Surah Al-Baqarah 2:236-242 - Quran Translation Commentary

(2:236) There is no sin upon you that you divorce women you have not (yet) touched,⁵⁰⁴ nor have settled a dower upon them.⁵⁰⁵ However, bestow (gifts) on them: upon the affluent according to his resources while upon the straitened according to his resources a gift (made) in an honorable manner, due from those who do things well.

(2:237) However, if you divorce them before you consummate (the marriage) but have settled upon them a dower, then (the due is) one half of what you have settled, unless they (the women) forgive (their half) or he forgives (his half) in whose hand is the knot of marriage⁵⁰⁶ (i.e., the husband).⁵⁰⁷ Should you forgive, then, that is nearer to piety. Therefore, forget not generosity (while dealing) with each other. Verily, Allah is aware of what you do.⁵⁰⁸

(2:238) Guard the (daily) Prayers⁵⁰⁹ and (especially) the Wusta⁵¹⁰ Prayer, and stand before Allah in all humility.

(2:239) However, if you are in fear then on foot or riding.⁵¹¹ But when you are in peace, then remember Allah as He taught⁵¹² you what you knew not.

(2:240) As for those of you who (fear they may) die leaving behind wives, (they may make a) testament for the widows (specifying) a year's provision without being dislodged.⁵¹³ However, if they depart (on their own), then there is no blame upon you in what they do with themselves honorably. And Allah is Powerful and Wise.

(2:241) And for the divorced (of every category) is a bestowal in a suitable manner; an obligation on the godfearing.

(2:242) Thus does Allah make clear His signs to you in order that you may reflect.

Commentary

504. What is meant here by the words: "women you have not touched" is "women with whom you have not consummated the marriage." Nonetheless, some fuqaha' make a difference between a man and woman coming together in complete privacy, (known as khalwah) and actual consummation of marriage. Accordingly, rules governing the two situations can be different (Au.).

505. Imam Razi points out that the verse proves by implication that marriage without agreeing upon the exact sum of the dower is perfectly legal.

506. The opinion of a minority of scholars is that by the words, "He forgives in whose hand is the knot of marriage," the allusion is to the guardian of the virgin girl who can use his discretion and forgive the husband the one half of the dower receivable. This is the opinion of Ibn `Abbas, Hasan and `Alqamah and the earlier opinion of Qadi Shurayh, Ta'us and Mujahid before the last three retracted their opinion and said that it is the husband who has been alluded to. However, the majority opinion is that the allusion is to the husband since it is he who holds the tie of marriage (Ibn Jarir).

507. The idea for the words in parenthesis here has been taken from Zamakhshari (Au.).

Thus there are four kinds of divorces, each with its own ruling so far as the dower is concerned.

1. A marriage in which the dower was not fixed and which was not consummated: Nothing is obligatory save that the husband ought to offer some gifts in accordance with his means.

2. A marriage in which the dower was fixed but the marriage was not consummated: Due in this case is one half of the dower agreed by the two parties.

3. A marriage in which the dower was not fixed but the marriage was consummated: Due is the dower in accordance with the status of the woman (mahr al mithl).

4. A marriage in which the dower was fixed and the marriage was consummated: Due is what was mutually agreed upon (Qurtubi, Razi and Alusi).

508. It is reported of Jubayr bin Mut`im that once he visited Sa`d b. Abi Waqqas. Sa`d proposed that he marry his daughter. He agreed and the marriage took place then and there. But when he went back he divorced her and sent her dower in full. He was asked: "Why did you marry her in the first place?" He replied: "Because he proposed and I did not like to say no." He was asked: "But why did you send the dower in full?" He replied: "What about generosity?" (Zamakhshari). He was referring to the "fadl" of this verse (Au.).

`Ali ibn abi Talib said: "سَيَأْتِي عَلَى النّاسِ زَمَانٌ عَضُوضٌ يَعَضّ المُوسِرُ عَلَى مَا في يَدَيْهِ وَلَمْ يُؤْمَرْ بِذَلِكَ، قالَ الله تَعَالَى: {وَلاَ تَنْسَوُا الْفَضْلَ بَيْنَكُمْ} وَيُبَايِعُ المُضْطَرّونَ، وَقَدْ نَهَى النّبيّ صلى الله عليه وسلم عنْ بَيْعِ المُضْطَرّ وَبَيْعِ الْغَرَرِ وَبَيْعِ الثّمَرَةِ قَبْلَ أنْ تُدْرِكَ". "A time will come when tenacity will be of a high order. In those times a man of means will hold fast to what he has in his hands although he has not been commanded that, while Allah has said, 'And forget not generosity with each other.' The people would deal with the most desperate to trade with, while the Prophet has prohibited dealings with the most desperate, from trading in the unknown (commodities) and from fruit that is not yet ready (on the trees)" (Ibn Kathir). The report is from Abu Da'ud but which has a weak chain, as judged by Mundhiri in `Awn al-Ma`bud (Au.).

509. A hadith preserved by Bukhari and Muslim has Ibn Mas`ud saying that he asked the Prophet (saws): سَأَلْتُ رَسُولَ اللّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم: أَيّ الأَعْمَالِ أَحَبّ إِلَى اللّهِ؟ قَالَ: "الصّلاَةُ عَلَى وَقْتِهَا" قُلْتُ: ثُمّ أَيّ؟ قَالَ "ثُمّ بِرّ الْوَالِدَيْنِ" قُلْتُ: ثُمّ أَيّ؟ قَالَ "ثُمّ الّجِهَادُ فِي سَبِيلِ اللّهِ" قَالَ: حَدّثَنِي بِهِنّ، وَلَو اسْتَزَدْتُهُ لَزَادَنِي. "What deed is the most virtuous?" He answered, "Prayers at their appointed hours." I asked him: "Which one after that?" He replied: "Treating the parents well." I asked: "Which one after that?" He replied, "Jihad in the way of Allah." Ibn Mas`ud adds, "Had I asked him for more he would added to the list" (Ibn Kathir).

What is the connection between the injunctions dealing with women's rights and Prayers? Mawdudi writes: "Having mentioned the laws for the guidance of human society, God rounds off this address by emphasizing Prayer, for it is Prayers which instill in man the fear of God. They inculcate the feelings of goodness and purity and the disposition to obey the ordinances of God, and foster adherence to righteousness. Without Prayer it would be impossible for men to persist in observing the laws of God, and they are likely to be swept away by a current of defiance and disobedience, as happened in the case of the Jews."

Asad adds: "In accordance with the system prevailing throughout the Qur'an, any lengthy section dealing with social laws is almost invariably followed by a call to God consciousness (taqwa: Au.): and since God consciousness comes most fully to its own in prayer, this and the next verse are interpolated here between injunctions relating to marital life and divorce."

Imam Razi has his own point. He says: While ordering us to guard the Prayers, Allah (swt) used the form in Arabic which is used for two persons participating in an act. "Qaatala" for instance would imply that there are two persons who fought with each other. Therefore, "haafaza" would imply that the act of guarding is being performed by two parties. One of them is the Muslim? Who is the other? There are two possibilities. First, Allah is the other, guarding the devotee against various calamities while the man himself takes good care of the Prayers. Second, the Prayers guard him. And the Prayers guard in at least three ways. One, they guard him against committing sins as Allah said (45:29): إِنَّ الصَّلَاةَ تَنْهَى عَنِ الْفَحْشَاءِ وَالْمُنْكَرِ [العنكبوت/45] "Indeed Prayers come in the way of the obscene and the unseemly (things)." Second, they guard him against various ordeals, as Allah said (): اسْتَعِينُوا بِالصَّبْرِ وَالصَّلَاةِ [البقرة/153] "Seek help with Prayers and Patience." And third, they will guard him from the Fire on the Day of Judgment, since one who Prays, recites a lot of Qur'an and, as we know, the Qur'an will intercede on the Day of Judgment.

510. Ibn Kathir writes: Authorities are at variance over the Prayer that is alluded to by the words "Salaut al Wusta." Opinions range as far and wide as to cover (a) each of the five daily Prayers, (b) all five of them combined, (c) none of them in specific, and (d) even the Friday and (e) `Eid Prayers. However, based on the number of scholars behind them, the opinions narrow down to Fajr and `Asr Prayers. Further, between the two the `Asr Prayer seems to be the most favored.

Fajr Prayer: According to a report in Al Muwatta of Imam Malik `Ata' al `Utaradi once performed his Fajr Prayers with Ibn `Abbas who did the qunut (supplication in the sate of Qiyam). Then he turned around and said, 'This is the Salatu al Wusta.' Abu al `Aliyyah reports a similar incident involving Ibn `Abbas in the mosque of Basra. This also seems to be the opinion of Ibn `Umar, Abu Umamah, Anas, Abu al `Aliyyah, `Ubayd b. `Umayr, `Ata', Mujahid, Jabir b. Zayd, `Ikrimah and Rabi` b. Anas. This is the opinion of Imam Shafe`i too. It is said that it has been called Salatu al Wusta (the middle Prayer) because it falls between two Prayers (`Isha and Zuhr) which are four rak`ah each, shortened to two in a journey, while the Fajr Prayer is two rak`ah and is not shortened. It is also said that the reason is that it falls between two Prayers in which the Qur'an is recited loudly, i.e., Maghrib and `Isha, and two Prayers in which the recitation is not loud, i.e., Zuhr and `Asr.

`Asr Prayer: Tirmidhi and Baghawi have said that the opinion of the great majority of Companions and scholars of later period is that it is the `Asr Prayer which is the Wusta Prayer. Qadi al Mawardi has said that this is the opinion of the great majority of the Tabe`iyyun (Followers).

The latter has in fact devoted a whole book to this subject in which he has presented no less than 39 different opinions, but eventually settles on `Asr Prayer as the Wusta Prayer: Tuhfatu al Ahwadhi.

Ibn `Abdul Barr says this is the opinion of the great majority of the Traditionists (Ahl al Athar). Ibn `Atiyyah has said in his tafsir that this is the opinion of the majority of the scholars. Hafiz Abu Muhammad has reported in his book on this subject that it is the `Asr Prayer in the opinion of `Umar, `Ali, Ibn Mas`ud, Abu Ayyub, `Abdullah ibn `Amr, Samurah b. Jundub, Abu Hurayrah, Abu Sa`id, Hafsa, Umm Habibah, Umm Salamah, Ibn `Umar, and, the correctly traced opinion of Ibn `Abbas, and `A'isha (may Allah be pleased with them all). Such is also the opinion of `Ubaydah, Ibrahim Nakha`i, Razin, Zir b. Hubaysh, Sa`id ibn Jubayr, Ibn Sirin, Qatadah, Dahhak, Hasan, Muqatil, `Ubayd and others. This is also reported of Ahmad b. Hanbal ... and, according to Ibn al Mundhir, it is the opinion of Abu Hanifah, Abu Yusuf, Imam Muhammad and Ibn Habib Maliki.

They base their opinion on the hadith of Khandaq reported by `Ali in Bukhari, Muslim and others. It says that one day during the battle of the Trench (khandaq) the assault by the polytheists was so intense that the Prophet (saws) could not offer his `Asr Prayers until the sun set. The Prophet said in anger: مَلَأَ اللَّهُ قُبُورَهُمْ وَبُيُوتَهُمْ نَارًا كَمَا شَغَلُونَا عَنْ صَلَاةِ الْوُسْطَى حَتَّى غَابَتْ الشَّمْسُ وَهِيَ صَلَاةُ الْعَصْرِ.‏ "May Allah fill their graves and homes with fire. They prevented us from the Wusta Prayer until the sun disappeared," and it was the `Asr Prayer." Eventually, he offered this Prayer after the Maghrib and before the `Isha Prayers.

Yet another opinion is that the knowledge of the Wusta Prayer was withheld like the knowledge of the Qadr Night was withheld, in order that people may seek it in all the Prayers and do their utmost to achieve excellence in each of them.

Quotation from Ibn Kathir ends here.

Sa`id b. Mysayyib, the famous Tabe`i says: "The Companions of the Prophet were as much in disagreement over the Salatu al Wusta as these," he passed the fingers of one of his hand into those of the other" (Ibn Jarir, Ibn Kathir, Qurtubi, Alusi).

Why is it so, seeing that the terms used in the reports in Bukhari, Muslim, Tirmidhi, Ibn Majah and other hadith collections are unambiguous? One answer is that the hadith of Khandaq did not reach everyone during or immediately after the Prophet's time leading to such variance in opinion. Later, with the spread of the hadith literature the `Asr Prayer came to be accepted by most scholars as the Wusta Prayer. In fact, Hafsa (ra) was so sure about it (Ibn Kathir and others), that she had the words Salatu al `Asr included in her personal copy of the Qur'an, either as an explanatory remark, or under assumption that it was part of the text. Moreover, the Companions of the Prophet were men of action and not theorizers. For them every Prayer was Wusta Prayer to each of which they applied themselves with equal zeal (Au.).

511. "This relates to the dangerous situation for instance that of war where, remaining for any length of time at one place would only increase the peril. In such an event, the obligatory prayers may be offered in any way that is feasible, even without consideration of the qiblah" (Asad).

In addition to the permission to do the Prayers on foot, or on a beast (or a vehicle) through gestures, if necessary, Prayers have been shortened for situations of fear. The four rak`ah of the ordinary times, become two in a journey, and one in situations of fear. This is the opinion of Ibn `Abbas, Hasan al Basri, Thawri and others (Ibn Jarir, Ibn Kathir). However, the shortening to one rak`ah is only when a congregational Prayer as specified by the Qur'an and explained in the ahadith is not possible (Ibn Jarir). Nevertheless, the majority of scholars believe that Prayers at times of fear are also shortened to two and not one (Razi).

512. I.e., Offer the Prayers in their completeness and with the qiyam (standing), ruku` (bowing) and sujud (prostration) done properly. Reports also suggest that people used to say a few necessary words to each other during their Prayers until Allah (swt) revealed this verse. After this they were forbidden from speaking to each other while in Prayers. Once (following the old practice), when the Prophet (saws) was greeted while he was in Prayers, he did not answer. After terminating the Prayers he recited this verse (Ibn Jarir, Ibn Kathir).

For further discussions see al-Nisa' note 272.

513. According to the great majority, who base their opinion on a report in Bukhari, this verse has been abrogated by the verses preceding it. However, the opinion of Ibn `Abbas is that it has been abrogated by those verses of surah al Nisa' which deal with inheritance. Abu Musa al Ash`ari, Ibn Zubayr, Mujahid, Ibrahim, `Ata', Hasan, `Ikrimah, Qatadah, Dahhak, Zayd ibn Aslam, Suddi, Muqatil, `Ata' al Khurasani, and Rabi` b. Anas also hold the opinion that this verse is abrogated. Ibn Zubayr asked `Uthman ibn `Affan at the time the Qur'an was being compiled as to why the verse should be included at all if it was abrogated. `Uthman's answer was: "Brother. I am not going to remove anything from its place." What he meant was that this was a matter of Divine judgment (amr tawqifi) and not a thing for humans to meddle with (Ibn Kathir).

A minority opinion is that there has been no abrogation and that the husband can still make a testament to the effect that his widow be provided for a year and not expelled from the house for that period; although the injunction about the testament is not obligatory (Ibn Jarir).