Sūratu’l-Hashr (The Gathering) PDF

Sūratu’l-Hashr (The Gathering) 299 In consequence, even though Satan has as much knowledge of God as fearing Him, he deviated from the Straight Path, defeated by the rebellious aspect of his nature and has been lost eternally. The hypocrites and unbelievers who are persistent in unbelief and heres...

Sūratu’l-Hashr (The Gathering) 299 In consequence, even though Satan has as much knowledge of God as fearing Him, he deviated from the Straight Path, defeated by the rebellious aspect of his nature and has been lost eternally. The hypocrites and unbelievers who are persistent in unbelief and heresy and whose unbelief has been ingrained in their character are no different from Satan. If the word “God” sometimes comes out from their mouths and if they talk about religion and religious life positively, this is aimed at deception. They act with rancor and enmity toward believers and never keep back from searching for the ways to satisfy their anger and enmity. When they are unable to do evil with and inflict harm on believers, they act hypocritically, trying to conceal their hatred and enmity behind their deceptive smiles and gentleness and championing democracy. But whenever they find an opportunity and are able to do whatever they wish to harm believers, they commit all kinds of wickedness in the name of their unbelief. For them, might is right, and democracy is only a fantasy or is acceptable only as long as it serves their interests. While putting trust in such people is disrespect for the feeling of trust, being in fear of them is distrust in God. Undeterred by satanic unbelievers and hypocrites, believers should always be open and frank toward everyone and act with love and affection, taking refuge in God from such people and their evils. O God! I seek refuge in You from any distress and grief, and I seek refuge in You from helplessness and feebleness, and I seek refuge in You from fear and stinginess, and I seek refuge in You from being overpowered by debt and overcome by people. Reflections on the Qur’ān 300 ۘ ِِ َِْ ْ َ ْ ‫ۘ ُ ا ْ َ ُ ُّو‬ ُ ْ َْ ‫َُ ُ ا‬ ِ ََ ٍ َ ْ ْ ‫ُ ْ َ ُכ َن‬ ‫َو ِإ َذا َرأَ ْ َ ُ ُ ْ ِ َכ أَ ْ َ א ُ ُ ۘ َوإ ِْن‬ ُ ْ ْ َ َ َّ ‫َכ َّ ُ ْ ُ ُ ٌ ُ َ َّ َ ةٌۘ َ ْ َ ُ َن ُכ‬ ّٰ َ‫َ א ْ َ ْر ُ ْ ۘ َ א َ َ ُ ُ ا ّٰ ُ۬ أ‬ When you see them, their outward form pleases you, and (their posture and speech are attractive and effective so that) you give ear to their words when they speak. (In reality) they are like blocks of wood propped up and (draped over) in striped cloaks. They think (being themselves treacherous) every shout (they hear) to be against them. They are the enemies themselves, so beware of them. May God destroy them (they are liable to destruction by God)! How they are turned away from the truth (and pursue evil purposes)! (Al-Munā iqūn 63:4) Sūratu’l-Munāfiqūn (The Hypocrites) T his verse mentions some of the characteristics of hypocrites, describing them with both their physical and character traits as follows: 1. The hypocrites are physically noticeable, well-dressed, and impressive in appearance. They maintain this impressive outward appearance, posture, and image only for effect. 2. They are articulate and fluent in expressing themselves; they almost charm people around them with their eloquent speech and writings. When they speak, they can draw the attention of people. a. Despite these qualities, hypocrites are like wood blocks propped up and draped over in attractive cloaks. Outwardly they look impressive, but their hearts are very hardened. For as stated in the preceding verse, “a seal has been set on their hearts” Sūratu’l-Munāfiqūn (The Hypocrites) 301 (Al-Munāfiqūn 63:3).117 Therefore, they do not understand the truth; more precisely, they cannot penetrate into the essence of matters to grasp the truth. b. Moreover, they assume that every shout is against them. They live in continuous zigzags; they are sometimes here and sometimes there. Outwardly they pose as believers, but their hearts are closed to the truth. They waste their life in duality. They are, indeed, so indifferent to the religious matters that they are deader than a corpse in the face of the matters to which believers pay great attention. Nonetheless, they seem on the side of the believers at the mosque, battle field, and out in the street. Due to their hypocrisy, they are weak-hearted. They are constantly in worry that their real identities will be displayed at any moment. Thus, they think every shout or noise they hear is against them. c. Hypocrites are hard-hearted enemies of the believers. Instead of operating openly, they disguise their ill-intentions; you never know what they are going to do. They are like scorpions or snakes in the grass; it is difficult to know where and how they will appear to bite. d. Therefore, believers must beware of them because these poisonous characters can bite them anytime, at every opportunity. Furthermore, they do that in disguise of doing favor to the society. God Almighty ends the verse as follows: “May God destroy them (they are liable to destruction by God)! How they are turned away from the truth (and pursue evil purposes)!” The leading representatives of hypocrisy in the Age of Happiness were people such as ‘Abdullah ibn Ubayy ibn Salul, Mughith ibn Qays, and Jad ibn Qays. Like these people, hypocrites look impressive and are well-dressed, and as an attitude well-suited to their hypocritical nature, they have such a weakness for visible ornaments and beautifications that they look far from being natural. Almost all hypocrites have been like them in every age. They are generally addicted to fantasizing and speaking pretentious and inflated words; they are lovers of themselves and of their thoughts, actions, and intelligence. They are “holed” with so many weak spots that they may be seen as narcissists. Even if what they 117 See also Sūratu’t-Tawbah 9:87. 302 Reflections on the Qur’ān speak is generally nonsense, they speak as if talking about profound matters and try to cover their nonsense with ambiguities and mystifications. But for God’s guidance and warnings, they are almost able to draw the attention of the most insightful people including the scholars who are the successors to the Prophets in their messages. While they themselves are listening to others, they give the impression that they are listening attentively. As a matter of fact, all their manners and acts are but show and ostentation. Their actions and words are all lies and deception. They are so cunning and so expert in deceiving that without God’s special grace, it is not easy to detect them. As hypocrites are themselves liars, dishonest, and two-faced and are busy deceiving others, they suspect even the most innocent behavior and consider all the words, actions, and movements which stem from the most sincere, innocent, and decent feelings and thoughts as hostile towards them. Since they look at others through the mirror of their scorpion-like poisonous character, they think the most innocent people are deceitful like themselves. In line with the adage that says, “A betrayer is fearful,” the hearts of hypocrites beat with the thought of betrayal while their pulses beat with fear. They are the most dangerous enemies of the believers. Exposing their inner and outer traits, God Almighty warns the believers to be cautious against the hypocrites while they continue their own righteous manners and behavior in an honest and upright way. Hypocrites are liable to destruction by God! How they are turned away from the truth and pursue evil purposes! May God preserve us from their evils, tricks, and ploys! Amen, O the All-Aiding! Sūratu’t-Talaq (Divorce) 303 ‫َو َ ْ َ َّ ِ ا ّٰ َ َ ْ َ ْ َ ُ َ ْ ً א‬ َ Whoever keeps from disobedience to God in reverence for Him and piety, He enables a way out for him (of every difficulty). (At-Talaq 65:2) Sūratu’t-Talaq (Divorce) T aqwā (reverent piety and righteousness) means observing the Divine ordinances in every walk of life. Taqwā, therefore, requires obeying both the religious rules and commands and the laws of God’s creation and maintenance of the universe. We may call the former (i.e., obeying the religious rules and commands) internal piety and righteousness, and the latter the external piety and righteousness. These two dimensions of taqwā cannot be separated from each other. However, it is not easy to attain piety and righteousness in both dimensions. The verse under discussion uses the concept taqwā in its verbal form to mean keeping from disobedience to God and doing His commands in reverence for Him and in piety. The mood of the verb chosen expresses submission, admission, and adopting the action ordered with the verb used as an indispensable dimension or depth of one’s nature or character. That is, it denotes thinking, acting, and living a life in obedience to God, fulfilling His commands, refraining from His prohibitions, and following His laws of the creation and maintenance of the universe and the laws He has established for life. Thus, drawing the attention to this horizon, which seems difficult to attain, the Qur’ān declares: “Whoever keeps from disobedience to God in reverence for Him and piety, He enables a way out for him (of every difficulty).” The expression “a way out (of difficulty)” pictures a person who gets stuck in a place and wants and tries to get out. That person does whatever one should in order to escape such a situation and has recourse to every means. This is one dimension of taqwā. However, it is only God 304 Reflections on the Qur’ān Who creates our deeds and brings our efforts to the desired result. If He wills, surely He can save us from any difficulty, but as an aspect of our life and trial in the world, we must do whatever we must in order to attain the desired result. Considering the fact that it is God Almighty Who “enables a way out for him (of every difficulty),” the person who is depicted in the verse as stuck in a place cannot deliver himself from the difficulty no matter what he does to “come out of the difficulty.” But, it is the Causer of Causes Who grants a way out of difficulty for the person who turns to God and seeks refuge in Him. Indeed, the very word, “makhrajan” in the verse means not only “to go out” but also “to bring forth,” and as a noun it means not only “the place of exit” but also “the place from where anything is brought forth.” Therefore, whether we have exerted necessary efforts and expect salvation in return, or if we fall hopeless despite our efforts, we must certainly turn to God and pray. For it is God Who will bring our efforts to the desired result and take us out of every difficulty in which we have been caught. Even though God Almighty has made any attainment dependent on our efforts as a requirement of our trial in the world, no means or efforts can give the desired result. All our efforts are an excuse for God to favor us with the attainment of the desired result and therefore all our attainments are purely favors of God. But since the law of causality has blinded our eyes to this explicit truth, we may be deceived in our views and judgments. In fact, only an infinitesimal part of even ordinary volitional actions of human beings such as eating and drinking can be ascribed to human beings themselves.118 For instance, if we consider the stages of the process during which even a morsel of bread is obtained and its process of digestion in our bodies, this reality will reveal itself. In order for a morsel of bread to come into our hands, the existence and delicate cooperation of the sun, the earth with its daily and yearly movements, the air, water, and earth are necessary. In all of these universal acts, human beings have no part at all. Besides, nothing of our bodies that chew and digest bread belongs to us. It is God Who creates our bodies and maintains it. Our bodies work outside of our free will. When we consider everything and every act in the universe from this perspective, it will be clear that everything and every act bears His unique stamp or seal. He is the 118 Nursi, The Gleams (Trans.), 2008, p. 164. Sūratu’t-Talaq (Divorce) 305 Unique Creator, Provider, Maintainer, and Owner of the universe and all that lives and occurs within it. In sum, if we abstain from the unlawful, fulfill the obligatory commands in perfect sensitivity, avoid the dubious as much as possible, and even become cautious with respect to the allowable, and if we observe God’s Practice or way of dealing with His creation—which we also call God’s laws of life and creation and maintenance of the universe—God will then save us from the different degrees of difficulties into which we have fallen. He will also reward us with His favors and blessings and keep us from living a dirty life in the world. He will save us against the agonies and horror of death and the severity of the Resurrection in the other life. O God! Open us a way out of any difficulties from where we do not reckon. Reflections on the Qur’ān 306 ‫َ َب ا ّٰ ُ َ َ ً ِ َّ ۪ َ َכ َ وا ا ْ أَ َة ُ ٍح َوا ْ أَ َة ُ ٍط‬ َ َ َ ُ God presents the wife of Noah and the wife of Lot as an example for those who disbelieve. (At-Tahrı̄m 66:10) Sūratu’t-Tahrīm (Prohibition) W e may inquire about the Divine wisdom for mentioning the wives of the Prophets Noah and Lot in the Qur’ān. It is understood from the totality of the verse above that the wife of Lot did not believe in Lot and helped people commit their detestable acts. At least, she must have been among the hypocrites who betrayed Prophet Lot, upon him be peace. Hypocrites are worse than unbelievers in respect to their situation in the Hereafter. Furthermore, Prophet Lot was a foreigner in the community to which he was sent as a Prophet. He did not grow up among them. The verse, “O! Would that I had power to resist you!” (Hūd 11:80), indicates this. Thus, if a Prophet who is deprived of the physical power to resist against external attacks is betrayed by one from his own family, especially by his wife with whom he shares his life, the dreadfulness of this betrayal is easily understood. This explains why the Qur’ān mentions the betrayal of Lot’s wife. Similar things can be said of the wife of Noah, too. Reward comes in proportion to the hardship suffered, or hardship is suffered in proportion to the reward expected or given. Therefore, Noah’s wife was in the house of one of the five greatest Prophets of God, which was illumined with Divine Revelation and where there was communication with the realms beyond the heavens. Any member of this home was expected to benefit from the Divine Revelation more than all others, but as stated in the verse, “Though for the wrongdoers it (the Divine Message) increases Sūratu’t-Tahrīm (Prohibition) 307 them only in ruin” (Al-Isrā’ 17:82), Noah’s wife saw the light of the Revelation as darkness, turned remedy into pain, and became lost along the way leading to triumph. Mentioning her case will kindle the fire of fear of God in hearts and open the door ajar to the hope of salvation. There have always been so many people like these two unfortunate women that although they have been brought up in a pure environment, they have not been able to feel the breezes blowing in that environment, have lived with Hellish feelings and thoughts in so warm an atmosphere as Paradise, traveled through unbelief and betrayal in a ground from where the feelings of faith burst up, sided with unbelievers against the Prophets or the Divine Messages conveyed by the Prophets, and tried to extinguish God’s light. Without being able to appreciate the blessings they have been given, they have ruined themselves and transformed their possible benefits into loss. According to the rule, “One who incurs loss and harm knowingly and willingly is not worth pitying and showing compassion;” they have lost the right or worthiness of being pitied and enjoying mercy. In other words, they have lived in the darkness of distance or remoteness in the horizon of nearness to God and have been stuck in black holes in the climates where the sun shines. O our Lord! Grant us goodness in this world and in the Hereafter and protect us from the punishment of the Fire. Amen, O the All-Aiding! Reflections on the Qur’ān 308 ‫َ َ א ا ِإ َّא َ ِ ْ َא ُ ٰا ًא‬ ْ ‫ْ ُ ْ ِ َك ِ ِّ א أَ َ ً ا‬ َ ِّ ِ ْ ‫َ ا‬ َ ‫َّא ِ ۪ َو‬ ِ ََ ‫ُ ْ أُ ۧو ِ ِإ أَ ا‬ ٌ َ َ َ ْ ُ َّ َّ َ َ ِ ۪ َ ‫َ َ ً אۙ۝ َ ْ ۤ ي ِإ َ ا ُّ ْ َ ٰא‬ They (the jinn) said: “We have indeed heard a wonderful Qur’ān, guiding to what is right in belief and action and so we have believed in it; and we (affirm that we) will not associate any as partner with our Lord.” (Al-Jinn 72:1–2) Sūratu’l-Jinn (The Jinn) T he original of the word translated as wonderful is “‘ajabān,” which means “extraordinary and strange.” This strangeness and extraordinariness does not mean legendary or mythical. It refers to the wonders and marvels of the Qur’ān or the Qur’ān’s exquisite way of expressing things and events. Indeed, the Qur’ān presents to us so matchlessly extraordinary and strangely exquisite things that we can be aware of them through the enlivening breaths and illuminating rays of the Qur’ān. Without the Qur’ān, we would not have been able to detect and understand them. Thus, when some from among the jinn who had certain knowledge of and insight into the truths beyond material existence heard of the Qur’ān, they voiced their admiration and appreciation, saying, “We have indeed heard a wonderful, extraordinarily exquisite Qur’ān.” Without being content with hearing it, they let themselves be carried away by the Qur’ān and believed in it, exclaiming, “We have believed in it.” Since they had certain knowledge of the reality behind material existence and thus were able to remove the veils from things and events and understand to some extent their inner meanings properly, a few verses were sufficient for them to believe. How many times and in what circumstances did Prophet Muhammad, upon him be peace and blessings, meet with the jinn? I will not Sūratu’l-Jinn (The Jinn) 309 touch on this peculiar aspect of the mission of the master of masters whose physical and metaphysical lives are inextricably intertwined. In fact, such an issue, which is beyond our scope of understanding, is not within our responsibilities. What is important for us concerning this verse and the jinn is that the universal Message of the pride of humankind and jinn, upon him be peace and blessings, includes the jinn as well, and this had to be and was declared in the verse, “Say O Messenger: ‘It has been revealed to me that a company of the jinn gave ear (to my recitation of the Qur’ān), then (when they returned to their people) they said: ‘We have indeed heard a wonderful Qur’ān, guiding to what is right in belief and action, and so we have believed in it’” (Al-Jinn 72:1–2). Another lesson we should take here is the fact that while many from among the Quraysh obstinately rejected belief in the face of many miracles or miraculous things they had seen, those jinn were very fortunate to believe as soon as they heard just a few verses of the Divine Revelation, and they immediately returned to their people in order to call them to Islam. O God! Show us the truth as being true and enable us to follow it, and show us falsehood as being false and enable us to refrain from it. 310 Reflections on the Qur’ān ‫َ َ ِّכ إ ِْن َ َ َ ِ ا ِ ّ ْכ ى‬ ْ ٰ So remind and instruct (them in the truth) in case reminder and instruction may be of use. (Al-A’lā 87:9) Sūratu’l-A’lā (The Most High) I f we do not consider the reason why this and similar other verses were revealed, some inaccurate interpretations may arise, such as “Why do I continue reminding and instructing since they are of no use!” or “I have gone to them many times, but they do not pay heed,” or “Those people are not qualified to believe; therefore, it is useless to continue preaching them.” The verse says quite the opposite. It teaches those who call people to the truth the way in which they should call them and how they should act toward people. It says to them: “You should continue reminding and instructing; as stated in the verse to follow, it will be of use to those who stand in awe of God and whose hearts have signs of ‘life.’ Therefore, we should incessantly continue to convey God’s Message to others and those whose hearts are not dead will benefit from it.” Despite the verse, “(Despite the commitment and energy you show in striving to help people to believe,) those who willfully persist in unbelief: it is alike to them whether you warn them or do not warn them, they will not believe” (Al-Baqarah 2:6), who knows how many times Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, went to the unbelievers such as Abū Jahl, Utba, and Shayba, whose minds and hearts were shut off the belief, and called them to belief? Indeed, conveying God’s Message to people and calling them to believe in it is God’s command which must be fulfilled incessantly. While doing this, we should not consider whether people will accept it or not. God Almighty orders His Messenger: “O Messenger! Convey and make known in the clearest way all that has been sent down to you from your Sūratu’l-A’lā (The Most High) 311 Lord. For, if you do not, you have not conveyed His Message and fulfilled the task of His Messengership” (Al-Māedah 5:67). There is a mild warning here: even though you are fulfilling your duty of conveying My Message in the best way possible and without the least negligence, it should once more be reminded that as one with the noblest and highest character and one pursuing the loftiest of aims, you should continue fulfilling your duty in the way you have done so far.” In another verse, God declares: “You cannot guide to truth whomever you like, but God guides whomever He wills” (Al-Qasas 28:56). The Prophet’s task, as well as the task of those who convey God’s Message in every age, is conveying the Message in the way described in the Qur’ān, conscious of the fact that their duty is not securing people’s guidance. It is only God Who guides, Who creates guidance in people’s hearts, and no one else can do this. Back to the topic, in addition to the meaning mentioned above, the clause “in case reminder and instruction may be of use” also signifies this: Some people will not accept the Message. So in conveying it, we should know in advance that the Message will not be accepted by some and, therefore, not fall into despair. In awareness that it is God Who guides and will guide and that our duty is conveying the Message in the best way described in the Qur’ān and followed by our master, upon him be peace and blessings, we should continue fulfilling our duty. Those who stand in awe of God, those whose hearts have signs of life will benefit from the Message. To sum up, since our master, Prophet Muhammad, upon him be peace and blessings, was absolutely responsible for reminding, instructing, and exhorting, the conditional clause, “In case reminder and instruction may be of use,” has the meaning of emphasizing the responsibility rather than restricting it. An eloquent, powerful speech, the Qur’ān, which was revealed for the guidance and benefit of people, absolutely has the potential and capacity to give benefit. If some do not benefit from it while many others do benefit from it and are guided, that is their problem. Therefore, we should understand the verse in discussion as, “Remind and instruct, because it is definitely of use.” O God! Include us among Your servants, sincere and with pure intention, and bestow blessings and peace on the master of those sincere and with pure intention. 312 Reflections on the Qur’ān ٰ ‫َو َ ْ ٰ ِ َ ُة َ ْ ٌ َ َכ ِ َ ا ْ ُ ۧو‬ Assuredly, what comes after will be better for you than what has gone before. (Ad-Duhā 93:4) Sūratu’d-Duhā (The Forenoon) S ūratu’d-Duhā was revealed when Prophet Muhammad, upon him be peace and blessings, was having the most distressful days in Makkah. Revelation had ceased to come for a while. Umm Jamı̄l, the wife of Abū Lahab, had come to the Messenger and say in derision: “I cannot see your owner (Lord). He may have abandoned you.”119 In such an atmosphere, God consoled His Messenger120 by revealing this sūrah, in which He says: “Your Lord has not forsaken you, nor has He become displeased with you. Assuredly, what comes after will be better for you than what has gone before” (Ad-Duhā 93:3–4). If this verse is interpreted from the viewpoint of the days when it was revealed, the meaning is: “Your every new day will be better for you than the previous one, and your future will be brighter for you than your present.” In fact, history witnesses that it happened so. For his rising star and the map of his mission shined more brightly every new day than the previous. The verses following this and certain other sūrahs that were revealed after gave this same promise and drew the attention to his bright future. For instance, the Qur’anic chapters al-Inshirāh (The Expansion), which mentions some of God’s favors upon the Messenger of God, beginning with the verse, “Have We not expanded for you your breast” (94:1), and al-‘Adiyāt (The Chargers) beginning with, “By the charges that run panting; striking sparks of fire” (100:1–2), which points not only to the horses that run 119 120 Bukhārī, Tafsı̄r 93:2; Muslim, Jihād, 114–115. Bukhārī, Fadāilu’l-Qur’ān, 1. Sūratu’d-Duhā (The Forenoon) 313 panting but also other modern instruments like tanks and various other armored weaponry, became great sources of hope for our master, Prophet Muhammad, upon him be peace and blessings. They became so, for even today we picture in our mind and before our eyes a long, glorious history and a brighter future which the shining spirit of Muhammad illuminated and will illuminate, respectively. In Sūratu’d-Duhā, the dominion of a community in the realm of spirituality which will follow an individual constraint and distress shows itself in grades. There is also music of sorrow in this sūrah. But in Sūratu’l‘Adiyāt one can hear the loud, resounding sounds of successes and triumphs in physical realm. The Qur’ān chooses words according to the meaning and content so extraordinarily that those who are aware of this could not help going into raptures. The style of the chapter ad-Duhā has a unique feature from a psychological perspective as well. For example, God began it with swearing by the forenoon in consoling His Messenger, and then swore by night. Therefore, when we recite ad-Duhā (The Forenoon), we feel the shining lights of the sun illuminating the world and are exhilarated. If we can feel this after fourteen centuries in the net of too much familiarity, we cannot imagine to what great extent the leader of all Prophets, upon him be peace and blessings, felt it. May our souls be sacrificed for both he who felt this and He Who made him feel! Also, with the verse, “Assuredly, what comes after will be better for you than what has gone before,” it is stated to the Messenger that his present state of Prophethood is better than the period of his life prior to his Prophethood, and it is promised to him that his every new moment and day will be better than the previous; the future, in which God will manifest more with His Power and Mercy than with His Wisdom, will be brighter for both the Messenger and his community compared to his present distressful days; and the Madı̄nan period of his Messengership—God certainly knew beforehand that he would emigrate to Madı̄nah—will witness the wider acceptance and spread of his Message when compared with the Makkan period. The present, apparently distressful atmosphere surrounding him will change places with the atmosphere of bounties and blessings. All these and many other promises and the promise of a happy end are made primarily to that peerless one of time and space, upon him be peace and blessings, and secondarily to his followers. 314 Reflections on the Qur’ān Consequently, with the verse, “Assuredly, what comes after will be better for you than what has gone before,” it is also promised to both the Messenger and his community that they will advance from a good state to a better one, from relative good to greater, genuine good, from belief to its practice, from practice to deeper devotion and consciousness of God, from pains to innocent pleasures, from distresses to climes of contentment and exhilaration, and finally from the world to Paradise, eternal happiness, vision of God, and the eternal attainment of His approval and good pleasure. O God! We ask You for resignation and submission after any of Your judgments about us, the coolness of life after death, the delight of looking toward Your “Face,” and a zeal for returning to and meeting with You, O the Most Compassionate of the compassionate. And may God’s blessings and peace be on our master Muhammad, and on his Family and Companions! Sūratu’d-Duhā (The Forenoon) 315 ٰ ْ َ َ ‫َو َ َ ْ َف ُ ْ ۪ َכ َر ُّ َכ‬ And assuredly He will increasingly grant you His favors one after another and you will be contented. (Ad-Duhā 93:5) I t is more accurate to take the phrase in the sentence “you will be contented” to mean the maqām ar-ridā, or “the rank of being pleased with and pleasing to God.” To illustrate, our master Prophet Muhammad, upon him be peace and blessings, came to the world with the full capacity to attain this rank. This attainment was like a seed in his nature in the beginning. Just as a seed buried in the soil germinates, grows, sprouts, and becomes an elaborate tree, by God’s willing, our Prophet, upon him be peace and blessings, fully developed his potential to attain the rank of being pleased with and pleasing to God with an indescribable performance and through his extraordinary resolution and efforts, which God bestowed on him. Thus, the verse, “And assuredly He will increasingly grant you His favors one after another and you will be contented,” was glad tidings to him that he would certainly attain to the highest “rank of being pleased with God and pleasing to Him.” Indeed, the attainment of the rank of being pleased with and pleasing to God is possible for everyone according to their capacity as long as they live in obedience to God’s injunctions and prohibitions and do not waste or use in wrong ways the potential given to them by God. Also, the Arabic prefix “la,” both in the expression of “wa-la-sawfa” (where the emphatic prefix “la” is used in conjunction with the future particle of “sawfa,” all of which give the sentence a future and certain definite positive and convincing significance) in this verse and in the expression of “wa-la’l-ākhiratu” (Assuredly, what comes after, especially the Hereafter) in the previous verse, which is, “Assuredly, what comes after will be better for you than what has gone before,” has the characteristics of both being a particle of oath and an affirmative intensifying particle that is used as a corroborative. Therefore, the happy end of being pleased with God and pleasing to Him is forcefully promised to God’s Messenger in the previous verse, and 316 Reflections on the Qur’ān this promise is corroborated and confirmed in the one under discussion. That is, his Lord, God Almighty, will raise Prophet Muhammad, upon him be peace and blessings, to the highest horizon of all virtues and perfections by perfecting him through pains and innocent rejoices, distress and relief, and he will finally find himself in cascades of contentment as the reward of his physical, spiritual, and intellectual exertions and efforts. This will certainly take some time. But just as his every new moment will be better than the previous one, his final attainment, which will manifest itself in both the world and the Hereafter according to the conditions and features of each, will be indescribable. Then, there will be no reason for both the leader, the Prophet, and the followers, his community, to have anxiety or to be grieved and worry. The leader will enjoy full satisfaction on behalf of both himself and his community and taste all the enjoyments of attaining to the “rank of being pleased with God and pleasing to Him.” The Eternal One will respond to the attainment of this rank by raising both the leader and the followers to the peaks of contentment and turning drops into oceans and particles into suns, each according to their capacity and by eternalizing them. He will exalt the leader with making him the owner of the “station of glory and praise,” which is mentioned in the verse, “Your Lord may well raise you to a glorious, praised station” (Al-Isrā’ 17:79), and bestow on the followers the blessing of reaching the same status according to the capacity of each of them. O God! Include us among Your servants who praise You often, and resurrect us under the banner of Muhammad, upon whom be peace and blessings. Sūratu’l-Inshirāh (The Expansion) 317 ْ َ ْ ‫َ ِ َذا َ َ ْ َ َ א‬ Therefore, when you are free (from one task), resume (another task). (Al-Inshirāh 94:7) Sūratu’l-Inshirāh (The Expansion) T his verse presents Muslims with an important philosophy of life. Indeed, a believer should always be active; both their working and resting should be an activity. In other words, believers should arrange their working hours in such a way that there should be no gaps in their lives. In fact, as a requirement of being a human, people should rest as well, yet this kind of resting should be an active resting. For instance, when people whose minds are busy with reading and writing become tired, they can rest by lying and sleeping, but they can also rest by changing the work or activity they do. They may read the Qur’ān, perform the Prayer, do physical exercise, or engage in a friendly conversation. After a while, they can return to their normal activity. In sum, it must be the manner of believers that they are always active and remain active by changing activities. That is, they rest by working and work while resting. If we consider this matter in relation to the service of belief and the Qur’ān, it can be said that we enjoy the bounties and blessings that God bestows for nothing in return. God Almighty has created us as humans and has honored us with Islam and with the service to the faith and the Qur’ān. This is manifest in the lives of many people among us. For example, many wealthy people who pursue God’s good pleasure and desire to serve both their society and humanity at large rent out houses that accommodate many poor and talented students. Without being content with this, they build hostels for the accommodation of greater numbers of students and open private schools for their education in better and more favorable conditions. In the face of the sincere demands of some “hearts” that desire serving humanity in much broader spheres, God has given them the opportunity to open schools 318 Reflections on the Qur’ān or other institutions of education throughout the world. They taste the pleasure of serving lofty ideals in the highest degrees. In sum, at every point where many have suffered worries about whether there is no longer room for volunteering services, God Almighty has opened new fields of service before them. This means that the meaning of the verse, “When you are free (from one task), resume (another task),” manifests itself systematically in our lives whether or not we are aware of this. Essentially, believers have no other alternatives than to act in such a manner. First of all, every bounty that God grants to the believers is very great. His creating us as human beings is a bounty; good health is another bounty. Belief and perception of these as God’s bounties with the light of belief is another, greater, bounty. Eating and drinking and anticipating eternal bounties are other great bounties. In fact, everything is a bounty for us; we are surrounded by bounties. However, unfortunately, we cannot appreciate their worth due to our over-familiarity with them and thus fail to give proper thanks for them. While people in many countries suffer deprivations, many others die or are left widows or orphans or without children in pitiless wars, and still many others are in the darkness of unbelief or in the clutches of tyrannical regimes, it is a great blessing that we follow right guidance, have possibilities to fulfill our duty of worship, and do not suffer as much as many before us have suffered because of their belief. Therefore, we should always be active, hasting from one activity to the other, fulfill the duties that fall upon us within the framework of services rendered for God’s sake and for the happiness of humanity, and experience fully the spiritual pleasures that are intrinsic to activities themselves. Indeed, it is out of question for believers to stop and demand a comfortable, lazy life thinking that there is nothing left to do. What is expected from believers is that they engage in another good and positive activity when they are free from the previous one. They find rest in exertion and make rest the beginning of another exertion; they experience ease in hardships and make ease a propitious ground for overcoming hardships. Believing that the metaphysical and the physical are the two faces of a whole unity or complete each other to form unity, they live without leaving any gaps in their lives. O God! Guide us to what You love and are pleased with, and may God’s blessings and peace be upon our master Muhammad, the chosen one with whom God is pleased!