Surah Al-Ahzab 33:41-52 - Quran Translation Commentary

43. He it is who blesses you, and His angels (too bless you), so that He may bring you forth from darkness to light;⁹⁷ and He is Merciful to the believers.

44. Their greeting on the day when they will meet Him will be “Peace,” ⁹⁸ and He has prepared for them an honourable reward.

45. O Prophet! Verily We have sent you as a witness,⁹⁹ and a bringer of good tidings,¹⁰⁰ and warner.¹⁰¹

46. And a caller to Allah by His command, ¹⁰² and an illuminating lamp.¹⁰³

47. Announce to the believers the good tidings that there is great grace for them from Allah.

48. And do not obey the disbelievers and the hypocrites. Disregard their persecution, and put your trust in Allah. Allah is sufficient as Trustee.

49. O you who believe ! ¹⁰⁴ if you marry believing women, and divorce them before touching them, you have no right to require them to observe waiting period. But give them some provision and release them with grace. ¹⁰⁵

50. O Prophet ! ¹⁰⁶ We have made lawful to you the wives to whom you have paid Mehr (dower), ¹⁰⁷ and those whom Allah has given you as your female slaves as spoils of war; ¹⁰⁸ the daughters of your paternal uncles and paternal aunts, and the daughters of your maternal uncles and maternal aunts who migrated with you; ¹⁰⁹ any other believing woman if she offer herself to the Prophet and the Prophet desire to wed her¹¹⁰ ---- a privilege for you¹¹¹only, not for other believers ----- We are aware of what We enjoined upon them concerning their wives and those female slaves who came in their possession¹¹²------ so that you may not experience any difficulty,¹¹³ and Allah is Forgiving, Merciful. ¹¹⁴

51. You may set aside any of your wives you please and invite any of your wives you please. Nor is it unlawful for you to receive any of those whom you have temporarily set aside.That is more proper, so that their eyes may be cooled and they may not be grieved, and may all be pleased with what you give them.¹¹⁵Allah knows what is in your hearts.¹¹⁶And Allah is All-Knowing, Tolerant.

52. Hereafter it is not lawful for you to take (other) women, nor should you change them for other wives, even though their beauty may please you, ¹¹⁷ except those female slaves who come in your possession.¹¹⁸ And Allah is Watcher over all things.

Commentary

95. Remembrance of Allah is a kind of worship which has no limit. It is desired to be performed as much as possible, and the meaning of ‘Zikr’ (remembrance) as we have explained is to remember Allah with utmost sincerity and from the bottom of the heart, to recite his name by mouth, and to utter words of His praises without being conscious, spontaneously. It is the very fruit of remembering Allah in this way which has been stated in the following ayah No.43, and in the hadith such a remembrance has been praised in this way:

“The likeness of the person who remembers Allah and who does not remember Allah is that of a living and a dead one.” -(Bukhari, kitabud Da’waat).

That is: By remembering Allah consciousness is awakened and the inner self is nourished and blossoms, but a person who does not remember Allah. he is lying in neglect and his conscience is dead.

“The messenger of Allah Sallal Lahu Alaihi Wa Sallam, said: Allah says: ‘I live with that thought of my slave which he has about Me, when he remembers Me, I am with him, if he remembers Me in his heart I remember him in My heart, if he remembers Me in a gathering, I remember him in a better gathering. (Bukhari Kitabut Tawheed)

“Your tongue; should always be wet (busy) with the remembrance of Allah.” Tirmizi, Abwabud Da’waat).

Ayesha (R) says: The messenger of Allah, Sallal Lahu Alaihi Wa Sallam, used to remember Allah in all hours of his time.” (Riyazus - Saliheen quoted by Muslim).

In view of these clarification of the Quran and the Sunnah to lower the importance of remembering Allah by the word of mouth, and to consider it of no value is very wrong and is the sign of deficiency in the insight in religion.

96. Tasbeeh does not mean counting the rosary but it is to recite the glorification and praise of Allah. For this remembrance the times of morning and evening are very important, therefore, they have been mentioned specifically.

97. This is the fruit of remembering Allah and reciting His praises. When this thing becomes the routine of a Momin’s life then Allah sends down His mercy on him, and the angels pray for Allah’s mercy being sent to him, and its blessings appear in such a way that coming out of the darknesses of ignorance and entering the light of knowledge and guidance becomes easy.

98. This is the honour which will be bestowed on the people of faith who had been remembering Allah frequently and abundantly, on the Day of Judgment. On that occasion they will be greeted by the honourable and peaceful words of the salutation from Allah: ‘Peace.’ (Salam).

99. Here certain important attributes of the Prophet (S.A.W) have been mentioned, which have relation with his office of Prophethood. The first characteristic attribute is that he is ‘shahid’ (witness), which means:

“Shahid means one who knows, may relate what he know.”(Lisan-ul- Arab, Vol.3,P.239)

And ‘shahadat’ means definite information.- (Ibid).

The meaning of the Prophet being the witness is that he, on account of the knowledge through revelation, is the giver of definite information about Allah’s being and attributes, His commands and His likes and dislikes. In other words he is the witness for the true religion from Allah. In Surah Muzzammil also this word has been used in this very meaning:

“We have sent forth to you a messenger to testify against you, just as We sent to Firaun a messenger...” -(Muzzammil-15)

Some Urdu translators have translated the word ‘shahid’ as ‘hazir wa nazir’ (ever present and seer), which represents their excessive and innovative (bid’ati) creed, but according to the reference to the context this meaning is absolutely wrong.

100. The second characteristic attribute is that he is ‘Mubashshir’ that is giver of the good tidings of mercy and eternal blessings to the believers. This prophecy of good tidings is given in the Quran as also in the hadith. In the authentic Ahadith the good rewards for the righteous deeds that have been stated are the pearls of this very necklace of the good tidings. But it should be remembered that this wealth will be for only those who are sincere slaves of Allah and have His fear in their hearts.

101. The third characteristic attribute is that he is ‘Nazeer’. That is he is a Warner to the disbelievers and transgressors, and warns them of the divine punishment and the adverse conditions in the Hereafter. In the Quran this aspect of warning is so prominent that whoever will study it will definitely feel that for the deniers and the criminals the Hell has come out in the open clear and unveiled. In the traditions of the Prophet also the adverse result of the evil deeds has been very effectively stated, and the deniers and the criminals have been warned.

102. The fourth characteristic attribute is this that Allah has appointed him to call people towards Allah. Since this call is being given by him by the permission of Allah, it is a call based on truth and perfectly right.

103. The first characteristic attribute is that he is a shining light or lamp, that is a lamp of guidance in whose light man can reach his desired destination. This aspect has come out so prominently in the Quran and the traditions as if even today the Prophet is present among us for our guidance with all these characteristic attributes.

Announce to the believers the good tidings that there is great grace for them from Allah. And do not obey the disbelievers and the hypocrites. Disregard their persecution, and put your trust in Allah. Allah is sufficient as Trustee.(AL-Quran)

104. From here the discussion turns to social commands. In this ayah answer is given to the problems concerning talaq (divorce). In subsequent ayah specific commands are given concerning the marriage of the Prophet. Sallal Lahu Alaihi Wa Sallam.

105. Here the word nikah is used to mean marriage and that is its real meaning. By touching them (Tamassuhunna) means consummating the marriage or establishing the sexual relationship between a husband and a wife.

If some one after the nikah, gave talaq to his wife before establishing the sexual relationship with her, then the wife would not be required to spend the waiting time (Iddat), but in this case the husband should give some provision (clothes, jewellery, money, etc.) without fail, as the emphatic command is given in Surah Baqarah. Verse No.241, which applies to all the divorced women without any exception, (For the explanation of the provision to be given after divorce please see Surah Baqarah, Note No.376). This provision or gift is in addition to the amount of Mehr. If the Mehr was fixed and the talaq has been given before consummation of marriage, then as stated in Surah Baqarah, ayah No.237, half the Mehr would have to be paid, and if no Mehr was fixed, then at the time of giving provision gift, due consideration should have to be given to it.

It may be noted that the Mehr is related to Nikah (marriage), while ‘Mata’ or ‘Muta’ (gift provision) is related to talaq. Therefore every divorced woman will have to be given the parting gift, which should be according to the fair custom, that is it should not be more than what is according to man’s position, nor should it be so less that its value be insignificant. Allama Ibn Taimiyah says:

“The third saying is more correct and that is the second statement ascribed to Imam Ahmed that for every divorced woman is Muta’h (gift provision) “Walilmutalliqati mataun bilmaroof” as the expression and generality of the ayah signifies and for this reason also that the divine command is: ‘Iza (ayah No.49, Surah Al-Ahzab). “In this ayah those women who have been divorced before they are touched are commanded to be given Muta’h (gift provision), and this command is not specific for only those whose Mehr was not fixed, when many women are given talaq after Mehr is already fixed.” (Majmua’ Fatawa Ibn Taimiyah Vol. 32, P. 27)

In the event of talaq the woman is commanded to be released with grace, and this is the high moral teaching of Islam that when in the eventuality of separation bad manners should not be displayed, but decency and good manners should be adopted so that the effects of bitterness may be as less as possible. But generally Muslims have forgotten this teaching, and it is experienced that when relationships are broken bitterness rises to the extreme.

106. In this ayah a particular rule for the number of wives for the Prophet has been stated. It shows that for the exigencies of the religious matters special exceptions were made in the case of the Prophet. And since these exceptions were granted by Allah, nobody has a right to object to it.Whatever marriages that Prophet (S.A.W) contracted were done within the limits prescribed herein by Allah.

107. Those whose Mehr were paid by the Prophet were six: Sauda (R), Ayesha (R), Hafsa (R), Um Salma (R) Zainab Bint Al-Harith (R), and Um Habiba (R). Khadija (R) and Zainab Bint Khazima (R) had died earlier.The Mehr of the holy wives of the Prophet used to be, as stated in the hadith, five hundred dirham (1487 gram silver) -(Muslim Kitabun Nikah). However Um Habiba’s Mehr was four hundred dinar (1700 gram gold), which was paid by the Abyssinian ruler Negus on behalf of the Prophet. -(Tafseeer Ibn Katheer Vol.3 p.499).

This is an example of paying the Mehr with magnanimity, but a section of the Muslims has made the paying of Mehr a custom, a formality. Either they fix twenty five or fifty rupees as Mehr, which cannot buy even 5 grams of silver, while they spend thousands of rupees in wedding arrangements and showing off rituals, or for the show they fix such a huge amount of Mehr that the eventuality of its paying does not arise, Both these extremes need to be reformed.

108. Means those women who are made captives in wars as spoils of war and are distributed among the victors as female slaves. .The Prophet was allowed to marry such women. Under this permission he had married Juwariyah and Safiyah (R) Juwairiyah (R) was made captive in the Battle of Mustalaq (Shaban-06 Hijri). She was the daughter of the chief of that tribe and had embraced Islam. In view of her position, the Prophet freed her and married her. Similarly Safyah (R) was made captive in the Battle of Khyber (07 Hijri), and she was the daughter of the famous chief of the Jews. When she embraced Islam, then Prophet reckoned her freedom to be her Mehr and took her in his nikah. In this way both these female slaves were fortunate to become the holy wives of the Prophet.

109. It does not mean that they migrated with him and were with him when he migrated, but that as he left his home and everything and migrated, for the sake of faith, they also migrated and left everything for the sake of faith. They also sacrificed everything and were his partners in this good deed. He was permitted to marry such daughters of paternal and maternal uncles and aunts. He took advantage of this permission only to the extent to which the exigencies of the faith required. In the foregoing lines the circumstances of his marriage with Zainab (R) and Um Habiba (R) have been mentioned. Zainab (R) was the daughter of his father’s sister, and Um Habiba was the daughter of Abu Sufyan, who was from the Bani Umayyah clan, and Abu Sufyan was Prophet ‘s uncle through his great grandfather.

110. That is: If a woman of faith may offer to give herself in marriage to Prophet without Mehr, and he may accept this offer and marry her. His nikah with Maimoona (R), which took place in 07 Hijri was under this regulation only.

111. That is: The permission to accept the offer of nikah without fixing any Mehr is exclusively for the Prophet, Sallal Lahu Alaihi Wa Sallam. Such a permission is not available to general Muslims.

112. Points to the fact that in Surah An-Nisa Muslims are allowed to marry four wives, and commands about female slaves are also given in that Surah.

113. For the Prophet the circle of nikah was made wider because in view of the exigencies of faith he should not feel any constraints in marrying and may not pay any heed to the objections of the opponents.

It should be remembered that the Prophet had mostly married older women and widows, which was for making them happy and also for influencing the concerned families and the tribes, and also for training the women to impart religious education among the women of the community.

114. Hints at the point that if in fulfilling these family responsibilities any error is committed unwittingly, then Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.

115. That is: He has the right to keep anyone he may near him or away from him. And there is also nothing wrong in calling anyone whom he had kept away near him. It means that the right of the Prophet has precedence over the rights of his wives, and the Prophet had contracted a number of Nikahs only for the exigencies of faith. Therefore, whatever time and opportunity his wives get to be with him, they should consider it their good fortune, and should be content with it. In such a case it would be easier for the Prophet to fulfill his responsibilities, and his wives will also be happy and satisfied, and thus the atmosphere in the house of the Prophet will be pleasant.

Although Allah had given him this right as mentioned above, yet he used to stay with his wives by turns, and used to do justice with all of them. The narratives which state that he had kept some of his wives away from him are not correct. Abu Bakr Jussas writes:

“The Prophet has stated that he used to stay with his wives according to the turns fixed for every one, and in this there is no mention that he had made any exception in allotting a turn to any wife Ayesha (R) says that the Messenger of Allah used to fix turns with justice, and used to say: O Allah: this distribution is fair so far it is in my hand, so for what is in your power and what is not in my power, I may not be questioned.” (Tafseer Jussas, Vol.3, page 453).

However, Sauda (R) had given her turn to Ayesha (R) as she had grown old.

It was the result of this guidance only that there was no rivalry or jealousy among the holy wives of the Prophet, nor did the Prophet ever experience any hurtful feeling from them. Their character as the mothers of the faithful had been very high and ideal.

116. Hints at the point that the concessions that Allah had granted to his Prophet concerning his wives does not give any right to any person to have objections for that, but if you have been having any doubts in your hearts about that, then you should know that Allah knows what is in the heart of every person.

117. That is: The Prophet can marry only within the limitations prescribed by Allah as mentioned above. There is no permission for the Prophet to marry outside these limitations, as if where the Prophet has been given special concessions to marry, there he has been subjected to specific limitations also,which are not applicable to general Muslims, for example, if a Muslim has four wives, he can divorce any one of them and can wed another one in her place, but the Prophet was restricted from divorcing anyone of his wives and bringing in her place another one, that is the restriction or the limitation of the Shariah which was applicable to him. And this is the proof of the fact that whatever was revealed from Allah, the Prophet followed it diligently, so much so that his private and family life was also not an exception.

Allama Ibn Katheer has explained that at the time of the Prophet’s death, he had nine wives living. (Al-Hidayah wan Nahayah Vol.5, page 391)

Incidentally from the wordings of the ayah that even if some woman’s beauty pleases a believing man, it is elicited that a woman’s beauty is a means of attraction for men, but for the people of faith consideration of the commands of the Shariah is most important and necessary.

118. For the Prophet, Sallal Lahu Alaihi Wa Sallam, nikah was declared lawful with only those women that were mentioned in the above ayah. However permission was given to him to have a relationship of husband and wife with his female slaves, which permission is also given to the general Muslims. Under this permission he had accepted Maria Qibtiya, who was sent as a gift by the Christian ruler of Egypt, ‘Maquqas’ and he had explained that this lady was considered to be very honorable. From this lady a son, was born, who was named Ibrahim by the Prophet and who died in 09 Hijri.