An Enlightening Commentary Into the Light of the Holy Qur'an Volume 20

An Enlightening Commentary Into the Light of the Holy Qur'an0%

An Enlightening Commentary Into the Light of the Holy Qur'an Author:
Translator: Sayyid Abbas Sadr-'ameli
Publisher: Imam Ali Foundation
Category: Quran Interpretation
ISBN: 9645691028

An Enlightening Commentary Into the Light of the Holy Qur'an

This book is corrected and edited by Al-Hassanain (p) Institue for Islamic Heritage and Thought

Author: Ayatullah Sayyid Kamal Faghih Imani and A Group of Muslim Scholars
Translator: Sayyid Abbas Sadr-'ameli
Publisher: Imam Ali Foundation
Category: ISBN: 9645691028
visits: 19872
Download: 2730

Volume 1 Volume 2 Volume 3 Volume 4 Volume 5 Volume 6 Volume 7 Volume 8 Volume 9 Volume 10 Volume 11 Volume 12 Volume 13 Volume 14 Volume 15 Volume 16 Volume 17 Volume 18 Volume 19 Volume 20
search inside book
  • Start
  • Previous
  • 33 /
  • Next
  • End
  •  
  • Download HTML
  • Download Word
  • Download PDF
  • visits: 19872 / Download: 2730
Size Size Size
An Enlightening Commentary Into the Light of the Holy Qur'an

An Enlightening Commentary Into the Light of the Holy Qur'an Volume 20

Author:
Publisher: Imam Ali Foundation
ISBN: 9645691028
English

This book is corrected and edited by Al-Hassanain (p) Institue for Islamic Heritage and Thought


Notes:

The 20 Volumes of this book have been corrected and uploaded as you can go directly to any other volumes by just clicking on the volume numbers located on the left side.

Surah Qari’ah, Chapter 101

(The Calamity)

Number of Verses: 11

Contents of Surah Qari'ah

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمنِ الرَّحِيمِ

In The Name of Allah, The Beneficent, The Merciful

This Surah, on the whole, describes the Resurrection Day and its preliminary events. The style is alarming and awakening with some clear warnings. According to this Surah, people are divided into two definite groups: Those whose good deeds weigh heavy by the Divine Scales will rejoice in a pleasant life; and those whose good deeds weigh light will have the abyss as their abode.

The name of the Surah, Al-Qariah, is taken from the first verse.

The Virtue of Studying this Surah

On the virtue of reciting the Surah, a tradition from Imam Baqir (as) says:

“He who recites Al-Qari'ah, Allah secures him from the calamity of (believing in) Dajjal (the deceiver) and also from the hideousness of Hell on the Day of Judgement, Allah willing,”1

Surah Qari’ah, Verses 1-11

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمنِ الرَّحِيمِ

In The Name of Allah, The Beneficent, The Merciful

الْقَارِعَةُ

مَا الْقَارِعَةُ

وَمَا أَدْرَاكَ مَا الْقَارِعَةُ

يَوْمَ يَكُونُ النَّاسُ كَالْفَرَاشِ الْمَبْثُوثِ

وَتَكُونُ الْجِبَالُ كَالْعِهْنِ الْمَنفُوشِ

فَأَمَّا مَن ثَقُلَتْ مَوَازِينُهُ

فَهُوَ فِي عِيشَةٍ رَّاضِيَةٍ

وَأَمَّا مَنْ خَفَّتْ مَوَازِينُهُ

فَأُمُّهُ هَاوِيَةٌ

وَمَا أَدْرَاكَ مَا هِيَهْ

نَارٌ حَامِيَةٌ

1. “The Calamity”

2. “What is the Calamity?”

3. “And what makes you aware of what the Calamity is?”

4. “(It is) a Day whereon men will be like moths scattered about,”

5. “And the mountains will be like carded wool.”

6. “So, he whose scales (of good deeds) are heavy,”

7. “He will be in a life well-pleasing.”

8. “And he whose scales (of good deeds) are light,”

9. “Then his abode will be Hawiyah' (the abyss).”

10. “And what makes you know what that (abyss) is?”

11. “(It is) a Raging Fire.”

The Calamity

In these verses, which are about the circumstances of the Judgement Day, first it says:

“The Calamity”

“What is the Calamity?”

The term /qari'ah/ is based on /qar'/ which means 'to beat or strike something on something else so that a sound is heard', hence 'whip' and 'hammer' are termed /miqra'ah/, and further, any important, grievous event is called /qari'ah/.

Regarding the senses put in verses 2 and 3 that even the holy Prophet (S) is told:

“And what makes you aware of what the Calamity is”,

clarifies the fact that this event is so great that no imagination can comprehend it.

In any event, many commentators have said that /qari'ah/ is one of the names of the Day of Judgement. They have not clarified that this sense refers to the events before the Hereafter when this world will be destroyed, the Sun and the Moon will become dark, and the seas will overflow. If it is so, the name selected for the event, Qari'ah, has a clear reason.

Or, if the purpose is the second stage, i.e., the resurrection of the dead and the new design in the world of being, the use of the word 'qari'ah' is for the reason that fear and terror of that Day will strike the hearts.

The verses following that verse partly agree with the incident of the world destruction, and partly refer to the resurrection of the dead, but, on the whole, the first probability seems more appropriate, though both incidents, in these verses, are mentioned one after another; (like many other verses of the Qur'an which inform about the Hereafter).

Then, to describe that amazing Day, it says:

“(It is) a Day whereon men will be like moths scattered about.”

The term /faras/ is the plural form of /farasah/. Many commentators have considered it as meaning 'moths' while some others have rendered it to mean 'locusts'.

The meaning of the word, itself, is the former one, of course, so they may have adapted it to the meaning in Surah Qamar, No. 54, verse 7 in which people, on That Day, are likened to 'scattered locusts':

“They will come forth - their eyes humbled - from their graves, (torpid) like locusts scattered abroad.”

It is probable that likening people to 'moths' is for the reason that the state of moths in a violent storm gives some idea of the confusion, distress, and helplessness of which men are overwhelmed with on the Day of Judgement.

Again, the question arises, here thus: is this confusion, distress and horrible helplessness because of the end of this physical world, or, is it because of the beginning of the spiritual world, the Hereafter?

The answer to the question is clearly found in what is said above.

Then, referring to another speciality of that Day, it says:

“And the mountains will be like carded wool.”

The term /ihn/ means 'colored wool', and the term /manfus/, based on /nafs/, means 'teased, carded (wool)’ which is usually done by special means on a wool-carder.

It was mentioned before that according to the different verses of Qur'an, at the threshold of the Hereafter, first, mountains will move, then, they will cleave as under and break into pieces, and finally they will turn into dust and scatter in the air, which, in this verse, is likened to colored-carded wool; the wool which travels with storms and will be seen only by its color. This is the last stage in the destruction of the mountains.

This idea may also refer to the various colors of the mountains, because the mountains, on the earth, range in color and each has a special color.

In any case, this meaning shows that the above verses speak about the first stage of the Hereafter; that is, the stage of destruction and the end of the world.

Then, reference is made to the Resurrection stage and the reviving of the dead and their division into two groups.

It says:

“So, he whose scales (of good deeds) are heavy,”

“He will be in a life well-pleasing.”

“And he whose scales (of good deeds) are light,”

“Then his abode will be 'Hawiyah' (the abyss).”

“And what makes you know what that (abyss) is?”

“(It is) a Raging Fire.”

The term /mawazin/ is the plural form of /mizan/ which means 'scales, balance'; an instrument which was used for weighing material things, at first, and then, figuratively, was used for measuring spiritual things, too.

Some believe that, on That Day, the deeds of Man will appear in the form of corporeal beings which can be weighed, and they will actually be weighed by deed-scales.

It is also considered that the record, itself, may be weighed and if it contains good deeds recorded, it weighs heavy, otherwise, it is light or weightless.

But, apparently, it does not need these explanations.

The instrument for measuring deeds is not necessarily the ordinary weighing which is done with two scales, but it can be by any means of weighing, as a tradition says:

“Amir-al-Mo'mineen and other Imams from his descendents (as) are the scales by which our deeds are measured.”2

A tradition from Imam Sadiq (as) denotes that when he was asked about the meaning of /mizan/ he answered:

“The scales and Justice are the same.”3

Thus, with the existence of Allah's saints and /or the divine laws of justice by which the deeds of Man are compared, will be weighed and valued due to their similarity and adaptability to them.

By the way, the term /mawazin/, in its plural form, shows that the saints of Allah and the divine laws are individually separate scales of measurement, otherwise, the variety of the form and kind of Man's attributes and deeds demand different means of measurement.

Raqib cites in Mufradat:

“In the Holy Qur’an /mizan/ is sometimes used in the singular and sometimes in the plural form; the former refers to the One Who reckons, the Lord, and the latter refers to those who are reckoned with.”

The term

/‘isat-ir-raqiyah/ ‘a life well-pleasing'

used in the verse, is a very interesting sense about the favourable life of the good-doers in Heaven which is thoroughly calm and peasant.

It is so pleasant that the life, itself, is

'well-pleasing',

which is the subjective case, instead of being 'well-pleased', which is the objective case.

This great privilege is only for the next life, because however much happy, favourable, safe, and pleasant the life of this world may be, it is still not free from many unpleasant factors. It is only the next-world-life that is thoroughly favourable, happy, and pleasant with full safety, tranquility and bounty.

The word

/umm/ ‘mother',

mentioned in the verse, is for the reason that mother is generally a shelter for the child when. There is trouble and here it indicates that the sinner whose scale of good actions is light has no shelter, but Hell, and woe unto the one whose shelter is 'Hell'.

The term /hawiyah/ is based on /hawaya/ in the sense of 'to fall' and it is one of the names of Hell, because sinners fall into it and also, it denotes to the depth of the blazing fire of Hell.

The term /hamiyah/ is based on /hamy/ with the meaning of 'violent heat', and /hamiyah/, here refers to the extraordinary burning, hot fire of Hell.

In any case, the phrase

“And what makes you know what that (abyss) is?”

“(It is) a Raging Fire”

is an emphasis on the idea that chastisement of the Hereafter and the fire of Hell is beyond the consideration of all men.

Weighing the Good Deeds; the Deciding Factors

No doubt, the values of the deeds of good-doers are not the same. They are very different from each other. So, some good actions, which are the cause of the scales of deeds being heavier on the Day of Judgement, are emphasized on more than others.

(According to a tradition, commenting on the phrase

'there is no god, but Allah’

the holy Prophet (S) said:

“It points to the Oneness of Allah and no action is accepted by Allah without it. It is the word of virtue by which the scales of deeds will be weighed heavy on the Day of judgement.”4

In another tradition, from Hazrat Ali (as) about the attestation to the Oneness of Allah and the prophecy of the holy Prophet (S) he has said:

“The scales by which deeds are measured without these two are light and they are heavy with them.”5

Another tradition from Imam Baqir or Imam Sadiq (as) says:

“There is nothing on the scales heavier than the benediction upon Prophet Muhammad and the progeny of Muhammad”.

Then, he continues saying:

“On the Day of Judgement some people will come for their account whose scale of (good) deeds are light, but, these will become heavy when the 'benediction upon Prophet Muhammad and the progeny of Muhammad is added to it.”6

Supplication

O Lord! Change the scales of our good deeds to heavy from our love for Muhammad (S) and the progeny of Muhammad (as).

O Lord! It is impossible for us to approach the state of 'being in a life well-pleasing', but by Your Favor. Might You, Yourself, help us to reach it.

O Lord! The Fire of Hell is a blazing inferno and we cannot bear it. By Your Grace keep us far from it.

Notes

1. Majma'-al-Bayan, vol. 10, p. 530.

2. Bihar-al-Anwar, vol. 7, p. 251.

3. Nur-uth-Thaqalayn, vol. 2, p. 5.

4. Nuruth Thaqalayn. vol. 5, p. 659, tradition 12.

5. Nur-uth- Thaqalayn, vol. 5, p. 659, tradition 8.

6. Ibid. , tradition 7.

Surah Takathur, Chapter 102

(Vying in Exuberance)

Number of Verses: 8

Contents of the Surah

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمنِ الرَّحِيمِ

In The Name of Allah, The Beneficent, The Merciful

Numerous commentators believe that this Surah has been revealed in Mecca; then the subject mentioned in the Surah about vying and self-glorification is, customarily, referring to the tribes of Quraish who used to boast to each other, in vain, about worthless affairs.

But, some others, such as the late Tabarsi who cited his idea in Majma'-al-Bayan, believe that the Surah was revealed in Medina, and what is said is it about vying and boasting in each other's sight refers to the Jews or to two tribes among the 'Ansar'. But, regarding the close similarity that this Surah, being Meccan, has with the Meccan Suras, seems more proper.

The content of the Surah in general is firstly, a scorn on those people who, based on things of no value, boast to each other and secondly, there is a warning about the proposition of the Hereafter and the Hell-fire; and finally, warning that we will be questioned about the bounties in our life.

The name of the Surah is derived from the words in the first verse.

The Virtue of Studying Surah Takathur

On the virtue of reciting the Surah, a tradition from the Prophet (S) says:

“He who recites it, Allah will not account the bounties he was given in the world and He will award him such a reward as if he had recited one thousand verses (of the Qur'an).1

A tradition from Imam Sadiq (as) denotes that

“The recitation of this Surah in the obligatory and optional prayers has a reward similar to Martyrdom.”2

It is obvious that these total rewards are for the one who recites it, practices it in his daily life and harmonizes his mind and soul with it.

Surah Takathur, Verses 1-8

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمنِ الرَّحِيمِ

In The Name of Allah, The Beneficent, The Merciful

أَلْهَاكُمُ التَّكَاثُرُ

حَتَّى زُرْتُمُ الْمَقَابِرَ

كَلَّا سَوْفَ تَعْلَمُونَ

ثُمَّ كَلَّا سَوْفَ تَعْلَمُونَ

كَلَّا لَوْ تَعْلَمُونَ عِلْمَ الْيَقِينِ

لَتَرَوُنَّ الْجَحِيمَ

ثُمَّ لَتَرَوُنَّهَا عَيْنَ الْيَقِينِ

ثُمَّ لَتُسْأَلُنَّ يَوْمَئِذٍ عَنِ النَّعِيمِ

1. “Engageth you (your) vying in exuberance.”

2. “Until you visit the graves.”

3. “Nay! You shall soon know,”

4. “Again, Nay! You shall soon know.”

5. “Nay! Were you to know with the knowledge of certainty, (you would beware!)”

6. “You shall certainly see the blazing fire,”

7. “Again, you will surely see it with certainty of sight!”

8. “Then, on that Day you will surely be questioned about the joy (you indulged in).”

The Occasion of Revelation

As we mentioned before, commentators believe that this Surah was revealed against the tribes who vied in boasting with one another and prided themselves on increasing their wealth, position, and the number of their adherents so to add to the number of men in each tribe, they even went to the cemetery and counted the tribal graves.

Some believe that the meaning refers to two tribes from the tribes of Quraish in Mecca, while some others think it refers to two tribes from the helpers of the Prophet (S), the Ansar, in Medina; and still, some relate it to the vying of the Jews to others, though to consider the Surah Meccan seems more appropriate.

But, it is certain that whatever these occasions of revelation could be, they never limit the meaning of the verse.

The Affliction of Vying in Exuberance!

In these verses, at first, in a scorning tone, it says:

“Engageth you (your) vying in exuberance”,

“Until you visit the graves”,

To enumerate the graves of your dead.

In commenting on the verse, this probability has also been conveyed that 'vying' has engaged them so much so that it will continuously persist until they enter their graves.

But, the first meaning,

'Until you visit the graves'

considering the occasion of revelation and also the words of Hazrat Ali (as) in Nahj-ul-Balagha, which will be dealt with later, is more fitting.

The term /alhakum/ is based on the root /lahw/ with the meaning of 'amusement, being busy with unimportant small things and neglectful of great aims and ideas.’ Raqib cites in Mufradat: “The word /lahw /means something that amuses one with itself and detains him from his real goals.”

The term /takathur/ is derived from, /kithrat/ with the sense of 'vying, glorifying and boasting in each other's sight'.

The term /zurtum/ is based on /ziyarat/ and /zaur/ which originally means 'the upper part of the chest' and later, it has been used in the sense of 'to visit' and 'to face with’.

The term /maqabir/ is the plural form of /maqbirah/ with the meaning of 'the place of the grave of a corpse'; and visiting the graves metaphorically means “death” (according to some commentaries), or it has the meaning of 'going to the graves in order to vie for the number of the dead'.

As it was said earlier, the second meaning seems more proper.

One of the evidences to this idea is the words of Hazrat Ali (as), on this matter, cited in Nahj-ul-Balagha, Sermon, No. 221, that after reciting

“Engageth you (your) vying in exuberance”,

“Until you visit the graves”,

he said:

“Row distant (from achievement) is their aim, how neglectful are these visitors and how difficult is the affair. They had not taken lessons from things which are full of lessons, but, they took them from far off places. Do they boast on the dead bodies of their forefathers, or do they regard the number of dead persons as a grounds for feeling boastful of their numbers?

They want to revive the bodies that have become spiritless and the moments that have ceased; those which are more entitled to be a source of lesson than a source of pride and those are more suitable for being a source of humility than of honour.”3

In the next verse they are severely threatened:

“Nay! You shall soon know,”

“Again, Nay! You shall soon know.”

A group of commentators have considered these two verses as a repetition and emphasis on one matter. They, in a general form, inform of the punishments waiting for these vying, proud people.

Some have related the first verse to the chastisement in the graves and purgatory after the death that Man is faced with, and the second to the punishment in the Hereafter.

It is narrated that Amir-al-Mo'mineen Ali (as), in a tradition, said:

“Some of us were in doubt about the chastisement in the grave until the time that Surah Takathur was revealed, (the verse) says:

‘Nay! You shall soon know'

which indicated (the punishment) in the grave, and (the verse)

‘Again, nay! You shall soon know'

(refers to it) in the Hereafter.”4

Then, it adds that it is not such as you vying, proud people think.

If you believed in the Hereafter and knew it with the you would never indulge in such vain affairs and vie for foolish things:

“Nay! Were you to know with the knowledge of certainty, (you would beware!)”.

Then, for a stronger warning and a more emphatic statement it says:

“You shall certainly see the blazing Fire,”

“Again, you will surely see it with certainty of sight!”

“Then, on that Day you will surely be questioned about the joy (you indulged in).”

On That Day, you must clarify how you enjoyed the bounties of Allah, in your life, and whether you used them in the way of obeying Allah or committing sin and consequently, wasting them.

Explanations

The Source of Vying

It is understood from the above verses that one of the main factors in vying and pride is ignorance of the rewards and punishments given by Allah, for our deeds and the lack of Faith in the Resurrection.

Besides, Man’s ignorance of his weaknesses, his creation and his final destiny are among the causes of the existence of this pride and vying. That is why the Holy Qur'an, to break this vying and pride, tells the story of the destruction of some earlier nations in different verses, and how they were simply vanished while they had much power and possibilities. They were destroyed by wind, lightening, earthquake, excessive rain and sometimes, small baked clay carried by little birds.

Yet, What is This Mass of Yying and Pride For?

Another factor for this status is the feeling of weakness and helplessness originating from defects some people have, themselves, and they want to cover them with vying and pride. Concerning this, a tradition from Imam Sadiq (as) says:

“No one is proud or behaves arrogantly except for the disgrace that he finds in himself.”5

Another tradition from Amir-al-Mo'mineen Ali (as) says:

“Two things have killed people: the fear of poverty (which forces man to gather wealth by any means and any way), and demanding pride.”6

And verily, this very unreasonable fear of poverty and vying between individuals, tribes, and societies are among the greatest causes of greed, lowliness, mammonism, destructive rivalries and many other social vices.

A tradition from the holy Prophet (S) says:

“I do not fear you for poverty, but I fear you because of lying.”7

All it was said before, the term 'Takathur' originally means 'vying', but, it is sometimes applied to the 'act of multiplying' especially in piling up wealth.

We conclude this subject with a meaningful tradition from the Prophet (S) who commenting on the verse

“Engageth you (your) vying in exuberance”

said:

“Man says 'My wealth, my wealth' but you have not from your wealth save the food you eat, what you wear, and what you spend in the way of Allah.”8

This is, of course, a delicate, interesting point that everyone's share from the total wealth he gathers and sometimes does not pay the least attention to whether it is lawful or unlawful, is only the very small portion that he eats, drinks, wears, and spends in the way of Allah; and knows that what he uses, himself, is little, then, it is better to increase his share by spending a part of it in the way of Allah; and the more the better.

Certitude and its Degrees

'Certitude' (yaqin)

is the opposite case to 'doubt' as 'knowledge' contrasts with 'ignorance', and means 'the clarity and positiveness of something'. According to what is understood from the Islamic narrations and traditions, one of the strongest features of Faith is called 'yaqin'.

Imam Baqir (as) said:

“Faith is one degree higher than IsIam, and 'Taqwa' virtue, is one degree higher than Faith, and yaqin', certitude, is one degree higher than 'taqwa’.

Then, he added:

“Nothing is divided less among people than certitude (yaqin)”.

Then, he (as) was asked what 'yaqin' meant and he replied:

“(It is) trust in Allah, obedience to Allah, well-pleasing with the Will of Allah, and leaving all of (one's) affairs to Allah”.9

This highness of the position of 'yaqin', certitude, to the positions of virtue, Faith, and Islam is somewhat like that which is mentioned and emphasized in other Islamic narrations, too.

From these statements and other evidences we clearly realize that when a person obtains the position of 'certitude' (yaqin) a special calmness and quietness fills his heart and his soul, completely.

In any event, certitude (yaqin) has degrees which are referred to in the verses of the Surah under discussion and in Surah Waqi'ah, No. 56, verse 95:

“Verily, this is the very truth and certainty”.

Certainty of knowledge (yaqin) has been described as having three stages:

1. Certitude of knowledge or certainty of mind ('Ilm-ul-yaqin) which is the Faith that a person obtains by various means such as the one who sees smoke and believes there is fire there.

2 Certainty of Sight ('Iym-ul-yaqin) which is what one sees with one's eyes; for instance, one sees the fire, himself.

3. The absolute truth of assured certainty (Haqq-ul-yaqin) which means the 'realization' or the 'knowledge proper' and is the personal experience as when the one who arrives in the fire oneself and feels the heat of it and takes the attributes of fire into his entity. This very state is the highest degree of 'yaqin'.

In fact, the first stage is general; the second stage is for pious people; and the third stage is for those who are in some way chosen above others.

A tradition from the Holy Prophet (S) denotes that some people asked him about a matter that they had heard about some of the companions of Prophet Jesus (as) who used to walk on water, and he (S) said:

“If their certitude was in a highest position they could walk in the air.”10

The late 'Alamah Tabatabai, after mentioning this tradition, adds that everything pivots on the certitude to Allah, the Glorified, and to know no other means of the effects of this world, but Allah. Therefore, the more the Faith and certainty, in a person, is the absolute power of Allah, the more objects, in this world, will be obedient to him.

And this is the secret of the relation of certitude (yaqin) and the 'extraordinary interference' in the world of creation.

All Will See Hell

The phrase /latarawonn-al-jahim/ has two different commentaries. The first is the observation of Hell in the Hereafter, by disbelievers, or generally for all humans and Jinn.

The second meaning is its observation by spiritual intuition in this very world. In this case the phrase is the answer to the conditional proposition.

It says:

“...Were you to know with the knowledge of certainty, (you would beware)”.

“You shall certainly see the blazing fire”

in this very life and with the sight of spiritual intuition, because we know that Paradise and Hell are prepared and exist just now.

But, as was said earlier, the first commentary is more fitting with the following verses which refer to the Day of Justice, therefore, this is a decisive proposition, not a conditional one.

What Bounties Are Asked About in the Hereafter?

The last verse, in this Surah, denotes that on Doomsday we will be questioned about the bounties we have incurred. Some have said that it means the bounty of health and mind-security; some others believe it refers to healthiness and security and finally, some have considered all bounties in its meaning.

A tradition from Hazrat Ali (as) says:

“Bounty (na'im)

is a 'ripe date' and 'cold water'“.

According to another tradition, Abu Hanifah asked Imam Sadiq (as) about the meaning of this verse, then, he (as) returned the question to him and asked him what he thought

/na'im/ ‘bounty'

was, and he replied that it was 'food' and 'cold water'.

Then, the Imam said that if Allah kept him before Him to ask him about every morsel he ate and every drop of drink he drank, his stay, there, would be very long.

Abu Hanifah asked again about the meaning of /na'im/ and Imam (as) said:

“It refers to us, Ahlul-Bait, for whom Allah has given His servants bounties, and made them united after they were diverse and joined their hearts together in brotherhood after they had been enemies (with each other) and He has guided them to Islam through us and this is the bounty that will not cease, and Allah asks them about the 'right' of the bounty which He has given them and guided them to Islam by us.

Yes,

'bounty'

is the Prophet (S) and his household.”11

The meaning of these apparently different traditions is that the term /na'im / has a very vast sense so that it covers all the divine bounties; from spiritual ones such as religion, Faith, Islam, Qur'an and vicegerency to material ones whether they are personal or social. But, the more important bounties like the bounty of 'Faith and vicegerency' are asked about more from them than if they had fulfilled their complete duty to them or not.

How could it be possible that these bounties would not be asked for when they are great, useful assets endowed to Man and each of which should be appreciated, thanked and used in their appropriate ways.

Supplication

O Lord! Shower upon us, ceaselessly, Your, unlimited bounties especially the bounty of 'Faith and vicegerency'.

O Lord! Give us the success of fulfilling our duties for them as their right is.

O Lord! Please increase these bounties for us and never deprive us from them.

Notes

1. Majma -al-Bayan, vol. 10, p. 532.

2. Ibid.

3. Nah-jul-Balagha, Sermon No. 221 (Arabic version).

4. Majma'-al-Bayan, vol. 10, p. 534.

5. Usul al-Kafi, vol. 2, p. 236, tradition 17.

6. Bihar-ul-Anwar, vol, 73, p, 290, tradition 12.

7. Durr-ul Manthur, vol, 6, p. 387.

8. Sahih-i-Muslim (as Majma'-al-Bayan, vol. 10, p. 534 quotes).

9. Bihar-al-Anwar, vol. 70, p. 138, tradition 4.

10. Al-Mizan, vol. 6, p. 200.

11. Majma'-al-Bayan, vol. 10, p. 535.