215. Thus, the rightly guided is likened to the living, and the "path" itself to light (based on Thanwi).

216. Mawdudi comments: "The law of God with regard to those to whom light is presented but who willfully refuse to act according to it, preferring to follow their crooked path even after they have been invited to follow the Straight Way, is that in the course of time such people begin to cherish darkness, and to enjoy groping their way into dark, stumbling and falling as they proceed."

217. The allusion is to the scheming and plotting against Islam and its message. Allah said at another place (34: 31 33):

وَلَوْ تَرَى إِذِ الظَّالِمُونَ مَوْقُوفُونَ عِنْدَ رَبِّهِمْ يَرْجِعُ بَعْضُهُمْ إِلَى بَعْضٍ الْقَوْلَ يَقُولُ الَّذِينَ اسْتُضْعِفُوا لِلَّذِينَ اسْتَكْبَرُوا لَوْلَا أَنْتُمْ لَكُنَّا مُؤْمِنِينَ (31) قَالَ الَّذِينَ اسْتَكْبَرُوا لِلَّذِينَ اسْتُضْعِفُوا أَنَحْنُ صَدَدْنَاكُمْ عَنِ الْهُدَى بَعْدَ إِذْ جَاءَكُمْ بَلْ كُنْتُمْ مُجْرِمِينَ (32) وَقَالَ الَّذِينَ اسْتُضْعِفُوا لِلَّذِينَ اسْتَكْبَرُوا بَلْ مَكْرُ اللَّيْلِ وَالنَّهَارِ إِذْ تَأْمُرُونَنَا أَنْ نَكْفُرَ بِاللَّهِ وَنَجْعَلَ لَهُ أَنْدَادًا [سبأ : 31 ، 33]

"If you were to see the transgressors held before their Lord, some of them replying to others; the weaker ones saying to the arrogant ones, ‘If not for you, we would have been believers.' Those who had been arrogant replying to the weak ones, ‘Was it we who prevented you from guidance after it had come to you? Rather, you were yourself criminals.' The weaker ones would say to the arrogant ones, ‘Rather, it was your scheming day in and day out wherewith you provoked us to disbelieve in Allah and declare His equals'" (Ibn Kathir).

Asad writes: "Because the consciousness of their importance makes them more or less impervious to criticism, the "great ones" (Asad's rendering of "akabira mujrimiha") are, as a rule, rather less inclined than other people to question the moral aspect of their own behavior; and the resulting self righteousness only too often causes them to commit grave misdeeds."

218. The Quraysh were of the opinion that the Prophet was not the right choice for Messengership. They said that one of their men should have been chosen for it, as the Qur'an said (43: 31):

وَقَالُوا لَوْلَا نُزِّلَ هَذَا الْقُرْآنُ عَلَى رَجُلٍ مِنَ الْقَرْيَتَيْنِ عَظِيمٍ [الزخرف : 31]

"They say, ‘Only if this Qur'an had been sent down unto a man of one of the two great towns (i.e., Makkah and Tayif)." But Allah knew who was most suitable for the mission. The Prophet said in a hadith of Muslim:

إِنَّ اللَّهَ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ اصْطَفَى مِنْ وَلَدِ إِبْرَاهِيمَ إِسْمَاعِيلَ وَاصْطَفَى مِنْ بَنِي إِسْمَاعِيلَ كِنَانَةَ وَاصْطَفَى مِنْ بَنِي كِنَانَةَ قُرَيْشًا وَاصْطَفَى مِنْ قُرَيْشٍ بَنِي هَاشِمٍ وَاصْطَفَانِي مِنْ بَنِي هَاشِمٍ

"Allah chose Isma`il from the sons of Ibrahim. He chose Kinanah from the sons of Isma`il. From Banu Kinanah He chose the Quraysh. From the Quraysh He chose Banu Hashim. And from Banu Hashim He chose me." And Ibn Mas`ud has been reported as saying in Musnad Ahmad: "Allah surveyed the hearts of the people and found the heart of Muhammad the best. So He chose him for Messengership. Then He surveyed the hearts of the people and found the hearts of his Companions better than the rest of the people. So He made them supporters of His Messenger. They fight for his religion. So what the Muslims see as good is good in the sight of Allah and what the Muslims see as evil is evil in the sight of Allah." (By Muslims he meant perhaps the Companions: Au.). It is also said that someone spotted Ibn `Abbas entering the mosque. He was much impressed by his personality. He enquired: "Who is this man?" They said: "Ibn `Abbas." (A cousin of the Prophet). The man remarked: "Allah knows best where to place His Message" (Ibn Kathir).

(Another direct implication of the choice of the words is): "Allah knows best in what place should He place His revelation" (Zamakhshari).

219. Hence a hadith of Muslim says:

إِنَّ الْغَادِرَ يُنْصَبُ لَهُ لِوَاءٌ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ فَيُقَالُ هَذِهِ غَدْرَةُ فُلاَنٍ

"A flag post will be pitched near the buttocks of every dishonest person. It will be said, ‘This is the dishonesty of so and so'" (Ibn Kathir).

220. It is reported by several narrators that the Prophet (saws) was once asked about how the hearts open up for Islam. He answered:

إن النور إذا دخل الصدر انفسح فقيل : يا رسول الله هل لذلك من علم يعرف ؟ قال : نعم التجافي عن دار الغرور و الإنابة إلى دار الخلود و الاستعداد للموت قبل نزوله

"It is a light which is placed in his heart so that the heart relaxes and opens up." He was asked if there was an external sign. He replied: "Inclination toward the everlasting abode, disinclination toward the deceptive world, and preparations for death before the appointed hour" (Ibn Jarir).

Various versions of this hadith have been reported by `Abdul Razzaq, Firyabi, Ibn Abi Shaybah, `Abd b. Humayd, Ibn al Mundhir, Marduwayh and Bayhaqi (Shawkani). Ibn Kathir adds: some of the chain of narrations are complete while some are discontinuous.

What Ibn Kathir means perhaps is that although, because of some weakness or the other, none of the ahadith can be declared sahih, as a whole they acquire the status of hasan because of multiple narrations (Au.).

221. The textual word is "haraj" (pl.: harjah) which is used for a tree within a grove so thickly surrounded with other trees that no one, (neither beast nor man), can reach it. This is how a bedouin explained the word to `Umar ibn al Khattab when he asked him. In response `Umar said: "That is the example of the heart of a hypocrite. No good will ever enter into it." The word however has a general connotation of "constriction" as Allah said (22: 78):

وَمَا جَعَلَ عَلَيْكُمْ فِي الدِّينِ مِنْ حَرَجٍ [الحج : 78]

"He did not place on you any constriction in the religion."

Sa`id ibn Jubayr has pointed out another connotation when he said "haraj" is that state in which a man finds no way out but upward (Ibn Jarir).

222. The Qur'an did not say "yas`adu" which would mean he climbs up; rather, it used a stronger form to says "yassa`adu" which means "he struggles to ascend." That is because the act of ascension causes constriction to the heart: a feeling of the heart being left behind as one climbs up, say in an aircraft. One could get the same feeling while climbing a mountain, but the ascent there is so gradual one would fail to notice it. Further, the Qur'an did not say, "as if he is climbing a mountain." It used the word "heaven" in conjunction with the word "yassa`adu" which put together with "harajan" express the sensation of one whose heart has to overcome the gravitational pull of the earth as his body speedily rises up. One may ask himself. If the Prophet was the author of this Book, how was he able to describe so accurately a sensation that mankind had to wait fourteen hundred years for the invention of air crafts to experience? (Au.).

223. This feeling of constriction manifests itself when the man hears about God, His Oneness, His Attributes, etc. The man feels very uncomfortable. In contrast, when someone other than God is mentioned in his presence, his breast opens up with cheer (Au.).

224. The opinion of Ibn `Abbas is that by the textual word "rijs" the allusion is to Shaytan who is bound to a man when he decides to disbelieve. The word is also used for dirt and filth (Ibn Jarir).

225. It is reported that in pre Islamic times when an Arab camped in a valley he would say: "I seek refuge with the lord of this valley," meaning the Jinn. That is, men's acknowledgement of the power of the Jinn lies in the former placing them in an advantageous position. This is what is alluded to by one taking advantage of the other (Zamakhshari). Other scholars have said that the fact that the Jinn enjoy the obedience of mankind is the advantage that one draws of the other (Au.).

Yusuf Ali adds: "It is common experience that the forces of evil make an alliance with each other, and seem thus to make a profit by their mutual log rolling. But this is only in this material world. When the limited term expires, their unholy alliance will be exposed, and there will be nothing but regrets."

226. Ibn `Abbas has said that in the light of this verse, it is not right for anyone to speak on behalf of Allah, admitting some to Paradise and assigning others to Hell fire (Ibn Jarir, Ibn Kathir, Shawkani). This statement of Ibn `Abbas is in Ibn al Mundhir, Ibn Abi Hatim and Abu al Sheikh (Shawkani).

227. Sayyid Qutb writes: "A universal rule of great consequence has been enunciated here. It concerns the nature of friendship between the Satans of men and Jinn. The evil doers, that is, those who commit the sin of association, in some form or the other, gather their forces together on one front in order to thwart the truth and guidance. They assist each other in confronting the Prophets and believers in them. These, just as they are men of the same nature, no matter how different their outward appearances, also share a common interest, viz., to force their lordship on the people, as well as follow their carnal desires unrestrained by the divine commandments.

"We discover them as one block in every epoch, some supporting the others, despite deep differences among themselves over other issues. But, when the confrontation is with the religion of Allah and His beloved ones, they are one body. Thus, it is the sharing of the objectives that makes them friends of each other. Therefore, in keeping with what they strive for in this world, they would be kept together in the Hereafter.

"We have been seeing these forces – for the past several centuries a huge force commanding the participation of the Satanic men of the crusaders, the zionists, the pagans and the communists, who have been, despite differences among themselves, one against Islam, and against the destruction of every Islamic movement.

"It is of course an awesome gang. It commands centuries of experience against Islam, armed with the most dreadful tools of destruction, to be employed in the implementation of its Satanic strategies. This ganging up is an interpretation of the words of Allah: "That is how We let some of the transgressors befriend each other."

"But the Prophet and those who would follow him in his ways, are told not to be concerned too much about them. They are consoled in words: ‘Had your Lord willed, they would not have done it. Therefore leave them alone, and that which they forge.'"

228. The translation adopted here follows Qatadah's explanation, who said, "Allah lets some of the transgressor befriend others because of their deeds. Accordingly, a believer is the friend (waliyy) of another believer, wheresoever the two might be: close at hand or afar. And an unbeliever is the friend of an unbeliever, wheresoever the two might be. Faith is not the name of good wishes or of dreams (Ibn Jarir).

There has been another interpretation. It also originates from Qatadah. In Mawdudi's words it is: "Just as the wrong doers had been accomplices in sin and evil during their earthly life, they would remain companions in the After life as well as share in punishment."

The attribution to Allah of letting some befriend others, adds Rashid Rida, is following the general rule that, in the final resort, it is Allah who sanctions all deeds. It is not that things were destined that way, as the Qadariyyah said, nor was there a denial of choice, as the Jabariyyah alleged. Rather, it was similarities in outlook and purposes with full agreement over transgression that some of the men came to befriend others. ‘By Allah,' adds Rashid Rida, ‘if you were to be obedient to Allah but did not know others who are similarly in acts of obedience, it will not hurt you. So too, if you were to be sinning, but kept the company of the most righteous, it would do you no profit. Merely the company of this or that group would do you no good, if you do not come up with the right kind of deeds.'

Rashid Rida also quotes from Abu Sheikh that Mansur b. Abi al Aswad said, "I asked A`mash about this verse as to what have you heard from your elders (senior Followers the tabe`iyyun) in explanation?" He replied, "I heard them say that when the people are corrupt they come to have the most evil of them as their leader." This is how the senior tabe`iyyun understood the verse, although the hadith that is often quoted in this connection, viz., "You will have rulers over you who are the like of you," is extremely weak.