Tadabbur 7 - (20/4/17)

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

23-7-1438

Allah sent Bani Israeel the Prophet ﷺ with the Quran, and they rejected him, although it is the truth. Ibn Othaimeen رحمه الله said in his Tafseer :

It is obligatory upon man to know the the truth by the truth and not by men. So as long as the person said the truth, follow it, whatever its source is. Accept the truth because it is the truth, not because so and so brought it.

If the truth has come to you accept it. Do not look at who brought it. Accept the truth because it is the truth, as long as it is the truth, regardless of who brought it. There are people nowadays who reject the truth because it came through so and so, without looking at what has been brought. It is obligatory to accept the truth from everyone who brings it. 

سورة الجن - Surat AlJinn

The Stage of Preparation

The Surah is about the Speech of the Jinn, their description, what Allah said, and what the Prophet ﷺ was commanded to say.

Division of the Surah into Topics

Part #1 - The Speech of the Jinn (Verse 1 to 14)

Part #2 - The Statement of Allah regarding the recompense of those who believe and those who are قاسطون (Verse 15 to 19)

Part #3 - The State of the Prophet ﷺ (Verses 20 to 28)

Repeated Words

There are two types of repeated words:

1) Words Similar in Structure

2) Different Derivations of the Same Root Word

There are three benefits of knowing the repeated words:

1) It helps you conclude the theme of the Surah; what the Surah revolves around.

2) It helps you link between the different parts of the Surah

3) It shows you the بلاغة (Eloquence) of the Quran. 

Knowing the repeated words will increase you in faith and in the belief that the Quran is an eloquent speech. These words are never repeated in vain or without a purpose. 

Some of the Repeated Words

1) استماع, سمعنا، مقاعد للسمع، يستمع، سمعنا x5

This word is mentioned in the Speech of the Jinn; in the first part of the Surah. There is a difference between سمع and استمع;- استمع is when a person listens intently and attentively. [زيادة المبني يدل على زيادة المعنى]

Conclusion: The means of the guidance of the Jinn was listening to the Quran. There was no other means of guidance for them. They did not read or attend a lecture, they just listened attentively to the Quran, and they believed. 

You may not be able to get the wisdom behind the word being repeated or the conclusion of the repeated words until after looking at the Tafseer. 

2) الرشد، رشدا، رشدا، رشدا





In the first three verses, it is the statement of the Jinn. They said:

-> That the Quran guides to الرشد

-> That they do not know if Allah wills evil or رشدا for the people of earth. 

-> They used to listen, and then they were prevented, because Allah sent the Prophet ﷺ. There is a رشدا in Allah sending the Prophet ﷺ to the people of the earth.

-> The Muslims among them sought الرشد. They have to put effort to get the guidance.

The last statement is the statement of the Prophet ﷺ:

-> He does not have the power to give رشدا

Conclusion: 

The Quran guides to the رشد. The means of the guidance is the Quran. 

The Prophet ﷺ guides to the  رشد. Allah wills الرشد by sending the Prophet ﷺ.

Since the Prophet ﷺ and the Quran guide to the رشد, our duty is to seek الرشد.

You have no power to force the people to accept the رشد, it is Allah who guides to it.

The word الرشد is mentioned in certain Surah's in the Quran; from Surah Al-Baqarah until Surah Al-Jinn.

In Surah Al-Baqarah [2:256]:

 

"There is no compulsion in religion. Verily, the Right Path has become distinct from the wrong path. Whoever disbelieves in Taghut and believes in Allah, then he has grasped the most trustworthy handhold that will never break. And Allah is All-Hearer, All-Knower."

It is mentioned 4 times in Surah Al-Kahf. These are the two Surahs in the entire Quran which mention this word more than any other Surahs. If you are seeking الرشد, you have to know it from the Quran. Find out what الرشد is, the sources of it, etc. When you collect all the positions in the Quran it is mentioned in and go to the Tafseer and see what the Scholars said, you would come out with abundant knowledge on the word الرشد. No matter how much we give of ourselves to study the Quran, it is full of treasures. People nowadays look for إرشاد نفسي; they want someone to guide them psychologically. If you want it, it is in the Quran. 

3) أحدا

"أن لن يبعث الله أحدا"

It either means Allah will not send a Messenger or not resurrect anyone. 

 

From these verses we learn that Surah Al-Jinn revolves around Tawheed, and abandoning all kinds of Shirk - Shirk in Dua, Shirk in Istiaadhah, etc. It is as if the Jinn want to tell you that the Quran guides to Ar-Rushd, which is Tawheed. The right path is to adopt the way of Tawheed. We will confirm this later when we read the Tafseer.

Repeated Names of Allah

الرب x8

الله x10

We have to study the context the Name الرب is mentioned and the Name الله is mentioned in. 

The verses which mention the beneficence, gifts, nurturing, kindness of Allah have the Name الرب. 

الرب is the Lord who nurtures His servants with His beneficence and blessings.

The verses which mention the Greatness of Allah and His Magnificence have the Name الله mentioned.

E.g. Verse 2:

 

"It guides to the Right Path, and we have believed therein, and we shall never join (in worship) anything with our Lord (Allah)."

It is as if the Jinn want to say to not associate with Allah, Our Lord, any God. How can we associate with our Lord, who created us, sustains us, provides us with all we need, guides us, protects us, etc. How can we thank someone other than Him? He is the only one who deserves to be thanked and loved because He is our Lord who created us, sustains us, is taking care of us. They are emphasizing the Ruboobiyah of Allah; the actions of Allah.

E.g. The Name الله

Verse 4:

 

"'And that the foolish among us [i.e. Iblis (Satan) or the polytheists amongst the jinns] used to utter against Allah that which was wrong and not right."

الله is ذوا الألوهية و العبودية على خلقه أجمعين 

Allah is the Only one who deserves to be loved and magnified because He is the only one who has Perfect Attributes.  

It is as if the Jinn want to say: How come the foolish amongst us dared to say شطط against Allah, who is the Owner of Grandeur and Magnificence? This is a position of glorification; of تعظيم, this is why they used the Name الله.

Apply this to the rest of the verses.

Surah Al-Jinn is a Makki Surah. There are 85 Makki Surahs, and Surah Al-Jinn is 71 in sequence. The Scholars said it is revealed after Surah Al-A'raf. It was revealed upon the Prophet ﷺ three years before the Hijrah.

Reason of Revelation

Al-Bukhari رحمه الله mentioned the reason of revelation in his Saheeh in كتاب التفسير (The Book of Commentary):

 

 

Theme of the Surah

The group of Jinn who listened to the Quran and entered the fold of Eeman and embraced Islam. 

The Connection between this Surah with the Previous Surah

Surah Nuh is all about Nuh عليه السلام and his Da'wah to his people who were idol worshippers. His people did not accept his Da'wah and disbelieved in the truth he brought, although Nuh عليه السلام used all the means of Da'wah.

Then came Surah Al-Jinn, to show us that these group of Jinn are better than the people of Nuh عليه السلام who rejected the message of their Prophet. This group of Jinn immediately believed, whilst Nuh عليه السلام remained with his people for hundred of years but they did not believe.

Connection between the Title and Theme of the Surah

The Surah is titled Al-Jinn and the theme is about this specific group of Jinn that embraced Islam.

The Connection between the Beginning of the Surah with the End

#1 - The Surah started with تبليغ; the command of the delivery of the message of Allah by the Prophet ﷺ. 

Beginning: "قل آوحي" - Allah is commanding the Prophet ﷺ to say.

End: "ليعلم أن قد أبلغوا رسالات ربهم" - In order for Allah to know if they conveyed the message or not.

#2 - الوحي in Arabic is information about something which is conducted in quick, hidden way. (الإعلام السريع الخفي)

Beginning: "قل أوحي" - Allah is commanding the Prophet ﷺ to say it has been revealed to him.

End: "عالم الغيب فلا يظهر على غيبه أحدا" - Allah is the Knower of the Unseen and does not reveal His unseen to anyone, except those who He is pleased with from the Messengers.

This matter was unseen. The Prophet ﷺ did not know about this group of Jinn that was listening.Ibn Abbas رضي الله عنهما said that the Prophet ﷺ did not see the Jinn. Ibn Masoud رضي الله عنه said that he sis see. There is a dispute; we do not know. However, Allah is informing the Prophet ﷺ about this specific group of Jinn.

#3-  The Jinn are from the unseen world. We only deal and know about them through revelation of the Quran and Sunnah, not through fortunetellers and magicians.

The Connection between the end of Surah Nuh and the beginning of Surah Al-Jinn

Surah Nuh ended with the supplication of Nuh عليه السلام:

 

"My Lord! Forgive me, and my parents, and him who enters my home as a believer, and all the believing men and women. And to the Zalimun (polytheists, wrong-doers, and disbelievers, etc.) grant You no increase but destruction!"

It is as if the supplication is an introduction to Surah Al-Jinn. He invoked Allah after the destruction of falsehood and the winning of the truth; after Allah decided between them. At the end of the struggle between falsehood and the truth. He invoked Allah to forgive him, to forgive his parents, and the believing men and women.

This group of Jinn entered the fold of Eeman. Because they are believers, they are included in the Dua of Nuh عليه السلام. It is as if he is emphasizing the issue of Eeman, which the Jinn declared and entered the fold of. 

The Similarity of the Topics in Surah An-Nuh with the Topics in Surah Al-Jinn

Surah Nuh talks about a group of humans who received the truth with stubbornness and persistence in Kufr and did not give heed in listening to the truth. They fled away from Nuh عليه السلامwhenever he approached them, and would put all their fingers in their ears and cover themselves with their garments in order not to hear him. It was to that extent they had aversion to the truth. And they would advise each other to not listen to Nuh عليه السلام.

The attitude of the Jinn was the opposite as mentioned in Surah Al-Jinn. The people of Nuh عليه السلام directly listened to him, and the Jinn directly listened to the Quran. The former rejected it, the latter accepted it. 

The People of Nuh عليه السلام advised each other to not listen to Nuh عليه السلام, and so did the disbelievers of Quraish with the Prophet ﷺ, as mentioned in Surah Fussilat [41:26]:

 

"And those who disbelieve say: "Listen not to this Quran, and make noise in the midst of its (recitation) that you may overcome."

The Stage of Study (الدراسة)

This is further divided into two stages:

1) Study the Surah from a simple, concise Tafseer

If you still have unanswered questions, you go to:

2) The Detailed Tafseer

At-Tabari, Al-Baghawi, Ibn Kathir, Ibn Othaimeen, Fath AlBayan, As-Sa'di all are on the Manhaj of Ahlus-Sunnah. There are differences between them, but إختلاف التنوع;- i.e. If you join all their Tafaseer together it will give you a complete interpretation. Allah may open for one Muffasir what He does not open for another. When you combine all you will get abundant knowledge. It is a difference of variety, not contradiction.

 

Tafseer As-Sa'di

Verse 1-2

 

 

 

 

أي: {قل} يا أيها الرسول للناس {أوحي إلى أنه استمع نَفَر من الجن} صرفهم الله {إلى رسوله} لسماع آياته لتقوم عليهم الحجة و تتم عليهم النعمة و يكونوا نذرا لقومهم. 

Allah commanded the Prophet ﷺ to convey to the people that Allah صرفم to His Messenger in order to hear his Ayaat.

Why? For three purposes: 

1) So that the proof would be established against them

The Prophet ﷺ was to sent to both Jinn and Men.

2) The favour perfected on them

3) And they may become warners to their people.

The word صرف which the Sheikh mentioned in his interpretation, is from Surah Al-Ahqaf [46:29-32]:

 

"And (remember) when We sent towards you (Muhammad) Nafran (three to ten persons) of the jinns, (quietly) listening to the Quran, when they stood in the presence thereof, they said: "Listen in silence!" And when it was finished, they returned to their people, as warners."

 

"They said: "O our people! Verily! We have heard a Book (this Quran) sent down after Musa (Moses), confirming what came before it, it guides to the truth and to a Straight Path (i.e. Islam)."

The Sheikh usually uses the same words of the Quran in his interpretation. He does not bring something without a proof for it.

 

"O our people! Respond (with obedience) to Allah's Caller (i.e. Allah's Messenger Muhammad), and believe in him (i.e. believe in that which Muhammad has brought from Allah and follow him). He (Allah) will forgive you of your sins, and will save you from a painful torment (i.e. Hell-fire)."

 

"And whosoever does not respond to Allah's Caller, he cannot escape on earth, and there will be no Auliya' (protectors) for him besides Allah (from Allah's Punishment). Those are in manifest error."

و أمر الله رسوله أن يقص نبأهم علم الناس و ذالك أنهم لما حضروه قالوا: أنصتوا، فلما أنصتوا فهموا معانيه ووصلت حقائقه إلى قلوبهم

We have to do this in order to reach the Eeman of the Jinn; in order for the truth to reach our hearts. This means that if there is a barrier on the heart, this way of listening will remove the barrier and affect the heart directly. 

In this way, As-Sa'di  رحمه الله merged the verses of Surah Ahqaf with the verses in Surah Jinn.

What did the Jinn say about the Quran?

{فقالوا إنا سمعنا قرآنا عجبا} أي: من العجائب الغالية و المطالب العالية

This is the impact of attentive listening to the Quran - it makes a person reach noble goals, which he will not attain except through this.

{يهدي إلى الرشد} و الرشد: اسم جامع لكل ما يرشد الناس إلى مصالح دينهم و دنياهم 

The Quran guides the people to every benefit in their worldly and religious affairs.  You do not need to go the west and east, looking for guidance.

Some people might ask, where is the benefit in the Quran? The problem is not in the Quran, it is in your heart. If your heart approached the Quran the way they Jinn did, you would be guided like the Jinn were. In Surah Muhammed [47:16]:

 

"And among them are some who listen to you (O Muhammad ) till, when they go out from you, they say to those who have received knowledge: "What has he said just now? Such are men whose hearts Allah has sealed, and they follow their lusts (evil desires)."

Both the companions and the hypocrites attended the Majlis of the Prophet ﷺ. The companions would increase in faith and the hypocrites would say, "What has he said just now?"

Similarly, two persons listen to the Quran. Ones faith increases and the other does not understand. The problem is in his heart.

Assignment: Read Tafseer as-Saadi, do not skip a word when reading. 

- If you do not understand anything, put a question mark. 

- Check if the Sheikh answered your previous questions.