Tazkiyyah

This is post #27 in our series on Tafseer of Juz ‘Amma (click the link to see all posts in this series).

Allah says, in Surah Al-Burooj:

وَالسَّمَاءِ ذَاتِ الْبُرُوجِ

وَالْيَوْمِ الْمَوْعُودِ

وَشَاهِدٍ وَمَشْهُودٍ

قُتِلَ أَصْحَابُ الْأُخْدُودِ

Translation: By the sky containing great stars. And [by] the promised Day. And [by] the witness and what is witnessed. Cursed were the companions of the trench. [Surah Al-Buruj, verses 1-4]

The story of Ashaab-ul-Burooj, the People of the Ditch, is pretty well-known; in fact, we have an entire 15-part series on this surah. Check it out insha’Allah.

Allah opens this surahs with testifications. Then he testifies: qutila ashaabul-‘uqdood. ‘uqdood is another word for ditch. Qutila, literally, means “they were killed.” But Ibn Abbaas (radiallahu anhu) said, whenever you read qutila in the Qur’an, it means lu’ina–cursed.

Allah cursed the People of the Ditch. And Allah is not in need of cursing–He can do anything, to anybody, anytime, anywhere. Lu’ina means, they were destroyed.

And they _are_destroyed.

So what great sin did they perpetrate in order to deserve this immense reward–not only being cursed and destroyed, but being documented in the Qur’an, to be recited until the end of time?

Let’s see.

This is post #26 in our series on Tafseer of Juz ‘Amma (click the link to see all posts in this series). The noble she-camel, prized in the Arab society, was actually one of the signs Allah sent to a nation. What did they do with it? Surahs are usually named by something unique in their content. But the sun (ash-shams) is mentioned in several surahs; so why is this one called Surah Shams?

What’s better than a chest of gold and jewels? A post full of Qur’an and sunnah! Bismillah. This is a guest post by an author who compiled a wide number of resources related to fasting, reciting Qur’an, and sincerity of intention. This is a great resource of ahadith and ayaat related to fasting. May Allah grant them a great reward (ameen!) and forgive any mistakes I have made in re-formatting it and linking all the sources to their citations.

Bismillah. Alhamdulillah, we’ve been working in the background for a while to launch a new project. Jazakumullahu khayran to everybody who helped out, may Allah keep giving you reward for it insha’Allah long after your bones are dust–allahumma ameen! First, check yourself, and fill out the poll below: [poll id=”3″] If you haven’t guessed, our new project is: Salah Support, a forum where you can find resources on salah–everything from videos on how to pray, to ebooks on khushoo’, to creative alarms for Qiaaym-ul-Layl.

Michael Jackson’s $25,000 gold-plated bronze coffin (hand-polished). This post is a brief and timely diversion from our tafseer series. Michael Jackson was one of the most popular and well-known celebrities and icons of the western world; and now, he’s dead. As Muslims, what lessons can we learn from this event? I’ve listed below some of the lessons that came to my mind: Your Life is a Box. The Messenger of Allah (salallahu alayhi wa sallam) once drew a dot in the sand, and lines radiating out from it; he said (paraphrased), “this is the human, and their plans/desires.

Note: This is post #20 in our series on Tafseer of Juz ‘Amma (click the link to see all posts in this series).

In Surah Kafiroon, Allah says:

قُلْ يَا أَيُّهَا الْكَافِرُونَ

لَا أَعْبُدُ مَا تَعْبُدُونَ

وَلَا أَنتُمْ عَابِدُونَ مَا أَعْبُدُ

وَلَا أَنَا عَابِدٌ مَّا عَبَدتُّمْ

وَلَا أَنتُمْ عَابِدُونَ مَا أَعْبُدُ

لَكُمْ دِينُكُمْ وَلِيَ دِينِ

Translation: Say, “O disbelievers, I do not worship what you worship. Nor are you worshippers of what I worship. Nor will I be a worshipper of what you worship. Nor will you be worshippers of what I worship. For you is your religion, and for me is my religion.” [Surah Kafiroon]

The mushrikeen (polytheists) of Mecca tried many, many different techniques to get the Prophet (salallahu alayhi wa sallam) to stop spreading Islam.

Before this ayah was revealed, they decided to make a pact with him. They said, “Look, how about this–you worship our gods for one year, and we’ll worship your God for one year.” And to sweeten the deal: “And, we’ll go first.”

And they applied the Broken Record technique. Whenever the Prophet (salallahu alayhi wa sallam) would try to speak to them about Islam, they would only repeat this.

And he, salallahu alayhi wa sallam, refused.

Those of you who are wondering why–although it seems on the surface like a fair trade, it’s not. Allah does not forgive shirk, worshipping other than him; not even a single sujood, or a single du’a, none of it is acceptable.

So clearly, this is not a contract the Messenger of Allah could engage with. So he refused.

And he refused.

And he refused.

Then, the Mushrikeen said, “ok, how about this–just speak highly of our gods, and we’ll do the same for you.” A smaller compromise.

And whenever people approached them, they would say, “Well, we’re trying to compromise (like we’re the good ones in this deal–even though we kill our daughters and murder on whims and …), but he’s not agreeing.”

So the Prophet (salallahu alayhi wa sallam) went to the ka’bah.

Mushrikeen were there. And in front of everybody he said:

Note: This is post #19 in our series on Tafseer of Juz ‘Amma (click the link to see all posts in this series). In Surah Ma’oon, Allah says: فَوَيْلٌ لِّلْمُصَلِّينَ الَّذِينَ هُمْ عَن صَلَاتِهِمْ سَاهُونَ الَّذِينَ هُمْ يُرَاءُونَ وَيَمْنَعُونَ الْمَاعُونَ Translation: So woe to those who pray; those who are heedless of their prayer, those who make show [of their deeds]; And withhold [simple] assistance (al-ma’oon). [Surah Ma’oon, verses 4-7]

Note: This is post #18 in our series on Tafseer of Juz ‘Amma (click the link to see all posts in this series). Insha’Allah we’ll be kicking up the post frequency to three times a week in order to finish before Ramadan.

Allah says, in Surah Ma’oon:

أَرَأَيْتَ الَّذِي يُكَذِّبُ بِالدِّينِ

فَذَلِكَ الَّذِي يَدُعُّ الْيَتِيمَ

وَلَا يَحُضُّ عَلَى طَعَامِ الْمِسْكِينِ

Translation: Have you seen the one who denies the Repayment? For that is the one who drives away the orphan, and does not encourage the feeding of the poor. [Surah Ma’oon, verses 1-3]

Notice the connection here–verse one, the one who denies Ad-Deen, the Day of Repayment. And verse two and three? He drives away orphans, He doesn’t encourage feeding of the poor.

It’s not that he doesn’t feed the poor. It’s that he doesn’t encourange feeding the poor.

Note: This is post #17 in our series on Tafseer of Juz ‘Amma (click the link to see all posts in this series).

Allah says, in Surah At-Takaathur:

أَلْهَاكُمُ التَّكَاثُرُ

حَتَّى زُرْتُمُ الْمَقَابِرَ

Translation: Competition in [worldly] increase diverts you, until you visit the graveyards. [Surah At-Takaathur, verses 1-2]

Subhanallah, even though these verses were revealed over 1400 years ago, we still see the exact same situation today. Al-Haakum means, it makes you compete with each other. At-Takaathur is rivalry, competition, in accumulating material things; thinking that life is about toys, and the one with the most (or most expensive) toys wins.

What is Takaathur?

Note: this is our 12th post in our series on Tafseer of Juz ‘Amma.

Insha’Allah in this post, we’re going to discuss three points:

1. The close relationship between Allah and His prophet
2. A glimpse of Paradise
3. A core theme of social services in Islam

The Prophet (salallahu alayhi wa sallam) received revelation prior to Surah Duhaa. Then for a while, nothing. Umm Jameelah, the wife of Abu Lahab, came to him and said: “I hope your shaytaan has finally left you.” Because the Arabs used to say, if someone was really good at something, that they had a shaytaan helping them. (No doubt like some of the musicians today.)

Still nothing came. The people began to talk … and they said, maybe his Lord has left him. Maybe He has abandoned him.

And so Allah revealed:

In Surah Duhaa, Allah says:

وَالضُّحَى

وَاللَّيْلِ إِذَا سَجَى

مَا وَدَّعَكَ رَبُّكَ وَمَا قَلَى

Translation: By duhaa (the morning brightness after Fajr), and [by] the night when it covers with darkness, your Lord has not taken leave of you, [O Muúammad], nor has He detested [you].

[This hadith is found in Bukhari and Muslim, and is quoted in Tafseer ibn Katheer]

This shows us two things: first, that the people knew when revelation came; that it was a big deal, and everybody knew about it. And second, the immense love of Allah for His prophet. How close their relationship–that even something as small as this stress, Allah revealed verses on behalf of the prophet, to reassure him. Subhanallah!

What’s more, Allah swears by duhaa–by the brightness of the day right after the sun has come up–and by the night, as it covers up the day with darkness. (This shows the greatness of these creations–that Allah swears by them. Who would deny these things? Nobody!)