Welcome Friends: Ahlan wa sahlan!
How do you feel today? I feel energized!
COMMENTS:
- We touched yesterday upon Verse 100, a warning to Those Who Attained Faith who were already told in HQ3:32 (to obey) to follow the guidance of God and His Messenger, that if they (obeyed) followed the guidance of a certain faction of the People of (previous) Compilation, they would render them, after their faith, into Deniers/Apostates.
Yusuf Ali explains (يطيعوا) as ‘listen to’ while Asad says ‘pay heed.’ Both have weakened the word a little.
‘Obey,’ means ‘to comply with, to follow the commands and guidance of,’ but they probably steered clear of that word because of the negative connotations of ‘obedience,’ obedience often spoken of as being ‘blind.’
Anyway, in comparing what the Arabic Lexicon says about ( طوع) with the original meanings of the English[1] -I find them quite similar, so ‘to obey’ is not incorrect, but one should not take this to mean ‘blind obedience,’ but rather a willing compliance based on one’s enlightened judgment of what is best.
- The responsibility borne by the Companions of Prophet Muhammad, peace upon him, was great (Verse 101). How could they Deny (Faith/Truth) even as the Signs of God are being conveyed to them, and among them, indeed in their very midst, is His Messenger?!
Verse 102 is better explained by Muhammad Asad, since the explanation for ‘Taqwa’ is Awareness, not ‘fear,’ so Ali’s ‘fear God’ (اتقوا الله) is inaccurate. A more accurate rendering would be:
“O you Who have attained Faith, be aware of God, as is indeed His due of (your) Awareness (towards Him), and do not die except while being Purely Reverent to Him.” (2:132)
As we read this verse, we remember our past reading (Blog Post Day 10) and both Abraham and Jacob’s dying legacy to their children (HQ2:132):
“And this did Abraham entrust unto his children, as well as Jacob: “O my children! God has chosen for you the Standard of Accountability, therefore do not die except while being Purely Reverent to Him.” (2:132)
If we have true faith and trust in God, we would make sure to entrust our children with this; whether we do so by living it, saying it, writing it… we MUST relay this to them in any way we can.
If this had not been crucial we would not have found this as the final act of previous Messengers of God, and we would not have found it now in a direct command from God Himself to all Who Attained Faith!
- Verses 103-104 continue to address those Who have attained Faith, beginning by telling them to secure themselves (اعتصموا) onto what God has extended for them [2](بحبل الله) collectively (Y. Ali: Rope of Rescue; M. Asad: Bond) and not to drift apart. Then they are reminded of how God brought their minds/hearts together and they became brethren by His Grace, after being enemies. And that there should grow out of them a community which invites unto Goodness, enjoins (upon its citizens) that which is mutually acceptable, and forbids that which is mutually objectionable (see Blog Post Day 20 for the characteristics of this vibrant community. Note: Verse 103 is so oft-quoted you’d think we would have heeded it by now; unfortunately, we haven’t).
The verses conclude with an important statement: And such indeed are the Successful!
‘Falaha’ (فلح) literally means to prevail, AND win or succeed.[3]
(Yusuf Ali’s ‘felicity’ and M. Asad’s ‘happy state’ are both imprecise explanations, although Ali adds ‘success’ in his note 431, and says that it also pertains to life).
Perhaps we should also remember that in our Call to Prayer (athaan) right after the Muethin/Muezzin[4] calls everyone to ‘Salaah,’ he also calls them to ‘Falaah,’ to success. Therefore, success is indeed ingrained into our daily lives as a CONSTANT goal, sought after as often as we seek the direction of Mecca. So let us bring back that most important goal: Success.
We should be aware of this: In the above verse Qur’an is talking here about SUCCESS which is primarily realized in Life. Succeeding in Life and in the Afterlife. Succeeding as a community and as individuals. This cannot be attained without Security in holding onto the means and tools God has extended for us (whilst knowing that He will help us achieve our noble goals when we work well for them), and Togetherness (each one of us supporting and filling in for the other when required). If we understood these verses we would refrain from putting one another down; it is OUR OWN security which is endangered when we hit at one another. The Aware are the guardians of their communities, and of Humanity at large.
Verses 105-106 are well-explained by both Y.Ali and M. Asad.
- Verse 107-109 is better explained by Muhammad Asad. I prefer his rendering of the words ‘aswad’ and ‘abyad.’ In the Arabic lexicon, these are not always related to color, but also denote the commonness of one thing and the rarity of the other. Two OPPOSITE States of Being.
- The first half of Verse 110 is commonly quoted, and considered a description of the ideal Muslim Community. Although it is directed to the First Community of the Faithful and says: ‘You were..’ in the past tense, many continue to explain or translate the first words as: ‘You are..’ (including both Yusuf Ali and Muhammad Asad).
They were the best community ‘ever evolved/brought forth’ FOR (not from) mankind, which indicates that it was for the benefit of mankind.
It is a beautiful verse explained by both. Please read both their notes:
Y. Ali’s note 434 about “a non-sectarian, non-racial, non-doctrinal, universal religion which Islam claims to be.”
M. Asad’s note 82 in which he says that “this promise to the followers of the Qur’an is conditional” and ends by saying: “this promise is bound to lapse whenever the Muslims fail to live up to their faith.”
Amazing. We are living its lapse.
- Verses 111-112 describe one group among the People of earlier Compilation, those who have been degraded in life by their own deeds. M. Asad explains in note 83 that, in considering themselves ‘God’s chosen people,’ they have in fact created a barrier between them and all other believers in One God.
This should be a lesson for us, since many of us tend to put ourselves in our own, self-made, holier-than-thou, halos.
Notice the word ‘حبل’ appearing twice in Verse 112. We encountered it earlier today in Verse 103, about Those Who attained Faith being told to secure themselves collectively onto what God has extended for them and not to drift apart. Here the verse speaks of two ropes which might keep ‘Deserters/Faasiqoon’ above being humiliated: What God might extend to them, and what people might extend to them.
Quite interesting to note that there are these two extensions which keep people from being humiliated! May we always hold onto what God has extended for us, as that is the only reliable extension!
- After the unpleasant description above of the negative-minded community, Verses 113-115 are absolutely beautiful in their description of those who are their exact opposites. Both are People of the (earlier) Compilation, but what a difference Faith and Trust makes! This community is upright, and observes its bonds with God and with mankind (see Asad’s note 85), recites God’s messages throughout the night…
Let us think of this verse when we encounter amazing, upright, God-aware People of Earlier Compilation, those to whom our message had arrived polluted by our misdeeds and our disunity.
“They believe in God and the Last Day, and enjoin what is mutually acceptable and forbid what is mutually unacceptable and they advance[5] in all that is Good: and these are among the righteous (114) And whatever good they do, they shall never be denied it, for God has full knowledge of the Aware” (115)
Enough said!
Have a blessed week, and do catch up with us!
Our next Reading is from HQ 3:116-132.
Peace unto all!
[1] طوع: الإصحابِ والانقيادِ. يقال طاعَه يَطُوعه، إذا انقاد معه ومضى لأمره. وأطاعه بمعنى طاعَ له. ويقال لمن وافَقَ غيرَه: قد طاوعه. والاستطاعة مشتّقةٌ من الطَّوع… والعرب تقول: تطاوَعْ لهذا الأمر حتى تستطيعَه. ثم يقولون: تطوَّعَ، أي تكلَّف استطاعتَه، وأمَّا قولهم في التبرُّع بالشيء: قد تطوَّعَ بهِ، فهو من الباب لكنَّه لم يلزمه، لكنَّه انقاد مع خيرٍ أحبَّ أن يفعله. ولا يقال هذا إلاَّ في باب الخير والبِرّ.
http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/obey
1 : to follow the commands or guidance of..
2 : to conform to or comply with..
[2] حبل: يدلُّ على امتداد الشيء. ثمّ يحمل عليه، ومَرْجِع الفروع مرجعٌ واحد. ومن الباب الحَبَل، وهو الحَمْل، وذلك أن الأيّام تَمْتَدُّ به.
فَلَحَ: أَصْلَانِ صَحِيحَانِ، أَحَدُهُمَا يَدُلُّ عَلَى شَقٍّ، وَالْآخَرُ عَلَى فَوْزٍ وَبَقَاءٍ…فَالْأَوَّلُ: فَلَحْتُ الْأَرْضَ: شَقَقْتُهَا… وَالْأَصْلُ الثَّانِي الْفَلَاحُ: الْبَقَاءُ وَالْفَوْزُ. [3]
[4] Please note that many Muslims transliterate the Arabic ‘the’ sound into a ‘zze’ sound which is not only wrong, but could change that word into a totally different one. A good example is ‘thaki/ذكي’ meaning ‘illuminated/bright’ and ‘zaki/زكي’ meaning growing (in purity). In reciting Qur’an this is considered quite reprehensible, so please let’s pay attention to the Arabic letters/ sounds.
[5] From the Thesaurus(http://thesaurus.reference.com/browse/advance:
“Advance means ‘steady progress’ and stresses effective assisting in hastening a process or bringing about a desired end, while advancement suggests progression that is bigger, more, or beyond normal..”
For ‘Ma’ruf’ & ‘Munkar’ Muhammad Asad says
(“…enjoin the doing of what is right and forbid the doing of what is wrong…”)