Verse:1 Commentary The Name of the Surah

This Surah has been called Al-Nahl, that is, the honey bee because it mentions it as a unique Divine marvel. Another name for this Surah is Surah Al-Ni` am. (Qurtubi) The word Ni'am is the plural of Ni'mah (blessing) because the great blessings of Allah Ta' ala have been particularly mentioned in this Surah.

Commentary

The Surah begins without any particular introduction with a direct, stern and awesome note of warning. The reason behind it was the saying of the polytheists that Muhammad (al-Mustafa صلى الله عليه وسلم) keeps warning them of the day of Qiyamah and the punishment of Allah and telling them that Allah Ta' ala has promised victory for him and punishment for his opponents. All this, they challenged, they do not see coming upon them. In reply, it was said: أَتَىٰ أَمْرُ‌ اللَّـهِ فَلَا تَسْتَعْجِلُوهُ (The command of Allah is bound to come. So, do not ask for it to come sooner - 1).

Here, the expression: أَمْرُ‌ اللَّـهِ (amrullah : the command of Allah) means the promise Allah has made to His Rasul - that his enemies will be made to surrender, and that Muslims will be blessed with victory and honour. In this verse, it is in a distinctly awesome tone that Allah Ta' ala has said: أَتَىٰ أَمْرُ‌ اللَّـهِ (ata amrullah: translated here as 'the command of Allah is bound to come' ). Literally (the nuance of the original expression remaining untranslatable), the sense is that issued is the command of Allah, that is, it is bound to come which you will soon see.

Some commentators say that 'the command of Allah' here means the day of Qiyamah. The sense of its being 'bound to come' is that it is going to come soon. And if we were to look at it in the frame of the life of the entire world itself, its being close, or its actual coming does not remain much distant. (Al-Bahr Al-Muhit)

As for the second sentence in the first verse where it is said that Allah Ta' ala is free of Shirk (the ascribing of partners to Him), it means that the act of these people who are belying the promise of Allah Ta' ala is itself an act of Kufr (infidelity) and Shirk. Allah Ta' ala is absolutely free from it. (Al-Bahr Al-Muhit)

The essential message of the first verse is to call people to believe in the Oneness of Allah (Tauhid) through a stern warning. The second verse carries an affirmation of Tauhid through a reported proof, the substance of which is that every Rasul or messenger of Allah, from Sayyidna Adam (علیہ السلام) to the Last of the Prophets صلى الله عليه وسلم ، who has come in different parts of the world at different times, has but preached this belief in the Oneness of Allah - though, none of them knew anything about the life and work of each other because of obvious causes. Just imagine if at least one hundred and twenty thousand blessed wise men who are born in different ages, countries and regions, and believe in and adhere to one single principle, then, one is naturally compelled to accept that their saying so cannot be false. In order to have faith, this single proof is sufficient.

The word: رُوح (ruh: spirit) as used in this verse, according to Sayyidna ibn ` Abbas ؓ ، means Wahy (revelation); and according to some commentators, it means Hidayah (guidance). (Al-Bahr Al-Muhit) After having presented the reported proof of Tauhid in the second verse, the same belief has been proved rationally by turning the focus on the blessings of Allah Ta` ala as it follows next in verses 3-8. Verse:2 Commentary - - - Verse:3 Commentary Lexical Explanation

The word: خَصِیم (khasim) in verse 4 has been derived from: خُصُومۃ (khusumah) and means a quarrelsome person. Al-An' am is the plural of na'am, which are cattles such as the camel, goat and cow. (A1-Mufradat of Raghib al-Isfahan)

The word: دِفْءٌ (difun) in verse 5 denotes what provides warmth, that is, wool which is used to make warm clothings. The word: تُرِیحُون (turihun) in verse 6 is a derivation from rawah, and: تَسْرَ‌حُونَ (tasrahun) in the same verse, from saralh. When the cattle are sent to graze, it is called sarah, and when they return home, it is called rawah. The expression: بِشِقِّ الْأَنفُسِ -(shiqqil-anfus) in verse 7 means personal hardship. Verse:4 Commentary Commentary

The verses affirm the Oneness of Allah through the great signs of the creation of the universe. The first such creation pointed to is the creation of the heavens and the earth. Then comes the creation of human beings whom Allah Ta' ala has made the ones who are served by the whole universe. How did man originate? The text says that he was created from an insignificant drop. at happened then was: فَإِذَا هُوَ خَصِيمٌ مُّبِينٌ (and soon he turned into a quarrelsome person expressing himself openly). In other words, when the elementally weak man was endowed with strength and speech, he turned into a critic of the Creator Himself disputing His Being and Attributes publicly. Verse:5 Commentary After human beings, mentioned there was the creation of things which were made specially for their benefit. Since the first addressees of the Qur'an were Arabs and their economic life depended on domestic cattle like camels, cows and goats, therefore, these were taken up first: وَالْأَنْعَامَ خَلَقَهَا (As for the cattle, He created them - 5).

Then, out of the benefits received by human beings from the cattle, two were particularly mentioned. (1) لَكُمْ فِيهَا دِفْءٌ (having warmth for you), that is, they use wool from them to make clothings which keep them warm during winters.

(2) The second benefit was mentioned in: وَمِنْهَا تَأْكُلُونَ (and of them you eat), that is, they can slaughter these animals and eat from their meat; and, when alive, they procure milk from them which is fine food indeed. Included here are butter, yogurt, butter-oil and everything else which fall under dairy products.

For the rest of benefits derived from them, only one word: مَنَافِعُ (manafi`: other benefits) was considered sufficient. It signifies that there are countless benefits tied to the meat, skin, bone and hair of animals. It is within the framework of this brevity, even ambiguity, that a hint has been given towards all modern innovations in the processing and use of food, dress, medicine and domestic articles, innovations which have been made to date, or will be made right through the Last Day.

After that, identified there is yet another benefit of these cattle - though, in terms of the contemporary Arab taste of the time - when it was said that these cattle make things look good for them particularly when they return home from their grazing grounds in the evening, or when they are sent out to graze in the mornings. The reason is that these cattle at that time become silent spokesmen of the strength and pride of their owners.

Finally, mention has been made of another important benefit which comes from these animals. They carry heavy loads to far out places, places which could not be reached 'without putting yourselves into hardship.' Out of the animals, camels and oxen have been particularly har-nessed into this service of man at a large scale. Even during our day of trains, trucks and cargo planes, human beings cannot universally claim to have become free of their need. There are places in the world where none of our modern means of transportation can work. Consequently, one is compelled to borrow their services. Verse:6 Commentary - - - Verse:7 Commentary - - - Verse:8 Commentary Since mention was made of 'an am' that is, camels and oxen, it was appropriate that mention be made of quadrupeds which have been created exclusively for purposes of draft and ride. One does not benefit by their milk or meat because, according to religious law, they are the cause of moral diseases, hence prohibited. It was said: وَالْخَيْلَ وَالْبِغَالَ وَالْحَمِيرَ‌ لِتَرْ‌كَبُوهَا وَزِينَةً 'And (He created) horses, mules and donkeys so that you may ride on them (which includes loading as a corollary) and (they were also created so that) they may look good - 8.' The word: زِینَۃُ (zinah) used here means the same favourable quality of life which, as commonly recognized, is the pleasing possession of these animals by their owners.

Railroads, Automobiles and Aero planes in the Qur'an!

In the last sentence of verse 8, after having mentioned three animals particularly used for riding, that is, horses, mules and donkeys, what was said about other kinds of rides appears in the future tense as follows:

وَ یَخلُقُ مَا لَا تَعلَمُون

And He creates [ or, will create ] what you do not know (yet).

Thus, under this very statement, included there are all newly invented transport facilities which did not exist in the past, nor was there any precise idea of what they shall be. For instance, there are railroads, auto-mobiles and aero planes. Apart from these means of transport which have been invented to date, included here are all other ways and means which will be invented and used in the future. The reason is that the creation of all these things is really nothing but the act of the Absolute Creator. In it, the role of science, whether classical or modern, is no more than utilizing the God-given intelligence and understanding when handling metallic or other components also created by the same Power, go through experimentations, find appropriate combinations and construct working components. Then, it can go and generate energy from the Divinely endowed treasures of air, water, heat etc. No science, classical or modern, even both combined, can create iron and copper, or lighter metals, nor can it create wood, nor air, nor water. None of these come under its power or control. Science does no more than learn the art of using what has been created by Divine power. All inventions of the world are simply the detail of this usage. Therefore, with a little deliberation, one is left with no choice but to accept and declare that all our new inventions (for which we seem to be so fond of congratulating our own selves! ) are invariably the creation of the Absolute Creator.

In view of its importance, let us keep in mind that the text has used the past tense: خَلَقَ (khalaqa : He created) while mentioning the creation of things earlier. However, after the mention of animals commonly used for riding, the tense used: یَخلُقُ (yakhluqu : He will create, or creates) is that of future. This change clearly indicates that the word so used is for means of transport and other things which have not yet come into existence. But, Allah Ta' ala has it in His Knowledge as to what modes of travel and other things are to be created in times to come. All this was said in this small sentence here.

It was also possible that Allah Ta` ala would have mentioned all new inventions to come into being in the future by name. But, the mention of words signifying railroads, automobiles and aero planes would have brought no benefit except that it would have left people bewildered in mental confusion - because the very conceptualization of such things at that time was not easy, nor were such words in use for such things any-where so that people could make some sense out of them.

My respected father, Hadrat Maulana Muhammad Yasin (رح) said:, Our teacher, Hadrat Maulana Muhammad Ya` qub Nanautawi (رح) ، the great teacher of teachers, used to say: 'The rail (railway, rail-road) has been mentioned in the Holy Qur' an .' For proof, he quoted this verse. Cars, though invented, were not common in those days, while the aero planes were not invented yet. Therefore, he found it sufficient to mention the 'rail.'

Rulings:

1. The Qur' an first mentioned al-an am, that is, the camel, cow and goat. Then, out of their benefits, one such benefit was declared to be the eating of their meat. Then, as separate from it, it was said: وَالْخَيْلَ وَالْبِغَالَ وَالْحَمِيرَ‌ (and horses, mules and donkeys). When pointing out to their benefits, definite mention was made of their use for riding, and that they may look good by having them. But, the eating of their meat has not been mentioned here. This provides the proof that the meat from horse, mule and donkey is not Halal. As for the meat from mule and donkey is concerned, the majority of Fuqaha (Muslim jurists) agree upon its meat being Haram - and in a Hadith on the subject, its unlawfulness has been clearly stated. But, in the case of horse meat, there are two conflicting narrations of Hadith. One of them puts it as Halal, while the other, as Haram. Therefore, sayings of the Fuqaha of the Muslim community be-came divided on this religious issue. Some declared it to be Halal while others called it Haram. It was because of these conflicting arguments that Imam Abu Hanifah (رح) ، did not call horse meat حَرَام Haram like the meat of a donkey or mule, but he did call it Makruh (reprehensible). (Ahkam al-Qur' an by Al-Jassas).

2. From verse 6 and 8, it appears that beauty and embellishment are allowed - though, pride and arrogance are Haram (prohibited). The difference is that the outcome of beauty and embellishment is that it makes one happy with himself, or that it shows the blessing of Allah openly. When this happens, neither does one nurse the idea in his heart that he is deserving of this blessing, nor does he take others to be low and contemptible. Instead, such a person keeps the fact, that all good things of life given to him are but the gift and blessing of Allah Ta' ala, foremost in his mind. Contrary to this is pride and arrogance under which one takes himself to be deserving of this blessing while taking others to be low. That is Haram (forbidden). (Bayan a1-Qur'an) Verse:9 Commentary Commentary

Presented in the previous verses was a description of the great blessings of Allah Ta` ala as rational proof of His Oneness. This description of Divine blessings continues later on as well.

In between these two, the present verse (9) has been introduced parenthetically for the purpose of warning that Allah Ta' ala, pursuant to His standing promise, has taken it upon Himself that He makes the straight path which takes its follower to Allah Ta' ala clear and explicit. Therefore, the objective of the presentation of Divine blessings is to demonstrate proofs of the Being and Oneness of Allah Ta` ala.

But, counter to this, people have preferred to go by other crooked ways. It is unfortunate that, despite having clear signs and open proofs, they do not benefit by them. Instead, go on straying endlessly.

After that it was said that Allah Ta' ala, if He had so willed, would have made all of them to (compulsively) be on the right path. Had He done so, it was within His power. But, wisdom and expedient considerations required that there be no compulsion. Let the two paths be before everyone. Whoever elects to take whichever path should be free to take it. Everyone goes his or her way. The Straight Path (al-Sirat al-Mustaqim) will take people to Allah Ta' ala and Jannah (Paradise). As for other crooked ways, they will take people to Jahannam (Hell). Human beings have been given the power to choose whichever path they wish to take.