Tafsir Maariful Quran
Quran Translation and Commentary by Maulana Mufti Mohammad Shafi. Translation by Prof. Muhammad Hasan Askari & Prof. Muhammad Shamim. Revised by Justice Mufti Muhammad Taqi UsmaniQuran Translation
Word for Word by
Dr. Shehnaz Shaikh
& Kausar Khatri
1. Al-Fatihah
2. Al-Baqarah
3. Al-Imran
4. Al-Nisa
5. Al-Maidah
6. Al-Anam
7. Al-Araf
8. Al-Anfal
9. Al-Taubah
10. Yunus
11. Hud
12. Yusuf
13. Al-Rad
14. Ibrahim
15. Al-Hijr
16. Al-Nahl
17. Bani Israil
18. Al-Kahf
19. Maryam
20. Ta-Ha
21. Al-Anbiya
22. Al-Hajj
23. Al-Muminun
24. An-Nur
25. Al-Furqan
26. Ash-Shuara
27. An-Naml
28. Al-Qasas
29. Al-Ankabut
30. Ar-Rum
31. Luqman
32. As-Sajdah
33. Al-Ahzab
34. Saba
35. Fatir
36. Yasin
37. As-Saffat
38. Saad
39. Az-Zumar
40. Al-Mumin
41. Ha-Meem-As-Sajdah
42. AShura
43. Az-Zukhruf
44. Ad-Dukhan
45. Al-Jathiyah
46. Al-Ahqaf
47. Muhammad
48. Al-Fath
49. Al-Hujurat
50. Al-Qaf
51. Adh-Dhariyat
52. At-Tur
53. An-Najm
54. Al-Qamar
55. Al-Rahman
56. Al-Waqiah
57. Al-Hadid
58. Al-Mujadalah
59. Al-Hashr
60. Al-Mumtahinah
61. As-Saff
62. Al-Jumuah
63. Al-Munafiqun
64. Al-Taghabun
65. At-Talaq
66. At-Tahrim
67. Al-Mulk
68. Al-Qalam
69. Al-Haqqah
70. Al-Maarij
71. Nuh
72. Al-Jinn
73. Al-Muzzammil
74. Al-Muddhththir
75. Al-Qiyamah
76. Ad-Dahr
77. Al-Mursalat
78. An-Naba
79. An-Naziat
80. Abas
81. At-Takwir
82. Al-Infitar
83. At-Tatfif
84. Al-Inshiqaq
85. Al-Buruj
86. At-Tariq
87. Al-Ala
88. Al-Ghashiyah
89. Al-Fajr
90. Al-Balad
91. Ash-Shams
92. Al-Lail
93. Ad-Duha
94. Al-Inshirah
95. At-Tin
96. Al-Alaq
97. Al-Qadr
98. Al-Bayyinah
99. Az-Zilzal
100. Al-Adiyat
101. Al-Qariah
102. At-Takathur
103. Al-Asr
104. Al-Humazah
105. Al-Fil
106. Al-Quraish
107. Al-Maun
108. Al-Kauthar
109. Al-Kafirun
110. An-Nasr
111. Al-Lahab
112. Al-Ikhlas
113. Al-Falaq
114. An-Nas
فَلَاۤ But nay اُقْسِمُ I swear بِمَوٰقِعِ by setting النُّجُوْمِۙ (of) the stars وَ اِنَّهٗ And indeed it لَقَسَمٌ (is) surely an oath لَّوْ if تَعْلَمُوْنَ you know عَظِیْمٌۙ great 56. Al-Waqi'ah Page 537 اِنَّهٗ Indeed it لَقُرْاٰنٌ (is) surely a Quran كَرِیْمٌۙ noble فِیْ In كِتٰبٍ a Book مَّكْنُوْنٍۙ well-guarded لَّا None یَمَسُّهٗۤ touch it اِلَّا except الْمُطَهَّرُوْنَؕ the purified تَنْزِیْلٌ A Revelation مِّنْ from رَّبِّ (the) Lord الْعٰلَمِیْنَ (of) the worlds اَفَبِهٰذَا Then is it to this الْحَدِیْثِ statement اَنْتُمْ that you مُّدْهِنُوْنَۙ (are) indifferent وَ تَجْعَلُوْنَ And you make رِزْقَكُمْ your provision اَنَّكُمْ that you تُكَذِّبُوْنَ deny فَلَوْ لَاۤ Then why not اِذَا when بَلَغَتِ it reaches الْحُلْقُوْمَۙ the throat وَ اَنْتُمْ And you حِیْنَىِٕذٍ (at) that time تَنْظُرُوْنَۙ look on وَ نَحْنُ And We اَقْرَبُ (are) nearer اِلَیْهِ to him مِنْكُمْ than you وَ لٰكِنْ but لَّا you (do) not see تُبْصِرُوْنَ you (do) not see فَلَوْ لَاۤ Then why not اِنْ if كُنْتُمْ you are غَیْرَ not مَدِیْنِیْنَۙ to be recompensed تَرْجِعُوْنَهَاۤ Bring it back اِنْ if كُنْتُمْ you are صٰدِقِیْنَ truthful فَاَمَّاۤ Then اِنْ if كَانَ he was مِنَ of الْمُقَرَّبِیْنَۙ those brought near فَرَوْحٌ Then rest وَّ رَیْحَانٌ ۙ۬ and bounty وَّ جَنَّتُ and a Garden نَعِیْمٍ (of) Pleasure وَ اَمَّاۤ And اِنْ if كَانَ he was مِنْ of اَصْحٰبِ (the) companions الْیَمِیْنِۙ (of) the right فَسَلٰمٌ Then peace لَّكَ for you مِنْ [from] اَصْحٰبِ (the) companions الْیَمِیْنِؕ (of) the right وَ اَمَّاۤ But اِنْ if كَانَ he was مِنَ of الْمُكَذِّبِیْنَ the deniers الضَّآلِّیْنَۙ the astray فَنُزُلٌ Then hospitality مِّنْ of حَمِیْمٍۙ (the) scalding water وَّ تَصْلِیَةُ And burning جَحِیْمٍ (in) Hellfire اِنَّ Indeed هٰذَا this لَهُوَ surely it حَقُّ (is the) truth الْیَقِیْنِۚ certain فَسَبِّحْ So glorify بِاسْمِ (the) name رَبِّكَ (of) your Lord الْعَظِیْمِ۠ the Most Great
(56:75) So, I swear by the setting places of the stars
(56:76) and indeed it is a great oath, if you are to appreciate
(56:77) it is surely the Noble Qur’ān
(56:78) (recorded already) in a protected book (i.e. the Preserved Tablet)
(56:79) that is not touched except by the purified ones (the angels)
(56:80) a revelation from the Lord of the worlds
(56:81) Is it this discourse that you take lightly
(56:82) and take your denial as your livelihood
(56:83) So why (do you) not (intervene) when the soul (of a dying person) reaches the throat
(56:84) and you are watching
(56:85) And We are closer to him than you, but you do not perceive
(56:86) So, if you are not going to be recompensed (in the Hereafter for your deeds), then why do you not
(56:87) bring the soul back, if you are truthful
(56:88) So, in case he (the dying person) is from among those blessed with nearness
(56:89) then (for him) there is comfort and fragrance and garden of bliss
(56:90) And in case he is from among the People of the Right
(56:91) then, (it will be said to him,) “Peace is for you, as you are one of the People of the Right.”
(56:92) But if he is one of the deniers, the astray
(56:93) then (for him) there is entertainment from boiling water
(56:94) and burning in the Hell
(56:95) Indeed this is certainty in its true sense
(56:96) So, proclaim purity of the name of your Lord, the Magnificent
Preceding verses put forward rational arguments, in support of life after death, by inviting attention to Allah's infinite power. The current verses are meant to prove this fact by giving an authoritative reference, that is, the Qur'an.
Allah swears to the Greatness of the Qur' an
فَلَا أُقْسِمُ بِمَوَاقِعِ النُّجُومِ (So, I swear by the setting places of the stars...56:75) The words لَا أُقْسِمُ 'I swear' are prefixed in the text by the particle لَا la [ no ] which is not translated in the text, because it is idiomatically prefixed to 'oath', as for example لَا وَاللہ la wallah [ No, by Allah ]. In pre-Islamic Arabic, we come across the idiomatic oath لَا وَ اَبَیکَ la wa-abik [ No, by your father ]. Some lexicologists say that the particle la is added only as an idiomatic expression [ zaidah ] which carries no sense, and others say that when the refutation of an addressee's hypothesis is intended, y la is used to signify that the assumption of the addressee is not correct, but the right thing is that which follows.
The word مَوَاقِعِ mawaqi` is the plural of مَوقع mawq' and refers to the points where or times when the stars set. Here, like in Surah -Najm وَالنَّجْمِ إِذَا هَوَىٰ "By the star when it goes down to set, [ 1] ", the oath of stars is qualified by their setting-time. The wisdom underlying this is that when the stars set, their function seems to have been cut off from the horizon, and we witness effects of their vanishing. This is the proof of their perishability and dependence on Divine power.
The second issue that requires consideration in this verse is what is meant by the phrase 'the purified ones'. A large group of the Companions, their followers and leading authorities on Qur'anic commentary think that the referent of 'the pure ones' are the angels who are purified of the dross and adulteration of sins, and who are innocent. This is the view of Sayyidna Anas ؓ ، Said Ibn Jubair ؓ and of Sayyidna Ibn ` Abbas ؓ . Imam Malik رحمۃ اللہ علیہ has also adopted this view.
Some of the commentators think that Qur'an refers to the copy of the Holy Book that is in our hands, and the referent of the word 'mutahharun' ('purified ones) are people free from minor impurity and major impurity. Minor impurity means to be without wudu' and minor impurity can be cleansed by making wudu' or tayammum [ cleaning with dust ]. Major impurity refers to the state of impurity which is caused by sexual intercourse, lustful discharge of semen during sleep, and menstrual and postpartum discharges. Ghusl (having bath) is the only means of achieving purity from this state. This interpretation is placed on the text by ` Ata', Taus, Salim and Muhammad Baqir رحمۃ اللہ علیہم . In this case, although verse "that is not touched except by the purified ones...56:79) is a declarative sentence, it is in fact used in the sense of prohibiting human beings to touch the Qur'an without being free from the minor and major impurities: The person who wishes to touch the Qur'an needs to be purified of the visible as well as the invisible impurities by taking wudu', tayammum or ghusl, as required. Qurtubi and Mazhari prefer this interpretation.
In the incident of Sayyidna ` Umar's ؓ embracing Islam, we come across the part of the story where he asked his sister to give him the pages of the Qur'an, she recited verse [ 79] of this Surah, refused to give him the pages and said 'only the pure ones can touch it'. As a result, he was forced to take a bath, and then recite the contents of the pages. This incident also lends support to the last interpretation. The versions of the Tradition that prohibit the impure people from touching the Qur'an are put forward by some authorities too are in favour of the last interpretation.
However, since Sayyidna Ibn ` Abbas, Areas ؓ and others have a different view about the interpretation of this verse, as mentioned above, many scholars did not base the prohibition of touching the Qur'an without ablution on verse [ 79]. Rather, the prohibition is established by the following Traditions:
Imam Malik (رح) cites, as evidence, the Holy Prophet's صلى الله عليه وسلم ` letter in his Muwatta' which he wrote to 'Amr Ibn Hazm. It contains the following statement: لَا یَمَسُّ القُرآنَ اِلَّا طَاھِرُ "Only a clean one may touch the Qur'an". Ruh-ul-Ma' ani gives the following references: Musnad of ` Abdurrazzaq, Ibn Abi Dawud and Ibn-ul-Mundhir, Tabarani and Ibn Marduyah record a Tradition on the authority of ` Abdullah Ibn ` Umar ؓ that the Messenger of Allah صلى الله عليه وسلم said: لَا یَمَسُّ القُرآنَ اِلَّا طَاھِرُ (Only a clean one may touch the Qur'an.)
Some Rulings about touching the Holy Qur' an
(1) On the basis of the foregoing Prophetic Ahadith, the overwhelming majority of the 'Ummah and the four major schools concur that 'purity' is a condition for the permissibility of touching the Holy Qur'an and it is not allowed to touch it in a state of impurity. It means that before touching the Holy Qur'an, one must make sure that no najasah (i.e. things declared by Shari'ah as filth) is attached to one's hand, and that he or she is in the state of wudu' and is not in the state of Janabah (the state in which it is obligatory to take bath.), The divergence of interpretation referred to earlier is only in connection with whether or not verse [ 79] can be the basis of such a prohibition. Some jurists think that the verse as well as the relevant Traditions bear the same sense, hence they use them as supportive of each other in evidence of their ruling. Others, on account of divergence of interpretation among the Companions, exercised precaution in using the Qur'anic text as evidence in support of their ruling. But because of the Traditions, they ruled that touching the Qur'an without ablutions is impermissible. In sum, there are no differences in their rulings. The differences are only in supportive evidence of these rulings.
(2) If the Qur'an is in a cover which is sewn or permanently attached to it in some way, it is not permitted - according to the four major schools - for an unclean person to touch it without ablutions. If however the Qur'an is covered in something that is not permanently attached to it, an unclean person may, according to Imam Abu Hanifah (رح) ، touch it without ablutions. However, according to Imams Malik and Shafi` i, an unclean person is not permitted to touch it before taking ablutions. [ Mazhari ]
(3) If a person is wearing a garment, it is not lawful for him to touch the Qur'an with his sleeves or skirt if he is unclean. However, he may touch it with a handkerchief or-a sheet. [ Mazhari ]
(4) Scholars have ruled it which is proved by this very verse with grater force that a person in the state of janabah (sexual defilement) and a woman in the state of menstruation or postpartum bleeding cannot recite it, even from memory until bath has been taken, because if it is obligatory to honour the written letters of the Holy Qur'an by touching them only in the state of purity, its spoken words deserve the same honour with greater importance. The requirement of this honour should have been that even in the state of minor impurity a person should not be allowed to recite the Holy Qur'an. But Sayyidna Ibn ` Abbas and ` Ali ؓ report that the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم recited the Qur'an without wudu'. On this basis, the jurists have ruled that it is permissible to recite it without wudu'. (But in the case of major impurity the rule will remain intact). [ Mazhari ]
لَوْلَا إِذَا بَلَغَتِ الْحُلْقُومَ ﴿83﴾ وَأَنتُمْ حِينَئِذٍ تَنظُرُونَ ﴿84﴾ وَنَحْنُ أَقْرَبُ إِلَيْهِ مِنكُمْ وَلَـٰكِن لَّا تُبْصِرُونَ ﴿85﴾ فَلَوْلَا إِن كُنتُمْ غَيْرَ مَدِينِينَ ﴿86﴾ تَرْجِعُونَهَا إِن كُنتُمْ صَادِقِينَ ﴿87﴾
(So why [ do you ] not [ interfere ] when the soul [ of a dying person ] reaches the throat, and you are watching? And We are closer to him than you, but you do not perceive. So, if you are not going to be recompensed [ in the Hereafter for your deeds ], then why do you not bring the soul back, if you are truthful?...56:83-87)
The preceding verses proved two facts through rational arguments and by swearing an oath by the falling stars: [ 1] that the Holy Qur'an-is the word of Allah. Neither Jinn nor devil can ever tamper with it. Everything it contains is the truth; and [ 2] one of the most fundamental articles of faith enshrined in the Qur'an is the Day of Resurrection and Reckoning. Towards the end of the passage, it is mentioned that the infidels and idolaters, in spite of clear arguments and evidence, reject life after death.
Their denial of Resurrection by the unbelievers, in a way, amounts to a claim that their lives and souls are under their own control, and they have a say in the matter of life and death. In order to refute this assumption, the above verses give the example of a dying person. When the soul reaches his throat, all of his near and dear ones look at him and express their desire that he may live longer, but none of them is able to intervene and save his life. All the people around him seem absolutely helpless. However, Allah is nearer to the dying person than the people around him even though they are unable to see Him. In other words, that is, He is nearer to him in terms of knowledge and power. He is fully aware of the person's inner and outer conditions and has complete control over him.
In short, it is not within people's power to get together and save a soul or life. Allah is nearer to a dying person than his soul or life. Allah has pre-designated a particular time for the soul to be separated from the body. None can avert it. In view of this graphic picture, the disbelievers are reminded that if they think that they cannot be resurrected after death, and they are too strong to come under Allah's grasp, then they must restore the soul when it has reached the throat and is about to depart from the body or it has already departed and died. If it is not possible to do any of these, how illogical or irrational it is for man to think that he can escape the Divine grasp and reject life after death!
إِنَّ هَـٰذَا لَهُوَ حَقُّ الْيَقِينِ (Indeed this is certainty in its true sense...56:95). None of the reward or punishment mentioned in the preceding verses is refutable because they are a dead certainty that has no room for any doubt or suspicion.
Al-hamdulillah
The Commentary on
Surah Al-Waqi` ah
Ends here.