Surah Al-Maaida (5): Read Online and Download - English Translation

Commentary

Four Sources of Tranquility

The first verse (97) mentions four things as the cause of constancy, survival and tranquility for people.

The first is the Ka'bah. In Arabic, Ka'bah is the name of a place which is square. Another house made by the Arab tribe of Khath'am carried the same name, that is, al-ka'bah-al-Yamaniyah, to be exact. Therefore, to distinguish the Baytullah (House of Allah) from this place, the words: الْبَيْتَ الْحَرَ‌امَ (Al-Baytul-Haram: The Sacred House) were added to the name of the Ka'bah.

The word "Qiyam" and Qiwam are verbal nouns. They refer to that on which the stability and survival of something depends. Therefore, " قِيَامًا لِّلنَّاسِ " in the text comes to mean that the Ka'bah and its adjuncts are the cause and source of the stability and survival of people.

Lexically, the word: النَّاسِ (annas) is used for people in general. At this place, because of the topical context, they could mean the people of Makkah proper, or the people of Arabia and the peoples of the world as well. Obviously, it includes human beings of the whole world - however, the people of Makkah and the people of Arabia do have a unique status. Therefore, the sense of the verse would be that Allah Ta` ala has made Ka'batullah کعبۃُ اللہ (The Ka'bah of Allah) and what is mentioned later, the source of stability, survival and tranquility for people. As long as people of the world from each country, each region and each direction keep turning their orientation towards Baytullah to say their Salah, and the Hajj of Baytullah continues to be performed by those on whom its performance has become obligatory (fard) - until then, this whole world will keep going and stay safe. And if, there ever comes that fatal year when no one makes Hajj, or no one turns towards Baytullah to offer Salah, then, the whole world will be overtaken by mass Punishment.

Baytullah is the Mainstay of the Universe

The respected master of Tafsir, 'Ata' has stated the subject in the words which follow: لَو ترکوہ عامًا واحدا لم ینظروا یؤخروا (Al-Bahr Al-Mubit). This tells us that, significance-wise, Baytullah is the pillar of this whole world. As long as people keep turning towards it and Hajj keeps being performed, the world will stay. And if, this reverence of Baytullah were to terminate at some time, the world will also be terminated. However, there remains the question: What is the connection and linkage between the universal system and Baytullah? But then, knowing its reality is not necessary - who knows the reality behind the mutual connection of magnet and iron and lightening and straw? But, it is a reality proved through observation. It cannot be rejected. The comprehension of the reality of the mutual linkage between Baytullah and the universal system is also not within the reach and control of mortal man. That can be known only when the Creator of the universe tells us about it. That Baytullah is the cause of the survival of the whole universe is a thing of the spirit. Physical insight or formal research cannot reach it. But, its being the cause of peace and tranquility for Arabia and the people of Makkah stands proved by long experiences and observations.

Baytullah : Symbol and Substance of Peace

Peace is generally maintained in the world through government laws and its implementation. That is why robbers, thiefs, killers and plunderers do not dare. But, during the Arab Jahiliyyah, there was no formal government nor was there some general law to maintain public peace. Whatever political system there was, it was based on tribal con-siderations. One tribe could attack the life, property and honour of another tribe anytime at its choice. Therefore, no tribe had the occasion to enjoy peace and tranquility any time. Allah Almighty, with His perfect power, made the Baytullah in Makkah al-Mukarramah stand as a regular government ushering peace and tranquility. As anyone in his right frame of mind would not dare breaking the law of a strong government in our day, so it was, even during those days of ignorance, that Allah Almighty had impinged the reverence of the Baytullah on the hearts of common people in a manner that they would throw all their personal desires and emotions behind their backs when it came to upholding its honour and station.

So, this was Arab Jahiliyyah, the so called Age of Ignorance, proverbial for tribal prejudices and long drawn wars. But, such was the reverence for Baytullah and its adjuncts which Allah had placed in their hearts that they would say just nothing to even their sworn enemy despite their anger and chagrin - if the enemy had entered the Haram. A son who met the killer of his father in the Haram would lower his gaze and walk away from him.

Similarly, as much respect was also given to a person who had embarked on his Hajj and ` Umrah or who had been carrying animals for sacrifice in the Haram. The result was that even the worst person around would not hurt him in anyway - to the limit that they would say nothing to even a sworn enemy if he was in a condition when signs of his being on Hajj and ` Umrah, such as the garments of Ihram or garlands, were all too visible.

Take an example. The year was Hijrah 6. The Holy Prophet ﷺ accompanied by a group of his Sahabah entered into the Ihram of ` Umrah and started for his journey towards Baytullah. He stopped at Hudaybiyah close to the Haram limits and sent Sayyidna ` Uthman al-Ghani ؓ to Makkah along with some colleagues so that they can tell the chiefs of Makkah that Muslims have come at this time not for fighting but for performing ` Umrah, therefore, they should not be obstructed.

It was after a good deal of debate that they sent a representative of theirs to the Holy Prophet ﷺ . When he saw him, he said: This person is an upholder of the sanctities of Baytullah, therefore, the sacrificial animals marked for sacrifice should be brought before him.

When the representative saw these sacrificial animals, he conceded that such people should never be stopped from going to Baytullah.

So, as said earlier, Allah Almighty had placed such awe of the venerated Haram - even during the days of Jahiliyyah - that it became the very cause and source of peace and tranquility. As a direct result of this reverence, only those who either went in and out of Haram, or those who came for their Hajj and ` Umrah with some sign of the intended pilgrimage on them, were the ones who remained protected - outsiders did not benefit from this peace and tranquility. But, in Arabia itself, the way they honoured the site of Baytullah and its environs universally, they would also give equal respect to the months of Hajj. They called these, the Sacred Months. Some had included the month of Rajab along with them. During these months, fighting and killing - even outside the Haram - was considered by the whole Arabia as prohibited, from which they would abstain.

1. Therefore, the Holy Qur'an has included three more things as being قِيَامًا لِّلنَّاسِ (stability for people) along with the Ka'bah. The first is: الشَّهْرَ‌ الْحَرَ‌امَ , that is, the Sacred Month. Since the word, شَّهْرَ‌ (shahr: month) has been placed here in its singular form, most commentators say that it means the month of Dhul-Hijjah at this place, the month during which the rites of Hajj are performed. Some commentators have said that, though the word used is singular, but it signifies category where-by all Sacred Months are included here.

2. Mentioned secondly is "al-hady" الْهَدْيَ which refers to an animal sacrificed in Haram. It was common Arab practice not to check and obstruct anyone carrying such sacrificial animals who could travel on in peace and be able to do what he intended to do. Thus, ` sacrificial animals' also became a cause of the establishment of peace.

3. The third thing is الْقَلَائِدَ "Al-Qala'id." The word is the plural form of Qiladah. It means a garland. There was a custom in the age of Arab Jahiliyyah that a person who went out for Hajj would put a garland round his (sacrificial animal) neck as a sign so that people may know that here was someone going for Hajj and that he should not be molested. Similarly, they would put garlands round the necks of their sacrificial animals too. These were also known as the قَلَائِدَ Qala'id. So, the Qala'id also became a source of peace and tranquility.

A little thought will show that ` the sacred month,"the sacrificial animal,' and ` the Qala'id' are all adjuncts or auxiliaries of the Baytullah. Reverence for them is part of the reverence of Baytullah. Allah Ta` ala has made the combination of these a source of stability (even constancy and resilience) in all matters relating to the worldly and otherworldly life of the people of Arabia, and that of the people of Makkah particularly - as well as, for all humanity in general.

While explaining the expression: قِيَامًا لِّلنَّاسِ (stability for people), some commentators have said that it means that the Baytullah and the Sacred Haram around it has been made a place of peace for everyone. Others have said that it refers to the extended means of sustenance for the people of Makkah, for what is not grown or made there indigenously keeps reaching them from all over the world by the grace of Allah Ta` ala. Still some others have said that people of Makkah known as the custodians of Baytullah were held in great esteem as special people serving the House of Allah, therefore, it is the particular distinc-tion of these people which has been identified in the Qur'anic expression translated as ` stability for people.'

Imam al-Razi has said that there is no contradiction in all these sayings which are included within the sense of قِيَامًا لِّلنَّاسِ (stability for people) since Allah Ta` ala has made Baytullah the source of betterment, prosperity and success (both materially and spiritually) for the stay, survival, stability, sustenance and return (to it, as well as, through it to the final destination of the Hereafter) for all peoples. And as for the people of Arabia, particularly those of Makkah, they have been blessed by Allah with its outward and inward blessings.

At the end of the verse, it was said: ذَٰلِكَ لِتَعْلَمُوا أَنَّ اللَّـهَ يَعْلَمُ مَا فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَمَا فِي الْأَرْ‌ضِ وَأَنَّ اللَّـهَ بِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ عَلِيمٌ (All this so that you may learn that Allah knows what is in the heavens and what is in the earth, and that Allah is All-Knowing in respect of everything). It means that Allah has made Baytullah and its adjuncts the source of stability, survival, peace and tranquility for people, something the people of Arabia keep witnessing particularly. This has been said so that everyone should know that Allah Ta` ala knows everything in the earth and the heavens and He alone is capable of managing and administering it.

In the second verse (98), it was said اعْلَمُوا أَنَّ اللَّـهَ شَدِيدُ الْعِقَابِ وَأَنَّ اللَّـهَ غَفُورٌ‌ رَّ‌حِيمٌ(Be sure that Allah is severe in punishment and that Allah is Most Forgiving, Very Merciful). This is telling us that the prescribed injunctions of Halal (lawful) and حَرَام haram (unlawful) are based on ideal wisdom and consideration. As long as they are obeyed and followed, they would bring nothing but good for the person who does just that. However, electing to do what is contrary to them is nothing but embracing the worst of curse and punishment. Along with the warning, it was also said that, should someone commit a sin forgetfully or heedlessly, then, Allah Ta` ala does not punish instantly, instead of which, the doors of Allah's forgiveness stay open for those who repent and feel ashamed of what they have done.

In the third verse (99), it was said: مَّا عَلَى الرَّ‌سُولِ إِلَّا الْبَلَاغُ ۗ وَاللَّـهُ يَعْلَمُ مَا تُبْدُونَ وَمَا تَكْتُمُونَ ﴿99﴾that is, the duty of Our Messenger is only to convey Our Ahkam (injunctions) to people created by Us. After that, whether they accept and believe, or reject and disbelieve, its profit and loss reaches only them. That they disbelieve brings no loss to Our Messenger. And let this be understood that Allah cannot be deceived for He knows every-thing done by anybody, openly or secretly.

In the fourth verse (100), it was said: قُل لَّا يَسْتَوِي الْخَبِيثُ وَالطَّيِّبُ (Say, "The bad and the good are not equal ... ). In Arabic, the words "Tayyib" and "Khabith" are antonyms. Tayyib refers to what is the best and purest in everything and Khabith to what is the most condemned and evil. In this verse, as held by the majority of commentators, Khabith means حَرَام haram or impure, while Tayyib means Halal and pure. Thus, the verse would come to mean that with Allah Ta` ala, rather with every-one having sound reason and good taste, pure and impure or Halal and haram cannot be equal.

In view of the general sense of Khabith and Tayyib at this place, it is inclusive of wealth and property which is Halal or حَرَام haram, and human beings who are good or bad, and deeds and morals which are virtuous or vicious, all of the three. The sense of the verse is clear from the truth that good and bad are not equal. According to this natural law, Halal and حَرَام haram and pure and impure things are not equal in the sight of Allah Ta` ala, similar to which, also not equal are good and bad deeds and morals, similarly again, also not equal are virtuous and vicious human beings.

Following immediately in this verse (100), it was said: وَلَوْ أَعْجَبَكَ كَثْرَ‌ةُ الْخَبِيثِ (even though you are attracted by the profusion of the bad). It means that, though onlookers are sometimes awed by the abundance of things evil and impure, they would even go on to take these very things to be good just because they have spread out all over and be-cause they seem to be winning the day, but, this is only a disease of human knowledge and consciousness, and certainly a shortcoming of the inherent feeling for the right.

The Background of the Revelation of the Verse

Reporting the background of the revelation of this verse, some narrations say that when liquor, and its buying and selling too, was prohibited in Islam, a dealer in liquor who had some cash savings from that business asked the Holy Prophet ﷺ Ya Rasul Allah, I have with me this saving from my liquor business, if I were to spend this in some good and pious cause, would that be beneficial for me?

The Holy Prophet ﷺ said: If you will spend it in Jihad or Hajj or something similar, it would not even be worth the weight of the tiny feather of a mosquito, for Allah Ta` ala does not accept anything other than what is pure and Halal (lawful).

This devaluation and depreciation of wealth is in terms of the Hereafter. If we look a little deeper and keep the ultimate end of things in sight, we shall discover that Halal and حَرَام haram wealth or property are not equal even in the businesses of this mortal world. The kind of benefits, favourable consequences, real comfort and bliss which come through Halal, never do and never can come from حَرَام haram.

Citing Ibn Abi Hatim, Tafsir Al-Durr Al-Manthur reports that when Sayyidna ` Umar ibn ` Abd Al-Aziz, the rightly-guided Khalifah of the age of the Tabi` in, stopped impermissible taxes imposed by the oligarchy before him, returned monies and properties taken illegally to the rightful owners, the government treasury became empty and the graph of usual income came very low. Then, the governor of a province wrote a letter to him in which he complained about the low income of the public treasury and asked him as to how would the affairs of the government run under such circumstances. Sayyidna ` Umar ibn ` Abd al-` Aziz رحمۃ اللہ علیہ answered him by quoting this very verse: لَّا يَسْتَوِي الْخَبِيثُ وَالطَّيِّبُ وَلَوْ أَعْجَبَكَ كَثْرَ‌ةُ الْخَبِيثِ ; (The bad and the good are not equal, even though you are attracted by the profusion of the bad). He also wrote: People before you had used injustice and oppression to fill the treasury, now you match it by establishing equity and justice and let the holding of your treasury stand reduced. And do not care. The expenditures of our government shall be met within this reduced income.

Though the cause of the revelation of this verse is a particular event, the basic message of the verse is that numbers being low or high do not mean much. Matters cannot be measured by majority and minority and a human hand-count of fifty one against forty nine cannot go on to become the touchstone of that which is right and true.

In fact, if we were to even casually look into the state of affairs prevailing around every section of society in the world, then, we shall see less of good and more of evil. Compare belief with disbelief; godliness, purity, honesty and trust with sinfulness and debauchery; justice and equity with injustice and oppression; knowledge with ignorance; reason with unreason - one is bound to find more of the later in all these comparisons. This leads us to become certain that the numerical abundance of something, group or party cannot be an absolute proof of its being good or true. Instead of that, the good in that thing or group or party depends on relevant particulars and states. If they are good, they are good, and if they are bad, they are bad. This is the reality the Holy Qur'an has stated clearly by saying: وَلَوْ أَعْجَبَكَ كَثْرَ‌ةُ الْخَبِيثِ (even though you are attracted by the profusion of the bad).

Of course, Islam too has declared numerical majority to be decisive on some occasions, and that too where there be no ruling authority competent enough to decide by the power of argument and the assessment of intrinsic qualities. On occasions like this, in order to resolve the disputes among masses of people, majority vote is resorted to. Take the example of the problem of appointing an Imam or leader in a situation when there is no Imam or Amir or leader present to give a decision. Therefore, on some occasions, majority opinion has been preferred to ward off possible dispute and resolve matters peacefully. It never means that what has been adopted by a majority of people should become Halal and permissible and true.

At the end of the verse it was said: فَاتَّقُوا اللَّـهَ يَا أُولِي الْأَلْبَابِ (So, fear Allah, O men of understanding). By addressing the men of understanding this verse indicates that it is not the attitude of the men of wisdom to be attracted to something because of its numerical or quantitative abundance, or to take the majority as the touchstone of what is true and correct. Intelligent people would not do something like that. Therefore, it is to caution all people of understanding against these at-titudes that they have been commanded with: فَاتَّقُوا اللَّـهَ (fear Allah).

Commentary

The Prohibition of Asking Unnecessary Questions

These verses warn people who keep investigating unnecessarily into Divine injunctions. So fond and bent are they in this exercise that they would go to the outer limit of asking questions even about in-junctions which have not been prescribed at all and for which there is really no genuine need that they be asked. In this verse, such people have been instructed not to ask questions lest they are subjected to some trial, or they have to face disgrace as a result of the disclosure of their secrets.

The Background of the Revelation

As narrated in Sahib Muslim, the background or the cause of the revelation of these verses is as follows. When the verse concerning the obligation of Hajj was revealed, Sayyidna Al-Aqra` ibn Habis ؓ asked: ` Have we been obligated with Hajj every year?' The Holy Prophet ﷺ did not answer that question. He asked again. The Holy Prophet still remained silent. When he asked a third time, the Holy Prophet ﷺ reprimanded him by saying: If, in answer to your question, I had said, ` Yes, the Hajj is obligatory every year' - so it would have become, and you would have been unable to do it. After that, he added: Things about which I give you no command, leave them as they are. Do not ask questions by digging and prying into them. Communities before you have been damned eternally through this very proliferation of questioning because they, questions after questions about what Allah and His Messenger did not make obligatory on them, and in consequence of their unnecessary enquiry, these optional things were made obligatory - and then, they got involved in the unfortunate practice of disobeying these. Your estab-lished routine should be: Do what I order you to do, with the best of your ability, and leave what I order you not to do (that is, do not dig and pry into things about which no injunctions are given).

There is No Nubuwwah (Prophethood) and Wahy (Revelation) after the Holy Prophet ﷺ

It has also been tacitly said in this verse: وَإِن تَسْأَلُوا عَنْهَا حِينَ يُنَزَّلُ الْقُرْ‌آنُ تُبْدَ لَكُمْ : ` and if you ask about them while the Qur'an is being revealed, they will be disclosed to you (through revelation).' Here, by restricting it with the time duration of the revelation of the Qur'an, the indication given is that it will be after the completion of the revelation of the Qur'an, that the process of Prophethood (Nubuwwah) and Revelation (Wahy) will be discontinued.

Though, after the discontinuation of this process of Prophethood and Revelation, the consequences that new injunctions may come, things not obligatory may become obligatory or someone's secret may be disclosed through revelation are not likely to take effect - but, minting unnecessary questions, falling for investigations into them or asking about things for which there is no need, shall still remain prohibited, even after the discontinuation of the process of Prophethood. The reason is simple. This is a waste of time - your own and that of others. The Holy Prophet ﷺ has said:

مِن حُسنِ اِسلامِ المرَءِ تَرکُہ مَالَایَعنِیہِ

One of the qualities making someone a good Muslim is that one leaves what is unnecessary.

This tells us that many of our brother Muslims who keep investigating into unnecessary subjects, such as, the name of the mother of Sayyidna Musa (علیہ السلام) or the precise length and breadth of the Ark of Sayyidna Nuh (علیہ السلام) ، indulge in what has no effect on one's conduct in life. Therefore, asking such questions is blameworthy - especially when it is already known that people who tend to ask such questions are mostly unaware of the basics of their religion. The problem is that falling for what is wasteful invariably results in making one stay deprived of doing what is necessary. As for the large body of work left by Muslim jurists in which they have answered assumed religious problems and questions, it was not something unnecessary. Later events proved that they were needed by future generations. Therefore, they do not fall under the purview of wasteful or meaningless questions. It is also a part of Islamic teachings that one should not indulge in any activity, whether intellectual or practical, a task or a conversation, and waste precious time through it, unless there is some gain to be made from it in terms of the worldly or other-wordly life.

The Definition of Bahirah and Sa'ibah

The names Bahirah, Sa'ibah, WasiIah and Hami are connected with customs prevailing during the days of Jahiliyyah. Commentators differ in their exegesis. It is possible that all these words were applied each to a different situation. We limit ourselves to the explanation given by Sayyidna Said ibn al-Musaiyyib ؓ as it appears in the Sahih of Al-Bukhari:

BAHIRAH, an animal the milk from which was dedicated in the name of idols, and was not used by anyone personally.

SA'IBAH, an animal which was released in the name of idols, like a bull in some rural areas of our time.

HAMI, a male camel having copulated with a particular number, which was also released in the name of idols.

WASILAH, a she-camel giving birth to female offspring continuously, uninterrupted by the birth of a male, was also released in the name of idols.

In addition to doing what was Shirk, these people were challenging the right of benefiting from the meat of an animal, or its milk, or riding it, declared permissible by Almighty Allah, and placing their own restrictions on their being lawful or unlawful - as if the office of making Divine laws belonged to them! And the cruel joke was that they took these polytheistic customs of theirs to be the source of attaining the pleasure and nearness of Almighty Allah. The answer to this was: Almighty Allah had never appointed these customs. If their elders did it, they fabricated lies against Him, and the ignorant masses accepted them. In short, a two-pronged warning has been given here by saying that the way it is a crime to invite hardships in Divine injunctions by asking purposeless questions, similarly, it is much more serious a crime that one goes about proposing things as Halal or حَرَام haram based on one's personal opinions and desires without the will and command of the Law-Giver. (Tafsir Usmani )