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Volume 3: Surah Baqarah, Verse
215
They ask you as to what they should spend Say:
Whatever of good you spend, it is for the parents, and the near of kin,
and the orphans, and the poor, and the way‑farer; and whatever of good you
do Allah surely knows it. (215)
COMMENTARY
Qur'an: They ask you
as to what they should spend. Say: Whatever of
good you spend ...
The
scholars say that the style of this verse is one of philosophy. The
questioners had asked about what they should spend. But that question was
foolish, because one does not need divine revelation to know that what is
spent is wealth in all its various shapes. Rather, they should have asked:
Whom the wealth should be spent for. Therefore, Allah mentioned, instead,
the deserving beneficiaries, which the questioners should have asked in
the first place.
It is good reasoning; but those scholars have left out one
important point. Even though the verse did not reply to their question
directly, it has touched on it, and has hinted at the reply in two places:
Whatever of good you spend and whatever of good you
do. The verse, therefore, shows that the thing to be spent is wealth,
irrespective of its shape and quantity; and that spending it on worthy
beneficiaries is a good deed and Allah knows it very well; then it makes
them aware that they should rather have asked the Dames of the
beneficiaries, and guides them in this respect by giving the list: the
parents, the near relatives, the orphans, the poor and the
way‑farer.
One finds in the commentaries of the Qur'an some strange
explanations of this verse:‑
One of them says: "what" (ma ) in what they should spend was not used by the questioners to
enquire about the quiddity and essence of the thing which should be spent,
because it is from the terminology of logic, and is not worthy of any
literary speech of eloquent style, let alone the Qur’an which is the
purest of the Arabic literature. Rather the word "what" was used for
"how"; they wanted to know how they should spend their wealth and on whom.
Accordingly, the verse answered that question. The reply, therefore, is
according to the question, and the reasoning of the scholars of eloquence
(given earlier) is out of place.
Someone else went a step further. He said: It is
true that "what" is used to ask about the essence;
even then the questioners' aim was to ask as to
"how" they should spend. It was known that "what" is spent is wealth. As
this was well‑known, there was no risk of their being misunderstood; the
hearer was bound to understand that they wanted to ask about "how". It is
like the verse: they said: "Call on your Lord for our sake to make it
plain to us what she is, for surely to us all the cows are alike . . . "
(2:70) They knew that the cow is an animal having such shape and such
characteristics. Therefore, the words what she is could not be
taken to mean that they wanted to know its quiddity ‑its genus and
species. The only possible meaning, thus, was that they wanted to know the
particulars of that cow so that they might distinguish it from the others.
That is why they were given the reply, He (Musa) said: "He
(Allah) says, surely she is a cow not made
submissive that she should plough the land . . ."
(2:71)
Both the commentators seem confused. It is true that
ma (what) is
not used in language to ask about
the quiddity of a thing, according to the terminology of logic ‑ for a
definition made up of the nearest genus and species. But it does not mean
that it is made for the question about "how". It would be a
linguistic mistake for the one who wants to ask, "for whom should I
spend?" to say "what should I spend?"
Ma (what )
is made so as to ask for the factors
which might distinguish one thing from others. The reply may be given by a
logical definition using the nearest genus and species, or by
describing such other distinctive characteristics and qualities by which
that thing may easily be recognized. The word "what" is, therefore,
general and includes the logical term, but is not different from it.
And certainly it is not made to ask "how". The question about the cow and
its reply (2:70‑71) was asked and given correctly according to the
language. There was no deviation in either from the real meaning of "what"
‑ the question was about distinguishing factors of a thing.
A third one said: As the quiddity and essence was
well‑known, there was no alternative but to divert the word "what" to mean
"how".
It is a manifest error. That the answer is well‑known,
is no justification for changing the meaning of a word to mean
something quite different.
There is one more strange explanation: The questioners
had asked both questions ‑ what should they spend, and where. The Qur'an
mentioned only the first question and omitted the second, because the
reply pointed to it. What nonsense!
Now, we come back to the verse. There is no doubt that
there is here a diversion, in the main reply, from the asked question, to
remind the people that the question worthy of asking was "where", not
"what", they should spend, because it was no secret that spending is done
from wealth and riches.
We find in the Qur’an that it often diverts its speech
from one meaning to another, to point out that the new topic is more
worthy of attention. It is a style of beauty which is difficult to find in
other books. See for example:
And the parable of
those who disbelieve is the parable of one who
shouts to that which hears not but a call and a cry ... (2:17)
(Here the parable has been diverted to a satire against
the idols.)
The likeness of
what they spend in the life of this world is as the likeness of a wind in
which is intense cold, (that) Smote upon the tilth of a people who had done injustice to their souls, and destroyed it.
(3:117)
(The parable is diverted from the wealth spent to its
ultimate forfeiture.)
The parable of those who spend their wealth in
the way of Allah is as the parable of a grain growing seven ears,
in every ear there are a hundred grains; and Allah multiplies for
whom He pleases; ... (2:261)
(The parable is diverted from those who spend in the way
of Allah to the manifold increase in its reward.)
The day on which neither property will avail nor
sons, except him who comes to Allah with a heart free (from evil).
(26:88‑89)
(Instead of praising the heart, free from evil, the
believer is praised who has got that heart, to show the importance of the
believer.)
Say: I do not ask
you aught of recompense for it, except that he who will, may take the way
to his Lord. (25:57)
Glory be to Allah (for freedom) from what they
describe except the servants of Allah, the purified ones. (37:159‑160)
There are many such verses.
Qur'an: and whatever
of good you do, Allah surely knows it.: The
word spending has been changed here to "doing good"; likewise, in the
beginning of the verse "wealth" was changed to "good" ("whatever of good
you spend").
This change guides us to two principles:
First: It is very much
recommended that one should spend one's wealth on the recognized
beneficiaries ‑ it does not matter whether the amount is small or large.
But what matters is that the thing spent should be "good", desirable and
likeable. Allah says: Never shall you attain to righteousness until you
spend (benevolently) out of what you love (3:91); 0 you who
believe! Spend (benevolently) out of the good things that you have
earned and what We have brought forth for you out of the earth; and do not
aim at what is bad that you may spend of it (in charity) while you
would not take it yourselves unless you connive at it
(2:267)
Second: The spending
should not be in a bad manner. The spending should be without reminding
the receiver reproachfully of it or injuring his feelings. Allah says: ...
then do not follow up what they have spent with obligation
(reproach) or injury ...(2:262);
And they ask you as to what they should spend. Say:
Whatever can be spared ... (2:219)
TRADITIONS
There is a saying of Ibn 'Abbas that he said: "I did not
see any people better than the companions of Muhammad. They did not ask
him except thirteen questions till he was taken away (from this world),
all of those (questions) are in the Qur'an. Among them are: 'They ask you
about the intoxicants and games of chance'; 'They ask you about the sacred
month'; 'They ask you about the, orphans'; 'They ask you about the
menses'; 'They ask you about the booty'; 'They ask you as to what they
should spend'. They never asked but what was of (practical) to them."
[ad-Durru 'l-manthur]
It is written in Majmau l‑bayan that this verse
was revealed about 'Amr ibn al‑Jamuh; he was a very old man of great
wealth. He said: "0 Messenger of Allah! What should I give in charity and
to whom?" Then Allah revealed this verse.
The author says: This tradition has also been
narrated in ad-Durru l‑manthur through Ibn al‑Mundhir from Ibn
Hayyan. But the scholars have said that this tradition is weak. Apart from
the weakness in the chain of narrators, it is not in conformity with the
verse, because the verse mentions only one question as to what should be
spent, and not on whom.
Similarly, two other traditions reported in that book do
not conform with the verse. The first is narrated through Ibn Jarir and
Ibn al‑Mundhir from Ibn Jarir that he said: "The believers asked the
Messenger of Allah (s.a.w.a.) where they should put (i.e. spend) their
wealth. So, the verse was revealed: They ask you as to what they should
spend. Say: 'Whatever of good you spend . . . ' This, then, is
voluntary (non‑obligatory) expenditure; and zakat is different from
all of it."
The second one is narrated from as‑Suddi that he said:
The day when this verse was revealed, there was no zakat. It is
(about) the spending what one does on one's family and the alms one gives
away. Then (the law of) zakat abrogated it.
The author says: It is clear that the relation
between the verse of zakat (Take alms out of their wealth ‑
9:103) and this verse is not of abrogation at all. Or does the
word "abrogation" mean something else in their language?
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