Alhassanain(p) Network for Heritage and Islamic Thought

Footnote

1. since the author has described the branches of virtuous characteristics in the text in tree form, and in the explanatory figure (of the original work) he has also chosen the tree form representation, we therefore have duplicated the explanatory figure in the same manner (pub.)

Suratul Baqarah: Verse 158

إِنَّ الصَّفَا وَالْمَرْ‌وَةَ مِن شَعَائِرِ‌ اللَّـهِ فَمَنْ حَجَّ الْبَيْتَ أَوِ اعْتَمَرَ‌ فَلَا جُنَاحَ عَلَيْهِ أَن يَطَّوَّفَ بِهِمَا وَمَن تَطَوَّعَ خَيْرً‌ا فَإِنَّ اللَّـهَ شَاكِرٌ‌ عَلِيمٌ ﴿١٥٨﴾

Surely the Safa and the Marwah are among the signs of Allah; so whoever makes a pilgrimage to the House or per-forms 'umrah thereof, there is no blame on him to go round them both; and whoever on his own accord does good, then surely Allah is Grateful, All-knowing (158).

General Comment

The Safa and the Marwah are two places in Mecca between which a pilgrim has to performas-sa'y اَلسـَّعْيُ ) = the ceremony of walking quickly seven times between the Safa and the Mar­wah, during the hajj and the 'umrah; literally to move quickly, to run).

These are two hills, the distance between them reportedly being 760½ arm.as-Safa الصَّفَا )= hard smooth rock);al-Marwah (اَلمَرْوَة ُ = hard stone).ash-Sha'a'ir ( اَلشـَّعَائـِرُ ) is the plural ofash-sha'irah اَلشـَّعِيرَةُ ) = sign); from it is derived the wordal-mash'ar المَشْعَرُ ) = the hajj station, east of Mecca); also they say,ash'ara ‘l-hady أشْعَرَ الهَدْيَ ) = he marked or branded the sacrifical animal).

Al-Hajj ( الحَـجُّ ) literally means repeated intention; in Islamic terminology it refers to the special rites collectively known as Pilgrimage of Mecca.al-I'timar ( اَلإعْتِمَارُ ) means to visit; it is derived fromal- 'imarah العِمَارَةُ ) = building) because buildings thrive by visits; in Islamic language it refers to the so-called “lesser pilgrimage” to the Ka'bah, which unlike the hajj, need not be performed at a particular time and whose performance involves fewer ceremonies.

al-Junah ( الجُنَاحُ ) is deviation from truth and justice; it is used for sin and misdemeanour; thus, negation of sin or blame implies permission.at-Tatawwuf ( اَلتـَّطـَوُّفُ ) is derived from at-tawf ( اَلطـَّوَافُ ), that is, to make the rounds.

It denotes a round trip, that is, a journey or walk that ends at its starting point; it need not necessarily be a circumambulation around something (although circumambulation is more obvious ap­plication of the word); it is the former meaning in which it has been used in this verse - it refers to as-sa'y, that is, walking between the Safa and the Marwah seven times consecutively.

At-Tatawwu' ( اَلتَّطـَوُّعُ ) is derived fromat-taw' اَلطَّوْعُ ) = to do a walk willingly and gladly). Some people differentiate between at-tatawwu' andal-ita'ah ( اَلإطـَاعَة ُ ) and say that the former, unlike the latter, is exclusively used for voluntarily done good deeds.

If correct, this assertion might be based on the view that the obligatory deeds - because of their obligatoriness - are probably not done willingly, unlike the voluntary and recom­mended actions which are done willingly by one's own accord.

But it is a far-fetched interpretation. In fact,at-taw' ( اَلطَّوْعُ ) is opposite ofal-kurh اَلكـُرْهُ ) = dislike), and is not irreconcilable with obligatory deeds. Allah says:

... so He said to it (i.e., the heaven) and to the earth: “Come both, willingly or unwillingly” (41:11).

The characteristic meaning of the paradigmat-tafa''ul ( اَلتّفـَعُّلُ ) is to take to oneself, for example,tamayyaza تـَمَيَّزَ ) = he took on distin-guishing),ta'allama تـَعَلـَّمَ ) = he took on learning); in the same waytatawwa'a ( تـَطَوَّعَ ) means, he took on doing good willingly.

In short, at-tatawwu' is not reserved, from the linguistic point of view, for voluntary, non-obligatory good deed - unless credit is given to the usage of the common people.

Commentary

Qur’an:Surely the Safa and the Marwah are among the signs of Allah... to go round them both: The two hills are marked by the signs of Allah; they lead accordingly to Him and remind one of Him.

They have been especially counted “among the signs of Allah” to the exclusion of other things; it shows that the word, “the signs” has not been used here in the sense in which every created thing is a sign of the Creator.

They are the Divine Signs because Allah has made them so, by appointing them as the places of His worship; thus they remind one of Allah, the Creator. They are the signs for which Allah has prescribed especial rites of worship.

Then comes the next sentence: “so whoever makes a pil­grimage to the House or performs 'umrah thereof, there is no blame on him to go round them both. The word “so” in the beginning shows that it is an offshoot of the preceding sentence.

Its import is to show that walking quickly between these two hills is a part of the Islamic shari'ah - it does not imply that the said walking is voluntary or non-obligatory.

If Allah had wanted to declare its voluntariness, it would have been more appropriate to praise and extol as-sa'y, rather than saying that there was no blame in it. The gist of the meaning is that - because the Safa and the Marwah were among the places of the worship of Allah - it would do you no harm to worship Him therein.

And it is the language of legislation. If Allah had wanted to show only its desirability, He would have said that, because the two hills were among the signs of Allah, He likes you to go round them.

Frequently, when the Qur'an wants to ordain an obligatory law, it uses such expressions which by themselves do not show obligatoriness. For example, Allah says regarding jihad;

that is better for you (61:11);

regarding fast:

and that you fast is better for you (2:184),

and regarding shortening of prayer:

And when you journey in the earth, there is no blame on you if you shorten the prayer (4:101).

Qur’an:and whoever on his own accord does good, then surely Allah is Grateful, All-knowing: The conjunctive “and” may be joining this sentence to any of the three phrases in the preceding one:‑

It may connect it with “so whoever makes a pilgrimage... ”. In that case it would show a more general reason for the legislation of the walking between the two hills, after giving the particular reason, that is, “Surely the Safa and the Marwah are among the signs of Allah.”

According to this interpretation, “doing good on one's own accord” would mean “obedience” in general term, and not a voluntary deed.

It may be starting a new sentence, joining it to the words in the beginning of the verse. In that case, “doing good on one's own accord” would refer to the “going round the two hills”. Thus it would show only the desirability of as-sa'y (walking quickly seven times between Safa and the Marwah).

Alternatively, the phrase “doing good on one's own according” may be referring to the hajj and the 'umrah, and the phrase would show the desirability of these two rites of worship.

Ash-Shakir اَلشَّاكِرُ ) = Grateful) andal-'Alim اَلعَليْمُ ) = All-knowing) are two of the beautiful names of Allah.ash-Shukr اَلشُّكْرُ ) = gratefulness, thankfulness). When a beneficiary returns the benevolence of the benefactor by announcing it in words and/ or deeds, it is called gratefulness.

Someone gives you a property, and in return you praise him mentioning his benevolence, or use that property in a way he likes - and thus you show your gratefulness to him.

Now, Allah is the Beneficent; His beneficence is eternal and all beneficence begins from Him; none can oblige Him in any way so that He would be grateful to that person. Yet, He, in His benevolence, looks at His creatures' good deeds as though the creatures have been beneficent to Him by doing those deeds (although, in reality the case is diametrically different; the crea­tures' good deeds are actually His benefaction to them).

And thus he repays those good deeds with gratefulness and benevolence, which in fact is a double benevolence. Allah says:

Is the reward of goodness aught but goodness? (55:60);

Surely this is a reward for you, and your striving shall be recompensed (76:22).

Thus, the name “Grateful” is used for Allah in its real, not allegorical sense.

Traditions

One of our companions has narrated this tradition from as-Sadiq (a.s.). He says: “I asked him about walking between the Safa and the Marwah whether it was obligatory or voluntary. He said: 'Obligatory.' I said: 'Does not Allah say:so whoever makes a pilgrimage to the House or performs 'umrah thereof, there is no blame on him to go round them both?'

He said: 'It was in the 'umrah of Qada'1 ; that is, the Messenger of Allah (S) had stipulated with them (i.e., the pagans of Mecca) that they would remove the idols (for the period of 'umrah); and one of his companions was engaged otherwise until the idols were returned (to their places): (The Imam) said:

'Then Allah revealed:Surely the Safa and the Marwah are among the signs of Allah; so whoever makes a pilgrimage to the House or performs 'umrahthereof, there is no blame on him to go round them both, i.e., even when there were idols on them.' ” (al-'Ayyashi )

The author says: A nearly similar tradition is found in al-Kafi.

as-Sadiq (a.s.) says describing the hajj of the Prophet: “After circumambulating around the House and praying its two rak'ahs, (the Prophet) recited:Surely the Safa and the Marwah are among the signs of Allah. (Then he said:)

'So I shall begin with that which Allah, the Mighty, the Great, has begun with (i.e., from the Safa).' And verily the Muslims used to think that walking between the Said and the Marwah was something invented by the polytheists; so Allah revealed:

Surely the Safa and the Marwah are among the signs of Allah; so whoever makes a pilgrimage or performs 'umrah thereof, there is no blame on him to go round them both.” (al-Kafi )

The author says: Obviously, there is no contradiction between the two traditions regarding the reason of the revelation of the verse. The words of the Prophet, “I shall begin with that which Allah, the Mighty, the Great, has begun with”, show the basis of legislation.

We have narrated, in the story of Hajar and her running seven times between the Safa and the Marwah, that the ritual of as-sa'y started from that.

'Amir ash-Sha'bi said: “There was an idol, called Asaf, on the Safa, and another, called Na'ilah, on the Marwah. The people of (the days of) ignorance, after circumambulating the House, used to walk between the two (hills) and touch and wipe the two idols.

When the Messenger of Allah (peace be on him) arrived at Mecca, they (i.e., the Muslims) said: 'O Messenger of Allah! (As for) the Safa and the Marwah, surely the walking around them was done because of the two idols, and walking around them is not among the signs (of Allah).'

Then Allah revealed:Surely the Safa and the Marwah... Thus, He (especially) mentioned the Safa because of the idol that was on it, and affirmed the Marwah because of the idol that rose from it.” (ad-Durru ‘l-manthur)

The author says: Both sects have narrated numerous tradi­tions having the above-mentioned themes. Their impli-cation is that the verse was revealed in the year when the Mus-lims performed the hajj, while the Chapter of the Cow is the first one re­vealed at Medina.

It may therefore be inferred that the verses are unconnected with the preceding verses (of the qiblah) which were revealed, as described earlier, in the second year of hijrah; nor are they related to the verses in the beginning of the chapter which were revealed in the first year of hijrah. It shows that the verses were revealed in various contexts, not in one.

Footnote

1. In the 7th year of hijrah. (tr.)

Suratul Baqarah: Verses 159 - 162

إِنَّ الَّذِينَ يَكْتُمُونَ مَا أَنزَلْنَا مِنَ الْبَيِّنَاتِ وَالْهُدَىٰ مِن بَعْدِ مَا بَيَّنَّاهُ لِلنَّاسِ فِي الْكِتَابِ أُولَـٰئِكَ يَلْعَنُهُمُ اللَّـهُ وَيَلْعَنُهُمُ اللَّاعِنُونَ ﴿١٥٩﴾

إِلَّا الَّذِينَ تَابُوا وَأَصْلَحُوا وَبَيَّنُوا فَأُولَـٰئِكَ أَتُوبُ عَلَيْهِمْ وَأَنَا التَّوَّابُ الرَّ‌حِيمُ ﴿١٦٠﴾

إِنَّ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُ‌وا وَمَاتُوا وَهُمْ كُفَّارٌ‌ أُولَـٰئِكَ عَلَيْهِمْ لَعْنَةُ اللَّـهِ وَالْمَلَائِكَةِ وَالنَّاسِ أَجْمَعِينَ ﴿١٦١﴾

خَالِدِينَ فِيهَا لَا يُخَفَّفُ عَنْهُمُ الْعَذَابُ وَلَا هُمْ يُنظَرُ‌ونَ ﴿١٦٢﴾

Surely those who conceal the clear proofs and the guidance that We revealed after We made it clear for men in the Book, these it is whom Allah does curse, and those who curse do curse them (too) (159),

Except those who repent and amend and make manifest (the truth), these it is to whom I turn (mercifully), and I am the Oft-returning (to mercy), the Merciful (160).

Surely those who disbelieve and die while they are disbelievers, these it is on whom is the curse of Allah and the angels and men all (161);

Abiding in it; their chastisement shall not be lightened nor shall they be given respite (162).

Commentary

Qur’an:Surely those who conceal the clear proofs and the guidance that We revealed: Obviously “the guidance” means that knowledge and shari'ah which the Divine Religion contains, and which lead the followers to the eternal bliss; and “the clear proofs” means the verses, signs and the arguments which are the clear evidence, proofs and attestations for the truth - the truth that is guidance.

“The clear proofs”, as used in the Divine Speech, is a special description for the revealed verses.

Therefore, con­cealing the clear proofs may mean hiding the verses themselves from the people; or concealing their true meaning through mis­interpretation and misapplication - as the leaders of the Jews did with the verses prophesying the advent of the Prophet. What the people did not know, they concealed; and what they knew, they misinterpreted and diverted it from the Prophet.

Qur’an:after We made it clear for men: It shows that they con­cealed the truth after Allah made it clear for all the mankind, not only for the Jews. It is not feasible, in the prevalent world system, to explain a thing to each and every person individually - not only in revelation but in every general announcement.

As a general rule, only a few persons are informed of the matter directly, and it is through them that the rest of the people get the information; he who is present conveys the message to the absent persons; the learned one explains it to the ignorant. The knowledgeable man is counted as one of the links to convey the message, like the tongue and speech.

When a learned man, bound by the pledge taken from him, explains the message to others, he makes the truth clear to the people. If he hides his knowledge, he keeps the truth concealed from the people, after it was made clear to them.

And, as Allah has said, it is the only thing which has made people differ in matters of religion, and has diverted them from the path of guidance to that of misguidance. Otherwise, religion conforms with nature; human nature agrees with it and discerning mind surrenders to it when it is properly explained.

Allah says:

Then set your face uprightly for the (right) religion in natural devotion (to the truth); the nature made by Allah in which He has made men; there is no alteration (by anyone else) in the creation of Allah; that is the right (established) religion, but most people do not know (30:30).

So, the religion is natural; nature can never resist it, if it appears before it with some clarity, either because of the purity of the recipient's heart, as is the case of the prophets, or because it is explained properly - the latter method invariable always depends on the former.

That is why the above-quoted verse combines the two premises: the naturalness of religion and lack of its knowledge. It says:the nature made by Allah in which He has made men; and then says:but most people do not know.

Again Allah says:

Mankind was but one people, so Allah sent the prophets as bearers of good news and as warners, and He sent down with them the book with truth, so that it might judge between the people in that in which they had differed. And none differed about it but the very people who were given it, after clear signs had come to them, revolting among themselves... (2:213).

It shows that difference about the contents of the book emanates from the revolt of the scholars who already have its knowledge. Religious differences and deviations from the right path are caused by the revolt of the religious scholars as they conceal the revealed truth, misinterpret it and alter it; and because of their injustice.

That is how “injustice” will be defined on the Day of Resurrection. Allah says:

Then a crier will cry out among them that the curse of Allah is on the unjust, who hinder (people) from Allah's way and seek to make it crooked... (7:44 - 5).

There are many verses of the same theme.

Clearly, the verse under discussion (Surely those who con­ceal the clear proofs... ) is based on the above-quoted verse:

Mankind was but one people, so Allah sent the prophets as bearers of good news and as warners, and He sent down with them the book with truth, so that it might judge between the people in that in which they differed. And none differed about it but the very people who were given it, after clear signs had come to them, revolting among themselves... (2:213).

And it points to the recompense of that revolt in the next sentence, “these it is whom Allah does curse...”

Qur’an:these it is whom Allah does curse, and those who curse do curse them (too). It describes the punishment of those who revolt against truth and hide the Book and the guidance which Allah has sent down.

The punishment is the curse by Allah and the curse by those who curse. The word “curse” has been re­peated because the curse of Allah is different from the curse of those who curse. The curse by Allah is removal from mercy and bliss, and that by those who curse is praying to Allah to remove the cursed one from that mercy and bliss.

There is no restriction at all on the curse of Allah or the curse of those who curse, nor is there any limitation on “those who curse”. This generality shows that every curse by anyone who curses is actually directed to those revolters and concealers of the Divine Proof and Guidance. And reason supports this view: The aim of the curse is to remove the cursed one from happiness and bliss; and there is no real happiness and bliss except the religious one.

As this real religious bliss is fully explained by Allah and accepted by nature, no one can be deprived of it except the one who rejects and denies it. This deprivation is confined to him who knows it and then knowingly rejects it.

It does not affect him who did not know the said religious bliss and to whom it was not clarified. Allah has taken pledge from learned people to spread their knowledge and to publish whatever Divine proofs and guidance they had received.

If they conceal it and hold it back, then in effect they have rejected it. Therefore, “these it is whom Allah does curse, and those who curse do curse them (too)”. This explanation is further supported by the following verse: “Surely those who disbelieve and die while they are dis­believers, these it is on whom is the curse of Allah and the angels and men all.”

Apparently, the particleinna إنَّ ) = surely) coming at the beginning of the verse gives the reason, or intensifies the theme, of the verse under discussion, by repeating its meaning in other words, “Surely those who disbelieve and die while they are disbelievers...”

Qur’an:Except those who repent... the Merciful: It is the ex­ception from the preceding verse. It qualifies their repentance with amending and making manifest the truth. They must make their previous behaviour known; they must announce their repentance.

In other words, they must announce to the people what they were concealing of the truth, and also make it known that pre­viously they had concealed it. Otherwise, it will be as though they have not repented yet - because they are still hiding the fact of their previous concealment of the truth.

Qur’an:Surely those who disbelieve and die while they are dis­believers, these it is on whom is the curse of Allah and the angels and men all. It alludes to their persistence in disbelief and their obstinate and stubborn refusal to accept the truth.

(If a man does not accept the true religion, not because of obstinacy and arrogance, but because it was not made clear to him, then in real­ity he is not a disbeliever, he isal-mustad'af المُسْتـَضْعَفُ ) = weak; according to Islamic terminology, a man who does not have true faith, but is not inimical to it]; his judgment is in the hand of Allah.)

This theme is supported by the fact that most of the verses describing the disbelief qualify it with “belying”. Look especially at the verses of the descent of Adam, containing the first law legislated for the mankind:

We said: “Get down you therefrom all together; and if there comes to you a guidance from Me, then whoever follows My guidance, no fear shall come upon them, nor shall they grieve. And (as to) those who disbelieve in and belie Our signs, they are the inmates of fire, in it they shall abide.” (2:39-40)

Likewise, in this verse the words, “Those who disbelieve and die while they are disbelievers,” refer to those who obsti­nately belie the signs and guidance of Allah - those who conceal what Allah has revealed. And Allah describes their recompense in these words: “these it is on whom is the curse of Allah and the angels and men all”.

It is a Divine Decree that every curse by anyone from among the angels or men, without any exception, shall be attached to them only. In this respect they are like the Satan, when Allah told him:

And surely on you is curse until the Day of Judgment (15:35).

Thus, Allah made him the target of every curse from whatever source it may emanate. Likewise, these learned persons who conceal their knowledge are partners of Satan in this general and unrestricted curse.

See how hard is the tone of this verse, and how formidable its theme! We shall write something related to it, Allah willing, under the verse:

That Allah may separate the impure from the pure, and put the impure, some of it upon the other, and pile it up together, then cast it into the hell; these it is that are the losers. (8:37).

Qur’an:Abiding in it (i.e., in the curse), their chastisement shall not be lightened nor shall they be given respite. The word “curse”, has been changed here to “chastisement”; it shows that the curse shall be converted into their chastisement on that Day.

In these verses, the references to Allah have been changed several times from the first person to the third and vice versa. The verse begins with the first person pronouns: ”We revealed”, “We made it clear”; then the style changes, mentioning Allah by name, “Allah does curse”.

The change was affected because the theme demands show of intense displeasure, and the greater the name of the displeased person, the more severe the effect of the dis­pleasure - and none is greater than Allah.

Therefore, the action of the curse was attributed to Him by name, to give it the most vehement force. Then the reference was again changed to the first person pronouns, “I turn (mercifully); and I am the Oft-returning (to mercy)...” It was done to show the highest mercy and benevolence of Allah - every adjective is discarded, all attri­butes are set aside and “I Myself return to them mercifully”.

You will appreciate the difference if you read this sentence thus: These it is to whom Allah turns mercifully; or thus: These it is to whom their Lord turns mercifully. Obviously, these sentences do not show that high degree of mercy that reflects from this sentence, “these it is to whom I turn (mercifully)”.

The next verse again discards the pronoun for the Divine Name, “these it is on whom is the curse of Allah”; and the reason is the same as was explained for the change in the first verse.

Traditions

One of our companions has narrated from as-Sadiq (a.s.). He says: “I said to him: 'Tell me about the word of Allah, the Mighty, the High:Surely those who conceal...' . He said: 'We are meant by it - and to Allah is the resort for help.

When (Imamah) comes to one of us (i.e., the Imams), he has no authority (or, choice) but to make it clear for the men who will be (Imam) after him.' ” (al- 'Ayyashi )

Al-Baqir (a.s.) said about this verse: ”(Allah) means us by it, and to Allah is the resort for help.”

Muhammad ibn Muslim said: ”(The Imam) said: 'These are the People of the Book.' ”

The author says: All these traditions are based on the prin­ciple of the flow of the Qur'an and its application. Otherwise, the verse is general.

Some traditions quote 'Ali (a.s.) as saying: “Its interpreta­tion is the learned people when they are depraved.”

The Prophet said about this verse: “Whoever is asked about knowledge which he has got, and he conceals it, he shall be reined on the Day of Resurrection with a bridle of fire; and it is (the import of) His words,these it is whom Allah does curse and those who curse do curse them (too).” (Majma'u 'l-bayan )

The author says: These two traditions confirm what we have written in the [-Commentary] Commentary.

Imam as-Sadiq (a.s.) said explaining the words of Allah, and those who curse do curse them (too): “We are those (who curse); and they say that it means the vermins of the earth.” (al-'Ayyashi )

The author says: The explanation given by the Imam reminds one of the import of the verse:

... and the witnesses shall say: “These are they who lied against their Lord.” Now surely the curse of Allah is on the unjust (11:18).

The Imams are the wit­nesses, allowed by Allah to speak on the Day of Judgment, who speak the right thing. The Imam also mentioned some people's explanation that those who curse refers to the vermins of the earth. This interpretation is attributed to the exegetes like Mujahid, 'Ikri­mah and others; and some traditions ascribe it to the Prophet.

Imam as-Sadiq (a.s.) said: about the verse,Surely those who con­ceal the clear proofs and the guidance, (that it means the proofs and guidance) “regarding 'Ali.” (ibid.)