2. Surah Al-Baqara

(6) Verse 42 explicitly shows that it is not permissible to mix truth and falsehood together in such a way that the addressee falls into a confusion as to what the truth is, and that it is forbidden to conceal the truth because of fear or greed. Imam al-Qurtubi (رح) has, in his commentary, related a very illuminating story in this context - a story which has come down to us through a chain of reliable reporters, and has been taken from the "Musnad" of Darimi. During one of his visits to the Holy town of Madinah, the Ummayyid Caliph Sulayman ibn ` Abd al-Malik (رح) wanted to meet someone who had lived with a Companion of the Holy Prophet ﷺ ، if such a man was still alive. On being informed that Abu Hazim ؓ was the only man of this kind left in the town, he sent for him. The Caliph said to him, "Abu Hazim, why have you shown such discourtesy and disloyalty?" "How have I been discourteous or disloyal to you?" "Everybody who is anybody in Madinah has come to see me, but you haven't", complained the Caliph. "0 chief of the Muslims, may Allah protect you against saying something which is not true to the fact", replied Abu Hazim "You have not been familiar with my name before today, nor have I ever seen you. Things being what they are, how could I come to meet you? Is it disloyalty or discourtesy?" The Caliph looked around questioningly. Imam Zuhri (رح) spoke up: "Abu Hazim is right, and you are wrong." Changing the subject, the Caliph asked: "Abu Hazim, how is it that I don't like to die?" "The reason is simple," Abu Hazim said "You have made your world flourish, and turned your habitation in the other world into a desert. Naturally, you don't like to leave a flourishing city for a desert." The Caliph admitted that it was true, and came out with another question: "What would it be like when we have to appear before Allah tomorrow?" Said Abu Hazim, "The man who has been doing good deeds will present himself before Allah like the man who returns from a travel to his loved ones, while the man who has been doing evil deeds will appear like the slave who had run away and has now been brought back to his master." The Caliph burst into tears, and said with a sigh, "I wish we could know how Allah would deal with us." Abu Hazim replied, "Assess your deeds in the light of the Book of Allah, and you will know." "Which verse of the Holy Qur'an can help us to do so?" "Here is the verse: اِنَّ الْأَبْرَ‌ارَ‌ لَفِي نَعِيمٍ ﴿13﴾ وَإِنَّ الْفُجَّارَ‌ لَفِي جَحِيمٍ ﴿14﴾: "Surely the righteous shall be in bliss, and the transgressors shall be in a fiery furnace." (82:13-14) The Caliph remarked: "Allah's mercy is great; it can cover even the wrong-doers." Abu Hazim recited another verse: إِنَّ رَ‌حْمَتَ اللَّـهِ قَرِ‌يبٌ مِّنَ الْمُحْسِنِينَ "Surely the Mercy of Allah is close to those who do good deeds." (7:56) The Caliph advanced another question: "Tell me, Abu Hazim, who is the most honorable among the servants of Allah?" "Those who are mindful of their fellow-human beings and possess the right kind of understanding to know the truth." "Which is best among good deeds?" "Fulfilling the obligations laid down by Allah, and keeping away from what He has forbidden." "Which is the prayer that is likely to be accepted by Allah?" "The prayer of a man for him who has done him some good." "Which is the best form of charity?" "Giving as much as one can, in spite of one's own need, to a man in misery without trying to make him feel grateful and without causing him pain by trying to put him off." "Which is the best form of speech?" "Speaking the truth plainly and unreservedly before the man who can harm you in some way or from whom you expect a favour." "What kind of man is the wisest among the Muslims?" "He whose actions are governed by obedience to Allah, and who invites others as well to it." "What kind of man is the most stupid?" "He who helps another man in committing some injustice, which comes to mean that he has been selling off his faith for serving the worldly interests of that man." The Caliph agreed with all this, and then asked him pointedly, "What do you think of me?" Abu Hazim wanted to be excused from replying to such a question, but the Caliph insisted that he should say a word of advice. Abu Hazim said: "0 chief of the Muslims, your forefathers established their rule over the people with the help of the sword and against their will, after killing hundreds of men. Having done all this, they departed from the world. I wish you could know what they themselves are saying after their death and what people are saying about them." Fearing that the Caliph would be displeased by such plain talk, one of his courtiers rebuked Abu Hazim for having spoken so rudely. He replied: "No, you are wrong. I have not said anything rude but only what Allah has commanded us to say. For Allah has enjoined upon the ` ulama' to speak the truth before the people and not to conceal it." And he recited this verse of the Holy Qur'an لَتُبَيِّنُنَّهُ لِلنَّاسِ وَلَا تَكْتُمُونَهُ : "You shall make it clear to the people and not conceal it." (3:187) The Caliph asked, Wright how can we reform ourselves now?" Abu Hazim said, "Give up your pride, acquire a spirit of fellow-feeling for the people, and give them justly what is due to them." Abu Hazim, is it possible that you come to live with us?" "May Allah protect me from it!" "Why?" "Because I am afraid that if I live with you, I might begin to like your wealth and your grandeur, and have to suffer a grievous punishment for it in the other world." "Well, is there anything you need? What can we do for you?" "Yes, I have a need. Please help me to save myself from Hell and to enter Paradise." "This is not in my power." "Then, there is nothing you can do for me." The Caliph asked him to pray for him. Abu Hzim made this prayer: "0 Allah, if you approve of Sulayman, make the well-being of this world and the next easily accessible to him; but if he is your enemy, drag him by the hair towards the deeds you approve of." The Caliph then asked him for some special advice. Abu- H-azim said: "I shall make it short. You should have the fear of your Lord and reverence for Him to the degree that He never finds you present at the place He has forbidden, and never finds you absent from the place where He has commanded you to be." Later on, the Caliph sent one hundred gold dinars to him as a present. Abu Hazim sent the money back with a letter, saying: "If these dinars are the wages for my words, then blood and pork are, in my eyes, cleaner than this money. If you believe that this money is my due from the public exchequer, then there are hundreds of ` Ulama' and servants of Islam. If you have sent the same amount to each one of them, I can accept the money, otherwise I do not need it." Abu Hazim's refusal to accept the wages for giving advice clearly shows that taking wages for an act of worship or obedience to Allah is not permissible.

In the last three verses and of these four, Allah reminds the Israelites of the blessings He has bestowed upon them, and invites them to Islam and to good deeds. The earlier three verses were concerned with the true faith and doctrines; the present verses speak of good deeds, mentioning only the most important of them. It was usually the love of money and power that made it difficult for the Jews, especially for their scholars, to accept Islam. The verses prescribe the remedy for the twin diseases - they should fortify themselves with Sabr صبر (patience) and Salah نماز (prayer). "Patience" is a very weak translation of the Arabic word Sabr صبر ، which has three connotations: (a) bearing pain and misfortune patiently (b) restraining oneself from sin (c) being steadfast in obeying Allah. Now, patience, in this wide sense, is the perfect remedy for the love of money. For, money cannot be an end in itself, but is sought only as a means of satisfying one's appetites; when a man has made a firm resolve not to follow his appetites like a slave, he will no longer need much money, nor will the love of money blind him to the distinction between his gain and loss. Similarly, Salah نماز is the remedy for ambition and the love of power. For, outwardly and inwardly both, Salah نماز involves the exercise of humility; naturally, the more one tries to perform it in the proper manner, the more it purifies him of the love of money and power, and of ambition and pride. These being the real substance of all spiritual disorder in man, once they are brought under control, it becomes easy for one to accept Islam and to be steadfast in one's faith. Let us add that while patience (Sabr) requires only the restraining or giving up of excessive appetites and unnecessary desires, Salah, in addition to all this, further requires the performance of certain actions, and also a temporary renunciation of perfectly lawful desires and of many human needs which the Shari'ah allows one to fulfill, e.g., eating, drinking, speaking, walking etc. - and, at that, making such a renunciation five times during the day and the night regularly at fixed hours. Thus, Salah means performing certain prescribed actions and restraining oneself from all lawful or unlawful activities at fixed hours. Once a man has decided to give up unnecessary desires, the instinctive urge itself loses its intensity in a few days. So, the exercise of patience is not, after all, so difficult. But offering Salah نماز entails submitting oneself to the conditions laid down by the Shari` ah, observing the fixed hours, and giving up the basic human activities and desires, all of which is quite exacting for the instinctive disposition of man. So, one may very well raise an objection here: for the purpose of making it easy for a man to accept Islam and to be steadfast in his faith, the Holy Qur'an prescribes Sabr صبر and Salah نماز ، but to use this remedy is in itself a difficult thing, specially the Salah and its restriction - now, how can this difficulty be overcome? The Holy Qur'an admits that performing Salah نماز regularly and steadfastly is, no doubt, exacting, and proceeds to show the way out of this impasse - Salah نماز is not a burden to the humble in heart. To know the effectiveness of the remedy, we must know the disease, and find out why Salah نماز should be so burdensome. The human heart loves to roam about freely in the vast spaces of thought and fancy; all the organs of the human body being subservient to the heart, it requires them to be equally free. On the other hand, Salah نماز demands the renunciation of such freedom, - and prohibits eating, drinking, walking, talking etc. - a restriction which annoys the heart and is also painful for the human organs governed by it. In short, Salah نماز is burdensome because the heart enjoys to keep the faculties of thought and imagination in a continuous motion. Motion being the disease, it can only be remedied by its opposite - restfulness. Hence, the Holy Qur'an prescribes Khushu-` (خشوع) a word which we have rendered into English by the phrase "humbleness in heart", but which actually signifies "the restfulness of the heart." Now, the question arises as to how one can acquire this "restfulness of the heart." Everyone knows through his own experience that, if one deliberately tries to empty one's heart of all kinds of thoughts and fancies, the effort rarely succeeds. The only way to achieve it is that since the human mind cannot move in two directions simultaneously, one should make it absorb itself in one thought alone so that all other thoughts may disappear by themselves without any effort on one's part. So, having prescribed "the restfulness of the heart", the Holy Qur'an also prescribes a particular thought which will, if one absorbs oneself in it, drive away all other thoughts: once the movement of thought and fancy has been reduced to the restfulness of the heart, the performance of Salah نماز becomes easy; regularity in offering the ordained prayers gradually cures the disease of pride and ambition, and thus the way to the perfecting of one's faith grows smooth. Such is the well-ordered and beautifully integrated art of spiritual medicine that the Holy Qur'an has given us! 21 21. As against this stand the fanciful systems of thought - concentration, wearing a pseudo-mystical look and some-times an Eastern make-up but all spawned in the Angst-ridden West - things like Yoga and Transcendental Meditation, which serve only to derange an already disordered psyche. Now, the thought in which one should immerse oneself in order to acquire "the restfulness of the heart" has been explained by the Holy Qur'an in describing "the humble in heart" - they are the people who bear in mind that they are to meet their Lord, when they shall receive the reward for their obedience, and also bear in mind that they are to return to Him, when they shall be required to present an account of their deeds. These twin thoughts produce hope and fear in the heart, and hope and fear are the best agents for inducing a man to devote himself to good deeds. The prayer which the Holy Qur'an prescribes is not a mere contemplation or meditation. Al-Sala-h: الصلوة ، in the terminology of Shari'ah, is a definite form of ` Ibadah عبادت or worship, the mode of which is divinely ordained. As often as the Holy Qur'an insists on the performance of the Salah نماز ، it employs the word Igamah اِقامہ ، except in one or two instances. Lexically, the word means "making a thing straight, or keeping it firmly in its place." A tree or a wall or anything which is vertical and straight, usually lasts long in its place; so, the word also signifies "establishing a thing or making it perpetual." Thus, the conjunction of the two words, Salah نماز and Igamah اِقامہ ، in the Holy Qur'an and the Hadith signifies, not merely offering the prayer, but performing the five ordained prayers steadfastly in the prescribed form at the prescribed hours and fulfilling all the necessary conditions. The Holy Qur'an and the Hadith speak of the great rewards and blessings one can hope to receive for offering Salah نماز ، and of other benefits which flow from it, but all of them are tied up with Igamah اقامہ in the sense which we have just explained. For example, the Holy Qur'an says: إِنَّ الصَّلَاةَ تَنْهَىٰ عَنِ الْفَحْشَاءِ وَالْمُنكَرِ‌: "The Salah نماز restrains one from indecency and evil." (29:45) The prescribed prayer will bear these fruits only when one has been performing it in the full sense of Iqamah اقامہ . It follows from it that if one finds people who are quite regular in offering their prayers indulging in immodest or even evil activities, one should not have misgivings about the veracity of this verse, for these people have, no doubt, been praying, but not been observing the conditions of Iqamah اقامہ . Verse 43 also speaks of paying Zakah, the prescribed alms. Now, lexically speaking, the Arabic word ; زَّكَاةَ : Zakah has two significations: (a) to purify (b) grow. Zakah is not a tax levied by the State or society, but, in the terminology of the Shari'ah, means that portion of one's belongings which is set apart and spent in total accord with the injunctions of the Shari'ah. This verse is addressed to the Israelites, and does not by itself show that offering prayers and paying alms was obligatory for them before the days of Islam. But the following verse: لَقَدْ أَخَذَ اللَّـهُ مِيثَاقَ بَنِي إِسْرَ‌ائِيلَ وَبَعَثْنَا مِنْهُمُ اثْنَيْ عَشَرَ‌ نَقِيبًا ۖ وَقَالَ اللَّـهُ إِنِّي مَعَكُمْ ۖ لَئِنْ أَقَمْتُمُ الصَّلَاةَ وَآتَيْتُمُ الزَّكَاةَ Allah made a covenant with the Israelites and raised among them twelve chieftains. And Allah said, 'I am with you. Surely, if you perform Salah and pay Zakah. (5:12) does show that the two things were obligatory for them, even if the external modes might have been different. The verse proceeds to say: "Bow down with those who bow (in worship)." Lexically, the Arabic word Ruku رکوع ` means "to bow down", and may hence be applied even to prostrating oneself (Sajdah سجدہ), which is the ultimate form of bowing down. But in the terminology of the Shari'ah it pertains to the particular form of bowing down which has been prescribed for Salah. One may well ask why this particular gesture has been chosen for a special mention from among the different gestures involved in the Salah نماز . We would reply that it is a metonymy for Salah, and a part has been made to stand for the whole - just as in verse 17:78: قُرْ‌آنَ الْفَجْرِ‌: "the recitation of the Qur'an in the morning" refers to the morning prayers, and on several occasions in some Hadith narrations the use of the word Sajdah سجدہ covers one set of movements (Rak'ah) in Salah نماز or even to the whole of it. Thus, the verse actually means: "Offer Salah نماز along with those who offer Salah نماز ." Salah نماز with Jama’ ah: (congregation) Then, there is a more comprehensive explanation for the specific reference to "bowing down" (Ruku` رکوع). The form of the ritual prayers ordained for the Israelites and others included prostrating oneself (Sajdah سجدہ), but not bowing down. This particular way of bowing down called Ruku رکوع ` is peculiar to the Islamic Salah نماز alone. Hence, Raki` in راکعین or those who bow down (in worship) are, obviously enough, the members of the Islamic Ummah, and the verse, in effect, asks the Israelites to accept Islam, and to offer their prayers along with the Muslims. The command, أَقِيمُوا الصَّلَاةَ : "Be steadfast in Salaih", shows that Salah نماز is obligatory. The other command, وَارْ‌كَعُوا مَعَ الرَّ‌اكِعِينَ : "Bow down with those who bow (in worship) ", establishes that Salah is to be offered in the company of other Muslims (Jama` ah). A very important question arises here - what is the degree of the obligation intended in this injunction? There is a difference of views among the Fuqaha’ (jurists) on this point. According to a large body of blessed Companions, their successors and of the jurists of the ummah, it is necessary (wajib واجب) to offer Salah نماز in a congregation, and it is a sin to give up the Jama` ah. Some of the blessed Companions have gone to the length of holding that it is not permissible to offer Salah نماز all by oneself without a proper excuse allowed by the Shari'ah. Verse 43, in its literal connotation, provides an argument in favour of this view. Moreover, certain hadith narrations too seem to suggest that the Jama` ah is necessary (Wajib واجب ). For example, a hadith reported by Abu Dawud (رح) says that for a man living near a mosque Salah is permissible only in the mosque. According to another hadith reported from the blessed Companion Abu Hurayrah ؓ by Imam Muslim (رح) ، a Companion who was blind asked the Holy Prophet ﷺ for the permission to offer Salah نماز in his house, for there was no one to take him to the mosque and to bring him back. The Holy Prophet ﷺ allowed him to do so, but, as he was leaving, asked him if he could hear the call for the prayers in his house. He said that he could. The Holy Prophet ﷺ remarked: "In that case, you must come to the mosque. Another narration of the same hadith as reported by Abu Dawud (رح) adds that the Holy Prophet ﷺ said: "Then, I see no room for making a concession in your case." Similarly. al-Qurtubi cites a hadith from the blessed Companion Ibn ` Abbas ؓ who reports that the Holy Prophet ﷺ once said: من سمع الندا، فلم یجب فلا صلاة لہ الا من عذر "The man who hears the call for the prayers but does not go to the mosque for the Jam-a'ah, has not offered his prayers at all, except that he should have some valid excuse." On the basis of such ahadith, Companions like ` Abdullah ibn Masud ؓ and Aba Musa al-Ash` ari ؓ ، have ruled that if a man lives close enough to a mosque to hear the call for prayers and yet does not attend the Jama` ah without a valid excuse, his offering of the Salah نماز at home is not acceptable. (Let us explain that hearing the call refers to the call made by a man possessing an average voice, and not to that made by a man with an extraordinarily loud voice or broadcast by a loudspeaker). Presented this far were arguments advanced by our revered elders who consider that Salah نماز with is wajib واجب or necessary. On the other hand, the majority of the blessed Companions, their successors and later jurists hold that the Jama` ah is a Sunnah which has been particularly emphasized (Mu'akkadah مؤَکَّدَہ), and that among the Sunnah of this kind it is, like the Sunnah offered in Fajr فجر Salah نماز ، the most emphasized so as to come very close to being necessary. On the basis of certain other verses and Hadith narrations, they interpret the imperative in "bow down with those who bow" as intended for emphasis only. As for the ahadith which appear to be saying that it is just not permissible for those who live near a mosque to offer their Salah نماز at home, they say that these only mean that this is not the perfect way to offer the prayers. The most comprehensive explanation of the matter has been provided by the blessed Companion ` Abdullah ibn Masud ؓ ، as reported by Imam Muslim (رح) : "The man who wishes to meet Allah tomorrow (i.e. the Day of Judgment) as a true Muslim, should offer these (five) prayers regularly and steadfastly in a place where the call for the prayers is habitually made (i.e. a mosque), for Allah has laid down for your Prophet ﷺ certain ways of good guidance (Sunnan al-Huda), and offering the five prescribed prayers with the Jama` ah is one of them. If you offer these prayers at home," he added pointing towards a man, "as he does, keeping away from the Jama'ah, you will have forsaken the Sunnah of your Prophet ﷺ ، and if you forsake the Sunnah of your Prophet ﷺ ، you will go astray. The man who (performs the wudu' وضو or ablution and cleanses himself in the proper manner, and then) goes to a mosque, for every step that he takes, Allah forgives one of his sins, adds one good deed to his account and promotes him one rank higher. Our company was such that there was not a single man, except for people known for their hypocrisy who would offer their prayers at home away from the Jama-'ah, so much so that even when a man was ill or unable to walk, he was brought to the mosque with his hands resting on the shoulders of two men, and made to stand in the row of those who were praying." This statement fully brings out the great importance of the Jama` ah, but at the same time defines its exact position by including it among the "ways of good guidance" (Sunan al-Huda) which are, in the terminology of the Fuqaha’ (jurists), called Al-Sunan al-Mu'akkadah سنن المؤکدہ (the Sunnah on which the greatest emphasis has been placed). Thus, if a man does not go to the mosque for Jama` ah and offers Salah نماز at home without having proper excuse like illness, his prayers will be valid, but he will have earned the displeasure of Allah for having given up a Sunnah which comes under the category of Mu'akkadah. If neglecting the Jama` ah becomes habitual for him, he will be committing a grave sin. If all the people living in the vicinity of a mosque leave it deserted and offer their prayers at home, they become, in the eyes of the Shari` ah, liable to punishment. Qadi ` Iyad says that if persuasion fails to mend such people, they must be challenged by a show of force. (Qurtubi)

An admonition to preachers without practice Verse 44 addresses the religious scholars of the Jews, and reprimands them for a strange contradiction in their behaviour - they used to advise their friends and relatives to follow the Holy Prophet ﷺ and to be steadfast in their Islamic faith, which shows that they regarded Islam as the true faith, but, being enslaved to their desires, were not prepared to accept this faith themselves, although they were regular readers of the Torah and knew how emphatically it denounces the scholar who does not act upon his knowledge. Though externally addressed to the Jewish scholars, the verse, in a larger sense, condemns all those who preach good deeds to others but do not act upon this principle, who ask others to have fear of Allah but show no such fear in their own behaviour. The Hadith speaks in detail of the dreadful punishments these men will have to bear in the other world. The blessed Companion Anas ؓ reports that on the Night of the Ascension (معراج), the Holy Prophet ﷺ passed by some people whose lips and tongues were being cut with scissors made of fire; on being questioned as to who they were, the Archangel Jibra'il (علیہ السلام) (Gabriel) explained that they were certain avaricious preachers of the Holy Prophet's Ummah who made others to good deeds but ignored themselves. (Ibn Kathir). According to a hadith reported by Ibn ` Asakir, certain people living in Paradise will find some of their acquaintances in the fire of hell, and ask them, "How is it that you find yourselves in hell, while we have attained Paradise just on account of the good deeds we had learnt from you"; those in hell will reply: "We used to say all that with our tongues, but never acted upon what we said." (Ibn Kathir) All this should not be taken to mean that it is not permissible for a man who has himself been slack in good deeds, or is in some way a transgressor, to give good counsel or preach to others, nor that a man who has been indulging in a certain sin may not try to dissuade others from committing that sin. For, doing a good deed is one form of virtue, and persuading others to do this good deed is another form of virtue in its own right. Obviously, if one has given up one form of virtue it does not necessarily follow that he should give up the other form as-well. For example, if a man does not offer his prescribed Salah نماز ، it is not necessary for him to give up fasting too. Similarly, if a man does not offer his prayers, it does not argue that he should not be allowed to ask others to offer their prayers. In the same way, doing something prohibited by the Shari'ah is one kind of sin, and not to dissuade those whom he can influence from this misdeed is another kind, and committing one kind of sin does not necessarily entail committing the other sin as well. (Ruh al-Ma'an~i ( Imam Malik (رح) has cited Sa’ id ibn Jubayr ؓ as saying that if everyone decides to refrain from persuading others to good deeds and dissuading them from evil deeds on the assumption that he himself is a sinner and can have no right to preach to others until and unless he has purged himself of all sins, there would be no one left to give good counsel to people, for who can be totally free of sins? According to Hasan (رح) of Basra, this is exactly what Satan wants that, obsessed by this false notion of purity, people should neglect their obligation to, provide religious instruction and good counsel to others. (Qurtubi) Maulana Ashraf ` Ali Thanavi (رح) used to say that when he became aware of a certain bad habit in himself, he would expressly denounce this particular tendency in his sermons so that the barakah of the sermon should help him to get rid of it. In short, verse 44 does not imply that the man who has been indifferent to good deeds in his own life is not allowed to preach or to give good counsel, but that the man who preaches should not neglect good deeds in his own life. Now, a new question arises here - it is not permissible for a preacher and non-preacher alike to neglect good deeds, then why should the preacher alone be specifically discussed in this context? We would reply that such negligence is, no doubt, impermissible for both, but the crime of the preacher is more serious and reprehensible than that of the non-preacher, for the former commits a crime knowing that it is crime, and cannot plead ignorance as an excuse. On the contrary, the non-preacher, especially if he is illiterate , may be committing the sin of not trying to acquire knowledge, but, as far as the transgression of the Shari'ah is concerned, he can, to a certain degree plead ignorance of the law as his excuse. Moreover, if a scholar or a preacher commits a sin, he is actually mocking at the Shari'ah. The blessed Companion Anas ؓ reports from the Holy Prophet ﷺ that on the Day of Judgment, Allah will forgive illiterate and ignorant people much more readily than He will the scholars.

Khushu` خشوع : The Humbleness of Heart Verse 45 speaks of the humble in heart. The "humbleness of heart" (Khushu خشوع `), which the Holy Qur'an and the Hadith speak of, connotes a restfulness of heart and humility arising out of the awareness of Allah's majesty and of one's own insignificance in comparison to it. This quality, once acquired, shows its spiritual fruitfulness in making the obedience to Allah and submission to Him easy and pleasant for one; sometimes it reflects itself even in the bodily posture and appearance of the man who has acquired it, for such a man always behaves in a disciplined and polite manner, is modest and humble, and seems to be "broken-hearted", that is to say, one who has lost all vanity and self-love. If a man does not bear genuine humility and fear of Allah in his heart, he does not, with all his external modesty and downcast looks, really possess the quality of Khushu خشوع ` (humbleness of heart). In fact, it is not proper even to show the signs of Khushu خشوع ` in one's behavior deliberately. On seeing a young man sitting with his head bowed down, the rightly-guided Khalifah Sayyidna ` Umar ؓ said: "Raise your head! Humbleness of heart is in the heart." Ibrahim Nakha'i has said: "Humbleness of heart does not mean wearing rough clothes, eating coarse food and keeping the head bowed down. Humbleness of heart is to treat the high and the low alike in matters of truth, and to keep the heart free to devote itself entirely to Allah and to the performance of what Allah has made obligatory for you." Similarly, Hasan (رح) of Basra has said : The Caliph ` Umar ؓ would speak loudly enough to be heard, whenever he spoke, would walk swiftly, whenever he walked, and would strike forcefully, whenever he struck a man. All the same, he undoubtedly was a man with a real humbleness of heart." In short, wearing deliberately and by one's own choice, the looks of a man who possesses the humbleness of heart is a kind of self-delusion and a ruse of Satan, and hence reprehensible. But if a man happens to manifest such signs without knowing it, he can be excused.(Qurtubi) Let us add that there is another word - Khudu` - which is often used along with Khushu خشوع `, and which appears several times in the Holy Qur'an as well. The two words are almost synonymous. But the word Khushu خشوع `, according to its lexical root, refers to the lowering of the voice and of the glance when it is not artificial but arises out of a real modesty and fear of Allah - for example, the Holy Qur'an says: "Voices have been hushed" (20:108). On the other hand, the word "Khudu`"refers to the bodily posture which shows modesty and humility - for example, the Holy Qur'an says: "So their necks will stay humbled to it". (26:4) We must also define as to what, in the eyes of the Shari` ah, the exact position and value of Khushu خشوع ` is with regard to Salah نماز . The Holy Qur'an and the Hadith repeatedly stress its importance as in: "And perform the prayer for the sake of My remembrance." (20:14) Obviously, forgetfulness is the opposite of remembrance and hence the man who becomes unmindful of Allah while offering Salah, is not fulfilling the obligation of remembering Allah. Another verse says: "Do not be among the unmindful." (7:205) Similarly, the Holy Prophet ﷺ has said: "The Salah نماز simply means self-abasement and humility." Says another hadith: "If his prayers do not restrain a man from immodesty and evil, he goes farther and farther away from Allah." Salah نماز offered unmindfully does not obviously restrain man from evil deeds, and consequently such a man goes farther and farther away from Allah. Having quoted these verses and ahadith in support of other arguments in his Ihya' al-` Ulum, الاحیاء العلوم Imam al-Ghazali (رح) suggests that Khushu خشوع ` must then be a necessary condition for Salah نماز ، and that its acceptability must depend on it. He adds that, according to the blessed Companion, Mu` adh ibn Jabal ؓ and jurists as great as Sufyan al-Thawri and Hasan al-Basri, Salah نماز offered without Khushu خشوع ` is not valid. On the other hand, the four great Imams of Islamic jurisprudence and most of the jurists do not hold Khushu خشوع ` to be a necessary condition for Salah نماز . In spite of considering it to be the very essence of Salah نماز ، they say that the only condition necessary in this respect is that while saying Allahu Akbar اللہ اکبر at the beginning of the prayers one should turn with all one's heart to Allah, and have the intention (niyyah نیت ) of offering the prayers only for the sake cif Allah; if one does not attain Khushu` in the rest of the prayers, one will not get any reward for that part of the prayers, but, from the point of view of Fiqh فقہ (jurisprudence), one will not be charged with having forsaken Salah نماز ، nor will one be liable to the punishment which is meted out to those who give up prescribed prayers without a valid excuse. Imam al-Ghazali (رح) has provided an explanation for this divergence of view. The Fuqaha' (jurists), he points out, are not concerned with inner qualities and states of the heart (Ahwal احوال ), but only enunciate the exoteric regulations of the Shari` ah on the basis of the external actions of men's physical organs - it does not lie within the jurisdiction of Fiqh فقہ to decide whether one will get a reward for a certain deed in the other world or not. Khushu خشوع ` being an inner state, they have not prescribed it as a necessary condition for the total duration of Salah نماز ، but have made the validity of the prayers depend on the lowest degree of Khushu خشوع ` - turning, as one begins the prayers, with one's heart to Allah and having the intention of only worshipping Him. There is another explanation for not making Khushu خشوع ` a necessary condition for the total duration of the prayers. In certain other verses, the Holy Qur'an has clearly enunciated the principle which governs legislation in religious matters: nothing is made obligatory for men that should be beyond their endurance and power. Now, except for a few gifted individuals, men in general are incapable of maintaining Khushu خشوع ` for the total duration of the prayers; so, in order to avoid compelling men to a task they cannot accomplish, the Fuqaha' have made Khushu خشوع ` a necessary condition only for the beginning of the prayers, and not for the whole duration. In concluding the discussion, Imam al-Ghazali (رح) remarks that in spite of the great importance of Khushu خشوع ` one can depend on the infinite mercy of Allah, and hope that the man who offers his prayers unmindful will not be counted among those who give up the prayers altogether, for he has tried to fulfill the obligation, has turned his away from everything to concentrate his attention on Allah even for a few moments, and has been mindful of Allah alone at least while forming his intention for the prayers. Offering one's prayers in this half-hearted manner has, to say the least, the merit of keeping one's name excluded from the list of those who habitually disobey Allah and forsake the prescribed prayers altogether. In short, this is a matter in which hope and fear both are involved - there is the fear of having incurred punishment as well as the hope of being ultimately forgiven. So, one should try one's best to get rid of one's laziness and indifference. But it is the mercy of Allah alone which can help one to succeed in this effort.

Verse 47 asks the Israelites to call to their minds the blessing of Allah, so that the recognition of the benefits they have received may induce them to be thankful to Allah and thus to obey Him. The verse is addressed to the Jews contemporaneous with the Holy Prophet ﷺ while the blessing had been received by their forefathers. The point is that when a man receives a special favour, his children and grand children too usually partake of the benefits flowing from it; in this sense, the Jews who are being addressed may be said to have received the blessing themselves. As for Allah giving preference to the Israelites "over the worlds", the phrase means that they were given preference only in certain matters, or only over a large part of men - for example, over the contemporaries of the earlier Israelites. The day referred to in verse 48 is the Day of Judgment. As for no one being able to suffice another on that day, the phrase should be understood in the sense of one man paying the dues on behalf of another man. Let us, for example, suppose that a man is found wanting in the performance of obligatory acts of worship like Salah نماز and Sawm صوم (fasting), and another man should suggest that his own prayers and fasts may be transferred to the account of the former in order to make up the deficiency. Such a transaction shall not be possible on that day. Ransom, of course, means the money paid for securing the release of a criminal - this too shall be out of the question. As for intercession (shafa-` ah شفاعہ) not being accepted, the phrase does not totally deny the possibility of intercession on the Day of Judgment; it only means that if a man does not have 'Iman ایمان (faith), no intercession in his favour shall be accepted. For the Holy Qur'an makes it clear in certain other verses that Allah will allow intercession to be made on behalf of some people (53:26, 34:23, 2:55 etc.), and will disallow it in the case of those who do not possess 'Iman ایمان (21:28, 20:109). Since there would be no intercession on behalf of the latter, the question of its being accepted does not simply arise. 'Receiving support', in usual terms, means getting oneself released from a difficult situation with the help of a strong and powerful friend or patron. In short, none of the ways of receiving help possible in this world will be effective in the other world unless one possesses 'Iman ایمان . A doctrinal point On the basis of verse 48, the Mu'tazilah and some other groups of a more recent origin have denied the possibility of all intercession in favour of Muslims. But, as we have shown above, the negation of intercession applies only to disbelievers and infidels. (Bayan al-Qur an)

Verse 47 had spoken of the special favours shown to the Israelites by Allah. Now, with Verse 49 begins the account of these favours. Someone had made a prediction to the Pharaoh (فرعون) that a child was going to be born among the Israelites who would destroy his kingship. So, he began slaughtering all the male infants as soon as they were born. But he would spare the females, as there was nothing to fear from them, and, moreover, they could, on growing up, serve as maid-servants. So, even this leniency was motivated by self-interest. What the verse refers to as "a great trial" is either the slaughter of the sons - which was a calamity, and it is the quality of patience that is tested in a calamity - or the deliverance from the people of the Pharaoh - which was a blessing, and it is the quality of thankfulness which is tested when one receives a blessing. The next verse gives us the details about this deliverance.

Verse 50 refers to certain things which had happened in the days of Sayyidna Musa (علیہ السلام) (Moses). He, in his capacity as a messenger of Allah, continued efforts for a long time to make the Pharaoh and his people see Truth, but when they persisted in their denial, Allah commanded him to take the Israelites along with him and leave Egypt surreptitiously. On their way, they came across a sea while the Pharaoh was behind him with his army in hot pursuit. Allah commanded the sea to split, and make way for Sayyidna Musa (علیہ السلام) and his people. So, they went over smoothly. But when the Pharaoh and his army followed them into the sea, it gathered the water back so that the Pharaoh and his men were drowned then and there. A doctrinal point Verse 50 speaks of the splitting of the sea, and clearly proves that miracles do occur at the hands of prophets, which some Westernized Muslims have been trying to deny. (Bayn al-Quran (

Verse 51 refers to other incidents in the same story. When the Pharaoh had been drowned, the Israelites, according to one report, went back to Egypt, or, according to another, began to live somewhere else. Having at last found a peaceful existence, they now wished they could receive a Shari` ah, or a religious code of laws, from Allah which they should follow. Allah answered the prayer of Sayyidna Musa (علیہ السلام) and promised that if he came to the Mount Tur طور (Sinai) and devoted himself to worship for a month, he would receive a Divine Book. He gladly obeyed the Commandment, and was granted the Torah تورات . But he was ordered to continue to worship for ten days more, because he had broken his fast after a month and thus lost the special odour which rises from the mouth of a fasting person and which is very pleasant to Allah; so Allah commanded him to fast for ten additional days and regain that odour. Thus, Sayyidna Musa (علیہ السلام) completed forty days of total fasting and devotion. While he was on Mt. Sinai, something very odious happened to the Israelites. Among them there was a man called Samiriyy سامری . He fashioned the figure of a calf out of gold or silver, and put into it some of the dust which he had picked up from under the hooves of the horse of Jibra'il (the Archangel Gabriel علیہ السلام), at the time when the Pharaoh and his army had been drowned by the Archangel. The golden calf immediately acquired life. The ignorant among the Israelites were so impressed that they started worshipping it. Verse 51 calls them "unjust" for having committed this sin, for 'injustice' lies in putting things in the improper places, and idolatory is essentially just that.

The Israelites were forgiven only when they had offered Taubah توبہ (repentance), as recounted in Verse 54. In saying that they were pardoned so that they might learn gratefulness, the present verse employs the Arabic word لَعَلَ La` lla which indicates expectation. In the present context it does not mean that Allah had or could have any doubt or misgiving about this or any other matter; what the word implies here is just that when a man receives a pardon, the onlookers may expect him to feel grateful.

Torah is the book which was given to Sayyidna Musa (علیہ السلام) In the language of the Holy Qur'an, al-Furgan الفرقان is a term signifying something which separates truth from falsehood or distinguishes the one from the other. In the present verse, it refers either to (a) the injunctions of the Shari` ah which are to be found in the Torah, for the Shari` ah resolves all the differences that may arise with regard to the doctrines or the practice of good deeds; or to (b) miracles which decide between a true or a false claim in a palpable manner; or even to (c) the Torah itself which has the twin qualities of being a Book of Allah and of being an instrument for separating truth from falsehood.