Lesson From The Qur’an

Mawlana Mufti Muhammad Shafi (RA)

 

Verses 154 - 157وَلَا تَقُولُوا لِمَنْ يُقْتَلُ فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ أَمْوَاتٌ بَلْ أَحْيَاءٌ وَلَكِنْ لَا تَشْعُرُونَ () وَلَنَبْلُوَنَّكُمْ بِشَيْءٍ مِنَ الْخَوْفِ وَالْجُوعِ وَنَقْصٍ مِنَ الْأَمْوَالِ وَالْأَنْفُسِ وَالثَّمَرَاتِ وَبَشِّرِ الصَّابِرِينَ () الَّذِينَ إِذَا أَصَابَتْهُمْ مُصِيبَةٌ قَالُوا إِنَّا لِلَّهِ وَإِنَّا إِلَيْهِ رَاجِعُونَ () أُولَئِكَ عَلَيْهِمْ صَلَوَاتٌ مِنْ رَبِّهِمْ وَرَحْمَةٌ وَأُولَئِكَ هُمُ الْمُهْتَدُونَ ()And do not say of those who are slain in the way of Allah that they are dead. Instead, they are alive, but you perceive not. And surely We will test you with a hit of fear and hunger, and loss in wealth and lives and fruits. And give good tidings to the patient who, when suffering comes to them, say: "We certainly belong to Allah, and to Him we are bound to return." Those are the ones upon whom there are blessings from their Lord, and mercy. And those are the ones who are on the right path. Earlier, alluding to an unpleasant incident, patience and steadfastness were inculcated and the excellence of Sabirun (the patient people) was mentioned. The next verses mention, in some detail, other unpleasant incidents and culminate in describing the excellence of patience, and perseverance in it. Those verses give preference to the theme of war with infidels over other themes for two reasons: first, the sacrifice of life is a grand sacrifice; whoever steadfastly endures this loss will, undoubtedly, learn to be patient on losses of lesser magnitude; second, it is relevant to the situation too, as the objectionist on the orientation of Ka'bah had been facing it. Injunctions and related considerations:According to Islamic traditions the dead person is given some kind of a "new life" in Barzakh (An intermediary stage which begins with death and stretches till the Doomsday.) which develops in him sensitivity to punishment and reward. Regardless of whether one is a believer or disbeliever, virtuous or vicious, this taste of life-in-Barzakh is given to everybody. However, the life there has many categories: one of them is for the general lot, while some others are for prophets and virtuous people. The later ones vary in their degree of excellence. A number of scholars have collected relevant facts to assert their points of views about the life-in-Barzakh. All of them cannot be summed up here. I will restrict myself here, to presenting the considered and the very balanced view of my worthy teacher Maulana Ashraf Ali of Thana Bhawan; incidentally, his view is in close conformity with the teachings of the Holy Qur'an, as also, those of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam). The Martyrs are not deadOne who dies in the cause of Allah is a Shahid (Martyr) and, although, it is correct and even allowed to call him "dead", yet we are forbidden to regard their death like ordinary deaths. For, though, life in Barzakh is given to everybody which gives him perception of reward and punishment but Shahid in the Barzakh life is qualitatively different from the one given to other persons. The distinction a Shahid has over others in Barzakh is that in effect, for the fullness and sensitivity of life, his perception is, keener and deeper. As, for instance, the life sensation is there in finger tips, as also, it is there in heels, but the sensitivity of finger tips is sharper than that of heels. The effect of the finer life-quality of a Shahid in Barzakh reaches his physical body as well; whereas ordinarily bodies remain unaffected. Consequently, a Shahid's body does not waste away, decay or mingle with dust. On the contrary it retains it freshness and a semblance of being alive too. This is duly endorsed by Ahadith and observations. They are, therefore, reported as living and we are forbidden to call them dead. However, for all worldly purposes they are treated at par with the dead; their properties are divided and their wives can remarry. Lives of prophets in Barzakh have a further distinction. Their life-sensitivity is even finer and keener than that of Shahids. In Barzakh their bodies retain their life-quality and, in some ways, its manifestation is extended to this life as well; their properties are not divided and their wives cannot again enter into wedlock.The most strong in the retention of this life-quality are the prophets, then are the Shahids, then the ordinary human beings. Nevertheless, according to some ahadith some of the men of Allah and virtuous people share this excellence with Shahids. Apparently, those who die while exercising stringent discipline against their selves (مجاهد النفس) are ranked with Shahids. In other words, though this verse specifically refers to Shahids as against the broad humanity, it does not, for that reason, exclude the virtuous and the truthful. If, therefore, the body of a,Shahid returns to dust, as bodies of ordinary persons, generally do, the chances are that the person did not, perhaps, die in the cause of Allah which is the only criterion of martyrdom (Shahddah).In case a person who fulfilled all the prerequisites of martyrdom and, beyond, any doubt, died in the cause of Allah and whose martyrdom (Shahadah) has been unmistakably and repeatedly demonstrated, his body must not, on the authority of a Hadith, return to dust. If, in spite of Ahadith, the body mingles with earth (what, in fact, has made the author of Ruh al-Ma'ani doubt is how can, in spite of Ahadith, the body of a Shahid be eaten away by earth) the explanation would be that according to Hadith the body would not return to dust; however, it does not deny the process of decay and decomposition caused by other factors like geo-chemical reaction, body enzymes, and bacteria. Neither does it confute the verse.Other compound objects like weapons, medicines, food, and the 'commingling of various natural elements like water, fire and air had, undoubtedly, their effects on the bodies of prophets in this world and, obviously, the life-quality of Shahid in Barzakh is not superior to that of the prophets in this world; if, therefore, the other ingredients register their impact on the bodies of Shahids in Barzakh it does not confute, in any sense, the meanings ofAhadith which say the Shahids' bodies are sacred to earth.Another answer is that the distinction which Shahids have over others is apparent from the fact that, comparatively, their bodies remain unspoiled for a pretty long time, although the liklihood of their disintegration in the longer run does exist. The aim of the hadith should, therefore, be explained by saying that the immunity from decay for such a long time is, in itself, an excess on the customary behaviour of dead bodies. Eternal preservation and preservation for a considerable long time, both are an "excess on the customary behaviour" of dead bodies.By the words, “لا تشعرون” “you perceive not”, the Holy Qur'an asserts the fact that the life in Barzakh transcends all sensory perceptions. Patience in hardship: The way to make it easyThe nature and the significance of the severe test man is put to by Allah has been thoroughly discussed while explaining the verse وإذ ابتلى إبراهيم ربه : 'And when his Lord put Ibrahim to a test'.Whatever their magnitude, accidents are unnerving. But a prior knowledge of such accidents makes it easier to bear them and be patient about them. Since the entire Ummah is addressed here, the Ummah should realize that the world is a place of hardships and labour; it is a place of ordeal. It will not, therefore, amount to impatience if one does regard such accidents as either strange or a remote chance. And as the Ummah, generally, displays the spirit of patience in all its deeds, the reward of Mercy is common to everyone who strives to be patient. But as the quality and degree of patience varies from person to person, everyone will be rewarded individually according to and commensurate with his quality of patience. A formula of peace in hardship That the patient people used to recite: إنا لله و إنا إليه راجعون : 'We belong to Allah and to Him we are to return' is, in fact, an inculcation of the principle of virtue. The suggestion is that this is what the patient people should say as  Verse 158إِنَّ الصَّفَا وَالْمَرْوَةَ مِنْ شَعَائِرِ اللَّهِ فَمَنْ حَجَّ الْبَيْتَ أَوِ اعْتَمَرَ فَلَا جُنَاحَ عَلَيْهِ أَنْ يَطَّوَّفَ بِهِمَا وَمَنْ تَطَوَّعَ خَيْرًا فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ شَاكِرٌ عَلِيمٌ ()Indeed the Safa and the Marwah are among the marks from Allah. So whoever conies to the House for Hajj or performs the 'Umrah, there is no sin for him if he makes rounds between them; whoever comes up on his own with good, so Allah is Appreciating, All-Knowing. The subject of the Ka'bah, as we would do well to recollect, started all the way back from Verse 124 و إذ ابتلى إبراهيم ربه : 'And when his Lord put Ibrahim to a test', later opening with the statement that the Ka'bah was made a place for repeated convergence, a sanctuary, and a centre of divine worship as ordained (125). Then came the famous prayer of Sayyidna Ibrahim (AS) in which he requested Allah Almighty that he and his people be initiated into the correct method of performing the manasik, the required rites, or acts of worship (126 - 129); which is inclusive of the Hajj and 'Umrah. We can now see that the centrality of the House of Allah as the place of worship has been expressed manifestly when it was declared to be the Qiblah, the direction and orientation of all Salah, no matter where it is performed; while at the same time, the importance of the House of Allah was established when it was made the objective in the performance of the Hajj and 'Umrah. The present verse opens with the solemn declaration that the two hills, Safa and Marwah adjoining the Ka'bah in Makkah, are tangible signs from Allah. Pilgrims walk briskly between them after they have made the tawaf of the Holy Ka'bah. This act of walking briskly or "making rounds" between them, as the Qur'an elects to call it, is known as Sa'y: سعى a practice which was there even in the Jahiliyyah and which made Muslims doubt its propriety. It is exactly this doubt Allah Almighty aims to remove here.So, there it was in the earlier treatment of the subject that Allah Almighty eliminated the objection raised by disbelievers against the instituting of the Ka'bah as the Qiblah of Muslim Salah and here, through a correlated assertion, the doubt of Muslims themselves as to the propriety of Sa'y in the Hajj and 'Umrah, of which the Ka'bah is the desired hub, has been removed.That the text is closely bound together by this reason is not difficult to see. Some terms and their meanings1. The term, Sha'a'ir in شعائر الله is the plural form of Sha'irah: شعره which means a sign, mark or token. So, the "Sha'd'ir of Allah" signify what He has determined to be the marks of Islamic faith.2. Lexically, Hajj means to aim, to intend; while, in the terminology of the Qur'an and Hadith, the act of deciding to go solely on a pilgrimage of the House of Allah and performing required rites while there, is called the Hajj.3. Lexically, 'Umrah means ziyarah or pilgrimage; while, in the terminology of the Shari'ah, the visit to al-Masjid al-Haram and the doing of tawafand sa'y there is called 'Umrah. Sa'y between Safa and Marwah is ObligatoryDetails of the method that governs the performance of the Hajj, 'Umrah and Sa'y are easily available in books of Fiqh. It may be noted that Sa'y is a mustahabb (desirable or commendable) practice of the Holy Prophet (Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam) according to Imam Ahmad; a fard (absolute obligation) according to Imams Malik and Shafi'i; and a wajib (necessity) according to Imam Abu Hanifah, which means, one who abandons it would have to slaughter a goat in compensation.

It is advisable to guard against a possible doubt that may arise while reading the words used in the verse under study. One may think that the Qur'an simply says that making Sa'y between Safa and Marwah is 'no sin'; at the most, it proves that it is one of the many 'allowed' acts. This approach can be corrected by looking at the leading expression لا جناح :'no sin' which has been used here in relation to a question. The question related to all those idols sitting on top of the Safa and Marwah hills and it was to show their devotion to them that the people of the Jahiliyyah used to do sa'y between Safa and Marwah, and in which case, this practice should be haram (forbidden). It is in answer to this doubt that it was declared, "there is no sin" in it. This being the real and authentic Abrahamic Tradition, there is no reason why it should be considered tainted with 'sin'? The 'malpractice' of a pagan band of people in this intervening period does not end up making a 'sin' of what is 'good' in the sight of Allah. The use of the expression 'no sin', therefore, does not go against its being wajib or necessary.