| Chapter 24 : Surah An-Nur |
(Revealed after Hijrah) Date of Revelation and Context The preceding Surah had stated that one of the essential characteristics of believers who were decreed to meet with Divine succour was that they guarded their chastity. This Surah is an extension and amplification of the subject-matter of the preceding one. The achievement and maintenance of success, it says, demands that the intellect, ideals and morals of a people should be chaste and that there should exist perfect harmony and appreciative understanding between the relations of the individual and those of the community, and that great emphasis ought to be laid on national discipline and organization, and precedence should be accorded to national requirements over the needs of the individual. Subject-Matter Next, believers are strongly enjoined to guard and preserve national morals and it is considered very essential for Muslims to develop watchfulness and extreme awareness about their protection and preservation. If vigilance is allowed to relax, deterioration in national morals is sure to ensue. But whereas it is true that sexual immorality, if permitted to spread unchecked, brings about the degradation and disintegration of a whole community, individuals suspected of stray acts of immorality should not be hunted down and crushed. As in every community there are to be found some persons of lax morals, such individuals may be treated with a certain indulgence. But at the same time a warning is held out to those who seek, by their continued pernicious activities, to create discord among Muslims and to indulge in abusive language and calumny that they will be punished in this world and in the next. God will expose their iniquities and sins and will bring upon them disgrace and humiliation. The Surah then proceeds to observe that it is his careless acts that subject a man to suspicion and calumny and that most careless of all such acts is promiscuous intermingling between the sexes. In order to put a stop to such occasions as cause suspicion and lead to slander-mongering, the Surah directs Muslims not to enter a house without having obtained prior permission. Further, it enjoins on Muslim men and women that if they happen to confront each other, they should restrain their looks and guard all avenues of sin and vice. As an additional safeguard, Muslim women are further enjoined not to display their beauty, natural as well as artificial, to those males as are outside the prohibited degrees of marriage (v. 32), except such parts of the body as it is not possible for them to cover; for instance, the build of the body or their stature. For this purpose they should wear their head-coverings in such a manner as to cover their breasts. (For a detailed note on "Pardah" see v. 32). Another safeguard enjoined for the improvement and preservation of national morals is that widows should not be allowed to remain unmarried. It is further stated that steps should be taken to set free prisoners of war at the earliest occasion and a captive, who does not find it possible to earn his or her freedom immediately, may be allowed to pay the indemnity money in easy instalments. Towards its close the Surah strongly urges Muslims to set right their family and national affairs and to be on their guard against promiscuous intermingling of the sexes. A special direction to be observed in this respect is that even prisoners of war serving as house servants and also minor children should not enter the private apartments of their masters or parents before dawn, at noon and after nightfall. At other times all members of the household are at liberty to move about the house freely. When, however, children reach their puberty, they should observe the regulations in regard to "Pardah." Old women, however, who have no desire or need for marriage can, if they so choose, relax the rules about "Pardah," but even they are not allowed to display their adornments to strangers. Next to family organization, and even more important than this, is the social organization of the whole people, and the Surah has not neglected to lay down requisite rules for the smooth and successful conduct of national affairs. The Surah then holds out a promise to Muslims that if they carried out the programme of life which God has laid down for them, they will become the leaders of the world both in spiritual and temporal spheres and their religion will become firmly established in the world. But when their rule is established and their cause triumphs and prevails they should worship God, help the poor and the needy and obey the commandments of their Prophet.
الزَّانِيَةُ وَالزَّانِي فَاجْلِدُوا كُلَّ وَاحِدٍ مِنْهُمَا مِائَةَ جَلْدَةٍ وَلاَ تَأْخُذْكُمْ بِهِمَا رَأْفَةٌ فِي دِينِ اللَّهِ إِنْ كُنتُمْ تُؤْمِنُونَ بِاللَّهِ وَالْيَوْمِ الآخِرِ وَلْيَشْهَدْ عَذَابَهُمَا طَائِفَةٌ مِنْ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ الزَّانِي لاَ يَنكِحُ إلاَّ زَانِيَةً أَوْ مُشْرِكَةً وَالزَّانِيَةُ لاَ يَنكِحُهَا إِلاَّ زَانٍ أَوْ مُشْرِكٌ وَحُرِّمَ ذَلِكَ عَلَى الْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَالَّذِينَ يَرْمُونَ الْمُحْصَنَاتِ ثُمَّ لَمْ يَأْتُوا بِأَرْبَعَةِ شُهَدَاءَ فَاجْلِدُوهُمْ ثَمَانِينَ جَلْدَةً وَلاَ تَقْبَلُوا لَهُمْ شَهَادَةً أَبَدًا وَأُوْلَئِكَ هُمْ الْفَاسِقُونَ
وَالَّذِينَ يَرْمُونَ أَزْوَاجَهُمْ وَلَمْ يَكُنْ لَهُمْ شُهَدَاءُ إِلاَّ أَنفُسُهُمْ فَشَهَادَةُ أَحَدِهِمْ أَرْبَعُ شَهَادَاتٍ بِاللَّهِ إِنَّهُ لَمِنْ الصَّادِقِينَ
إِنَّ الَّذِينَ جَاءُوا بِالإِفْكِ عُصْبَةٌ مِنْكُمْ لاَ تَحْسَبُوهُ شَرًّا لَكُمْ بَلْ هُوَ خَيْرٌ لَكُمْ لِكُلِّ امْرِئٍ مِنْهُمْ مَا اكْتَسَبَ مِنْ الإِثْمِ وَالَّذِي تَوَلَّى كِبْرَهُ مِنْهُمْ لَهُ عَذَابٌ عَظِيمٌ
وَلَوْلاَ فَضْلُ اللَّهِ عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَتُهُ فِي الدُّنْيَا وَالآخِرَةِ لَمَسَّكُمْ فِي مَا أَفَضْتُمْ فِيهِ عَذَابٌ عَظِيمٌ إِذْ تَلَقَّوْنَهُ بِأَلْسِنَتِكُمْ وَتَقُولُونَ بِأَفْوَاهِكُمْ مَا لَيْسَ لَكُمْ بِهِ عِلْمٌ وَتَحْسَبُونَهُ هَيِّنًا وَهُوَ عِنْدَ اللَّهِ عَظِيمٌ
إِنَّ الَّذِينَ يُحِبُّونَ أَنْ تَشِيعَ الْفَاحِشَةُ فِي الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا لَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ فِي الدُّنْيَا وَالآخِرَةِ وَاللَّهُ يَعْلَمُ وَأَنْتُمْ لاَ تَعْلَمُونَ
يَاأَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا لاَ تَتَّبِعُوا خُطُوَاتِ الشَّيْطَانِ وَمَنْ يَتَّبِعْ خُطُوَاتِ الشَّيْطَانِ فَإِنَّهُ يَأْمُرُ بِالْفَحْشَاءِ وَالْمُنْكَرِ وَلَوْلاَ فَضْلُ اللَّهِ عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَتُهُ مَا زَكَا مِنْكُمْ مِنْ أَحَدٍ أَبَدًا وَلَكِنَّ اللَّهَ يُزَكِّي مَنْ يَشَاءُ وَاللَّهُ سَمِيعٌ عَلِيمٌ وَلاَ يَأْتَلِ أُوْلُوا الْفَضْلِ مِنْكُمْ وَالسَّعَةِ أَنْ يُؤْتُوا أُوْلِي الْقُرْبَى وَالْمَسَاكِينَ وَالْمُهَاجِرِينَ فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ وَلْيَعْفُوا وَلْيَصْفَحُوا أَلاَ تُحِبُّونَ أَنْ يَغْفِرَ اللَّهُ لَكُمْ وَاللَّهُ غَفُورٌ رَحِيمٌ إِنَّ الَّذِينَ يَرْمُونَ الْمُحْصَنَاتِ الْغَافِلاَتِ الْمُؤْمِنَاتِ لُعِنُوا فِي الدُّنْيَا وَالآخِرَةِ وَلَهُمْ عَذَابٌ عَظِيمٌ
الْخَبِيثَاتُ لِلْخَبِيثِينَ وَالْخَبِيثُونَ لِلْخَبِيثَاتِ وَالطَّيِّبَاتُ لِلطَّيِّبِينَ وَالطَّيِّبُونَ لِلطَّيِّبَاتِ أُوْلَئِكَ مُبَرَّءُونَ مِمَّا يَقُولُونَ لَهُمْ مَغْفِرَةٌ وَرِزْقٌ كَرِيمٌ يَاأَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا لاَ تَدْخُلُوا بُيُوتًا غَيْرَ بُيُوتِكُمْ حَتَّى تَسْتَأْنِسُوا وَتُسَلِّمُوا عَلَى أَهْلِهَا ذَلِكُمْ خَيْرٌ لَكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَذَكَّرُونَ فَإِنْ لَمْ تَجِدُوا فِيهَا أَحَدًا فَلاَ تَدْخُلُوهَا حَتَّى يُؤْذَنَ لَكُمْ وَإِنْ قِيلَ لَكُمْ ارْجِعُوا فَارْجِعُوا هُوَ أَزْكَى لَكُمْ وَاللَّهُ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ عَلِيمٌ لَيْسَ عَلَيْكُمْ جُنَاحٌ أَنْ تَدْخُلُوا بُيُوتًا غَيْرَ مَسْكُونَةٍ فِيهَا مَتَاعٌ لَكُمْ وَاللَّهُ يَعْلَمُ مَا تُبْدُونَ وَمَا تَكْتُمُونَ قُلْ لِلْمُؤْمِنِينَ يَغُضُّوا مِنْ أَبْصَارِهِمْ وَيَحْفَظُوا فُرُوجَهُمْ ذَلِكَ أَزْكَى لَهُمْ إِنَّ اللَّهَ خَبِيرٌ بِمَا يَصْنَعُونَ وَقُلْ لِلْمُؤْمِنَاتِ يَغْضُضْنَ مِنْ أَبْصَارِهِنَّ وَيَحْفَظْنَ فُرُوجَهُنَّ وَلاَ يُبْدِينَ زِينَتَهُنَّ إِلاَّ مَا ظَهَرَ مِنْهَا وَلْيَضْرِبْنَ بِخُمُرِهِنَّ عَلَى جُيُوبِهِنَّ وَلاَ يُبْدِينَ زِينَتَهُنَّ إِلاَّ لِبُعُولَتِهِنَّ أَوْ آبَائِهِنَّ أَوْ آبَاءِ بُعُولَتِهِنَّ أَوْ أَبْنَائِهِنَّ أَوْ أَبْنَاءِ بُعُولَتِهِنَّ أَوْ إِخْوَانِهِنَّ أَوْ بَنِي إِخْوَانِهِنَّ أَوْ بَنِي أَخَوَاتِهِنَّ أَوْ نِسَائِهِنَّ أَوْ مَا مَلَكَتْ أَيْمَانُهُنَّ أَوْ التَّابِعِينَ غَيْرِ أُوْلِي الإِرْبَةِ مِنْ الرِّجَالِ أَوْ الطِّفْلِ الَّذِينَ لَمْ يَظْهَرُوا عَلَى عَوْرَاتِ النِّسَاءِ وَلاَ يَضْرِبْنَ بِأَرْجُلِهِنَّ لِيُعْلَمَ مَا يُخْفِينَ مِنْ زِينَتِهِنَّ وَتُوبُوا إِلَى اللَّهِ جَمِيعًا أَيُّهَا الْمُؤْمِنُونَ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُفْلِحُونَ وَأَنكِحُوا الأَيَامَى مِنْكُمْ وَالصَّالِحِينَ مِنْ عِبَادِكُمْ وَإِمَائِكُمْ إِنْ يَكُونُوا فُقَرَاءَ يُغْنِهِمْ اللَّهُ مِنْ فَضْلِهِ وَاللَّهُ وَاسِعٌ عَلِيمٌ وَلْيَسْتَعْفِفْ الَّذِينَ لاَ يَجِدُونَ نِكَاحًا حَتَّى يُغْنِيَهُمْ اللَّهُ مِنْ فَضْلِهِ وَالَّذِينَ يَبْتَغُونَ الْكِتَابَ مِمَّا مَلَكَتْ أَيْمَانُكُمْ فَكَاتِبُوهُمْ إِنْ عَلِمْتُمْ فِيهِمْ خَيْرًا وَآتُوهُمْ مِنْ مَالِ اللَّهِ الَّذِي آتَاكُمْ وَلاَ تُكْرِهُوا فَتَيَاتِكُمْ عَلَى الْبِغَاءِ إِنْ أَرَدْنَ تَحَصُّنًا لِتَبْتَغُوا عَرَضَ الْحَيَاةِ الدُّنْيَا وَمَنْ يُكْرِهُّنَّ فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ مِنْ بَعْدِ إِكْرَاهِهِنَّ غَفُورٌ رَحِيمٌ
اللَّهُ نُورُ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالأَرْضِ مَثَلُ نُورِهِ كَمِشْكَاةٍ فِيهَا مِصْبَاحٌ الْمِصْبَاحُ فِي زُجَاجَةٍ الزُّجَاجَةُ كَأَنَّهَا كَوْكَبٌ دُرِّيٌّ يُوقَدُ مِنْ شَجَرَةٍ مُبَارَكَةٍ زَيْتُونِةٍ لاَ شَرْقِيَّةٍ وَلاَ غَرْبِيَّةٍ يَكَادُ زَيْتُهَا يُضِيءُ وَلَوْ لَمْ تَمْسَسْهُ نَارٌ نُورٌ عَلَى نُورٍ يَهْدِي اللَّهُ لِنُورِهِ مَنْ يَشَاءُ وَيَضْرِبُ اللَّهُ الأَمْثَالَ لِلنَّاسِ وَاللَّهُ بِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ عَلِيمٌ
رِجَالٌ لاَ تُلْهِيهِمْ تِجَارَةٌ وَلاَ بَيْعٌ عَنْ ذِكْرِ اللَّهِ وَإِقَامِ الصَّلاَةِ وَإِيتَاءِ الزَّكَاةِ يَخَافُونَ يَوْمًا تَتَقَلَّبُ فِيهِ الْقُلُوبُ وَالأَبْصَارُ
وَالَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا أَعْمَالُهُمْ كَسَرَابٍ بِقِيعَةٍ يَحْسَبُهُ الظَّمْآنُ مَاءً حَتَّى إِذَا جَاءَهُ لَمْ يَجِدْهُ شَيْئًا وَوَجَدَ اللَّهَ عِنْدَهُ فَوَفَّاهُ حِسَابَهُ وَاللَّهُ سَرِيعُ الْحِسَابِ أَوْ كَظُلُمَاتٍ فِي بَحْرٍ لُجِّيٍّ يَغْشَاهُ مَوْجٌ مِنْ فَوْقِهِ مَوْجٌ مِنْ فَوْقِهِ سَحَابٌ ظُلُمَاتٌ بَعْضُهَا فَوْقَ بَعْضٍ إِذَا أَخْرَجَ يَدَهُ لَمْ يَكَدْ يَرَاهَا وَمَنْ لَمْ يَجْعَلِ اللَّهُ لَهُ نُورًا فَمَا لَهُ مِنْ نُورٍ أَلَمْ تَرَى أَنَّ اللَّهَ يُسَبِّحُ لَهُ مَنْ فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالأَرْضِ وَالطَّيْرُ صَافَّاتٍ كُلٌّ قَدْ عَلِمَ صَلاَتَهُ وَتَسْبِيحَهُ وَاللَّهُ عَلِيمٌ بِمَا يَفْعَلُونَ
أَلَمْ تَرَى أَنَّ اللَّهَ يُزْجِي سَحَابًا ثُمَّ يُؤَلِّفُ بَيْنَهُ ثُمَّ يَجْعَلُهُ رُكَامًا فَتَرَى الْوَدْقَ يَخْرُجُ مِنْ خِلاَلِهِ وَيُنَزِّلُ مِنْ السَّمَاءِ مِنْ جِبَالٍ فِيهَا مِنْ بَرَدٍ فَيُصِيبُ بِهِ مَنْ يَشَاءُ وَيَصْرِفُهُ عَنْ مَنْ يَشَاءُ يَكَادُ سَنَا بَرْقِهِ يَذْهَبُ بِالأَبْصَارِ
وَاللَّهُ خَلَقَ كُلَّ دَابَّةٍ مِنْ مَاءٍ فَمِنْهُمْ مَنْ يَمْشِي عَلَى بَطْنِهِ وَمِنْهُمْ مَنْ يَمْشِي عَلَى رِجْلَيْنِ وَمِنْهُمْ مَنْ يَمْشِي عَلَى أَرْبَعٍ يَخْلُقُ اللَّهُ مَا يَشَاءُ إِنَّ اللَّهَ عَلَى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ
وَيَقُولُونَ آمَنَّا بِاللَّهِ وَبِالرَّسُولِ وَأَطَعْنَا ثُمَّ يَتَوَلَّى فَرِيقٌ مِنْهُمْ مِنْ بَعْدِ ذَلِكَ وَمَا أُوْلَئِكَ بِالْمُؤْمِنِينَ
أَفِي قُلُوبِهِمْ مَرَضٌ أَمْ ارْتَابُوا أَمْ يَخَافُونَ أَنْ يَحِيفَ اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِمْ وَرَسُولُهُ بَلْ أُوْلَئِكَ هُمْ الظَّالِمُون إِنَّمَا كَانَ قَوْلَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ إِذَا دُعُوا إِلَى اللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ لِيَحْكُمَ بَيْنَهُمْ أَنْ يَقُولُوا سَمِعْنَا وَأَطَعْنَا وَأُوْلَئِكَ هُمْ الْمُفْلِحُونَ
وَأَقْسَمُوا بِاللَّهِ جَهْدَ أَيْمَانِهِمْ لَئِنْ أَمَرْتَهُمْ لَيَخْرُجُنَّ قُلْ لاَ تُقْسِمُوا طَاعَةٌ مَعْرُوفَةٌ إِنَّ اللَّهَ خَبِيرٌ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ قُلْ أَطِيعُوا اللَّهَ وَأَطِيعُوا الرَّسُولَ فَإِنْ تَوَلَّوا فَإِنَّمَا عَلَيْهِ مَا حُمِّلَ وَعَلَيْكُمْ مَا حُمِّلْتُمْ وَإِنْ تُطِيعُوهُ تَهْتَدُوا وَمَا عَلَى الرَّسُولِ إِلاَّ الْبَلاَغُ الْمُبِينُ وَعَدَ اللَّهُ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا مِنْكُمْ وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ لَيَسْتَخْلِفَنَّهُم فِي الأَرْضِ كَمَا اسْتَخْلَفَ الَّذِينَ مِنْ قَبْلِهِمْ وَلَيُمَكِّنَنَّ لَهُمْ دِينَهُمُ الَّذِي ارْتَضَى لَهُمْ وَلَيُبَدِّلَنَّهُمْ مِنْ بَعْدِ خَوْفِهِمْ أَمْنًا يَعْبُدُونَنِي لاَ يُشْرِكُونَ بِي شَيْئًا وَمَنْ كَفَرَ بَعْدَ ذَلِكَ فَأُوْلَئِكَ هُمْ الْفَاسِقُونَ
يَاأَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا لِيَسْتَأْذِنْكُمْ الَّذِينَ مَلَكَتْ أَيْمَانُكُمْ وَالَّذِينَ لَمْ يَبْلُغُوا الْحُلُمَ مِنْكُمْ ثَلاَثَ مَرَّاتٍ مِنْ قَبْلِ صَلاَةِ الْفَجْرِ وَحِينَ تَضَعُونَ ثِيَابَكُمْ مِنْ الظَّهِيرَةِ وَمِنْ بَعْدِ صَلاَةِ الْعِشَاءِ ثَلاَثُ عَوْرَاتٍ لَكُمْ لَيْسَ عَلَيْكُمْ وَلاَ عَلَيْهِمْ جُنَاحٌ بَعْدَهُنَّ طَوَّافُونَ عَلَيْكُمْ بَعْضُكُمْ عَلَى بَعْضٍ كَذَلِكَ يُبَيِّنُ اللَّهُ لَكُمْ الآياتِ وَاللَّهُ عَلِيمٌ حَكِيمٌ وَإِذَا بَلَغَ الأَطْفَالُ مِنْكُمْ الْحُلُمَ فَلْيَسْتَأْذِنُوا كَمَا اسْتَأْذَنَ الَّذِينَ مِنْ قَبْلِهِمْ كَذَلِكَ يُبَيِّنُ اللَّهُ لَكُمْ آيَاتِهِ وَاللَّهُ عَلِيمٌ حَكِيمٌ وَالْقَوَاعِدُ مِنْ النِّسَاءِ اللاَّتِي لاَ يَرْجُونَ نِكَاحًا فَلَيْسَ عَلَيْهِنَّ جُنَاحٌ أَنْ يَضَعْنَ ثِيَابَهُنَّ غَيْرَ مُتَبَرِّجَاتٍ بِزِينَةٍ وَأَنْ يَسْتَعْفِفْنَ خَيْرٌ لَهُنَّ وَاللَّهُ سَمِيعٌ عَلِيمٌ لَيْسَ عَلَى الأَعْمَى حَرَجٌ وَلاَ عَلَى الأَعْرَجِ حَرَجٌ وَلاَ عَلَى الْمَرِيضِ حَرَجٌ وَلاَ عَلَى أَنفُسِكُمْ أَنْ تَأْكُلُوا مِنْ بُيُوتِكُمْ أَوْ بُيُوتِ آبَائِكُمْ أَوْ بُيُوتِ أُمَّهَاتِكُمْ أَوْ بُيُوتِ إِخْوَانِكُمْ أَوْ بُيُوتِ أَخَوَاتِكُمْ أَوْ بُيُوتِ أَعْمَامِكُمْ أَوْ بُيُوتِ عَمَّاتِكُمْ أَوْ بُيُوتِ أَخْوَالِكُمْ أَوْ بُيُوتِ خَالاَتِكُمْ أَوْ مَا مَلَكْتُمْ مَفَاتِحَهُ أَوْ صَدِيقِكُمْ لَيْسَ عَلَيْكُمْ جُنَاحٌ أَنْ تَأْكُلُوا جَمِيعًا أَوْ أَشْتَاتًا فَإِذَا دَخَلْتُمْ بُيُوتًا فَسَلِّمُوا عَلَى أَنفُسِكُمْ تَحِيَّةً مِنْ عِنْدِ اللَّهِ مُبَارَكَةً طَيِّبَةً كَذَلِكَ يُبَيِّنُ اللَّهُ لَكُمْ الآياتِ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَعْقِلُونَ إِنَّمَا الْمُؤْمِنُونَ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا بِاللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ وَإِذَا كَانُوا مَعَهُ عَلَى أَمْرٍ جَامِعٍ لَمْ يَذْهَبُوا حَتَّى يَسْتَأْذِنُوهُ إِنَّ الَّذِينَ يَسْتَأْذِنُونَكَ أُوْلَئِكَ الَّذِينَ يُؤْمِنُونَ بِاللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ فَإِذَا اسْتَأْذَنُوكَ لِبَعْضِ شَأْنِهِمْ فَأْذَنْ لِمَنْ شِئْتَ مِنْهُمْ وَاسْتَغْفِرْ لَهُمْ اللَّهَ إِنَّ اللَّهَ غَفُورٌ رَحِيمٌ لاَ تَجْعَلُوا دُعَاءَ الرَّسُولِ بَيْنَكُمْ كَدُعَاءِ بَعْضِكُمْ بَعْضًا قَدْ يَعْلَمُ اللَّهُ الَّذِينَ يَتَسَلَّلُونَ مِنْكُمْ لِوَاذًا فَلْيَحْذَرِ الَّذِينَ يُخَالِفُونَ عَنْ أَمْرِهِ أَنْ تُصِيبَهُمْ فِتْنَةٌ أَوْ يُصِيبَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ أَلاَ إِنَّ لِلَّهِ مَا فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالأَرْضِ قَدْ يَعْلَمُ مَا أَنْتُمْ عَلَيْهِ وَيَوْمَ يُرْجَعُونَ إِلَيْهِ فَيُنَبِّئُهُمْ بِمَا عَمِلُوا وَاللَّهُ بِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ عَلِيمٌ
2023. Of all the Quranic Chapters, the present one has been specifically called 'a Surah,' the significance being that as the word, "Surah," means rank or dignity, the Muslims by actingupon the commandments and ordinances embodied in this Surah can and will rise to greathonor and dignity. 2024. The emphasis on the words, which We have revealed and the ordinances of which We have made obligatory, points to the great importance of the commandments of this Surah inasmuch as all other Quranic Chapters also have been revealed by God and theircommandments have also been made obligatory. 2025. It is to be regretted that in slavish imitation of the customs and manners of other nations the Muslims have infringed and violated the commandments of this Surah more than the ordinances embodied in other Surahs of the Qur'an. 2025A. The words, al-Zani and al-Zaniyah, signify respectively both an adulterer and a fornicator; and an adulteress and a fornicatress. 2026. Chastity as a moral virtue holds a very high place in the code of Islamic laws that govern relations between the sexes. The present Surah has laid down comprehensive commandments to safeguard and protect it. Islam views with extreme disapprobation the slightest breach of these laws. It is Islam's very great sensitiveness about chastity that is reflected in the punishment prescribed for adultery or fornication in the verse under comment. The punishment prescribed is hundred stripes, no distinction having been made whether the guilty persons are married or unmarried or one of the party is married and the other unmarried. Flogging and not stoning to death, according to this verse, is the prescribed punishment. Nowhere in the Qur'an stoning to death has been laid down as punishment for adultery and, for that matter, for any other crime, however serious. Islam has not prescribed killing as a necessary and unqualified punishment even for crimes much more heinous than adultery such as unprovoked murder, dacoit, treason against the State and disturbing the peace of the land. Though extreme penalty for these crimes is death, yet the payment of blood money in the case of the first offence (2:179) and imprisonment or banishment for the other crimes (5:33; 34) have been laid down as alternative punishments. Elsewhere in the Qur'an, where punishment for adultery for a married slave-girl is mentioned it is stated that she will get half the punishment prescribed for that of a free, married woman (4:26), and evidently the punishment of stoning to death cannot be halved. In spite of the fact that the Qur'an has quite clearly and unequivocally laid down flogging as the punishment for adultery and has made no discrimination whatever between a married or an unmarried culprit in the matter of awarding punishment (because Zani means, both a fornicator and an adulterer) and that the present and other relevant verses were revealed in connection with slander-mongering about 'A'ishah, the Holy Prophet's noble consort, who herself was a married lady, it is curious that the misconception has persisted without any justification or linguistic authority among certain schools of Muslim religious thought that the verse under comment deals with punishment for unmarried persons only and that the punishment for a married adulterer and adulteress is stoning to death. The misconception seems to be due to a few cases recorded in the Hadith when married persons guilty of adultery were stoned to death by the order of the Holy Prophet. One of these few cases was that of a Another possible cause of misunderstanding about the form of punishment for adultery may be some sayings attributed to Caliphs 'Umar and 'Ali. 'Umar is reported to have said 'There was a verse in the Book of God about Rajm (stoning). We read it, we understood it and we remembered it. The Holy Prophet stoned adulterers to death and we also stoned after him. Were it not that people might say that 'Umar had added in the Book of God what was not in it, I would have written it down' (Kashf al Ghummah, vol. 2, p. 11 I). The whole hadith seems to be pure fabrication or at best the result of misunderstanding of what 'Umar might actually have said. How by writing down in the Qur'an what was part of it could be called an addition to it, and how of all men, 'Umar could have been afraid of any body for doing the right thing, least of all for restoring to the Qur'an a lost text. And 'Ali after flogging a woman; who had committed adultery, and then stoning her to death, is reported to have said: 'I have flogged her in obedience to the commandment of the Book of God and have stoned her to death in 2026A. Nikah signifying coitus with or without marriage and marriage without coitus (Lane), the meaning of the verse is quite clear, viz., that when a man is having sexual intercourse with a woman who is not his wife, he is evidently an adulterer and the woman an adulteress; Nikah here signifying sexual intercourse and not marriage. But if Nikah here be taken to signify marriage, as some have done, then the meaning would be that Al-Zani, i.e., a wicked man, who is not ashamed of freely indulging in adultery, can never prevail upon a chaste believing woman to marry him. Only a bad woman of low moral character or an idolatrous woman whose standard of morality like him is very low can be persuaded to marry him. 2027. The pronoun 'that' signifies the committing of adultery. Islam regards adultery as one of the most heinous of all social crimes and seeks to close all those avenues through which this disease finds its way among a people and severely punishes it and condemns the guilty parties as social pariahs. While the preceding verse has laid down the punishment which is to be meted out to adulterers or fornicators the present one stigmatizes them as social lepers with whom all social relationship should be avoided. 2028. The other social evil, second to adultery in heinousness, which eats into the vitals of human society, is the slandering of innocent persons. Islam also views with extreme disfavor this social evil which has become so common in the so-called civilized modern society, and severely punishes the accusers of innocent people. The verse mentions three forms of punishment in an ascending order which are to be meted out to a slanderer: (a) the physical punishment of scourging; (b) the disgrace of being branded as a perjurer and a liar which invalidates his evidence and (c) the spiritual stigma of being adjudged as a transgressor. It may be noted that no mention is made here of the accusation being true or false. So long as the accuser cannot produce the necessary evidence in support of his charge, the charge would be considered as false and the accuser would render himself liable to the prescribed punishment. Whatever the facts of the case, the woman with whom adultery is alleged to have been 2029. Opinions differ as to which of the punishments prescribed for slandering is to be remitted after a slanderer repents and makes amends. The question of the first punishment does not arise because the corporal punishment is administered as soon as the offence of the guilty person is proved. The last two punishments only can be remitted after a real and true repentance is proved. 2030. AS suspicion between husband and wife is likely to cast a severe strain on the whole family relations, a special regulation has been laid down in the verse under comment to meet such an unhappy situation if it ever happens to arise. 2031. After the accused woman has established her innocence by taking four oaths that her husband had falsely accused her and the fifth oath invoking God's curse upon herself if her husband's accusation was true, no punishment is awarded to her and the husband is also not held punishable for accusing her. But after such a serious breach the couple will cease to live as husband and wife, because no chance will then be left of the restoration of amicable relations between them. 2032. The extremely painful incident referred to in this verse took place when on the Holy Prophet's return from the expedition against Bani Mustaliq in 5 A.D., the Muslim army had to halt for the night at a place, a short distance from Medina. In this expedition the Holy Prophet was accompanied by his noble and talented wife, 'A'ishah. As it so happened, 'A'ishah went out some distance from the camp to attend to the call of nature. When she returned, she discovered that she had dropped her necklace somewhere. The necklace itself was of no great value, but as it was a loan from a friend 'A'ishah went out again to search for it. On her return, to her great grief and mortification; the army had already marched away with the camel she was riding; her attendants thinking that she was in the litter as she was then very young and light of weight. In her helplessness she sat down and cried till sleep overpowered her. Safwan, a Refugee who was coming in the rear recognized her as he had seen her before the verse enjoining "Pardah" was revealed, and brought her on his camel to Medina, himself walking behind the animal (Bukhari, Kitab al-Nikah). The Hypocrites of Medina, led by 'Abd Allah bin Ubayy bin Salul, sought to make capital out of this incident and spread a malicious scandal against 'A'ishah and unfortunately some of the Muslims also became involved in it. 'A'ishah's innocence was established by Divine revelation. Those who had taken part in fabricating and spreading the accusation were punished and injunctions were revealed to deal effectively with scandalmongers and their evil designs and activities. 2033. The words, 'who took the principal part,' are understood to refer to 'Abd Allah bin Ubayy, the leader of the Hypocrites of Medina, who had invented the lie and gave it wide publicity. He died an ignominious death, frustrated in all his designs against Islam and in his ambition and aspiration to become the crowned king of Medina. 2034. He, who accuses a Muslim man or woman of adultery and does not produce four witnesses to prove his allegation, shall be held to be a liar and treated as such by the Islamic Law if he can produce only one, two or even three persons as eyewitnesses to the act. The fact of one person seeing another person committing this immoral act does not entitle him to go about spreading the evil report. 2035. Islam has taken as serious a view of the spreading and circulation of false accusations as that of crimes against chastity. It has condemned and prescribed punishment for both the crimes-for scandal mongering even a severer punishment since it is calculated to produce more grievous consequences as far as the prevalence of sexual immorality in a community is concerned than the stray acts of sexual misconduct. If scandal mongering is allowed to be indulged in unchecked in a community, it will come to lose all sense of horror and abhorrence at the commission of immoral acts with the result that immorality will become rampant and a sense of pessimism with regard to its future will begin to prevail in the community, thus shaking its whole moral foundation. 2036. As there is implanted in human nature an inherent sense of hesitancy and horror at committing what is clearly and manifestly an evil act, to begin with, Satan avoids tempting his victim to commit a manifestly immoral act. He leads him to his moral ruin gradually and in stages, beginning with what apparently seems to be quite a harmless act. Beginning with slander-mongering a man ends by committing the very offence he had begun by foisting it upon others. 2037. The reference may be to Abu Bakr who stopped the allowance he used to give to Mistah; a poor relative who had unfortunately become involved in the calumny against 'A'ishah. 2038. The use of the word Ghafilat in connection with the calumny about 'A'ishah establishes her complete innocence; implying that that paragon of virtue and righteousness had no idea or consciousness of having done any wrongful act. 2039. Recent scientific researches have established the truth of this verse. Scientific instruments have been invented which; if placed in a place, can preserve the talk of a person and even the sound of the movements of his hands, feet or other organs of his body. These instruments have greatly helped the police in apprehending thieves and other culprits and in bringing them to book. Thus with the help of these instruments the tongue, hands and feet of a guilty person, as it were, are made to bear witness against him. Science has also established the fact that every spoken word and movement or action leaves its impress in the atmosphere. According to the Qur'an these impresses will be given an embodied form in the next life, and thus the limbs of the author of deeds, good or bad, will bear witness against or in favor of him. 2040. All truth is relative. A thing may be true from one angle or one point of view, but false from another angle. It is God alone Who is Absolute Truth. 2041. The word, al-Khabithat; meaning evil deeds or obscene words; the verse purports to say that evil persons do evil deeds or indulge in obscene and foul talk and scandal mongering, while nothing comes out of good and virtuous persons but righteous deeds and pure and noble words. 2042. The practice of sending in a name-slip or introduction card to a person with whom interview is sought in his office or home is a correct way of finding out whether or not he agrees to seeing the visitor, and is in conformity with the above-mentioned Quranic injunction. 2043. AS stated above the Qur'an is not content with merely taking a superficial view of things but goes to their very root. According to it, every good or bad quality springs from a certain root. In the case of a good quality, the Qur'an enjoins that the root should be mastered and fully kept under control and; in the case of an evil, it aims at its complete eradication and extermination and thus bolts and bars all the avenues to it. As it is the eyes through which most evil thoughts enter the mind, so in the verse under comment believing men and women have been commanded to restrain their looks when they happen to meet one another. 2043A. Furuj may also signify "senses." 2044. As a good deal of misunderstanding and lack of proper knowledge as to what constitutes Islamic "Pardah" prevails even among Muslims, a somewhat detailed note on this much-vexed question is called for. The following verses deal with every aspect of "Pardah” : (i) And say to the believing women that they restrain their looks and guard their private parts, and that they display not their beauty or their embellishment except that which is apparent thereof, and that they draw their head-coverings over their bosoms, and that they display not their beauty .......... (24:32, i.e., the verse under comment). (ii) 0 Prophet, tell thy wives and thy daughters and the women of the believers that they should let down over them their loose outer garments. That is more likely that they will thus be recognized and not molested (33:60). The Arabic word used in this verse (33:60) is, Jalabib of which the singular is Jilbab (iii) 0 wives of the Prophet! you are not like any other women if you are righteous. So be not soft in speech, lest he, in whose heart is a disease, should feel tempted; and speak decent words. And stay in your houses with dignity and do not show off yourselves in the manner of the showing off of the women of the former days of ignorance. . . .(33:33, 34). (iv) 0 ye who believe! let those whom your right hands possess, and those of you who have not attained to puberty, ask leave of you at three times before coming into your private apartments, before the Morning Prayer and when you lay aside your clothes at noon in summer and after the Night Prayer. . . . (2459). The following inferences emerge from these four verses: The first commandment applies to women when they go out. Then they are to use an outer garment which should cover their whole body. The second commandment relates to "Pardah" primarily inside the four walls of the house when near male relatives frequently come and go. In that case men and women are required only to restrain their looks and as an additional precaution women are to take care that their Zinah, i.e., beauty of person, dress and ornaments, is not displayed. They are not required to use Jilbab (outer garment) at that time because that would be very irksome and even impracticable in view of the free and frequent visits of very near blood relations. The context shows that this commandment relates to "Pardah" inside the four walls of the house, because all the persons mentioned in the verse under comment are very near relations who generally visit the houses of their relatives. The special mention in it of four categories of persons besides near relatives, viz., decent women, old servants, female slaves and minor boys, lends additional weight to the inference that the commandment in this verse relates to "Pardah" within the four walls of the house. The fact that the first commandment refers to "Pardah" outside the house and the second commandment basically refers to "Pardah" within the four walls of the house is also apparent from the different words that have been used to express the two forms of "Pardah" in the relevant verses, i.e., 33:60, and the verse under comment. Whereas in 33:60 the garment which a woman is to use when The third commandment requires women to behave with dignity bordering on austerity when talking to stranger men; and they are also required to give their full attention to the discharge of their serious and important duties in regard to the affairs connected with the wellbeing of their own sex and the management of the household affairs and to looking after and bringing up of children and kindred matters. The fourth commandment enjoins husband and wife to have, as far as possible, sleeping apartments separate from those of other members of the family which even minor boys are not allowed to enter at hours stated in v. 59. The word, Zinah, used in the verse under comment includes both natural and artificial beauty-beauty of person, dress and ornaments. The expression, 'except that which is apparent thereof,' contains all those things which it is not possible for a woman to cover such as her voice, gait or stature, and also certain parts of her body which have to remain uncovered according to her social status; her family traditions, her avocation and the custom of the society. The permission to keep certain parts of the body uncovered will be subject to certain variations. Thus the words, 'they display not their beauty' will have different connotations with regard to women belonging to different sections and grades of society and the connotation will change with the change in the customs and modes of living and professions of a people. The words, 'And that they strike not their feet so that what they hide of their ornaments may become known' (24:32), show that public dancing which is so much in vogue in certain countries is definitely not allowed by Islam. This is the Islamic conception of "Pardah." According to it Muslim women may go out as often as it is legitimately necessary for them to do so, but their primary and principal functions are confined to their homes which are as important and serious, if not more, as the avocations of men are. If women take to men's avocations they seek to defy nature and nature does not allow its laws to be defied with impunity. 2045. Ayama is the plural of Ayyim which means, a woman having no husband, whether she be a virgin or not, or whether she had married before or not; a free woman (Lane); also a man having no wife (Mufradat). The marriage of widows and virgins, is strongly urged. In fact, Islam views with extreme disfavor the unmarried state and regards the married state as the normal and natural one. The Holy Prophet is reported to have said: 'Marriage is my Sunnah (usage or practice) and whoso disapproves and forsakes my Sunnah is not of me' (Muslim, Kitab al-Nikah). 2046. Mukatabah (deed of manumission) is a written contract by means of which a slave could earn his or her emancipation, independently and irrespective of the fact whether his or her master likes it or not. According to this contract a definite amount of money or labor is fixed as the price of the freedom of the slave. 2046A. Nur means, light as opposed to darkness. It is more extensive and more penetrating as well as more lasting in its significance than Diya' (Lane). 2046B. Mishkat means, a niche in a wall; i.e., a hole or hollow in a wall, not extending through, in which a lamp placed gives more light than it gives elsewhere; a pillar on the top of which the lamp is put (Lane). 2046C. Zujajah means a glass; a globe of glass (Lane). 2047. The verse is a beautiful metaphor. It speaks of three things-a lamp, a glass-globe and a niche. The Divine Light is stated to have been confined to these three things which combined together make its brightness and effulgence complete and perfect. 'The lamp' is the very source of the light; the 'glass-globe' which is over the lamp protects its light from being extinguished by the puffs of wind and increases its brightness; and 'the niche' preserves the light. The simile may aptly apply to an electric torch of which the constituent parts are the electric wires which give light, the bulb which protects the light and the reflector which spreads and diffuses the light and gives it direction. In spiritual terminology the three things- 'the lamp,' 'the glass-globe' and 'the niche'--may respectively stand for Divine Light, God's Prophets who protect that light from being extinguished and add to its effulgence and The verse further states that the oil used to light the lamp is of the highest possible purity and is inflammable to a degree which makes it (the oil) burst out into a flame even without being ignited. It is extracted from a tree which belongs neither to the East nor to the West, i.e., which does not discriminate in favor of or against any particular people. The verse may have another interpretation. The light mentioned in the verse may be taken to refer to the Holy Prophet because he has been spoken of as 'light' in the Qur'an (5:16); 'the niche' in that case would signify the heart of the Holy Prophet, and 'the lamp' his most pure and unsullied nature which is endowed with the best and noblest attributes and qualities, and 'the glass' would signify that the Divine Light with which his nature has been invested is as clear and bright as crystal. When the light of heavenly revelation descended upon the light of the Holy Prophet's nature; it shone with a twofold effulgence which in the words of the Qur'an has been described as 'light upon light.' This light of the Prophet was sustained by an oil which emanated from a blessed tree, which means that the Holy Prophet's light was not only bright and brilliant but abundant and stable and perpetual (as the word Mubarakah signifies), and was meant to illumine both the East and the West. Further, the Holy Prophet's heart was so pure and his nature gifted with such noble qualities that he was almost fit to discharge the duties of his great mission even before the light of Divine revelation had descended upon him. This is the significance of the words, whose oil well-nigh would shine forth even though fire touched it not. The metaphor may have yet another explanation. The niche in the verse is the human body. The human body contains the spirit which makes itself manifest through the organs of the body. Like the niche the human body protects the light, namely, the spirit; and guides its expression, i.e., the human body contains Misbah or the lamp of the soul which illumines the human mind and brings it into touch with God. The lamp is contained in a 'Zujajah' (globe of glass) which protects it from harm or injury and enhances and reflects its light. This Zujajah which is the human brain of which the mechanism is so perfect as to have led some philosophers to think that it is the ultimate source of the Divine Light. The light is sustained by the oil from a blessed tree, namely from those basic and eternal truths which are not the exclusive possession of any people of the East or of the West. These eternal truths are implanted in the very nature of man and would almost make themselves manifest even without the help of Divine revelation. 2047A. The verse contains both a proof and a prophecy. It predicts that houses illumined by the light contained in the Qur'an will be exalted and their inmates will always celebrate the praises of God. This will be a proof that they are illumined by Allah's light. 2048. The verse constitutes a great testimonial to the righteousness and goodness of the Holy Prophet's Companions and to their love for God. They are men, says the verse, of flesh and bones. They have their worldly ambitions and aspirations, their professions and avocations. They are not monks and hermits, cut apart from the world. Yet amidst all their mundane pursuits and engagements they do not neglect to discharge their duties to God and man. 2049. In vv. 37-39 above an appreciative reference is made to a class of men-the lovers of Divine light and the righteous servants of God. The present and the immediately preceding verse speak of another class of people-the sons of darkness. People of one class accept the Divine Light and walk in it. Their enviable condition is described in the simile, 'light upon light.' The other class of people reject the Divine Light, choose to grope in the darkness of doubts. All their works prove futile and deceptive like a mirage. They love darkness, follow darkness and live in darkness; so their unenviable condition has been very aptly and graphically described in the words, their deeds are like thick layers of darkness spread over a 2050A. Animate and inanimate things which are upon the earth such as men, animals, vegetables, and minerals. 2050B. The birds which fly in the air. In a spiritual sense, the three expressions respectively signify: (a) persons of very high spiritual status; (b) worldly-minded men whose whole attention and efforts are devoted to the acquirement of material pursuits and who have no thought or time for spiritual things and (c) people whose spiritual condition is midway between that of the two above-mentioned categories. 2051. Whereas the clause, Whose praises all who are in the heavens and the earth celebrate, refers to the collective testimony that the whole universe bears to the Unity andHoliness of God, the words, Each one knows his own mode of prayer and praise, refer to theevidence which everything bears to Divine Unity and Holiness individually and separately bycarrying out faithfully the task allotted to it by God. Salat has different meanings withreference to different objects. Used about God it means Divine mercy; used about angels itmeans their asking forgiveness of God for men and used about man it means the prescribedform of Prayer (Lane). 2052. The verse may signify that for some the revealed Law serves as timely rain which proves highly beneficial and for others it takes the form of hail and storm which brings in its wake destruction and ruin. 2053. The verse purports to say that the spiritual development of man referred to in the preceding verse is not always uniform and uninterrupted. Sometimes it is very rapid, at another time it is slow and yet at some other time it comes to a dead stop. This ebb and flow in the spiritual development of man is called Qabd (contraction) and Basf (expansion); or the alternation of night and day in spiritual terminology. Everything in the world is subject to the law of acceleration and retardation and so is the spiritual evolution of man. 2054. The verse describes the nature and form of the progress of spiritual pilgrims to their destined goal. The progress of some of them is extremely slow. They creep and crawl to their destination. Others go quicker like animals that move on two legs, yet others go faster like four-legged animals. What is hinted at here is speed and not the method of locomotion. The four-legged animals are, as a rule, speedier of movement than the bipeds or the crawlers. The same is the case with the spiritual travelers. 2055. The verse signifies that disbelievers suffer from one or all of the three spiritual diseases, or that some of them suffer from one disease and others from other diseases. In fact, the three main things that stand in the way of a man's spiritual progress and retard and arrest it, are doubt, fear and envy. 2056. The present and adjacent verses point to a basic and most fundamental Islamic principle, viz., that Islam is a perfect code of laws and its injunctions and commandments cover all the different aspects of human life and that the Holy Prophet is the final authority on all matters that concern the national life of Muslims. 2057. Because it serves as a prelude to the introduction of the subject of Khilafat emphasis is repeatedly laid in vv. 52-55 on obedience to Allah and His Messenger. This emphasis implies a hint to the status and position of a Khalifah in Islam. The verse embodies a promise that Muslims will be vouchsafed both spiritual and temporal leadership. The promise is made to the whole Muslim nation but the institution of Khilafat will take a palpable form in the person of certain individuals who will be the Holy Prophet's Successors and the representatives of the whole nation. The promise of the establishment of Khilafat is clear and unmistakable. As the Holy Prophet is now humanity's sole guide for all time, his Khilafat will continue to exist in one form or another in the world till the end of time, all other Khilafats having ceased to exist. This is, among many others, the Holy Prophet's distinctive superiority over all other Prophets and Messengers of God. Our age has witnessed his greatest spiritual Khalifah in the person of the Founder of the Ahmadiyya Movement. 2058. The subject of "Pardah," as stated under v. 32 above, has been referred to at four different places in the Qur'an. Whereas 24:32 deals with "Pardah" primarily within four walls of the house, v. 33:60 discusses "Pardah" outside the house and on thoroughfares, while vv. 33:33, 34 speak of a restricted kind of "Pardah," particularly enjoined on the Holy Prophet's wives and by implication on all Muslim women, and by inference point to the fact that the principal centre of a woman's activities is her home. The present verse, however, refers to another kind of "Pardah," viz., that domestic servants and minor children too should not enter the private apartments of their masters or parents at three particular hours mentioned here without getting prior permission. Zahirah means, vehement heat of the midday; the period from a little before to a little after midday in summer (Lane). 2058A. Qawa'id is the plural of Qa'id which signifies a woman who has ceased to bear children and to have the menstrual discharge or who has no husband, or an old woman, much advanced in years (Lane). 2059. The verse deals with some rules of social conduct which dispose of those foolish prejudices which prevail among certain sections of human society and which tend to restrict free intercourse between the rich and the poor. Islam enjoins complete social equality and is the avowed enemy of division of people within watertight compartments. Here it has stressed the importance and usefulness of free social intercourse and collective dining among all classes of society, and has encouraged and preferred eating together to promote familiarity and remove those bars that keep apart people of different social standing, though it has not disallowed eating separately. The Arabs and the Jews had scruples to eat with the blind or with persons suffering from certain social disabilities, as the Hindus of India even to this day do not eat or sit with the "untouchables." Islam looks askance at all such practices and encourages inter-dining and free intercourse among all classes and sections of people. Haraj means, a sin; an objection; harm; blame or crime (Lane). 2059A. Amr Jami' means, a momentous affair on account of which people gather together as though the affair itself gathers them (Lane). 2060. The several preceding verses contained directions for Muslims as how to conduct themselves in affairs of social importance. The present verse, however, deals with affairs of national importance. The Muslims are enjoined that when they are with the Holy Prophet, engaged in transacting a business of national importance, they should not leave the assembly without his permission. It may also be inferred from this verse that in affairs concerning a whole nation or community, the individual loses his independence of action. He must abide by the decision arrived at by the assembly of Muslims, presided Successor or their accepted and elected Leader. 2061. The Prophet's or the Leader's call is not to be treated lightly. It must be accorded the respect it deserves, as it always concerns highly important affairs. The verse may also mean that the privacy of the Holy Prophet or the Khalifah should not be intruded upon, and unnecessary demands should not be made upon his very precious time; and when addressed he should be treated with the respect due to his very exalted position.
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