Dawat ul Quran
Quran Translation and Commentary by Shams PirzadaTranslation in English by Abdul Karim Shaikh
Quran Translation
Word for Word by
Dr. Shehnaz Shaikh
& Kausar Khatri
Introduction
1. Al-Fatihah
2. Al-Baqarah
3. Al-Imran
4. Al-Nisa
5. Al-Maidah
6. Al-Anam
7. Al-Araf
8. Al-Anfal
9. Al-Taubah
10. Yunus
11. Hud
12. Yusuf
13. Al-Rad
14. Ibrahim
15. Al-Hijr
16. Al-Nahl
17. Bani Israil
18. Al-Kahf
19. Maryam
20. Ta-Ha
21. Al-Anbiya
22. Al-Hajj
23. Al-Muminun
24. An-Nur
25. Al-Furqan
26. Ash-Shuara
27. An-Naml
28. Al-Qasas
29. Al-Ankabut
30. Ar-Rum
31. Luqman
32. As-Sajdah
33. Al-Ahzab
34. Saba
35. Fatir
36. Yasin
37. As-Saffat
38. Saad
39. Az-Zumar
40. Al-Mumin
41. Ha-Meem-As-Sajdah
42. AShura
43. Az-Zukhruf
44. Ad-Dukhan
45. Al-Jathiyah
46. Al-Ahqaf
47. Muhammad
48. Al-Fath
49. Al-Hujurat
50. Al-Qaf
51. Adh-Dhariyat
52. At-Tur
53. An-Najm
54. Al-Qamar
55. Al-Rahman
56. Al-Waqiah
57. Al-Hadid
58. Al-Mujadalah
59. Al-Hashr
60. Al-Mumtahinah
61. As-Saff
62. Al-Jumuah
63. Al-Munafiqun
64. Al-Taghabun
65. At-Talaq
66. At-Tahrim
67. Al-Mulk
68. Al-Qalam
69. Al-Haqqah
70. Al-Maarij
71. Nuh
72. Al-Jinn
73. Al-Muzzammil
74. Al-Muddhththir
75. Al-Qiyamah
76. Ad-Dahr
77. Al-Mursalat
78. An-Naba
79. An-Naziat
80. Abas
81. At-Takwir
82. Al-Infitar
83. At-Tatfif
84. Al-Inshiqaq
85. Al-Buruj
86. At-Tariq
87. Al-Ala
88. Al-Ghashiyah
89. Al-Fajr
90. Al-Balad
91. Ash-Shams
92. Al-Lail
93. Ad-Duha
94. Al-Inshirah
95. At-Tin
96. Al-Alaq
97. Al-Qadr
98. Al-Bayyinah
99. Az-Zilzal
100. Al-Adiyat
101. Al-Qariah
102. At-Takathur
103. Al-Asr
104. Al-Humazah
105. Al-Fil
106. Al-Quraish
107. Al-Maun
108. Al-Kauthar
109. Al-Kafirun
110. An-Nasr
111. Al-Lahab
112. Al-Ikhlas
113. Al-Falaq
114. An-Nas
لَا (There is) no جُنَاحَ blame عَلَیْكُمْ upon you اِنْ if طَلَّقْتُمُ you divorce النِّسَآءَ [the] women مَا whom لَمْ not تَمَسُّوْهُنَّ you have touched اَوْ nor تَفْرِضُوْا you specified لَهُنَّ for them فَرِیْضَةً ۖۚ an obligation (dower) وَّ مَتِّعُوْهُنَّ ۚ And make provision for them عَلَی upon الْمُوْسِعِ the wealthy قَدَرُهٗ according to his means وَ عَلَی and upon الْمُقْتِرِ the poor قَدَرُهٗ ۚ according to his means مَتَاعًۢا a provision بِالْمَعْرُوْفِ ۚ in a fair manner حَقًّا a duty عَلَی upon الْمُحْسِنِیْنَ the good-doers وَ اِنْ And if طَلَّقْتُمُوْهُنَّ you divorce them مِنْ from قَبْلِ before اَنْ [that] تَمَسُّوْهُنَّ you (have) touched them وَ قَدْ while already فَرَضْتُمْ you have specified لَهُنَّ for them فَرِیْضَةً an obligation (dower) فَنِصْفُ then (give) half مَا (of) what فَرَضْتُمْ you have specified اِلَّاۤ unless اَنْ [that] یَّعْفُوْنَ they (women) forgo (it) اَوْ or یَعْفُوَا forgoes الَّذِیْ the one بِیَدِهٖ in whose hands عُقْدَةُ (is the) knot النِّكَاحِ ؕ (of) the marriage وَ اَنْ And that تَعْفُوْۤا you forgo اَقْرَبُ (is) nearer لِلتَّقْوٰی ؕ to [the] righteousness وَ لَا And (do) not تَنْسَوُا forget الْفَضْلَ the graciousness بَیْنَكُمْ ؕ among you اِنَّ Indeed اللّٰهَ Allah بِمَا of what تَعْمَلُوْنَ you do بَصِیْرٌ (is) All-Seer 2. Al-Baqarah Page 39 حٰفِظُوْا Guard strictly عَلَی [on] الصَّلَوٰتِ the prayers وَ الصَّلٰوةِ and the prayer الْوُسْطٰی ۗ [the] middle وَ قُوْمُوْا and stand up لِلّٰهِ for Allah قٰنِتِیْنَ devoutly obedient فَاِنْ And if خِفْتُمْ you fear فَرِجَالًا then (pray) on foot اَوْ or رُكْبَانًا ۚ riding فَاِذَاۤ Then when اَمِنْتُمْ you are secure فَاذْكُرُوا then remember اللّٰهَ Allah كَمَا as عَلَّمَكُمْ He (has) taught you مَّا what لَمْ not تَكُوْنُوْا you were تَعْلَمُوْنَ knowing وَ الَّذِیْنَ And those who یُتَوَفَّوْنَ they die مِنْكُمْ among you وَ یَذَرُوْنَ and leave behind اَزْوَاجًا ۖۚ (their) wives وَّصِیَّةً (should make) a will لِّاَزْوَاجِهِمْ for their wives مَّتَاعًا provision اِلَی for الْحَوْلِ the year غَیْرَ without اِخْرَاجٍ ۚ driving (them) out فَاِنْ But if خَرَجْنَ they leave فَلَا then no جُنَاحَ blame عَلَیْكُمْ upon you فِیْ in مَا what فَعَلْنَ they do فِیْۤ concerning اَنْفُسِهِنَّ themselves مِنْ [of] مَّعْرُوْفٍ ؕ honorably وَ اللّٰهُ And Allah عَزِیْزٌ (is) All-Mighty حَكِیْمٌ All-Wise وَ لِلْمُطَلَّقٰتِ And for the divorced women مَتَاعٌۢ (is) a provision بِالْمَعْرُوْفِ ؕ in a fair manner حَقًّا a duty عَلَی upon الْمُتَّقِیْنَ the righteous كَذٰلِكَ Thus یُبَیِّنُ makes clear اللّٰهُ Allah لَكُمْ for you اٰیٰتِهٖ His Verses لَعَلَّكُمْ so that you may تَعْقِلُوْنَ۠ use your intellect
236. There is no sin on you if you divorce women before you have touched them or the fixation of their dower; bestow on them (a suitable gift), the wealthy according to his means and the poor according to his means reasonably.361 This is an obligation on those who do good.362
237. And if you divorce them before you have touched them, but after the fixation of a dower for them, then the half of the dower (is due to them),363 unless they remit it, or it is remitted by him in whose hands is the marriage tie;364 and if your men act generously it is akin to piety. And forget not kindness among yourselves.365 Indeed,Allah sees well all that you do.
238. Guard366 strictly your prayers (SALAT),367 especially the middle prayer,368 (SALATE - WUSTA), and stand before Allah in the most humble maner.369
239. And if you are in a state of fear, then pray on foot or riding. And when you are again in a state of peace, remember Allah370 in the manner371 He taught you,372 which you did not know before.
240. Those of you who die373 and leave wives behind should bequeath to them maintenance for a year without turning them out, but if they go out (of their own accord) there is no sin374 for you for what they do with themselves in a fair way. And Allah is All Powerful, Wise.375
241. For divorced women, some provision be made,376according to the known fair standard. This is an obligation on the righteous.377
242. In this way Allah makes clear His commandments to you, in order that you may understand.
361. That is: If a man marries a woman and divorces her before establishing sexual relations with her, the husband should give something in the usual accepted manner according to his means, if the dower (Mehr) was not fixed and release her. Because some damage is caused to the woman and it is very difficult to compensate for such a damage. But giving some gift would serve as a consolation and would create soothing effects.
362. That is: If you want to adopt righteous attitude, then you should give the gift considering it as an obligation.
363. If a man divorces a woman before he establishes sexual relation with his wife whose dower is fixed, then he will have to pay half the amount of dower fixed, except when the woman taking a lenient view reduces the amount of dower. And Quran has advised man to be liberal and pay to the woman according to his superior status.
364. In the text the ,actual words are : (the man in whose hands is the marriage tie). These words signify that opening the tie of Nikah (i.e. divorce) is in man’s hands. The Shariah has given this right to man, and therefore the modern trend of transferring this right from man to a court of law is wrong and against the Shariah.
365. That is: In social life happiness comes not from literally observing the law but taking a kind and liberal view.
366. The chain of commands and laws of Shariah which started from the Verse No.168. ends here and therefore on its termination there is an insistence of protecting the prayers (Salat). This implies that the establishing of Shariah depends on the establishing of prayers (Salat). A man who regularly offers prayers (Salat) finds in his heart an inner urge for leading a God fearing and responsible life. The path for following Divine Commands becomes easier for him to follow. But the man who does not offer prayers regularly finds it difficult to follow this path. It is so because the urge to make him follow the Divine commands unhesitatingly is not sustained in his heart.
367. Guarding or protecting the prayers (Salat) means offering Salat regularly and punctually at the appointed time and that no prayers is lost, so much so that in difficult and dangerous times also the Salat must be performed.
368. In the text are used the words :
prayer of the middle, which is ‘Namaz-Asr’ as is stated in the Hadith. The Prophet said at the time of the Battle of Khandaq :
“They kept us so busy that our Middle prayer, the prayer of Asr was missed”
In Tirmizi, Hazarat Abdullah bin masood has reported that the prophet (P.b.u.h) has stated:
“The Middle prayer is the prayer of Asr.” (Tirmizi-Chapters on Prayers). Islam has prescribed five prayers during the day and night. They start with Fajr (morning) and end with Isha (Night). According to this, the prayer of Asr becomes the middle prayer. The time of Asr signifies the last stage of the day, when the business activities are generally more. During these activities offering of the prayer is a difficult task and if due care is not taken there is every likelihood of missing this prayer. Therefore, a particular mention is made to emphasise the importance of offering this prayer at the right time.
369. This points to the hidden qualities of the prayers. As it is necessary to take care of observing all the external requirements of the prayer, in the same way it is necessary to observe the internal requirements. The main spirit of the prayer is devotion and submission to Allah. So when a Muslim should stand for prayer, he should be in a frame of mind which would reflect his helplessness before the Almighty, Creator of the world.
And fight in the way of Allah and know that Allah is All-Hearing, All-knowing. Who is he that will lend to Allah a goodly loan, which Allah may return to him after multiplying manifold ? Allah causes want and gives plenty and to Him shall be your return. (Al- Quran)
370. That is: If during wartime, the enemy has created such a situation that you are in a state of fear, then you should offer prayers (Salat) in the position in which you are, i.e. if you are on foot or riding on the horseback and if your face is not towards Ka’ba, you can offer prayer in that position. If you are unable to perform Sajda (prostration) then you should bend as much as is possible by bending your head. But in all circumstances it is absolutely necessary that you should offer prayer. And guarding the prayer during the state of danger is offering prayer in that condition. The instruction of offering prayers during the battle is sufficient to give an idea about how clean is Islam’s concept of war and what higher type of training it wants to impart to the fighters in Allah’s cause.
From this emphatic command it has become clear that salat cannot be postponed (qaza) even in actual combat except when it may not be possible to offer it even by mere sign-movements, then how can there be a possibility of postponing it for lesser excuses like travelling, etc. ? It is essential to offer prayer at the fixed time and for this purpose only the Shariah has given concessions and reliefs and if postponing the prayer were lawful, such concessions would not have been given.
371. Here prayer or Salat is mentioned as remembering Allah which explains the fact that salat is out and out remembering Allah and reciting his name and praises.
372. That is : Offer prayers (Salat) according to the method shown by Allah. Allah has taught or shown the correct method of offering prayers (Salat) through Quran and the Sunnah teachings of the Prophet (Peace be upon him) In the Quran are given the basic commands about the prayer and the details are provided in the Hadith of the prophets (Peace be upon him) Accordingly, the prophet (Peace be upon him) has stated:
“Offer prayers in the same way in which you see me offering prayers.”
This shows that the teachings of the Prophet (Peace be upon him) are the teachings of Allah and that Sunnah is essentially and unavoidably conntected with Quran.
373. The chain of discussion terminated on the mention of Salat. After that in two verses as a supplement, relevant instructions regarding widows and divorced women are given, which are further clarifications.
374. In Verse No.234 a mention about the Iddat of widows has been made. In that connection, for further clarification this instruction is received that men should at the time of their death, leave a will making provision for their widows for their maintenance (residence, feeding, clothing, etc.) So that after their death their widows may not face any difficulties for their maintenance. After this will, on the fulfilment of the term of Iddat, the widows have a right to decide about their own residence or about remarrying in the usual and accepted and reasonable manner. In such a case the heirs of the deceased husband should not compel the widow to stay in the house of her deceased husband.
375. Allah is Mighty and All-powerful and therefore only He has the right to give laws of Shariah. He is wise and therefore His commands are based on wisdom.
376. In the text the word used is ‘Mata’ which means a useful thing. It is applicable on mainte- nance also as is done in the foregoing ayah No.240 (that is: the dying people are directed to make a will in favour of their wives that they should be given maintenance (Mata’) for one year) and it is also applicable on the parting gift given at the time of divorce, which is called ‘Muta’ tut-Talaq’. In ayah No, 236, the words ‘Matte’u Hunna’ {give them benefit (mata)} means parting gift.
Now the question is: what is the meaning of ‘Mata’ in the ayah under reference ‘? In this connection Imam Razi has quoted both the sayings and has preferred the meaning of maintenance (Tafseer Al-Kabeer, Vol.6 page 161). But if its meaning is taken to be maintenance, then it can be maintenance for the period of iddat only because in Surah Talaq command is given to spend for them for the period till their iddat (waiting time) is completed. Therefore, those commentators who have taken the meaning of ’Mata’ to be maintenance,they have done so taking it to be limited to the period of iddat only, otherwise not even a single commentator has said that according to this ayah the divorced woman is entitled to get maintenance till she is remarried or till she breathes her last.
Generally the commentators have taken ‘Mata’ to mean parting gift and it appears to be correct because at other place also in Quran this direction is given in the case of divorce that some benefit should be given to the women and men should part from them in a nice way. This parting gift is a means of keeping them in good spirits and it is like applying balm to their wound, which is the result of divorce given to them.
This ‘Mata’ is payable to every divorced woman, for in the ayah the command is given to give maintenance to all divorced women generally. Besides this command is given in the end after stating the commands concerning divorce, which enjoys the position of the last direction. Therefore, this command is applicable to every kind of divorced woman and the emphasis with which this command has been given supports this view. The reputed commentator Ibn Jarir Tabari writes:
“ According to me the most acceptable is the saying of that person who accepts that every divorced woman is entitled to get the ‘Mata’ (Gift) because .....................Allah has given this right to every divorced woman and has not made any reservation for any of them.” -(Jamiul Bayan, Vol. II, page 331 ).
As for the quantity of the ‘Mata’ Quran has not fixed any quantity, but has asked it to be paid in a good customary way, which means that man should pay according to his position such a gift as would be proper and would express his kindliness. If in the past man had been providing a slave for the service of his former wife then in the present day when the question of maintenance has become an important problem of the time, to provide for her something which would be a means of income for her or for man’s providing with willingness maintenance for the divorced woman would be a desirable thing.
377. These words support its propriety, i.e. providing ‘Mata’ (parting gift) to every kind of divorced woman is compulsory for every man who has Allah’s fear in his heart. This is an emphatic command and we cannot agree with those commentators who had taken it to mean it as merely a casual or non-emphatic command. And so far as the commentaries are concerned, the oldest commentary is that of Ibn Jarir Tabari(died in 310 H.). He accepts ‘Mata’ payment of parting gift as proper and imperative.
(Please see Jamiul Bayan Fi Tafseeril Quran Vol. II page 331).
It is regrettable that Muslims have so much forgotten this emphatic command as if merely uttering the ‘divorce’ from their mouths is sufficient to separate their wives from them and no moral and shariah responsibility of saying good bye to them in a nice and kind way lies on their shoulders. This wrong mentality has created a lot of social problems. would it that they follow the instructions of Allah’s holy Book !