Resuming Tafsir / Exegesis and Detailed Explanation of Sürahs / Chapters of Qur'an

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمٰنِ الرَّحِيْمِ 

"In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful"

Almost two years back, when we started this blog for the benefit of reverts who had recently embraced Islam, we commenced a series of posts on summary of Sürahs of the Qur'an for them to understand the why of revelation of these Sürahs in as brief form as possible.

We started from the 114th Sürah backwards, for these were shorter and pertained to the early period of Islam, as these gave away the earliest commandments of Allah at a time when Islam was still in its infancy stage and new Muslims were bearing the wrath of the non believers / polytheists of Makkah. 

But as we progressed to rather lengthier posts, mainly of post Hijrah period in Medina, we commenced with detailed exegesis / tafsir with reference to the context as these Medina period Sürahs were about laws and other important issues that required elaboration.

Now that we are over with the summaries and Tafsir / Exegesis of the entire 114 Sürah, Alhamdolillah, we fell that we need to go back and start afresh from the 114th Sürah backwards, giving away their Tafsir / Exegesis for detailed understanding of each verse with reference to the context. In order to provide detailed explanation, we will incorporate the noble work of many a renowned exegists for better understanding and comprehension. 

An effort, thus, has been made to gather explanation / exegesis of the surahs of the Holy Qur'an from authentic sources and then present a least possible condensed explanation of the surah. In that:

• The plain translation has been taken from the Holy Quran officially published by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. 
• The exegesis of the chapters of the Holy Quran is mainly based on the "Tafhim al-Qur'an - The Meaning of the Qur'an" by one of the most enlightened scholars of the Muslim World Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi.  

In order to augment and add more explanation as already provided by [2], additional input has been interjected from following sources: 

• Tafsir Ibn Khatir
• Muhammad Asad Translation
• Javed Ahmad Ghamidi / Al Mawrid
• Al-Quran, Yusuf Ali Translation
• Towards Understanding the Quran
• Verse by Verse Qur'an Study Circle

Please pray for us that we are able to complete the exegesis / tafsir of all those Sürah for which only summaries were given earlier. By the end of this work, In Sha Allah, the tafsir / exegesis of the entire 114 Sürahs will stand completed.

You may refer to our Reference Page "114 Chapters (Sūrahs) of the Holy Qur'an" for translation, explanation and exegesis of all Sürahs / chapters of the Qur'an.

You may also refer to our Reference Pages for knowing more about Islam and Quran.

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Reading the Holy Quran should be a daily obligation of a Muslim - Reading it with translation will make it meaningful. But reading its Exegesis / Tafsir will make you understand it fully.

If you like Islam: My Ultimate Decision, and to keep yourself updated on all our latest posts to know more about Islam, follow us on Facebook

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Please share this page to your friends and family members through Facebook, WhatsApp or any means on Social Media so that they can also be benefited by it and better understand Islam and the Holy Qur'an - Insha Allah (Allah Willing) you shall be blessed with the best of both worlds.

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99 Attributes of Allāh: Al-Mājid - The Illustrious

One of the many attributes of Allah is Al-Majīd " ٱلْمَجِيدُ " (pronounced Al Majeed), The Glorious and Majestic, The Most Honorable and Praiseworthy, The All-Glorious. This attribute has been mentioned in Qur'an at two places, of these one of the mentions is made in 73rd verse of Surah 11. Hud as under:

قَالُوا أَتَعْجَبِينَ مِنْ أَمْرِ اللَّهِ ۖ رَحْمَتُ اللَّهِ وَبَرَكَاتُهُ عَلَيْكُمْ أَهْلَ الْبَيْتِ ۚ إِنَّهُ حَمِيدٌ مَّجِيدٌ 

"They said: 'Do you wonder at Allah's decree? Allah's mercy and His blessings be upon you, O people of the house. Surely, He is Praiseworthy, Glorified". 

Al-Majīd " ٱلْمَجِيدُ " thus indicates the One whose essential nature is glorious, dignified, noble and honorable, and whose essential nature is to give liberally and bountifully. 

Although, Al-Mājid " ٱلْمَاجِدُ " - (pronounced Al Maajid) is not specifically mentioned as an attribute of Allah in the Qur'an, it has has been derived from Al-Majīd " ٱلْمَجِيدُ " which means the One who is praised for the specific deeds and attributes of great glory, dignity, nobility, honor, and exceeding generosity.

Both these attributes stem from the root "majd" which in classical Arabic mean: (1) to be glorious, dignified, noble and honorable, (2) to be lauded, exalted, sublime and (3) to be liberal, bountiful, exceedingly generous.

Allah is Al-Mājid " ٱلْمَاجِدُ " The One who shows mankind the highest, most perfect example of goodness, richness, and generosity. And it will be disastrous for servants of Allah not to seek His generosity specially when one has sinned. 

Abu Tharr al-Ghifari, may Allah be pleased with him, the revered companion of the Prophet of Allah,  has quoted the Messenger of Allah quoting the commandment of Allah which says:

"O servants of Mine! You are all sinners except those whom I have healed from sinning; therefore, seek My forgiveness so that I may forgive you by My might. Whoever among you comes to know that I am capable of forgiving, and he seeks My forgiveness, I shall forgive his sins and overlook them. You are all to perish except those whom I guide; therefore, seek My guidance so that I may guide you.

May Allah bless us the knowledge and wisdom to ponder over the many attributes of Him and shape our lives and our future to the best possible character traits derived from the attributes of Allah, so that we are blessed in this world and forgiven and rewarded in the life in the hereafter. Ameen. 

You may refer to our post "99 Attributes of Allāh" for complete list of 99 attributes of Allah Almighty with meaning and explanation.

You may also refer to our Reference Pages for knowing more about Islam and Quran

Photo | References: | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 |

If you like Islam: My Ultimate Decision, and to keep yourself updated on all our latest posts to know more about Islam, follow us on Facebook

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Please share this page to your friends and family members through Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp or any means on Social Media so that they can also be benefited by it and better understand Islam and the Holy Qur'an - Insha Allah (Allah Willing) you shall be blessed with the best of both worlds.

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A caution for those who do not spend for the cause of Allah

Allah has bestowed innumerous bounties and blessings unto His servants so as to ease their living and so that they are thankful to Him. But everyone is not fortunate enough to have access to these blessings, not that Allah doesn't not have any soft corner for them, but it is to test them under stress and see whether they still remain grateful to Him or not. 

On the contrary, those who have been given in abundance are also being tested that whether they are thankful for being so gifted and they also share their blessings with those who have been given less. And it is these blessed people, yet miser and greedily who hold onto what has been given to them and do not spend in the way of Allah, that are being addressed in the 180th verse of Surah 3 Al-i'Imran:

وَلَا يَحْسَبَنَّ الَّذِينَ يَبْخَلُونَ بِمَا آتَاهُمُ اللَّـهُ مِن فَضْلِهِ هُوَ خَيْرًا لَّهُم ۖ بَلْ هُوَ شَرٌّ لَّهُمْ ۖ سَيُطَوَّقُونَ مَا بَخِلُوا بِهِ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ ۗ وَلِلَّـهِ مِيرَاثُ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ ۗ وَاللَّـهُ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ خَبِيرٌ

( 180 )   And let not those who [greedily] withhold what Allah has given them of His bounty ever think that it is better for them. Rather, it is worse for them. Their necks will be encircled by what they withheld on the Day of Resurrection. And to Allah belongs the heritage of the heavens and the earth. And Allah, with what you do, is [fully] Acquainted.

This is a mention of how the Hypocrites would ridicule the calls of the Qur’an to spend for the cause of God. When the Qur’an would ask them to lend money to God, they would make fun of this by saying that God is very poor these days and thus asking for money from these rich people.

Everything in the heavens and the earth belongs to God alone. Hence the possession and use of anything by man is purely transient. For everyone will be dispossessed of his temporary belongings, and everything will ultimately return to and abide with God. If anyone therefore spends with open hearts in the way of God out of his temporary possessions he does so from property which, ultimately, belongs to God alone. Anyone who hoards his possessions and fails to spend them in the way of God is indeed stupid.

Ibn Kathir Explanation:

This verse is about the Censure of Selfishness, and Warning Against it. It is being said that the miser should not think that collecting money will benefit him. Rather, it will harm him in his religion and worldly affairs. Allah mentions the money that the miser collected on the Day of Resurrection.

Al-Bukhari recorded that Abu Hurayrah said that the Messenger of Allah said,

(Whoever Allah makes wealthy and he does not pay the Zakah due on his wealth, then (on the Day of Resurrection) his wealth will be made in the likeness of a bald-headed poisonous male snake with two black spots over the eyes. The snake will encircle his neck and bite his cheeks and proclaim, `I am your wealth, I am your treasure.')

The Prophet then recited this Ayah.

Imam Ahmad recorded that `Abdullah said that the Prophet said:

(Every person who does not pay the Zakah due on his wealth, will have his money made into the shape of a bald-headed, poisonous male snake who will follow him. The person will run away from the snake, who will follow him and proclaim, `I am your treasure.')

Yusuf Ali Explanation:

The gifts are of all kinds: material gifts, such as wealth, property, strength of limbs, etc., or intangible gifts, such as influence, birth in a given set, intellect, skill, insight, etc., or spiritual gifts of the highest kind. The spending of all these things (apart from what is necessary for ourselves) for those who need them, is charity, and purifies our own character. The withholding of them (apart from our needs) is similarly greed and selfishness, and is strongly condemned.

By an apt metaphor the miser is told that his wealth or the other gifts which he hoarded will cling round his neck and do him no good. He will wish he could get rid of them, but he will not be able to do so. According to the Biblical phrase in another connection they will hang like a millstone round his neck (Matt. xviii. 6). The metaphor here is fuller. He hugged his wealth or his gifts about him. They will become like a heavy collar, the badge of slavery, round his neck. They will be tied tight and twisted, and they will give him pain and anguish instead of pleasure. Cf. also xvii. 13.

Another metaphor is now introduced. Material wealth or property is only called ours during our short life here. So all gifts are ours in trust only; they ultimately revert to Allah, to Whom belongs all that is in the heavens or on earth.

May Allah help us understand Qur'an and help us to act upon the commandments of Allah contained therein. Aameen.

For more Selected Verses, please refer to our reference page: Selected Verses from the Qur'an

You may also refer to our Reference Pages for knowing more about Islam and Quran.

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Reading the Holy Quran should be a daily obligation of a Muslim - Reading it with translation will make it meaningful. But reading its Exegesis / Tafsir will make you understand it fully.

An effort has been made to gather explanation / exegesis of the Sūrahs of the Holy Qur'an from authentic sources and then present a least possible condensed explanation of the surah. In that:

• The plain translation has been taken from the Holy Quran officially published by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. 
• The exegesis of the chapters of the Holy Quran is mainly based on the "Tafhim al-Qur'an - The Meaning of the Qur'an" by one of the most enlightened scholars of the Muslim World Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi. 

In order to augment and add more explanation as already provided, additional input has been interjected from following sources: 

• Verse by Verse Qur'an Study Circle
• Tafsir Ibn Khatir
• Al-Quran, Yusuf Ali Translation
• Javed Ahmad Ghamidi / Al Mawrid

In addition the references of  other sources which have been explored have also been given in each page. Those desirous of detailed explanations and tafsir (exegesis), may refer to these sites.

If you like Islam: My Ultimate Decision, and to keep yourself updated on all our latest posts to know more about Islam, follow us on Facebook

Follow @IslamUltimate

Please share this page to your friends and family members through Facebook, WhatsApp or any means on Social Media so that they can also be benefited by it and better understand Islam and the Holy Qur'an - Insha Allah (Allah Willing) you shall be blessed with the best of both worlds.

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Islam and Life of Muslims in Non Muslim Countries: Honduras

Honduras is the only Latin American country which has the largest population of Arab immigrants outside the Western Hemisphere. although, the majority of these Arab immigrants are of Orthodox and Catholic Christian descent totaling something between 150,000 to 200,000, the Muslims form part a fraction of it, that is between 5,000 to 6,000 including the local converts.

Sarah Souli in her post "A visit to the Biggest Little Mosque in Honduras" says:

The introduction of Islam to Honduras is linked to the waves of Arab immigration, explains Rodolfo Pastor Fasquelle, a historian at San Pedro Sula’s Museo de Antropologia e Historia.

“In 1870 the national railroad pact was signed with the British,” Fasquelle said, while giving a tour around the museum’s exhibit of 19th-century artifacts. “It was a great fiasco—it never got past the mountains—but it did connect San Pedro Sula to the coastline. And as the city became an internal port, it became crucial to trade with the outside world.” Goods came, and so did immigrants from Europe, North America, and increasingly, the Middle East. Arab migration came in three waves: from 1895-1915 as the Ottoman Empire suffered a string of crises; from 1925 to 1940 in the wake of the First World War; and again from 1950-1970, after visas became easier to obtain.

In 1984, an Islamic charitable organization was founded, with the main object of taking care of the interests of the Arabs and Muslims in the country, and they have since built a mosque, where they meet and discuss their social and religious affairs, including the education of their children, the most important of which is teaching them the Qur’an and the Arabic language.

For many years there was no mosque / masjid in Honduras. But now there are two masjids: the one in San Pedro Sula, and a smaller one in the capital city of Tegucigalpa. Pakistani factory owners, converted Honduran military generals and Cuban flaneurs are just a few of the people who attend jumu’ah (Friday prayers) in the masjid in San Pedro Sula. Imam Mohammed, a Pakistani who leads the service, says that only around 30 people attend prayers at the mosque on a weekly basis.

Iman Mohammed, who was born in Pakistan, poses for a portrait after Friday prayers. 

The revert experiences are unique for the Hondurans, Sarah Souli explains:  [2]

“I started studying Islam alone, and the path of Allah came for me,” Colonel Orlando Ajalla Gaños told us. Raised Catholic, the colonel has spent the last nine years commuting weekly to the mosque from his home in Tegucigalpa. “I was always happy but since becoming Muslim I am even more happy—you can call me Saif,” he added, referring to his Islamic name as he adjusted his taqiyah (cap).

Arnaldo Hernandez, a Garifuna fisherman, drives three hours from his home in the coastal town of La Ceiba to attend Friday prayers. He converted to Islam from Christianity 26 years ago, though, as he is quick to point out with a huge grin, “we are all Muslims.”

Iman Mohammed leads the Friday prayer - the prayers are spoken in a mix of Arabic and Spanish to serve the San Pedro Sula mosque’s diverse population of worshipers.

Honduras’s constitution protects freedom and practice of religion—though the government only officially recognizes the Roman Catholic church; all other religious groups are categorized as religious associations and have fewer rights and privileges. [3]

“We haven’t had any problems with racism,” stated Imam Mohammed who gives the Friday prayer sermon at the mosque in Spanish and Arabic languages.

Hernandez, the Garifuna fisherman expressed that “there’s no distinguishing between race and color. We’re all brothers, that’s the base of Islam. It’s a benediction to have this community.”

The Muslim community has its unity and cohesiveness. There are weekly dinners organized by Mr. Yusuf, a Pakistani Muslim who owns a string of factories and is one of the country’s richest men. Everyone contributes to the mosque’s upkeep—a donation box is passed around after the prayers. In this sky-blue Caribbean mosque, the best parts of Islam—equality, fraternity, love—seem to shine.

Disclaimer: The data for this post has been collected from the references as given below. If any one differs with the material contained in this post, one may consult the references and their authors.  If someone has more material about the subject, he/she is most welcome to share in the comments box to make the post all encompassing.

To know more about life of Muslims in other non Muslim countries, please visit our page: Islam and Life of Muslims in Non Muslim Countries

You may also refer to our Reference Pages for knowing more about Islam and Quran.

All Photos Credit: EMILY KINSKEY / Atlas Obscura | References: | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |

If you like Islam: My Ultimate Decision, and to keep yourself updated on all our latest posts to know more about Islam, follow us on Facebook

Follow @IslamUltimate

Please share this page to your friends and family members through Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp or any means on Social Media so that they can also be benefited by it and better understand Islam and the Holy Qur'an - Insha Allah (Allah Willing) you shall be blessed with the best of both worlds.

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Scholars' Viewpoint: Understanding Quran - where have we gone wrong

Qur'an is the fountainhead of Islam and is compilation of the literal Speech of Allah as conveyed to Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) through Angel Jibraeel (Gabriel) in the classic Arabic language. The Quran is the last of all the Holy Scriptures that was bestowed upon the last of the Prophets, Muhammad (peace be upon him). Which means that till the Day of Judgement, will there be no prophet nor any Divine scripture for the guidance of the entire mankind. And for this very reason, Allah has taken upon Himself to guard against any adulteration into the text of Qur'an and for this very reason, the Qur'an text remains safe and unadulterated since the times of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).

For a considerable period of time, the understanding of Islam remained restricted to the original interpretation of Qur'an and Sunnah as it descended from times of the Prophet of Allah to his followers and their followers and theirs. But as Islam started to expand beyond the boundaries of Arabia, the Islamic scholars got exposed to Greek, Egyptian and Iranian philosophies and in order to keep "step" with the modern philosophies of time, they started interpreting Qur'an according to the newly acquired knowledge. Side by side the mysticism also crept into Islam and instead of obeying the commands of Allah as contained in the Qur'an. the Sufi mystique branch started to to find ways to contact Allah through mysticism, like Buddhism and to an extent Hinduism.

This then, greatly altered the original message of Islam and interpretation of Qur'an and Sunnah as had been practiced a few centuries since the dawn of Islam. Even till day day, Sufism finds more attraction to Muslims as it involves rhythmic movements, cutting off from mainstream life and concentrating in establishing contact with Allah. This is how we have gone wrong in the interpretation and understanding of the religion, Qur'an and Sunnah.

However, there are still some scholars who are trying to revive the original concept and understanding of Qur'an to keep it away from adulteration. Professor Javed Ahmad Ghamidi, a Pakistani Muslim theologian, Quran scholar, Islamic modernist, exegete and educationist is one such scholar who is in the forefronts in this true cause, though he is heavily refuted by other scholars who tend to follow the Sufism and interpretation of Islam and Qur'an as per modern dictates.

Please watch an enlightening video on the subject below by Professor Javed Ahmad Ghamidi. Please listen to this video with an open mind without any prejudices and inclinations to different scholars or schools of thought. It would be only then, one can understand its true essence. The video is in Urdu, but has English subtitles for those who cannot understand Urdu:

May Allah help us understand Islam in the light of original teachings of Qur'an and Sunnah of our Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him).

Disclaimer: The views expressed in the video above are that of the concerned scholar . We have shared these view as added information in better understanding of Islam. The reader may or may not agree with the view owing to their own perception. If any one differs with the material contained in this post, one may consult the references and their authors.  If someone has more material about the subject, he/she is most welcome to share in the comments box to make the post all encompassing.

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For more Scholarly views and videos, please read our reference page: Scholars' Viewpoint on Important Issues Related to Islam.

You may also refer to our Reference Pages for knowing more about Islam and Quran.

If you like Islam: My Ultimate Decision, and to keep yourself updated on all our latest posts to know more about Islam, follow us on Facebook

Follow @IslamUltimate

Please share this page to your friends and family members through Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp or any means on Social Media so that they can also be benefited by it and better understand Islam and the Holy Qur'an - Insha Allah (Allah Willing) you shall be blessed with the best of both worlds.

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What is a Qareen?

Allah has created two types of beings; the visible beings (that is us humans) and the invisible beings (that is jinn and devils). Of the invisible beings devils are the associates of Iblees or the Satan which are responsible for inciting all types of evil among the humans and create unrest in this world.

The devils have been associated with man right from his birth till he dies for Iblees or the Satan had promised Allah that he would do his best to mislead man from the righteous path, when Iblees was expelled from Jannah / Paradise for refusing to prostrate Adam. And in fact it was he who "whispered" to Adam to go near the tree which was forbidden for Adam and his wife Eve by Allah and caused their expulsion too from Jannah to earth.

The associate of the Iblees who are made companion of man upon his birth has been mentioned as Qareen in the Qur'an:

قَالَ قَآئِلٌ مِّنۡهُمۡ اِنِّىۡ كَانَ لِىۡ قَرِيۡنٌۙ‏ 

One of them will say: “I had a companion in the world (Surah 37. As-Saffat: 51)

Like Iblees "whispered" in the ears of Adam, this Qareen also continues to whisper in the ears of the man he is associated with to do wrong and evil so that he is doomed forever as promised by Iblees - the Satan. Whenever, the man decides to do something good, this Qareen does his utmost to mislead him by whispering to him and tries to draw the man away from good and lead him to evil things.

A Qareen (Arabic: قرين‎ qarīn literally meaning: 'constant companion') is a spiritual double of human, either part of the human himself or a complementary creature in a parallel dimension. Since this constant companion is devilish in nature, it is also known as the devil companion of the devil within,

When our Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) told about Qareen to his companions, they asked: Do you have a Qareen too? To which the Prophet of Allah said yes, but for prophets, Allah has subdued them and given them under their controls, thus they cannot mean no harm to the prophets or whisper evil to them to mislead them.

In the last Surah 114 An Nas, the whispering of this Qareen has been mentioned in the fourth verse:

مِنۡ شَرِّ الۡوَسۡوَاسِ  ۙ الۡخَـنَّاسِ ۙ‏

from the mischief of the whispering, elusive prompter who returns again and again, 

In the above verse, man is seen asking Allah to save them from the evil whispers of the Qareen, who continues to prompt man, and jinn too, to do evil. Since, the Qareen can only whisper and "recommend" a evil course or deed, it has no power to let the man make a decision. The decision ultimately rests on the man and he alone will be responsible for his resultant evil deeds on the Day of Judgement. The same has been mentioned in Surah Qaf: 27, wherein on the Day f Judgement, the Qareen would say:

“His comrade saith: Our Lord! I did not cause him to rebel, but he was (himself) far gone in error.” i.e. the devil assigned to seduce him will say: “My lord! It was not me who seduced him at the beginning, but it was he himself who preferred blindness to guidance. So, I helped him achieve his goal through seduction.”

One can feel the machinations of the Qareen and if one is wise enough, he can beat back its tricks. Like for instance, when one is asleep and it is time for Fajr / the Dawn prayer, the Qareen would continue to whisper to the man to a have a little more sleep as there is still time and in doing so, many a times one misses his prayer. Likewise, music is favourite of devils and they would distract his man companion to listen to music and this skip his prayers. The Qareen also pampers man to see porn stuff and pollute his mind and commit evil deeds. That is why man and woman are advised not to meet in private as the third present with them is their Qareen pestering them for committing sin by being intimate.

So can we save ourselves from the misguidance of the Qareen? Whenever, one is inclined to do evil deed, he must know that he is being mislead by his Qareen. At that time he must start to recite Qur'an, specially the Ayat ul Qursi (verse 255 of Surah 2 al Baqarah), and also the last two verses of the same Surah.

Ibn Mas`ud, may Allah be pleased with him narrated: “ I was with the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) during the night in which he met the jinn at the presence of Gabriel. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) was reciting the Qur’an while the devil was getting more closer to him. Gabriel said to the Prophet: “Would you like me to tell you some words that, when uttered, will make the devil walk prone (without seeing) on his face and will blow out his flame?… say: “ I seek refuge in the incomparable Glory of Allah that can not be violated by the righteous or the cunning from the evil of what goes into the earth and all that comes out thereof; all that comes down from the sky and all that ascends thereto and from the evil of night visitants except for good ones. You are the Most Merciful!” (when the Prophet uttered these words) the devil began groping his way and his flame got extinguished.”

You may watch a relevant video, though in Urdu but with English sub titles to understand the concept of Qareen:

May Allah help us overcome the treacheries and machinations of the Qareen and let us always be guided toward truth and path of righteous and cleanliness. Aameen

Photo | References: | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |

For more Q &A about understanding Islam, please refer to our reference page: Understanding Islam: Frequently Asked Q & A.

You may also refer to our Reference Pages for knowing more about Islam and Quran.

If you like Islam: My Ultimate Decision, and to keep yourself updated o n all our latest posts to know more about Islam, follow us on Facebook

Follow @IslamUltimate

Please share this page to your friends and family members through Facebook, Twitter, WhatsApp or any means on Social Media so that they can also be benefited by it and better understand Islam and the Holy Qur'an - Insha Allah (Allah Willing) you shall be blessed with the best of both worlds.

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99 Attributes of Allāh: Al Khāfiḍ - The Abaser, The Humilator

Allāh is Al Khāfiḍ " ٱلْخَافِضُ " - The Abaser, the Humilator, the Lowerer and The Downgrader.
 
Allah, the Creator of this universe, gives out His countless bounties in the form of money, health, family, honour, and healthy environment for the sustenance of His servants with complete disregard to caste and creed, colour or even to those unfaithful who do not believe in Him. Thus we see many a tyrants rising to power like the Pharaoh, Nimrod, and in present times many a dictator whose tyranny cost millions of innocent lives.

But there is a limit to Allah's tolerance for He is always watchful for those who transgress despite His many bounties bestowed upon them. It is then Allāh, the Al Khāfiḍ, strikes and humiliates those who are exceeding limits. For such people Allah says in the 3rd verse of Surah 56. Al-Waqi'a:

خَافِضَةٌ رَّافِعَةٌ ۙ‏ 

(a calamitous Event) that shall turn things upside down

 
This small but very meaningful verse literally means: That which causes something or somebody to rise and to fall. Its one meaning can be that it will upset every order and it will turn things upside-down. Another meaning can also be that it will exalt the lowly and bring low the high and mighty; that is, on its advent the decision as to who is noble and who is ignoble among the people will be made on quite a different basis. Those who posed as honorable people in the world would become contemptible and those who were considered contemptible would become honorable.

In the verse above, the attributes Al Khāfiḍ comes with another attribute of Allah: Al Rāfi' (uplifter), which is the opposite of Al Khāfiḍ (humbler). That is while Allah uplifts His servants from rags to riches, He nonetheless ensures downfall and humiliation from the power corridors and those possessing riches of the world like Karun as mentioned in the Qur'an.

Allah mentions Karun in Sürah 28. Al Qasas  [verse 79]:

Indeed, Karun was from the people of Moses, but he tyrannized them. And We gave him of treasures whose keys would burden a band of strong men; thereupon his people said to him, “Do not exult. Indeed, Allah does not like the exultant.

and Sürah 40. Mu'min  v[verse 24]:

And [We destroyed] Karun and Pharaoh and Haman. And Moses had already come to them with clear evidences, and they were arrogant in the land, but they were not outrunners [of Our punishment].

as can be seen from the verse above, Al Khāfiḍ has not been specifically mentioned as an attribute, but it is been drawn from the implied meaning of the word " خَافِضَةٌ  ", which is from the root kh-f-d which in classical Arabic means: (1) to lower, weaken, depress, (2) to make humble, abase, (3) to relax, diminish, subdue.

Al Khāfiḍ is the One that abases and humiliates the tyrants and the proud. He humiliates them both in the world and in the hereafter. This attribute strikes not only individuals but mighty empires as well.  History is replete with the mention of downfall of great nations and empires, like the Ad, Thamud, the Roman, Byzantine and Persian Empires - the once mighty Empires were so humiliated that there remains their mention in history books only or their might can be seen crumbled in the archaeological wastes around the world.

Although, this attribute of Allah is mostly related to the abasement of the oppressors, this may also be applicable to some believers as well who transgress their limits or even as a test to judge their faithfulness and patience. 

Allah may also test His servants by stripping them of their honour or taking away from them their wealth to see whether they still stand firm. and there are many a incident in history to quote. 

Our Prophet (peace be upon him) attracts attention to the name Al Khāfiḍ:

Hz. Anas (ra) narrated: Adba, the camel of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), was very fast in races and it was almost impossible to surpass it in speed. There came a Bedouin riding a camel of his, and that camel outstripped it in the race. That result was hard on the Muslims. The Prophet (peace be upon him) said, "It is the law of Allah that nothing is raised high in this world except what He lowers or puts down.”

We must therefore guard ourselves against our vanity and pride and be always be humble for what has been bestowed upon us and should never be lamenting if something dear from us has been taken away from us. Remember, whatever we have is a from Allah Who possesses everything in the universe and everything thus belongs to Him. He may give us a bounty forever or for a time period. We should be thankful in both cases, lest we draw wrath of Al Khāfiḍ.

You may refer to our post "99 Attributes of Allāh" for complete list of 99 attributes of Allah Almighty with meaning and explanation.

You may also refer to our Reference Pages for knowing more about Islam and Quran

Photo | References: | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |

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