118. Rashid Rida points out that the phrase in the text nuraddu `ala a`qabina, is always used by the Arabs for a situation in which one has to take a step backwards in retreat, indicating a failure of undertaking. In view of that connotation it would imply here retreating from a better position to a lower one: from monotheism to idol worship.

119. Mawdudi comments: "It has been asserted again and again in the Qur'an that God created the heaven and earth ‘in truth.' This covers a wide range of meanings:

“First, that the heaven and the earth have not been created just for the fun of it. This existence is not a theatrical play. This world is not a child's toy with which to amuse oneself as long as one wishes before crushing it to bits and throwing it away. Creation is rather an act of great seriousness. A great objectivity motivates it, and a wise purpose underlies it...

"Second, it means that God has created this entire system of the universe on solid foundations of truth. The whole of the universe is based on justice, wisdom and truth. Hence, there is no scope in the system for falsehood to take root and prosper. The phenomenon of the prosperity of falsehood which we observe, is to be ascribed to the will of God, Who grants the followers of falsehood the opportunity, if they so wish, to expend their efforts in promoting unrighteousness, injustice and untruth. In the end, however, the earth will throw up all the seeds of untruth that have been sown, and in the final reckoning every follower of falsehood will see that the efforts he devoted to cultivating and watering this pernicious tree have all gone to waste (Abridged).

120. Majid has a beautiful point: "i.e., whatever He utters must and shall be accomplished in fact. Al Huqq here is not ‘the truth.' It expresses the idea of the overpowering efficacy of His word."

121. This does not mean that the present dominion is not His. The purpose of this statement is rather to stress that when the veil which conceals certain truths in this phase of existence will be removed and Truth becomes fully manifest, it will be then quite clear that all those who seemed or were considered to possess power and authority were utterly powerless, and that the true dominion belongs to the One True God who brought the universe into existence (Au.).

122. The allusion here is to the second of the two mighty blows of the Sur (Razi). The first will destroy all life and the present world order. The second will herald a new phase, a new order, and when every being that ever lived will come to life again. Mankind will be assembled on earth which will be rendered flat, reckoning will be conducted and judgment pronounced (Au.).

The Prophet said:

إن إسرافيل قد التقم الصور، وحنى جبهته ينتظر متى يؤمر فينفخ

"Israfil has the Sur to his mouth and with his head bent forward awaits the order to blow" (Ibn Jarir).

The Prophet has given us some other details. In a hadith (preserved by Bukhari) he said:

مَا بَيْنَ النَّفْخَتَيْنِ أَرْبَعُونَ قَالَ أَرْبَعُونَ يَوْمًا قَالَ أَبَيْتُ قَالَ أَرْبَعُونَ شَهْرًا قَالَ أَبَيْتُ قَالَ أَرْبَعُونَ سَنَةً قَالَ أَبَيْتُ قَالَ ثُمَّ يُنْزِلُ اللَّهُ مِنْ السَّمَاءِ مَاءً فَيَنْبُتُونَ كَمَا يَنْبُتُ الْبَقْلُ لَيْسَ مِنْ الْإِنْسَانِ شَيْءٌ إِلَّا يَبْلَى إِلَّا عَظْمًا وَاحِدًا وَهُوَ عَجْبُ الذَّنَبِ وَمِنْهُ يُرَكَّبُ الْخَلْقُ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ

"Between the two blows (of the Sur) there will be a gap of forty." They (the narrator Abu Hurayrah), "Will it be forty days?" He replied, "I do not say that." They asked, "Forty months?" He said, "I do not say that.” They asked, “Forty years?” He replied, “I do not say that either." Then he said, "Allah will then send down water from the heavens and they will start sprouting out like plants. There is nothing from the body of a man that remains (uneaten by the earth) but a single bone. It is the tail bone. It is from this that mankind will be resurrected."

At this point Ibn Kathir presents a long hadith which, as he points out, is made up of several ahadith by a not so well trusted narrator. However, and although not every part of it could be checked for authenticity, we present its somewhat abridged translation because of the importance of the subject. “When Allah had finished creating the heavens and the earth,

At this point Ibn Kathir brings in a long hadith with reference to the blowing of the Sur. He writes: Hafiz Abul Qasim Tabarani has recorded the following hadith in his collection called "Al-tiwalaat."

Said the Prophet while amongst a few of his Companions, as reported by Abu Hurayrah: "When Allah was finished with the creation of the heavens and the earth, He created the Sur and handed it over to Israfil. He placed it on his mouth, and is looking up at the `Arsh, waiting for the command." I (the narrator) asked, "Messenger of Allah, what is this Sur?" He replied, "A trumpet." I asked, "What is it like?" He answered, "Huge. By Him who sent me with the Truth, its circumference is like the width of the heavens and the earth. He will blow into it three times. The first blast will be the Blast of Dread, the second that of Swoon and the third the Blast which will be the Standing Forth before the Lord of the worlds.

(At some time) Allah will order Israfil to make the first blast. The blast will drive dread into every one of the heavens and earth, except him who Allah wills. He will order him to keep blowing for a long while, without break. This is referred to in the Qur'an (38: 15),

{وَمَا يَنْظُرُ هَؤُلَاءِ إِلَّا صَيْحَةً وَاحِدَةً مَا لَهَا مِنْ فَوَاقٍ } [ص: 15]

"These are not waiting but for a single cry, which will brook no delay."

With that Allah will make the mountains move. They will move like clouds, as if a mirage. Then the earth will shake with all its inhabitants to resemble a boat tossed into the sea, hit by waves. It will swing with its inhabitants like a lamp hung by the roof; the winds rocking it. It is about this that it was said (79: 6-8),

{يَوْمَ تَرْجُفُ الرَّاجِفَةُ (6) تَتْبَعُهَا الرَّادِفَةُ (7) قُلُوبٌ يَوْمَئِذٍ وَاجِفَةٌ } [النازعات: 6 - 8]

"The day a rattling with rattle (the world) violently, followed by a second thunderous blast, the day when the hearts will throb (with fear)."

The people will be swinging on its back, the breast-feeders will forget their young ones, the pregnant will abort pregnancy, children will go gray, the devils will fly from fear to the shores until angels appear who will strike on their faces and push them back (to the seas), the people will turn on their heels, none to save them from Allah's command, some of them calling others – that is the Day about which Allah said (40: 32),

{ يَوْمَ التَّنَادِ } [غافر: 32]

"The Day of calling."

They would be in that state when the earth will split up from end to end. They would be witnessing an affair never witnessed before. That will drive the people into a state of fear the extent of which only Allah knows. As they look up at the heaven, it would be like boiled oil. Then it will split, the stars will fall and its moon and sun will lose their shine. The Prophet added, 'The dead will not know about these happenings.'"

Abu Hurayrah asked, "Who exactly are meant by the exception in the verse (27: 87),

{ فَفَزِعَ مَنْ فِي السَّمَاوَاتِ وَمَنْ فِي الْأَرْضِ إِلَّا مَنْ شَاءَ اللَّهُ} [النمل: 87]

"In dread will be whoever is in the heavens and in the earth, except whom He wills." He answered, "The martyrs are the exceptions. It is the living who will be in dread, while the martyrs are alive with Allah, being fed, Allah will save them from the dread of that Day, and accorded them peace in its wake. That will be the torment that Allah will send upon the worst of His creatures. He has said (22: 1, 2),

{يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ اتَّقُوا رَبَّكُمْ إِنَّ زَلْزَلَةَ السَّاعَةِ شَيْءٌ عَظِيمٌ (1) يَوْمَ تَرَوْنَهَا تَذْهَلُ كُلُّ مُرْضِعَةٍ عَمَّا أَرْضَعَتْ وَتَضَعُ كُلُّ ذَاتِ حَمْلٍ حَمْلَهَا وَتَرَى النَّاسَ سُكَارَى وَمَا هُمْ بِسُكَارَى وَلَكِنَّ عَذَابَ اللَّهِ شَدِيدٌ } [الحج: 1، 2]

'People, fear your Lord. Surely, the shaking of the Hour will be a great thing. The Day you witness it, every breast-feeding female will forget about its young, and every pregnant will abort what it carries. And you will see the people drunk; but they will not be drunk, rather Allah's torment will be great.'

They will remain in the torment as long as Allah wills, except that it will be long.

Then Allah will order Israfil to blow the Swoon-blow. When he dose that, everyone will pass out except he whom Allah wills. When all and everyone lies unconscious, and they will go cold, the angel of death will go to Allah the Overcomer, and plead, 'My Lord. Everyone in the heaven and earth is dead, except he whom You willed.' He will ask, although He knows, 'So who is left?' He will answer, 'Those who are left are: Yourself, the Living who will never die, the carriers of `Arsh, Jibril, Mika'il and myself.' He will say, 'Let Jibril and Mika'il die.' At that the `Arsh will speak out to say, 'Our Lord! Should Jibril and Mika'il die?' He will answer, 'Quiet. I have written it upon everyone below my `Arsh.' So the two will die. Then the angel of death will go to Allah, the Overommer and say, 'My Lord! Jibril and Mika'il are dead.' He will ask, 'Who is left?' He will answer, Those left are Yourself, the Living who will never die, and left are the carriers of `Arsh, and myself.' He will say, 'Let the carriers of My `Arsh die.' So they will die. Then Allah will order the `Arsh to take the Trumpet away from Israfil. Then the angel of death will come to Him and say, 'My Lord, the carriers of Your `Arsh are dead.' Allah will ask, although He knows, "So, who is left?" He will answer, 'Left are Yourself - the Living who will never die; and I am left.' He will say, 'You are a creation from among My creations. I created you for the function that you have witnessed. So, 'Die off.' He will die off. Then none will be left except Allah, the One, the Unique, the Overcomer, who did not give birth to and was not born, He will be the Last, like He was the First, He will fold the heavens and the earth in the manner of folding the scrolls, hold them in his palms, then He will turn them around three times and say, 'I am the King, I am the Overcomer, I am the Overcomer, I am the Overcomer – three times. Then He will speak out in a high note, 'Whose is the Kingdom today?' – three times. No one will answer Him. Then He will say to Himself (40: 16),

{لِلَّهِ الْوَاحِدِ الْقَهَّارِ} [غافر: 16]

"It is for Allah, the Overcomer."

Allah had said (14: 48),

{يَوْمَ تُبَدَّلُ الْأَرْضُ غَيْرَ الْأَرْضِ وَالسَّمَوَاتُ} [إبراهيم: 48]

"The Day the earth will be changed for another earth, the heavens as well."

Then He will spread them, flatten them, and stretch them like the stretching of an `Ukazi skin, so that (20: 107),

{لَا تَرَى فِيهَا عِوَجًا وَلَا أَمْتًا} [طه: 107]

"You will not see therein any depression or elevation."

Then Allah will shake the creation, a good shaking and there they would be, on the altered earth like they were there before – he who was on the face of the earth will be on the face of the earth while he who was below the surface will be below the surface. After that He will send down water on them from the bottom of the `Arsh. Thereafter He will order the heavens to rain down water. It will rain for 40 days, until the water will be 12 yards high over them. Then Allah will order the bodies to grow. They will grow like vegetable plants, until when their bodies have completed to become what they were, Allah will say, 'Let the carriers of the `Arsh come alive.' They will come alive. Thereafter He will order Israfil to take on the Trumpet and put it against his mouth. Then He will order Jibril and Mika'il to come alive. They will come alive. Then Allah will order the spirits to be brought forth. They will be brought out. The spirits of the believers would be shining bright, while the spirits of the unbelievers would be dark. He will take hold of all of them and cast them into the Trumpet. Then He will order Israfil to blow the blow of Resurrection. The spirits will burst forth like they were bees filling the heavens and the earth. Allah will say, 'By my power and glory, let every soul return to its body.' With that the spirits in the earth will enter into the bodies. It will enter through their nostrils flowing through their bodies like poison runs through a bitten man. Then, the Prophet added, the earth will be split for you; and I'll be the first for whom the earth will split. You will come out hastening to your Lord (54: 8),

{مُهْطِعِينَ إِلَى الدَّاعِ يَقُولُ الْكَافِرُونَ هَذَا يَوْمٌ عَسِرٌ} [القمر: 8]

"Necks outstretched toward the Caller, the unbeliever saying, 'This is a hard day.' They will be barefoot, naked, uncircumcised and made to stand, a standing that will last 70 years; neither looked at you nor any judgment made between you. You'll cry until the tears exhaust, then you will shed tears of blood and sweat until you are in sweat up to your nostrils or your earlobes, you saying, 'Who will intercede with our Lord for us to start the judgment between us?' You will say, 'Who can be more deserving than your father Adam? Allah created him with His own Hand, blew spirit into Him, and spoke to him directly?'

They will go to Adam and request him that. But he will refuse and say, 'I am not your man.' So they will go the prophets one after another. Every time they go to a prophet, he refuses. The Prophet added, 'Until they come to me.'

I will go up to the front of the `Arsh and fall into prostration. I will remain in prostration until an angel will come to me and holding me by my shoulder will lift me up. Allah will say, 'O Muhammad!' I will say, 'Yes my Lord.' He will ask, although He knows, 'What's with you?' I will answer, 'My Lord! You promised to allow me to intercede with You on behalf of Your creation; so, do start judging between Your creation.' He will reply, 'I accept your intercession. I shall come to judge between you.'

The Prophet said, "So, I will return to my place and while standing among the people, we will hear a huge consternation putting us into great fear; and lo, the inhabitants of the heaven closest to the earth will come down, twice in numbers than the men and Jinn assembled there. When they come closer to the earth, it will be filled with their Light. As they take their position, it will be asked, 'Is your Lord within you?' They will reply, 'Not yet. He is coming.'

Then will come down from the next heaven angels twice the numbers that came down from the first heaven and twice the earth's men and Jinn. When they come closer to the earth, it will be filled with their Light. As they take their position, it will be asked, 'Is your Lord within you?' They will reply, 'Not yet. He is coming.'

Then will come down, twice as before (from the rest of the heavens, one after another) followed by Allah the great Subduer, the Mighty, the Honored in the shades of the clouds; angels bearing His `Arsh; they will be eight angels - at the moment its bearers are four. Their feet will be at the bottom of the last of the earths. The heaven and earth on their sides, the `Arsh on their shoulders, and there being heavy (echoing) sound in their hymning, as they say,

سبحان ذي العرش والجبروت، سبحان ذي الملك والملكوت، سبحان الحي الذي لا يموت، سبحان الذي يميت الخلائق ولا يموت، سُبُّوح قدوس قدوس قدوس، سبحان ربنا الأعلى، رب الملائكة والروح، سبحان ربنا الأعلى، الذي يميت الخلائق ولا يموت،

'Glory to the Owner of the `Arsh, and of the Predominant, Glory to the Sovereign, the Monarch, Glory to the Living who will never die, Glorious, the All-Pure, the All-pure, the All-pure. Glorious is our Lord the All-high, Lord of the angels and the Spirit, Glorious is our Lord the All-high, He who deals death to the creations, and does not die.

Thereafter Allah will place His Kursiyy on His earth where He will, and speak out saying, 'O Men and Jinn, I've remained silent from the day I created you until this day; listening to your words, and watching your deeds. Now you pay attention to me. It is your deeds and your scriptures that will be read upon you. So, whoever finds good, let him thank Allah, but whosoever finds other than that may blame none but himself.'

Following that Allah will order Hell to be brought forth. (When it arrives) a shining neck will emerge from it. It will say (36; 60-64),

{أَلَمْ أَعْهَدْ إِلَيْكُمْ يَا بَنِي آَدَمَ أَنْ لَا تَعْبُدُوا الشَّيْطَانَ إِنَّهُ لَكُمْ عَدُوٌّ مُبِينٌ (60) وَأَنِ اعْبُدُونِي هَذَا صِرَاطٌ مُسْتَقِيمٌ (61) وَلَقَدْ أَضَلَّ مِنْكُمْ جِبِلًّا كَثِيرًا أَفَلَمْ تَكُونُوا تَعْقِلُونَ (62) هَذِهِ جَهَنَّمُ الَّتِي كُنْتُمْ تُوعَدُونَ (63) اصْلَوْهَا الْيَوْمَ بِمَا كُنْتُمْ تَكْفُرُونَ (64) } [يس: 60 - 65]

Had I not enjoined upon you, O children of Adam, that you should not worship Shaytan, (that) surely he is your open enemy? And that you worship Me (alone)? This is the straight path. He did lead astray a great multitude of you (in the past). Were you not able to think? This is the Jahannum (then), that you were promised. Roast therein today, for that you were rejecting.’

Allah will divide and separate the people, and the nations will go down on their knees (45: 28):

{وَتَرَى كُلَّ أُمَّةٍ جَاثِيَةً كُلُّ أُمَّةٍ تُدْعَى إِلَى كِتَابِهَا الْيَوْمَ تُجْزَوْنَ مَا كُنْتُمْ تَعْمَلُونَ} [الجاثية: 28]

You will see every nation on its knees. Every nation will be called forth for its account. Today you shall be rewarded for what you were doing.

Allah will begin to judge ignoring men and Jinn and starting with the animals – until He would have rendered justice between a horned and un-horned goat (as to why the earlier horned the latter) – until none will remain with any grudge for another. When that's achieved, He will say, 'Be dust.' It is then that unbeliever will say (78: 40):

{يَا لَيْتَنِي كُنْتُ تُرَابًا} [النبأ: 40]

'Oh my, only if I was dust.'

Then it is that Allah will begin to judge between the men and jinn, first calling for justice for he who was killed for no just cause, followed by other kinds of wrongs done by one against another." (Shortened)

Ibn Kathir ends the texts by saying that although as a single report it is not of good strength, but as pieces put together, each piece seems to have support in Sahih narrations.

123. Asad remarks: "The term al shahadah (lit., "that which is [or "can be"] witnessed") is used in this and similar contexts as the exact antithesis of al ghayb ("that which is beyond the reach of a created being's perception"). Thus, it circumscribes those aspects of reality which can be sensuously or conceptually grasped by a created being."

124. Ibrahim (asws) is often mentioned in this Holy Book because he was equally acceptable to the Jews, Christians, and pagans. All the three communities prided in him (Razi).

Majid writes under p.I, n. 559: "(In the sense of a leader of mankind, Ibrahim) continues to be till this day, being the accepted head of the three great peoples of the world the Muslims, the Christians and the Jews. ‘He is not, in the first instance, the progenitor of the people, but the founder and leader of a religious movement. Like Mohammad, some 2,000 years later, he stood at the head of a great movement among the Semitic peoples and tribes' (EBr. I, p.60)."

125. Majid comments: "`Terah' of the Bible; variously spelt as Zarah and Therach in the Talmud and Athar by Eeusebius, ‘The chief officer of King Nimrod and a great favorite with his royal master; (Polano, op. cit., p.30). ‘The apocryphal books of the Old Testament such as the Book of Jashir, represent Terah to have been a great soldier and commander of the armies of the King of Babylon.' (Marston, The Bible is True, p. 180)

Asad adds: "In the Bible, the name of Abraham's father is given not as Azar but as Terah (the Tarah or Tarakh of the early Muslim genealogists). However, he seems to have been known by other names (or designations) as well, all of them obscure as to origin and meaning. Thus, in various Talmudic stories he is called Zarah, while Eusebius Pamphili (the ecclesiastical historian who lived towards the end of the third and the beginning of the fourth century of the Christian era) gives his name as Athar. Although neither the Talmud nor Eusebius can be regarded as authorities for the purposes of Qur'an commentary, it is not impossible that the designation Azar (which occurs in the Qur'an only once) is the pre Islamic, Arabicized form of Athar or Zarah."

126. Majid quotes: ‘Idolatry and image worship form a very striking feature of the Babylonian religious system, and already meet us in its advanced stage of development in the earliest cultural period of which material remains have been preserved.' (ERE, VII, p.117) ‘Even Therech, who still remained chief officer to the king, became a worshipper of idols. In his house he had twelve large images of wood and stone, a separate god for each month of the year, and to these he prayed and made obeisance (Polano)."

Among the Arabs, writes Alusi somewhere else, idol worship was introduced by `Amr b. Luhayy.

127. Majid comments: "The Babylonian religion was an admixture of animism, image cult, and nature worship. ‘The religion of Babylonia in the earliest form known to us may be defined as a combination of local cults with animistic conceptions of the power of nature, with which man was either brought into immediate contact, or which affected his aims and his welfare. Each centre had its special patron deity in most cases conceived as masculine who was brought into association with some natural phenomenon. The two powers most commonly chosen were the sun and the moon, and by the side of these we find streams and stones personified as god' (DB. V. p.536)."

128. The textual word is "malakut." Imam Razi says that the spirits of the humans do not miss to see the Light of Allah but because of barriers. What are these barriers? They are everything that one engages himself with apart from Allah. Obviously, the greatest of such barriers are the idols. When Ibrahim removed this barrier by devoting himself entirely to Allah and denying the significance of anything else besides Him, he was able to achieve theophany (Tajalli). Such Divine manifestation, however, adds Razi, was not with the physical eyes, rather, with the inner vision. It was, in fact, this inner vision, that helped Ibrahim to construct the argument that he presented to his people, as recounted in the following verses.

Commenting on the use of the word ‘nuriy,' Razi quotes Imam al Haramayn as commenting: Allah's knowledge is limitless. Indeed, His knowledge of every branch of knowledge has no end. For every substance of His creations can take endless forms. Therefore, the knowledge of His kingdom has no end. Its acquisition, therefore, by any of His creation in one go is out of the question. It has to be obtained in a gradual manner. Accordingly, Allah did not say ‘araynahu,' which would mean ‘We showed him,' (in the past, and implying an instantaneous showing), rather, He said, ‘nuriy,' (comprising present and future tenses) which has the sense of the act in continuance and, hence, gradualism accompanying it.

129. Yaqin is the word in the text. It is that state of certitude of the heart which is obtained when all doubts have been removed with the help of evidences (Razi).

`Abdul Rahman b. `Ayyash reports:

صلى بنا رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم ذات غداةٍ، فقال له قائل: ما رأيتك أسفرَ وجهًا منك الغداة! قال: ومالي، وقد تبدّى لي ربّي في أحسن صورة، فقال: فيم يختصم الملأ الأعلى، يا محمد؟ قلت: أنت أعلم [يا رب] ! فوضع يده بين كتفي فوجدت بردَها بين ثدييّ، فعلمت ما في السماوات والأرض. ثم تلا هذه الآية:"وكذلك نري إبراهيم ملكوت السماوات والأرض وليكون من الموقنين"

"One day the Prophet did his morning Prayer with us. Someone remarked, ‘I have never seen your face as bright as this morning.’ He replied, ‘Why not! My Lord came to me in the best of forms. He said, “Muhammad! What do you think the angels are arguing among themselves about?' I said, ‘You know better.' So He placed His Hands over my shoulders, and I knew all that is in the heavens and the earth.' Then the Prophet recited this verse: "That is how We showed Ibrahim the kingdom of the heavens and the earth so that he might be of those who firmly believe" (Ibn Jarir).

Ibn Kathir reports another version of this report known as Hadith al Manam as found in Ahmad and Tirmidhi (who rates it sahih). It is narrated by Mu`adh ibn Jabal. This version has the words ‘and I felt the coldness of His hands descending down to my breast' added after ‘So He placed His Hands over my shoulders.'

130. The Qur'an has used the word kawkab, which is applicable both to planets as well as stars. We have translated the word as star following the generally understood meaning of the ancients who did not differentiate between stars and planets, calling the former as fixed stars and the latter as moving stars. But the allusion seems to be to a planet, either, as Majid has written, "... Jupiter (Marduk), the chief god," or, "Venus (Ishtar) the chief goddess, of Babylonia." Modern archaeological researches, Majid adds in his Urdu commentary, confirms the opinion of our earliest scholars that of the celestial objects it were Jupiter and Venus that were worshipped in the ancient times (Au.).

131. Majid quotes: ‘Temples to the moon god are found in all the large cities of Babylonia and Assyria. (EBr. XX, p. 703). Ur, the Chaldean capital, ‘was an ancient seat of lunar worship.' (JE. XII, p. 380). ‘The great temple of the Third Dynasty at Ur was dedicated to the Moon Goddess. The temple was the abode of the patron city, and the deity was its appendage: the chief priest as the representative of the deity was the ruler of the city and state' (Gregory, op. cit., p. 13).

132. It is not necessary that the sighting of the star and the moon should have happened on the same night, with the sun sighted on the following morning. Rather, as Alusi has pointed out, the episode could have well run through several nights (Thanwi).

133. "In ancient Babylonia the sun was worshipped from innumerical antiquity. The ideogram of the sun, like that of the moon, in the Babylonian language is always preceded by a determinative which implies divinity ... There was no deity of the pantheon whose worship enjoyed an equally continued popularity from the earliest to the latest time both in Babylonia and Assyria" (FWN. I, pp. 529 530) Majid.

134. Note the words: "I am quit of what ‘you' associate, implying that Ibrahim himself never committed that sin (Majidi).

Mawdudi presents the summary of conclusions which Sir Leonard Wooley arrived at as a result of the researches embodied in his work, Abraham (London, 1935).

"It is estimated that around 2100 B.C., which is now generally accepted by scholars as the time of the advent of Abraham, the population of the city of Ur was ... maybe five hundred thousand. The city was a large industrial and commercial metropolis. Merchandise was brought to Ur from places as far away as Palmer and Nilgiri in one direction, and in the other it had developed trade relations with Anatolia. The state, of which this city was the capital, extended a little beyond the boundaries of modern Iraq in the north, and exceeded its present borders further to the west. The great majority of the population were traders and craftsmen.... Interest was rampant among them and their devotion to money making seemed all absorbing...

"In the inscription of Ur there are references to about five thousand deities. Each city had its own deity. Each city had a chief deity which it considered its chief protector and, therefore, that deity was considered worthy of greater reverence than all the others. The chief deity of Ur was Nannar (the moon god)... , and it is for this reason that the city later became known as Kamarina (Qamar is the Arabic word for moon: Z.I.Ansari). The other major city was Larsa, which replaced Ur as the capital of the kingdom. Its chief deity was Shamash (the sun god). Under these deities there were a myriad of minor deities which had generally been chosen from among the heavenly bodies stars and planets. People considered them responsible for granting their innumerable minor prayers. Idols had been carved in the image of these celestial and terrestrial gods and goddesses and were made objects of ritual worship.

"The idol of Nannar had been placed in a magnificent building on the top of the highest hill. Close to it was the temple of Nin Gal, the wife of Nannar. The temple of Nannar resembled a royal palace. Every night a female worshipper went to its bedroom, adorned as a bride. A great number of women had been consecrated in the name of this deity and their position was virtually that of religious prostitutes. The woman who would sacrifice her virginity for the sake of her ‘god' was held in great esteem. For a woman to give herself to some unrelated person ‘for the sake of god' was considered as a means to salvation. Needless to say, it was generally the priests who made most use of the institution.

"Nannar was not merely a deity, but the biggest landlord, the biggest trader, the biggest industrialist and the most powerful ruler. Many orchards, buildings and huge estates had been consecrated to his temple. In addition to this, cereals, milk, gold, cloth, etc., were brought as offerings to the temple by peasants, landlords and merchants, and there was a large staff in the temple to receive the offerings. Many a factory had been established on behalf of the temple. Large scale trading was also carried out on its behalf. All these activities were conducted by the priests in the name of the deity. Moreover, the country's main court was also located in the temple. The priests functioned as judges and their Judgments were equated with those of God. The authority of the royal family was derived from Nannar. The concept was that Nannar was the true sovereign and that the ruler of the country governed merely on his behalf. Because of this relationship, the king himself was raised to the rank of a deity and was worshipped..."

To the above account, although a bit ingenious, Mawdudi adds his own comments:

"If the conclusions of these archaeological researches are correct, it becomes quite evident that polytheism did not consist merely of a set of religious beliefs and polytheistic rites, it rather provided the foundation on which the entire order of economic, cultural, political and social life rested. Likewise, the monotheistic mission which was undertaken by Abraham was not merely directed against the practice of idol worship. It had far wider implications, so much so that it affected the position of the royal family both as rulers and deities. It also affected the social, economic and political status and interests of the priestly class, the aristocracy in general, and in fact the entire fabric of the social life of the kingdom. To accept the teachings of Abraham meant that the entire edifice of the existing society be pulled down and raised anew on the basis of belief in One God. Hence, as soon as Abraham launched his mission, ordinary people, as well as the privileged classes, ordinary devotees, as well as Nimrod, rose at once to oppose and suppress it."

135. The episode tells us that there is no contradiction between a man entirely devoted to the Hereafter and yet engaging himself in debates and polemics, so long as he does not commit excesses devoting himself entirely to this affair (Thanwi).

Differences in opinion seem to have surfaced early over the nature of the episode enunciated here, whether, it was some loud thinking on the part of Ibrahim trying to figure out who his Lord was, or, was it an inductive method devised to convince the pagans of their folly. Ibn Jarir, following the opinion of Ibn `Abbas, believes that it was some loud thinking. (Rashid Rida is surprised at Ibn Jarir's preference here). But the great majority of commentators have believed, in the words of Yusuf Ali, that "his statements maybe seen as premises of his arguments against Polytheism rather than as stages in his enlightenment." Ibn Kathir also thinks that it was a novel method in polemics and not an inductive mental exercise to arrive at a logical conclusion. (Abu Hayyan was of the same opinion: Sabuni; and so was Zajjaj: Shawkani). Imam Razi presents some twelve arguments to demonstrate that Ibrahim (asws) adopted this method for the sake of argument alone. Of the several possible interpretations, one stated by Razi is that the words, "this is my Lord" were derisive. Another possibility is that when he spoke those words he meant to say, "(So) this (according to your opinion) is my Lord (let us see whether it proves to be so)." (It is in the same vein as Allah's words on the Day of Judgment (16: 27): "Where are My partners [today]?": Majid from Bahar). Ibrahim had to take this indirect route because his people were in no mood to listen to any direct criticism. Alusi and Qurtubi are also of the same opinion and agree with the notion generally prevalent among the scholars that the Prophets have never been devotees to false gods at anytime in their lives. What strengthens the opinion that it was only a method contrived to send home the point that natural objects could not be gods, is that when his people began to dispute with him, after he had demonstrated their fallacy, Ibrahim asked them, ‘Do you dispute with me concerning Allah, while He has guided me?' This means arguments about the nature of the Deity had already taken place earlier to the episode. Further, the section ends with, "That is Our Argument that We bestowed upon Ibrahim against his people. We raise in ranks whom We will. Verily, your Lord is All wise, All knowing." The conclusion is, Ibrahim was already a Messenger when he presented the argument in a most telling manner. He was not probing into the dark and reflecting over a few celestial objects to figure out if they could be gods (Au.).

136. This was Ibrahim's response to their threats that if he did not stop disparaging their deities, he would be chastised by those very deities (Ibn Jarir).

137. The word in the text is zulm. It was natural that it should alarm the Companions who were always very concerned about the state of their hearts. They went to the Prophet and asked (as in Bukhari’s following report):

عَنْ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُ قَالَ لَمَّا نَزَلَتْ هَذِهِ الْآيَةُ {الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَلَمْ يَلْبِسُوا إِيمَانَهُمْ بِظُلْمٍ} شَقَّ ذَلِكَ عَلَى أَصْحَابِ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ وَقَالُوا أَيُّنَا لَمْ يَظْلِمْ نَفْسَهُ فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ لَيْسَ كَمَا تَظُنُّونَ إِنَّمَا هُوَ كَمَا قَالَ لُقْمَانُ لِابْنِهِ {يَا بُنَيَّ لَا تُشْرِكْ بِاللَّهِ إِنَّ الشِّرْكَ لَظُلْمٌ عَظِيمٌ{

"Which of us does not transgress?" He replied: "It is the sin of association (shirk) that is alluded to. Have you not read Allah's words as spoken by Luqman to his son, ‘Surely, association (shirk) is a great transgression?'" (Ibn Jarir). Slightly differently worded, the hadith is in Bukhari also (Ibn Kathir).

138. Jarir b. `Abdullah reports in a hadith preserved by Ahmad:

خَرَجْنَا مَعَ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ فَلَمَّا بَرَزْنَا مِنْ الْمَدِينَةِ إِذَا رَاكِبٌ يُوضِعُ نَحْوَنَا فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ كَأَنَّ هَذَا الرَّاكِبَ إِيَّاكُمْ يُرِيدُ قَالَ فَانْتَهَى الرَّجُلُ إِلَيْنَا فَسَلَّمَ فَرَدَدْنَا عَلَيْهِ فَقَالَ لَهُ النَّبِيُّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ مِنْ أَيْنَ أَقْبَلْتَ قَالَ مِنْ أَهْلِي وَوَلَدِي وَعَشِيرَتِي قَالَ فَأَيْنَ تُرِيدُ قَالَ أُرِيدُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ قَالَ فَقَدْ أَصَبْتَهُ قَالَ يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ عَلِّمْنِي مَا الْإِيمَانُ قَالَ تَشْهَدُ أَنْ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَأَنَّ مُحَمَّدًا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ وَتُقِيمُ الصَّلَاةَ وَتُؤْتِي الزَّكَاةَ وَتَصُومُ رَمَضَانَ وَتَحُجُّ الْبَيْتَ قَالَ قَدْ أَقْرَرْتُ قَالَ ثُمَّ إِنَّ بَعِيرَهُ دَخَلَتْ يَدُهُ فِي شَبَكَةِ جُرْذَانٍ فَهَوَى بَعِيرُهُ وَهَوَى الرَّجُلُ فَوَقَعَ عَلَى هَامَتِهِ فَمَاتَ فَقَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ عَلَيَّ بِالرَّجُلِ قَالَ فَوَثَبَ إِلَيْهِ عَمَّارُ بْنُ يَاسِرٍ وَحُذَيْفَةُ فَأَقْعَدَاهُ فَقَالَا يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ قُبِضَ الرَّجُلُ قَالَ فَأَعْرَضَ عَنْهُمَا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ ثُمَّ قَالَ لَهُمَا رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ أَمَا رَأَيْتُمَا إِعْرَاضِي عَنْ الرَّجُلَيْنِ فَإِنِّي رَأَيْتُ مَلَكَيْنِ يَدُسَّانِ فِي فِيهِ مِنْ ثِمَارِ الْجَنَّةِ فَعَلِمْتُ أَنَّهُ مَاتَ جَائِعًا ثُمَّ قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ هَذَا وَاللَّهِ مِنْ الَّذِينَ قَالَ اللَّهُ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ {الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَلَمْ يَلْبِسُوا إِيمَانَهُمْ بِظُلْمٍ أُولَئِكَ لَهُمْ الْأَمْنُ{

"We left Madinah with the Prophet heading for a campaign. We were not far out of town when we observed someone approaching us. The Prophet said: ‘The rider seems to be intending us.' When the man came nearer he greeted us. The Prophet asked him: ‘Where are you coming from?' He replied, ‘I am coming from my family, children and the tribe.' The Prophet asked him, ‘Where are you going?' He replied, ‘I am looking for the Prophet.' The Prophet said, ‘You have found him.' He asked, ‘Messenger of Allah. What is faith?' The Prophet replied, ‘It is to believe that there is no deity save Allah, that Muhammad is His Messenger, to establish the Prayer, pay the zakah, fast during Ramadan and make pilgrimage to the House.' He said, ‘I accept that.' After that it should happen that his camel stepped into a desert rodent hole. In its struggle the beast threw him down and then itself fell upon him. The Prophet ordered, ‘Get the man out.' `Ammar b. Yasir and Hudhayfah b. al Yaman pulled the man out (from under the camel). They cried out, ‘He is dead, Messenger of Allah.' The Prophet turned away. After a pause he said, ‘Did you notice that I turned away? That was because I saw angels feeding him with fruits of Paradise. I guessed he died hungry. He is one of those about whom Allah said, "Those who believed and then did not adulterate their faith with transgression, such, for them is peace" Ibn Kathir.