| Chapter 48 : Surah Al-Fath |
(Revealed after Hijrah) Date of Revelation and Context Subject-Matter The Surah proceeds to say that because of lack of proper realization of the full import of the Treaty the believers were downcast, God would send down solace and tranquillity on them and their faith would increase, while the false satisfaction and delight of disbelievers would prove to be short-lived. The believers are further told that they should not have doubted the wisdom of the Holy Prophet's action in signing the Treaty since he was God's Messenger and all his actions were done under Divine direction and guidance. Their duty was “to believe in him, help him, and honor him.” The Surah further says that believers earned the pleasure of God when they swore allegiance to the Holy Prophet under “The Tree” that they would stand by him through thick and thin, even unto death. It was God's own plan that fighting did not take place at that time because in Mecca there lived some true and sincere Muslims whom believers did not know and who would have unwittingly been killed, if fighting had taken place. Next, the Hypocrites and those, who lagged behind, receive a severe rebuke and their hypocrisy is exposed. Whenever they are invited to fight in the cause of God, the Surah says, they invent false excuses to justify their staying behind, but by their foolish subterfuges and false excuses they deceive no one but themselves. Towards its close, the Surah reverts to the subject that not only would the Treaty of Hudaibiyah prove to be a great victory but that other victories would follow in its wake, and the neighboring countries would fall to the victorious arms of Muslims.
هُوَ الَّذِي أَنْزَلَ السَّكِينَةَ فِي قُلُوبِ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ لِيَزْدَادُوا إِيمَانًا مَعَ إِيمَانِهِمْ وَلِلَّهِ جُنُودُ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالأَرْضِ وَكَانَ اللَّهُ عَلِيمًا حَكِيمًا لِيُدْخِلَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَالْمُؤْمِنَاتِ جَنَّاتٍ تَجْرِي مِنْ تَحْتِهَا الأَنْهَارُ خَالِدِينَ فِيهَا وَيُكَفِّرَ عَنْهُمْ سَيِّئَاتِهِمْ وَكَانَ ذَلِكَ عِنْدَ اللَّهِ فَوْزًا عَظِيمًا وَيُعَذِّبَ الْمُنَافِقِينَ وَالْمُنَافِقَاتِ وَالْمُشْرِكِينَ وَالْمُشْرِكَاتِ الظَّانِّينَ بِاللَّهِ ظَنَّ السَّوْءِ عَلَيْهِمْ دَائِرَةُ السَّوْءِ وَغَضِبَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِمْ وَلَعَنَهُمْ وَأَعَدَّ لَهُمْ جَهَنَّمَ وَسَاءَتْ مَصِيرًا
إِنَّ الَّذِينَ يُبَايِعُونَكَ إِنَّمَا يُبَايِعُونَ اللَّهَ يَدُ اللَّهِ فَوْقَ أَيْدِيهِمْ فَمَنْ نَكَثَ فَإِنَّمَا يَنْكُثُ عَلَى نَفْسِهِ وَمَنْ أَوْفَى بِمَا عَاهَدَ عَلَيْهُ اللَّهَ فَسَيُؤْتِيهِ أَجْرًا عَظِيمًا سَيَقُولُ لَكَ الْمُخَلَّفُونَ مِنْ الأَعْرَابِ شَغَلَتْنَا أَمْوَالُنَا وَأَهْلُونَا فَاسْتَغْفِرْ لَنَا يَقُولُونَ بِأَلْسِنَتِهِمْ مَا لَيْسَ فِي قُلُوبِهِمْ قُلْ فَمَنْ يَمْلِكُ لَكُمْ مِنْ اللَّهِ شَيْئًا إِنْ أَرَادَ بِكُمْ ضَرًّا أَوْ أَرَادَ بِكُمْ نَفْعًا بَلْ كَانَ اللَّهُ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ خَبِيرًا بَلْ ظَنَنْتُمْ أَنْ لَنْ يَنْقَلِبَ الرَّسُولُ وَالْمُؤْمِنُونَ إِلَى أَهْلِيهِمْ أَبَدًا وَزُيِّنَ ذَلِكَ فِي قُلُوبِكُمْ وَظَنَنْتُمْ ظَنَّ السَّوْءِ وَكُنْتُمْ قَوْمًا بُورًا
سَيَقُولُ الْمُخَلَّفُونَ إِذَا انطَلَقْتُمْ إِلَى مَغَانِمَ لِتَأْخُذُوهَا ذَرُونَا نَتَّبِعْكُمْ يُرِيدُونَ أَنْ يُبَدِّلُوا كَلاَمَ اللَّهِ قُلْ لَنْ تَتَّبِعُونَا كَذَلِكُمْ قَالَ اللَّهُ مِنْ قَبْلُ فَسَيَقُولُونَ بَلْ تَحْسُدُونَنَا بَلْ كَانُوا لاَ يَفْقَهُونَ إِلاَّ قَلِيلاً قُلْ لِلْمُخَلَّفِينَ مِنْ الأَعْرَابِ سَتُدْعَوْنَ إِلَى قَوْمٍ أُوْلِي بَأْسٍ شَدِيدٍ تُقَاتِلُونَهُمْ أَوْ يُسْلِمُونَ فَإِنْ تُطِيعُوا يُؤْتِكُمْ اللَّهُ أَجْرًا حَسَنًا وَإِنْ تَتَوَلَّوْا كَمَا تَوَلَّيْتُمْ مِنْ قَبْلُ يُعَذِّبْكُمْ عَذَابًا أَلِيمًا لَيْسَ عَلَى الأَعْمَى حَرَجٌ وَلاَ عَلَى الأَعْرَجِ حَرَجٌ وَلاَ عَلَى الْمَرِيضِ حَرَجٌ وَمَنْ يُطِعْ اللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ يُدْخِلْهُ جَنَّاتٍ تَجْرِي مِنْ تَحْتِهَا الأَنْهَارُ وَمَنْ يَتَوَلَّ يُعَذِّبْهُ عَذَابًا أَلِيمًا لَقَدْ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ إِذْ يُبَايِعُونَكَ تَحْتَ الشَّجَرَةِ فَعَلِمَ مَا فِي قُلُوبِهِمْ فَأَنْزَلَ السَّكِينَةَ عَلَيْهِمْ وَأَثَابَهُمْ فَتْحًا قَرِيبًا
وَعَدَكُمُ اللَّهُ مَغَانِمَ كَثِيرَةً تَأْخُذُونَهَا فَعَجَّلَ لَكُمْ هَذِهِ وَكَفَّ أَيْدِيَ النَّاسِ عَنْكُمْ وَلِتَكُونَ آيَةً لِلْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَيَهْدِيَكُمْ صِرَاطًا مُسْتَقِيمًا
هُمْ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا وَصَدُّوكُمْ عَنْ الْمَسْجِدِ الْحَرَامِ وَالْهَدْيَ مَعْكُوفًا أَنْ يَبْلُغَ مَحِلَّهُ وَلَوْلاَ رِجَالٌ مُؤْمِنُونَ وَنِسَاءٌ مُؤْمِنَاتٌ لَمْ تَعْلَمُوهُمْ أَنْ تَطَئُوهُمْ فَتُصِيبَكُمْ مِنْهُمْ مَعَرَّةٌ بِغَيْرِ عِلْمٍ لِيُدْخِلَ اللَّهُ فِي رَحْمَتِهِ مَنْ يَشَاءُ لَوْ تَزَيَّلُوا لَعَذَّبْنَا الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا مِنْهُمْ عَذَابًا أَلِيمًا إِذْ جَعَلَ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا فِي قُلُوبِهِمُ الْحَمِيَّةَ حَمِيَّةَ الْجَاهِلِيَّةِ فَأَنْزَلَ اللَّهُ سَكِينَتَهُ عَلَى رَسُولِهِ وَعَلَى الْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَأَلْزَمَهُمْ كَلِمَةَ التَّقْوَى وَكَانُوا أَحَقَّ بِهَا وَأَهْلَهَا وَكَانَ اللَّهُ بِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ عَلِيمًا لَقَدْ صَدَقَ اللَّهُ رَسُولَهُ الرُّؤْيَا بِالْحَقِّ لَتَدْخُلُنَّ الْمَسْجِدَ الْحَرَامَ إِنْ شَاءَ اللَّهُ آمِنِينَ مُحَلِّقِينَ رُءُوسَكُمْ وَمُقَصِّرِينَ لاَ تَخَافُونَ فَعَلِمَ مَا لَمْ تَعْلَمُوا فَجَعَلَ مِنْ دُونِ ذَلِكَ فَتْحًا قَرِيبًا
مُحَمَّدٌ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ وَالَّذِينَ مَعَهُ أَشِدَّاءُ عَلَى الْكُفَّارِ رُحَمَاءُ بَيْنَهُمْ تَرَاهُمْ رُكَّعًا سُجَّدًا يَبْتَغُونَ فَضْلاً مِنْ اللَّهِ وَرِضْوَانًا سِيمَاهُمْ فِي وُجُوهِهِمْ مِنْ أَثَرِ السُّجُودِ ذَلِكَ مَثَلُهُمْ فِي التَّوْرَاةِ وَمَثَلُهُمْ فِي الإِنجِيلِ كَزَرْعٍ أَخْرَجَ شَطْأَهُ فَآزَرَهُ فَاسْتَغْلَظَ فَاسْتَوَى عَلَى سُوقِهِ يُعْجِبُ الزُّرَّاعَ لِيَغِيظَ بِهِمْ الْكُفَّارَ وَعَدَ اللَّهُ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ مِنْهُمْ مَغْفِرَةً وَأَجْرًا عَظِيمًا
2763. The reference in the words 'a clear victory' seems to be to the Treaty of Hudaibiyah. It is remarkable that though, during the early brief six years of his life at Medina, the Holy Prophet had gained great victories over his enemies which had crippled and crushed their fighting power; yet none of them is called 'a clear victory' in the Qur'an . It was reserved for the Treaty of Hudaibiyah to receive this signal honor, despite the fact that its terms were seemingly very humiliating, and the Muslims were greatly perturbed over this apparently rude rebuff to the prestige of Islam, so much so that even a stalwart like 'Umar exclaimed in extreme grief and indignation that if the terms had been settled by any other person than the Holy Prophet, he would have scorned to listen to them (Hisham). The Treaty was, indeed, a great victory in that it opened the way to the expansion and spread of Islam and led to the Fall of Mecca and ultimately to the conquest of the whole of Arabia. It proved to be a masterstroke of strategy on the Holy Prophet's part as his 'political status as an equal and independent Power was acknowledged by the Quraish' ("Mohammad at Medina" by Montgomery Watt). The Holy Prophet had seen a vision that he was making a circuit of the Ka'bah along with a party of his followers. In order to fulfill his vision he started for Mecca with about 1500 Muslims to perform the Lesser Pilgrimage ('Umrah) in the Sacred Months in which; according to Arab tradition and usage, fighting was forbidden, and this was so even before Islam. When he reached 'Usfan, a place, a few miles away from Mecca, he was informed by an advance party whom he had sent under the command of 'Abbad bin Bishr that the Quraish were bent upon barring his entry into the town. In order to avoid armed clash the Holy Prophet changed his route and, 'after a fatiguing march through devious and rugged pathways, reached Hudaibiyah' where he encamped. The Holy Prophet had declared that he would accept all the demands of the Quraish for the honor of the Holy Place (Hisham), but the Quraish were firmly resolved not to allow him to enter Mecca, whatever he might say. Messages were exchanged in an attempt to find a solution of the impasse. After heated and protracted parleys in which the Holy Prophet left no stone unturned, even at the cost of his prestige, to arrive at a reasonable compromise with the Quraish, a treaty was signed of which the terms were: 'War shall be suspended for ten years. Whosoever would like to join the Holy Prophet or enter into treaty with him, shall have liberty to do so, and likewise whosoever would like to join the Quraish or enter into treaty with them shall have liberty to do so. If a believing man goes over to the Prophet from Mecca without the permission of his guardian, he shall be sent back to his guardian; but should any of the followers of the Prophet return to the Quraish, he shall not be sent back. The Prophet shall go back this year without entering the city. Next year he and his Companions may visit Mecca only for three days to perform 'Umrah (Lesser Pilgrimage), but they shall carry no arms save sheathed swords' (Bukhari). The terms were seemingly very humiliating. The Muslims were greatly upset. No words could adequately describe their anguish and sense of humiliation and injured pride. The third term was particularly galling. But the Holy Prophet was quite calm and tranquil. Being convinced of the moral force of Islam, he knew that 'a believer who had once tasted the sweetness of faith would prefer to be cast into fire rather than to revert to disbelief' (Bukhari); and that he would prove to be a source of strength to his religion wherever he might happen to be. The Treaty subsequently proved to be 'a clear Victory.' The Companions of the Holy Prophet were rightly proud of being present on the occasion, and quite justified in regarding the Treaty and not the conquest of Mecca as 'the victory referred to in the present verse' (Bukhari). According to them no victory was greater and more far-reaching in its results and effects than this Treaty (Hisham). And the Holy Prophet himself called it a great victory (Baihaqui). The Qur'an calls it a clear victory (v. 2), the supreme achievement (v.6); a great reward (v.11) and the completion and perfection of God's favor upon the Holy Prophet (v.3), because it opened the floodgates of the spiritual and political conquests of Islam. 2764. The verse has been deliberately misrepresented, or, through lack of knowledge of Arabic idiom and phrase, misinterpreted by some Christian writers as signifying that the Holy Prophet was guilty of moral lapses. It is an article of faith with Muslims, as enjoined by the Qur'an, that God's Prophets are born sinless and they remain sinless throughout their lives. They do not say or do anything contrary to Divine commandments (21:28). As they are commissioned by God to purge men of sins, so they cannot possibly commit sins themselves. And of Divine Messengers the Holy Prophet was the noblest and the purest. The Qur'an abounds in verses which speak in glowing terms of the purity and spotlessness of his life (2:130; 3:32; 3:165; 6:163; 7:158; 8:25; 33:22; 48:11; 53:3, 4; 68:5 & 81:20-22). For the expression li- Yaghfira, see 2612. 2765. A man of such high moral stature as the Holy Prophet, who raised a whole people, sunk into the lowest depths of moral turpitude, to the highest pinnacle of spiritual eminence, could not possibly be guilty of such moral lapses as his detractors have vainly sought to impute to him. A quite simple and harmless word, Dhanb, has been taken advantage of to malign him. The word signifies such frailties as adhere to human nature, and to errors as are calculated to bring about harmful results. The verse signifies that God would protect the Holy Prophet from the harmful results that would follow in the wake of the promised victory referred to in the preceding verse, inasmuch as large masses of people would enter the fold of Islam, and naturally their moral and spiritual training and upbringing would not be of the desired standard. That is why wherever in the Qur'an success and victories are promised to the Holy Prophet, he is enjoined to seek protection of God from his Dhanb, i.e., human weaknesses which might stand in the way of the realization of his great mission. The fact that of the four words, Junah, Jurm, lthm and Dhanb, which possess almost similar connotations, none of the first three words has been used in the Our'an with regard to God's Prophets, shows that Dhanb does not possess the sinister significance which the other three words possess. Besides, according to the Quranic idiom, the expression Dhanbaka, if at all Dhanb be taken to signify a sin or crime, would mean 'the sins alleged to have been committed by thee; or the sins committed against thee.' According to the last meaning of Dhanb the Arabic word laka in the verse would mean 'for thy sake.' Elsewhere in the Qur'an (5:30) a similar expression Ithmi (my sin) signifies 'the sin committed against me.' Thus the verse under comment would mean that as a result of the great victory-the Treaty of Hudaibiyah, all the sins and crimes and faults which his enemies imputed to the Holy Prophet, viz., that he was a cheat, an impostor or a forger of lies against God and man, etc., would prove to be false, inasmuch as all sorts of people by coming into contact with his followers would find out the truth about him. Or the meaning is that 'the sins committed against thee by thine enemies will be pardoned for thy sake.' And so it happened. When Mecca fell and the Arabs accepted Islam, their sins were forgiven. The context also supports this meaning because grant of a clear victory and the completion of Divine favor upon the Holy Prophet, referred to in this and the preceding verse do not seem to possess any relevance to the forgiveness of sins, if Dhanb be taken to mean a sin. 2766. The words 'past and present' signify that the charges, that were leveled against the Holy Prophet in the past by the Quraish, and those that will be leveled against him in future by his enemies, will all be dispelled and he will stand completely vindicated. 2767. Allah's help came in the form of the rapid spread of Islam in Arabia after the signing of the Treaty of Hudaibiyah, and the Holy Prophet was acknowledged as the Head of an independent sovereign State. 2768. The expression shows that though, due to a misunderstanding about the terms of the Treaty of Hudaibiyah the believers were temporarily perturbed, they never lost peace of mind so far as fighting in the cause of Allah was concerned, and were fully convinced that Divine hosts were with them. That is why when a false news reached Hudaibiyah that 'Uthman, the Prophet's envoy to the Meccans, had been killed, and the Holy Prophet invited Muslims to take a solemn oath at his hand that they would avenge the death of 'Uthman and would fight under his banner to the bitter end, all of them took the oath without evincing the least hesitation. 2769. The reference is to the oath taken by the believers at the hand of the Holy Prophet under a tree at Hudaibiyah (Bukhari). 2770. Bedouin tribes around Medina, who apparently had friendly relations with the Muslims, were also invited to join the party of 1500 Muslims who went to Mecca to perform the Lesser Pilgrimage. Though the Holy Prophet went on a mission of peace, they thought that the Quraish would not allow his entry into Mecca and that in all likelihood there would be a clash of arms and Muslims not being properly armed would be defeated, and, therefore, going with the Holy Prophet was tantamount to marching on into the jaws of death (Muir & Kathir). The verse may equally apply to those tribes who had remained behind in the expedition to Tabuk because analogous words have been used in Surah Al-Taubah about them. 2771. Wish being father to the thought, the Hypocrites, whenever invited by the Holy Prophet to join him in an expedition, entertained the fond hope that Muslims being very weak would never return safe to their families. Therefore, on one pretext or another, they asked to be excused. But their wishful thinking always ended in frustration and severe disappointment, and the Muslims returned successful from almost every expedition. 2772. The reference is to the booty which fell into the hands of Muslims in the Khaibar expedition. The Surah was revealed when the Holy Prophet was on his way back from Hudaibiyah. In v. 20; the Muslims were promised great spoils. It is to these spoils that the present verse refers. Shortly after his return from Hudaibiyah, the Holy Prophet marched against the Jews of Khaibar to punish them for their repeated acts of treachery. Those Bedouin tribes, who had contrived to remain behind when the Holy Prophet went to Mecca for the Lesser Pilgrimage, finding that his cause had prospered and that they would have a good share of the booty if they joined the expedition to Khaibar, requested him to allow them to accompany the Muslim army. They were told that they could not do so as the promise of booty 2773. The words, 'a people of mighty valor,' may refer to the mighty forces of the Byzantine and Iranian Empires which were far superior in material means and numbers than any other enemy, the Muslims had met so far. The verse constituted a warning that the Muslims would come into conflict with those mighty foes and would have to wage prolonged wars with them till the latter would be completely defeated and brought to their knees. The laggards are here told that though they cannot be allowed to march against the Jews of Khaibar and partake of the booty, yet in the near future they would be called upon to fight against a much more powerful enemy and that, if they then responded to the call, they would receive a good reward. The verse also signifies that wars with the Byzantine and Iranian Empires would be fierce and long. 2774. The swearing of allegiance took place at Hudaibiyah under an acacia tree after a report had reached the Holy Prophet that in breach of ambassadorial usage and etiquette his envoy, 'Uthman, had been assassinated by the Meccans. It was, perhaps, not so much the reported murder of 'Uthman as the violation of a sacred and time-honored usage that exhausted the Holy Prophet's patience. The oath came to be known as Bai'at al-Ridwan; which signified that those lucky people who had taken the oath had obtained God's pleasure. 2775. What greater proof could there be that God had sent down tranquility on Muslims than that, being only about 1500 in number and being far away from home and being friendless and surrounded by hostile tribes and faced by a powerful enemy who was entrenched in his citadel, they were prepared to fight rather than agree to the proposed terms of the Treaty. 2776. The words 'victory at hand' refer to the victory at Khaibar. On his return from Hudaibiyah the Holy Prophet led an expedition against the Jews of Khaibar (a great hotbed of Jewish intrigue and conspiracy) with those Muslims who were with him at Hudaibiyah. 2777. 'Great spoils' may refer to the great gains which the Muslims got as a result of the 'near victory' promised in the preceding verse. 2778. 'Great spoils' mentioned in this verse may refer to the great booty which fell into the hands of Muslims in the conquests, which followed the victory at Khaibar in the rest of Arabia and the neighboring countries; but the words, 'He has given you this in advance,' evidently refer to the spoils gained at Khaibar. The words, 'has restrained the hands of men from you,' mean that the Treaty of Hudaibiyah had ushered in a period of peace for Muslims. 2779. The verse embodies a prophecy that Muslims will achieve other great victories after the victory at Khaibar. 2780. In view of the circumstances in which the Muslims were then placed and of the far reaching results it produced, the Treaty of Hudaibiyah was, indeed, a great victory. The words may also refer to the victories that God had granted to Muslims before they came to Hudaibiyah -the victory at Badr, the safe return from Uhud to Medina of Muslims and the Holy Prophet, after they had been placed in a very dangerous and delicate situation, and the complete frustration of the Meccans in their evil designs to destroy Islam in the Battle of the Trench when they were repulsed with severe loss, etc. In a sense these were all victories of believers over disbelievers. 2781. There was a nucleus of Muslims in Mecca and if the fight had taken place, Muslim army would have unknowingly killed their own brethren in Faith, thereby causing great injury to their own cause, and earning obloquy and opprobrium in addition. 2782. Against their own tradition and usage that access to and circuit of the Ka'bah was not to be prevented in the four Sacred Months, the pagans of Mecca, from a false sense of dignity and national pride, had made it a point of honor with them not to allow Muslims to enter Mecca and perform the 'Umrah (Lesser Pilgrimage). But 'Allah sent His tranquility' upon the Muslims and though they were greatly upset over the seemingly humiliating terms of the Treaty, yet in deference to the wish and command of their beloved Master they bore all this with becoming restraint and patience and did not abandon the path of rectitude and righteousness under the most severe provocation. The Companions of the Holy Prophet alone were capable of setting such a noble example. 2783. The verse refers to the Vision which the Holy Prophet had seen that he was performing the circuit of the Ka'bah with his Companions (Bukhari). He set out for Mecca with about 1500 of his Companions to perform the Lesser Pilgrimage. He was not allowed access to the Ka'bah by the Quraish though the Surah was clear and emphatic that the Prophet's Vision was true and that the Muslims would most certainly enter the Ka'bah and perform the ceremonies of the Lesser Pilgrimage. The Holy Prophet's journey, besides serving other useful purposes to which reference is already made, established an important precedent that sometimes even great Prophets of God are liable to place seemingly erroneous interpretations on their visions. 2784. The verse makes a very bold prophecy that Islam would eventually triumph over all other religions. 2785. These are the two essential characteristics of a progressive and prosperous people who seek to leave their mark on the course of world events. Elsewhere in the Qur'an (5:55); the true and good Muslims have been described as kind and humble towards believers and hard and firm against disbelievers. 2786. The words, 'This is their description in the Torah,' may refer to the biblical description, viz., 'he shined forth from mount Paran and he came with ten thousands of saints' (Deut. 33:2). And the expression, And their description in the Gospel is like unto a seed produce may refer to another biblical parable. viz.. 'Behold. a sower went forth to sow: and , , , , when he sowed seeds; some fell into good ground and brought forth fruit, some hundredfold, some sixtyfold, some thirtyfold' (Matt. 13:3-8). The former description seems to apply to the Companions of the Holy Prophet and the latter parable to the followers of Jesus's counterpart, the Promised Messiah, who, from a very small and insignificant beginning, are destined to develop into a mighty organization and gradually but progressively to carry the Message of Islam to the ends of the earth till it will prevail and triumph over all religions, and its opponents will wonder at, and be jealous of; its power and prestige.
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