- Interpretation Of Quran / The long version
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- (018) Al Kahf
﴾All the praises and thanks be to Allah, Who has sent down to His slave (Muhammad, peace be upon him) the Book (the Qur'an), and has not placed therein any crookedness* (He has made it) Straight to give warning (to the disbelievers) of a severe punishment from Him, and to give glad tidings to the believers (in the Oneness of Allah Islamic Monotheism), who work righteous deeds, that they shall have a fair reward (i.e. Paradise)* They shall abide therein forever* And to warn those (Jews, Christians, and pagans) who say, "Allah has begotten a son (or offspring or children)."* No knowledge have they of such a thing, nor had their fathers. Mighty is the word that comes out of their mouths [i.e. He begot (took) sons and daughters]. They utter nothing but a lie.﴿
The virtue of Surat Al-Kahf:
Abi Sa'eed Al-Khudri narrated that the Prophet, peace be upon him, said:
((Whoever reauthors Surah Al-Kahf on the day of Friday will have a light for him between this Friday and the next.))
The topics tackled in Surat Al-Kahf:
The stories:
Most of Surat Al-Kahf revolved around different stories. It includes the story of the people of the cave, the story of our Master Musa, peace be upon him, when he met our Master Al-Khader and the story of Thil Qarnain. All of these stories confirm the right Aqeedah, introduce the true Method and rectify some Islamic values.
Confirming the sound Aqeedah:
In Surat Al-Kahef, the sound Aqeedah, Divine Method and Islamic values are highlighted, and I would like go into details while I am interpreting the Surah.
First of all, Allah the Almighty says in the beginning of this Surah:
﴾ All the praises and thanks be to Allah ﴿
The graces of Allah are uncountable:
The word "praise" means there are graces (to praise Allah for), and since man is urged to praise Allah for the graces he has, the word "praise" denotes that man is surrounded by uncountable graces which he unable to count. Let alone, he cannot be perfectly grateful to Allah for them. Among these graces are the graces of existence, provision, guidance, and having physical systems and senses like sight, hearing, thinking and comprehending. There are also other graces such as having a wife, children, fresh sweet water (which Allah bestowed upon us) and subservient cattle. Not to mention, the grace of having plants which grow from earth effortlessly.
If we want to count Allah's Graces, we may spend our lifetime before even counting some of them. Hence, No one on earth can deny that man is surrounded by graces, but the problem lies in the following question: Whom people should praise for these graces? They should praise Allah. The people of Kufr (infidelity) claim these graces are the results of their own work and efforts, or that they are granted by the partners they join with Allah the Almighty. The truth is that the graces exist, but who is the Benefactor? Who deserves to be praised for them?
It was reported in the relic:
((O Dawood (David, remind My servants of My Favors, for souls are molded to love those who favor them and hate those who wrong them.))
If someone did you a favor or gave you something, you would praise him for a long time from the bottom of your heart, but what about your gratefulness to Allah who created you with the right proportions? Looking at the mirror is enough reason to make you praise the Almighty Allah. Whenever the Prophet, peace be upon him, looked at his face, he used to say as reported by Aishah:
((O Allah! Just as You have perfected my creation, perfect my manners.))
It was reported:
((O Lord, how can I thank you?" The Almighty Allah answers, "O son of Adam, when you remember Me, you are thankful to Me, and when you forget Me, you are ungrateful to Me.))
﴾O you who believe! Remember Allah with much remembrance* And glorify His Praises morning and afternoon [the early morning (Fajr) and 'Asr prayers].﴿
Remember Allah with much remembrance. When you remember Allah, you are thankful to Him, and when you forget Him, you are ungrateful to Him. Remembering Allah with much remembrance marks your gratefulness to Him and your acknowledgment that these graces are His Bestowal upon you. Hence, the word "praise" means that you are surrounded by endless, limitless and uncountable graces.
All the graces are bestowed by Allah Alone:
The word "be to Allah" means that you should thank Allah for the graces you have, because they are His Bestowal. In fact the difference between the believer and the disbeliever is that the believer knows that Allah is The One Who bestows these graces upon him, whereas the disbeliever ascribes them to someone else. In a Qudsi Hadith, Abu Ad-Darda' narrated that the Prophet, peace be upon him, said that Allah the Almighty said:
((Between Me and humans and elves a great situation exists. I created them, but they worshipped sh3er instead of Me. I bestow upon them, but they thank sh3er for it. My blessings go down to them while their evil deeds go up (to Me) in return. By granting them blessings, I woo them despite the fact that I never need to do so. However, they do not do the same despite the fact that they cannot do without me.))
What is your attitude towards the graces (you have)?
1- The grace of sight:
A man had the highest scientific degree, he occupied the most prominent position and everything was perfect with him, but he lost his sight out of sudden. Once, he said to his friend, "I wish I could sit on the sidewalk and beg people, but I had my sight back again". His friend said to him, "When you could see, did you acknowledge that the grace of sight is from Allah the Almighty? He let you see the things you love and see all colors". We should also acknowledge the grace of hearing while we have it not after losing it.
It is out of prosperity to acknowledge the grace while you have it not after losing it. Unfortunately, the majority of people acknowledge the graces after losing them, and only then they appreciate them. Accordingly, success lies in acknowledging the grace while you have it, and you should say, as the Prophet, peace be upon him, used to say
((O Allah! Let us enjoy our hearing, our sight and our power as long as You keep us alive and make our heirs from our own offspring.))
In fact, we praise Allah whenever we reauthor Al-Fatihah in every Salah, and even in every Rak'ah. We say:
﴾All the praises and thanks be to Allah, the Lord of the 'Alamin (mankind, jinns and all that exists)﴿
If your tear duct, which is the finest duct in the human body, had been blocked, you would have kept a tissue in your hand all the time in order to wipe the tears off your cheeks all day long, and you would have endured the pain of the burning tears on your face. Not to mention, the infections caused by the tears.
2- The balance system:
Had it not been for the balance system, Allah bestows upon you, you would not have been able to walk on your feet.
3- The ears:
Had man had one ear only, he would not have been able to specify the direction from where the sound comes. If you hear a sound from behind, your brain calculates and compares the intensity and timing of sounds received by each ear, and this comparison is done in one part out of 1600 of a second. Thus, man is able to know through the two ears if the sound of a car horn is coming from the right, and so he would jump to the left (to avoid the car).
If man had had one eye, he would not have been able to see things in 3D, for the one eye lets him see the width and length of things, whereas the second eye shows him the depth. If hairs or nails had had nerves, man would not have been able to have his hair cut, nor would he have been able to trim his nails. How deep the Divine Wisdom is!
4- The grace of Perfectly fashioning the creations:
Allah created us and perfectly fashioned us.
﴾Verily, We created man of the best stature (mould),﴿
In another Ayah, Almighty Allah says:
﴾Who created you, fashioned you perfectly, and gave you due proportion; In whatever form He willed, He put you together.﴿
We enjoys lots of graces, such like existence, having healthy physical systems in our bodies, having organs (which work properly), having a wife, children, warmth, sun, moon, food and drink.
And if you would count the graces of Allah, never could you be able to count them:
These graces are uncountable. Allah says:
﴾And if you would count the graces of Allah, never could you be able to count them.﴿
Pay attention to the accuracy in using the words; Allah does not say, "If you count", but rather He says:
﴾And if you would count the graces of Allah, never could you be able to count them.﴿
This means that if you spend your lifetime "trying" to count the benefits of one grace only, you will not be able to do so, and since you are incapable of counting these graces, then you will never be able to be perfectly grateful to Allah for them.
Praising Allah depends on two things:
1- Sending down the Book (the Quran):
Praising Allah in this Ayah is for something different:
﴾All the praises and thanks be to Allah, Who has sent down to His slave (Muhammad, peace be upon him) the Book (the Qur'an) ﴿
2- Creating the heavens and the earth:
In another Surah Allah says:
﴾All praises and thanks be to Allah, Who (Alone) created the heavens and the earth﴿
There is a kind of parallelism in both Ayat; Allah is praised for creating the heavens and the earth, and He is praised for sending down this Book (the Quran). Let me clarify this point by this example. Suppose that you bought a very complicated machine to analyze the blood, and this machine can give you the results of twenty tests by pushing one button after a drop of blood is put into it. Also, by using this machine for that purpose, your will make hundreds of thousands of money every day. However, in order to operate this machine you need to have the manual book provided by the manufacturing company. However, this company sent you the machine without its manual, and so you cannot make money of it since you do not have the manual which contains the operating instructions. Therefore, the manual in this case is as important as the machine itself, because you cannot use the machine without it. As long as you do not have the manual, you spent your money in vain and you could not invest it properly. If you can get that manual and operate the machine, you will gain lots of money. Hence, the manual is as important as the machine. Allah says:
﴾All praises and thanks be to Allah, Who (Alone) created the heavens and the earth﴿
Allah created the heavens, the galaxies, the sun, the moon, the stars, the earth, the mountains, the valleys, the deserts, the plains, the seas, the rivers, the fishes, the birds, mankind and the forests. Therefore, if you do not acknowledge the Almighty Allah (as a Creator), and you just act according to your desires and lusts, you will be doomed and cause destruction to sh3er. Will you realize the purpose of creating the universe in such a case?
﴾ All the praises and thanks be to Allah, Who has sent down to His slave (Muhammad, peace be upon him) the Book (the Qur'an) ﴿
The grace of sending down the Book equals the grace of creating the universe:
In this Book (the Quran) Allah's Orders and Prohibitions are mentioned. For example, it is prohibited to eat many kinds of food, but you are not permitted to eat pork, you are allowed to drink many kinds of drinks, but it is forbidden to drink intoxicants and you are allowed to fulfill you sexual desires by getting married, but you are not allowed by to do so by committing adultery. This Book is the way that leads you to gain happiness in the worldly life and the Hereafter since it contains the right method of gaining safety in the worldly life and in the Hereafter. Thus, the grace of having this "Book" in our hands is tantamount to the grace of creating the universe. The proof is in the following Ayah:
﴾All praises and thanks be to Allah, Who (Alone) created the heavens and the earth﴿
﴾ All the praises and thanks be to Allah, Who has sent down to His slave (Muhammad, peace be upon him) the Book (the Qur'an) ﴿
Creating the heavens and the earth is the grace of existence, and sending down the "Book" is the grace of guidance, and the grace of guidance is not less importance than the grace of existence. What is the value of our existence without guidance? What is the value of the guidance without our existence? Both graces (guidance and existence) complete one another.
﴾ All the praises and thanks be to Allah, Who has sent down to His slave (Muhammad, peace be upon him) the Book (the Qur'an) ﴿
This means that if you read this "Book", comprehend it and apply what it includes, you will lead a happy life full of good tidings and optimism. Also, and you will realize that life is evanescent and that it is but preparing phase for the Hereafter. Furthermore, the worldly life is the abode of doing the Divine Assignment, whereas the Hereafter is the abode of honoring. After knowing all these facts and establishing a connection with the Almighty Allah, you will rejoice being close to Him after having been upright on His Path, and only then you will know that Allah deserves to be praised for sending down this "Book" and for creating the heavens and earth.
﴾All praises and thanks be to Allah, Who (Alone) created the heavens and the earth﴿
﴾ All the praises and thanks be to Allah, Who has sent down to His slave (Muhammad, peace be upon him) the Book (the Qur'an) ﴿
You are granted two graces: The grace of existence a and the one of guidance:
What is the purpose of a university with all its buildings, playgrounds, libraries and halls if there is not curriculum? The books, teaching and the teachers are fundamentals at the university, and they are as essential as its structure (the building with everything it contains). Similarly, the grace of existence is as essential as the grace of guidance, so they are two great blessings. The grace of existence is referred to in the following Ayah:
﴾All praises and thanks be to Allah, Who (Alone) created the heavens and the earth﴿
The grace of guidance is referred to in the Ayah below:
﴾ All the praises and thanks be to Allah, Who has sent down to His slave (Muhammad, peace be upon him) the Book (the Qur'an) ﴿
The Almighty Allah says:
﴾then whoever follows My Guidance shall neither go astray, nor fall into distress and misery.﴿
﴾and whoever follows My Guidance, there shall be no fear on them, nor shall they grieve.﴿
﴾ All the praises and thanks be to Allah, Who has sent down to His slave (Muhammad, peace be upon him) the Book (the Qur'an) ﴿
The rank of being a servant to Allah is the most exalted rank:
The Prophet, peace be upon him, is the servant and the Messenger of Allah, given the state of being a servant to Allah is the highest rank man can ever achieve on earth. Being a servant of Allah entails following willingly all the Divine orders (the most and the least significant) ones in all aspects of life. Moreover, your obedience to Allah should be based on knowledge with certainty, and when the voluntary obedience is based on such certainty, it leads to everlasting happiness in the worldly life and in the Hereafter:
﴾And I (Allah) created not the jinns and humans except they should worship Me (Alone).﴿
Muslims say: Ash-hadu an la ilaha illa llah (I testify that there is no deity worthy of worship but Allah Alone) and that our Master Muhammad, peace be upon him, is his servant and Messenger. Hence, being a servant of Allah, in the right perceptive decreed by Allah will enable man to achieve the purpose for which he was created.
How wonderful it is to know the purpose of man's creation, and how great it is to follow the Right Path which leads you to achieve that purpose. This purpose is to worship Allah and to obey him in adversity and prosperity, when you know the wisdom of whatever happens to you and when you do not, when you establish all your relationships; your relation with your neighbors, wife, children, those you love, those you dislike, your enemies, your friends or the people you deal with.
﴾All the praises and thanks be to Allah, Who has sent down to His slave (Muhammad, peace be upon him) the Book (the Qur'an) ﴿
The meaning of "The Book":
The "Book" is the Noble Quran and according to some interpretations, the "Book" refers to all Divine Books (Scriptures). Hence, Allah the Almighty created the creations and guided them to the Right Path.
﴾"Verily, I am going to place (mankind) generations after generations on earth."﴿
Allah has sent down the Book, so that people of the earth will keep receiving the Divine Guidance. Our Master Ali, may Allah be pleased with him said, "O Kamil (Ibn Zayd), you must understand that knowledge is better than money, for knowledge will guard you, while you have to be the guard of your money. Deeds are more exalted than knowledge, while money needs someone to spend it justly in order to render it pure. To love a man of knowledge and to learn at his hand is a debt one can never repay. Knowledge earns its owner respect during his lifetime and praiseworthy remembrance after his death, while what money can do expires once it is spent. The keever of a safe dies and what he guards and the treasures remain, however, a man of knowledge lives throughout the ages. Their distinct form may no longer be seen, but their findings are preserved in people's hearts. Remember that there are three kinds of people: One kind is of those learned people who are highly versed in the ethics of truth and philosophy of religion, the second is the kind of those who are acquiring the above knowledge and the third is that class of people who are foolish. They follow every pretender and accept every slogan, they have neither acquired any knowledge nor have they secured any support of firm and rational convictions. Beware son that you will not be like anyone of them."
Pay attention once again to the Ayah below:
﴾All the praises and thanks be to Allah, Who has sent down to His slave (Muhammad, peace be upon him) the Book (the Qur'an) , and has not placed therein any crookedness. ﴿
The greatness of the Quran:
The "Book" is the Noble Quran, and it is the frame of reference. Furthermore, it is the most worthwhile thing which suffices us, and with which we never dispense. It was narrated:
((Allah will never put a person in Hell-Fire who has any part of the Quran in his heart.))
The Prophet, peace be upon him, said about the virtue of learning the Noble Quran:
((Allah will keep the mind of the whoever learns the Quran, safe and sound till he dies.))
﴾All the praises and thanks be to Allah, Who has sent down to His slave (Muhammad, peace be upon him) the Book (the Qur'an) , and has not placed therein any crookedness.﴿
The Quran has no crookedness:
This Quran is not crooked; it has no flaws, no excessiveness, no carelessness, no mistakes, no contradiction, no exaggeration and no overlooking:
﴾Who has created the seven heavens one above another, you can see no fault in the creations of the Most Beneficent. Then look again: "Can you see any rifts?"* Then look again and yet again, your sight will return to you in a state of humiliation and worn out.﴿
The universe is complete since it is Allah's Creation, and so is the Noble Quran, which is His Words. There must be harmony between Allah's Creation and Allah's Words. As the universe, which is completely perfect, the Quran in its content, style, principles, values and stories is absolutely perfect. In concise, the Quran is the absolute perfection. Allah the Exalted says:
﴾Verily, this Qur'an guides to that which is most just and right﴿
In another Ayah, He says:
﴾All the praises and thanks be to Allah, Who has sent down to His slave (Muhammad, peace be upon him) the Book (the Qur'an) , and has not placed therein any crookedness. ﴿
Whatever book man writes has something wrong, a flaw, something missing redundancy or exaggeration, except for the Book of the Almighty Allah:
﴾and has not placed therein any crookedness. ﴿
In fact, the Noble Quran was sent down 1400 years ago, and till now no scientific proven fact refuted any of its Ayat or nullify its rulings, because the Quran is the Book of the Ever-Wise the All-Aware:
﴾and has not placed therein any crookedness. ﴿
The meaning of "(He has made it) Straight" :
1- Meeting people's best interest:
"Straight" in the third Ayah of Surat Al-Kahf means that Allah has made the Quran meet the best interests of people. All the matters, which we need to know about, are tackled in the Quran. Actually, the essential issues in our life like marriage, divorce, inheritance, purification of the soul, rushing towards the Almighty Allah, the acts of worship, the instructions, the rulings, the ordainments, the prohibitions and the Divine Promises and Menaces are tackled perfectly in the Noble Quran.
﴾(He has made it) Straight﴿
I repeat what I have just mentioned; "Straight" means that the Quran meets the best interests of people, so it leaves neither a small matter nor a big one:
﴾We have neglected nothing in the Book﴿
2- Quran confirms the Scriptures that came before it and it is Muhayminan over them:
The Quran confirms the Scriptures that came before it, and it is Muhayminan (trustworthy in highness and a witness) over them (old Scriptures).
3- Being right:
"Straight" also means it is 100 % right. The Almighty Allah has not placed in the Quran any crookedness, so it is right (straight), and everything in it is the absolute truth.
To whom does the pronoun "it" in "(He has made it) Straight" refer?
Scholars had different opinions about "it":
﴾All the praises and thanks be to Allah, Who has sent down to His slave (Muhammad, peace be upon him) the Book (the Qur'an), and has not placed therein any crookedness.﴿
What does "it" refer to?
1- It refers to the Book:
Some scholars said that "it" refers to the "Book" (the Quran).
2- It refers to the Prophet, peace be upon him:
Other scholars said that "it" refers to the Prophet, peace be upon him indicating that there is no crookedness in the Prophet, peace be upon him, whether in his conducts, behavior, Da'wah (calling people to Allah), reasoning or private life. The life of the Prophet, peace be upon him, manifests absolute perfection. Hence, the "Book":
﴾And with truth We have sent it down (i.e. the Qur'an), and with truth it has descended.﴿
Whatever this Book contains is the truth, and it was sent down to the Noble Prophet, peace be upon him with truth.
This meaning of this Ayah confirms the meaning of the previous one.
﴾and has not placed therein﴿
"It" refers to the Noble Prophet, peace be upon him:
﴾ any crookedness.﴿
There is no crookedness in his morals, words or dealings. A Poet praised the Prophet, peace be upon him, saying:
No eye has ever seen anyone better than you
No woman has ever given birth to anyone
More prefect than you
You are free from all defects,
As if you were designed just the character you wished
***
The meaning of the aforementioned Ayah is indicated in the Ayah below:
﴾And verily, you (O Muhammad, peace be upon him) are on an exalted standard of character.﴿
Allah made this Prophet, peace be upon him, perfect, and the Prophet's Companions testified (in front of An-Najashi) that the Prophet, peace be upon him, is perfect:
((O king, we were ignorant and ill-mannered. We used to worship idols, eat carrion (dead meat), mistreat our neighbors, cut kinship ties, and the strong used to assault the weak. However, we have changed after a man from amongst us, who is well known to us by his noble family, truthfulness, faithfulness and chastity was sent to us by Allah (SWT). He ordered us to tell the truth, pay deposits back to their owners, preserve our kinship ties, and be kind to our neighbors. He prohibited us from drawing near to obscenities, speaking of forgery, and drawing near the wealth of the orphan. He ordered us to worship Allah Alone, and associate no partners with Him, and he ordered us to offer Salah, Zakat and Sawm…))
The Almighty Allah says:
﴾ and has not placed therein any crookedness* (He has made it) Straight to give warning (to the disbelievers) of a severe punishment from Him, and to give glad tidings to the believers (in the Oneness of Allah Islamic Monotheism), who work righteous deeds, that they shall have a fair reward (i.e. Paradise).﴿
To give warning (to the disbelievers) of a severe punishment:
Feeling secured about the present is naivety. Man may be secured in the present, but what does the unseen hide for him? What is the value of man's life if he does not know the Almighty Allah, if he does not follow His Path, if he does not know the purpose of his existence and if he is unaware of the method he should follow?
﴾to give warning (to the disbelievers) of a severe punishment﴿
If man does not acknowledge Allah in prosperity, he will not acknowledge Him in adversity. It seems that we are informed through the Quran that no matter how long man lives, death will come to him, that no matter how prominent man is he may be humiliated one day, that whatever he does, he will be called to account for all his deeds, that Allah watches over him, that he will be rewarded for his good deeds and that he will be punished for his wrongdoings:﴾to give warning (to the disbelievers) of a severe punishment﴿
Nothing in life lasts forever. For instance, after being young, we age and after we age, we become senile and weak. Keep in mind that one day the angel of death will come to us, and after that we will be admitted either to a Paradise with ongoing bliss, or to a Hellfire with eternal torment.
﴾to give warning (to the disbelievers) of a severe punishment﴿
Do not be deceived by the present, for the future is what matters and the deeds are defined by their ends, by the autumn of life and by the meeting Hour, and the hour at which man will leave life, and therein lies success.
The hero is not the gangster
But he is the one who fears Allah
﴾to give warning (to the disbelievers) of a severe punishment﴿
People are deceived by different things they own, such as youth, wealth, the prominent position, the well-known lineage and beauty, but all these are mere deceptions. Allah the Exalted says:
﴾let not then this (worldly) present life deceive you, nor let the chief deceiver (Satan) deceive you about Allah.﴿
As you can see the word "deceiver" refers to Satan.
This Book tells us that there will be another life after the worldly life, there will be humiliation with fame, there will be poverty with richness, there will be life after death and there will be hardship with prosperity, for everything is changeable:
﴾to give warning (to the disbelievers) of a severe punishment from Him﴿
Punishment is waiting for the heedless man who is indulged in the pleasures of the worldly life, who collects Dirham and Dinar (wealth), who has a passionate yearning to fulfill his desires and whose ultimate concern is food, fornication, stylish cloths, Dirham and Dinar. Anas Ibn Malik narrated that the Prophet, peace be upon him, said:
((For the one whose concern is this world, Allah will scatter his affairs, place poverty between his two eyes and he will not get from the world except what is written for him. As for the one whose intention is the Hereafter, Allah will gather for him his affairs, place contentment in his heart and the world will come to him willingly.))
﴾to give warning (to the disbelievers) of a severe punishment﴿
Your success lies in being aware that the present is mere deception, and that days are: Al-yawm al-mafqood; the day you missed (the past), al-yawm al-mashhood; the present day, al-yawm al-mawrood; tomorrow (you have no idea whether you will live till it comes or not), al-yawm al-maw'ud; the Day of Resurrection and al-yawm al-mahdood; your last day in the worldly life. The past passed and the present day will pass as well, but your real success is gained after reaching the prolonged day and being one of the people of Paradise. Hence, "to give warning" means to warn each person and every heedless man who forgot about the Almighty Allah, about the Quran and about its content. Also, it means to give warning to those who put the Quran behind their backs and abandoned it:
﴾to give warning (to the disbelievers) of a severe punishment﴿
The inevitable fact is that whoever forsakes Allah's Book ignoring its orders and prohibitions, neglecting its rulings, abstaining from being proud about it and is indifferent to the menaces mentioned in it, will be destroyed in the worldly life before he faces his destruction in the Hereafter. This is exactly what will happen to whoever says, "We reauthor the Quran in order to be blessed through it", while he violates its rulings in his earnings, marital life, social relations and so on. Accordingly, whoever violates the Divine Orders and Prohibitions mentioned in the Book of Allah the Exalted will be severely punished in both the worldly life and the Hereafter:
﴾to give warning (to the disbelievers) of a severe punishment﴿
The punishment in the worldly life can be intractable diseases, severe humiliation, illnesses and adversities about which only Allah knows:
﴾to give warning (to the disbelievers) of a severe punishment﴿
Man is allowed to do whatever he likes, but the prudent knows that he may be afflicted at any time, while the imprudent is oblivious of such a fact, and he mistakenly thinks that he will not be reckoned. As a result, things will backfire, and he will see the ugly face of life having so many problems with no solutions to them:
﴾to give warning (to the disbelievers) of a severe punishment, and to give glad tidings to the believers (in the Oneness of Allah Islamic Monotheism), who work righteous deeds, that they shall have a fair reward (i.e. Paradise﴿
And to give glad tidings to the believers, who work righteous deeds, that they shall have a fair reward:
The glad tidings are given to the believer who got acquainted with Allah and believed in Allah's Existence, Oneness, Mercy, Wisdom and Omnipotence. Also, he believed that there is no deity worth of worship but Allah Alone, and that there is no Bestower, no Humiliator, no Preventer, no Exalter and no Abaser but Allah. Furthermore, such a believer offered good deeds, obeyed Allah, acted upon His Orders, served the creations and was a good Muslim:
﴾and to give glad tidings to the believers (in the Oneness of Allah Islamic Monotheism), who work righteous deeds, that they shall have a fair reward (i.e. Paradise)* They shall abide therein forever.﴿
The bliss of worldly life is incomparable with and the one of the Hereafter:
How can I explain to you the meaning of infinity? How can we comprehend it? It is beyond our imagination. If we say that the number we have is a thousand of millions and we keep saying millions till we are out of breath, and we repeat that again till we are out of breath once again, how huge this number will be? Assume that someone started saying a thousand of millions since he was born till he dies, we will find that infinity is even larger than such a number. We will not be able to understand how big the infinity is even if we take a big sack of flour and consider each particle of it as one million years. How many millions of years are there in the sack? How many millions of years are there in the flour of the entire world? Still infinity is larger than the result we get.
Imagine that the distance between Damascus and Aleppo started with number one and there are as many zeros as millimeters (let us say that there is a zero each two millimeters) and then we continue till we reach the North Pole, we will discover that this huge figure is nothing compared to infinity. The result will be zero if we put that big number on the top of a fraction with the infinity on the bottom, because it is not even close to infinity. Therefore, sixty, seventy or eighty years of lifetime is nothing if these years are compared to infinity. Even if someone lived for 950 years like our Master Nuh (Noah), peace be upon him, his lifetime would be nothing, and even if someone else were able to live a thousand of a million of million years, having wealth, leading extravagant life, having good health, food, drink and fame, and fulfilling his desires and lusts, all these things would be nothing compared to the infinity of the Hereafter.
Our Master Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, said, "O son, the pleasure that is followed by Hell is worthless, and every good matter that is followed by Hell is also worthless. Likewise, the evil that produces Paradise is not evil. Whatever bliss we have other than Paradise is valueless and whatever misfortune we are afflicted with other than Hell is (regarded as) good health."Say: "Short is the enjoyment of this world:
The Almighty Allah says:
﴾Say: "Short is the enjoyment of this world.﴿
[An-Nisa', 77]The Lord says to you:
﴾Say: "Short is the enjoyment of this world.﴿
In another Ayah, He says:
﴾And whatever you have been given is an enjoyment of the life of (this) world and its adornment, and that (Hereafter) which is with Allah is better and will remain forever. Have you then no sense?﴿
The Almighty Allah says:
﴾O you who believe! What is the matter with you, that when you are asked to march forth in the Cause of Allah (i.e. Jihad) you cling heavily to the earth? Are you pleased with the life of this world rather than the Hereafter? But little is the enjoyment of the life of this world as compared with the Hereafter.﴿
The difference between the worldly life and the Hereafter is like the one between a nickel and an open check in which someone can write the number he wants and then cashes it at the bank, so which amount will this man choose to take? Will he choose to take the nickel?
﴾But little is the enjoyment of the life of this world as compared with the Hereafter.﴿
The magicians of Fir'aun (Pharaoh) said:
﴾[Fir'aun (Pharaoh)] said: "Believe you in him [Musa (Moses)] before I give you permission? Verily! He is your chief who taught you magic. So I will surely cut off your hands and feet on opposite sides, and I will surely crucify you on the trunks of date-palms, and you shall surely know which of us [I (Fir'aun - Pharaoh) or the Lord of Musa (Moses) (Allah)] can give the severe and more lasting torment."* They said: "We prefer you not over the clear signs that have come to us, and to Him (Allah) Who created us. So decree whatever you desire to decree, for you can only decree (regarding) this life of the world* "Verily! We have believed in our Lord, that He may forgive us our faults, and the magic to which you did compel us. And Allah is better as regards reward in comparison to your [Fir'aun's (Pharaoh)] reward, and more lasting (as regards punishment in comparison to your punishment)."﴿
Your success lies in seeking the everlasting life. When the dead man is buried, Allah addresses him saying:
((O My servant, the people who buried you returned to their houses and left you here alone. They buried you in the soil, and went home, and even if they had stayed with you, they would not have benefited you. The Only One Who stays with you is Me, I Am the Ever Living Who never dies.))
The main thing you are supposed to do is keeping connected with the Ever Living (Allah). Allah says:
﴾And the Face of your Lord full of Majesty and Honour will abide forever.﴿
Your success lies in having a good r elation with the One Who lasts forever (Allah):
﴾and to give glad tidings to the believers (in the Oneness of Allah Islamic Monotheism), who work righteous deeds, that they shall have a fair reward (i.e. Paradise)* They shall abide therein forever.﴿
The people of Hellfire will weep tears of blood. They will keep shedding tears forever, so they will have a sea of tears in which ships can sail:
﴾And to warn those (Jews, Christians, and pagans) who say, "Allah has begotten a son (or offspring or children)."﴿
And to warn those (Jews, Christians, and pagans) who say, "Allah has begotten a son:
This warning is to those who do not know the Almighty Allah as (the) One and as us-Samad (The Self-Sufficient Master, Whom all creatures need, He neither eats nor drinks) who begets not, nor was He begotten:
﴾those (Jews, Christians, and pagans) who say, "Allah has begotten a son (or offspring or children)."* No knowledge have they of such a thing﴿
They have no knowledge of such a thing, yet they keep talking about which they have no knowledge of. The Exalted Lord teaches us, in this Ayah, the right method. He orders us to abstain from saying a word without having the knowledge of it. Never say anything that of which you have no knowledge, and never debate with anyone about that which you know for sure:
﴾No knowledge have they of such a thing, nor had their fathers. Mighty is the word that comes out of their mouths [i.e. He begot (took) sons and daughters]. They utter nothing but a lie.﴿
If you want to convey something prove it is true:
The Almighty Allah describes the Kuffar saying that they utter words without thinking about them, and they just say them irrationally and randomly without any insight:
﴾Mighty is the word that comes out of their mouths [i.e. He begot (took) sons and daughters]. They utter nothing but a lie.﴿
Scholars said, "If you want to convey something, you should make sure that what you convey is sound, and if you claim something, you should have the evidence to support your claims." Hence, if you say that this person said so and so, you should be pretty sure that it was him who said that, for he might not have said it:
﴾O you who believe! If a rebellious evil person comes to you with a news, verify it, lest you harm people in ignorance, and afterwards you become regretful to what you have done.﴿
Do not accept anything or reject it without having authenticated reported evidence and a reasonable one. Dalal (deviation) is the result of conceiving ideas without evidence, which is reported in the Quran or Sunnah, to prove it, or without having a reported opinion of a notable scholar that has been already proved by evidence. I repeat again, without evidence, never ever accept or reject anything. Besides, if you are a conveyor, you should be keen on conveying the truth. This is the method you should follow whenever you receive or convey a piece of news:
﴾No knowledge have they of such a thing, nor had their fathers. Mighty is the word that comes out of their mouths [i.e. He begot (took) sons and daughters]. They utter nothing but a lie.﴿
What they utter is nothing but a lie! Abi Umamah said that the Prophet, peace be upon him, said:
((The believer may acquire all sorts of characteristics except treachery and lying.))
Their uttering is mere lies. Thus, in the Ayah below it seems that Allah the Exalted tried to comfort His Nobel Prophet, peace be upon him:
﴾Perhaps, you, would kill yourself (O Muhammad, peace be upon him) in grief, over their footsteps (for their turning away from you), because they believe not in this narration (the Qur'an).﴿
The Prophet, peace be upon him, was so keen on guiding his people:
Why are you (O Muhammad, peace be upon him) killing yourself in grief for their sake? Scholars said, "Loving people proves your love to Allah, and your love for them reflects how much you love Allah the Exalted, because the more you like Him, the more your love people." Ibn Umar, may Allah be pleased with them, said that the Prophet, peace be upon him, said:
((…and those who are the farthest from Allah are those whose hearts are hard.))
The Almighty Allah says:
﴾So, woe to those whose hearts are hardened against remembrance of Allah!﴿
The Prophet was the most merciful among mankind to mankind:
Pay attention to this rule: Your love to the creations reflects your love to the Creator.
((All creatures are Allah's dependants, and the most loved ones by Him are the most helpful to His dependants.))
Keep in mind that all people with no exception (are servants of Allah). Therefore, the perfect believer respects, advises and is sincere to all people even though they might be magus or idolaters, because being merciful to people reflects Allah's Attribute (Mercy). The believer is expected to be kind to other people, to advise them and to be honest with them. This is how faith is manifested in the Muslim's everyday life:
((Whosoever cheats does not belong to us.))
You will not be considered a Muslim if you deceive someone whether he is a Muslim or a non-Muslim. The Noble Prophet, peace be upon him, is unanimously agreed on to be the most merciful among mankind to mankind, because he is the closest to Al-Haqq (Allah). Some people say, "All I am concerned about is my own affairs", but those people should know that the less you care about sh3er, the lower your rank will be in the Sight of Allah. Unfortunately, some people have no concern about sh3er, and all they care about is their own selves; they do not even care about their wives or their children. Thus, the more merciful to people, concerned about their affairs, companionate to them and caring towards them you are, , the loftier your rank will be in the Sight of Allah.
The Prophet, peace be upon him, used to care about all humanity and creations, so he is the most exalted man in the Sight of Allah. The Prophet, peace be upon him, used to lower his vessel to the cat, so that it could drink from it.
((Abu Ya'la Shaddad bin Aws (may Allah be pleased with him) reported: Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said, "Verily Allah has prescribed Ihsan (kindness) for everything. So when you kill, you must make the killing in the best manner; when you slaughter, make your slaughter in the best manner. Let one of you sharpen his knife and give ease to his animal (in order to reduce his pain)."))
Allah's Messenger, peace be upon him, severely reproached a person who slaughtered a sheep in front of other sheep:
((Do you want to kill the sheep twice?! Why do you not separate them from one another (while you are slaughtering them?!))
This mercy was on what? It was towards an animal. He, peace be upon him, said:
((The one who sow dissention between two persons is not one of us.))
In another Hadith, the Prophet, peace b upon him, said:
((Cursed is the man who separates between a mother and her son.))
The Prophet, peace be upon him, used to treat the animals mercifully. He, peace be upon him, included the animals in the above-mentioned Hadith, so he went on saying:
((It is forbidden to buy a sheep without its lamp, or buy the lamp without its mother sheep.))
This is his mercy on all creations, so how about his mercy on the believers?
﴾Verily, there has come unto you a Messenger (Muhammad, peace be upon him) from amongst yourselves (i.e. whom you know well). It grieves him that you should receive any injury or difficulty. He (Muhammad, peace be upon him) is anxious over you (to be rightly guided, to repent to Allah, and beg Him to pardon and forgive your sins, in order that you may enter Paradise and be saved from the punishment of the Hell-fire), for the believers (he is) full of pity, kind, and merciful.﴿
Hence, the Prophet, peace be upon him, is the most merciful among creations to creations, and this fact is mentioned in the previous Ayah. I would like to repeat the rule I have mentioned earlier: The closer you are to Allah, the more merciful you will be to creations. Consider your mercy on other creations and see to whom you are merciful. The believer's mercy embraces everything, whereas the people of the worldly life are merciful only to their children. The believer never builds his success on the wreck of sh3er, and he never collects his wealth by impoverishing sh3er. The Prophet, peace be upon him, is addressed in the Noble Ayah:
﴾Perhaps, you, would kill yourself (O Muhammad, peace be upon him) in grief, over their footsteps (for their turning away from you), because they believe not in this narration (the Qur'an).﴿
He was about to die out of grief:
﴾ would kill yourself (O Muhammad, peace be upon him) in grief﴿
It means that the Prophet, peace be upon him, were about to kill himself out of grief over them. People nowadays are concerned only about their own needs, and they do not care about anything else. Regarding this point, Al Hutai'ah, who is an Arabic poet, said the most satirical line of poetry in Al-Jahiliyyah (the pre-Islamic period):
Do not bother yourself by seeking good manners
Just relax as long as you are offered food and clothing
This line addresses whoever seeks fulfilling his own basic needs and achieving his interests only, while the believer always helps people in solving their problem:
((Whoever does not care about Muslims is not one of them.))
Once, our master Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, received a present from Azerbaijan. He asked the messenger who brought it to him, "What is the present?" The messenger said, "It is a box of sweet". Umar opened the box and tasted one piece, then he asked, "Can all people afford to have this in their houses?" The messenger answered, "No, they cannot. This is for special (rich) people" Upon hearing that Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, took the bite out of his mouth, and he wrote to the governor, "How can you care about Muslims if you do not eat the same food they eat." Then, he continued, "Umar's stomach is forbidden from tasting any food that poor Muslims cannot afford to eat".
You should be merciful to those around you. If you are a shop owner, you should have mercy on your worker concerning the working hours, the effort he pays while working or the wage you pay him. It was reported in the relic:
((If you want My Mercy to be bestowed upon you, then be merciful to My creations.))
Thus, the Prophet, peace be upon him, was very merciful.
﴾Perhaps, you, would kill yourself (O Muhammad, peace be upon him) in grief, over their footsteps (for their turning away from you), because they believe not in this narration (the Qur'an)* Verily! We have made that which is on earth as an adornment for it, in order that We may test them (mankind) as to which of them are best in deeds. [i.e. those who do good deeds in the most perfect manner, that means to do them (deeds) totally for Allah's sake and in accordance with the legal ways of the Prophet]* And verily! We shall make all that is on it (the earth) a bare dry soil (without any vegetation or trees, etc.).﴿
Trying people is a universal Divine Law:
This Ayah is one of the fundamentals of Aqeedah. Namely, trying people is a Divine Law.
﴾Verily! We have made that which is on earth as an adornment for it, in order that We may test them (mankind) as to which of them are best in deeds. [i.e. those who do good deeds in the most perfect manner, that means to do them (deeds) totally for Allah's sake and in accordance with the legal ways of the Prophet].﴿
((The world is sweet and green (alluring)…))
It is full of women, money, luxurious houses, farms (in which people gather and have parties) and vanity.
﴾Verily! We have made that which is on earth as an adornment for it, in order that We may test them (mankind) as to which of them are best in deeds. [i.e. those who do good deeds in the most perfect manner, that means to do them (deeds) totally for Allah's sake and in accordance with the legal ways of the Prophet].﴿
Who will choose obeying Allah over a joyful gathering? Who will choose a religious session over a party? Who will choose the little Halal income over the hefty Haram one? Who will choose to keep loyal to his lawful wife over looking at other women?
﴾Verily! We have made that which is on earth as an adornment for it, in order that We may test them (mankind) as to which of them are best in deeds. [i.e. those who do good deeds in the most perfect manner, that means to do them (deeds) totally for Allah's sake and in accordance with the legal ways of the Prophet].﴿
We live in the abode of trials, so we are put into tests. Passing these tests is the price for Paradise, and failing in them will make us admitted to Hell.
﴾so that those who were to be destroyed (for their rejecting the Faith) might be destroyed after a clear evidence, and those who were to live (i.e. believers) might live after a clear evidence﴿
There is a price that should be paid for Paradise, and it is your success in the Divine Trials. Your failure, on the other hand, will make you be admitted to Hellfire.
﴾Verily! We have made that which is on earth as an adornment for it, in order that We may test them (mankind) as to which of them are best in deeds. [i.e.those who do good deeds in the most perfect manner, that means to do them (deeds) totally for Allah's sake and in accordance with the legal ways of the Prophet].﴿
Be at ease, and read the Ayah that follows it:
﴾And verily! We shall make all that is on it (the earth) a bare dry soil (without any vegetation or trees, etc.).﴿
The Almighty Allah says:
﴾Verily the likeness of (this) worldly life is as the water (rain) which We send down from the sky, so by it arises the intermingled produce of the earth of which men and cattle eat until when the earth is clad with its adornments and is beautified, and its people think that they have all the powers of disposal over it, Our Command reaches it by night or by day and We make it like a clean-mown harvest, as if it had not flourished yesterday! Thus do We explain the Ayat (proofs, evidences, verses, lessons, signs, revelations, laws, etc.) in detail for the people who reflect* Allah calls to the home of peace (i.e. Paradise, by accepting Allah's religion of Islamic Monotheism and by doing righteous good deeds and abstaining from polytheism and evil deeds)﴿
At the end, let me remind you of the following Ayah:
﴾Whatsoever is on it (the earth) will perish* And the Face of your Lord full of Majesty and Honour will abide forever.﴿
