Surah Al-Masad 111:1-5 - Quran Translation Commentary

1. There are several explanations to the words “perished be the hands”. One is: the deeds he wrought with his hands stand destroyed (Ibn Jarir and others).

It has been said that the first part of the verse (“Perished be the hands of Abu Lahab”) is a curse on Abu Lahab and the second part (“and ruined be he”) a prediction of what is going to happen to him (Razi). The origin of the statement is Farra’ (Qurtubi).

It is also said that once Abu Lahab picked up a stone intending to fling it at the Prophet though he did not actually do it. But the revelation said: “Perished be the hands of Abu Lahab” (Zamakhshari, Razi, Qurtubi and others).

2. Abu Lahab's real name (literally “the Father of Flame”) was `Abdul `Uzza b. `Abdul Muttalib. He was a real uncle, but a hostile enemy of the Prophet. He was nicknamed Abu Lahab because of his beautiful countenance which glowed. Probably the Qur’an preferred the nickname over the real because spelling out `Abdul Uzza (the slave of the deity `Uzza) would imply recognition of the slavery to an idol (Qurtubi).

3. The background of revelation is as follows. Ibn `Abbas has reported that when the verse “And warn thy near kin” was revealed the Prophet climbed Mount Safa and called out, “Hearken unto me.” (Until then, about three years after the prophethood, he had concealed his message, Praying in a valley out of sight of the public: Razi). In response the people started to arrive at the foot of the hill. He who could come went, and he who could not, sent someone else in place. When they had gathered he addressed them in words: “O Banu `Abdul Hashim, O Banu `Abdul Muttalib, O Banu Fihr, O so and so, supposing I tell you that an army lies in wait to ambush you from behind this hill, will you believe me?” They said, “Yes, indeed.” He said, “Then let me tell you that I am a forewarner of a painful chastisement that is right on your heels.” Upon this Abu Lahab said: “May you perish (tabban laka) the entire day.” Allah revealed these verses (Ibn Jarir).

The hadith is in Bukhari, Muslim and others (Qurtubi, Ibn Kathir, Shawkani).

It is also reported by `Abdul Rahman b. Zayd that once Abu Lahab went to the Prophet and enquired, 'What do I get if I embrace Islam’? The Prophet replied, 'The same as any other Muslim.’ Abu Lahab retorted, 'That means I will have no advantage over others’?! The Prophet asked him what was in his mind. Abu Lahab shot back, 'Destroyed be (tabban) the religion in which I and the common man stand on the same footing.’ Allah revealed these verses (Razi, Qurtubi).

Musnad of Ahmad has another hadith which reports Rabi`ah b. `Abbad as saying: “Before my own Islam I used to see the Prophet in Dhu al-Majaz markets calling out: 'People, say there is no deity save Allah and you will prosper.’ People would gather around him but a man, bright faced, intelligent looking, with two locks of hair (hanging down), would appear from the rear and say: 'This man has renounced the religion (of his forefathers). He is a liar.’ He followed the Prophet wherever he went. The people would enquire who he was to learn that it was his (the Prophet’s) uncle.’”

(Qurtubi, Razi and others have narrated this report but the words here are those of Ibn Kathir).

4. Ibn Mas`ud (ra) has said that when the Prophet (saws) warned them of the Fire, Abu Lahab said he would ransom himself with his wealth and progeny. Allah revealed this verse in refutation (Qurtubi, Ibn Kathir).

5. Ibn `Abbas has explained the terms ma kasab (what he - Abu Lahab - earned) as the allusion to “his offspring.”

Significantly, it is reported that once Abu Lahab’s sons came to Ibn

`Abbas to settle a dispute that arose between them. In the course of talk they began to quarrel among themselves. When Ibn `Abbas tried to intervene and separate them they pushed him aside and he fell. He lost his temper and said: “Send these out. These are what Abu Lahab earned.” Mujahid is also of the same opinion (Ibn Jarir, Zamakhshari, Razi, Qurtubi).

`A’isha has also said, according to a statement in Abu Da’ud, that one’s offsprings are what he earns. She quoted this verse (Qurtubi, Shawkani).

6. Sayyid writes: “... he was one of the most unbending foes of the Messenger and the ideas he was propagating...

“... when the Hashimite clan (the Prophet’s own clan) decided on grounds of tribal loyalties, under the leadership of Abu Talib to protect the Prophet despite their rejection of the religion he was preaching, Abu Lahab was the only one to take a different stand. He joined with the Quraysh instead, and was with them in signing the document to boycott the Hashimite clan completely and starve them till they gave up the Prophet to them.”

7. “Hammalatu ‘l-Hatab”: Ibn `Abbas, Ibn Zayd, `Atiyyah and Dahhak have said that Abu Lahab’s wife used to carry thorny branches and twigs and cast them in the path of the Prophet to hurt him. This is the preferable meaning, although Mujahid and Qatadah have said that she slandered the Prophet which is the metaphorical meaning of “hammalatu `l-hatab” (since the carrier of evil tales of slander from one person to another kindles the flames of hatred between them: Zamakhshari, Asad) - Ibn Jarir, Razi, Qurtubi.

Another interpretation is that when her husband would be burned in Hell-fire, she will carry the wood as the fuel (Ibn Kathir).

8. Another interpretation of “hablum min masad”, coming from `Urwah ibn Zubayr and Sufyan, is that it refers to a steel chain; while Mujahid and `Ikrimah are of opinion that it refers to a steel ring (Ibn Jarir). But Ibn `Abbas is of thee opinion, as reported by Abu Saleh, that the phrase means a rope of fire of length 70 yards. Sa`id b. al-Musayyib has said that Umm Jamil (Abu Lahab’s wife) used to wear a necklace studded with pearls and used to say that she would spend its worth in opposing the Prophet. In consequence, its fiery form would be awarded to her in the Hereafter as a means of torture. There have been other opinions too (Qurtubi).

Obviously, since they do not contradict each other, all the opinions could be correct (Au.).

(The name of Abu Lahab’s wife was Arwa’. She was a daughter of Harb and also known as Umm Jamil. She was one eyed. She gave unfailing support to her husband in his opposition to the Prophet: Au.).

It is reported by Humaydi that when this surah was revealed and she came to know of what it had to say of her, she went looking for the Prophet. (According to some reports, 'with a stone in her hand': Au.). He was in the Holy Mosque in the company of Abu Bakr. She headed for them but spoke to Abu Bakr alone saying: “Your companion has satirized me!” Abu Bakr replied, “No he has not. You know that he is not a poet.” She agreed. Then she recited her own poetry:

We reject the reprobate,

His religion we loathe and hate,

His commandments we repudiate.

Then she left. When she was gone Abu Bakr turned to the Prophet who was by his side and remarked: “She did not seem to have seen you.” He replied: “No she did not. Allah had taken away her sight from me as He said in the Qur’an (17: 45): "And when you recite the Qur’an We place between you and those who do not believe in the Hereafter a curtain obstructing“ (Razi, Qurtubi, Ibn Kathir, with versions slightly varying).

Ibn Abi Hatim and Abu Zur`ah have also recorded similar reports. The one in Bazzar carries his comment that it has a good chain of transmitters (Shawkani).

When Abu Bakr said that the Prophet did not satirize her, he was speaking the truth because she was referring to revelation (Au.).

A Proof of the Prophet’s Authenticity

The surah predicted that Abu Lahab would perish. That is what happened. When the Quraysh army returned to Makkah after its defeat at Badr, one of the participants described it as, 'A total defeat in which the Muslims were able to strike at will. Moreover, they seemed to be aided by men who were total strangers to them. Riding horses, they descended from the sky and came across none but slew him.’ Upon this Abu Rafi`, who was a slave of `Abbas b. `Abdul Muttalib, spontaneously interjected that those must have been angels. At that Abu Lahab lost his temper and slapped him. The two came to blows but Abu Lahab overpowered him. Umm Fadl, the wife of `Abbas, came to the rescue of Abu Rafi` and hit Abu Lahab several times with a rod saying, 'You dare hit him because his master is away?!’ Abu Lahab suffered a wound in the head and backed off much debunked. A little later he was struck by a disease similar to small pox and died in a week of wounds that refused to heal. The Quraysh feared the disease as much as plague and so nobody went near the corpse for three days until it began to decompose. Finally, his sons splashed water on the corpse from a distance, pushed it down a high wall and heaped it up with stones. Thus the prediction came true and the surah became a sign of the Prophet’s authenticity as a messenger (Qurtubi).

The idea has been expressed by other commentators also, and what they mean is that all that Abu Lahab and his wife had to do to discredit the Prophet and the Qur’anic prediction, was to announce of their Islam, even if hypocritically. In fact, two of his sons later embraced Islam and became good Muslims. The two – Abu Lahab and his wife - had twelve years to do that but they did not, and let the prediction come true. It can be further said that if the Prophet could conceal anything of the Qur’an, he would have wished to conceal this chapter, until the death of Abu Lahab and his wife, fearful that if they embraced Islam after the announcement of their destruction he would have a difficult time explaining how it will happen. But he trusted the words of Allah and announced of their destruction which goes to prove his authenticity as a Prophet (Au.).

Razi wrote: Prior to his own destruction, one of his sons too had been destroyed in consequence of the Prophet’s supplication against him. The story is as follows. The Prophet’s two daughters Ruqaiyyah and Umm Kulthum were married to two of Abu Lahab’s sons `Utbah and `Utaybah respectively. (But the marriages were waiting consummation: Au.). Angry with the Prophet, Abu Lahab ordered his sons to divorce his daughters. In compliance `Utbah, who was married to Umm Kulthum, went to the Prophet and told him in a very rough manner that he believed in none of the revelation that he had brought. Then he spat in the direction of the Prophet and announced that he had divorced his daughter. The Prophet supplicated in words: “O Allah, set one of Your dogs upon this man.” `Utbah returned. Sometime later he accompanied a trade caravan to Syria. En route, when the caravan had encamped for a night and everyone was fast asleep with `Utbah right in the middle of the crowd of men and beasts, a lion came up straight to him, hauled him away.

However, as stated under 80, note 7 there is confusion about names. Alusi has stated that in all Abu Lahab had three sons. Two of these, `Utbah and Mu`tab, embraced Islam at the fall of Makkah and took part in the battles of Hunayn and Tayif. So it was `Utaybah who was killed by the lion (Au.). p

The Context of Revelation

If we are to put together reports coming from Ubayy b. Ka`b, `Ikrimah, Sa`id and Qatadah, either the pagans of Makkah or the Jews asked the Prophet to explain to them who exactly the God was that he was inviting the people to. According to some versions they asked him to lay down His genealogy. Allah revealed this chapter (Ibn Jarir reworded: Au.). At least one version is in Tirmidhi (Ibn Kathir). Muslim has a similar report (Sayyid Ibrahim).

Merits of the surah

Some interpreters have pointed out that this is the only surah in the Qur’an which talks nothing of either this world or the next. Allah is its sole subject (Ibn Jarir). It has also been pointed out that this is the only surah in the Qur’an in which two new Attributes of Allah - Al-Ahad and Al-Samad – have appeared. They have not appeared elsewhere; and significantly, together. This could be the reason why it has been said to be equal to one-third of the Qur’an (Qurtubi).

`A’isha has reported in a hadith of Bukhari (also in Muslim and others: Shawkani), that,

The Prophet sent out a group of people in a campaign. Their leader always ended his (recitations in the) Prayers with this chapter. When they came back they spoke of it to the Prophet. He ordered them to find out why he did that. The man answered that he loved to recite it because it depicted the Attributes of Al-Rahman. The Prophet remarked: “Let him know that Allah loves him too” (Qurtubi, Ibn Kathir).

Bukhari has another report coming from Anas. It says that,

The Quba mosque had a leader in the Prayers who recited this surah (after al-Fatiha and) before any other recitation and even ended up with it. Finally, his followers spoke to him objecting that it did not look like it was permissible. He could either recite from other parts of the Qur’an, which would suffice, or recite the surah alone if he wished to. But the man refused to budge. He told them that they were free to look for another person to lead them in Prayers if they were not satisfied with him. But they considered him better than anyone else and, as a matter of fact, did not wish him to be replaced. So when the Prophet visited them they mentioned this to him. He asked the man: “O so and so. What prevents you from doing as they say? Why do you insist on its recitation”? He answered: “I love the surah.” The Prophet assured him: “Your love of it will usher you into Paradise” (Qurtubi, Ibn Kathir, Shawkani).

Another report from Bukhari coming through Abu Sa`id says that,

A man heard another repeatedly reciting this surah. When he mentioned it to the Prophet - in belief that it could not be much of a virtue to be doing so - he told him: “It is equal to one-third of the Qur’an” (Qurtubi, Ibn Kathir).

Yet another report from Bukhari (also in Muslim: S.Ibrahim) with Abu Sa`id as the transmitter says that once the Prophet (saws) asked his Companions:

“Is anyone of you weaker than that he should recite one-third of the Qur’an every night?” They exclaimed: “Which of us can do that O Apostle?” He replied that this chapter is one-third of the Qur’an. (Qurtubi, Ibn Kathir) Some reports say it “is one-third of the Qur’an” while others say it is “equal” to one third of the Qur’an. In fact, one report in Ahmad says it is equal to one-half of the Qur’an (Ibn Kathir).

Finally, Imam Ahmad, and Tirmidhi with his approval, report `Uqbah b. `Amir saying that once when he met the Prophet he took the initiative by holding his hand and asking him:

“O Apostle of Allah, in what lies the salvation of a Muslim?” He replied, “O `Uqbah. Hold your tongue, let your home be enough for you and weep at your sins.” Next time when he met him the Prophet took the initiative to hold his hand and said: “O `Uqbah. May I not tell you about three chapters better than anything in the Torah, thee Gospels, the Psalms of David and the Magnificent Qur’an itself?” I replied, “Sure do that, may my parents be sacrificed for you.” In reply, he recited surah al-Ikhlas and the following two chapters and added: “`Uqbah. Do not forget them. Do not let a night pass before you have recited them.” `Uqbah says when I met the Prophet another time, I again took the initiative and held his hands in mine. I asked him: “O Apostle of Allah. Let me know of the best of good deeds”. He said: “`Uqbah! Join him who cuts you asunder. Give him who denies you. And forgive him who wrongs you” (Ibn Kathir).

And here is at least one hadith about seeking Allah’s protection from sicknesses with the help of these three last chapters of the Qur’an. Bukhari has recorded `A’isha as saying that,Before sleep the Prophet used to recite these on his bed, blow into his hands and pass them over to the extent the hands reached his face, hands and body. He would do it three times (Ibn Kathir).