(Revealed after Hijrah)

Date of Revelation and Context
With this Chapter ends the series of Medinite Surahs which began with Surah AI Hadid. A part of it may be assigned to the 7th or 8th year of Hijrah and a part of it to a later period, as the incident mentioned therein shows. The preceding Surah had dealt with some aspects of Talaq -permanent separation between husband and wife. The present Surah , however, deals with the subject of temporary separation, that is to say, with cases wherein a man, due to some disagreement or conflict in domestic affairs, temporarily gives up conjugal relations with his wife, or swears not to use a lawful thing.

The Surah opens with an injunction addressed personally to the Holy Prophet not to forbid himself the use of things which God has made lawful for him. The specific incident referred to in the opening verse indicates that due to misunderstanding or disagreement that may disturb, though temporarily, domestic harmony and peace, friction might sometimes arise in the otherwise most peaceful atmosphere of even a Prophet's household. The injunction, which applies to the Holy Prophet as much as to his followers, signifies that in such a case of temporary disharmony extreme measures should not be resorted to.

The Holy Prophet's wives are further warned that they should never lose sight of his very exalted position as God's Messenger and should not make demands from him which are inconsistent with it. The Surah then tells believers to take care that members of their household do not deviate from the path of rectitude lest they might land themselves into trouble.

As the Surah opens with mentioning an incident concerning relationship of the Holy Prophet with his wives, it ends fittingly with a simile, comparing disbelievers to the wives of the Prophets Noah and Lot; and believers to the wife of Pharaoh, and the highly and righteous ones among them, to Mary, mother of Jesus.

بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيم
[66:1] In the name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful.

يَاأَيُّهَا النَّبِيُّ لِمَ تُحَرِّمُ مَا أَحَلَّ اللَّهُ لَكَ تَبْتَغِي مَرْضَاةَ أَزْوَاجِكَ وَاللَّهُ غَفُورٌ رَحِيمٌ
[66:2] O Prophet! why dost thou forbid thyself that which Allah has made lawful to thee, seeking the pleasure of thy wives?[3071] And Allah is Most Forgiving, Merciful.

قَدْ فَرَضَ اللَّهُ لَكُمْ تَحِلَّةَ أَيْمَانِكُمْ وَاللَّهُ مَوْلاَكُمْ وَهُوَ الْعَلِيمُ الْحَكِيمُ
[66:3] Allah has indeed allowed to you the dissolution of your oaths[3072], and Allah is your Friend; and He is All-Knowing, Wise.

وَإِذْ أَسَرَّ النَّبِيُّ إِلَى بَعْضِ أَزْوَاجِهِ حَدِيثًا فَلَمَّا نَبَّأَتْ بِهِ وَأَظْهَرَهُ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ عَرَّفَ بَعْضَهُ وَأَعْرَضَ عَنْ بَعْضٍ فَلَمَّا نَبَّأَهَا بِهِ قَالَتْ مَنْ أَنْبَأَكَ هَذَا قَالَ نَبَّأَنِي الْعَلِيمُ الْخَبِيرُ

[66:4] And when the Prophet confided a matter unto one of his wives and she then divulged it, and Allah informed[3073] him of it, he made known to her part thereof, and avoided mentioning part of it. And when he informed her of it, she said, ‘Who has informed thee of it?’ He said, ‘The All-Knowing, the All-Aware God has informed me.’

إِنْ تَتُوبَا إِلَى اللَّهِ فَقَدْ صَغَتْ قُلُوبُكُمَا وَإِنْ تَظَاهَرَا عَلَيْهِ فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ هُوَ مَوْلاَهُ وَجِبْرِيلُ وَصَالِحُ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَالْمَلاَئِكَةُ بَعْدَ ذَلِكَ ظَهِيرٌ

[66:5] Now if you two[3074] turn unto Allah repentant, it will be better for you, and your hearts are already so inclined. But if you back up each other against him, surely Allah is his Helper and Gabriel and the righteous among the believers; and furthermore, all other angels too are his helpers.

عَسَى رَبُّهُ إِنْ طَلَّقَكُنَّ أَنْ يُبْدِلَهُ أَزْوَاجًا خَيْرًا مِنْكُنَّ مُسْلِمَاتٍ مُؤْمِنَاتٍ قَانِتَاتٍ تَائِبَاتٍ عَابِدَاتٍ سَائِحَاتٍ ثَيِّبَاتٍ وَأَبْكَارًا

[66:6] It may be that, if he divorce you, his Lord will give him instead wives better than you — resigned, believing, obedient, always turning to God, devout in worship, given to fasting, both widows and virgins.

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا قُوا أَنفُسَكُمْ وَأَهْلِيكُمْ نَارًا وَقُودُهَا النَّاسُ وَالْحِجَارَةُ عَلَيْهَا مَلاَئِكَةٌ غِلاَظٌ شِدَادٌ لاَ يَعْصُونَ اللَّهَ مَا أَمَرَهُمْ وَيَفْعَلُونَ مَا يُؤْمَرُونَ

[66:7] O ye who believe! save yourselves and your families from a Fire whose fuel is men and stones, over which are appointed angels, stern and severe, who disobey not Allah in what He commands them and do as they are commanded.

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا لاَ تَعْتَذِرُوا الْيَوْمَ إِنَّمَا تُجْزَوْنَ مَا كُنتُمْ تَعْمَلُونَ
[66:8] O ye who disbelieve! make no excuses this day. You are requited for what you did.

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا تُوبُوا إِلَى اللَّهِ تَوْبَةً نَصُوحًا عَسَى رَبُّكُمْ أَنْ يُكَفِّرَ عَنْكُمْ سَيِّئَاتِكُمْ وَيُدْخِلَكُمْ جَنَّاتٍ تَجْرِي مِنْ تَحْتِهَا الأَنْهَارُ يَوْمَ لاَ يُخْزِي اللَّهُ النَّبِيَّ وَالَّذِينَ آمَنُوا مَعَهُ نُورُهُمْ يَسْعَى بَيْنَ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَبِأَيْمَانِهِمْ يَقُولُونَ رَبَّنَا أَتْمِمْ لَنَا نُورَنَا وَاغْفِرْ لَنَا إِنَّكَ عَلَى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ

[66:9] O ye who believe! turn to Allah in sincere repentance. It may be that your Lord will remove the evil consequences of your deeds and make you enter Gardens through which rivers flow, on the day when Allah will not abase the Prophet nor those who have believed with him. Their light will run before them and on their right hands. They will say, ‘Our Lord, perfect our light for us[3075] and forgive us[3076]; surely Thou hast power over all things.’

يَاأَيُّهَا النَّبِيُّ جَاهِدِ الْكُفَّارَ وَالْمُنَافِقِينَ وَاغْلُظْ عَلَيْهِمْ وَمَأْوَاهُمْ جَهَنَّمُ وَبِئْسَ الْمَصِيرُ
[66:10] O Prophet! strive hard[3077] against the disbelievers and the hypocrites; and be strict against them. Their home is Hell, and an evil destination it is!

ضَرَبَ اللَّهُ مَثَلاً لِلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا اِمْرَأَةَ نُوحٍ وَاِمْرَأَةَ لُوطٍ كَانَتَا تَحْتَ عَبْدَيْنِ مِنْ عِبَادِنَا صَالِحَيْنِ فَخَانَتَاهُمَا فَلَمْ يُغْنِيَا عَنْهُمَا مِنْ اللَّهِ شَيْئًا وَقِيلَ ادْخُلاَ النَّارَ مَعَ الدَّاخِلِينَ

[66:11] Allah sets forth for those who disbelieve the example of the wife of Noah and the wife of Lot. They were under two righteous servants of Ours, but they acted unfaithfully[3078] towards them. So they availed them naught against Allah, and it was said to them, ‘Enter the Fire, ye twain, along with those who enter.’

وَضَرَبَ اللَّهُ مَثَلاً لِلَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اِمْرَأَةَ فِرْعَوْنَ إِذْ قَالَتْ رَبِّ ابْنِ لِي عِنْدَكَ بَيْتًا فِي الْجَنَّةِ وَنَجِّنِي مِنْ فِرْعَوْنَ وَعَمَلِهِ وَنَجِّنِي مِنْ الْقَوْمِ الظَّالِمِينَ

[66:12] And Allah sets forth for those who believe the example of the wife of Pharaoh when she said, ‘My Lord! build for me a house with Thee in the Garden; and deliver me from Pharaoh and his work, and deliver me from the wrongdoing people;’

وَمَرْيَمَ ابْنَتَ عِمْرَانَ الَّتِي أَحْصَنَتْ فَرْجَهَا فَنَفَخْنَا فِيهِ مِنْ رُوحِنَا وَصَدَّقَتْ بِكَلِمَاتِ رَبِّهَا وَكُتُبِهِ وَكَانَتْ مِنْ الْقَانِتِينَ

[66:13] And the example of Mary, the daughter of ‘Imran, who guarded her private parts — so We breathed into him of Our Spirit — and she fulfilled in her person the words of her Lord and His Books and was one of the obedient.

3071. It is related that one day one of the wives of the Holy Prophet gave him a drink made from honey, which he appeared to like. Some of his other wives, out of pique, pointed out to him that his breath smelt of Maghafir, a shrub the taste of which resembles that of honey but which gives out a bad smell. The Holy Prophet, because of his delicate nature, promised not to take honey any more (Buldan). It is to this incident that the verse under comment is generally taken to refer. But it seems improbable that the Holy Prophet, merely to satisfy the pique of his wife or wives, should have taken such a drastic step as to have permanently forbidden himself the use of something which was lawful, particularly of a thing in which, according to the Qur'an; 'there is cure for men' (16:70). It appears that the narrator or narrators of this incident had suffered from some misunderstanding or mental confusion, particularly when, according to one tradition, the Holy Prophet took honey from the house of Zainab, and 'A'ishah and Hafsah contrived to draw him into making the aforesaid promise, while, according to another tradition, it was at the house of Hafsah herself that he was served with honey and that the wives who objected were 'A'ishah, Zainab and Safiyyah. Moreover, according to the Hadith, two, or at the most three; of the Holy Prophet's wives were concerned in the affair, but according to vv. 2 and 6 of the Surah; all of them were connected with it, two of them taking a leading part (v. 5). These facts show that the Surah refers to some incident of much greater significance than the mere taking of honey by the Holy Prophet at the house of one of his wives. In the commentary on this Surah ; Bukhari (Kitab al-Mazalim wa'l Ghasb) quotes Ibn 'Abbas as relating that he was always on the lookout to enquire of 'Umar as to who were the two wives to whom reference is made in the verse: Now, if you two turn unto Allah, it will be better for you, and your hearts are already so inclined. One day, finding 'Umar alone, he sought to satisfy his curiosity. He had hardly finished his question, says Ibn 'Abbas, when 'Umar said that they were 'A'ishah and Hafsah, and then proceeded to relate the story thus: "One day, when my wife offered me her advice concerning some domestic affair; I curtly told her that it was no business of hers to advise me, for in those days we did not hold our women-folk in much respect. My wife sternly replied: 'Your daughter Hafsah takes so much liberty with the Prophet that she retorts back when he says something which she does not like till he feels offended, and you do not allow me to speak to you even about our domestic affairs.' Upon this I went to Hafsah and warned her that she should not be misled by 'A'ishah in this matter as she was nearer to the Prophet's heart. Then I went to Ummi Salmah and had hardly broached the matter with her when she also curtly told me not to interfere in affairs concerning the Prophet and his wives. A short time after this the Holy Prophet separated himself from his wives and decided not to go to the house of any of them for sometime. The news went round that the Holy Prophet had divorced his wives. I went to him and asked him if it was true that he had divorced his wives to which he replied in the negative."

This incident shows that 'Umar, and Ibn 'Abbas were of the view that the relevant verses of the Surah referred to this temporary separation of the Holy Prophet from his wives. The fact that the preceding Surah mentions the subject of Talaq which is separation of a permanent character, lends weight to the inference that these verses relate to the Prophet's separation from his wives which, however, was of a temporary nature. Besides, as reported by 'A'ishah in the above-mentioned tradition, immediately after the period of separation was over, v. 33:29 was revealed and the Prophet's wives were given the choice between the Prophet's companionship with a life of poverty and austere simplicity on the one hand, and separation from him with a life of ease and comfort and all sorts of material benefits on the other. The
choice was given to all the wives and the verse under comment speaks of all the wives, as also v. 4. This shows that the incident referred to in these verses concerns all the wives in which two of them took a prominent part. And it is on record that the incident occurred when the Prophet's wives, led by 'A'ishah and Hafsah, demanded of him that since the financial condition of the Muslims had greatly improved they, like other Muslim ladies, may be allowed to enjoy amenities of life and comfortable living (Fath al-Qadir). In this context the words 'thou seekest the pleasure of thy wives' would seem to signify something like this: 'Since thou always desirest to please thy wives and meet their wishes, they have become so emboldened by this loving attitude of thine as to lose sight of thy high position as a great Prophet of God and to make excessive demands from thee.' The alleged incident of Mary, the copt, being too foolish and fantastic, a concoction of Christian writers and lacking all reliable historical evidence, does not merit serious notice. Incidentally, Mary was the Holy Prophet's wedded consort and the respected Mother of the Faithful. The Holy Prophet never kept a slave girl.

3072.  The Holy Prophet had severely taken to heart his wives' demand for amenities of life, and in order to show his extreme displeasure had sworn to keep away from them for one month. The present verse describes that a lawful thing does not become unlawful for a person merely by his swearing not to use it. In such a contingency he is required only to expiate his broken oath.

3073. It is difficult to say to what particular incident the present verse; in fact, refers. The reference which seems to be supported by the context may be to the incident described by 'A'ishah herself, which is to this effect: When verse 33:29 was revealed, giving the Holy Prophet's wives the choice between his companionship and separation from him in reply to their demand for a life of comfort and ease, the Prophet first of all broached the matter with 'A'ishah (Bukhari, Kitab al-Mazfilim wa'l-Ghasb). The Holy Prophet appears to have taken that course because it was 'A'ishah who had led the demand along with Hafsah, and it is not unlikely that 'A'ishah should have passed on the Holy Prophet's secret communication to Hafsah. Whatever the actual facts of the case may be, the verse emphasizes the obligation of a person to whom a secret is confided not to divulge it; particularly when the parties concerned are husband and wife and the secret relates to a private domestic affair; or for that matter,
when the parties are a Prophet of God and one of his followers.

3074.  The words, "you two," seem to refer to 'A'ishah and Hafsah who had led the demand for worldly comforts in their domestic lives. All the other wives of the Holy Prophet had; however, joined in the demand, though the leading part was taken by these two, and this, perhaps because they were the daughters respectively of Abu Bakr and 'Umar, the two most respected among the Holy Prophet's Companions. The phraseology of the verse indicates that the matter referred to in these verses was of a very serious nature, but taking honey from the house of one's wife evidently is not so serious an affair as to have led to separation of the Holy Prophet from all his wives for about a month. Nor was the admonition to the Prophet's wives implied in the words, 'Allah is his helper and Gabriel and righteous among the believers' called for in such a case.

3075.  The never-ceasing desire for perfection on the part of believers in Paradise as expressed in the words, 'Our Lord perfect our light for us,' shows that life in Paradise will not be one of inaction. On the contrary, spiritual advance in Paradise will know no end, for as the believers will attain excellence, characteristic of a certain stage, they will not stop at that, but seeing in front of it a higher stage of excellence and finding that the stage at which they had arrived was not the highest stage will proceed further, and so on without end.

3076.  It further appears that after entering Paradise, the believers will seek Maghfirah, i.e., suppression of defects (Lane). They will be continually praying to God for the attainment ofperfection and complete immersion in Divine Light and will be continually going upwardsregarding each state as defective in comparison with a higher one, to which they will aspire,and will therefore pray to God to suppress the defective state that they may be able to get tothe higher one. This is the true significance of Istighfar of which the literal meaning is, 'askingforgiveness for one's lapses.'

3077.  No advance is possible unless the disbelievers and the Hypocrites are strenuously striven against. Incidentally, the verse explains the real significance of Jihad which means, 'striving hard.' Since the Hypocrites were regarded as part of the Muslim Community, Jihad in the sense of fighting with the sword was never waged against them.

3078. The disbelievers are compared to the wives of Noah and Lot in order to show that the companionship of a righteous man; even a Prophet of God; does not benefit an evilly-inclined person who is bent upon rejecting truth. The wife of Pharaoh represents those believers, who though passionately desiring and praying to get rid of sin, cannot fully dissociate themselves from evil influences which are represented by Pharaoh, and having arrived at the stage of the "self-accusing soul" sometimes fail and falter. Mary, the mother of Jesus, represents those righteous servants of God who, having closed all avenues of sin and having made peace with God, are blessed with Divine inspiration; the pronoun hi in fihi standing for such fortunate believers. Or, the pronoun may stand for Farj which, literally meaning a cleft or fissure, signifies an opening through which sin can find access.