Tafseer (Al-Baqarah)

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The First Verse

The Noble Qur-aan starts with the following very concise but extremely profound statement:

Bismillaahir-Ra maanir-Ra eem

In the name of Allaah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

Commentary:

This verse contains Allaahs name and two of his attributes: Ra maan (the Most Gracious) and

Ra

eem (the Most Merciful). People usually refer to it by its first word, i.e., Bismillaah.

Allaah is the special, personal name of the One and Only True God Who created the universeand everything in it including human beings. He is the God of Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses,Jesus, Muhammad and all other prophets i and messengers, peace be upon all of them. It is HeWho sent His revelations (Torah, Psalms and Gospels) to the prophets and messengers andWho revealed this Qur-aan in His own Words to Muhammad, the last of the prophets andmessengers. This personal name, Allaah, was always used by the Arabs only for the one TrueGod and never for any false gods or idols. As Ahmed Deedat has shown ii, according to the

older manuscripts of the Torah and the Gospels, it was also the name that was used for God byearlier prophets and messengers.

Both of the attributes are derivatives from an Arabic root word that connotes mercy, kindnessand grace. Both of the attributes are superlatives indicating the utmost degree of differentaspects of mercy:

Ramaan implies abundance and intensity of mercy and grace, the outpouring of which isunstoppable. The abundance of mercy indicated by the attribute Ra maan manifested itself inthe creation of human beings as the best of all the creations, endowment of consciousness andeloquence to them and ensuring that they are appropriately guided through revelations such asthe Qur-aan. The tremendous system of nature set up to ensure survival and sustenance of allspecies, in general, and human beings, in particular, is another manifestation of His bountifulGrace.

i In common English usage, a prophet is considered to be someone who foretells coming events of the

world. In Islamic terminology, a prophet does not necessarily tells about future events of this world, but isa person appointed by Allaah to call people to Islam and to tell them about unseen things such as Allaah,hereafter, paradise, hell, angels, Satan, etc. He works on reviving the existing Islamic teachings in thesociety. A messenger is a prophet who also brings new commands from Allaah.ii What is His Name by Ahmed Deedat


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Raeem indicates the eternity of the attribute emphasizing the constancy and permanence of mercy that never diminishes or fades. It emphasizes its continuity and indicates that He did not

just stop after creating and setting up a system of nature optimal for our sustenance andrevealing guidance for our benefit. He is continuously taking care of the universe and Hisobedient servants, and will continue to do so in the hereafter as well.

Use of both superlative adjectives indicates that His mercy is so boundless that no one word

can describe all its aspects and its extent.

Out of all the wonderful attributes of Allaah, the mention of these two attributes at the veryoutset clearly establishes the tone of Allaahs relationship with us; i.e., Allaah relates to Hiscreations, especially human beings, with mercy, kindness and grace. Although He is theGreatest beyond all our images of greatness, and although He is Almighty and infinitelypowerful, He is immensely kind to His creations. As He Himself has said in the Qur-aan, MyMercy extends over everything i.

This verse occurs at the start of 113 out of 114 soorahs (Chapters) of the Qur-aan, except forSoorah Towbah. Some scholars take it to be part and parcel of all those 113 Chapters. Othersthink that it is part of the first soorah -- Soorah Faati ah, but for other soorahs, it is just ameans of demarcation. Most of the scholars, however, consider it as an independent verse of the Qur-aan that is used as a separator between chapters. It also occurs as a part of the 30thverse of Soorah An-Naml (Ch. 27). It really does not matter whether it is considered part of asoorah or not. What really matters is that the text of the Noble Qur-aan, including this verse, ispreserved perfectly and exactly as was taught and dictated by the Prophet ii. When reciting theQur-aan, Muslims continue to write and recite Bismillaah exactly at the places where the

Prophet used to do.

Starting the recitation with this verse implies: I recite in the name of Allaah, the MostGracious, the Most Merciful Who has revealed this Qur-aan in His Own exact words as aspecial act of kindness, mercy and grace for our guidance.

Although Prophet Muhammad SAWS recited this verse and all the other contents of revelations exactly as they were revealed to him, doing just as he was told, the people withknowledge of the Torah found that this was a fulfillment of a prophecy, a promise and a

warning made by Allaah to Moses and to the Israelitesiii

in response to their request andsupplication mentioned in the Book of Deuteronomy, where they were told by Allaah:

I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their brothers; Iwill put my words in his mouth, and he will tell them everything I

i Soorah (Chapter) Al-Araaf 7:156ii A capitalized Prophet or Messenger will always represent Muhammad in this document. A lowercase prophet or messenger will represent any other prophet or messenger.iii Israelites are the descendent of Jacob whose title was Israel (Israaeel). It is used commonly as anothername for the Jews.


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command him. If anyone does not listen to my words that the prophetspeaks in my name , I myself will call him to account. i

It also fulfills the command that was given in the very first revelation to Prophet Muhammadwhen he was commanded to,

Proclaim in the name of your Lord who created Who created man

from a clinging clot. Proclaim! As your Lord is the Most GenerousWho taught with the pen taught man what he did not know. ii

Muslims are taught to recite this verse (Bismillaah) before doing anything, taking any action orembarking on any project. This recital becomes a reminder, a statement of intention and asupplication. As a reminder, it helps the reciter avoid any action that is disapproved by Allaah.After consciously saying In the name of Allaah, it is not possible for a person to be sincereand do something that cannot be done in Allaahs name. As a statement of intention, it helpsthe reciter do the right action with the right spirit, the right intent and right attitude all for thesake of Allaah. As a supplication or prayer, it invokes the Gracious Lords mercy, help,support and blessings for the action being undertaken. When it is recited with deliberateconsciousness keeping all three aspects in mind, it delivers all the aforementioned benefits. If the words of this verse are recited just mechanically as a ritual without much thought orconsciousness, the reciter will naturally fail to attain the benefits described.

i The Bible -- New International Version (NIV) Deut 18:18-19ii Soorah (Chapter) Al-Alaq 96:1-5


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The First GroupThe first of the seven groups of the Soorahs of the Qur-aan (for details see please referto Studying the Qur-aan in the Right Manner) consists of five Soorahs: one MakkanSoorah, Al-Faati ah, and four Madeenan Soorahs -- Al-Baqarah, Aali-Imraan, An-

Nisaa and Al-Maaidah.

The central theme of this group of the Soorahs is highlighting the attributes andqualities of the believers and their society as well as granting Muslims the charter forand the final instructions on the establishment and functioning of the Islamic society.In regard to dealing with non-Muslims, although the messages given are universal, thefocus of the message has been mainly on the Jews and Christians, with only subsidiaryaddress to Makkans.

This group basically pronounces the principles, laws and regulations on the basis of which the individual and collective lives of the Muslims are to be fashioned. Theserules and regulations were given in Madeenah during different evolutionary phasesthat transformed the society from its initial state to the desired Islamic state. Thesepronouncements cover all aspects of the Islamic society including the political, social,economic, judicial, family and personal affairs. Even the external affairs andinteractions with the Jews and Christians are covered. Whenever the Muslims comeback to the Qur-aan for guidance, this first group provides them with a complete codefor their community life and essential instructions for their individual guidance. Evenall the areas where people usually go wrong are pointed out with sufficient examplesfrom the followers of the previous prophets. The errors, fallacies, false hopes,misguided desires, invalid beliefs, and inappropriate actions of the Jews and Christianshave been identified so that Muslims can avoid falling into the similar traps and thatthe Jews and Christian can see their errors and reform their behaviour. Whilementioning the pitfalls the Jews and Christians fell into, they have been invited torepent, come to Islam and seek Allaahs forgiveness to attain their salvation. The

Jewish claim on the heritage of Abraham (Ibraaheem), Isaac (Is aaq) and Jacob(Yaqoob) has been refuted. The chosen-people status and the leadership of the worldthat was bestowed upon them conditionally that with enjoy that status only as longas they continue to adhere to Islam and its obligations like Ibraaheem -- has beenabrogated because of their history of neglect of the stipulated conditions. It has beengiven to the Muslims under similar terms, conditions and stipulations by chargingthem with the responsibility of: Establishing a kingdom of God (a society of peace,

justice, magnanimity and excellence); calling other people towards the worship andobedience of one God; and, providing leadership to the world in the spiritual andtemporal affairs. Parallels between the early history of the Jewish prophets and theearly phases of Islamic movement have been drawn.


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For subsequent generations of the Muslims, like us, the first group identifies theprocess of re-establishing the Islamic system of peace, justice and excellence whenMuslims have a place to implement it. It starts with a preamble (Al-Faati ah) thatgives a very concise overview of the path and where it can go wrong. Then it takes thebelievers through four main facets of the process starting with Soorah Al-Baqarah,until the complete establishment of Deen is attained in Soorah Al-Maaidah.


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Al-Faati ah -- The OpenerThe Name and Background The first soorah i of the Qur-aan is appropriately named Al-Faati ah, which

means The Opener -- a discourse that opens the Book or introduces a subjectmatter. The full name of the soorah is Faati atul-Kitaab; i.e. the opener of theBook. It can be called a preamble, preface or foreword. However, this uniqueopening by Allaah Sub aanahu Wa Taaala (SWT) for His Own book is muchmore than a preface as we know it. Unlike most other soorahs (chapters) whosenames are just symbols to identify them, the name of this soorah describes thenature of its contents as well.

Al-Faati ah was revealed very early at the beginning of the Islamic mission atMakkah. It is a multi-purpose soorah that miraculously packs a tremendousamount of meanings from multiple perspectives in a nutshell of seven brief verses.

Teachings of Faati ah

In the name of Allaah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

The grateful, appreciative praise is only for Allaah, the Lord of the universe,the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful, the Owner of the Day of Recompense.Only You we serve as slaves and only You we call upon for help. Guide us toand keep us on the Straight Path the path of those whom You blessed, notthose who attracted anger, nor the misguided.

The Teachings and Commentary The person who sincerely reflects on the universal realities around him, his own life and meansof sustenance and the arrangements that Allaah has made for the growth, nurturing, sustenanceand survival of human life and all other forms of life on earth cant help but marvel at the

i The Qur-aan is composed of 114 soorahs. Soorah is usually translated as Chapter. However, there issubtle difference between a soorah and a chapter: A chapter of a book is expected to have a topic or a titlethat describes chapter contents; while a soorah of the Qur-aan does not have such a distinct topic ordescriptive title. The Qur-aan being a book of guidance, each soorah deals with multiple dimensions of guidance. The soorahs are thus a series of tracts of guidance that are mostly identified by symbolicnames, not topics.


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enormity and completeness of the amazing system of nature set up by the Lord and theSustainer of the universe for this purpose. Amazingly, the creation and sustenance of life wasplanned even before the creation of the universe itself that was especially done in a manner andspeed that made creation of celestial bodies possible. It remained a vital consideration foreverything afterwards such as the values of the four fundamental forces, the formation of redgiant stars to manufacture carbon, the properties of atomic particles, the structure of space, thedistance between celestial bodies, the balance between their gravitational force and centrifugal

forces, the size of the earth, its distance from the sun, its magnetic field, the properties of different layers of its atmosphere, the existence of mountains, light and its properties, waterand its properties, etc. In short, everything in the universe has been precisely designed toenable and sustain life. Even the slightest of variations in any of the features, properties orvalues of the aforementioned things or in any of some 20 physical constants would have madelife impossible. The more it is reflected upon, the more overwhelmed, amazed and astounded aperson becomes because it shows the care, compassion and kindness with which the wholearrangement has been designed to sustain human life. At this realization, a feeling of heartfeltand sincere praise and appreciation fills the heart and moves the lips of the person to thank and

praise his wonderful Master saying,

All the grateful, appreciative praise i is really for Allaah, the Rabb(Lord) of the universe.

Being Rabb ii means being the Lord, Master, Governor, Ruler, Provider, Guardian, andSustainer the One Who provides sustenance, arranges growth and development, takes care,promulgates laws, dictates policies and demands obedience. Because only He is the Creatorand real Sustainer, only He is the Lord and Master. No human being can be, nor should he bedeemed or regarded as a lord or master in any sense.His Lordship with all of these meanings extends to Aalameen -- the whole universe and everycreation and every form of life within the universe. Every one of His creations benefits fromHis growth-promoting and life-sustaining systems. Thus He is:

The Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

Even those human beings who, while living in His Kingdom, disobey Him, do not recognizeHim or do not appreciate His mercy, continue to benefit from His systems and resources. Hedoes not deprive those rebels or traitors of the sustenance or the results of their efforts.Logically, denial or disobedience of the Master, Lord and Sovereign should result in instantdeprival of resources of Nature, but the Most Gracious Lord (Ar-Ra maan) allows people tocontinue benefiting from His provisions despite peoples treason and insubordination. This alsoallows the rebels an opportunity to come back to loyalty and subordination, if they ever realizetheir mistake. For those who truly come back, He is the Most Merciful (Ar-Ra eem) who

i

The Arabic word, Al-

amd, is usually translated as the praise or all the praise, which does notdescribe the nature of the praise. Al- amdu signifies a praise that ensues from a heartfelt appreciation,gratitude and thankfulness for the bounties and favours of a superb benefactor. That is why a Muslimthanks Allaah SWT by saying Al- amdu lillaah all appreciative praise and gratitude is for Allaah.ii The Arabic used in the verse that is generally translated as Lord.


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forgives them and accepts them back. His mercy continues in the eternal life hereafter whereHis obedient slaves will be awarded eternal bliss in the Gardens of Paradise. They will bebestowed far more than they deserve. Also, they will be rewarded: according to the best of their deeds, not their overall average behaviour; according to their intentions and attitude, notthe results they produced; and, according to the level of their sacrifice and sincerity, not thequantity of their contribution. For the victims of crimes and excesses of other people, anotherdimension of His mercy is the Day of Judgment when all victims will be fully and fairly

compensated for all the abuses, excesses, injustices and exploitations they endured during theirlife in this world. This leads to His being:

The Owner of the Day of Recompense.

He is the Maalik -- the Owner and Master who will have absolute and complete authority andcontrol of the day of recompense that includes both reward and punishment. He being the soleMaster on the day of reward and punishment, no one else will be of any avail to anyone at thattime. Only He will decide and judge the performance of people, without any interference,

intercession or influence from anyone. It is important that no one else is able to interfere in His judgment because it is only He Who has the absolute wisdom and Who has the completeknowledge of every detail required for perfect justice -- including the individual circumstancesof people, the motives behinds their actions, and the effects of the actions of people on othersand on the society as a whole. Hence, it is only He who can judge with perfect justice torecompense every single soul fairly and equitably.

Naturally, as only He is the Lord and Sustainer and only He is the Owner of the day of recompense:

Only He deserves our obedience, submission, slavery, servitude, worship anddevotion; and, Only He has the power, authority and means to respond to our needs, requests,

supplications and prayers.

Thus, we make a commitment:

Only You we serve as slaves and only You we call upon for help.

The word used in the text is nabudu from Ibaadah which in Arabic means slavery. Slavery aswe know implies complete obedience, doing exactly as commanded without questioning orwithout any option to disobey, 24 hours a day for the whole of ones life. The concept of slavery is totally unjustified and absolutely abominable when it comes to a person being aslave of another person. Nobody wants to become a slave and no one should ever be. However,when it comes to our Creator and Sustainer, He is the real Lord and Master. For that reason, asensible person feels happy and willing from the core of his heart to be a slave of Allaah and toserve Allaah like a slave. This happy, voluntary and willing slavery to Allaah SWT andenthusiastic submission and total surrender to His will is called Ibaadah i. It is usually

translated as worship or serving, but is much more comprehensive than performance of ritual

i The Islamic mission is to free people from the slavery of people and bring them to the slaveryof the One and Only real Lord and Master.


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acts of worship. It includes utmost humility, complete obedience, servitude and slavery(absolute submission) to Allaah SWT in every aspect of life throughout ones life. It is acomplete way of life encompassing every field of human endeavour wherein a person has toensure that his thoughts, words, actions and deeds are in submission to the commands of Allaah, his Lord and Creator.

Once these fundamentals are clear in a thinking persons mind, he feels the need to know how

Allaah wants him to live. He recognizes that this is not something he can just think through andarrive at on his own or discover it in his laboratories. It can be specified only by the LordHimself through revelations to some selected persons the prophets and messengers. Humanphilosophers and theorists can come up with only guesswork and experimental theories, whichthe subsequent research often proves wrong. He does not want to be a test subject of thosetheories; he wants definite answers based on the infinite and eternal knowledge and wisdom of the Creator.

He is also cognizant of the difficulties of lifelong obedience where he will need frequent

reminders and continuous help to stay on course. So the believer humbly requests,

Guide us to and keep us on the Straight Path --

Guide us is the translation of Ihdinaa which is also translated as show us. However, the useof this verb without an Arabic adverb implies that the request is comprehensive in that itincludes an eagerness for seeking the straight path, clarity of thinking about the straightness of the path itself, and help in staying on it continuously.

The straight path is the shortest and the most efficient course that takes you to your destination.The request is for a definite straight path of well-being according to the eternal knowledge of the All-Knowing and Absolutely-Wise Creator. Islam is and always has been the straight pathtaught by all prophets and messengers. It takes the believers towards the development of thebest personality in this life, establishment of the best society in this world and the attainment of ultimate success in the Hereafter, straight to these goals without confusions, dilemmas, twistsand turns along the way. As the believer wants to succeed in the service of Allaah and wants toearn his Lords approval, pleasure and reward, the path is further qualified,

the path of those whom You blessed,This covers all blessings, bounties and rewards the ones being talked about here are not thetemporary successes of this world, but the permanent and sustainable rewards in the form of peace and tranquility in this world and the eternal bounties of the Hereafter. Soorah Nisaa i explains that people who are blessed and bestowed bounties include all the prophets andmessengers of Islam ii from Adam to Muhammad, their true and committed companions whotestify to and stand up for the Truth of Islam in the toughest of circumstances, martyrs whogave their life in witnessing the Truth and righteous believers who obey Allaah and practiseIslam to the highest level of excellence possible.

i An-Nisaa 4:69ii All prophets and messengers including Noah, Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Aaron,David and Jesus were prophets of Islam. They all preached for and invited people to Islam.


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The next verse clarifies the point further by taking an exception to those people who incurredHis wrath or were misguided. A believer also realizes that Islam is not a new religion. It wasthe only way of life that Allaah had prescribed for people to follow since the advent of Adam.Since that time, people had fallen off the path time and again and were brought back by variousprophets and messengers. So the believer needs to be on guard from falling into the samepitfalls that earlier people fell into, which again requires help from Allaah SWT. Hence the

believer further requests,

not those who attracted anger, nor the misguided.

There is a clear difference between the two rejected groups. The first group is of those who arecondemned with wrath and anger. They are the people who claim to know the teachings andwhat is expected of them but as a community are lax in their practice. Although there may besome individual cases of good behaviour or practice of personal teaching of Islam, collectivelythe requirements of Islam for society as a whole are disregarded, ignored and forgotten. Even

personal practice becomes partial, consisting only of rituals rather than being mission-oriented.Even in the practice of rituals, their focus is the intricacies of the rules and regulations ratherthan the spirit of worship. When they are reminded about their true and full responsibilities,they reject or persecute those who remind them. A prime example of such people are theIsraelites.

The second group is of those who spend all their energies in specifying and defining theconcepts that are beyond human comprehension or in giving physical meanings to allegoricalconcepts. And in that attempt, they lose the way completely through their exaggerations,innovations and heresies. As a community they tend to practice their adulterated, hereticaltheologies, which unfortunately is not the religion of their Lord. The prime example of thisgroup is the Christians who are following a religion not taught by Jesus, peace be upon him,but concocted with heresies and innovations by Paul and his followers.

In summary, Soorah Faati ah represents the inner feelings of rightly thinking people. AllaahSWT Himself put the sentiments of the rightly thinking people in beautiful, concise words andtaught them how to express their sentiments and desires to Him. In addition, this soorah alsoidentifies indirectly the basic stimulus that brings people towards the worship of God. Whenpeople who are pure in their innate nature (uncorrupted by satanic thoughts, culture andcivilization, etc.) consider the signs of the mercy of God in human physique and psyche and inthe systems of nature, it induces a strong feeling of appreciation for the Creator. That feeling of gratitude leads people to the obedience of God and to a quest for finding how God wants us tolive. The fear enters ones thought process at a later stage in the form of worry lest we lose thepath of God and, consequently His mercy and favours. The basic instinct that brings people tothe worship of God remains the feeling of appreciation and gratitude.


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The Significance

It provides guidance in a nutshell The core of Islamic teachings is that:

There is a Creator, Lord, Master and Sovereign of this universe and humanbeings Who is One and Unique. It behoves human beings to worship onlyHim and to be obedient and fully submissive to Him by their own choice(Tow eed).

For that they will be held accountable, rewarded or punished forever in thelife Hereafter (Aakhirah).

He has sent messengers and books to let people know how he wants them tolive (Risaalah).

This soorah reinforces all the three fundamentals of faith. In addition, the pronouns (we and us)used in this soorah, underscore another basic Islamic reality. Although Islam encourages

people to strive for individual excellence, it places an equal importance on the collective goalsof establishing an Islamic, egalitarian human society. Islam wants people to live together in aloving, caring community of believers that is well-organized and that aspires to establishfreedom, equality, peace and justice for the benefit of all people. By addressing both personalobjectives of the individuals and the collective goals of the society, it provides the crux of Islam in a very concise manner from the very early days of Islam. It is a summary refresher of basic Islamic teachings.

People have a better chance of succeeding if they have a clear understanding of the goals theyhave to achieve, the path that will take them there and the risks along the way that may impedethe achievement of that goal. This brief soorah clearly demarks all three segments: The goal isliving a life of slavery to Allaah, seeking only His help, the path is the path followed by themessengers of Allaah and their sincere and truly dedicated followers and the risk is deviationfrom the path like the Jews and the Christians.

Avoidance of these deviations is such an important objective that the Qur-aan has dedicatedsubstantial space to elaborate the details of these deviations and to warn of the consequences of those deviations. In addition to being coached by the Qur-aan, the Prophet himself warned hisfollowers in different styles and at different occasions. For example, he said, Eventually youwill follow the footsteps of the followers of the previous prophets, so much so that if theyentered the burrow of a lizard, you will do the same. The companions asked if he meant theJews and the Christians. He responded, Of course! Who else?

It sets the attitude aright This soorah sets the human mind at the very outset on a well-balanced ideological groundabout the position of human beings in this universe, its relationship with the Creator, mans

need for guidance from the Creator, and the path that should be followed in life. It sets peoplefree from being overawed by the superior performance of some human beings in their fields of endeavour by making them realize that the real praise and credit belongs to God. It is God,their Lord, who has created the resources and given these individuals the capacity andcapabilities to excel in whatever they devote their energies to. By concentrating on the


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perfection of the Creator and immersing people in His praise and gratefulness, the soorah savespeople from hero-worship and fan-fads.

It sets the right tone and approach about Allaah Himself. It indicates, on the one hand, that theLord of the Universe is not a God of vengeance and anger but a God of mercy and kindness; onthe other hand, it reminds us that He is a just and equitable God who will hold everyoneaccountable for their actions, deeds and behaviour. It establishes a relationship that is balancedbetween hope and fear, and Gods love and human accountability.

It also brings out the fact that people on their own can neither find the properly balanced rightway and straight path of success and salvation nor can stay on that course without activeDivine guidance and help. Imperfection of human knowledge, a short term view of things andthe incapability to simultaneously consider all aspects of an issue and its ripple effects on otherissues makes it impossible for human beings to find and remain on the straight path on theirown.

The commitment to dedicate our servitude only to Him and to seek only His help, in fact, is themost liberating idea for human beings. Exclusive submission to Allaah SWT frees a believerfrom his/her mental and psychological slavery towards any human being on the earth. Peoplemostly fall into the servitude of other human beings only because of their hopes for help andsupport from them. After acknowledging Allaah as the Lord who has all the power in thisworld and in the Hereafter, no one else matters anymore, except for the rights andresponsibilities defined by Allaah SWT Himself.

It also underscores the need to strike a balance between individual piety and communitybehaviour. It subtly suggests that although the relationship of a believer with the Lord is veryindividual and personal (first three verses), the believers must live together as a community in

an organized egalitarian society (last four verses).

It is a covenant The single most important aspect of this soorah is that it is a dialogue and a covenant betweena believer and His Master. The slave recognizes the true status of His Master, appreciates Hiskindness, and acknowledges his accountability to Him about his performance. After thisacknowledgement, he promises to serve only Him and to seek support only from Him. This isthe covenant that he will be judged against. Then the slave seeks the help of the Lord to enablehim to fulfill the covenant successfully.

This dialogue and covenant is well-described in a adeeth i Qudsi ii reported from AbooHurayrah i in Saheeh Muslim ii. It indicates that when this soorah is recited consciously andsincerely in the alaah iii (prayer), Allaah interacts with His slave in the following manner:

i adeeth is a term used for the quotations or reports of the actions, words, approvals or disapprovals of the Prophet as reported by his companions.ii A adeeth is called Qudsi when the Prophet quoted Allaah in his statement, so the Prophet told thecompanions that Allaah has said such and such, then the companions reported to others what they heardfrom the Prophet. In brief it is a narration quoting Allaah in the words of the Prophet.

It should be noted that the Islamic knowledge coming through different channels has been painstakinglyand distinctly preserved. The Qur-aan is literally the word of Allaah, so it has been preserved distinctly assuch, free from any interpolations. When Prophet quoted Allaah in his own words, it was kept totally


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Allaah Taaala says: I have divided the alaah between Myself and My slave, one half foreach, and I grant My slave what he asks for. When the person says, The grateful, appreciativepraise is only for Allaah, the Lord of the universe. Allaah says, My slave has thanked Me.When he says, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Allaah says, My slave has praisedMe.When he says, Owner of the Day of Recompense. Allaah says, My slave has glorified Me.When he says, Only You we serve as slaves and only You we call upon for help. Allaah says,

This is between Me and My slave, and I grant to My slave what he sought.When he says, Guide us to and keep us on the straight path -- the path of those whom Youblessed, not those who attracted anger, nor the misguided. Allaah says, this is for my slave,and My slaves request is granted.

It is a duaa iv It must be clear by now, that this soorah is in essence a duaa in which the believer asks forguidance from the Lord. As the adeeth indicates, this supplication gains acceptance

immediately and is granted mercifully -- if offered sincerely and consciously. If we look at thearrangements of the Noble Qur-aan, immediately after this supplication, Allaah has put thewhole Qur-aan in front of us as the guidance. In fact, the very first sentence of the next chapterstates clearly, This is the Book of Allaah, without doubt. It is guidance for the God-conscious.

Moreover, Chapter two of the Qur-aan not only indicated the path of the blessed but alsodetails the wrongs Israelites committed, for which they were condemned with the anger andwrath of Allaah. Similarly, the third Chapter provides the path of the blessed but with it alsopoints out the misguidance the Christians adopted. In this way, the guidance has all been

arranged in the same order as the words of the duaa.However, this duaa goes beyond just receiving the guidance from Allaah in the form of theQur-aan. This duaa is to seek help and guidance from Allaah SWT on an ongoing basis inreflecting on the Qur-aan, in understanding its message and its implications on our daily life,and in deriving the right conclusions and lessons so that we can make the right choices anddecisions on a day to day basis in every aspect of our individual and collective life. This part of

separate from the words of Allaah. Similarly, the words of the Prophet were preserved separately and

distinctly from the words of Allaah.i One of the companions of the Prophet.ii Different researchers compiled books of adeeth. This is one of the most authentic ones.iii alaah is one of the most important acts of worship performed by Muslims. The word alaah literallymeans attending to or looking, proceeding or advancing towards something, which in this case implies anact of worship where a person leaves everything aside, proceeds towards and attends exclusively to theremembrance and glorification of Allaah. Thus, a Muslim is supposed to stop everything and take a fewminutes five times a day to concentrate on remembering and glorifying Allaah and indicating hissubmission to Allaah. It consists of recitation of the Qur-aan, utterances of glorification of Allaah in a few

different positions and a few supplications. There being no English equivalent, many people translate it asprayer, but it is not prayer in the sense of supplication. Use of prayer for alaah is thus misleading. Topreserve its uniqueness and to void confusing it with prayer as in supplication, it should be referred to byits original name -- alaah.iv Duaa means supplication or prayer to Allaah.


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the duaa is, naturally, responded to in accordance with the sincerity and dedication of theseeker.

The beauty of Soorah Al-Faati ah as a duaa is that:

It is based on the realization that human intellect, wisdom and knowledge can provideonly best guesses and experimental theories but not a proven best way of life, thatthey fall short of providing a definite knowledge of the right path and that the definiteknowledge about the best way of life can only be revealed by the Creator Himself;

It seeks guidance towards Allaah himself which Allaah loves to grant; and, It is meant for the very purpose for which Allaah has created us.

It teaches manners This soorah also teaches us the etiquette about how to approach our Lord and how to supplicateto Him. It shows us how our duaa should start with appropriate appreciation and

acknowledgement of the bounties of Allaah, and mention of His praise and glory. Only afterthese acknowledgments, should we present our request respectfully.

It also teaches another important manner. When mentioning the people who were bestowedwith blessings and bounties, the style was direct You blessed . It is because Allaahbestows favours to the slaves for their obedience because of His Grace, otherwise peopleshould obey Allaah any way because that is why they were created. On the other hand, whentalking about those who incurred the wrath and who went astray, the style is indirect. BecauseAllaah does not want to condemn people, they suffer the natural consequences of their ownactions and behaviours.

It is an Essential Part of the alaah It is a well-known adeeth reported in both Bukhaari and Muslim i that alaah of a personwho does not recite Al-Faati ah is invalid. Accordingly, this soorah is recited in everyrakaah ii (unit) of alaah five times a day. In other words, a believer recites it at least 17 times iii a day, if not more, so that frequently during the day:

The attitude and perspective of the believer is set aright; The covenant is refreshed and remains in the believers consciousness; and, The believer gains support from the Lord in making the right choices and staying on

the course.

i Bukhaari and Muslim are names of two most authentic collections of adeeth.ii Salaah is made up of two, three or four sets (units or rakaaat) of certain movements and positions. Eachunit (rakaah) consists of standing, bowing and prostrating positions in which specific words of glorification are recited. Recitation of Soorah Al-Faatihah is an essential action in the standing position.iii The total obligatory units or rakaaat that a Muslim offers in five daily alaah.


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The Summary Considering the profoundness of this brief soorah, it becomes evident why this soorah wascalled by names like Kafiyah (complete and sufficient), Ummul Kitaab (essence andsubstance of the Book -- the Qur-aan) and Faati atul-Kitaab (Preface of the Book).

As a preface to the Qur-aan, it sets the reader in the right frame of mind. People seek what theyearnestly cherish and seek it only from someone who can really deliver. To all those whocherish truth and seek guidance, Faati ah reminds them to ask for guidance from the source of all knowledge and wisdom, the Lord and the Creator, Who has already delivered in the form of the Qur-aan what they seek in terms of guidance. In addition, He also arranged for its practicaldemonstration through Prophet Muhammad sall-Allaahu alayhi wa sallam (SAWS).

To every reader of this Miraculous Book, it suggests that to benefit from it, one must approachit with a sincere desire for truth and guidance while praying earnestly to gain the guidancefrom the eternal knowledge and wisdom of the Lord of the universe Himself. The person whoapproaches it with this kind of sentiment will naturally put aside his own preconceived ideas,

notions and theories, and approach the Qur-aan with an open mind and pure heart. Hence whenreciting this soorah, all its features should be remembered and all its teachings kept in mind.

This concludes the commentary on Soorah Faati ah.


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Al-BaqarahName, Background and Topics

Name The name of this soorah is Al-Baqarah. This is not its title or topic; instead,like the majority of the names of the soorahs, it simply identifies the soorah inwhich Al-Baqarah (the heifer) is mentioned. Since it is just a name or symbol,it will not be translated. We will continue to refer to it as Soorah Al-Baqarah.

Background To understand the background of this soorah, it is essential to understand themission for which Prophet Muhammad sall-Allaahu alayhi wa sallam wassent, which was the same as for all the previous prophets and messengers:

To invite people to believe in and worship the One and Only Creator,Allaah subhaanahu wa ta'aalaa;

To coach those who accept the message of Islam in becoming the best a

human being can be, to purify their thoughts and behaviour and to excelin all of their morals, dealings, interactions and conduct;

To establish the ideal peaceful and just Islamic society a society thatwas characterized by kindness, generosity, compassion, caring, sharing,complete fairness and dignity for all human beings and that was leadand constituted by the people who were the trained as per the secondpoint to excel in their conduct and behaviour.

The purpose of the Qur-aan was to provide the help and guidance to theProphet in achieving that mission. In other words, the objectives of therevelations of the Qur-aan were:

To identify the straight path that will help people to succeed in this lifeand the hereafter;

To help people develop a superb personality by excelling in theirmorals, ethics, dealings and spirituality; To guide people in establishing justice and peace in this world by

implementing Islamic systems of life including its concepts of human


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equality, human dignity and protection of fundamental human rights ina society characterized by caring, sharing, kindness, generosity andmagnanimity;

To invite and encourage people to follow the straight path, to excelpersonally and to join the mission for establishing the society of justiceand peace.

It was for these goals that the Prophet started his mission in Makkah and thenmigrated to Madeenah i. Although the work of personal purifications of believers and their training in excellence commenced right from the start of themission, the changes in the collective life of the people started taking shapeonly in Madeenah where Muslims had established their independentcommunity.

In Makkah, the messages of the Qur-aan were tuned to the guidance needs of the idolaters who were not familiar with Tow eed (oneness and uniqueness of Allaah), Risaalah (prophethood), Aakhirah (hereafter) and revelations; hence,the emphasis of the Qur-aanic revelations was to introduce these concepts andbuild the foundations of the faith. The main topics included the fundamentalsof the Deen ii of Islam and rationality of the Islamic faith. The focus was oninculcating faith, building the right kind of personality in a believer and

training believers to achieve personal excellence in morals, ethics, dealings andspiritual aspects of their personality.

In Madeenah, the situation had changed. Muslims made up the majority of thepopulation and hence were able to form a small Islamic state and had anopportunity to establish the society according to their beliefs and the teachingsof Islam. The biggest minority of the non-Muslim population were the Jews,who had agreed to become a part of the new Islamic confederation.Theoretically, they were the Muslims of the past who had deviated far from theIslamic path. They were supposed to believe in and were quite familiar withthe articles of faith which Islam required people to believe. They were alsosupposed to follow the code of law (shareeah) revealed to Moses; however,through a process of degeneration over a long period, they had lost the goals of the mission, the spirit of the commands, the integrity of the teachings and the

iName of the city to which the Prophet migrated and where he had taken up residence to establish the

Islamic society.ii Deen means a paradigm that determines the complete way of life in every aspect of life. Islam is a deenbecause a believer must fashion and live all of his life in every aspect of life according to the Islamicparadigms.


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essence of Islam that were originally taught to them by Prophet Moses. Someof their current beliefs and practices had no basis in the Torah. Even the Torahitself was not preserved. It was corrupted i by many textual changes,interpolations, deletions, explanatory comments, historical anecdotes, mythicalstories and mystical accounts. This situation called for Prophet Muhammad toinvite them back to true Islam, in addition to inviting the idolaters and pagansto the faith.

The small Islamic state that had been created was to be transformed into anideal Islamic society established on the basis of Islamic civilization, socialstructure, economics, legal system and politics. Thus the focus of therevelations needed to shift toward communal excellence while continuing withthe campaign for personal excellence.

The establishment of the Islamic state where Muslims were in power hadcreated new dynamics in the constant struggle between the Islamic movementand anti-Islam forces. Under this situation, a new group of people emerged insignificant numbers who wanted to preserve their worldly interest by playinggames between the two groups. They were the hypocrites.

There was a very real threat of armed attacks on this little Islamic state from all

of the anti-Islam powers surrounding it, especially the Makkans. Muslims wereprovided guidance for dealing with the dangers that were looming and forpreparing them to defend themselves against any and all aggressions as well asto wrest control of the Holy Kabah from the Makkan occupiers.

All the Muslims being persecuted in Makkah and the surrounding areas wereasked to migrate to Madeenah to join hands in the establishment the Islamicsociety of excellence, peace and justice. They were coming from all overempty-handed leaving everything behind. This had posed a huge settlementproblem for this tiny city of a few hundred resident Muslim families.

As the major part of Soorah Al-Baqarah was revealed this early period of Muslim life in Madeenah, it deals with all of the above-mentioned issues andobjectives including laying the foundation of Islamic civilization and Islamicsystem of peace and justice. It provides the guidance while keeping the

circumstances in perspective, and keeping in line with the Islamic philosophyi Even prophets of Israel complained about the corruption of the text: "How can you say we (the Jews) arewise and the law of the Lord is with us, when in fact the false pen of the scribes has made it into a lie?"(Jeremiah 8:8 RSV)


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of bringing changes through successive evolutionary steps. Because thepermanent, effective and everlasting change in the society happens only whenit evolves with the people of the society, Islam takes the approach of changingthe society towards its ideals by an evolutionary process of introducing thechanges in successive gradual steps, that are introduced consistently andpersistently. Consequently the changes introduced through this soorah (Al-Baqarah) represent the first wave of Islamic reforms towards Islamic goals of excellence.

Topics

In Soorah Al-Faati ah, we seek guidance to the straight path; in response,

Soorah Al-Baqarah presents the guidance from Allaah with the declaration thatthis doubtless book provides guidance to the God-conscious. Then, the overalltheme throughout the soorah continues to provide the details of the straightpath that will lead the believers individually to eternal success in the hereafterand personal excellence in this world, and collectively to the establishment of an ideal human society in the form of an Islamic state. It describes a believersresponsibilities towards those goals; and the consequences of not workingtowards them.

To set the stage for people to accept the guidance that the Qur-aan provides,the first 39 verses serve as a preamble: It classifies people in three groups interms of their reaction to the Islamic call towards the straight path -- Muslims,disbelievers and hypocrites -- identifying that only practising Muslims will besuccessful; it invites people to the Islamic way; it demonstrates Islam to be thepurpose of human creation and their sojourn on the earth through the story of

Adam; and it warns people about the satanic mission, satanic behaviour and itsconsequences.

We also seek in Soorah Al-Faati ah avoidance and protection from the waysand behaviour of those people who incurred the wrath of Allaah. Citing BaneeIsraaeels i examples, Soorah Al-Baqarah identifies the kind of behaviour thatangers Allaah SWT. It gives detailed reasons why Banee Israaeel (Israelites)were condemned and why they incurred the wrath of Allaah.

i Banee Israaeel means children of Israaeel. Israaeel was the title of prophet Yaqoob (Jacob). BaneeIsraaeel is the Qur-aanic term for the Biblical term Israelites. It is used for Jews in general.


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It also makes it clear that the title of Gods chosen or favourites is aperformance-based title specified for practising Muslims who follow thefootsteps of Ibraheem i by leading people in establishing the Islamic system of

justice and peace in the world. It is bestowed for Ibraheem-like performance inpractising Islam, not for racial or religious affiliation to him. Thus the Jewshave lost that status altogether by abandoning that mission. As it was alwaysintended, it has been given to true Muslims who are now the followers of Prophet Muhammad. The soorah gives many examples of the Jews derelictionand lists their crimes. It even gives examples of the things that they startedpractising when they neglected the real goals of the mission, the spirit of thecommands, and the essence of Islam. After losing the spirit, all they were leftwith was a huge structure of nit-picking rules and some customary rituals,aided by many heresies (bidah). That focus caused them to be divided into

different sects that were based on different versions of those heresies and thenit-picking regulations. Their spirituality consisted of practising divination,astrology, amulets (taweez), contact with spirits of the dead, mysticism andcabbalism -- all geared to maximizing their personal worldly benefits. TheIslamic objectives were lost on all of them including their religious leaderssuch as rabbis (mullahs), Pharisees (Faqeehs), Sadducees (modernists), andEssenes (Sufis), while the benefits of this world were their main concern.Allaah had sent various prophets from time to time to reform them and bring

them back to the true Islamic mission, but they would not listen. They likedtheir version of religiosity so much that they became hostile enemies of anyonewhom Allaah sent to guide them. Some of those who tried to reform them wereeven killed.

After listing their crimes, the soorah officially affirms the appointment of thefollowers of Prophet Muhammad to be leaders of the Islamic movement andhence the chosen people, and invites the Jews to join this new Islamicmovement and to reform their ways instead of clinging to their old, corruptways. The emphasis in the invitation has been on encouraging them to adoptthe true faith sincerely so much so that they are immersed in the hue of AllaahSWT.

Thus, verses 40-121 address the Israelites directly and describe the job given tothem for which they were regarded as chosen people; how that status was not

inheritable but depended on the performance of the job assigned; what specialfavours Allaah had bestowed on them for that purpose and how ungrateful they

i Abraham


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were after receiving each of the favours; how they failed in their performanceand broke their promises to Allaah again and again; where they went wrong;and, why they have been removed from that privilege and condemned toAllaahs anger. All of these details have been documented there so thatMuslims can avoid adopting the same behaviour and falling into the samepitfalls. Verses 122-162 describe the real mission and purpose for whichIbraheem dedicated his life, reinforcing that the mission of all the messengersof Allaah has always been the immersion in Allaahs hue, and attainment of Allaahs pleasure and the Islamic objectives listed above. It also indicates thatIbraheem built the Holy Kabah to be the centre of this Islamic mission, andthat Prophet Muhammads advent was in response to Abrahams supplicationand necessary for the completion of the Islamic mission that Abraham hadstarted.

Then, verses 163-242 lay down the preliminary social and economic teachingsby which Muslims must live personally and collectively and on the basis of which the Islamic state should be founded. They provide initial guidance aboutestablishing an Islamic society and introduce the first wave of social, politicaland economic reforms towards the establishment of the Islamic systems inplace of the established un-Islamic customs and traditions of the society.

Verses 243-283 encourage Muslims to engage in and to fully dedicatethemselves both personally and financially for Jihaad i to establish the Islamicstate and supremacy of Islam, and to liberate the Holy Kabah from thedominance of the disbelieving Makkans so that it can be rededicated to themission for which it was originally built.

The last three verses 284-286 are the concluding remarks to: remind peoplethat Allaah knows everything and is going to hold them accountable; announceto people that whatever they decide to do, the Prophet and his companionshave embarked on the path of faith for the mission assigned to them; and itends with a Duaa that teaches those who have dedicated themselves to theIslamic mission as to how they should seek help, mercy and forgiveness whileworking on this great Islamic mission.

i Jihaad is a dedicated and passionate struggle for the establishment of Islamic system of peace and justice justice in the society, for making Islam the dominant global world order and for maintaining it if it isalready established. It must be a well-planned, organized and coordinated collective struggle by theUmmah, led by a dynamic leadership. It includes every intellectual, verbal or physical effort that,according to the strategy and plan of the Ummah, is needed to attain the aforementioned Islamicobjectives. It is an obligation on every person who claims to be a Muslim and is not an optional matter.


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Placement of this Soorah It was stated in the introduction to the Qur-aan that Allaah SWT in Hisultimate wisdom decreed the compilation of the Qur-aan in different order thanthe order of revelation. Some aspects of this wisdom were mentioned withexamples. Although mankind cannot understand or discover all of the reasonsthe Almighty had for this arrangement, some of them are quite evident. Therelationship of the contents of this soorah with the contents of Faati ah is oneexample.

One point to consider is that, unfortunately, if we look at the condition of Muslims nowadays, it is very close to that of the Jews at the time of the

Prophet. Perhaps it is one of the profound reasons in the ultimate wisdom of Allaah SWT that this soorah has been put right at the beginning of the Qur-aan,so that Muslims can see their face in the mirror right at the outset. Perhaps theywould see themselves in the picture and correct their attitude and behaviourgoing forward.

Another point to ponder upon is that the Qur-aan is not a book of theory or of mere intellectual concepts. It is an operation manual for operating humansociety. It delivers its maximum benefits only when it is fully practised.Muslims are taught to immediately put into practice what they learn from theQur-aan. That is why the companions of the Prophet used to learn a few verses,put them into practice and then learn some more, so on and so forth. From thatperspective, it is but natural that when Muslims embark on Islamic revival andthey start implementing the teachings of the Qur-aan in the collective affairs of the Islamic state, the implementation should start with the teachings of Soorah

Al-Baqarah. Then, keeping in line with the gradual evolutionary process of implementation of Islam, move forward in the order the commands appear inthe Qur-aan.


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Teachings and Running Commentary

The soorah starts with a string of three letters of Arabic alphabet:

1 Alif, Laam, Meem.

The English equivalents of these letters are A, L, M.

Some of the soorahs of the Qur-aan (29 out of 114) start with letters such as these. At the timeof the revelation of the Qur-aan, it was in vogue for celebrated poets and orators to use randomletters of alphabet in their literary pieces. As the Qur-aan was to dazzle the Arabs in superbnessof its style over every other literary work, Allaah SWT did not leave out any aspect of stylefrom the Qur-aan that was in vogue at that time. With the passage of time, that style becameextinct, but it stayed in the Qur-aan because every letter of the Qur-aan is preserved forever.They are always included in the text and recited as its part.

Since the style was familiar at the time of revelation, no enemy of Islam ever questioned theuse of these letters nor did any Muslim ask the Prophet about their use. Similarly, since theirmeaning or significance has no bearing on the message or the guidance for which the Qur-aanwas sent, neither the Prophet nor his companions ever commented on them. That is why thereare no documented reports regarding this from the Prophet or his companions. Hence, whentheir use got out of style in literary circles, in the absence of any documentation, people startedwondering why these letters were used.

To answer the curiosity of people who ask about them, subsequent commentators of the Qur-aan have sometimes theorized on their significance but none of the opinions ever gainedwidespread acceptability.

Some scholars were of the opinion that by using a string of alphabets, Arab poets used to implythat from the letters people use for their common language, they create masterpieces. Theyproposed that the use of such letters in the Qur-aan points out the fact that Allaah uses theletters of human language to bring about a book (the Qur-aan) that is a living miracle, which

cannot be humanly duplicated.

Some people think that these letters have some kind of mystic meanings; however, had therebeen any mystic meanings, being the teacher of the Qur-aan, the Prophet would have explainedit. By the same token, anyone else who assigns some mystic meanings to these characters is

just speculating, because the valid knowledge of the unseen realities can come only from theMessenger of Allaah who was directly taught by Allaah SWT. Any other human beingsopinion is merely speculation or conjecture.

Some others who have reflected on the contents of the soorah to which these letters have beenappended have come up with different theories. They have opined that these letters have a verystrong symbolical relationship with the contents of the chapter they are appended to. The use of the same letters for multiple soorahs implies a similarity of theme and content. One researcherhas determined that the Arabic letters were based on Hebrew letters of alphabet, which in turn


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were strongly influenced by Egyptian hieroglyphics. Hence, each letter of alphabet representedan animal or a thing and was shaped in similarity to that object. For example, Jeem (J) wasrepresented by Jeemal (camel) and was shaped like it, so was Beth (B) for Bayt (house). Meem(M) represented water and was shaped like its wave, while Noon (N) was used to represent fishand aa ( ) was used to indicate a snake. The relationship of the letters to the subject matter of a soorah, he suggests, is based on the original derivation of the letters from the shapes andanimals they represented. For example, the chapter of the Qur-aan that starts with N mentions

Jonahs stay in the belly of fish, while the chapters that start with always mention Mosesstaff taking the form of a snake and those with M mention about his crossing of the ocean ordrowning of Pharaoh in the sea. 29 Analysis indicates that although it was true in the case of soorahs that started with aa and N, this was not true in other cases. Soorah Araaf mentionsturning of Moses staff into a snake, but does not have aa in the letters used in its beginning.Similarly, many soorahs (such as Aali-Imraan, Ar-Rad, As-Sajdah, Al-Mu-min, Ash-Shoora,Al-A qaaf) have the letter M in their string, but do not mention a body of water, Mosescrossing or Pharaohs drowning in the sea.

One theory that became very popular claims the Noble Qur-aan has a mathematical structureon the basis of nineteen. I analyzed this hypothesis as soon as it was presented and checked thearguments and evidence that was presented, but found it lacking in support from the Qur-aanitself as well as in scientific rigour and consistency. Although many people were mesmerizedby it, people with knowledge of Deen could see the inconsistencies and gaps in the wholeapproach.

Regardless of what people theorize about them, they all agree that the message of the Qur-aanremains clear and complete without there being a need to know anything about the strings of

these letters.

After this string of letters, the Qur-aan introduces itself and defines its role:

2 This is the Book, there is no doubt in it guidance for the righteous who: 3 Believe in the Ghayb, establish alaah, and spend out of what We 30

have provided for them; and, 4 Believe in what has been revealed to you 31 and what was revealed

before you; and, Are absolutely certain of the hereafter.

5 They are on the path of guidance from their Lord and they are those who aresuccessful.

29 (See the Tafseers of Hameeduddeen Fraahi and Ameen Ahsan Islahi)30 This is the royal We. As the Sovereign and Owner of the Universe, He uses the pronoun We when

the message is intended to show His authority, power, and majesty. I is used when talking about Hismercy, grace, forgiveness and personal relationship with His servants.31 You naturally stands for Prophet Muhammad SAWS. It means that Prophet Muhammad must beaccepted as the final messenger of Allaah along with all the guidance he provided under instructions fromAllaah whether given through the Qur-aan or through extra-Qur-aanic information or explanations.


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The Book is used in the Qur-aan to represent the text of Allaahs eternal guidance for

human beings to follow and live by. The Qur-aan constitutes the Book because it containscomplete guidance from Allaah in His own words. It may be observed that the word book hasbeen used in the past for the revealed books too. For example, each documented revelation of the past is called a Scripture (book in Latin). Similarly, the collection of scriptures is calledthe Bible (book in Greek). That was quite appropriate because the revelations to the previousprophets and messengers emanated from the same Book of Allaah; however, the Qur-aan isspecial in the sense that it is the complete, final and the whole version of the Book, literallyword by word from Allaah Himself and preserved perfectly in His original words.

There is no doubt in it emphasizes two features of this book. Firstly, it is free of any doubtfulmaterial because it is based on Allaahs personal, eternal, absolute and perfect knowledge. Itdoes not contain any theory, guesswork, estimation, speculation or conjecture. Secondly, thereis no doubt about this book being from Allaah.

For this claim, however, it does not present here any evidence. This can be for three reasons:

1. The Book itself is its evidence. The readers should be able to draw their ownconclusions by the time they have finished the Book.

2. By the time this soorah was revealed, this fact was fairly established in Arabiansociety that the Qur-aan is undoubtedly Allaahs Book.

Although it had become apparent to most of the people that this Book could not be a

human production but was Allaahs word, many people did not respond positively tothe call of Islam or opposed it because they lacked the personality and attitude neededto do so or their personal worldly interests precluded them from it. They were nothampered by doubts about the Book. Hence, instead of providing evidence to supportthis claim, the verses immediately following this statement focus on the attributespeople should have to avail themselves of the guidance of the Qur-aan.

3. If people at this moment concentrate on the qualities and mindset that are needed tobenefit from and understand clearly the guidance provided by this Book, there will be

ample evidence provided for its claim at many places later on.

The full statement This is the Book of Allaah, without doubt has been made so that thereader knows from the outset that he is not about to read something human, but Divine. This isto set the attitude and expectations aright immediately at the beginning. It notifies the reader:You should not read it superficially, cursorily, or in order to kill time. Even if you are notready to accept its claim, at least take it seriously, and study it attentively and reflectively sothat you can draw your own conclusions in a responsible manner. This you owe to yourself,because if the claim of the Book is true, you will be held accountable for not making a serious

attempt to arrive at the right conclusion.

The verse continues to define the objective and purpose of the Book. This is a book of guidance to teach human beings how to live in this world. It is not a book of history, science orphilosophy, though it may use these sciences for making points for the guidance of people. It


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provides guidance in terms of defining the goals and objectives that people should strive forand enunciating the values and principles that will make the achievement of those objectivespossible. It sets the goals for people to develop a superb human personality characterized withexcellence and establishes the best possible human society characterized with peace, balance,moderation, justice and kindness and imparts teachings that will help people achieve thesegoals efficiently and effectively. In this way, it is an operating manual sent by the Creator forhuman individuals and human society. It is like getting operating manuals from a manufacturer

for a very sophisticated and complicated machine, in which case, operating and maintainingthe machine according to the manual is essential to benefit from it optimally and to keep itperforming efficiently. This role of providing guidance is Allaahs response to our request forguidance we sought in Soorah Al-Faati ah. In effect, it clarifies at the outset that herein iscontained the guidance that you sought.

After introducing itself in two extremely concise but profoundly meaningful phrases, the lastphrase of this first verse as well as the subsequent verses divide people in three groups in termsof their reaction to the guidance of the Qur-aan , describe the personality traits that determine

their attitude towards the guidance of the Qur-aan and specify the consequences of theirattitude and behaviour.

Naturally, not all people who hear or read about the Qur-aan are going to benefit from it. Tobenefit from the divine guidance provided by the Qur-aan, a person needs to have an openmind. It is the same as the fact that to benefit from sunlight for finding ones way, one mustopen his eyes. Those who keep their eyes closed, sleep through the sunlight hours or are blindcannot obviously benefit from sunlight. Another example would be that a psychiatristsknowledge, diagnosis and prescription are beneficial only for those who realize the need for

the doctors help, approach the doctor and then use the prescription. By the same token, thereneeds to be a desire and willingness to be guided to benefit from the guidance offered by theQur-aan.

Keeping an open mind and having a desire to seek and willingness to accept guidance is anattribute of Muttaqeen. The Arabic word Muttaqeen is the plural adjective for those who haveTaqwa and is variously translated as pious, righteous, God-fearing, God-conscious, and dutifulto Allaah. In fact, it carries all those meanings simultaneously. Taqwa is a state of mind, anattitude and a paradigm of life that is characterized by the following kind of consciousness,

care, caution and avoidance:

Being conscious of our accountability to Allaah and being mindful that He is wellaware of all our actions, intentions, thoughts and behaviours.

Being careful and anxious to fulfil ones duties to Allaah as His slaves. Being cautious not to get involved in anything that may be disliked by Allaah. Being particular about living in a way that will avoid disobedience, displeasure or

punishment of Allaah.

As two companions of the Prophet SAWS, Ubayy Bin Kaab and Umar (may Allaah bepleased with them), discussed (and I paraphrase), Taqwa is, Living ones life as carefully asyou hold your clothes closer to your body while passing through a dense jungle of thornybushes so as to avoid your clothes being caught in any of the thorns.


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Taqwa is actually the basis of all goodness. Once a person has developed the quality of Taqwain his attitude, only good comes from that person. Nurturing and developing Taqwa is thenatural result of a true faith and is the minimum level of commitment that Islam requires of abeliever. If a person claims to be a believer but his attitude and outlook lacks Taqwa, he is ahypocrite, not a Muslim.

So the Qur-aan is guidance for those who have Taqwa -- the genuine desire and attitude of careand caution to do the right things and to avoid what is not good. Taqwa is found in the peoplewho have the following attributes:

1. They believe in Ghayb, which means something that is not evident, but is hidden,unknown, secret, or unobservable through sensory perception. Believing in Ghayb meansbelieving in realities that we cannot perceive through our physical senses or experiencethrough personal observations but can conceive reasonably through logic, intelligence andwisdom, establish through indirect evidence or know through credible sources. These

realities include Allaah, angels, the Qur-aan being the word of Allaah, Muhammad beingthe final messenger of Allaah and life after death. It indicates the capacity of a person torise above the animalistic confines of physical perceptions to the level of using humanfaculties of wisdom, intelligence, logic, reasoning, vision, deduction and induction. Theperson should be capable of reflecting, evaluating and drawing conclusions based on non-sensory evidence and accept the realities without being able to see and touch them. Thosepeople who cannot believe in anything without being able to see, hear or touch are notworthy of this guidance. They are operating at animal-level mentality even if they happento be research scholars.

This quality is extremely important from the point of view of the test for which humanbeings have been put on earth. The test is valid only because people cannot meet or talk toGod with certainty or see through a telescope to observe Hell and Paradise. If a person candetermine these realities with absolute certainty, there is no test. Faith is only crediblewhen it is based on foresight, not on personal sensory observation. It is not a matter of belief anymore, and thus unacceptable, once the reality is personally experienced, forexample, right at the time of the death or once the punishment of Allaah arrives. Whendrowning in the sea, Pharaoh believed in Moses and his God, but that was of no avail.

2. They are practical people. Although they believe because they use their intellect, they donot stay only in a theoretical world. As soon as the reality of Islam makes sense to them,they start living it. They establish alaah. alaah is the obligatory formal worshipperformed five times a day. The word used for establishing is Iqaamah which meansmaking something stand perfectly straight without any crookedness. Establishing alaahhas two dimensions: personal -- offering the prayer regularly, timely, in humility, sincerelyand ardently; and, societal structuring and implementing political and social organizationof Muslims as one united Ummah on the basis of the system of alaah. Even if alaah isperformed as an act of worship five times a day regularly and timely, without alaah beingthe main vehicle for the political structure of the Muslim society as a united Ummah,alaah is not established. When alaah is properly established, it strengthens their directrelationship with Allaah, stimulates them to strive for the objective of the mission of achieving Islamic goals, develops Godly thinking and consciousness in their personality,and organizes them in a disciplined manner to achieve the goals of the Islamic mission.


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3. They spend generously from what Allaah has bestowed upon them. Whether they possessa little or a lot, they spend out of it in Allaahs way to share it with the people around themand to finance the Islamic movement. They understand that whatever they have, they donot own it. It is a gift and trust from Allaah. They also appreciate the mercy of Allaah thatthey are expected to spend only a portion of it for His sake. This spending is not limited toZakaah 32, but includes other forms of charity that may be necessary to meet the needs of the society and the Islamic movement.

Although there are four fundamental obligations in Islam after declaring the faith, onlyalaah and Zakaah are mentioned here. This is for two reasons. Firstly, these twoobligations are through which the establishment of Islam as a Deen begins and thebuilding of an Islamic society is initiated. They are the bedrocks on which the Islamicmovement and Islamic state are established. alaah provides the structure and organizationof the Islamic polity and Zakaah its financial infrastructure and philosophy. Secondly, on apersonal level, alaah represents all our obligations to Allaah because a person whoestablishes alaah is able to perform all other obligations to Allaah. Similarly, Zakaahrepresent the obligations to fellow human beings and the person who is particular aboutpaying Zakaah is usually more inclined to fulfill other obligations to people. That takescare of all Islamic obligations: both to Allaah and to people.

4. They believe in all prophets and messengers and the guidance revealed to them, as they allpreached Islam. Believing in all those special people reminds a believer that Islam is not anew religion and that it is the only religion that Allaah had wanted people to follow. Thisunderscores the continuity of the Islamic message throughout human history.

This also establishes a common heritage among all those who believe in God. It helps tobreak down barriers among them, if people venture out of their shells. It opens a door forhealthy relations, open communication and meaningful dialogue among differentcommunities of believers. Especially, it makes the followers of the previous prophets feelat home among Muslims or in the fold of Islam.

This also indicates that to be a believer, all representatives from Allaah (prophets andmessengers) must be accepted as such without any reservations. One cannot pick andchoose in who to believe and whom to disregard. The full chain of those special peoplemust be accepted without discrimination from Adam to Muhammad, the last of them.Naturally, the last of the Prophets must be obeyed and followed until the Last day. For

instance, when a new official is appointed, we do not insist on following one of his/herpredecessors as it will be inappropriate to disregard the current official and to refer to onefrom the past.

Similarly, the guidance brought by the last Prophet is the only guidance that should befollowed because: It is the latest edition of guidance from Allaah; it is complete andcontains all the guidance which human beings need, whether revealed in the past or not;and, it is the only guidance preserved in its pristine form. Therefore, doing anything elsewill be wrong. We refer to the latest, revised and enlarged work of an author, not to an oldedition of a book. We comply with the current statutes in force, not the expired ones. That

32 Zakaah is compulsory charity that must be paid by all Muslims who own assets in excess of aminimum threshold.


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is why we file our tax returns according to the latest tax act and regulations, not accordingto an old copy of the Act just because our fathers paid according to that old Act.

Hence, it is crucial that all prophets and books including the last Prophet and Book,Muhammad and the Qur-aan, be believed to be from Allaah, but we rely solely on the lastrevelation for guidance.

5. When it comes to the life hereafter, their belief is so strong that it is an absolutely certainreality to them. Their lifestyle witnesses their conviction about it as their actions, prioritiesand behaviour clearly demonstrate that their focus is on the success of the hereafter ratherthan the temporary benefits of this transitory life.

The believers who have Taqwa with all the above five characteristics are the people who haveadopted the guidance from the Qur-aan. They will have a life of inner peace, tranquility andcontentment in this world, they will offer humanity a society of peace and fairness, and theywill have a very thrilling, exhilarating and satisfying success in the eternal life hereafter. Theyare the people who will be successful in achieving the aforementioned Islamic goals. It is theachievement of those goals that is called success or falaah in Qur-aanic language.

This is the first group and the only one that benefits from the guidance of the Qur-aan. It is abrief profile containing only the basic attributes of a true Muslim. This narration should beused to evaluate ourselves about where each of us stands. Do we fit the profile presented or dowe need to make changes in our personality and attitude?

At the time of its revelation, the above profile truly described the companions of the Prophet.Although a lot more could have been said about the companions of the Prophet and also aboutthose who benefit from the Qur-aan in general, the core attributes mentioned here also tell us alot more about those who did not benefit from the guidance of the Qur-aan. If we take the flipside of this profile, it describes those Jews in Madeenah who had rejected the call to Islam. Thereasons for their rejection corresponded precisely to the absence of the abovementionedattributes. Here is how:

Allaah had told Ibraheem (Abraham) that Israelites would enjoy leadership as long asthey kept their faith and Taqwa. He had also indicated to Moosa (Moses) that onlythose Israelites who had Taqwa would believe in and follow the last Messenger.When the Prophet invited Jews to Islam, those who had Taqwa, joined Islam. Others

set off on an anti-Islam campaign. Jews as a community could not get out of their shackles of sensory perception. Their

worship of the calf and their demand to see God were examples of this weakness.

They had given up on the establishment of alaah and spending in the way of Allaah.Despite their huge Synagogues and prayers, the system of alaah had ceased toprovide the structure of their organization. The situation of spending was the worst; infact, charity was strongly resisted.

As for the hereafter, that was not their major concern. Their whole lifestyle wascentred on this world while the hereafter was seldom a consideration in any of theirdealings and actions. Even their religious literature did not talk about the hereafter. Somuch so that some Jews themselves wonder if belief in the hereafter is part of Jewishfaith or not.


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People of Madeenah, be it Muslims or Jews, could immediately see both sides of the picture asthese verses were revealed.

Unfortunately, the majority of the people who claim to be Muslims nowadays are exactly likethe Jews of Madeenah in their outlook and lifestyle. There is little wonder that Allaah has putthese minimum criteria at the beginning of the Qur-aan so that we can set our attitude aright atthe outset.

The next two verses describe the second group of people -- the disbelievers -- and give a brief,succinct description of the consequences of their behaviour both in this world and thehereafter.

6As for those who have disbelieved, regardless of whether you warn them ornot, they are not going to believe. 7Allaah has sealed their hearts and theirhearing; and their eyes are covered up; and for them, there will be an enormouspunishment.

A disbeliever is a person who lacks any one or all of the attributes mentioned for the first groupof people. The root word Kufr connotes thanklessness, rejection and hiding or covering up(the truth). This is a special Islamic term that the Qur-aan uses to describe disbelief (notbelieving in Islam). Disbelief is called Kufr because it is a clear thanklessness to the Creator,rejection of faith in Him and hiding of the truth about Him. Kufr can take different forms:Disbelieving in existence of Allaah, having doubts about His existence, disbelieving in any of His attributes mentioned in the Qur-aan, believing in other gods or deities equal to Allaah orAllaahs partners in divinity, believing in Him but not accepting Him as the active and sole

Sovereign of the universe and everything in it, rejecting or refusing to obey His commands orinjunctions or treating any aspect of life secular being out of purview of Allaahs commands,not accepting any one or more of His prophets or messengers, believing in all tenets of faithand attributes of Allaah but practically living a life of disobedience to Him. Thus, a Kaafir is adisbeliever -- anybody who does not believe fully and purely in Islam. A Kaafir (disbeliever)may be an atheist, an agnostic, a pagan, an idolater (a Mushrik) or one of the people of theBook (a Jew or a Christian), etc.

The prophets are sent by Allaah to give good news to the people who listen to the message of

Allaah informing them of how beautifully they will be rewarded. They are also sent to warnthose who reject the message of the punishment they will face for their rejection. In that case,they are like a doctor who warns a patient about dangers of not following the directions andprescriptions. Unfortunately, these disbelievers are so tuned out that even the warning isuseless.

The disbelievers, unfortunately, are their own enemies. They are the close-minded people whodo not want to listen to any evidence, knowledge, logic, or reasoning to re-evaluate theircurrent beliefs. They have closed their minds from giving any consideration to Islam for any or

all of the following reasons: their devotion to their current beliefs, their indulgence in thisworld, their prejudice, because of their preconceived notions about Islam or they just do notwant to be bothered. The truth of Islam is not the issue; they simply do not want it. Sometimes,deep in their heart these people know that Islam is the truth but for their own reasons they keepopposing it until the truth or falsehood does not matter to them anymore. Once they refuse to


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listen to it, they feel compelled to justify their position, rightly and wrongly, by proving Islamwrong regardless of the evidence otherwise. This behaviour hardens them in their rejection of Islam and practically closes all avenues to a sincere and honest look at it. Whatever theirreasons, they have sealed their hearts, eyes and ears shut from Islam. Although it is their ownnegative and closed-minded attitude towards Islam that has caused this condition, Allaahattributes it to Himself because it is He Who has made human nature to have the capacity tobecome hardened in that manner. It is similar to when Allaah attributes rainfall to Himself

because it is He who has set up the nature of the water cycle to continue and function in thatmanner.

Allaah has made human nature such that it grows and intensifies in whatever direction youwant to take it. If a person keeps on doing good things and making the right choices, hispersonality develops in that direction and goodness comes easily to him as time goes on. Onthe other hand, if a person insists on doing wrong, and continues to justify it, he gets moredeeply entrenched in his wrong attitude. Those who continue to close their mind to Islam, losethe capacity to perceive its beauties, its excellence, its being the only rational faith and its

being the only system that comprehensively and successfully establishes the virtuous society of justice and peace.

The benefit of using this style of describing their hardness of the attitude is not only to showthe power of Allaah on His creations but also to indicate to those who are insisting on thewrong that it is not something they should be proud of. It is a sort of curse from Allaah thatthey are digging themselves deeper and deeper into Hell.

Usually, people in this category are the leaders of society who spearhead the anti-Islam

campaigns. The hardening of their attitude is the consequence of their behaviour that they facein this world; in the Hereafter they will face an enormous torment in Hell.

Telling the Prophet that they are not going to believe whether he warns them or not is toconsole him that their disbelief in Islam is not because there is anything lacking in his deliveryof the message or his selfless work, but it is because of their unfortunate psychological statewhich Allaah has allowed them to remain in. It is also to indicate that it was all right not towaste his time or energies on these lost causes, and that he should instead utilize his resourceson those who are open to considering the truth.

Sometimes, people think that if someones message is not getting across, it is either becausethe message is faulty, or the delivery is inappropriate. Instead of always criticizing the messageor its deliverer, they should be mindful that the receiver of the message might have completelysealed his faculties shut for receiving the message.

This is also to console anyone who dedicates his time and energies for sharing the message of Islam with others that they should not be discouraged by the attitude of the hardenedadversaries. Rather they should set their priorities and target their efforts toward those whotend to be more open and understanding.

At the time of revelation of the Qur-aan, this second group was represented by those Jewishand Makkan leaders to whom truth did not matter. They were spearheading an extremelyaggressive war against Islam and Muslims while they mostly had a feeling in their hearts that


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the claims and message of Muhammad were the truth, but they did not care. They were busytryin

Tafseer (Al-Baqarah)

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Transcript of Tafseer (Al-Baqarah)