Surah Al-A'raaf (7): Read Online and Download - English Translation

In the second verse (74), concern has been shown for these pledge-breaking and contumacious people lest they find themselves subjected to Divine punishment. For this purpose they have been reminded of the favours and blessings of Allah Ta` ala upon them in the hope that they would alter their uncompromising stance and abandon their doggedness and rebellion. It was said: وَاذْكُرُ‌وا إِذْ جَعَلَكُمْ خُلَفَاءَ مِن بَعْدِ عَادٍ وَبَوَّأَكُمْ فِي الْأَرْ‌ضِ تَتَّخِذُونَ مِن سُهُولِهَا قُصُورً‌ا وَتَنْحِتُونَ الْجِبَالَ بُيُوتًا (And remember when He made you successors after ` Ad and lodged you on earth [ whereby ] you make castles in its plains and hew out the mountains into houses). Here, the word: خُلَفَاءَ (khulafa' ) is the plural of khalifah which means deputy or vice-regent and: قُصُور (qusur) is the plural of قَصر qasr which means a palace or palatial building. The word: تَتَّخِذُونَ (tanhituna) is a derivation from naht which means sculpture or stone-carving. جِبَال ` Jibal' is the plural of jabal meaning a mountain. ` Buyut' is the plural of bayt which denotes a house or rooms in it. The sense of the verse is that they should remember the blessing of Allah Ta` ala that He, after the destruction of the people of ` Ad, brought them to settle in their place, gave their lands and homes to them as the new owners, and bestowed on them the skill with which they could raise big palaces on open surfaces and hew out mountains to make rooms and apartments inside them. Then, at the end of the verse, it was said فَاذْكُرُ‌وا آلَاءَ اللَّـهِ وَلَا تَعْثَوْا فِي الْأَرْ‌ضِ مُفْسِدِينَ (So be mindful of the bounties of Allah, and do not go about the earth spreading disorder).

Injunctions and Rulings

Some fundamental and subsidiary rulings emerge from the cited verse. These are as follows:

(1) There is a unanimous agreement of all prophets, may peace be upon them all, on fundamental articles of faith and, similarly, united stand their religious codes or Shari'ahs. All of them invite towards Tauhid or absolutely pure monotheism as the basis of worshiping Allah, and they all warn against contravention of this concept which brings punishment in this world and in the Hereafter.

(2) It has happened in past communities too that the wealthy and the traditional holders of social prestige have not said yes to the call of prophets as a result of which they were disgraced and destroyed in this world and became deserving of punishment in the Hereafter as well.

(3) According to Tafsir al-Qurtubi, this verse tells us that the blessings of Allah in this world are directed to and shared by disbelievers as well - as was the case with the people of ` Ad and Thamud to whom Allah Ta` ala had given great wealth and power.

(4) According to Tafsir al-Qurtubi, once again, this verse tells us that palaces and mansions are blessings of Allah Ta` ala and their making is permissible.

However, this is an entirely different matter that the noble prophets and the men of Allah have not favoured them as they make people heedless. The sayings of the Holy Prophet ﷺ about high rising buildings are of this nature.

The Confrontation Between the Arrogant and the Weakened

The third (75) and the fourth (76) verses carry a dialogue between two groups of the people of Thamud. One of these was of those who had come to believe that Sayyidna Salih (علیہ السلام) was a prophet while the other was that of deniers and disbelievers. Says the verse: قَالَ الْمَلَأُ الَّذِينَ اسْتَكْبَرُ‌وا مِن قَوْمِهِ لِلَّذِينَ اسْتُضْعِفُوا لِمَنْ آمَنَ مِنْهُمْ (The chiefs of his people, who were arrogant said to the weakened, to those of them who believed).

In Tafsir Kabir, Imam Razi has said: At this place, the Holy Qur'an identifies two qualities of these two groups, but the quality or trait of the disbelievers was mentioned in the active voice (اسْتَكْبَرُ‌وا who were arrogant) while the quality or state of the believers was identified through the passive (اسْتُضْعِفُوا the weakened). It indicates that the condition of the disbelievers - that they were arrogant - was what they chose to do at their own discretion which was questionable and blame-worthy, and which finally became the cause of their punishment. As for the quality or state of believers which these people put as weak and low, it was something said by disbelievers. Their description had nothing to do with the actual state and quality of believers, something which could be considered blameworthy in any manner whatsoever. In fact, blameworthy are those who call them weak and low, and take them to be so, without any reason. After that comes the dialogue which has occured between these two groups where the disbelievers said to the believers: ` Are you sure that Salih is a messenger from his Lord?'

The reply given by the believers was: ` Surely, we believe in what he has been sent with.'

The famous Tafsir Kashshaf says: What an eloquent answer was given by the believers from the people of Thamud when they said: ` All this debate of yours - is he a messenger of Allah or is he not? - is just not worth debating. In fact, this is obvious, foregone and certain. And equally certain is that what he says is a message brought from Allah Ta` ala. If there is anything worth talking about here, it is: Who believes in him and who does not? So, as for us, praise be to Allah, we do believe in every word of guidance brought by him.'

But, even this eloquent answer could not soften the disbelieving people of Thamud. They countered back coldly and arrogantly saying that they rejected what they had accepted. The lust of worldly life is merciless. So is the toxic elation of having wealth and power. May Allah Ta` ala keep all of us protected for they become invisible curtains before human eyes which would not let those seeing eyes see the obvious.

Commentary

It has appeared in previous verses that the Du` a' of Sayyidna Salih (علیہ السلام) had made a big rock open up in the nearby mountain through which an extraordinary she-camel had come out. Then, Allah Ta` ala had made this she-camel the last trial for these people as she drank up all water from the well which was used by the people and animals of the locality for their needs. Therefore, Sayyidna Salih (علیہ السلام) had fixed turns, a day for the she-camel and another for the people of the area.

The people of Thamud were in trouble because of this she-camel. They wished she would somehow die. But, they did not dare do it themselves lest they are hit by some Divine punishment.

But, Satan has an unlimited array of weapons. One of his deadliest strategies of deception which makes human beings surrender whatever sense and sensibility they have is the trial through women. So, two beautiful damsels from the people of Thamud threw a wager: Whoever kills this she-camel could take us, or anyone from among our girls to become his own.

Two young men from Thamud, called Misda` and Qadhar, all drunk with the rosy prospect, went out to kill the she-camel. They hid themselves behind a big rock and waited for the she-camel to pass by them on its usual route. When the she-camel appeared before them, Misda` hit her with an arrow and Qadhar hamstrung her by cutting her legs with his sword. Thus, they killed the she-camel.

The Holy Qur'an calls this person the most cruel and wretched from among the people of Thamud: إِذِ انبَعَثَ أَشْقَاهَا ﴿12﴾ when the one, most wicked of them, was sent [ incited to kill her ] - 91:12) because that was what brought mass punishment on the people of Thamud.

Sayyidna Salih (علیہ السلام) ، after having found that the she-camel has been killed, told his people - as Divinely commanded - that they have only three days to live: تَمَتَّعُوا فِي دَارِ‌كُمْ ثَلَاثَةَ أَيَّامٍ ۖ ذَٰلِكَ وَعْدٌ غَيْرُ‌ مَكْذُوبٍ that is, ` enjoy yourselves in your homes for three days (only) [ after that the punishment is coming ]. That is a promise, not going to be false - 11:65.' But, when the undoing of a people becomes due, no advice or warning works. This is what happened with these wretched people. Even the very honest counsel of Sayyidna Salih (علیہ السلام) did not produce the desired effect. In turn, they started making fun of him by challenging him as to how and from where would this punishment come and what would be the signs of its coming.

Sayyidna Salih (علیہ السلام) said: ` You want signs, so hear this. Tomorrow, on Thursday, your faces will turn dark yellow. Men, women, the young and the old, no one will remain exempted. Then, day after tomorrow, on Friday, all faces will turn dark red; and on Saturday, the third day to come, all faces will turn jet black. And this day will be the last day of your life.' Despite having heard what was said, these wretched people, rather than repent and seek forgiveness, decided that they better kill Sayyidna Salih (علیہ السلام) himself. Their ` logic' was: If he is true and the punishment has to come upon them, why should they not finish him first before the punishment comes to finish them - and if he is a liar, then, let him have his punishment for lying. This intention of the people of Thamud finds mention in details at other places in the Qur'an. Under this unanimous verdict of the Thamudites, some of them went to the house of Sayyidna Salih (علیہ السلام) with the intention of killing him. But, as Allah Ta` ala would have it, they were killed by a hail of rocks while still on their way. Says the Qur'an: وَمَكَرُ‌وا مَكْرً‌ا وَمَكَرْ‌نَا مَكْرً‌ا وَهُمْ لَا يَشْعُرُ‌ونَ ﴿50﴾that is, 'and they made a plan and We made a plan and they were not aware' - 27:50.

a

When came the morning of Thursday, then, as stated by Sayyidna Salih (علیہ السلام) ، the faces of all of them turned as yellow as if painted with a deep yellow colour. The first sign of the coming of punishment stood proved true. Yet, those tyrants were not to be mellowed enough to believe in Allah Ta` ala and desist from their wrongdoings. In fact, their wrath on Sayyidna Salih (علیہ السلام) increased all the more and everyone started running around to find and kill him. May Allah Ta` ala protect everyone from His wrath, for that too has its signs which turn hearts and minds upside down, when people start taking their gain as their loss, and their loss as their gain, and their good as bad, and their bad as good.

At last came the second day and, true to the prophecy, everyone's face turned red; and then, came the third day when they turned jet black. Now there was nowhere to go. All disappointed, they stood waiting to see which way the punishment comes.

In this state of theirs, a severe earthquake struck from down below the earth, and. from above tore in a horrendously shrill cry, an awesomely severe sound. This cry or sound caused everyone to die, instantly and simultaneously, fallen upside down, (like some dead bird landing on the ground on its breast - see ` Jathimin' in Mufradat al-Qur'an). As for the coming of the earthquake, it does find mention in verse 78 which appears above, that is: فَأَخَذَتْهُمُ الرَّ‌جْفَةُ (So, the earthquake seized them). The word:' الرَّ‌جْفَةُ (ar-rajfah) means earthquake.

Other verses of the Qur'an have also mentioned: فَأَخَذَتْهُمُ الصَّيْحَةُ (that is, a Cry or Sound seized them - 15:83). The word: الصَّيْحَةُ (As-Saihah) means a shrill cry or severe sound. From these two verses, we find out that two kinds of punishment had simultaneously converged on the people of Thamud, the earthquake from below and the ` Saihah' from above. The result was: أَصْبَحُوا فِي دَارِ‌هِمْ (and they were [ found dead ] in their homes, fallen on their knees - 77). The word: جَاثِمِين (jathimin) is a derivation from the verbal noun: Juthum, which means to be rendered senseless and motionless at one spot, or remain sitting (Al-Qamus). The sense is that everyone lay dead as and where one was. نَعُوذُ بِاللہِ مِن قَھرِہِ وَ عَذَابِہِ (We seek refuge with Allah from His Wrath and His Punishment).

Important parts of this story of the people of Thamud (علیہ السلام) have been mentioned in the different Surahs of the Qur'an itself. Some parts appear in Hadith narrations. There are some others which commentators have taken from Israelite narratives, but the proof of an event or its reality does not depend on them.

It appears in a Hadith of the Sahih of Al-Bukhari that, during a journey related to the Battle of Tabuk, the Holy Prophet ﷺ and his Sahabah passed by Hijr, the place where the people of Thamud had faced their punishment. At that spot, he gave instructions to the Sahabah that no one should go into the land area of that punishment-stricken habitation, nor should anyone use water from its wells. (Mazhari)

According to some narrations, the Holy Prophet ﷺ said: When the punishment overtook the people of Thamud, no one survived except one person, Abu Righal. He was in the Haram of Makkah at that time. Allah Ta` ala spared him of the punishment at that time because of the sanctity of the Haram of Makkah. Finally, when he came out of the Haram, the same punishment which had seized his people visited him as well, and right there he met his death. The Holy Prophet ﷺ also showed people the marks of the grave of Abu Righal on the outskirts of Makkah; and he also said that a walking stick made of gold was also buried with him. When the Sahabah opened the grave, they found the gold stick there which was taken out. Mentioned in the same narration is that Banu Thaqif, the inhabitants of Ta'if are the progeny of this very Abu Righal. (Mazhari)

Allah Ta` ala, in His infinite wisdom, has allowed these habitations of punished peoples to stay as signposts of lesson for coming generations. The Holy Qur'an has repeatedly warned the people of Arabia that these places which come on their travel route to Syria should bring home to them their essential lesson in the rise and fall of peoples: that is, (these are the dwellings of ungrateful people We لَمْ تُسْكَن مِّن بَعْدِهِمْ إِلَّا قَلِيلًا which) have not been lived in after them, except a little - 28:58).

After the mention of the event of punishment which overtook the people of Sayyidna Salih (علیہ السلام) it was finally said: فَتَوَلَّىٰ عَنْهُمْ وَقَالَ يَا قَوْمِ لَقَدْ أَبْلَغْتُكُمْ رِ‌سَالَةَ رَ‌بِّي وَنَصَحْتُ لَكُمْ وَلَـٰكِن لَّا تُحِبُّونَ النَّاصِحِينَ ﴿79﴾ (So, he turned away from them and said, "0 my people, I have certainly delivered to you the message of my Lord, and wished your betterment, but you people do not like the sincere advisers - 79), that is, after the visit of punishment on his people, Sayyidna S-alih (علیہ السلام) and those who had believed in him left that place and went somewhere else. In some narrations, it appears that there were four thousand believers with Sayyidna Salih (علیہ السلام) . He went along with them to Hadramaut in Yaman. It was there that Sayyidna Salih (علیہ السلام) passed away from this mortal world. However, some narrations report his going to Makkah al-Mu` azzamah and where it was that he passed away.

From the outward arrangement of the text, it appears that Sayyidna Salih (علیہ السلام) addressed his people while departing - 0 my people, I have certainly delivered to you the message of my Lord and have wished the best for you, but you do not seem to like honest advisers.

The question is when his people have been destroyed by the punishment, what is the use of addressing them now. The answer is that one good that may come out of it is that people in general would learn their lesson. This form of address resembles the address of the Holy Prophet ﷺ when he had said a few words addressing dead disbelievers from the tribe of Quraysh in the Battle of Badr. And then, it is also possible that this saying of Sayyidna Salih (علیہ السلام) came to pass before the coming of the punishment and the destruction of his people - though, in the textual arrangement, it has been mentioned later.

Commentary

Out of the continuing series of stories relating to prophets (علیہم السلام) and their communities, the fourth story is that of Sayyidna Lut (Lot) tX..JI ...lc.

Sayyidna Lut (علیہ السلام) is a nephew of Sayyidna Ibrahim Khalilullah (علیہ السلام) the patriarch of prophets. The original homeland of both was known as Babel near Basrah in western Iraq. Idol-worship was common. Even the family of Sayyidna Ibrahim (علیہ السلام) was involved in it. Allah Ta` ala sent Sayyidna Ibrahim (علیہ السلام) as a prophet for their guidance. His people opposed him which culminated in the well known Fire of Nimrud. Even his father threatened to turn him out of his home.

Out of his entire family, only his wife, Sayyidah Sarah and nephew, Sayyidna Lut (علیہ السلام) embraced Islam: فَآمَنَ لَهُ لُوطٌ (Then, Lut believed in him - 29:26). Finally, it was with these two that he immigrated to Syria leaving his home country behind. After reaching Jordon river, he settled in Can'-an near Bayt al-Maqdis under a Divine command.

Then, Allah Ta` ala made Sayyidna Lut (علیہ السلام) too a prophet and sent him to Sadum (Sodom) near Bayt al-Maqdis for the guidance of people there. This area comprised of five major cities. They were called Sadum, ` Amurah, Admah, Sububim and Bali` or Sawghar. The Qur'an has referred to their nucleus as ` Mu'tafikah' and ` Mu'tafikat' at several places. Sadum was considered as the center and capital of these cities. It was here that Sayyidna Lut (علیہ السلام) stayed. The land was fertile and verdant abounding in all kinds of grains and fruits. (These details appear in Al-Bahr Al-Muhit, Mazhari, Ibn Kathir, AI-Manar etc.)

Man's habit, as Allah Ta` ala says in the Qur'an, is: كَلَّا إِنَّ الْإِنسَانَ لَيَطْغَىٰ ﴿6﴾ أَن رَّ‌آهُ اسْتَغْنَىٰ ﴿7﴾ that is, when he acquires freedom from need, he starts transgressing the limits - 96:6-7. On these people too, Allah Ta` ala had opened the doors of His blessings. Goaded by this common behaviour pattern, all soaked in wealth and possessions, they reached the farthest ends of luxury and lust when they stood deprived of the most essential human sense of honour, dignity and modesty, and lost in that process, the very ability to distinguish between the good and the bad. In consequence, they got themselves involved in acts of unnatural indecencies. These are abominal acts, apart from being Haram and sinful, acts which cause hatred and distaste in the heart and mind of everyone born with sound and decent taste, so much so, that even animals would not go near it.

Allah Ta` ala appointed Sayyidna Lit (علیہ السلام) for their guidance. He addressed his people and said: أَتَأْتُونَ الْفَاحِشَةَ مَا سَبَقَكُم بِهَا مِنْ أَحَدٍ مِّنَ الْعَالَمِينَ (Do you commit the shameful act in which nobody has ever preceded you from all the worlds?).

When referring to Zina (adultery), the Qur'an has said: إِنَّهُ كَانَ فَاحِشَةً (Surely, it is a shameful act - 17:32). Here, the word: فَاحِشَةً (fahishah: shameful act) has been mentioned without 'Alif Lam while in the present verse, by saying: اَلفَاحِشَةً (al-fahishah: the shameful act), it has been made definite by the addition of 'Alif Lam. Thus, the hint given is that this unnatural evil act is, as if, the combination of all indecencies, and far grave a crime as compared to Zina.

Then, it was said that this shameful act has never been committed by anyone in all the worlds before they did it. ` Amru ibn Dinar has said: The act was unknown in the world before these people. (Mazhari) Neither had the worst of human being had ever thought on those lines before the people of Sadum. The Umayyad Khalifah, ` Abd al-Malik said: Had this event relating to the people of Lut (علیہ السلام) not been mentioned in the Qur'an, I would have never suspected that a human being could do something like that. (Ibn Kathir)

Here, their immodesty has been censured on two grounds: (1)-It so happens that men would get involved in many sins because of their social conditions, or because of a blind following of their ancestors - though, that too, is not a valid legal excuse in the Shar'iah of Islam. But, as a matter of customary practice, such a person could be taken as excusable in some or the other degree. But, when it comes to a sin which has never been committed by anyone before, nor does it have any particular compulsions of its own, it becomes a curse of the highest degree. (2)-The other ground is that this act becomes a channel of making others equally accursed. Think of a person who invents some evil act or custom. As obvious, the sin and punishment of his evil act falls on that person anyway, but, along with him, affected are all who sink in sin led by the act of the originator right through the Last Day, for the curse and punishment of all those so affected also sits on the shoulders of the originator of the evil.

In the second verse (81), this immodesty has been stated more explicitly - ` Surely, you come to men lustfully instead of women.' Here, the hint given is that, for the natural satisfaction of human desire, Allah 'Ta` ala has appointed marrying women as a lawful method. Now, to by-pass it and opt for an unnatural method is bland ugliness of the human self and certainly the proof of a dirty mind.

Therefore, the Sahabah, the Tabi` in and Mujtahid Imams have declared this crime and sin to be far more grave than other acts of shame. Imam Abu Hanifah (رح) has said: The punishment given to the person who commits this act should match the punishment which came upon the people of Lut (علیہ السلام) by the command of Allah Ta` ala - that rocks rained from the skies and the floor of the earth flipped upside down. Therefore, this person should be pushed down from a high mountain and rocks should be thrown from above on top of him. According to a narration of Sayyidna Ibn ` Abbas ؓ in the Musnad of Ahmad, Abu Dawud, Tirmidhi, and Ibn Majah, the Holy Prophet ﷺ said about the people who commit this evil act: فاقتلوا الفاعل والمفعول بہ that is, the doer of this evil deed and his passive partner (al-mafulu bihi: with whom it was done) should both be killed. (Ibn Kathir)

At the end of the verse (81), it was said: بَلْ أَنتُمْ قَوْمٌ مُّسْرِ‌فُونَ (No, you are a people who cross the limits). In other words, their real disease was that they would go beyond the limits set by Allah for everything - in their case, it would be the very limit of humanity they would be hopping over. The same thing happened about sexual desire when they crossed the limits appointed by Allah only to reach for a taste of the counter-natural.