Indexed OCR Text

334
Surah Al-Mu'minun : 23 : 101 - 115
prevailed over us, and we were a people wandering
astray. [106] O our Lord, get us out from here; if we do
this again, then of course, we will be transgressors."
[107] He (Allah) will say, "Stay in it, humiliated, and do
not speak to Me" [108] There was indeed a group of My
servants who used to say, "Our Lord, we adhere to the
(true) faith, so forgive us and have mercy upon us, and
you are the best of all the merciful." [109] But you made
fun of them, so much so that they caused you to forget
My remembrance, and you used to laugh at them. [110] I
have given them today, for their observing patience, the
recompense that they are the only ones who are
victorious.' [111]
He (Allah) will say, "How long did you stay on the earth
by number of years?" [112] They will say, "We stayed for
a day or for a part of a day." So, ask the ones who
count. [113] He will say, "You did not stay but for a little.
Would that you have understood (this at that time)!
[114] So did you think that We created you for nothing
and that you will not be brought back to Us?" [115]
Commentary
فَإِذَا أُنُفِخَ فِى الصُّوُرِ فَلَآ أَنْسَابَ بَيْنَهُمُ
Thereafter, when the Sur (the trumpet) is blown, there are no
ties of kinship between them, - 23:101.
On the Day of Judgment the ,y (trumpet) will be sounded twice. The
result of the first sound will be that everything - the earth, the skies and
every living thing in between will perish and when the second sound is
given, every dead thing will come back to life. This is clearly mentioned in
the Qur'an in the verse ◌َثُمَّ نُفِخَ فِيهِ أُخرى فَإِذَا هُمْ قِيَامٌ يَنْظُرُون (Then it shall be blown
again, and lo! They shall stand beholding - 39:68). There is difference of
opinion whether in the present verse the reference is to the first call or to
the second call. According to Ibn Jubair Sayyidna Ibn 'Abbas
thought
that it refers to the first call. On the other hand Sayyidna 'Abdullah Ibn
Mas'ud 4
says that reference here is to second call and, according to
'Ata' Ul >, as Sayyidna 'Abbas
also supports this view and which
has also been adopted in Tafsir Mazhari. Sayyidna 'Abdullah Ibn Mas'ud
says that on the Day of Judgment every man and woman will be
assembled in the gathering place (c) where a herald appointed by

335
Surah Al-Mu'minun : 23 : 101 - 115
Allah will identify each person by his name and his father's name and
invite any one from amongst those present who has a claim against him
to come forward and receive it. This proclamation will please everyone - a
father having a claim against his son, a wife having a claim against her
husband, a sister having a claim against her brother (and vice versa) -
and they will all come forward to receive their dues. The present verse
describes this situation: 4% Sull 5% (There are no ties of kinship between
them - 23:101). The same situation has been described in the verse A ("
Upon the day when a man shall flee from his) الْمَرُءُ مِنْ آَخِيْهِ وَأُمِّهِ وَاَبِيْهِ وَصَاحِبَتِهِ وَبَنِيْهِ
brother, his mother, his father, his consort, his sons, - 80:34).
Difference between the condition of believers and infidels in
mahshar (gathering place on the Day of Judgement)
The condition described above will apply to the unbelievers only who
in their selfishness will abandon their dear and near relatives. As for the
believers, Allah has said 4433 ÚJi (We shall join their seed with them.
- 52:21) which means that the children of good Muslims, if they themselves
are believers also, will be united with their parents. According to a hadith
the Holy Prophet
said, "On the Day of Judgment when everybody will
be dry with thirst, Muslim children who had died as minors will come out
carrying water from Paradise, and when people will ask them for it, they
will reply that water is for their parents only whom they are searching".
The gist of this discussion is that whereas in the case of infidels no one
will be of any help to each other nor will anyone recognize the dear ones
in mahshar, the case of Muslim will be exactly the opposite. The believers
will help each other and will also intercede for other Muslims.
There is also a hadith which Ibn 'Asakir has related on the authority
of Sayyidna 'Umar 4
e in which the Holy Prophet
said, "On the Day of
Judgment all relationships arising out of a common ancestry or from
marriage ties will be severed except in my own case." Scholars have
interpreted this verse to mean that all the Muslims of the Ummah of the
Holy Prophet & are part of his family, because he is the father of the
Ummah and his wives are the mothers.
nor will they question one another - 23:101). However their) وَلاَ يَتَسَآءَ لُونَ
is another verse ◌َوَأَقْبَلَ بَعْضُهُمُ عَلى بَعْضِ يَّتَسَاءَ لُون (And advance one upon another,
asking each other question - 37:27). Discussing this latter verse Sayyidna
Ibn 'Abbas 46 says that in mahshar there will be different stations, and

336
Surah Al-Mu'minun : 23 : 101 - 115
the conditions in each station will be different. There will be a time when
nobody will speak to anybody, but in another station when the terror
which earlier overwhelmed the gathering abates, people will converse
with one another. (Mazhari)
فَمَنْ ثَقُلَتْ مَوَازِيْنُهُ، فَأُولَئِكَ هُمُ الْمُفْلِحُونَ ﴿١٠٢﴾ وَمَنُ خَفَّتُ مَوَازِيْنُهُ، فَأُولَئِكَ
الَّذِيْنَ خَسِرُوَ انْفُسَهُمْ فِىُ جَهَنَّمَ خُلِّدُونَ ﴿١٠٣)
So, the one whose scales (of good deeds) turn out to be heavy,
then such people are the successful ones, [102] and the one
whose scales turn out to be light, then such people are the ones
who harmed their own selves; in Jahannam (Hell) they are to
remain for ever. (23: 102, 103)
In this verse there is a comparison between perfect Muslims and the
infidels and their deeds and the end which awaits them. There is further
evidence in the Qur'an that in the case of perfect Muslims the pan in
which evil deeds are placed for balancing will be totally empty, whereas in
the case of unbelievers the pan in which the good deeds are placed will be
empty. At another place the Qur'an says فَلاَ نُقِيمُ لَهُمُ يَوْمَ الْقِيمَةِ وَزْنًا (We shall not
assign to them any weight - 18:105) meaning that on the Day of
Judgement, the infidels or their deeds will carry no weight. This is so far
as the perfect Muslims and the infidels are concerned. As for the Muslims
who have committed sins and whose good deeds and evil deeds will be
placed in the two pans of the scale for weighing, there is no specific
mention about them in the Qur'an which is, in general, silent about the
punishment and reward of erring Muslims. Perhaps the reason for this is
that during the period when the Qur'an was being revealed, all the
Companions were upright men and generally free from major sins, but if
somebody committed a sin incidentally, he repented and was forgiven by
Allah. (Mazharī)
There is a verse of the Qur'an which deals with people who have a
mixed bag of good and evil deeds (خَلَطُوا عَمَلاً صَالِحًا وَاخَرَسَيَّنًا) (They had mixed
a good deed with another that was evil - 9:102). Sayyidna 'Abbas 4
says
about such people that if their good deeds exceed their bad deeds, even by
a single deed they will go to Paradise and if their evil deeds exceed their
good by a single deed, they would go to Hell. But a believer Muslim will
be sent to Hell for the purpose of purification only just as gold and iron
and other metals are subjected to heating process to remove their

337
Surah Al-Mu'minun : 23 : 101 - 115
impurities and as soon as they are purged of their sins, they will be
admitted to Paradise. Also according to Sayyidna 'Abbas 4ee on the Day of
Judgment the weighing scale will be so precise and finely tuned that it
will be tipped by a grain of rye and a man whose good and bad deeds are
of equal weight in the scale will join ◌ِأصْحَابُ الْأعْرَاف (People of A'raf) and
spend a while between heaven and hell waiting for a decision, but
ultimately he too would go to Paradise (Ibn Abi Hatim, Mazhari). The above
story of Sayyidna 'Abbas
deals only with believers who have
committed sins, and makes no mention of unbelievers.
How will the deeds be weighed?
There are different versions about the method for the weighing of
deeds, and all of them are derived from hadith. One version is that the
believers and the infidels will be weighed bodily in the scale of justice and
the infidel will not be able to tilt the scale however obese and corpulent he
may be (Bukhari and Muslim, quoting Abu Hurairah). Another version says that
the scrolls on which their deeds are recorded will be weighed. Tirmidhi,
Ibn Majah, Ibn Hayyan have taken this version from Sayyidna 'Abdullah
Ibn 'Umar 4
. And according to a third version a man's deeds which
were weightless and intangible in this world, will be made solid on the
Day of Judgment and will be placed on the scales and weighed. Țabrani
has related this version from the Holy Prophet
on the authority of
Sayyidna Ibn 'Abbas 40. The words and the text of all these hadiths are
given in full in Tafsir Mazhari which may be consulted if required. Abdur
Razzaq has quoted a hadith in his book under the chapter on J j
(the merits of knowledge) on the authority of Ibrahim Nakhai which
supports the just preceded version. This version has it that on the Day of
Judgment a person's deeds will be brought for weighing and when placed
in the pan, they will fail to tilt it. Then something resembling clouds will
be brought and put in the pan of good deeds which will then weigh down.
The man will then be asked what was it that lent weight to the pan of his
good deeds, but he will express his ignorance. Then he will be informed
that the object in question was his learning which he used to impart to
other people. Dhahabi has included a hadith in J Jas which he heard
from Sayyidna 'Imran Ibn Husain 40 that the Holy Prophet
said, "On
the Day of Judgment the blood of the martyrs will be weighed against the
ink of scholars (with which they wrote books on the science of religion)

338
Sūrah Al-Mu'minun : 23 : 101 - 115
and the latter will be heavier than the former." (Mazhari) After giving the
above mentioned versions about the weighing of deeds, Tafsir Mazhari
says that it is not wholly inconceivable that man himself and his deeds
may be weighed physically or that he and his record of deeds may be
weighed together. Thus there is no inconsistency in these three versions.
And they will be disfigured therein - 23:104). The word) وَهُمْ فِيْهَا كْلِحُونَ
JU is used for a person whose lips do not meet and leave his teeth fully
exposed, which looks very ugly. It is said that the upper lip of a person
consigned to Hell will be drawn up and his lower lip will be drawn down
so that his teeth will remain visible at all times.
Do not speak to Me - 23:108). According to Hasan al-Basri) وَلاَ تُكْلِّمُونِ
these will be the last words of the people who are cast in hell and in reply
Allah will say, "Do not speak to Me." After this they will not be able to
speak like human beings, but will make animal sounds to each other.
Baihaqi and others have quoted Muhammad Ibn Ka'b as saying that the
Qur'an mentions five requests made by the people condemned to hell. Out
of the five, replies were furnished to four, but in reply to the fifth Allah
commanded them not to speak to Him. Thus these are the last words to be
uttered by them after which they will not be able to speak. (Mazhari)
Verses 116 - 118
فَتَغَلَى اللهُ الْمَلِكُ الْحَقُّ ◌َ لَآ إِلَّهَ إِلَّ هُوَ ◌ٌ رَبُّ الْعَرْشِ الْكَرِيْمِ
﴿١١٢ ) وَمَنُ يَّدْعُ مَعَ اللهِ إِلَّهًا آخَرَ" لَا بُرُهَانَ لَهُ بِه " فَإِنَّمَا حِسَابُهُ
عِنْدَ رَبِّه ◌ِنَّ لَا يُفْلِحُ الْكُفِرُوْنَ ﴿١١٧) وَقُلْ رَّبِّ اغْفِرُ وَارْحَمُ وَأَنْتَ
خَيْرُ الرَّحِمِيْنَ ﴿١١٨﴾
So, High above all is Allah, the King, the True. There is
no god but He, the Lord of the Noble Throne. [116] And
whoever invokes another god with Allah, while he has
no proof for it, his reckoning lies with his Lord. Surely,
the infidels will not achieve success. [117] And say (O
prophet) 'My Lord, forgive and have mercy and you are
the best of all the merciful.' [118]

339
Surah Al-Mu'minun : 23 : 101 - 115
Commentary
The last few verses of this Surah Al-Mu'minun from verse 115 to verse
118 have special merit. Baghawi and Tha'labi have related from Sayyidna
Ibn Mas'ud .
that he came across a person who was very ill. He recited
the above verses into the sick man's ears and he was cured immediately.
The Holy Prophet > asked him what he had whispered in the sick man's
ears to which Sayyidna 'Abdullah Ibn Mas'ud
replied that he had
recited these verses (115 to 118) in his ears. Thereupon the Holy Prophet
said, "I swear by Him Who has power over my life that if a person
with genuine faith were to recite these verses on a mountain, the
mountain itself may move from its place". (Qurtubi and Mazhari)
My Lord, forgive and have mercy - 23:118). Here the) رَبِّ اغْفِرُ وَارُحَمُ
object of the forgiveness and having mercy has not been mentioned. What
is there to be forgiven and to whom is mercy to be shown? And this seems
to suggest a general prayer for forgiveness which would include
deliverance from harm and suffering, and a general prayer for mercy
which would include the grant of every wish. Since protection from bodily
harm and acquisition of legitimate gains is the object of all human
activity, this prayer covers both these aspects. (Mazhari) And the reason
why the Holy Prophet
was commanded to recite this prayer of
forgiveness and mercy, even tough he is impeccable, is to impress upon
his followers the special merit of this prayer. (Qurtubi)
Surah Al-Mu'minun began with the verse ◌َقَدُ أَفْلَحَ الْمُؤْمِنُون (Success is
really attained by the believers - 23:1) and ends with ◌َإِنَّ لاَ يُفْلِحُ الْكُفِرُون (Surely,
the infidels will not achieve success - 23:117) which shows that success will
come to believers only and that the unbelievers will have no share of it.
Alhamdulillah
The Commentary on
Surah Al-Mu'minun
Ends here.

343
Surah An-Nur : 24 : 1 - 2
Surah An-Nur
(The Light)
Surah An-Nur was revealed in Madinah and it has 64 Verses and 9 sections
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم
With the name of Allah, the All-Merciful, the Very-Merciful
Verses 1 - 2
سُوْرَةٌ أَنْزَلْتُهَا وَفَرَضُنْهَا وَاَنْزَلْنَا فِيُهَا أَيْتٍ "بَيّنْتٍ لَّعَلَّكُمْ تَذَكَّرُوْنَ
الزَّانِيَةُ وَالزَّانِىُ فَاجُلِدُوا كُلَّ وَاحِدٍ مِّنْهُمَا مِائَةَ جَلْدَةٌٍ وَّلاَ
تَأْخُذُكُمُ بِهِمَا رَأْقَةٌ فِىْ دِيْنِ اللهِ إِنْ كُنْتُمْ تُؤْمِنُونَ بِاللُّهِ وَالْيَوْمِ
الْآخِرِّ وَلْيَشْهَدُ عَذَابَهُمَا طَآئِفَةٌ مِّنَ الْمُؤُمِنِينَ ﴿٢﴾
This is a Surah We have sent down and prescribed and
sent down in it clear signs, so that you may receive the
advice. [1]
The fornicating woman and the fornicating man, flog
each one of them with one hundred stripes. And no pity
for them should withhold you from (complying with)
Allah's religion, if you really believe in Allah and the
Last Day. And a group of believers must witness their
punishment. [2]
Some Characteristics of this Surah
This Surah generally deals with those rules of Shari ah which aim at
preserving chastity and enjoin hijab for women. These rules end up with
the punishment prescribed for zina (adultery or fornication). The previous
Surah (Al-Mu'minun) had spelt out the basic qualities necessary for
attainment of success in this world and in the Hereafter. One of these
qualities was to guard one's private parts against illicit sexual acts (verse

344
Surah An-Nur : 24 : 1 - 2
4 of that Surah). Now the present Surah describes the detailed rules
meant to acquire this quality. That is why the women are especially
directed to learn this Surah. Sayyidna 'Umar 4
issued a directive to
people of Kufah in which he advised them to teach Surah An-Nur to
women.
Commentary
The first verse of this Surah is introductory preface to put extra
emphasis to the commands given in it. The very first command after that
is regarding punishment for adultery, which has a direct bearing on the
intent of the Surah - that is to preserve chastity, even of the eyes. The
subjects of control on casting eyes and not to enter houses without
permission are to follow soon. Commitment of adultery is the ultimate
outcome when one ignores all types of prudence against continence and is
an open rebellion against Divine precepts. Therefore, the punishment for
adultery in Islam is most severe as compared to all other punishments
prescribed by the Qur'an for the crimes committed by human beings.
Adultery, being a big crime by itself, also brings along with it many other
crimes, the result of which is destruction of the entire social order. If the
causes of killings and atrocities are probed deeply, the majority of them
will appear to be caused due to illegitimate relationship with women. It is
for this reason that in order to eliminate completely this heinous crime, its
Islamic punishment has been described in the opening verses.
Adultery is a great crime and is a combination of many crimes.
That is why its punishment in Islam is very severe
The Holy Qur'an and mutawatir ahadith on their own have fixed the
punishments of four crimes. They are not left at the discretion of the
judge or the ruler. These punishments are called Hudud in the
terminology of Islamic jurisprudence. Apart from these, the punishment is
not fixed for other crimes, and the ruler or the judge can award the
punishment in accordance with the type of crime, the circumstances of the
criminal and the background in which the crime is committed, in order to
control the spread of crime as he feels best. Such punishments are known
as penal laws in Islamic jurisprudence. Islamic Hududs are four in
number:
(1). Stealing
(2). Leveling false accusation against chaste women.

345
Surah An-Nur : 24 : 1 - 2
(3). Drinking liquor
(4). Adultery
Each one of these crimes is very evil in its own right, and while
disturbing the peace and tranquility of the society contribute toward other
ills of the world at large. However, the ill effects and consequences of
adultery are so immense in their destruction of the human values that no
other crime can perhaps compete with it.
(1) Molestation of someone's wife, daughter or sister is nothing but his
destruction. For a noble man it is not as bad to lose all his material wealth
and belongings as to lose the chastity of his women folk. It is for this
reason that often we come across such incidents that people whose women
folk are molested get after the life of the molester without caring for their
own lives. This passion for revenge passes on to the generations and
results in the destruction of families after families.
(2) In a community where illicit sexual acts become rampant the
family lineage is lost. When the sanctity of relationship with mother,
daughter and sister is vanished, with whom the marriage is forbidden,
then one can marry them as well, which is even a greater crime than
adultery.
(3) If we analyze the causes of disorder and disturbance the world
over, we will note that in most cases the root cause is woman and to a
lesser degree the wealth. Only those rules can guarantee the worldly
peace which safeguard the woman and wealth in a befitting manner and
do not allow them to cross the appointed limits. It is not the intention to
highlight here the ills and evils of adultery. The points mentioned above
are enough for the human society to know the destructive ills of this act.
This is why Islam has fixed the punishment of adultery as more severe
than the punishments of all other crimes. The punishment has been
described in the verse in the following words:
الزَّانِيَةُ وَالزَّانِىْ فَاجُلِدُوا كُلَّ وَاحِدٍ مِّنْهُمَا مِائَةَ جَلْدَةٍ
The fornicating woman and the fornicating man, flog each one
of them with one hundred stripes - 24:2.
First the fornicating woman is mentioned and then the fornicating
man. The punishment for both is the same. The common practice about

346
Surah An-Nur : 24 : 1 - 2
injunctions is that mostly the command is conveyed by addressing the
men-folk only and the women are included in that by implication. It is not
regarded necessary that they be addressed separately. In the whole of
Qur'an masculine gender is used for passing the injunctions through the
phrase لاَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا and women-folk are regarded as included in that.
Perhaps the wisdom is that as Allah Ta'ala has ordained the women-folk
to keep themselves covered, in the same way their mention is kept covert
in the context of mankind. But here there was a possibility that some
might have the confusion that all these injunctions relate to men only and
the women are free from them. Therefore, in some specific verses the
women-folk are also mentioned alongside separately like in the verse 5451
Moreover, where both men and women are to be .(33:33) الصَّلوةَ وَاتِيُنَ الزَّكوةَ
mentioned then the natural order is that first the men are mentioned and
then women. In the case of punishment for stealing, the same order is
-
maintained in the injunction السَّارِقُ وَالسَّارِقَةُ فَاقْطَعُوًا أَيْدِيَهُمَا (As for a man or
woman who commits theft, cut off the hands of both - 5:38) where the
male thief is mentioned first and then the female thief. But in the case of
punishment for adultery only an incidental mention of women was not
considered enough, instead a specific reference was regarded necessary.
Secondly, mention of the women is given priority over men. There are
many points of wisdom in this. First, the women are regarded weaker sex
and compassionable for their physique; if they were not mentioned
specifically, one could have had the misgiving that perhaps the women
are exempt from this punishment. The mention of woman is preceded
because the act of adultery is so impudent that its commitment from her
side could be carried out only by extreme fearlessness and carelessness,
because the nature has bestowed in her character instinctive shyness and
an urge to guard her chastity. The nature has provided many a things for
the safety of women. Hence commitment of fornication from her side is
more grave than from man. As against this, in the case of theft it is a
bigger crime for men who are bestowed with strength by Allah Ta'ala, so
that they earn their living from the bounty He has provided. The man is
required to take advantage of Allah's bounty by working for the
sustenance and not stealing for the living, as this is a great shame and
sin for him. Since the women do not have the same circumstances, if they
commit theft their crime will be of a lesser degree as compared to that of
men.

347
Surah An-Nur : 24 : 1 - 2
gul; t (24:2) Meaning of the word als is to hit with the whip, and it is
derived from the word ' (leather). As the whip is normally made of
leather, some commentators have suggested that by the use of word as it
is alluded that the strike of the whip should be so moderate that it should
be felt only within the skin and not deeper into the flesh. The Holy
Prophet
had himself urged that the punishment of whipping be
exercised with moderation, so that neither it is so hard that it tears off the
flesh nor so mild that it does not hurt at all. On this point some
commentators have reproduced ahadith of the Holy Prophet
with their
chain of narrators.
The punishment of whipping a hundred times is exclusive to
unmarried man and woman. For married persons the punishment
is stoning to death
This point is worth noting that the injunctions on adultery were
revealed gradually and moved on from a lighter punishment to a more
severe one, like the gradual prohibition of alcohol which is mentioned in
the Qur'an itself, the details of which have been described earlier. The
very first injunction on adultery is the one given in verses 15 and 16 of
Surah An-Nisa', which is:
وَالْتِى يَأْتِيْنَ الْفَاحِشَةَ مِنْ نِسَآئِكُمْ فَاسْتَشْهِدُوْا عَلَيْهِنَّ أَرْبَعَةٌ مِّنْكُمُّ فَإِنْ شَهِدُوْا
فَمُسِكُوْ هُنَّ فِى الْبُيُوتِ حَتَّى يَتَوَفْهُنَّ الْمَوْثُ أَوْ يَجْعَلَ اللهُ لَهُنَّ سَبِيْلاً. وَالَّذَانِ
يَأْتِهَا مِنْكُمُ فَأُذُوُهُمَاتٌ فَإِنُ تَابَا وَأَصُلَحًا فَاعْرِضُوا عَنْهُمَاءُ إِنَّ اللَّهَ كَانَ تَوَّابًا رَّحِيمًا.
And those of your women who commit the shameful act, then
have four witnesses against them from among you. So, if they
do testify, then confine those women to their homes until death
overcomes them or Allah prescribes a way for them. [15] And
those two of you who commit it, torture them both. But if they
repent and amend, turn away from them. Surely, Allah is
Most-Relenting, Very-Merciful. (4:15, 16)
Detailed commentary and explanation of the above two verses is given
under Surah An-Nisa'. They are repeated here so that preliminary stage
of the punishment of fornication is kept in mind. In these verses the proof
for establishing adultery is described with a specific condition of having
four male witnesses. Secondly, punishment for the woman is prescribed as
to confine her within the home and for both of them inflicting of harm. At
the same time it is also hinted that this was not the final injunction on

348
Surah An-Nur : 24 : 1 - 2
adultery and that some more directives will follow. This is the meaning of
.(4:15 - or Allah prescribes a way for them) أَوْ يَجُعَلَ اللهُ لَهُنَّ سَبِيلاً
In the above referred punishment confinement of the women within
the homes was regarded sufficient at that time, and causing harm to both
as enough punishment. But the limit, the magnitude and the form of
harm to be inflicted was not defined. Rather the wordings of the Qur'an
suggest that the initial punishment of adultery was only punitive, of
which the quantum was not fixed by the Shari'ah a ta'zir (a punishment
left to the discretion of a judge), but was left at the discretion of the ruler
or the judge. That is why the ambiguous phrase of inflicting harm or
torture was adopted. But at the same time it was hinted that probably
some other form of punishment for the culprits of the crime will be
introduced later by saying ◌ً4:15) أَوْ يَجْعَلَ اللّهُ لَهُنَّ سَبِيلا). When the present verse
of Surah an-Nur was revealed, Sayyidna 'Abdullah Ibn 'Abbas 4
said
that what was promised in Surah An-Nisa' through ◌ًأَوْ يَجْعَلَ اللَّهُ لَهُنَّ سَبِيلا "or
Allah prescribes a way for them", so now this verse of Surah an-Nur has
prescribed the way, that is flogging both man and woman with a hundred
stripes. And then Sayyidna 'Abdullah Ibn 'Abbas 4
e made the
punishment of hundred stripes exclusive to fornication, that is when the
crime is committed by unmarried man and woman, and said:
الرّجم للقيب والجلد للبکر
It is prescribed that if the married man and woman commit
this crime then they be stoned to death, and the punishment for
unmarried culprit is a hundred stripes. (Şahiņ Bukhari, Kitab
ut-Tafsir p. 657)
In the verse of Surah an-Nur under reference punishment for
adultery is given as a hundred stripes without qualification. So, it is
obvious that he must have found from some other authentic Hadith that
the punishment for adultery is stoning to death and for fornication a
hundred stripes, and that Hadith has been related by Sahib Muslim,
Musnad Ahmad, Sunnan Nasa'i, Abu Dawud, Tirmidhi and Ibn Majah
on the authority of Sayyidna 'Ubadah Ibn Samit 4
that the Holy
Prophet
said:
خذوا عنّى خذوا عنّى قد جعل الله لهنّ سبيلا، البكر بالبكر جلد مائة وتغريب عام،
والثّب بالغيّب جلد مائة والرّجم (ابن كثير)

349
Surah An-Nur : 24 : 1 - 2
Have knowledge from me, have knowledge from me that Allah
Ta'ala has prescribed now the 'way for women' (that He had
promised before), which is that for unmarried man and woman
is a hundred stripes and exile for one year, and for married man
and woman it is a hundred stripes and stoning.
Alongwith the punishment of a hundred stripes for the unmarried
man and woman prescribed in the an-Nur verse there is an additional
punishment mentioned in the Hadith to send the adulterer man in exile
for one year. On this there is a difference of opinion among jurists, that is
whether the punishment of exile to male adulterer is compulsory or it is at
the discretion of the judge - that is if he deems it necessary only then send
the criminal in exile also for one year. In the opinion of Imam A'zam Abu
Hanifah Jus di , this last referred position is correct, that is, it remains
at the discretion of the ruler or judge. Secondly, according to this Hadith
there is the punishment of a hundred stripes also for the married man
and woman before the stoning. But in accordance with other ahadith and
the actions of the Holy Prophet
and the first four Caliphs, it is
established that these two punishments are not to be combined.
Married persons are to be awarded the punishment of stoning only.
The main point to be noted in this Hadith is that the Holy Prophet
has
explained here the verse of Surah An-Nisa' ◌ًأَوْيَجْعَلَ اللَّهُ لَهُنَّ سَبِيلا (or Allah
prescribes a way for them) and while explaining he had added some more
points beside flogging a hundred stripes as stated in Surah an-Nur. These
points are:
1. - punishment of hundred stripes is exclusive to unmarried man and
woman.
2. - An addition of one year's exile.
3. - Rajm or stoning to death of married man and woman.
It is but obvious that the additions made by the Holy Prophet
in
the verse of Surah an-Nur was also on the command of Allah Ta'ala (4 3!
J#2 V (This is naught but a revelation revealed - 53:4). For the
Messenger, and for those who hear from him directly, both the revelations
which are recited in the form of Qur'an and those which are not recited
have equal sanctity. The Holy Prophet
himself had acted upon this
rule (punishment of stoning to married adulterer) in the presence of many

350
Surah An-Nur : 24 : 1 - 2
of his companions. He awarded the punishment of rajm or stoning to
Ma'iz and Ghamidiyyah which is recorded in all the books of traditions
with authentic authorities. Additionally, an incident is reported in the
authentic traditions books on the authority of Sayyidna Abu Hurairah
and Zaid Ibn Khalid Juhani Was d >> that an unmarried man
committed adultery with a married woman whose servant he was. The
father of the adulterer boy brought him before the Holy Prophet 5. The
incident was proved by his admission. Then the Holy Prophet
said:
that is I will adjudge your case according to the Book لا قضينّ بينكما بكتاب الله
of Allah. He then adjudicated that the unmarried adulterer boy be
flogged with a hundred stripes and the married woman is stoned, and
directed Sayyidna Unais
to execute the punishment, who took the
confessional statement of the woman, and then the punishment was
carried out on the orders of the Holy Prophet
(Ibn Kathir)
According to above tradition, the Holy Prophet
awarded the
punishment of hundred stripes to one criminal and of stoning to the other
and described them both as the judgment by the Book of Allah; although
in Surah An-Nur only the punishment of hundred stripes is indicated and
there is no mention of stoning. The reason is the same that Allah Ta'ala
had revealed to the Holy Prophet
the complete explanation and details
of the injunction which all fall within the purview of the Book of Allah,
although some of it is not included and mentioned in the Surah an-Nur
expressly. Bukhari and Muslim have recorded an address of Sayyidna
'Umar 4
on the authority of Ibn 'Abbas 4, the wordings of which are:
قال عمر بن الخطاب رضى الله عنه، وهو جالس على منبر رسول الله صلی الله
عليه وسلم: ان الله بعث محمدا صلى الله عليه وسلم بالحق وانزل عليه الكتاب،
فكان مما انزل الله عليه أية الرجم قرأناها وَ وعيناها وعقلناها، فرجم رسول الله
صلى الله عليه وسلم ورجمنا بعده، فاخشی ان طال بالناس زمان ان يقول قائل ما
نجد الرجم فى كتاب الله تعالى فيضلوا بترك فريضة انزلها الله، وان الرجم فى
کتاب الله حق على من زنا اذا احصن من الرّجال والنساء اذا قامت البينة او كان
الحبل او الاعتراف. (مسلم ص ٢٥°ج ٢)
Sayyidnā 'Umar Ibn Khattab
4
said while he was sitting on
the pulpit of the Holy Prophet
that Allah sent Muhammad
# with truth and revealed to him the Book. So, whatever is
revealed to him includes the verse of stoning ( ,) as well,

351
Surah An-Nur : 24 : 1 - 2
which we have read, memorized and understood. Now I fear
that with the passage of time one might say that we do not find
the injunction of rajm (stoning) in the Book of Allah, and hence
go astray by not following a religious obligation, which is
revealed by Allah. And be clear in your mind that the injunction
of stoning (rajm) is ordained upon the one, whether man or
woman, who is married (>>) and when the evidence of
adultery is established or there is a confession or pregnancy .
The same version is narrated in Sahih of al-Bukhari also with greater
detail (Bukhari 1009 vol.2) and in Nasai' it is narrated in the following
words:
انا لانجد من الرجم بدًا، فإنّه حد من حدود الله، ألا وان رسول الله صلى الله عليه
وسلم قد رجم ورجمنا بعده، ولولا ان يقول قائلون ان عمر زاد فى كتاب الله
ماليس فيه لكتبت فى ناحية المصحف، وشهد عمر بن الخطاب وعبد الرحمن بن
عوف و فلان و فلان ان رسول الله تُڅلہ رجم ورجمنا بعدہ۔ الحدیث (ابن كثير)
We have no choice to avoid the punishment of stoning (rajm),
because it is one of the punishment (>) from the punishments
prescribed by Allah. Be very clear in your mind that the Holy
Prophet # himself had awarded stoning and we too have
awarded stoning after him. If there was no risk of people saying
that 'Umar has added something on his own in the Book of
Allah, I would have written this in a corner of the Qur'an. And
'Umar Ibn Khattab 4 is witness, 'Abdurrahman 4 is witness
and so and so companions are witnesses that the Holy Prophet
had awarded stoning. (Ibn Kathir)
This is apparently proved by the address of Sayyidna 'Umar
that
there is a specific verse on injunction of stoning which is in addition to the
verse under reference of Surah an-Nur. But Sayyidna 'Umar 4
did not
tell the wordings of that verse, nor did he tell that if there is a separate
verse beside the verse of Surah an-Nur why it is not included in the
Qur'an, and why it is not recited. He only said that if there was no risk
involved that people would put blame on him of making addition in the
Book of Allah, he would have written this verse on a corner of the Qur'an.
(al-Nasai')
What needs careful consideration in this narration is that, if it is a
verse of the Qur'an and its recitation is mandatory like other verses, then
why Sayyidna 'Umar 48
left it out just because of the fear of people's
calumny; when he is well known for his vehemence about Allah's

352
Surah An-Nur : 24 : 1 - 2
injunctions. The other point to be noted is that he did not say that he
would have included this verse in the Qur'an, but all he said was he
would have written it on the margin of the Qur'an.
All these things support the inference that the explanation of this
verse that Sayyidna 'Umar 4
heard from the Holy Prophet
in which
he specified the punishment of hundred stripes for unmarried man and
woman and stoning for the married persons. He treated it as a verse of
the Book of Allah because of the words of the Holy Prophet
and his
consistent practice. Sayyidna 'Umar 4
understood fully well that the
Holy Prophet's
explanation was in line with the command of Allah's
Book and not actually the verse of the Book, otherwise no power on earth
would have stopped him to write down the verse in its place if it was
missed out. His comment about writing it on the margin of Qur'an is
further proof that the verse was not a part of Qur'an but only the
explanation of the verse of Surah an-Nur. Some narrations have carried
the actual wordings of the injunction on the subject, but they fall short of
proof and authenticity to merit inclusion in the Qur'an. The jurists (a)
who have related this verse as abrogated for recitation but not abrogated
as a command have done so by way of an example, and as such it does
not in fact prove that it is a part of the Qur'an.
The gist of the matter is that the punishment of hundred stripes
described in Surah an-Nur for adulterer man and woman is exclusive to
unmarried man and woman as per detailed explanation and elucidation
of the Holy Prophet , and punishment for the married persons is rajm
(stoning). Although this elucidation is not given in the wordings of the
verse but the exalted person to whom this verse was revealed has himself
elaborated the subject without the slightest doubt of any confusion. It is
not that the Holy Prophet
explained this only through his words, but
he also executed this punishment several times in the presence of many
companions, and the proof of this has reached us with unbroken
authentic chain of narrators. Therefore, the punishment of stoning for
married man and woman is in fact an injunction of the Book of Allah
itself, in the sense that it is as certain as any other injunction of the
Qur'an. This fact may be mentioned either by saying that rajm is a
provision of the Qur'an itself, or by saying that it is established by the
unbroken chain of traditions. Sayyidna 'Ali
has also said the same

353
Surah An-Nur : 24 : 1 - 2
thing that the verdict of stoning is established by the tradition of the Holy
Prophet 羹.
An important warning
Wherever words married and unmarried appear in the above
explanation, they are used for ease of explanation. The actual words used
in the saying are غير مُحُصَن or تيب and بكر .The real position of مُحْصَن in
Islamic jurisprudence is of the one who has copulated with the spouse
with an authentic Nikah, and is also sane. Whenever we have used the
words 'married' in this context, it carries the same meaning. It is only for
brevity and ease that the word 'married' has been used.
Three degrees of gradations in the punishment of adultery
On pondering over the verses of the Qur'an and the ahadith referred
to above, it becomes clear that initially the punishment of fornication was
light in that the judge or the ruler was to afflict pain to the perpetrator
(man and woman) of the crime at his own discretion, and confine the
woman in the home. This punishment was enjoined in Surah An-Nisa'.
The second period was that when the verse of Surah an-Nur was revealed
in which hundred stripes each to both were enjoined. The third period
was the one when the Holy Prophet
instructed after the revelation of
the verse under discussion that the punishment of hundred stripes will be
restricted only to those who are not married, but if married man and
woman commit this crime then their punishment is stoning (rajm).
In Islamic law if the punishment of a crime is severe, the
conditions of proving it are also tough
As described above, the punishment of adultery in Islam is most
severe compared to punishments of all other crimes. Alongwith that the
conditions to prove this crime are equally tough in Islamic law. If there is
the slightest doubt or uncertainty, then the maximum punishment,
known as hadd (), is remitted, and only a punishment by way of ta'zir
may be awarded which should be commensurate with the extent of crime.
In all other cases testimony of two men or one man and two women is
required for the proof of a particular event. However, for the maximum
punishment of fornication (Uj>) the evidence, of four male eye-witnesses
is necessary who must testify without a slightest doubt or confusion.
Another severe circumstance that aggravates the severity of an evidence
of fornication is that if the evidence of a witness in a case of adultery is

354
Surah An-Nur : 24 : 1 - 2
rejected, then the witness himself may suffer badly, because in that case,
he may be charged for false accusation of adultery (JJ) and may be
awarded the punishment of eighty stripes. Therefore, no one will dare
testify the fornication where there's even slightest degree of doubt.
However, if the adultery is not proved clearly by eye witnesses, but there
is proven evidence of a man and woman found in a compromising and
unlawful position, then the judge can award the punishment by way of
ta'zir which stripes as are suitable in that particular case. Details of the
punishment for fornication and its conditionalities can be seen in the
books of Fiqh.
Injunction against homosexuality and sex with animals
The issue that if a man indulges in sexual act with a man or an
animal, whether his act falls within the purview of fornication or not, and
whether its punishment is the same as that of fornication has already
been dealt with under the commentary of Surah An-Nisa'. Although this
act is not called fornication neither lexically nor in the terminology of
Shari'ah and hence punishment of fornication is not applied to that, but
its punishment is no less in its severity compared to punishment of
fornication. The noble Companions
punished such culprits by burning
them alive.
لاَ تَأْخُذُكُمُ بِهِمَا رَاقَةٌ فِىُ دِيْنِ اللهِ
No pity for them should withhold you from (complying with)
Allah's religion - 24:2.
Since the punishment for adultery is very severe and there is the
possibility that those awarding the punishment may feel pity and be
lenient, hence, it is also enjoined that in the fulfillment of this important
religious duty any compassion is not permissible. Pity or mercy and
forgiveness or pardon are always laudable, but any compassion shown to
criminals will result in injustice to the entire humanity; hence it is
prohibited and not permissible.
وَلْيَشْهَدُ عَذَابَهُمَا طَآئِفَةٌ مِّنَ الْمُؤُمِنِيْنَ
And a group of believers must witness their punishment. - 24:2
At the time of execution of the punishment of fornication a group of
Muslims should be present to watch. It is customary in Islam to execute

355
Surah An-Nur : 24 : 3
all punishments, specially the hudud, in public, so that those who see it
take a warning. But the directive for the presence of a group of Muslims
at the time of execution of punishment for fornication is peculiar to this
punishment.
Initially Islam requires not to publicize the crimes, but once they
are established through evidence, it is the requirement of wisdom
to disgrace the criminals
For the control of vulgarity and shamelessness Islamic laws have
imposed far reaching restrictions. It is made obligatory for women to cover
themselves. Men are asked to lower their eyes on seeing women-folk. The
sound of jewelry or the singing of women are prohibited as they may lead
to wanton acts. However, if someone is seen wanting in adopting Islamic
teachings, he should be guided in private, but is not allowed to be
disgraced. But if someone has crossed all limits and has broken all the ties
with Islamic laws, and his crime is established in accordance with the
Islamic jurisprudence, then keeping his crime secret might embolden
others for committing this crime. Hence, the extent to which Islam has
cared for avoiding publicity of the crime, to the same extent the emphasis
is laid in making it public for disgracing the culprits, once the crime is
established. It is for this reason that not only the punishment for adultery
is enjoined to be executed publicly, but the presence of a group of Muslims
at the time of execution is also made mandatory.
Verse 3
الزَّانِىُ لاَيَنْكِحُ إِلَّ زَانِيَةً أَوْ مُشْرِكَةً وَالزَّانِيَةُ لاَيَنْكِحُهَآ إِلاَّ زَان
أَوْ مُشْرِكٌ، وَحُرِّمَ ذُلِكَ عَلَى الْمُؤْمِنِيْنَ ﴿ ٣﴾
A man who is fornicator does not (like to) marry but a
woman who is a fornicator or a polytheist. And a
woman who is a fornicator does not (like to) marry but
a man who is a fornicator or a polytheist. And this (i.e.
preferring to marry such spouses) has been prohibited
for the believers. [3]
Commentary
The second injunction about fornication
The first injunction was regarding the punishment of fornication,

356
Surah An-Nur : 24 : 3
which has been described in the previous verse. The second injunction is
about marrying the men or women who have committed adultery.
Alongside the marriage with polytheist man and woman is also described.
The commentators have given different views while explaining this verse,
but the simplest and safe meaning is that fornication is an obnoxious act,
and as such whoever indulges in this act loses his character and taste,
and is attracted towards persons of the same character, and likes to marry
them.
The objective of this verse, according to this interpretation, is not part
of an injunction, but merely to describe a fact of life, normally seen in
every day life. This is a reflection on the filthy act of fornication, and its
far reaching detrimental and evil effects. In other words, the verse says
that fornication is a poison to ethics, and its poisonous effects ruin the
moral behavior of man. He stops differentiating between good and bad,
and develops a liking for evil things. He does not bother about permissible
(J>>) and prohibited (-). Any woman that he fancies for is with the
purpose of fornication, and hence he tries to cajole her into the shameful
act. If he fails in his advances, only then agrees for the marriage under
compulsion. But he does not really like the marriage, because he finds the
objects of marriage, such as being faithful to wife, produce virtuous
children and take charge of all her needs and alimony for life, a burden
and nuisance for him. Since such a person does not have any concern
with the marriage, his inclination is not restricted towards Muslim women
but is as much for polytheist women. If a polytheist woman lays the
condition of marital bond for fulfilling her religious obligation, then he
would agree for the marriage as well to meet his desire, without having
regard that such a marriage has no sanctity and is not valid in Islamic
law. It, therefore, comes true on him that if he has a fancy for a Muslim
woman, she would either be an adulterer or will become an adulterer
after having illicit relations with him, or he would fancy a polytheist
woman, with whom the marriage is as impermissible as adultery. This is
الزَّانِىٌ لاَيَنْكِحُ إِلاَّ زَانِيَةً the explanation of the first sentence of the verse, that is
.(24:3) أَوْ مُشْرِكَةٌ
Likewise, if a woman is a habitual adulterer and does not beg Allah's
pardon, then a truly believing Muslim male, for whom marriage is a
religious trust, would not really fancy such a woman, especially knowing