Welcome Friends: Ahlan wa sahlan!
In yesterday’s Reading we spoke of Loans, and visited the website of ‘European Courier’ which spoke of ‘Islamic Banking’ during the recession. As we read the article we came across the name of ONE Muslim who made such a world of difference with his innovative concept of ‘Micro-credit,’ he helped MILLIONS of poverty-stricken people become self-sufficient:
“Muhammad Yunus, a Muslim of SE Asian background is largely credited for pioneering micro credits. The innovation has now been adopted by some more traditional financial players, from the World Bank to George Soros, as well as having garnered Yunus recognition from the Nobel and The US Medal of Freedom mostly recently awarded by President Obama.”
How great an achievement is that?
Check out his Foundation: http://www.grameenfoundation.org/
COMMENTS:
- The first verse in today’s Reading (HQ:2: 283) continues with the instruction to put all transactions into written AND witnessed record, warning witnesses against concealment. A witness who fails to reveal what s/he knows is (athimun qalbuhu/ آثم قلبه) one whose minds/heart, in fact, hinders and impedes (justice.) Remember the meaning of ‘ithm’ and ‘qalb?’
God warns such persons that He indeed knows best all that they do. Yusuf Ali’s note 336 discusses the concealing of evidence.
- Verse 284 tells us that everything belongs to God, and He will hold us accountable for whatever we conceal or reveal. The fact that this verse is in Direct Speech is quite frightening to those who are self-serving or who conceal ill-will. A similar verse is HQ: 20:7:
“Unto Him belongs all that is in the heavens and all that is on earth, as well as all that is between them and all that is beneath the sod. (6) And if thou say anything aloud, behold, He knows [even] the secret [thoughts of man] as well as all that is yet more hidden [within him]. (7) God-there is no deity save Him; His [alone] are the attributes of perfection! (8)
- ﷺ himself and his followers having faith and trust in the Message descending to him from His Lord. Then we are told that EACH of his Faithful followers had faith and trust in God, His Custodian-Angels, His Compilations, and His Messengers -without differentiating between any of them.
Another verse which stipulates these prerequisites to Faith is Q.4:136,[1] which lists the same as the above, adding ‘the Final Day/the Hereafter/اليوم الآخِر’ as an assured eventuality that one must not deny, for whoever denies any of these has completely lost their way.
Verses 285 and 286 are beautiful supplications that are memorized and oft-read by Those who Attained Faith. It would be a good idea for Readers who wish to learn such verses to start off immediately, as we’ve only just begun. Listen at the Tanzil website and repeat. God-willing, Insha’Allah, by the end of the year, you would have committed many such verses to memory.
How these beautiful verses help alleviate our fears! We, who have faith and trust in our Rabb,[2] our Lord-Sustainer, are told here that He does not ‘yukallif/charge’ a self -consider anyone responsible- for more than that person can bear/contain. This chargeability relates to all what He has granted us in terms of personal talents and gifts, provision and resources, etc.
When the common English interpretation of the word ‘yukallifu’ became ‘to burden,’ the verse came to indicate that everything we suffer has been piled on us from God Who knows that we can handle it! It is not so. The reality is that, when we are faced with something beyond our capacity to handle, God only holds us responsible/charges us for what is within our means. Do we, as parents or teachers, take our children to task for what is beyond their physical or mental level? We certainly do not. How is it then that we see God, The Most Compassionate, to be doing exactly that? May He forgive us!
Yusuf Ali tells us that this chapter started with the question of Faith, and now the final verses of this Sura/ chapter ‘round off the argument again with a confession of Faith and of its practical manifestation of conduct: “We hear and we obey!” (Read Y. Ali’s notes 337-341; beautiful!)
- This powerful, unequivocal statement, “We hear and we obey!” resounds at the very end of this Sura/chapter, a statement the Faithful repeat at all times. These simple words soar to the heavens, in stark contrast to “We hear and we disobey!” -expressed by those who have sealed their minds/hearts from the truth (HQ: 2:93).
سورة آل عمران
The Family of Imraan
This Chapter is named after the Family (or House) of Imran, from whom Mary, Jesus, Zachariah, and John the Baptist are descended, peace upon them all.
BEHOLD, God raised Adam, and Noah, and the House of Abraham, and the House of `Imran above all mankind, (HQ3:33)
Muhammad Asad tells us in his introduction that what is illumined in this Chapter is the principle of God’s Oneness and uniqueness, and man’s utter dependence on Him. Yusuf Ali tells us that in this chapter the Christians are specially appealed to, just as the Jews were specially appealed to in the last.
As we embark upon this chapter we notice that almost in our first breath we acknowledge this Compilation, and the two before it, both the Torah and the original Gospel, the ‘Evangelion,’ or ‘Good Tiding’ as Muhammad Asad mentions in note no 4.
- We noticed in Verse 3 -as it carries on to Verse 4- the statement asserting that both the Tawraat/Torah and the Injeel/Evangelion were ‘Hudan-lil-naas/gifted guidance to Cognizant Humans. This applies to all the Messages of God as originally revealed, not necessarily as interpreted. We also noted the consequence for those who deny God’s Signs.
Verses 5 and 6 tell us again that nothing can be hidden from God. It is He who forms/shapes us (يصوّركم) in our mothers’ wombs in the best of form -related to both what is perceived and what is unperceived of one’s being (as in Al Asfahani’s explanation).[3]
- Verse 7 is considered a guideline on how to understand the Qur’an. Muhammad Asad calls it ‘a key to the understanding of the Qur’an’ (note 5), while Yusuf Ali says it gives us ‘an important clue’ (notes 347, 348).
The subject here is about showing us the difference between verses that are ordinances on one hand, are self-evident, clear in and of themselves, called ‘muhkamaat’, while others present a figurative, allegorical formulation, called ‘mutashaabihaat.’ The former are considered the ‘root or essence’ of this Compilation ‘ummul Kitaab,’ and therefore would NOT be open to varying interpretations, unlike allegorical verses. This is very important because the various interpretations of allegorical verses MUST be understood within the boundaries of the self-evident ordinances. Read both M. Asad and Y. Ali’s notes.
- “Our Lord… let not our hearts/minds swerve from the truth after You have guided us…!”
Verses 8 and 9 are also worthy of memorization for indeed, the Qur’an always is the best of supplication.
Enough said!
Tomorrow’s reading is from HQ 3:10-22.
Peace unto all!
[1] يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا آمِنُوا بِاللَّـهِ وَرَسُولِهِ وَالْكِتَابِ الَّذِي نَزَّلَ عَلَىٰ رَسُولِهِ وَالْكِتَابِ الَّذِي أَنزَلَ مِن قَبْلُ وَمَن يَكْفُرْ بِاللَّـهِ وَمَلَائِكَتِهِ وَكُتُبِهِ وَرُسُلِهِ وَالْيَوْمِ الْآخِرِ فَقَدْ ضَلَّ ضَلَالًا بَعِيدًا ﴿النساء: ١٣٦﴾
[2] Rabb is the one who ‘yurabbi,’ nurtures and sustains throughout, from inception to completion.
[3] Eleventh century linguist Al-Ragheb Al-Isfahani (d. 502 AH / 1108 CE).
الصورة: ما ينتقش به الأعيان ويتميز بها غيرها، وذلك ضربان: أحدهما محسوس يدركه الخاصة والعامة، بل يدركه الإنسان وكثير من الحيوان كصورة الإنسان والفرس، والحمار بالمعاينة، والثاني: معقول يدركه الخاصة دون العامة، كالصورة التي اختص الإنسان بها من العقل، والروية، والمعاني التي خص بها شيء بشيء، وإلى الصورتين أشار بقوله تعالى: }ثم صورناكم{ [الأعراف/11]، }وصوركم فأحسن صوركم{ [غافر/ 64]، وقال: }في أي صورة ما شاء ركبك{ [الأنفطار/8]، }ويصوركم في الأرحام{ [آل عمران/6]،