Is Allah Not Sufficient?

              First, to the anonymous faces reading this blog, thank you! I hope that what’s written here makes you think, inspires you, distracts you for a few minutes from your daily lives, anything. So long as it holds some relevance.

Some Surahs of the Quran have a hold on some people, a certain intangible feeling, character that makes them ring sharper and deeper. Surat Az-Zumar holds that kind of power for me, so when I decided to choose a verse from Az-Zumar, it took all my willpower not to just work through the whole Surah right away, and I chose the following verse:

(أَلَيْسَ اللَّهُ بِكَافٍ عَبْدَهُ ۖ وَيُخَوِّفُونَكَ بِالَّذِينَ مِن دُونِهِ ۚ وَمَن يُضْلِلِ اللَّهُ فَمَا لَهُ مِنْ هَادٍ) (39:36)

“Is not Allah sufficient for His Servant [Prophet Muhammad]? And [yet], they threaten you with those [they worship] other than Him. And whoever Allah leaves astray - for him there is no guide.” (Sahih International, 39:36) [1]

“Is not Allah Sufficient for His slave? Yet they try to frighten you with those (whom they worship) besides Him! And whom Allah sends astray, for him there will be no guide.” (Muhsin Khan, 39:36) [1]

The challenge, the sheer confidence, and the touch of incredulity in this verse makes it one unique to the voices and messages of the Quran in my eyes. The Quran challenges: it challenges people to write even one verse that comes close to a verse in the Quran, it challenges people to listen with all their hearts and minds and still not believe, it challenges those who believe not to weep, and it challenges those who do not believe to equate what they believe in with Allah.

It is this challenge that is inherent in this verse, and underlying it the strength that Allah gives His believers and the fact, the indisputable truth upholding our entire belief in Allah, that Allah alone is worthy of worship: “Is not Allah sufficient for His slave?”.

For the Prophet (PBUH) and His Companions

In the traditional books of tafseer (exegesis) the idea of sufficiency has been discussed in the historical context and particular situation in which this verse was revealed to the Prophet (PBUH). They explain that this verse was revealed to the Prophet, addresses the Prophet (alone, according to some), and addresses his companions, the other believers, when they were threatened by the nonbelievers who tried to scare them with the “wrath” of the idols or gods that they worshipped [2, 3, 4, 5]. In this context, Allah’s “sufficiency” is that He has protected the believers from the “evil” of the idols as well as the nonbelievers [2, 3, 4, 5].

Therefore, when the verse was revealed, it was revealed to address the Prophet (and the believers) when they were threatened by the nonbelievers through the use of their own gods – those referred to in the verse as “besides” Allah. However, while in the time that the verse was revealed these idols were actual gods that the nonbelievers worshipped, this verse, like so many others in the Quran, sends a universal and timeless message. While the gods they worshipped were used to threaten the Prophet and his companions at the time, nowadays there are other objects of “worship” that are used to try to deter people from believing in Allah, whether they are ideologies and belief systems, scientific theories, people, or material things. People worship a multitude of “things,” whether they identify what they do as worship or not. However, none of these things are sufficient, enough, and they all fall short of fulfilling the needs of a person: be it their needs in worship and what they worship, their needs in their lives and afterlives, or the protection supposedly offered by these objects of worship, from hardships, people, and even ideas.

              Whatever a person believes can “save” him, protect him completely, answer all his requests and questions, provide clarity and stability, and serve as the light through which he views the world (especially when this thing is taken instead of Allah) is an object of worship. Magic was the object in the past, idols, witchcraft, nature, etc. Nowadays, all our answers are in scientific theories of how the world works, and from science some conclude that God does not exist, for example, because science has all the answers. Why turn to a God we cannot see when we can turn to a machine that can cure, than can feed, that can protect? However, these are all beneath Allah because they are insufficient – they do not provide all that we need.

Allah’s Sufficiency

There are two sides to the spectrum of belief and worship in this verse: belief in Allah and belief in those who are beneath (besides) Allah.  What these idols represent, what the “thing” that is worshipped represents and can offer the believer is set in contrast with Allah, who is sufficient. “Is not Allah sufficient for his slave” has been explained primarily in relation to the second statement in the verse: “they threaten you with those [they worship] other than Him”. The idols with which they try to scare the believers are referred to in the verse by the adjective: دون “dun,” which both means besides and beneath as the idols are not equal to Allah and thus not worthy of worship. The explanation in the tafaseer stresses the link between the first and second parts and contextualizes the verse in the time and place it was revealed.

However, to generalize the meaning of the verse to all believers, which the mufassereen agree is whom the verse addresses after the Prophet, the word كاف (kaafi) (to be sufficient for) needs to be understood within a more general and less historically-specific context. At the same time, it is important to analyze the contrast, which is set up by the worship of Allah versus the worship of other idols especially in light of the fear of idols which Allah as well as the worship of Allah protects the believer from. Indeed, the two ideas are linked in the verse through the general meaning of sufficient, meaning that the verse does not state clearly that Allah is sufficient in protecting the believer from the nonbelievers, rather just states that Allah is sufficient and then moves on to question the nonbelievers’ tactic of using their idols to threaten the believers. The verse states that Allah is sufficient that the fear the nonbelievers try to instill in the believers through their idols, which are beneath Allah, should, through the implications of the contrast created, not scare the believers.

Why? Because, Allah is sufficient, and based on my analysis, I find that this verse poses Allah as sufficient on three levels and in three aspects: (1) in worship, (and as part of that) (2) in provision, and (3) in protection.

The Scope of Allah’s Sufficiency

To begin understanding why these are possible, it’s crucial to understand the meaning of the word kaafi. Its essential meaning is that when one is kaafi, sufficient, for someone else or of something then that “person” is enough in that nothing but is required or needed. Another dimension to this meaning is that the “person” provides enough for the other, making what he provides sufficient. Also, one of the names of Allah is “Al Kaafi,”and it means that he provides for His slaves what they need and protects them from evil.

In Worship

            The most essential meaning and level of sufficiency is that of Allah’s being sufficient for worship. In contrast, the idols are not worthy of worship. Is Allah not enough, not sufficient as a god to be worshipped? He is, absolutely. Why would we worship a specific idol or ideology? For what it is and what it provides us. In what Allah is, he is sufficient; He is THE sufficient god. He is complete, the Almighty, Allah. Therefore, this verse poses the rhetorical question whose undeniable answer is “Yes”: is Allah not the sufficient god that you should worship because of that reason? In worship, then the idols cannot “threaten” a believer’s faith in Allah, his worship of the Almighty because it is they that are not sufficient.

             

Another dimension to this meaning is that the question also asks: has Allah not given his slave (he who worships him) enough knowledge, reasons, and material with which to know that he should worship Him, know how he should worship Him, and know who He is so that he can worship Him? Here the question is not just whether Allah is sufficient but whether Allah has given us enough (one meaning of kaafi): enough to worship him.

In Provision

              Within the idea of worship come the reasons that make Allah sufficient for worship. First, in his holiness, godliness, he is Allah, the god of the worlds. A second meaning of “kaafi” is in relation to provision: being sufficient in providing for someone anything and everything he needs or requires. Allah is the king of the heavens and the earth, and everything within them belongs to Him; he, too, has the power to will something into being. Therefore, the question here takes on another level of meaning: Has Allah not given His slave everything he needs and in that is sufficient for him as a god? Has he not provided all they need to survive and live in a away that suits their purposes in life, their ultimate goals? Moreover, when they ask, Allah provides within His knowledge of their needs, since he is Al Mujeeb, the One Who Responds.

             

In contrast, the idols and gods worshipped by the nonbelievers cannot provide, and are therefore not enough to threaten. They cannot help themselves, let alone help their worshippers. Even in a modern context, the theories that we have to explain the world are limited, and try as we may, we cannot use science to answer all our needs. We still have health problems, water and food shortages, and other issues that science can explain (in most cases), but it cannot solve. What or who do we turn to in these cases? Allah. To some, this strategy is weak, mindless, but that perspective lacks creativity and depth of knowledge of our limitations as humans, in my opinion.

In Protection

              In this verse, primarily, Allah is sufficient for his slaves in that he protects them from evil, from the threats of the nonbeleivers who want to harm them and from evil in general. The second part of the verse, which states “And [yet], they threaten you with those [they worship] other than Him” determines the meaning of the first in this case. Therefore, the verse reads: They threaten you with those they worship other than Allah, and Allah has protected you from their evil. Allah, therefore, is Al Kafi in the sense of protection from all evil: He is all-powerful, and if He protects a person, nothing can harm him.

In this case, the meaning of the second part of the verse and the next verse is related to the idea of Allah’s protection. Therefore, “whoever Allah leaves astray - for him there is no guide/ And whoever Allah guides - for him there is no misleader” (39:36-37). For the second, Allah has protected him from the evil and influence of “gods” beneath Allah, while the first does not have that protection because of his choice not to worship Allah (thus connecting it to the first level of “sufficiency,” that of worship). Therefore, they cannot scare the believer because Allah protects him and because Allah is sufficient for the believer in that he can discern that fear of Allah is above fear of things and they are nothing but man-made idols and in that protection is protection from belief in these false idols.

              Therefore, all in all, Allah is sufficient: He is the perfect god, the ultimate provider, and the best protector. He is enough for worship so that we do not need to worship anything or anyone else. How is he enough? He is perfect, He provides us with all we need, and he protects us, and, topping it all off, He has revealed to us the knowledge and tools with which we can be certain He exists, discover His qualities, and know how to worship Him. And because He is sufficient for our worship, a quality that provides us with the human perspective since Allah does not actually need us to worship Him, we cannot but turn to Him and thank Him for being enough, giving us enough, and asking for nothing but our recognition of the fact in return.

References

[1] Az-Zumar. Quran.com.

[2] Tafseer Al Qurtubi (تفسير القرطبي). <http://library.islamweb.net/newlibrary/display_book.php?idfrom=2983&idto=2983&bk_no=48&ID=2430>

[3] Mohammad Ben Ali Ben Mohammad Ashoukani. (فتح القدير الجامع بين فني الرواية والدراية). <http://library.islamweb.net/newlibrary/display_book.php?idfrom=692&idto=692&bk_no=66&ID=731>

[4] Mohammad Al Taher Ibn Ashour. (التحرير والتنوير). < http://library.islamweb.net/newlibrary/display_book.php?idfrom=3177&idto=3177&bk_no=61&ID=3217>

[5] Tafseer Ibn Kathir. <http://www,quran4u.com>

A Migration to Prosperity, Aid, and Love: Al Hijra in the Quran

كل عام وانتم والأمة الى الله اقرب.

God willing, this year will prove to be a better, stronger year for us all, and one in which we work even harder to bring ourselves together in the pursuit of Allah’s forgiveness and acceptance. Since it’s the Hijri Calendar New Year, what better way to “celebrate” than to write about it.

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There are several verses in the Quran that discuss the Prophet (PBUH)’s hijra, his migration along with Abu Bakr (RAA), from Meccah to Madinah. The one I’ve chosen depicts one moment from their journey, and I think that, since not the entire journey is depicted in the Quran, the choice of this moment marks it as one from which there’s a lot to learn. It depicts a moment of extreme need, of helplessness, and the difference between discovery and ultimate death on the one hand and safety and salvation on the other.

But at the same time, it’s a moment of ultimate power and protection, of dependence on the All-Powerful, and a moment when all the effort, faith, and perseverance of the Prophet (PBUH) and his companion culminate. It is not that their efforts pay off here, since that would negate the concepts of reward throughout life as well as ultimate reward in the afterlife, but it’s a moment when their belief and their faith are boosted and made material.

And it’s a moment of love, first from Allah, the basis of His support and guidance, and between two friends, the Prophet (PBUH) and Abu Bakr (RAA), the loyal companion.

The Ayah from Surat At-Tawbah reads (in the original Arabic, and followed by two English interpretations): 

(إِلَّا تَنصُرُوهُ فَقَدْ نَصَرَهُ اللَّهُ إِذْ أَخْرَجَهُ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا ثَانِيَ اثْنَيْنِ إِذْ هُمَا فِي الْغَارِ إِذْ يَقُولُ لِصَاحِبِهِ لَا تَحْزَنْ إِنَّ اللَّهَ مَعَنَا ۖ فَأَنزَلَ اللَّهُ سَكِينَتَهُ عَلَيْهِ وَأَيَّدَهُ بِجُنُودٍ لَّمْ تَرَوْهَا وَجَعَلَ كَلِمَةَ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا السُّفْلَىٰ ۗ وَكَلِمَةُ اللَّهِ هِيَ الْعُلْيَا ۗ وَاللَّهُ عَزِيزٌ حَكِيمٌ) (التوبة 40)

“If you do not aid the Prophet - Allah has already aided him when those who disbelieved had driven him out [of Makkah] as one of two, when they were in the cave and he said to his companion, "Do not grieve; indeed Allah is with us." And Allah sent down his tranquillity upon him and supported him with angels you did not see and made the word of those who disbelieved the lowest, while the word of Allah - that is the highest. And Allah is Exalted in Might and Wise.” (Sahih Internation) [1]

“If you help him (Muhammad SAW) not (it does not matter), for Allah did indeed help him when the disbelievers drove him out, the second of two, when they (Muhammad SAW and Abu Bakr) were in the cave, and he (SAW) said to his companion (Abu Bakr): "Be not sad (or afraid), surely Allah is with us." Then Allah sent down His Sakinah (calmness, tranquillity, peace, etc.) upon him, and strengthened him with forces (angels) which you saw not, and made the word of those who disbelieved the lowermost, while it was the Word of Allah that became the uppermost, and Allah is All-Mighty, All-Wise.” (Muhsin Khan) [1]

Support and Aid from Allah

The beginning of the verse clarifies rather brusquely and strongly that the Prophet does not need anyone’s support; indeed, the people who do not support and aid and help the prophet succeed (nasr) do not hinder the success of the migration. However, at the same time, the value of a companion is then immediately highlighted when the Hijra, as a forced migration, is presented in this manner: “when those who disbelieved had driven him out [of Makkah] as one of two.” The fact that the Prophet had a companion, that he too was a companion on this journey, is set forth matter-of-factly in the statement of how they exited Madinah.  

Why would this companionship be important if, as the Ayah states, Allah has supported the Prophet (PBUH)and aided him? This verse discusses the line between what humans can do and the fact that Allah will allow certain things to happen within His knowledge of their reasons. Everything happens with Allah’s grace and permission, and whether the “good” or the “bad” have the upper hand is all within Allah’s will, power, and capability. However, the concept of working and making an effort is a part of the meaning and purpose of life; it’s a part of the structure of how the world works.

In the case of this verse, the support of the Mu’mineen, the believers, who are being addressed at the beginning of the verse, does not affect Allah’s aid of the Prophet (PBUH) and by proxy His aid of believers who support the prophet, as is evidenced by the fact that Abu Bakr, his companion, is given equal share of Allah’s support because he is supporting the Prophet. (Supporting the Prophet is an act of working to maintain that Allah’s religion remains and gain power and influence on earth, meaning it is in the cause of Allah). Indeed, the verb tense shifts from the first part of the verse when Allah addresses those who might not support the Prophet, saying in the present tense, “If you do not aid the Prophet,” to the past tense when the verse states: “Allah has already aided him.” Interestingly, it is not a consequence of their lack of support that Allah then supported the Prophet. No, the Prophet has always had Allah’s support.

So why would he need their aid and support? He doesn’t. The fact of the matter is that it is they who need this support, in that by supporting him they are helping themselves. By supporting the Prophet, they are working for the cause of Allah and thereby pleasing Him. Of course, Allah does not “need” our support as humans, and all the work we do goes back to us, whether in reward or punishment.

Deserving Allah's Support

This idea as well as that of “nasr” or aid and victory needs a little bit of background. In Islam, faith in Allah and His ultimate power means knowing that Allah has the ability to make anything happen. However, it is the purpose of our lives to work, for both our dunya, our worldly lives, and our akhira, our afterlife. As such, we do not sit down expecting blessings from Allah without striving to do anything and relying only on the fact that we have faith. However, when we do receive things in our lives, we know they are from Allah, and that we deserve them for having worked for them (and sometimes getting more than we deserve, let’s be honest).

Therefore, the support of Allah is not without reason, cause, or deservedness. Allah does not grant his support randomly, and He does not support people without reason and without actual material causes. Meaning that a person who has done nothing in life to prepare for something will not (arguably) gain Allah’s support. It is when a person works and strives that, ultimately, Allah will support him in His own way and within his wisdom, for him to reach his goals or have the upper hand or….

In this light, then the aid the believers and followers of the prophet should have given him should have been for this goal: working to achieve something in this world. At the same time, Allah’s support for the Prophet has always been there, and here it is important to note that the Prophet put in the effort. He and the followers he had had been trying to spread the message of Allah, of tawheed and belief in one God, among the people of Meccah for years. The results of their efforts had been torture, ostracism, and suffering in general from the people pf the city.

What Is Nasr?

As a result, they received Allah’s support, as the rest of the verse demonstrates. What does it mean to have Allah’s support? According to the verse, it means, first that “Allah is with us.” How is that translated in a worldly manner? When Allah “sent down his tranquility upon him and supported him with angels you did not see and made the word of those who disbelieved the lowest, while the word of Allah - that is the highest.” 

              The “nasr” or aid mentioned here shows the consequences of this Hijrah, the far-reaching influence of this victory that the Prophet receives. The verse shows two forms or levels of “nasr”: the immediate and the eventual.

First, this section of the verse explain that, in one part of the migration, the prophet and Abu Bakr were hding in the cave, Ghar Thawr. They could hear their pursuers outside the cave, and all they had to do was lean forward and they would see them hiding inside. Indeed, Abu Bakr is reported to have said: “If any of them looks down at his feet, he will see us” [2]. While Abu Bakr was nervous that any harm should befall the Prophet, the Prophet remained cool and relaxed, not worried it seemed that they would be caught and, consequently for sure, killed.

When he turns to Abu Bakr, he explains the reason for his peace as he consoles him, saying, “Do not grieve [or be sad]; indeed Allah is with us." What does it mean for Allah to be “with” someone? That is the support and aid mentioned at the beginning of the verse. In a hadith sahih, the Prophet is said to have repeated: “O Abu Bakr! What do you think about two with Allah as their third!” [2]. Here, Allah has aided, provided “nasr,” in a direct and immediate manner to his Prophet and a believer who have worked to spread the message of tawheed, the oneness of Allah (which is the word of Allah mentioned at the end of the verse). Allah gives them “sakeenah” (His “aid and triumph”) as well as aid from angels [2].

This nasr, however, is not just immediate. One interpretation of the value and lesson of the Hijra is that it represented a transition, both from one place to another as well as from one state to another. Hijra, denotatively, means the act of leaving one thing for another or the transition from one state to another [3]. Therefore the Prophet’s migration or Hijra (which was also the migration of a large group of Meccan Muslims) involved a physical transition from one place to another but, more importantly, it served, caused, as well as represented a transition from one situation into another. From weakness to strength, from minority to majority, from lack of support and even persecution to unity, and from a state of immobility to action and work.

Therefore, the second level of “nasr” in this verse is the more far-reaching nasr, that which is closer to the concept of victory resulting from aid. Because Allah is the “third” member of the party, the supporter of these two believers, as he is the supporter of all believers who work for His cause, they received support, not just in the cave, but in general, and the results of their efforts paid off. Indeed, the Hijra represents a crucial step in the development of the Islamic Ummah, in the movement from weakness to strength, from voicelessness to influence, and ultimately a far-reaching and global unity of Muslims [3]. It is this situation that the verse looks forward to and clarifies: “made the word of those who disbelieved the lowest, while the word of Allah - that is the highest.” Interestingly, the “word” of the disbelievers was made lowest, while the word of Allah, the word of tawheed, was not made highest as it is the highest. However, it became evident on earth that it is the highest.

However, this prophecy comes in parallel, simultaneously, and even as a part of and continuation of the aid that Allah sent the Prophet and Abu Bakr in the cave. Picture that moment, though. They were on the run, fearful of capture, and still the weak party. However, the Prophet was calm. He knew that Allah supported them and that this support was much more far-reaching than they could even begin to understand. Even the verse, with its use of “and” to combine the two levels of nasr, shows that the fulfillment of Allah’s promise and aid began at once. One did not follow the other; they were simultaneous and a part of the same nasr, just different stages of it. Indeed, it is aid and support that continued for centuries after them, that pushed the spread of Islam even in the hardest of times.

And it’s this aid that allows the word of Allah to persevere even today, when we are, arguably, back to being at our weakest. The Prophet, along with his companions, worked not just to bring illumination to their people. Their goal was much broader and more optimistic. They worked to maintain the word of Allah, to make sure it continued even after their time, to the end of times. They worked, and the aid came from Allah. And each person after them that worked for the cause of Allah gained the aid of Allah, but this verse shows that the aid does not end with the end of the person, but continues and far outweighs and outstrips the effort itself. It’s calming, reassuring to remember that the word of Allah is the highest, that it cannot be made low, but it is the effort that matters, and it is we that need the work we do since Allah aids the deen as well as those who work for it with or without our help. But seeing the reward, the honor that comes with working for the cause of Allah, knowing full well what the outcome will be, whether we see it in our lifetimes or not, makes the effort put into this work that much more fulfilling. 

References

[1] "At-Tawbah." Quran.com.

[2] Tafseer Ibn Kathir. Quran 4u. <http://www.quran4u.com/tafsir%20ibn%20kathir/009%20Taubah.htm>

[3] <http://www.yabeyrouth.com/pages/index2483.htm>

Forgiveness and Knowledge: A Vast, Comprehensive Blessing

ولله ما في السماوات وما في الأرض ليجزي الذين أساءوا بما عملوا ويجزي الذين أحسنوا بالحسنى (31) الَّذِينَ يَجْتَنِبُونَ كَبَائِرَ الْإِثْمِ وَالْفَوَاحِشَ إِلَّا اللَّمَمَ إِنَّ رَبَّكَ وَاسِعُ الْمَغْفِرَةِ هُوَ أَعْلَمُ بِكُمْ إِذْ أَنشَأَكُم مِّنَ الْأَرْضِ وَإِذْ أَنتُمْ أَجِنَّةٌ فِي بُطُونِ أُمَّهَاتِكُمْ فَلَا تُزَكُّوا أَنفُسَكُمْ هُوَ أَعْلَمُ بِمَنِ اتَّقَى (النجم 32)

“And to Allah belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is in the earth - that He may recompense those who do evil with [the penalty of] what they have done and recompense those who do good with the best [reward] – (31) Those who avoid the major sins and immoralities, only [committing] slight ones. Indeed, your Lord is vast in forgiveness. He was most knowing of you when He produced you from the earth and when you were fetuses in the wombs of your mothers. So do not claim yourselves to be pure; He is most knowing of who fears Him.” (Sahih International Translation, Surat An-Najm [The Star], 53:32)

These two verses from Surat An-Najm touch on a very significant and very well-discussed topic in Islam: that of forgiveness from Allah. Of course, there are several other issues, such as staying away from committing sin, the creation of humans and their development in the womb (a topic of miracles in the Quran), and Allah’s knowledge of people. However, I think that the central idea, that which all the others revolve around, return to, and inform, is that of forgiveness and specifically the breadth, depth, and measure of Allah’s forgiveness of his servants.

It’s the expression and description of this forgiveness that caught my attention: “your Lord is vast in forgiveness.” Vast, denotatively, refers to the expanse and immensity of a space. Idiomatically, it is used to describe and show the breadth of less physical and more qualitative things, such as wisdom, knowledge, etc., and it is used to show the degree of something. At the same time, this use remains open to interpretation because of the appropriation of a word that describes a physical entity to a non-physical quality. Therefore, it is not a question of whether the use of the word “vast” is metaphorical or not or borrowed or not, but what the use of a word that is, essentially, one used for measurement of expanse and then degree, adds to the meaning of the measure of Allah’s forgiveness.

Tafseer and Interpretation:

In the first verse, Allah asserts his ownership as King of the heavens and the earth, stating that He is “independent of the need for anyone,” and that He “is the authority over His creation and rules them with justice” [1]. The first verse begins by asserting that everything belongs to Allah: it “belongs” to Him in every way—He created the heavens and the earth, it is with his “permission” that it all exists and it is under his control. The fact that He owns the heavens and the earth and what is in them results in his ability to judge them (according to tafseer [2]). Based on this interpretation, and as Yusuf Ali’s translation clarifies: “so that He rewards those who do evil, according to their deeds, and He rewards those who do good, with what is best so that He rewards those who do evil, according to their deeds, and He rewards those who do good, with what is best” [3]. It is as a result of and because of His possession of everything in the heavens and the earth that He rewards and punishes people based on their actions. The next verse further clarifies that, since He has absolute knowledge of them, their creation, birth, and actions, Allah approaches people in judgment through forgiveness.

On one level, the breadth and vastness of his control – the heavens and the earth – parallels the vastness of his forgiveness. It is because he has control over all these people and creatures that he establishes forgiveness on all of them – meaning that the vastness in this light refers literally to the vastness across which His forgiveness reaches, as it reaches everything and everyone equally, since they all belong to Him and are treated with equal forgiveness.

In another way, this vastness also refers to the vastness of the forgiveness itself, the capacity for forgiveness rather than on whom the forgiveness is established, and this understanding is determined by the element of “degree” in the meaning of “vastness”. The first verse ends with an affirmation that Allah will “recompense those who do good with the best [reward]” (31), and the next verse identifies these people: “Those who avoid the major sins and immoralities, only [committing] slight ones” (32). What follows is the statement: “your Lord is vast in forgiveness.” According to Tafsir Ibn Kathir, this verse asserts that “His Mercy encompasses everything, and His forgiveness entails every type of sin, if one repents” [1] Vastness, therefore, also refers to the depth and capacity for forgiveness as well as the degree to which sins are forgiven, so long as the person repents. While the previous verse specifies that the first group would be punished and the second rewarded, it still shows that the second group, those who do good, are also sinners, but they try to avoid major sins and they repent.

Forgiveness is finally related to knowledge in this verse. It is in Allah’s knowledge that He can be forgiving, but at the same time, He knows who can be forgiven because of His knowledge. Therefore, while He knows what we have done, good or bad, He knows enough about us to forgive us.  So while the vastness of His forgiveness is in the forgiveness itself, it also relates to the knowledge of the sins and good deeds done. The distance and vastness of the heavens and the earth do not hide anything as Allah knows what each person has done, just as “He was most knowing of you when He produced you from the earth and when you were fetuses in the wombs of your mothers.” Because of His knowledge of everything, meaning a person cannot hide intentions or actions, the verse warns: “So do not claim yourselves to be pure.”

In fact, the two names of Allah extracted from the noun “al maghfira” (forgiveness) are “Al Ghaffar” and “Al Ghafur”. Al Ghazaly explains: “Al-Ghaffar denotes an extreme ... of forgiveness in respect of forgiveness that is repeated time after time” while “He is Al-Ghafur in the sense that He forgives perfectly and completely” [4]. The understanding of forgiveness can be fearsome to a certain degree when considering that Allah is all-knowing, but it is this knowledge that can only bring peace to the minds and hearts of those trying to do good, even if they’re failing because, while Allah knows what we have done He also knows why, and while we may feel unheard or mistreated in the world, there is One, the One who understands and knows us better than we know ourselves, whose forgiveness will reach everyone and everything.

References:

[1] Tafseer Ibn Kathir. <http://www,quran4u.com>

[2] Al Tafseer al Kabeer. <http://library.islamweb.net/newlibrary/display_book.php?idfrom=4760&idto=4760&bk_no=132&ID=2415>

[3] “An-Najm.” <http://www.quran.com>

[4] “Al Ghafir.” <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Ghafir>

Voices of Change in Surah as-Saffat

I wanted to write something about Eid ul-Adha, and I chose the story of al-adha (the sacrifice) itself, from Surah as-Saffat. The story in this Surah covers several events in Prophet Ibrahim’s life, starting from his earlier years. But a conversation I had yesterday got me thinking about the first part of the story, rather than the sacrifice itself, and, once again, I found myself writing about something I hadn't planned. 

The story of Ibrahim in this Surah begins with the statement: “And, verily, among those who followed his [Nuh's (Noah)] way (Islamic Monotheism) was Ibrahim (Abraham)./ When he came to his Lord with a pure heart” (37:83-84).

Prophet Ibrahim is described as one who possesses a “salim” heart, meaning that it “knows that Allah is true and that the Hour will undoubtedly come to pass, and that Allah will resurrect those who are in the graves” [1], the basic tenets of belief in God. However, he isn't just described as possessing such a heart; there is movement in the verse: he came to his Lord. This description reveals the active nature of Ibrahim's faith, that he did not only have this heart, but also worked for his beliefs. The verses that follow show how he was not only a believer, but one that worked for his faith.

The next verse clarifies that he worked, performed da’wa to try to get his people to realize that there was One more worthy of worship: “he said to his father and to his people: ‘What is it that which you worship?/ Is it a falsehood aliha (gods) other than Allah that you seek?/ Then what do you think about the Lord of the 'Alamin (mankind, jinns, and all that exists)?’” (37: 85-87).

This section reveals the process of discussion, of warning, and logical discussion. This dialogue represents the stage of attempting to speak to the opposing side through logical reasoning and evidence. It can be assumed that this was not a one-time occurrence, that it is something he repeated continuously, as is evident from several other descriptions of Prophet Ibrahim and other prophets in the Quran. Also, the structure of the conversation, the brevity of the argument, and the tone make the conversation seem like one that is continuing from a previous iteration, even being repeated. He does not go into detail about their belief in other gods or explain what he means by his own perspective, which may mean he has said this before and is trying again. Such an argument cannot be just stated once and a person cannot give up hope immediately.

Following this, he “cast a glance at the stars (to deceive them)” (37:88). A glance towards the stars among the Arabs is the mark of “one who thinks deeply” [1]. Indeed, looking at the stars seems to be part of a plan as “he looked at the heavens thinking of a way to distract his people” [1]. After this, he pretends to be sick so that they leave to “go out to celebrate a festival of theirs, and he wanted to be alone with their gods so that he could break them, so he told them something that was true, for he was indeed sick of the implications of what they believed in” [1].

And this is what he does: Ibrahim secretly approaches the idols, first asking them if they would not eat the sacrifices that had been presented them and then challenging them to speak. Eventually, he breaks them with his right hand, leaving only the biggest of them. When his people return, “they (the worshippers of idols) came, towards him, hastening./ He said: "Worship you that which you (yourselves) carve?/ ‘While Allah has created you and what you make!’"(94-96).

Ibrahim has captured their attention, and while he has it, he presents them with his argument again. His logic is not shown in detail here, but clarified in Surah Al-Anbiyah, in which it is shown that he tells them that it is the biggest of the idols that destroyed the rest, revealing to them their own folly when they argue that it is not possible for the idol to have destroyed the rest. The destruction of the idols was not a rash reaction, and it was not a first resort but closer to a last resort, as the Quran makes clear that Ibrahim tried to talk to his people first.

Finding a Voice and Making It Heard

Prophet Ibrahim wanted to make a change but knew his voice was not strong enough to effect that change or be heard in the first place, and the Surah clarifies that he did attempt to speak before moving to more drastic measures. He was not in a position of power; indeed, his arguments were seen as heretical and obstructive. He was, therefore, not speaking from a position of truth in the eyes of his people, who refused to listen to let alone entertain any of his ideas. To be heard, he needed to capture the attention of his "audience" by doing something outrageous enough but still completely within the purpose of his argument to capture their attention. He needed to capture their attention in a way that would both shock and push them to think.

I find a lesson in this for myself (and from there all peoplewho want to effect change in general). I find myself speaking -- a lot. Writing, too. But I'm on the weaker side, the side about which the dominant narrative speaks and the side it silences. Honestly, the arguments and efforts have become so much stronger, and this problem might just end up being a personal one. The problem with a lot of the dialogue that surrounds me, though, is that it is shaped and presented as though it comes from a position of power, claiming truth and right to an audience that disagrees. As difficult as it is, we need to see that people don't agree with us. Not only are we not addressing people who agree with us, but we are not heard or even considered as having a valid opinion in the first place.

And this is where the lesson lies in Prophet Ibrahim's story. He knew he would not be heard to even begin to get his point across, logical or not, so he made himself heard. The lesson isn't in what he did exactly: that's adaptable to the audience, context, and purpose. He knew what they cared about and how they would react, so he chose the most shocking thing he could do. And that's how we can be heard: by making ourselves present. And that's, really, what's been happening. A lot of people have been working on presence, on their voices. But there's still a lot of the elevated attitude. The trick isn't to believe that I'm any less or any less right than I think I am, but to accept that I am not that person to the rest of the world.

At the same time, I shouldn't be passive, shouldn't mumble my objections and points of view. Assertion and confidence are key here. While I know I need to make myself heard and that my position is one that is generally unaccepted, I also need to know that, voiced or voiceless, heard or not, asserting my opinion keeps it alive, keeps it there, regardless of who hears it. If I just allow myself to mumble, to object silently because of fear or discomfort, then not only will I not have a voice, but my opinion itself will cease to exist in the conversation. 

Ibrahim shattering the idols of his people also stands as a symbol of shattering preconceived notions, as the action itself allows him to break their logic as well as his invisibility. His actions show us the importance of shattering preconceived notions before instilling new ones, a cornerstone of argumentation. 

In the end, they don't listen to him, and that's the ultimate lesson here that more than anything else I find difficult to digest: not everyone will listen. Worse yet, sometimes,maybe more often than not, most people won't listen. That should be fine -- a few verses later, Allah reminds us of our real goal, our real purpose, which isn't to serve people or even get our rewards and results here; that comes from Allah, as the verse reads: "Thus indeed do We reward the Muhsinun (good-doers)" (110). 

References:
[1] Ibn Kathir, Alama Imad ud Din. "Surah Al Saffat". Quran Tafsir Ibn Kathir (English). Quran4u. <http://www,quran4u.com> 
[2] Quran English Translation source: http://www.noblequran.com/translation/

Surat Al-Kahf (The Cave): Prophet Musa and Al Khidr

Something I've struggled with generally, and maybe recently more than before, is balancing between Allah's will, and what I infer it to be, and the solid, daily decisions I'm supposed to make. Some actions or decisions are completely rational, while others sometimes seem completely irrational but feel right. I try to frame everything within the perspective of Islamic teachings and the concepts of right and wrong, what we're generally supposed to do and what we're not.

This is all very vague, but the point is that there's an every-day quality to some things that make thinking about them outside the rational and pragmatic context seem like overdoing it, while other things are completely out of our hands and maybe don't make sense, but we do them, whether out of duty, some sort of inspiration, or because they're part of the teachings of the religion.

Even though the plan of this blog is to go through the Ayat of the Quran in a linear form, reading Surah Al Kahf last week brought my attention to just three verses that, after analysis and reflection, I found I could use to understand the process of decision-making and action-taking in a way that both reinforces the differences between types of decisions we make in life and actually allows me to relax, knowing that some things are completely in the control and wisdom of Allah, a thought that calms me down even further.

I'm not going into the mythologies surrounding this character, but I'm calling him Al Khidr based on common (and, I believe, generally accepted) identification of this character. Also, I am relying for basic tafsir (exegesis and explanation) on Tafsir Ibn Kathir in its English translation [1], and he explains that the man that Musa and his servant (Yusha) meet is "Al-Khidr, peace be upon him, as is indicated by the  authentic  Hadiths narrated  from  the  Messenger  of Allah" [1]. In any case, anything beyond the story in the Surah is not really relevant here.

The Story

Prophet Musa and his servant, Yusha, set out to find Al Khidr, who Musa is told is by Allah is a man more learned than he is. The story covers part of their journey, but moving on to the part I wish to focus on, they eventually meet Al Khidr: "Then they found One of our servants, on whom We had bestowed mercy from Us, and whom We had taught knowledge from Us" (18:65). Musa explains that he has traveled to Al Khidr so that Al Khidr "may teach [him] something of that knowledge which [he had] been taught" (18:66).

Al Khidr's reply is an immediate warning as he tells Musa: "You will not be able to have patience with me" (18:67), meaning that Musa would not be able to understand Al Khidr's actions and would thus question them. He explains the reason to him, saying, "O Musa! I have some of Allah’s knowledge which He has bestowed upon me but you do not know it; and you too, have some of Allah’s knowledge which He has bestowed upon you, but I do not know it" [1]. Musa's reply is that, Allah willing, he would be patient with and he would not disobey Al Khidr. Accepting his companionship, Al Khidr sets one condition "if you follow me, ask me not about anything till I myself mention it to you" (18:70).

What Al Khidr warns of eventually happens: on their journey, Al Khidr does three things that Musa cannot understand and thus questions and denounces. Eventually Al Khidr stops, explains what he has done and why, and thus ends their journey. Al Khidr's three actions are: pulling the planks out of the floor of a ship they had been allowed to board free of charge when the crew recognized Al Khidr, killing a boy they found playing after they disembark, and setting up a wall that was about to collapse in a town whose people refused to help when they asked them for food (18:70-77).

Musa denounces Al Khidr's actions each time for practical and moral reasons, causing Al Khidr to reply with "Did I not tell you that you can have no patience with me" (18:72, 75), until after the third incident and Musa's comments, he explains what he has been doing and the reasons for his actions:

"This is the parting between you and I, I will tell you the interpretation of (those) things over which you were not able to be patient./ As for the boat, it belonged to poor people working in the sea. So I wished to make a defective damage in it, as there was a king behind them who seized every boat by force. / And as for the boy, his parents were believers, and we feared he would oppress them by rebellion and disbelief./ So we intended that their Lord should exchange him for them for one better in righteousness and nearer to mercy.'/ And as for the wall, it belonged to two orphan boys in the town; and there was under it a treasure belonging to them; and their father was a righteous man, and your Lord intended that they should attain their age of full strength and take out their treasure as a mercy from your Lord. And I did them not of my own accord. That is the interpretation of those (things) over which you could not be patient." (18:78-82)

My Analysis

The  subject of the verb that Al Khidr uses in this explanation of what "he" has done differs from incident to incident, specifically the use of singular and plural as well as first and third person. First, when he describes the boat incident, he justifies it saying that "I wished to make a defective damage in it." However, when explaining killing the boy, he says "we feared ... so we intended that their Lord...". Here the first person plural pronoun acts as the subject of the verb. In the last incident, Al Khidr does not even include himself in the subject of the verb, saying, "your Lord intended." 

This shift in subject of the verb means there is a shift in who has decided to do this action and where the reason for doing it comes from: whether it is a decision made by Al Khidr alone, a decision inspired by Allah but perhaps planned by Al Khidr, or a command that is entirely from Allah. Interestingly, Al Khidr clarifies that "[he] did them not of [his] own accord" and that they are all inspired by Allah and in the service of Him, regardless of the "subject" of the verb.

The choice of subject for each action can be seen as relative to the amount of knowledge Al Khidr has about the situation and to what degree he is exercising his own will and judgment based on that. In the first case, it is possible for him to have known about the king who takes boats by force and could thereby exercise his own judgment to damage the boat. In this case, the use of the singular form of the verb to indicate that this was a decision made by Al Khidr alone is telling. At the very least, the reason is present and can be proven.

As for the second incident, Allah alone could know for sure that this boy would have turned out a non-believer for certain, but at the same time there are observable traits that Al Khidr could have observed. This duality thus necessitates the use of the plural first person pronoun as the subject since his knowledge alone could not have allowed him to make that judgment.

As for the third incident, in which the deceased father had buried the gold without anyone's knowledge and in a town that Al Khidr presumably had not visited before (he does not seem to know the people there), he could not have known that there was any gold under that wall since it had already been demolished. In this case, the decision to rebuild the wall was not his at all, and the subject of the verb is "your Lord" or Allah.

This is not to say that Al Khidr was not acting in the service of Allah the whole time or that his actions were not shaped by the service of Allah or with the niyyah of serving Allah. His statement makes his entire goal definite: "I did them not of my own accord". Indeed, he was a person who Allah says: "We had taught knowledge from Us". As a prophet or messenger, he would have received directions and knowledge through the angel Gabriel. Therefore, I am not necessarily arguing that in the first case he was acting completely on his own judgment, but that distinctive use of different grammatical cases and subjects in each of the stories sets up an interesting trilogy for his behavior and actions and can serve as a framework for all actions and decisions that we take and make in our lives.

Rational, Spiritual, and Something in Between

The first action can be seen as based on pure reasoning and logic, worldly wisdom so to speak. The second combines between worldly wisdom and inspiration, guidance, and direct command from Allah. As for the third it is completely commanded and inspired from Allah. 

Translating this into our own lives, I find that this is an interesting analogy or parallel for all things we do. Our actions on a daily basis, whether for worldly or after-worldly gain, can be categorized into these three groups. First, as Muslims or even religious people in general, we believe that everything we do in life is for the purpose of pleasing Allah and serving Him. Within that context, some actions and some decisions we make based purely on our own judgment. These are based on practical intelligence and signs we see in the real world. However, we try to make sure that they fall within the framework of pleasing Allah.

The second type is one that combines worldly intelligence as well as the commandments from Allah that we've received through the Quran and Sunnah. These things fall somewhere in between things that make sense or are logical in a worldly sense and being purely commandments that we do for the sake of pleasing Allah, even if we do not necessarily always understand the real reason behind them. For example, taking care of ourselves and trying to stay as healthy as possible is both something we decide to do while it is also commanded by Allah. 

Finally, there are some actions we do that are completely from Allah and are completely based on commandments from Him. For example, paying Zakat from a completely worldly and logical point of view does not make sense. You are essentially losing money. However, Allah command Muslims to pay this amount and we do, knowing that we do it to please Allah and that the reward is not worldly or material. There are of course worldly rewards, but they are not always tangible or even material.

At the same time, this also translates into the results of what we do. Some things, the completely worldly ones, we see the logic of and results of immediately. However, the closer the decision is to the Allah's decrees, the harder it is to always see the direct implications and results of those actions. However, there are indirect and spiritual results that we feel and of course the knowledge that, Allah willing, the afterlife is where we reap these rewards.

So this makes our view of the world interesting, and inspired in my opinion. We don't have to trust only in our own judgment, but we have Allah's judgment reinforcing our own. It makes life less hopeless, I think, and a lot more certain. It is certain because you know that what you do does not need to yield results that make sense logically or even results that you need to see with your own eyes. Even if we cannot explain beyond that spiritual good feeling why we do certain things, we know there is a hidden meaning. We wait for no one's  payment or gratitude except Allah's because we know there is a hidden reward, just like the boat the poor crew would get to keep despite some loose floorboards, or the good child that would make the life of his parents happier despite having lost a son, or the hidden treasure the children would find when they grew older.

References:

[1] Ibn Kathir, Alama Imad ud Din. "Al Kahf (The Cave)". Quran Tafsir Ibn Kathir (English). Quran4u. <http://www,quran4u.com>