O
you who believe! seek assistance through patience and prayer; surely Allah
is with the patient. And do not speak of those who are slain in Allah's
way as dead; nay, (they are) alive, but you do not perceive. And We
will most certainly try you with somewhat of fear and hunger and loss of
property and lives and fruits; and give good news to the patient, Who,
when a misfortune befalls them, say: Surely we are Allah's and to Him we
shall surely return. Those are they on whom are blessings and mercy from
their Lord, and those are the followers of the right course.
(153-157)
GENERAL
COMMENT:
A single theme joins the five verses like a
pearl-string; the sentences from a sequence and the topic is developed
harmoniously; the beginning leads to the end, and the end points to the
beginning. It shows that they were revealed together, not separately. The
context indicates that they must have been revealed shortly before the law
of al-jihad (war in the way of Allah) was promulgated and the
Muslims were ordered to fight in the cause of religion.
The verses
prepare the believers for some trials which they will have to undergo,
some misfortunes which will befall them. Not the usual type of trial and
hardship, but some extraordinary misfortunes which will afflict the whole
community and will continue, recurring every now and then. Man, like any
other creature in this world, always faces some hardships and troubles
which disturb and disrupt the pattern of his personal life. Death,
sickness, fear, hunger, grief, poverty and deprivation are but a few
examples of such personal misfortunes. It is the course which Allah has
laid down for His servants. This world is a place of struggle and
competition; the life is a chain of never ending changes and
transformations. And you shall not find any alteration in the course of
Allah and you shall not find any change in the course of Allah
(35:43).
Although personal afflictions and misfortunes are hard to
bear for the man so affected, yet they are not as crushing, bewildering
and frightening as those which affect the whole community. When an
individual is afflicted by a misfortune, he seeks help of others,
complementing his own wisdom, determination and steadiness with those of
his relatives, friends and compatriots. But when a misfortune or hardship
afflicts the whole community, it stuns them all; it numbs their minds, and
clouds their vision; it looks as if the whole society has lost its
collective wisdom. It disrupts not only the individual, but even the
collective life. Fear terrorizes, panic overwhelms, and minds boggle down;
courage deserts and dread reigns supreme. A collective misfortune is, in
short, much harder to bear and much more bitter in taste. And it is these
that the verse point to.
But not every collective affliction, like
epidemic or famine. What the verses describe is in all encompassing
affliction which shall be brought about as a consequence of the believers'
faith itself. They have accepted the belief of monotheism; they have
answered the call of the truth. The whole world and especially their own
kith and kin are united against them. The enemies are trying, with all the
forces at their command, to extinguish the light of Allah, to erase the
word of justice, to nullify the call of truth. The conflict has reached a
stage where both parties realize that fighting is the only way out. Both
parties have exhausted all other resources they had. The unbelievers first
had tried to achieve their goal by arguments and mischief mongering, by
whispering campaigns and unsettling rumors. But all was in vain. All their
endeavors failed to give them any satisfaction they did not harm the
Muslims in the way they wanted. Now, from their point of view, nothing was
left but to wage war against the Muslims and to annihilate them. Only
then, the path of truth could be blocked and the bright light of Islam
extinguished.
As from the believers' point of view, only the
fighting could now help them in their endeavor to propagate the creed of
monotheism ' to spread the true religion and just rule, to cut at the root
of falsehood. The past experience has proved that truth gains strength
only when falsehood is removed and now it cannot be removed except by
force.
In short, the verses indicate that the great trial is near
at hand it mentions martyrdom in the way of Allah, and praises it
laudably, saying that it is not a death, it is life and what a life
indeed! Accordingly death in the way of Allah, is a distinction which is
desirable not a thing to dislike or fear.
The verses encourage the
believers to fight for Islam. They are told that there is coming to them a
trial, a hardship. Only if they bear it patiently, they shall reach the
high ranks of spiritual perfection, receiving the blessings and mercy of
Allah, and being guided aright by Divine Guidance. Also, it tells them how
they may get help in bearing those burdens they should seek assistance
through patience and prayer. Patience will protect them from fear and
anguish, and will save their plans from disruption. As for prayer, it will
turn their attention to their Lord, and All help them in putting all their
affairs in the hands of the Almighty Allah, because all power belongs to
Him.
COMMENTARY:
QUR'AN: O you who believe!
seek assistance through patience and prayer; surely Allah is with the
patient ones:
We have explained briefly
about patience and prayer, under the verse: And seek assistance through
patience and prayer; and most surely it is a hard thing except for the
humble ones (2:45). Patience is one of the most important
characteristics, which the Qur'an praises very highly. It repeatedly tells
the believers to be patient there are about seventy verses on this theme.
It praises it in such laudable ways as ...and bear patiently that which
befalls you; surely it is of the acts which require determination
(31:17); And none are made to receive it but those who are patient, and
none are made to receive it but those who have a mighty good fortune
(41:35); only the patient will be paid back their reward in full
without measure (39:10).
Likewise, prayer is one of the
greatest acts of worship and devotion which the Qur'an always exhorts the
believers to do. It has been praised in these words: surely prayer
keeps (one) away from indecency and evil (29:45). Wherever
Allah exhorts the people to some good deeds, prayer is always placed at
the head of the list.
Then Allah praises patience that Allah is
with those who have got this virtue: In this respect this verse differs
from the verse 2:45 which had focused attention on prayer; and most
surely it is a hard thing except for the humble ones. But this verse
singles out the patience, because here the talk is about facing the
difficulties and fighting against the enemies; and in this context
patience acquires a greater importance. Surely Allah is with the patient
ones. It is a special proximity unlike the company mentioned in the verse:
and He is with you wherever you are (13:4). This latter verse says
that Allah controls your affairs and His knowledge encompasses you; while
the verse under discussion means that Allah helps and aids the patient
ones. Patience, therefore, is the key to get relief from distress.
QUR'AN: And do
not speak of those who are slain in Allah's way as dead; nay, (they
are) alive, but you do not perceive:
Some exegetes have said
that when the verse says that the martyrs are alive, it actually means
that their good names will continue for ever and their heroism will always
be remembered with gratitude. Their argument is as follows:
"The
verse is addressed to the Muslims, who already believe in Allah, His
Messenger and the Day of Judgment; they are also sure of the life
hereafter. They have accepted the call of truth, and have already heard a
lot of verses which speak of the Resurrection. They know that a man's life
does not end with death. How could they speak of the martyrs as dead?
Moreover, this verse affirms only about the martyrs that they are alive;
and describes it as their especial excellence vis-à-vis other believers
and the unbelievers. But we know that life after death is not confined to
one group, it is a general phenomenon, which covers the whole mankind.
Therefore, the life mentioned here must be something special, which is
reserved for those who are slain in the way of Allah, and that is their
eternal name and everlasting fame."
But this interpretation is
unacceptable, because of the following reasons:
First: The
life which they have mentioned is not real life; it is an imaginary thing,
which has no relation with reality. Such unreal and imaginary things do
not deserve to be included in Divine Speech. Allah, calls to reality, to
truth; and says: and what is there after the truth but error?
(10:32). Of course, Ibrahim (a.s.) had prayed to Allah, And make for me a
truthful tongue among the posterity (26:84). But what he meant by "a
truthful tongue" was continuation of his true mission after him; he did
not mean only that his good name be remembered and his praise be sung by
coming generations.
Of course, such imaginary exegesis, such false
interpretation is more in line with materialists' thinking. They believe
that soul is a material thing, life is a development of matter; once a man
dies the life comes to an end, there is nothing to continue after death;
as such, there is no life hereafter. But applying that idea to sociology,
they encountered a great difficulty:
The fact is that man by nature
believes in continuation of life after death, his instinct tells him that
there is happiness and unhappiness in the other world where he goes after
death; and if he wants to enjoy happiness there, he will have to sacrifice
many comforts of this life. This is specially true about great affairs and
ideals which cannot be established except when their supporters and
adherents are willing to die for them, to sacrifice their lives for the
cause. They have to die so that others may live.
Now, the dilemma
of the atheists and materialists was this: If death is the end of life, if
man, after his death, is lost for ever, then why should he sacrifice his
life so that others may live? Why should he deprive himself of the
comforts and enjoyments which he can easily get through injustice and
tyranny? Just to let others live in peace? What has he got to gain by his
sacrifice? Nothing. No sensible man gives something if he is not getting
something in return. Human nature rejects the concept of giving without
receiving, of leaving something without getting something in exchange. It
rejects the idea of dying to enable others to live, the notion of denying
oneself the enjoyment of this short life so that others may enjoy
it.
When the materialists realized the trouble they were in, they
tried to make up this shortcoming by inventing these imaginary gains which
had no existence except in their own minds. They said: A man, emancipated
from fetters of superstitions and myths, must sacrifice his life for his
country and for other noble goals; this sacrifice will make him immortal
because his good name and widespread fame will remain alive for ever.
Likewise, he should deny himself some enjoyments of life so that others
may benefit from those things. In this way, society and civilization will
remain on right track and the social justice will reign supreme. And that
man, because of his sacrifice, will get a noble and sublime life. Would
that I knew who will enjoy that noble life when the man himself is dead,
when his physical body has perished, and with it have gone all traces of
life including perceptions and feelings? Who will then feel and enjoy that
"noble life"? Isn't it just a delirious raving?
Second: The
last phrase of the verse, " but you do not perceive," does not agree with
that explanation. If that was. the meaning of "life", Allah should have
said: nay, they are alive because their good name will remain for ever,
and people will always sing their praises generation after generation.
Obviously, such description would have proved much more satisfying and
encouraging, and would have cheered them up to a greater degree than the
phrase, "but you do not perceive".
Third: A similar verse
which in a way also explains it describes the promised life in such a way
as not to allow that interpretation: And reckon not those who are
killed in Allah's way as dead; nay, they are alive (and) are
provided sustenance from their Lord; Rejoicing in what Allah has given
them out of His grace, and they rejoice for the sake of those who,
(being left) behind them have not yet joined them, that they shall
have no fear, nor shall they grieve. They rejoice on account of favor from
Allah and (His) grace, and that Allah will not waste the reward of
the believers (3:169-171). Clearly, it is a description of a real, not
imaginary, life.
Fourth: It is not difficult to accept that
some Muslims, in the middle of the Prophet's era, were unaware of the life
after death. What was very clearly mentioned in the Qur'an was the
Resurrection on the Day of Judgment. But so far as the life of
al-barzakh (the period between death and the Day of Judgment) is
concerned, it has been described in the Qur'an but not so clearly as not
to leave any room for ambiguity. That is why not all the Muslims are
agreed on this subject even today some of them do not accept it. (These
are those who believe that soul is not immaterial; that man perishes on
death; and Allah will raise him again for judging him on the Day of
Judgment.) This verse, therefore, could have been revealed to affirm that
the martyrs were alive in al-barzakh. May be, there were some
believers who were not aware of it, even if others knew it.
In
short, the verse speaks of a real, not imaginary, life. Allah in several
places, has counted the life of an unbeliever after his death as a
destruction and perdition. For example: ...and (they) made their
people to alight into the abode of perdition (14:28). So, it is the
life of bliss that is true life, and it is only the believers who will
live that life, as Allah says: and as for the next abode, that most
surely is the life did they but know (29:64). They did not know it
because their senses could perceive only the material aspects of this
world's life. As they did not perceive what was beyond their limited
perception, they could not differentiate between extinction and life after
death. They thought that there was nothing after death but extinction.
That delusion, that conjecture was common to believers and unbelievers
alike. That is why Allah said: "nay, (they are) alive, but you do not
perceive," that is, by your senses. The same is the import of the last
phrase in the verse: that most surely is the life did they but know
(29:64), that is, with certainty, as He says in the verse: Nay! if
you had known with a knowledge of certainty, you should most certainly
have seen the hell (102:5-6).
The meaning of the verse, then,
is as follows and Allah knows better! And do not say about those who are
slain in the way of Allah that they are dead. You should not think that
they have become extinct, have perished. Of course, you generally think
that death is extinction; in your language death is used as opposite of
life; and this delusion is supported by your senses. But it is not
correct. The martyrs are not dead, in that they are not extinct; they are
alive although you do not perceive that life by your senses, by your
perceptions.
This talk was addressed to the believers, although
majority of them if not all knew that man's life continues after his
death. It was done to draw their attention to a fact known to them. The
aim was to cheer them up by reminding them of this reality, in order that
they should not grieve, should not be perturbed, should not loose their
hearts, when death faces them or their dear ones in the way of Allah. The
only thing that the relatives would be afflicted with, in such cases, is
separation from their martyr for a few days, as long as they themselves
are alive in this world. And this temporary separation is not a big
problem especially if compared to the pleasure of Allah. and to the
bounties bestowed on the martyr, like the pleasant life and everlasting
grace. And the pleasure of Allah is the greatest bounty and
bliss.
In this respect, the verse is not unlike the previously
explained one where Allah tells His Prophet: The truth is from your
Lord, therefore you should not be of the doubters (2:147). We know
that the Prophet was the first and foremost of those who were sure of the
Divine signs and communications. Yet he was told not to be of the
doubters. This mode is generally used to show that the subject is so
clear, so well known and so well established that there is no room for any
conflicting thought to come into mind.
QUR'AN: And We
will most certainly try you with somewhat of fear and hunger and loss of
property and lives and fruits:
Allah told them to seek
assistance through patience and prayer and forbade them to say about those
who are slain in His way that they are dead because those martyrs were in
fact alive. Now, He explains why He has informed them of these realities.
It is because the believers were soon to be tried and tested by fighting
in the way of Allah. It was by al-jihad that they would reach the
pinnacle of their virtues; their noble lives would not be worth living
except with al-jihad. The upright religion could not gain strength
but with fighting. And while engaged in fighting, their efforts would not
be crowned with success unless they were helped by those two helpers, that
is, patience and prayer, and were further strengthened by a third factor,
that is, the belief that their martyr is neither dead nor lost, and that
their endeavors with their wealth and souls is neither forfeited nor
fruitless. If they kill their enemy, they will remain alive while their
enemy is destroyed; in this way they would be safe from the rule of
injustice and falsehood which the enemy wanted to impose on them. And if
they are killed in this endeavor, again they will remain alive for ever
and equally safe from that unjust and wrong rule. In either case, they
shall enjoy one of the two most excellent things.
Generally, the
afflictions consist of fear, hunger and loss of properties and lives. As
for the loss of fruits, apparently it means loss of children. When
fighting occurs, its most telling result is not the loss of fruits but
that of progeny, as the men and especially the youths are
killed.
Some exegetes have said that the word "fruits" refers to
the dates, and the "property" to other possessions, far example, camels,
goats and sheep.
QUR'AN: and give good news to the
patient ones who, when a misfortunate befalls them, say: "Surely we are
Allah's and to Him we shall surely return. " Those are they on whom are
blessings and mercy from their Lord, and those are the followers of the
right course:
The patient ones are again
mentioned in these verses so that Allah may give them good news to begin
with, and then may teach them the way of good patience, and thirdly, may
explain to them why patience is essential it is because Allah owns the man
and fourthly, may declare what is its overall recompense, that is,
blessing, mercy and being guided aright.
Allah first told His
Prophet to give them good news; but did not disclose what was that good
news about. This was to show the greatness of the subject matter it is
from Allah, therefore, it must be about something specially good, great
and beautiful. Moreover, it is something which Allah, Himself has
guaranteed.
Thereafter, He said that the patient ones are those who
say these words when misfortune befalls them. "al-Musibah"
(translated here as misfortune) is any happening that occurs to a man; but
it is always used for a distressing happening. "Who ... say: 'Surely we
are Allah's...' ": The word "say" as used here does not mean mere
utterance of the sentence without keeping its meaning in mind. Even
understanding its meaning is not sufficient, unless one penetrates to the
depth of its reality. And that is that man is owned by Allah in real
ownership and that he is surely to return to Allah his Master. If this
feeling takes deep root in his heart, the man will observe the highest
degree of patience; sorrow, fear and anguish will be totally eradicated,
and the rust of heedlessness will be removed from the heart.
How?
Man and all his faculties, actions and other concomitants of
existence, are there because of Allah He is his Creator and Originator.
Man exists because of Allah, and is dependent on Him in all his affairs
and conditions. He does not have any existence, or continuity independent
of Allah. The Master has the right to manage His slave's affairs in any
way He likes; the slave has authority whatsoever in his own affairs,
because he has has no authority no independence at all. Allah, owns him;
He is the real Owner of man's existence, faculties and
actions.
Then Allah allowed man to ascribe his "self" to himself as
a property is ascribed to its owner. That is why it is said that "man has
existence". In the same way, He permitted him to ascribe his faculties and
actions to himself. Accordingly, it is said that "man has faculties like
hearing and sight", or "he does some actions like: walking, speaking,
eating and hearing". Without the Divine permission neither man nor
anything else could own any such ascription or attribution, because
nothing exists without the Divine permission, or independent of Allah's
will.
Allah has also informed us that ultimately all things will
revert to their original status the state before Allah allowed them to be
attributed to one or the other creature and then no ownership will remain
there except that of Allah, as He says: To whom belongs the kingdom
this day? To Allah the One, the Subduer (of all) (40:16). It shows
that man together with all that "belongs" to him or is with him is to
return to Allah.
In short, there is a "real" ownership; it is
reserved for Allah nobody be he a man or something else shares it with
Him. And there is an "apparent" ownership, for example, man "owns" his own
"self " as well as his children and properties etc. But the real ownership
is of Allah, and man owns them in form and appearance only and that also
because Allah has allowed such attribution. Thus, when man remembers the
reality of Divine ownership, and then looks at his own "self ", he knows
that he is wholly and totally owned by Allah, Then, he realizes that his
"apparent" ownership of his "self" as well as of his children and
properties, etc. will soon cease to exist, will become null and void; it
will return to his Lord. Then, he will understand that ultimately he owns
nothing, either in reality or in appearance. In this background, there is
no reason why he should grieve if he is afflicted with some misfortune.
One may be affected only by something which one owns feeling happiness
when it is found or sorrow if it is lost But when he believes that he owns
nothing, he shall not be affected by finding it or losing it. How can he
be afflicted by any loss when he believes that Allah is the real Owner of
everything and He may manage His property in any way He likes?
The Life of
al-Barzakh
The Immateriality of the
Soul
A FEW
TRADITIONS ON SOME RELATED TOPICS
al‑Baqir
(a.s.) said: "A man came to the Messenger of Allah (s.a.w.a.) and said: 'I
am keen (and) enthusiastic for jihad.' (The Messenger of Allah)
said: 'Then do jihad in the way of Allah because if you are killed,
you shall remain alive near Allah and sustained, if you die (before that),
then your reward is indeed with Allah. . . ' "
The
author says: The Prophet's words, "and if you die. . . point to the
word of Allah: and whoever goes forth from his house emigrating to
Allah and His Messenger, and then death overtakes him, his reward is
indeed with Allah . . (4: 100). It also shows that proceeding
to jihad is emigration to Allah and His Messenger.
as‑Sadiq
(a.s.) said about the prophet Isma'il, whom Allah has named "Truthful in
promise": "He was named 'Truthful in promise' because he had promised a
man (to wait for him) in a place. So he remained waiting for that man for
one year. Therefore, Allah named him 'True of promise'. Then that man came
to him after that (long) time and Isma'il said to him, 'I have been
waiting for you. . . ' " (al‑Kafi)
The
author says: It is a thing which average wisdom would probably say was
a deviation from middle course, while Allah has counted it as an excellent
virtue of the said prophet, increasing thereby his prestige and raising
his status, as He has said: And mention Isma'il in the Book, surely he
was truthful in (his) promise, and he was a messenger, a prophet.
And he enjoined on his family prayer and alms‑giving, and was one in whom
his Lord was well pleased (19:54‑5). The fact is that the criterion by
which this action was judged is different from the one used by common
wisdom. The average wisdom, the common sense, looks at the things
according to its own views, and Allah looks after His friends by His Own
help and support; and the word of Allah is the High. Many similar events
have been narrated about the Prophet, the Imams and other friends of
Allah
Question: How can rules
of the shari'ah go against the dictates of reason, in situations
where reason may have a say?
Reply:
True that reason may judge the virtue or vice of an action wherever it
is possible for it to do so. But that thing or action should first come
within its jurisdiction before it can pronounce its judgment on it. And we
have explained earlier that such actions (as described in the above
tradition) are governed by the third system, and that system takes such
actions out of the jurisdiction of human intellect and reason ‑ reason
does not have any say against or about them. It is the way of the Divine
Knowledge. Apparently the prophet Isma'il (a.s.) had given that man
unconditional promise by saying, 'I shall wait for you here until you come
back to me.' Therefore, he stuck to that unconditional wording, to save
himself from breaking the promise, and to fulfill what Allah had put in
his mind and made his tongue utter. Of the same import is an event related
about the Prophet that he was near the Sacred Mosque when one of his
companions told him that he would come back to him, and the Prophet
promised to wait for him until he would return. That man went away and did
not return, and the Prophet remained there three days waiting for him in
the same place which he had promised. That man passed by that place after
three days and found the Prophet sitting there waiting for him and he
himself had forgotten the promise.
as‑Sayyid
ar‑Radi has narrated from the Leader of the faithfuls ('Ali ‑ a.s.) that
he heard someone saying: "Surely we are Allah's and to Him shall we
surely return. " Thereupon, he ('Ali a.s.) said: "0 man! Verily
our word, Surely we are Allah's, is acknowledgment by us that we
belong to Him, and, to Him shall we surely return, is
acknowledgment by us that we are to die." (al‑Khasa'is)
The
author says: Its meaning is clear in the light of the earlier given
explanation. The tradition has been narrated in detail in
al‑Kafi.
Ishaq ibn
'Ammar and Abdullah ibn Sinan have narrated from as_Sadiq (a.s.) that he
said: "The Messenger of Allah (s.a. w.a.) has said: Allah the Mighty, the
Great, has said: "I have given the world as loan to My servants. Then
whoever gives Me a loan from it, I give him ten times to seven‑hundred
times in lieu of one. And whoever does not give Me a loan and I take
something from him by force, then I give him three things that if I gave
one of them to My angels they would be pleased of Me." ' " Then Abu
'Abdillah said: "(It is) the words of Allah: Who, when a misfortune
befalls them, say: 'Surely we are Allah's and to Him we shall surely
return.' Those are they on whom are blessings and mercy from their
Lord, and those are the followers of the right course."
Then Abu 'Abdillah (a.s.) said: "It is for the man from whom Allah
takes something forcibly." (al‑Kafi)
The
author says: This tradition is narrated by other chains, all having
nearly the same theme.
as‑ Sadiq
(a. s.) said: "as‑Salah" from Allah is mercy, and from the angels
is purification, and from the people is prayer." (Ma'ani
'l‑akhbar)
The
author says: There are other traditions of the same meaning.
At first
glance, there appears to be a conflict between this and the preceding
tradition. This tradition explains as‑salah as mercy, while the
preceding one counts as‑salah as other than mercy; and this view is
further strengthened by the wording of the verse itself which mentions
as‑salah and mercy separately, "blessings and mercy from Allah".
But in fact there is no contradiction as we have explained in detail in
the Commentary.
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