Surah 2. Al-Baqarah

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Verses [Section]: 1-7[1], 8-20 [2], 21-29 [3], 30-39 [4], 40-46 [5], 47-59 [6], 60-61 [7], 62-71 [8], 72-82 [9], 83-86 [10], 87-96 [11], 97-103 [12], 104-112 [13], 113-121 [14], 122-129 [15], 130-141 [16], 142-147 [17], 148-151 [18], 152-163 [19], 164-167 [20], 168-176 [21], 177-182 [22], 183-188 [23], 189-196 [24], 197-210 [25], 211-216 [26], 217-221 [27], 222-228 [28], 229-231 [29], 232-235 [30], 236-242 [31], 243-248 [32], 249-253 [33], 254-257 [34], 258-260 [35], 261-266 [36], 267-273 [37], 274-281 [38], 282-283 [39], 284-286 [40]

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Quran Text of Verse 168-176یٰۤاَیُّهَاOالنَّاسُmankindكُلُوْاEatمِمَّاof whatفِی(is) inالْاَرْضِthe earthحَلٰلًاlawfulطَیِّبًا ۖؗ(and) goodوَّ لَاAnd (do) notتَتَّبِعُوْاfollowخُطُوٰتِ(the) footsteps (of)الشَّیْطٰنِ ؕthe ShaitaanاِنَّهٗIndeed, heلَكُمْ(is) to youعَدُوٌّan enemyمُّبِیْنٌ clear اِنَّمَاOnlyیَاْمُرُكُمْhe commands youبِالسُّوْٓءِto (do) the evilوَ الْفَحْشَآءِand the shamefulوَ اَنْand thatتَقُوْلُوْاyou sayعَلَیaboutاللّٰهِAllahمَاwhatلَاnotتَعْلَمُوْنَ you know 2. Al-Baqarah Page 26وَ اِذَاAnd whenقِیْلَit is saidلَهُمُto themاتَّبِعُوْاFollowمَاۤwhatاَنْزَلَhas revealedاللّٰهُAllahقَالُوْاthey saidبَلْNayنَتَّبِعُwe followمَاۤwhatاَلْفَیْنَاwe foundعَلَیْهِ[on it]اٰبَآءَنَا ؕour forefathers (following)اَوَ لَوْEven thoughكَانَ[were]اٰبَآؤُهُمْtheir forefathersلَا(did) notیَعْقِلُوْنَunderstandشَیْـًٔاanythingوَّ لَاand notیَهْتَدُوْنَ were they guided وَ مَثَلُAnd (the) exampleالَّذِیْنَ(of) those whoكَفَرُوْاdisbelieve[d]كَمَثَلِ(is) like (the) exampleالَّذِیْ(of) the one whoیَنْعِقُshoutsبِمَاat whatلَاnotیَسْمَعُ(does) hearاِلَّاexceptدُعَآءًcallsوَّ نِدَآءً ؕand criesصُمٌّۢdeafبُكْمٌdumbعُمْیٌ(and) blindفَهُمْ[so] theyلَا(do) notیَعْقِلُوْنَ understand یٰۤاَیُّهَاO youالَّذِیْنَwhoاٰمَنُوْاbelieve[d]كُلُوْاEatمِنْfromطَیِّبٰتِ(the) goodمَاwhatرَزَقْنٰكُمْWe have provided youوَ اشْكُرُوْاand be gratefulلِلّٰهِto Allahاِنْifكُنْتُمْyouاِیَّاهُaloneتَعْبُدُوْنَ worship Him اِنَّمَاOnlyحَرَّمَHe has forbiddenعَلَیْكُمُto youالْمَیْتَةَthe dead animalsوَ الدَّمَand [the] bloodوَ لَحْمَand fleshالْخِنْزِیْرِ(of) swineوَ مَاۤand whatاُهِلَّhas been dedicatedبِهٖ[with it]لِغَیْرِto other thanاللّٰهِ ۚAllahفَمَنِSo whoeverاضْطُرَّ(is) forced by necessityغَیْرَwithoutبَاغٍ(being) disobedientوَّ لَاand notعَادٍtransgressorفَلَاۤthen noاِثْمَsinعَلَیْهِ ؕon himاِنَّIndeedاللّٰهَAllahغَفُوْرٌ(is) Oft-Forgivingرَّحِیْمٌ Most Merciful اِنَّIndeedالَّذِیْنَthose whoیَكْتُمُوْنَconcealمَاۤwhatاَنْزَلَ(has) revealedاللّٰهُAllah (has)مِنَofالْكِتٰبِthe Bookوَ یَشْتَرُوْنَand they purchaseبِهٖthere withثَمَنًاa gainقَلِیْلًا ۙlittleاُولٰٓىِٕكَThoseمَاnotیَاْكُلُوْنَthey eatفِیْinبُطُوْنِهِمْtheir belliesاِلَّاexceptالنَّارَthe Fireوَ لَاAnd notیُكَلِّمُهُمُwill speak to themاللّٰهُAllahیَوْمَ(on the) Dayالْقِیٰمَةِ(of) [the] Judgmentوَ لَاand notیُزَكِّیْهِمْ ۖۚwill He purify themوَ لَهُمْand for themعَذَابٌ(is) a punishmentاَلِیْمٌ painful اُولٰٓىِٕكَThoseالَّذِیْنَ(are) they whoاشْتَرَوُاpurchase[d]الضَّلٰلَةَ[the] astrayingبِالْهُدٰیfor [the] Guidanceوَ الْعَذَابَand [the] punishmentبِالْمَغْفِرَةِ ۚfor [the] forgivenessفَمَاۤSo what (is)اَصْبَرَهُمْtheir enduranceعَلَیonالنَّارِ the Fire! ذٰلِكَThatبِاَنَّ(is) becauseاللّٰهَAllahنَزَّلَrevealedالْكِتٰبَthe Bookبِالْحَقِّ ؕwith [the] Truthوَ اِنَّAnd indeedالَّذِیْنَthoseاخْتَلَفُوْاwho differedفِیinالْكِتٰبِthe Bookلَفِیْ(are) surely inشِقَاقٍۭschismبَعِیْدٍ۠far

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Translation of Verse 168-176

168. O you people !²⁰² Eat on earth what is lawful (Halal) and clean²⁰³ (Tayyib) and do not follow the footsteps of Satan²⁰⁴. Indeed, he is an open enemy for you.

169. He will command you (to do) what is evil and indecent and induce you to say about Allah that which you do not know²⁰⁵

170. And when it is said to them: “Follow what Allah has revealed.” They say: “Nay! we shall follow the ways of our fathers.” Well, (will they follow their fathers) even when their fathers had not used commonsense and had no guidance²⁰⁶ ?

171. Those who disbelieved are like the cattle which hear nothing²⁰⁷ except a shout and a cry,when they are called.They are deaf, dumb and blind, and therefore they do not understand anything.

172. O you who believe! Eat of the clean things that We have provided for you and be grateful to Allah, if you truly worship²⁰⁸ Him.

173. He has forbidden you only²⁰⁹ carrion²¹⁰ blood²¹¹ and the flesh of swine²¹² and that (Zabihah ) over which²¹³ any name other than Allah has been invoked. But for he who is driven by absolute necessity, neither craving nor transgressing, there is no sin for him²¹⁴; indeed Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.

174. Verily, those who conceal Allah’s revelations in the Book²¹⁵ and barter them for a paltry gain, they fill their bellies with nothing but fire²¹⁶. Allah will not speak to them on the Day of Resurrection, nor purify them²¹⁷. Theirs will be painful punishment.

175. They are the people who have bought deviation instead of (right) guidance and torment instead of forgiveness. What audacity (they show) for the fire²¹⁸ (of Hell).

176. It is so because in spite of the fact that Allah has revealed the Book with the truth, those who differed with the Book have gone far in their obstinacy²¹⁹.

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Commentary

202. From here onwards the laws of the Shariah are mentioned.

203. “Tayyib” means Clean and Good. The things which Islam has declared as “ Halal” i.e. lawful, they are necessarily clean and good. They are externally and internally free from dirt and filth. There is no untoward effect of eating them on the morals of man.

204. That we should not declare anything Haram (unlawful) on account of our desires or idolatrous prejudices. Those who have declared a number of things as unlawful for consumption without any authority from the Shariah have been misguided by the Devil. For example clean animals have been allowed by Allah to be eaten after being duly and lawfully slaughtered but to declare eating animal flesh as unlawful or “Haram” under the influence of the philosophy of “Ahinsa” is interfering in the right of declaring Haram and Halal by Allah. and this is clearly following the footsteps of Satan and unabashed sin of associating others with Allah.

205.That is to impute a statement to Allah without any authority, for example to say that certain things are unlawful for consumption though there are no grounds for making such a statement.

206. In the matter of Halal and Haram in Shariah, reliance should be on the Divine Book and not on the practice of our forefathers or on unauthorised traditions. It is unwise that man should follow his precursors blindly or should tread the beaten track in the name of ancient culture. Man should use his common sense and accept Guidance from Allah.

This verse guides us to the principle that a custom is not lawful or valid merely because it is being practised since the time of our forefathers, or because of it being a part of some culture.Therefore instead of blindly following these customs, one should search for the truth and find out whether the Divine Law has really given its authority for following these customs.

207. This is an example of those who do not use their common sense but follow the customs followed by their forefathers. They are like a herd of goats and sheep which have no intelligence. They can hear the voice of the goatherd but they are unable to understand beyond this call or shout. This is also the condition of those people who can hear the call of the caller but are unable to understand what he is saying.

208. The people of the Faith are being addressed and informed that if some people have put undue restrictions on the articles of food and drinking and if they want to remain confined to the circle of their superstitions, let them remain so and whatever good things Allah has provided for you eat them unhesitatingly. If people have given vegetarianism a religious sanctity,it is their superstition and to do away with this type of restrictions is the demand of submission to Allah. The prophet ( p.b.u.h) has said:-

‘’One who has offered prayers as we do and faced our Qibla in Salat and ate the animal slaughtered by our method, he is a Muslim.” That is: for being a Muslim it is necessary that a man should do away in the matter of food and drinks with all the religious restrictions which have been imposed by the priests, pundits and yogis, ect, and should follow the Laws of Allah only.

209. In Surah “Maieda”, Verse No. 1, it has been explained: “For you: four-footed animals which graze have been made lawful for eating” Therefore the animals which do not graze but are carnivorous are obviously prohibited to be eaten by Muslims. In this verse the mention of only a few things which have been prohibited does not mean that in Islamic Shariah excepting these four things other things are not prohibited. It is with particular reference to the addressees who recognised the Faith of Ibrahim that the mention of these four things was made, as their lawfulness or other wise was in dispute. It is clarified that Allah has prohibited these four things; and other things which were added by some persons had no authority and were innovations in the religion.

210. Carrion or Dead Meat means that animal or bird which has not been slaughtered in the manner prescribed by Islam and which dies a natural death. The wisdom behind prohibiting consumption of the flesh of such an animal is obvious. The blood of an animal which dies a natural death remains in the body and makes its flesh dirty and filthy and good taste hates the very idea of eating the flesh of such dead animals. Besides it is also harmful to eat such meat because it is likely the animal might have died due to some disease. In Torah also eating of dead meat was prohibited:

“You shall not eat any thing that dies of itself”. ( Deuteronomy, 14:21)

211. The wisdom behind the prohibition of eating blood is also clear, that it is filthy. Good taste hates it and drinking blood is the practice of carnivores and predatory animals. It does not befit the best of all creatures that man is. It can produce a quality of the predatory animals in men. Beside this moral disadvantage it has other disadvantages too.

People, before the advent of Prophet Muhammad (p.b.u.h.), i.e. during the period known as’ Jahiliya’, used to pierce the body of the camel with some sharp article and used to drink the blood which spurted from the wound. This method inflicted too much suffering on the animal also.

In Torah too the blood of animals has been declared unlawful:-

“Only you shall not eat the blood, you shall pour it out upon the earth like water”, (Deuteronomy 12 : 16)

212. Pig is a dirty animal, whose favourite food is the human excreta and filth. People with clean and good taste can only hate it. Besides, its flesh is also harmful:

“According to modern medicine eating the flesh of the swine is harmful in every region, but particularly in warm countries. And scientific experiments have proved that eating of the swineflesh produces a particular kind of worms which are very harmful. It is not known what further mysteries are to be unveiled. Researchers also say that by eating the flesh of the swine, sense of shame is decreased.”

(Islam’mein Haram-o-Halal, P. 63 by Allama Yusuf Al-Quarzawi).

In Torah also the swine flesh is declared unlawful:- “And the swine, because it parts the hoof but does not chew the cud, is unclean for you. Their flesh you shall not eat and their carcasses you shall not touch.” (Deuteronomy 14 : 8)

213. That is : the animal which is slaughtered by invoking the name of a being other than Allah, be it an idol, a genii, an angel or any saint. Associating some one else with Allah is the greatest intellectual and spiritual bankruptcy and smacks of internal filth. The animal slaughtered by invoking the name of a being other than Allah is prohibited on account of this internal filth only.

“ The idolaters used to utter the names of Lat” and “Uzza”, etc., while slaughtering their animals. This showed respect and worship for beings other than Allah. The reason for its prohibition is religious and its purpose is the safeguard of the belief of the oneness of Allah, purification of the faith and opposition to the symbols of idolatry and Shirk (polytheism).

“ Allah created man. For him He brought under control all things of the world and also subjugated animals to him. Besides, He made it legal for man to slaughter animals for his benefit, provided man invoked His name while slaughtering the animal. In other words, invoking the name of Allah means that he is slaughtering the animal with the permission of Allah only. But if he invokes the name of any other being during slaughter, he renders this permission null and void by his action. Therefore, he deserves that he should be deprived of taking the benefit of the animal so slaughtered.”

(Islam mein Halal-o-Haram, p.64 by Allama Yusuf Al-Qarzawi).

In the urdu translation of the Bible too, eating of the flesh of animals on slaughtering which the name of others are invoked is prohibited:-

“ And who does not eat from the sacrifices for the idols.” (Ezekiel 18: 15)

214. That is: a man who is really helpless, e.g. on account of starvation or some disease there is a danger to his life, he was not desirous of eating it and eat only as much as is required. In such a case, there is no sin for him.

215. The reference is to the people of the Book. As idolaters had arbitrarily declared certain articles of food as forbidden, so also the people of the Book were declaring lawful things as unlawful and vice versa and were concealing the instructions given in the Torah. It may be made clear that for the People of the Book the same things were declared forbidden as were forbidden for the followers of the Faith of Ibrahim, although later on because of the rebellious behaviour of the Jews some additional things were forbidden for them and they were told that when the last Prophet would come, he would remove these additional restrictions and would declare clean things lawful for them. But the Jews concealed these instructions of Torah.

216. This reference is to those learned men of the Jews who, inspite of their knowledge of the instructions given in the Divine Book, conTTTTTT Dawatul Qur’an 73 S.2 cealed the teachings of the Shariah and by their action unduly supported the observance of unauthorised restrictions and superstitions. These people are concealing the Truth only for the purpose of gaining material benefits. But the fact is that the wordly gains which they are getting by selling. the religion is really the fire of hell with which they are filling their bellies.

217. This refers to those religious leaders who despite deceiving the people by their religious exploitation consider themselves very clean and holy. To counter their false claims, the Quran says that on the Day of Judgment when their truth will be tested, they will never be considered clean and holy.

218. That is: the audacity with which they were preferring the wrong path to Guidance is really amazing! This gives an impression that they are quite ready to be burnt in the Hell-fire. In this case their audacity must be lauded !

219. That is: the people of the Book had created a number of disputes in the religion of Allah, with the result that it had become difficult for the people to know what was lawful for consumption and what was forbidden. Allah sent down the Quran with Truth i.e. as the final decision in these disputes so that Allah’s Shariah is presented to the people in its correct and perfect form. If after this people do not accept it: it is because of their obstinacy.