Beware!

Qur'aanic Verse 82:19:

Transliteration:

19. Yawma la tamliku nafsun linafsin shay-an waal-amru yawma-ithin lillahi

Translation:

19. That Day no creature shall be of any avail to another. And Allah’s shall be the sole command that Day!²

^{Study Note:}

2. Christians, who are sure their Christ [peace on him] will take them to Paradise, beware! And Muslims, who claim that whatever their deeds here in this world their Muhammad [peace on him] will ensure their entry into Jannah, beware!

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An extract from yet-to-be-published Qur'aanic Studies Manzil VII.

Mohammad Shafi

Muhammad in Bible

Qur'aanic Verse 61_6:

Transliteration:

6. Wa-ith qala AAeesa ibnu maryama ya banee isra-eela innee rasoolu Allahi ilaykum musaddiqan limabayna yadayya mina alttawrati wamubashshiran birasoolin ya/tee min baAAdee ismuhu ahmadu falamma jaahum bialbayyinati qaloo hatha sihrun mubeenun

Translation:

6. And when Jesus son of Mary said, “O Children of Israel! I am the Messenger of Allah to you confirming what was there in the Torah before me and giving good tidings of a Messenger to come after me. His name is to be Ahmed [Praised One].”² Yet when he has come to them with clear evidences, they say, “This is magic manifest!”

Study Note:

2. Watch this YouTube video.

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An extract from yet-to-be-published Qur'aanic Studies Manzil VII.

Mohammad Shafi

Treaty of Hudaibiah

Qur'aanic Verse 48:1:

Transliteration:

1. Inna fatahna laka fathan mubeenan

Translation:

1. We have indeed granted you a clear victory.¹

^{Study Note:}

1. Verses occurring later in this Chapter indicate that the victory mentioned here is neither that at the battle of Badr nor the conquest of Mecca. In between those two events, Prophet Muhammad [peace on him] had set off from Medina, with some of his companions, to perform Umrah at Mecca which was still in the hands of the polytheists. On their way, the party was stopped at a place called Hudaibiah and not allowed to proceed further. Negotiations between the party and the Meccans followed, wherein, the Muslims agreed to return to Medina that year, and the Meccans agree to allow them to come for the pilgrimage next year. Although the treaty enabled peace for the future propagation of Islam, certain terms therein were apparently humiliating for the Musims. Therefore, most of the Muslims could not then understand why it was being called a victory. They nevertheless reiterated there their oath of allegiance to the Prophet. Only later on did they realize that the extended period of peace they gained was the real victory; for, Islam spread rapidly therein.

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The above is an extract from yet-to-be-published Qur'aanic Studies Manzil VI.

Mohammad Shafi

Meaning of Arabic Word 'Aalameen'

Qur'aanic Verse 1:2:

Transliteration:

2. Alhamdu lillahi rabbi alAAalameena


Translation:

2. The praise is for Allah, Lord of the worlds <sup>5


Study Note:</sup>

5.  This is the dictionary meaning of the Arabic word aalameen. It is in plural: worlds, and not world. In most of the places where this word has been used in the Qur'aan, it is accompanied by the word Rabb, as in this place. But there are a few places where it isn't, as in Verses 2:47, 3:97, 6:86, 6:90, 21:107 and 29:6. A close study of these latter Verses would show that the word is used in the same sense as in the sentence, "My world is different from yours." Every individual life is one's own individual world in the sense that his/her environment, conditions of living, circle of contacts etc. are different from others'. One's own world is, in other words, one's own individual life. It is to these millions of individual worlds that the Qur'aan refers to as aalameen. Allah thus declares that He is the Rabb of every individual life. If every individual would but submit completely to His will and obey His commands as given in the Qur'aan, the Lord will surely nourish and lead the individual's life to Success and Salvation! In the phrase Rabbulaalameen, however, aalameen would include jinns, angels, all living things (besides human) and all inanimate things in the entire universe as well. Refer in this context Moses’ reply to Pharaoh in Verses 24, 26 and 28 of Chapter 32. (Manzil V).

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The above is derived from Qur'aanic Studies Manzil I

Mohammad Shafi

Hadeeth

Qur'aanic Verse 7:185:

Transliteration:

185. Awalam yanthuroo fee malakooti alssamawati waal-ardi wama khalaqa Allahu min shay-in waan AAasa an yakoona qadi iqtaraba ajaluhum fabi-ayyi hadeethin baAAdahu yu/minoona

Translation:

185. Do they not ponder over the kingdom of the heavens and the earth and whatever things Allah has created, and over the likelihood of their own death being near? What hadeeth⁷⁴ would they then believe in after this?

Study Note:

74. This Arabic word has been used in the Qur’aan variously in the meanings of (i) story, (ii) discourse, (iii) speech, or (iv) the Qur’aan itself. In the context of the preceding sentence, in this very Verse, the word here could connote the broad statement as under:

The orderly behaviour of the entire universe gives enough proof of the existence of a super-intelligent Being faultlessly governing it. When that Being can so control such a gigantic thing, He can obviously do the far less complex task of managing and controlling, inter alia, every human life. It is this Being – Whom we call Allah – that is guiding mankind in the proper conduct of their lives, through this Qur’aan. Every human being should grasp this Reality before it is too late. No one knows when death would come. It may be just round the corner.

But the word hadeeth came to acquire another meaning after the completion of the revelation of the Qur’aan, and the departure of the Prophet from this world. Centuries after the death of the Prophet, his orally reported sayings, and those of his companions, came to be recorded in writing. And these recorded sayings came to be known as ahaadeeth (plural of hadeeth). Allah Almighty knows all about the future. And at the time of the revelation of this Verse, He was aware of this future meaning of the term hadeeth. He (Allah), in that sense, is disapprovingly hinting here at future generations of the Muslim Ummah believing in such man-influenced, error-prone ahaadeeth in preference to the well-explained teachings in the Qur’aan, which can also be taken as referred to by the pronoun hu in baAAdahu of the Arabic text. The Verse is thus telling us categorically that the Qur’aan is the best hadeeth; one need not go after other ahaadeeth. 

Gravely Deluded

Qur'aanic Verse 39:43:

Transliteration:

43. Ami ittakhathoo min dooni Allahi shufaAAaa qul awa law kanoo la yamlikoona shay-an walayaAAqiloona

Translation:

43. Or have they taken intercessors other than Allah? Say, “Can they intercede even if they have no power and do not even understand?”⁸

^{Study Note:}

8. This Verse tells us in no uncertain terms that no one, repeat no one, can intercede with the Omniscient Allah. But in flagrant disobedience of this clear-cut guidance of the Qur’aan, most Muslims say that Prophet Muhammad shall intercede for them! And the Christians are sure their Christ will take them to Paradise, whatever their crimes here in this wicked world!! Both communities are gravely deluded.

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The above is an extract from yet-to-be-published Qur'aanic Studies Manzil VI.

Mohammad Shafi

Crux and Motto of a Believer's Life

Qur'aanic Verse 39:2:

Transliteration:

2. Inna anzalna ilayka alkitaba bialhaqqi faoAAbudi Allaha mukhlisan lahu alddeena


Translation:

2. We have revealed the Book to you [Prophet Muhammad] in Truth, indeed! Worship Allah, then, consecrating your lifestyle exclusively for Him.¹

^{Study Note:}

1. Consecrating his/her lifestyle exclusively for Allah is the crux and motto of a believer’s life. When one so consecrates one’s lifestyle, one does not suppress the truth as one knows it even when the truth is against one’s own interests. If I suppress the truth in such a circumstance, I grievously fail the test divinely laid for me to check my belief!

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The above is an extract from yet-to-be-published Qur'aanic Studies Manzil VI.

Mohammad Shafi

In Deep Slumber

Qur'aanic Verse 38:88:

Transliteration:

88. WalataAAlamunna nabaahu baAAda heenin

et-to-be-published

Translation:

88. “And you will certainly come to know its [Qur’aan’s] Message [of the greatest importance] after some time! ¹⁴”

Study Note:

14. Within a decade of the complete revelation of the Qur’aan, the Islamic State under Khalif Omar had already become the greatest power on earth. And during the next few centuries, Muslims had become the torch-bearers in almost all fields of human activity like science, medicine, technology etc. Muslims could have this achievement because they had then, by and large, grasped the importance of the Qur’aan and followed its tenets in their lives. The Muslims’ suzerainty however vanished after the majority of them started treating the Qur’aan as a thing of no importance! History has thus registered the importance of the Qur’aan in no uncertain terms. But man, alas, continues to be in deep slumber.

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The above is an extract from yet-to-be-published Qur'aanic Studies Manzil VI.

Mohammad Shafi

King David

Translations of Qur'aanic Verses 38:21 to 39:24:

21. And has the information of the litigants come to your knowledge when they climbed over the walls of (King David’s) private chamber?

22. When they confronted David, he shrank back in fear of them. They said, “Fear not! We are two litigants. One of us has wronged the other. So judge between us with justice, and deviate not from what is right, and show both of us the right path.”

23. “This man here is my brother. He has ninety-nine ewes, whereas I have one ewe. And he asks me to hand over to him even the one I have. And he prevailed over me in the discourse we had.”

24. David said (to the complainant), “He has certainly wronged you by demanding that your ewe be added to his ewes! And indeed do many associates – except those who believe in Allah and do righteous deeds – wrong one another; but how few are those exceptions!” And David at once realized that We had tested him (by presenting to him the case of the ewes)! And so he asked his Lord to forgive him, and bowed down, and turned to Him in repentance.⁵

^{Study Note:}

5. In all probability the two litigants were angels sent by Allah Ta’ala to teach King David a lesson. Undoubtedly, the King had committed some unnamed impropriety, unbecoming of a Prophet King of his high stature. A safe bet is to assume that the King’s impropriety was of the nature of the impropriety involved in the litigants’ case. But since Allah almighty has thought it fit not to specifically name the King’s impropriety, we should better avoid echoing what Chritian scriptures (Old Testament) unabashedly accuse the King of committing an undoubtedly sinful act. The accusation has to be patently false since Allah Almighty could not have chosen a man committing such a heinous crime as His Prophet. The Christian scripture containing this accusation is not purely divine as the Qur’aan is. It is of the nature of the man-influenced and error-prone Ahaadeeth which too contain some unpalatable and unsavoury things about our own Prophet Muhammad (peace on him). What King David might have done could only be described as an impropriety not amounting to sin. And as the next Verse below informs us Allah forgave King David.

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The above is an extract from yet-to-be-published Qur'aanic Studies Manzil VI.

Mohammad Shafi

Tooth for a Tooth

Islamic jurisprudence, as delineated in the Qur'aan, allows or permits retaliation by the a victim of any injustice done. But no excess of any kind is allowed. And the retaliation has strictly to be of the like kind and extent, as famously exemplified by the saying: 'a tooth for a tooth and an eye for an eye'.

Now take the case of an American Jew making a derogatory film against Prophet Muhammad (peace on him). Muslims are naturally offended. But the retaliation permitted to them has to be of the like kind and extent. So, the Muslims can at most make a film derogatory to Prophet Moses (peace on him). But can they do this? They can't! Their religion directs them to respect Prophet Moses as much as they respect their own Prophet Muhammad. Now, what can they do in these circumstances? They can of course denounce the Jew making the film and explain to the world at large why the film is based on falsehoods and canards. They can then patiently wait for Allah's decision in the matter. Although their religion allows retaliation, it prefers for them forgiveness and patience.

And what do the Muslims factually do? They indulge in mindless violence against parties not directly connected with the Jew in question and issue death threats to him! They thus go brazenly against the dictates of their own religion to incur divine wrath on themselves.