said that once the hypocricy of the hypocrites has been exposed and
the reality behind their claims and oaths of friendship comes out in
the open, Muslims would wonder if those were the people who used to
assure them with sworn claims of their friendship and there they were
all ruined as everything they did just to pretend had gone to waste.
That Allah Jalla Sha'nuhu has mentioned the conquest of Makkah
and the disgrace of the hypocrites in these verses was something
which everyone saw only after a few days with their own eyes.
The fourth verse (54) tells us that the prohibition of intimate friend-
ship and inter-mingling with non-Muslims is for the good of Muslims
themselves. Otherwise, Islam is the particular religion the responsibil-
ity to protect which has been taken by Almighty Allah Himself. The
crookedness or disobedience of an individual or group is self-destruct
in its place. However, should some individual or group from among
Muslims were to really abandon Islam itself, turn into an apostate
(Murtadd) totally and become a part of non-Muslims, even that too
could bring no harm to Islam because Allah who is Absolutely Power-
ful is responsible for its protection and He will immediately bring in
some other nation into action which will carry out the duties of pro-
tecting and spreading the Din of Allah. Things He must do depend
neither on an individual nor on the largest of the large party or insti-
tution. When He so wishes, He can make straws work for beams and
logs, otherwise beams and logs sit in forests turning into compost any-
way. As referred to elsewhere in this Commentary, how well this was
put in an Arabic couplet:
إِنَّ الْمُقَادِيُرَ إِذَا سَاعَدَتْ
اَلْحَقَتِ الْعَاجِزَ بِالْقَادِرِ
When Divine decree helps - it can make the meak overtake
the mighty.

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Surah Al-Ma'idah : 5 : 51 - 58
When it was said in this verse that should Muslims become apos-
tates, it does not matter, for Allah will make another set of people rise
to take their place, then, right there, some virtues of this set of people
have also been enumerated saying clearly that they can be marked out
by such and such distinguishable qualities. Those engaged in the ser-
vice of their religion should keep these qualities foremost in their
minds because these verses tell us that people who have such quality
and character are welcome and dear in the sight of Almighty Allah.
1. Their first quality identified by the Holy Qur'an is that Allah
will love them and they will love Allah. There are two parts to this
quality. The first one is the love of these people for Almighty Allah.
This could be taken, in one or the other degree, within one's control
since one can, even if one does not love someone emotionally or natu-
rally, at least make his intention and determination to work for him in
loving intellectually. And even emotional or natural love is though not
in one's control, yet its causes are, for instance, the meditation of the
greatness and majesty of Almighty Allah, the conception of His most
perfect power and the recapitulative survey of His authorities and
blessings over human beings. This would definitely generate even nat-
ural love for Almighty Allah in the heart of a man or woman.
But, as far as the other part is concerned, that is, the love of Allah
will be with these people, it obviously seems to indicate that this is a
matter where human choice and action play no role. So, what is be-
yond our control and choice hardly warrants a description and is obvi-
ously fruitless - one may be tempted to wonder.
But, by pondering over some other verses of the Holy Qur'an, one
will discover that the causes of this part of love too are within human
control. If someone uses these means, the love of Allah will necessari-
ly be with him or her. Those means of achieving this end have been
mentioned in the verse of the Qur'an which appears in Surah 'Al-
Imran :قُلْ إِنْ كُنْهُمْ يُحِبُّونَ اللَّهَ فَاتَبِعُونِيُ يُحْبِئُكُمُ اللّه (Say [O Prophet], "If you do love Al-
lah, follow me; Allah shall love you" ... 3:31).
This verse tells us that one who wishes to have Allah love him or
her should make the Sunnah of the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم the very
pivot of life and develop a committed habit of following Sunnah in
whatever one does in each and every department of one's life. If so,

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Surah Al-Ma'idah : 5 : 51 - 58
the promise of Allah is there - He will love that person. And this very
verse also tells us that the only group of people which can stand up
and meet the challenge of Disbelief and Apostacy (Kufr and Irtidad)
shall be the group of people which follows the Sunnah conscientiously
and habitually - neither falling short in obedience to the injunctions of
the Shari'ah, nor initiating and introducing on their own, deeds con-
trary to the Sunnah.
2. The second quality of this group has been identified as: 12 si
.( ... soft on the believers, hard on the disbelievers ... ) المُؤْمِنِينَ آعِزَّةٍ عَلَى الْكُفِرِيْنَ
Here, the word: 'adhillah' could be, as explained in Qamus, the plural
of both dhalil or dhalul. Dhalil means low or despicable while dhal ul
means soft and tractable, that is, easily controlled, docile. According
to the majority of commentators, this is the meaning of 'adhillah' at
this place, that is, these people will be soft with Muslims. Even in mat-
ters of dispute, they can be controlled and mollified easily. They would
set the dispute aside, even if they are right in it - as said by the Holy
أَنَاَ زَّعِهْ بِبَيْتٍ فِيْ رَقِّضٍ الْجُنَّةِ لِمَنْ ترَكُ المُرّاءُ : in an authentic hadith صلى اللّه عليه وسلم Prophet
; that is, 'I am the guarantor of a home in the middle of Paradise
for one who abandons dispute despite being in the right.' Thus, the
essential meaning of this word comes to be that these people will have
no dispute with Muslims in matters relating to their rights and
dealings.
The second word is 'a'izzah' in: 33 Kil igfel (hard on the disbeliev-
ers). Here too, 'a'izzah' is the plural of 'Aziz which means dominant,
strong and hard. So, the sense is that these people are hard and
strong against the enemies of Allah and His Din who would be unable
to control or manipulate them. Now, by combining both sentences we
can arrive at the essence of the statement - that this will be a set of
people whose love and hate, friendship and enmity will be, not for
their person or their rights and dealings, but only for Allah, His Mes-
senger and His Din. Therefore, when comes the time to fight, it will not
be against the obedient servants of Allah and His Messenger, instead
of that, it would be against those who are hostile and disobedient to
Allah and His Messenger. The same subject appears in a verse of Su-
rah Al-Fath where the words are :ُاشِدَاءُ عَلَى الْكُفَّارِ رُحَمَاءُ بَيْنَهُم (severe against
disbelievers, merciful between themselves - 48:29).

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3. The essence of the first quality was the most perfect fulfillment
of the rights of Allah, and the essence of the second quality was moder-
ation in the fulfillment of the rights of the servants of Allah by remain-
ing accomodating in dealings. Now, the third quality of these people
mentioned here is : ◌ِ◌ُجَاهِدُونَ فِى سَبِيلِ اللّه that is, they shall keep carrying out
Jihad to spread and establish the True Faith. In essence, it means
that fighting against forces of disbelief and apostacy is no easy task. In
this confrontation, traditionally known devotion to worship in seclu-
sion or a simple softness or hardness of attitude is not enough. Also
necessary here is a feeling and fervour for the mission of establishing
Din.
4. To ensure that this feeling and fervor achieves its desired per-
fection, the fourth quality of these people has been identified as: ;
sau that is, they will not care for any blame, censure or deroga-
tory criticism directed against them while they are engaged in their ef-
forts to upraise the true word of Allah and establish His Din. A little
reflection will show that the leader of a movement usually faces two
types of impediments in his efforts which are the power of the adver-
sary and the vilification of his own people. Experience bears out that
people who lead a movement resolutely would stand firm against any
adversary, even go through arrests, jail sentences, beatings and tor-
tures, yet, when it comes to facing blames and vilifications from their
own people, even the most determined leaders tend to falter. Perhaps,
it is to stress the importance of this trying situation at this place, that
Allah Almighty has considered it sufficient to say that these people go
on with their Jihad without taking notice of any blames directed
against them.
Finally, towards the end of the verse (54), it was added that these
good qualities of character are nothing but rewards from Almighty Al-
lah. It is He who gives them to whom He wills. A human being can-
not acquire these by dint of his own effort and deed without Divine
grace.
The Fitnah of Apostacy
Through the explanation of the words of this verse, it has already
been clarified that the incidence of some from among Muslims turning
into apostates will not harm Islam as a religion because Allah will

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raise a set of people with high morals and superior deeds who would
defend and support it. However, the majority of commentators have
dwelt further on the Fitnah (trial) of Apostacy (Irtidad). According to
them, this verse is actually a prophecy of this Trial and at the same
time a good news for the group of people who will fight against it and
eliminate it successfully. This coming Fitnah of Apostacy was a seri-
ous problem the germs of which had already started spreading to-
wards the latermost period of Prophethood. But, after the departure of
the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم from this mortal world, this became an
epidemic spreading all over the Arabian Peninsula. The group blessed
with the good news was that of the noble Companions who confronted
this onslaught of Apostacy under the command of the first Khalifah of
. رضى الله عنه Islam, Sayyidna Abu Bakr Al-Siddiq
Chronologically, Musaylimah al-Kadhdhab (the Liar) was the first
to claim prophethood alongwith the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم and was
so audacious that he returned his emissaries back with the threat that
he would have killed them had it not been for the protocol which pro-
hibited killing of envoys and emissaries. Musaylimah was a liar in his
claim. The Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم did not get the time to wage Ji-
had against him and he left this mortal world.
Similarly, Aswad al-'Ansi, the chief of the tribe of Mudhhaj in Ya-
man announced his prophethood. The Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم or-
dered the Governor of Yaman appointed by him to fight against him.
But, the very next day after the night he was killed, the Holy Prophet
departed from this mortal world. The news about his being killed
reached the noble Companions at the end of Rabi' al-Awwal. Another
event like this was reported concerning the tribe of Banu Asad whose
chief, Tulayhah ibn Khuwaylid laid a claim to his own prophethood.
Groups from these three tribes had turned Apostates during the
last sickness of the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم. The news of his passing
away took the lid out of this storm of Apostacy. Seven tribes of Arabia
from different places turned against Islam and its legal authority.
They refused to pay Zakah as required by Islamic law to the Khalifah
of the time, Sayyidna Abu Bakr Al-Siddiq ae in ) .
After the passing away of the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم, the re-
sponsibility of the country and the community fell on the shoulders of

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Surah Al-Ma'idah : 5 : 51 - 58
Sayyidna Abu Bakr Al-Şiddiq at Ulu, . There was the great shock on
the one hand, and the flood of trials and rebellions on the other. Sayy-
idah 'A'ishah Lie Al », says that the shock faced by her father, Sayyid-
na Abu Bakr, after the passing away of the Holy Prophet g, was so
great that had it fallen on high mountains they would have been re-
duced to powder. But, Almighty Allah had blessed him with the high
station of patience and fortitude by virtue of which he fought against
all odds with full determination and courage, and did succeed finally.
Rebellion, as obvious, can be quashed by use of force only. But,
conditions had reached a point of danger and Sayyidna Abu Bakr went
into consultation with the noble Companions. None of them approved
of a hardline against rebellions. The danger was: If the Companions
were to be committed to internal warfare, foreign powers would run
over their new Islamic country. But, Allah Almighty made the heart
of His 'True one' strong and settled for Jihad. He gave an eloquent
Khutbah before the Companions of the Holy Prophet , which opened
up their hearts too in favour of Jihad. The power and perfection of his
determination and fortitude is reflected through his words:
"People who, after they have become Muslims, turn back and
reject the injunctions given by the Holy Prophet , and the
Law of Islam, then, it is my duty that I should wage a Jihad
against them. If, against me, they decide to bring along the
combined force of all Jinns and human beings, and all trees
and rocks of the world, all together, and I have no comrade in
arms to support me, even then, I would, all by myself, put my
neck on the stake and carry out this Jihad."
After having said this, he mounted his horse and started moving
ahead. Then, the noble Companions, may Allah be pleased with them
all, came forward and made Sayyidna Siddiq al-Akbar sit at his place.
In no time, a battle plan was drawn with fronts assigned to different
people and the time of their departure set for action.
Therefore, Sayyidna 'Ali ar Ml +) , Hasan al-Basri, Dahhak, Qata-
dah and other Imams of Tafsir have said that this verse has been re-
vealed about Sayyidna Abu Bakr Al-Şiddiq as Ul»,. He was the first
one of the promised people about whom it was said in this verse that
they will appear to defend Islam at the command of Allah.

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But, not contrary to this, is the possibility that some other group
could also be included in the sense of this verse. Therefore, respected
elders who have pointed out to Sayyidna Abu Musa al-Ash'ari
or
other noble Companions as being included in the sense of this verse
cannot be really taken as contrary to this suggestion. In fact, the most
sound and safe position is to believe that all these blessed people, rath-
er every single Muslim due to come right upto the Last Day of Qiya-
mah, who will keep confronting disbelief and apostacy in accordance
with the commands of the Qur'an - they all shall be considered as in-
cluded under the purview of this verse.
Let us now resume our description of how the moving exhortation
of Sayyidna Şiddiq al-Akbar made a group of Şahabah rise to the occa-
sion and meet the challenge of this trial of Apostacy under the leader-
ship of the first Khalifah of Islam. Assigning an army of fighting men,
he sent Sayyidna Khalid ibn Walid to Yamamah to fight against Mu-
saylimah the Liar who had become very poweful in his area. The en-
counters were tough, but Musaylimah the Liar was ultimately killed
at the hands of Sayyidna Wahshi, may Allah be pleased with him. His
group repented and returned to the fold of Islam. Again, it was Sayy-
idna Khalid who went to fight against Tulayhah ibn Khuwaylid. He
escaped and went out to some other area. Then, Allah gave him the
ability to repent and return to Islam once again. He came back as a
Muslim.
The news that Aswad al-'Ansi had been killed and his group had
surrendered had reached Madinah toward the end of the month of
Rabi al-Awwal, the first month of the Siddiqi Caliphate. This was the
very first news of victory which reached Sayyidna Şiddiq al-Akbar
under such trying circumstances. So, from this point onwards, the
noble Companions of the Prophet were also blessed with more clear
victories on every front against other tribes which had refused to pay
Zakah.
Thus, the practical demonstration of the truth of the word of Allah
mentioned towards the end of the fifth verse (56):َفَإِنَّ حِرُبَ اللَّهِ هُمْ الْغُلِبُون (then,
the people of Allah are the ones to prevail) was seen by the whole
world. Speaking historically and objectively, it is a proven fact that
the problem of Apostacy did affect some tribes of the Arabian Peninsu-

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la after the passing away of the Holy Prophet . Then, the group that
Allah made to rise and fight against the challenge was that of Sayyid-
na Şiddiq al-Akbar and his colleagues among the Şahabah. So, it also
stands proved from this very verse that the qualities of the promised
set of people given in the Qur'an were all present in Sayyidna Şiddiq
al-Akbar and the Sahabah with him. To restate these, we can say:
1. Allah loves them.
2. They love Allah.
3. They are soft with Muslims and hard against disbelievers.
4. Their Jihad was in the way of Allah in which they were not
afraid of any blame.
Pointing out to the reality of realities, it was clearly stressed that
all these high qualities of character, their timely use and the ultimate
success in the Islamic expedition through them were things which are
not achieved by simple reliance on planning or power or numbers.
This is nothing but the grace of Allah. It is He who bestows this bless-
ing upon whom He wills.
Marks of True Muslims
In the previous four verses discussed so far, Muslims have been
forbidden to maintain intimate friendship with disbelievers. A posi-
tive approach has been taken in the fifth verse (55) where those with
whom Muslims can have intimate friendship and special camaraderie
have been identified. Mentioned first is Allah and then, His blessed
Prophet, for Allah is - and He alone can be - the real friend, guardian
and guide of a true Muslim, all the time and under all conditions.
Other than the relationship with Him, every relationship and every
friendship is perishable. As for the bond of fidelity to the Holy Prophet
is concerned, that too is, in reality, connected with Allah - and not
separated. In the last sentence of the verse, the sinceremost friends
and fellows of Muslims have been identified as those who are true
Muslims - not simply Muslims in name. They have three qualities
which mark them out. These are:
الَّذِيْنَ يُقِيمُوْنَ الصَّلْوَةَ وَيُؤْتُونَ الزَّكُوةَ وَهُمْ رُكِعُوْنَ
Those who establish Salah and pay Zakah and bow before
Allah.

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It means that they: (1) Fulfill the obligation of Salah punctually ob-
serving all etiquettes ('Adab)and conditions (Shara'it) which must be
observed in it; (2) Pay Zakah out of their wealth; and (3) they are hum-
ble and modest and never become proud and arrogant over their good
deeds.
The word, Ruku' in the concluding statement of this verse (55) : ',
3's; translated as 'those who bow before Allah' could be taken in more
than one sense. Therefore, some of the leading commentators have
said that Ruku' refers to the functional Ruku' (bowing position) at this
place - which is a basic element (Rukn : pillar) of Salah. And the sen-
tence: 32'S3 %} (and those who bow before Allah) has been placed after:
Hans:22a' (those who establish Salah) because the purpose is to distin-
guish the Salah of Muslims from the prayer offered by others. As for
the essential prayer which Muslims call Salah is something the Jews
and Christians also do, but it has no Ruku' in it. Ruku' is a distinctive
element of the Islamic prayer known as Salah. (Mazhari)
But, the majority of commentators says that Ruku' at this place
does not mean the technical Ruku' of Salah. Rather, it means to bow, to
be modest and humble in the lexical sense. Abu Hayyan in Tafsir al-
Bahr al-Muhit and Al-Zamakhshari in Tafsir al-Kashshaf have gone by
this meaning. The same view has been adopted in Tafsir Mazhari and
Tafsir Bayan al-Qur'an. Thus, the meaning of this sentence comes to
be that these people do not feel proud of their good deeds; their natural
disposition is, rather, modesty and humility.
It appears in some narrations that this sentence has been revealed
about Sayyidna 'Ali ae Uly, in the background of a particular event.
It is said that Sayyidna 'Ali was busy making Salah on a certain day.
When he bowed in Ruku', someone needy turned up and asked for
something. He, within that state of Ruku', took out a ring from one of
his fingers and tossed it towards him. He could have taken care of the
need of this person after having finished his Salah, but he did not wish
to make even that much of a delay in removing the need of a poor fa-
qir. This act of 'racing towards good deeds' was pleasing in the sight of
Almighty Allah and it was through this sentence that it was appreciat-
ed.
The Sanad or authority of this narration is a debated issue among

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'Ulama and Muhaddith in, but, should this narration be taken as cor-
rect or sound, it would essentially mean that deserving of the close
friendship of Muslims are common Muslims who fulfill the obligations
of Salah and Zakah particularly and regularly - and among them, Sayy-
idna 'Ali is specially more deserving of this friendship - as has been
مَنْ : in another authentic Hadith صلى الله عليه وسلم said by the Holy Prophet
pfuwir && (To whomever I am a friend, then, 'Ali too is a friend of
his) (narrated by Ahmad, as in Mazhari). In yet another hadith, the Holy
Prophet نت has been reported to have said :ُاَللَّهُمَّ وَالِ مَنُ وَالَاهْ وَعَادٍ مَنُ عَادَاه (O Al-
lah, befriend whoever befriends him and take as enemy whoever
shows enmity to him).
Perhaps, Sayyidna 'Ali as Ul y, has been blessed with this honour
because the Fitnah to appear in the future was unveiled before him
and he knew that there will be people who will nurse enmity with him
and will not hesitate in even rising in rebellion against him - as it did
happen during the uprising of the Khawarij.
Anyway, the revelation of the present verse - even if it is related to
this event - is worded in a general sense which includes all Compan-
ions of the Prophet, and all Muslims. This is not particular to any one
individual under a specific command. Therefore, when someone asked
Sayyidna Imam Baqar: "Do the words: [&igeni (those who believe) in
this verse mean Sayyidna 'All as Ul ,?" He said: "He too, as included
under 'believers', is within the purview of this verse."
People of Allah shall prevail ultimately
The next verse (56) gives the good news that such people will over-
come the world as come forward in obedience to the Qur'anic injunc-
tions given in this verse and stay away from forging close friendship
with others by limiting themselves to taking Allah, His Messenger and
those who have faith in them as their genuine friends. The words of
the verse are:
وَمَنْ تَتَوَلَّ اللهَ وَرَسُوْلَةُ وَالَّذِينَ أُمَنُوْا فَإِنَّ حِزُبَ اللَّهِ هُمُ الْغُلِبُوْنَ
And whoever takes Allah and His Messenger and those who
believe as friends, then, the People of Allah, are the ones to
prevail.
In other words, it is said here that those who obey the commands

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of Allah are the People of Allah. Given to them is the good news that
they will be the ones to finally overcome. The events which unfolded
later on confirmed the veracity of this statement when everyone saw
that the noble Companions, may Allah be pleased with them all, over-
came all powers which threatened them. When internal rebellions
challenged Sayyidna Abu Bakr, Allah Almighty helped him prevail
over all of them. When the towering powers of Ceaser and Cyrus mar-
shalled their menacing might against Sayyidna 'Umar al-Faruq, Allah
Almighty effaced them from the face of the earth. Then, as long as
these injunctions were dutifully observed by the Khulafa' and Muslims
at large who came after them - by abstaining from establishing close
bonds of friendship with non-Muslims - they had always remained
winners in the struggle of life.
The Prohibition of Friendship with those
who make fun of Islam
In the sixth verse (57), Allah Almighty has again stressed upon the
injunction mentioned in verse 51 at the beginning of the Section, the
sense of which is that the Muslims should not seek close friendship
with people who make fun of their religion. They can be divided in two
groups: The People of the Book, that is, the Jews and the Christians;
and the disbelievers and non-Muslims in general. In al-Bahr al-Muhit,
Imam Abu Hayyan says that the People of the Book were already in-
cluded under the word, Kuffar or disbelievers, still, the People of the
Book have been mentioned here particularly perhaps, because the Peo-
ple of the Book were, though, closer to Islam as compared with other
disbelievers, yet, experience bears that very few from among them em-
braced Islam. This is the reason why a look into the statistics of those
who embraced Islam after the age of prophethood and during the peri-
od later to it, will reveal that the majority of them were from among
the common disbelievers. The number of those who became Muslims
from among the People of the Book will be much lower.
Why would that be so? The reason is simple. The People of the
Book take pride in being adherents to Divine Faith and Divine
Scripture. This proud partisanship made them opt for not accepting
the Truth. The attitude of mockery against Muslims was something
that they displayed most. When mockery becomes wickedness, things

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much lower can happen, as would be illustrated by an episode
mentioned in the eighth (58) verse in the following words: 112250 1515
And when you call for Salah, they take it in jest and) الصَّلَوةِ اتَّخَذُوُهَا هُزُوًا وَّلَعِبًا
fun). Tafsir Mazhari, with reference to Ibn Abi Hatim, reports the
event itself by saying that there was a Christian in Madinah
al-tayyibah. When he heard the words : J pg gill (I testify that
Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah) in the Adhan (call for prayer),
he used to say: اخْرَقَ اللهُ الْكَاذِب (May Allah burn the liar). At last, this very
remark made by him became the cause of his entire family burn to
ashes. How this happened was commonplace. When he was sleeping,
his servant entered the house with a little fire for some purpose. A
speck from it flew out and fell down on some piece of cloth. When
everybody was fast asleep, the speck had turned into a blaze and
everybody was burnt to death.
The Tragedy of People who do not Understand
At the end of the verse (58), it was said: ◌َذُلِكَ بِانَهُمْ قَوٌْ لا يَعْقِلُون (That is be-
cause they are a people who do not understand). It means that the
reason for their jest and fun being directed against what is True Faith
could be no other but that they do not understand.
Qadi Thanaullah of Pani Pat has said in Tafsir Mazhari that Allah
Almighty calls them devoid of understanding although their reason
and intelligence in worldly matters is well known. From here we learn
that it is possible that one could be very smart and quick-witted in cer-
tain kinds of jobs, but when it comes to doing some other things, he ei-
ther does not use his mind or his mind does not work in that direction.
Therefore, he turns out to be dumb in it, like one who does not under-
stand. The Holy Qur'an has referred to this subject in another verse
as follows:
يَعْلَمُوْنَ ظَاهِرًا مِنَ الْحَيُوةِ الدُّنْيَا وَهُمْ عَنِ الْآخِرَةِ هُمُ غْفِلُونَ
These people do know outward matters of the present life
while they are heedless to the Hereafter. (30:7)
Verses 59 - 61
قُلُ يَاهُلَ الْكِتُبِ هَلْ تَنْقِمُونَ مِنَّا إِلَّ انُّ أُمَّا بِاللهِ وَمَا أُنْزِلَ
إِلَيْنَا وَمَا أُنْزِلَ مِنْ قَبُلُ وَأَنَّ اكْتَرَكُمْ فُسِقُونَ ﴿٥٩﴾ قُلُ هَلُ

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Surah Al-Ma'idah : 5 : 59 - 61
أُنَِّئُكُمْ بِشَرِّ قِنْ ذُلِكَ مَتُوْبَةً عِنْدَ اللَّهِ مَنْ لَّعَنَهُ اللَّهُ وَغَضِبَ
عَلَيْهِ وَجَعَلَ مِنْهُمُ الْفِرَدَةَ وَالْتَنَازِيُرَ وَعَبَدَ الطَّانُوَتَ أُولَئِكَ
شَُّ مَكَانًا وَاَضَلُّ عَنُ سَوَاءِ السَّبِيْلِ ﴿٦﴾ وَإِذَا جَاءُ وُكُمْ
قَالُؤَّا أمَنَا وَقَدُ دَّخَلُوا بِالْكُفْرِ وَهُمُ قَدْ خَرَبُوا بِهِ* وَاللَّهُ أَعْلَمُ
بِمَا كَانُوا يَكْتُمُوْنَ ﴿١١﴾
Say, "O People of the Book, do you accuse us only be-
cause we have believed in Allah and in what has been
sent down to us and what has been sent down earlier,
and because most of you are sinners?" [59]
Say, "Should I (not) tell you what is worse than that in
its recompense with Allah? (The way of ) the one whom
Allah has subjected to His curse and to His wrath, and
made some of them apes and swines, and who has wor-
shipped the Taghut (Satan, the Rebel). Those are worse
situated and far more astray from the straight path."
[60]
And when they come to you they say, "We have entered
Faith" while they entered with disbelief and with it
they went out. And Allah knows best what they used to
conceal. [61]
Commentary
Referring to the Jews and Christians in: 33 2g (most of you are
sinners) at the end of the first verse, 'most' - not 'all'- of them have
been declared to be outside the fold of Faith. The reason for this is
that they did have people among them who remained believers under
وصلى الله عليه وسلم all conditions. Before the coming of the Holy Prophet
they followed the injunctions of the Torah and Injil and believed in
them. When the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم came and the Qur'an was
revealed, they believed in him too and started following the injunc-
tions of the Qur'an.
Consideration of the Addressee : A Principle of Da wah
The condition of a people who were under the curse and wrath of
Allah has been introduced through a similitude in the next verse (60)

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Surah Al-Ma'idah : 5 : 62 - 63
which begins with :6' [Should I (not) tell you ... ]. In fact, this
condition applied to these very addressees. The occasion demanded
that they should have been the ones to be directly charged with the
blame. But, the Qur'an has changed the mode of direct address into
the form of a similitude (to show consideration). This shows us a dis-
tinctive method of Da'wah (Call) as used by prophets, that is, never
say things in a manner which makes the addressees angry.
Verses 62 - 63
وَتَرَى كَثِيْرًا ◌ِّنُهُمْ يُسَارِعُونَ فِى الْإِثْمِ وَالْعُدْوَانِ وَ آَكْلِهِمْ
السُّحُتَ لَبِتُسَ مَاكَانُوا يَعُمَلُونَ ﴿٦٢﴾ لَوْ لَا يَنْهُهُمُ الَّتْنِيُّونَ
وَالْأَحْبَارُ عَنْ قَوْلِهِمُ الْإِثْمَ وَآَكْلِهِمُ السُُّتَ لَبِئْسَ مَاكَانُوْا
يَصْنَعُونَ ﴿٦٣﴾
And you see many of them racing towards sin, and
aggression, and their eating of the unlawful. Indeed,
evil is what they have been doing. [62]
Why do the Men of the Lord and the Men of Knowledge
not forbid them from their saying of the sinful and eat-
ing of the unlawful? Indeed, evil is what they have
been doing. [63]
Commentary
The Moral Loss of Jews
In the first verse (62) cited above, mentioned there is the moral dep-
ravation and self-destructive attitude of many Jews so that people who
know that may take a lesson and stay away from such deeds, as well
as from causes that lead to them.
Though, this was generally the condition of Jews, but they also had
some good people among them. It is to exclude them that the Qur'an
has used the word: ['& 'kath iran' (many). As for aggression and eating
of the unlawful, these are though included under the sense of 'sin', yet
they have been particularly mentioned, distinctly, in order to lay em-
phasis on the ruin these two kinds of sins bring on one and all. (Al-Bahr
Al-Muķīț)

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According to Ruh al-Ma'ani, by using the expression 'racing to-
wards sin' about these people, the Holy Qur'an has given the hint that
they are chronic subjects of these evil traits and the evil deeds they do
have become fixed habits with them, so ingrained that they
(automatically) move in that direction, even without intention.
This tells us that a good or bad deed when done many times re-
peatedly becomes a part and parcel of the inmost being of a person, al-
most a skill or drive or a fixed habit, after which, there remains no ex-
ertion or hesitation in doing what one does. This was the limit
reached by Jews in pursuing their evil traits. To highlight it, it was
said : يُسَارِعُونَ فِى الْأِثُم (They race towards sin). The same thing applies to
prophets and men of Allah in the case of their good traits. About them
too, the Holy Qur'an has used the same expression when it says: 335
oil ( They race towards good deeds - 3:114).
The Correction of Deeds
Of those who have laid the greatest emphasis on the correction of
deeds, the foremost are the respected Sufis (spiritual masters) and the
men of Allah. These blessed souls have deduced from these very say-
ings of the Qur'an the significant principle that all human deeds, good
or bad, really come from ingrained habits and morals which ultimately
become man's second nature. Therefore, when they wish to check,
modify or dilute the recurrence of evil deeds, they keep these ingrained
habits in sight. Thus, when they correct these, all deeds that issue
forth start coming out right. Let us take the example of a person
whose heart is overwhelmingly filled with greed for worldly acquisi-
tions. As a result of this greed, he takes bribes, and devours income
from interest, and if, given the opportunity, things could also reach the
limits of theft and robbery. Instead of correcting these crimes separ-
ately, the spiritual masters use one masterly prescription which could
cause the very foundation of these crimes razed to the ground - and
that is the realization of the mortality of the world and the poisoned
nature of its luxuries.
Similarly, if someone suffers from overweaning pride or arrogance
or anger, and he belittles or insults others, or quarrels with friends
and neighbours, these blessed souls will use the same prescription, the
prescription with ingredients of the concern for the life-to-come and
!