Surah Al-Ahzab 33:28-34 - Quran Translation Commentary

28. O Prophet ! Say ⁵⁶ to your wives: “If you desire the world’s life and its adornment, come ! I will make good provision for you and release you in a fair way. ⁵⁷

29. “And if you seek Allah and His messenger and the abode of the Hereafter then (be assured) Allah has prepared the righteous among you an immense reward.”⁵⁸

30. O you wives of the Prophet! Whoever of you commits open lewdness will be doubly punished.⁵⁹ And that is easy for Allah.⁶⁰

31. And whoever of you shall be obedient to Allah and His messenger and shall act righteously will be doubly rewarded,⁶¹ and We have peapared for her honourable provision.

32. O you wives of the Prophet ! You are not like other women.⁶² If you fear Allah, then do not be soft in your speech, lest he in whose heart is a disease should be moved with desire, ⁶³ but utter customary speech.⁶⁴

33. And stay in your homes and do not display your finery as was done in the Time of Ignorance in the past. ⁶⁵ And establish salat, give Zakat ⁶⁶ and obey Allah and His messenger. Allah only wishes to remove uncleanness from you, O people of the Household! and purify you completely.⁶⁷

34. And bear in mind that which is recited in your houses of the revelations of Allah and wisdom. ⁶⁸ Verily, Allah is the Seer of the Minutest thing,⁶⁹ Aware.

Commentary

56. From here another topic starts, which concerns the wives of the Prophet. Till the revelation of these ayat, i.e. 05 Hijri, the Prophet had four wives. They were: Hazrat Saudah, Ayesha, Hafsa and Um Salmah (May Allah be pleased with them).

57. When the wives of the Prophet (S.A.W.) were given the position of the mothers of the people of faith, then their responsibilities were also increased. Now they were required to attain the required standard of righteousness, contentment and other-worldliness, and since the standard of living of the Prophet was, from the economic point of view, very austere, and he had none of the provisions of the material comforts and outwardly adornments, Allah directed the Prophet, Sallal Lahu Alaihi Wa Sallam, to ask his wives about their preferences. If they are not prepared to lead this kind of life willingly and if they want the worldly adornments and glitter, then give them something and bid them adieu. Accordingly in the hadith it is stated that first of all the Prophet asked Ayesha (R) and advised that she should also consult her parents. Ayesha (R) replied what was there to consult the parents about, when she herself wanted to be with Allah, His messenger and preferred the other-worldliness; Then other wives also replied in similar vein.-(Bukhari- Kitabut Tafseer-Al-Ahzab). Thus the benefit of knowing their voluntary desire was that they achieved the position of greatness themselves, secondly their reply pleased the Prophet immensely and thirdly the hypocrites did not get the chance to indulge in the propaganda that the Prophet did not give proper treatment to his wives, etc., and that they are being forced to lead a life of poverty.

After knowing the correct sense of the ayah, there is no necessity of refuting the view that the Prophet’s wives used to demand provisions from him, due to which he had become very much upset. The narratives which express such a view are not correct, because they also contain contradictory statements, and things which go against the Quran.These narratives will be discussed in the commentary of Surah Tahreem, Insha Allah!

The jurists have opined that these wordings of the Prophet amounted to a conditional talaq (divorce),i.e. in such an event if the wife wanted she could have imposed the talaq on herself, when there is no such proof in the ayah. In the ayah the Prophet say to ask his wives to inform whether they liked Allah and His messenger or the material world and its adornments, and if they wanted the material world, then to separate from them in a fair way, i.e. after knowing their mind or preference they should be divorced. From this how can it be argued that if they opt for the material world then the talaq is imposed automatically. In the ayah the word talaq has not at all been used, and its wordings: “Us arrihkunna sarahan jameela” I will release you in a fair way.’ These words show that they would have separated if the prophet would have separated them. Therefore, this expression of voluntary desire cannot be taken as a chance to take divorce. And the principle of chance to get talaq worked out by the jurists, is not appreciated by the present day Muslims, who are not satisfied with the Islamic Personal Law and are demanding amendment of these family laws and propose that at the time of Nikah one agreement be drawn in which the woman may be given a right to impose on herself the right in advance of talaq or separation on the conditions to be stipulated therein.

By this excuse under the chance to get talaq they want to establish the principle of equality between men and women. But the Shariah, on account of various reasons which also includes the status of women, has given the right of divorce to men only and not to women. Therefore transferring this right to woman will be an attempt against the intent of the Shariah.

‘Umattekunna’ (giving them something) incidentally shows that in the event of talaq the wife should be given ‘Mata’ or ‘Muta’h’ (some provision). It supports this viewpoint that the command of giving some provision to the divorced woman in ayah No.241 of Surah Baqarah applies to all divorced women and not to only those divorced women with whom the marriage is not consummated.

(See Surah Baqarah notes Nos. 376 and 377).

58.If you make your goal Allah and His messenger instead of world and its pleasures, and if you act righteously, then your position will be elevated and Allah will reward you handsomely.

59. It does not mean that there was any danger of the Prophet’s wives’ committing any lewdness, but the idea was to create a sense of extreme modesty and chastity so that they may be extra careful and the hypocrites may not get any chance of creating any doubts about their character.

From this, the point becomes clear that Allah’s law is indiscriminate. If the wife of a prophet commits an act of lewdness, then she also becomes liable for punishment like any other woman, nay, she is liable for double punishment, for her act would cause bad reputation for the prophet, and a very bad example will be established for the people.

60.In the event of the Prophet’s wife committing any sin, it would not be difficult for Allah to punish her, because Allah’s law of justice is indiscriminate.

61.When the position of the wives of the Prophet was elevated to be the mothers of the people of faith, then their responsibilities were also increased. Stating these responsibilities, this glad tiding was also given them that if they remained loyal to Allah and His messenger and would act righteously, then they would be honored and would be rewarded doubly.

62. That is: Compared to other women, you have the honour of being the wives of the Prophet, therefore, you should be extra careful in your practical life.

63. Here disease means lecherousness and lust.

Generally the voice of women is lyrical and sweet, and when they talk with extra softness, then hearing it those people who are lecherous in nature are inclined to cherish lecherous thoughts about them. Therefore, God’s fear (righteousness) demands that while talking to men, women should not talk with artificial softness. And when this is the demand of righteousness, then every woman should follow this point. Here this advice and other things which have been addressed to the Prophet’s wives are not meant only for them, but also for other women, It means that the wives of the Prophet should be very strict in following these and they have to be extremely careful in these directions matters.

Incidentally from this, this principle also be comes clear that when Islam does not allow women to talk in softer than necessary tones, then how can it tolerate women singing in the presence of men? Its ‘forbiddenness’ is quite obvious, but in modern times, singing of women and that too in a lewd manner, has become so common that the concept of its being forbidden has evaporated. now it will be difficult to find persons who would avoid to hear singing of women because it is forbidden by Islam.

64. That is: Whatever that may be uttered by you should be good and of righteous nature, and that you should avoid all talk of vulgar nature, etc.

65. In the text the word used is ‘Tabarruj’, which means display and exhibition, and it means to display one’s finery and adornment in the presence of strange men, as is clear from the ayah No.60 of Surah Noor (they should not be the displayers of their finery).

And the ‘Jahiliyatil Oola’ means Time of Ignorance of the past when non-Islamic customs were in vogue. It means that your main sphere of activity is home, where you should be living and fulfilling your responsibilities. And for this purpose it is not at all proper that you should go out and display your adornments.

It also does not mean that for the wives of the Prophet going out of the house was absolutely would be forbidden. Further on in the ayah the wives, daughters of the Prophet and common Muslim women are given direction that when they go out they should , put over their bodies a chadar (sheet), which proves the propriety of going out for the women. In the hadith it is stated:

“You have been given permission to go out,” - (Bukhari-Kitabut Tafseer). It suited the status of the wives of the Prophet that they remained inside their houses and should be extra careful in the matter of going out. As for the common Muslim women, their main sphere of activity also becomes their houses, Since the needs of the common Muslim women to go out for work is greater than those of the wives of the Prophet, they need not be made prisoners in their houses as that is not the intention of the ayah. In the modern times the needs for the women to go out has increased manifold, e.g. journey, education, teaching, social work for women, earning of livelihood, attending religious gatherings, etc. For such necessary work their going out is not at all forbidden, provided they observe the etiquette of the Shariah, particularly if they do not display their beauty and their adornment.

66. The command for salat and Zakat is general, but the idea in addressing specifically the wives of the Prophet in this connection is this that they should particularly pay special heed to this matter.

From this command it is clear that the Zakat for the property belonging to a woman is to be paid by the woman herself, and it is not to be paid by the husband. It also shows that the wives of the Prophet were not so badly off, as is commonly thought. They were in a position to pay Zakat, that is why directive is given to them to pay Zakat, and this view is supported by the fact that the ‘Meher’ (dower) of the Prophet’s wives used to be four hundred and eighty dirham, when Zakat is to be paid for two hundred dirham.

67. From the context of the wordings of the ayah it is absolutely clear that by’ Ahl-e-Bait’ is meant wives of the Prophet, but a sect among Muslims, who has committed excess in belief concerning Ali (R) and has introduced the creed of ‘Imamat’ in the religion, takes this ayah also to mean by Ahl-e-Bait (People of the Household) Ali, Fatima, Hasan and Hussain (May Allah be pleased with them ). So far as the literary meaning of Ahl-e-Bait is concerned wives are most appropriately to be included in that, and beside them the children. Therefore, this term is applied in addition to the wives on the children also. But in this ayah the wives of the Prophet have been specifically addressed as’ Ahlul Bait’ (People of the Household), and directions have also been given direct to them, therefore, on this occasion only his wives are meant. But people who have deviated from the Quran, have evicted the Prophet’s wives from the Ahl-e-Bait and have forcibly applied this term on Ali, Fatima, Hasan and Hussain (May Allah be pleased with them), and from their purification, they claimed their innocence from all sins and then innocence of all ‘Imams’, To clarify the error of the interpretation of this ayah which these people present, we would like to state a few words in this connection, as follows:

1) In the Quran the words Ahl-e-Bait have been used at two places. One at the place when the angels had given the good tidings of the birth of Ishaq to Prophet Ibrahim’s wife, Sarah, and when she expressed astonishment, the angels said:

“Do you wonder at the command of Allah, the mercy of Allah and His blessings be upon you, O People of the House!” -(Surah Hood-73).

In this ayah the address as Ahl-e-Bait is to Prophet Ibrahim’s wife, In the second instance, when Prophet Moosa’s sister spoke in connection with the problem of feeding the infant Moosa, she said to the people of Firaun:

“Shall I show you a household who will rear him for you” -(Surah Al-Qasas-12).

In this ayah also by household is meant the mother of Prophet Moosa. It has thus become clear that in the Ahl-e-Bait wives are included at top priority level. In a hadith it is stated that at the time of the ‘Walima’ (feast) at Zainab (R)’s wedding, when the Prophet entered the room of Ayesha (R), he said:

“Peace and Allah’s mercy be upon you, O people of the Household. “-(Bukhari, Kitab-ut- Tafseer), That is, the Prophet himself has addressed his wives as Ahl-e-Bait. After this, what further argument is needed to prove that wives of the Prophet are rightly to be considered as Ahl-e- Bait?

2) This argument that in the ayah the pronouns used are of masculine gender and therefore, they cannot be taken to mean the wives of the Prophet, is not correct, because in Arabic the pronoun relating to the word ‘Ahl’ is used in the masculine gender. Accordingly in the two ayah quoted above the pronoun and the verbs used are in the masculine gender, although in the first ayah the address is to the wife of Prophet Ibrahim and in the second ayah Ahl-e-Bait refers to the mother of Prophet Moosa.

3) The justifiers take the support of a narrative in which it is stated that the Prophet called Fatima, Hasan, Hussain and Ali (R) and covered them under a sheet of cloth and said: ‘O Allah: These are my Ahl-e-Bait, remove impurity from them and purify them.’ This hadith has been narrated in Tirmizi, and several traditions of similar sense have been narrated by Tabari in his Tafseer. But these narratives are weak. Therefore Tirmizi has clarified its being weak, and in the narratives of Tabari several narrators are Shiah,e.g. one of the narrators is Abdullah bin Abdul Quddus, who is a Shiah. Ibn Mueen has called him Rafzi, and Abu Dawood, Nasai and Dar Qatni have called it weak. (For the research of these narratives please see Dr. Ali Ahmed As-Saloosi’s book: ‘Ayatut Tatheer Bain Ummahatul Mumineen Wa Ahlul Kasa’- Published by Maktabah Ibn Taimiyah, Post Box 14064, Kuwait).

Here another question also comes up that at the time of the revelation of this ayah two other daughters of the Prophet (S.A.W) were alive Um Kulthum and Zainab (R),Then what is the meaning of including only Fatimah (R) leaving these two daughters? Um Kulthum was married to Uthman (R) and Zainab (R) was married to Abul A’s. But since Shiah are claimants of the ‘Imamat’ of Ali (R),they include Fatimah, Hasan and Hussain (R) in the Ahl-e-Bait, but ignore Urn Kulthum (R) and Zainab (R).Therefore, there is no wonder if the said narrative is invented by the Shiahs.

4) From this the justifiers argue in support of their claim of innocence from all sins of Ali (R) and other Imams. But in the ayah itself nothing of the sort has been mentioned. First of all the ayah is about the wives of the Prophet (S.A.W.) Moreover the ayah does not say that Allah has purified them, but it says that Allah desires to purify them. It is similar to what is stated in Surah Maidah, where addressing the people of faith who have been commanded to perform ‘wuzu’ Allah says that He desires that He may purify you. (Maidah 6).It is obvious that it does not mean that all people of faith who have been commanded to perform ‘Wuzu’ (ablutions) are purified and are innocent from all sins. It means by obeying the command to perform wuzu, they would get purification. As in this there is no argument or proof of the people of faith being innocent of all sins, similarly there is no proof in the ayah of Tatheer of the innocence from all sins of the Ahle- Bait.

Such a longish explanation has been given in order to make it clear how those people who want to justify their particular creed from the Quran deviate from the correct sense and meaning of the Quranic words and wrongly justify their claims, and taking support of the wrong narratives want to adjust and adapt Quran to those weak narratives, however much difficult it may be for them. And it is a fact that those who have taken up the creed of Shiahs have invented so many narratives in support of their beliefs and creed that even Sunni Muslims could not remain unaffected by that.

Verily the Muslim men and the Muslim women, the believing men and the believing women, the obedient men and the obedient women, the truthful men and the truthful women, the patient men and the patient women, the men of humility and the women of humility, the men and the women who give charity, the men and women who fast, the men and the women who guard their private parts (chastity), and the men and women who remember Allah much, for them all Allah has kept ready forgiveness and a great reward.(AL-Quran)

68. Revelations of Allah means the ayah of the Quran and the Hikmat or wisdom means the teachings and the words of the Prophet, Sallal Lahu Alaihi Wa Sallam. The holy wives of the Prophet have been commanded to remember them specifically so that they should be able to brighten their lives from this source of light and then spread this light for the benefit of others.

In obeying this command the service in connection with hadith rendered by them is monumental and the whole ummah is obliged to them. May Allah be pleased with them :

69. Allah is the Seer of the Minutest things, therefore, nothing is hidden from Him.