SAD【Quran commentary】Surah 38 Sad

Commentary By Maulana Wahiduddin khan

1-3. The Quran calls upon people to accept the…

The Quran calls upon people to accept the realities that already exist in human nature. No statement of the Quran has so far been found to be against facts, which is sufficient to prove the veracity of the Quran. If people still do not accept the Quran, their rejection is certainly not based on arguments, but stems from the fear that they may lose their sense of self-importance if they accept a greater Truth.

The Quran is the continuation of that call to the oneness of God which was propogated by various prophets throughout history. In every age, those who rejected this call were destroyed. The non-believers of the present age should learn a lesson from the fate suffered by non-believers of the past.

4-8. The Prophet Muhammad is a great name…

The Prophet Muhammad is a great name today, because subsequent history has glorified him. But when, in the seventh century A.D. he announced his prophethood, it was difficult for people to believe that this ordinary-looking person was chosen to receive God’s revelations. It is crucial to understand that once history has taken shape, even a blind man can recognise a prophet, but before history takes shape immense sincerity is required to acknowledge a prophet.

The exceptionally different style of the Quran used to stun its opponents, but the ordinary image of the bearer of the Quran would cast them into doubt. Bent on rejecting him, these people used to denigrate the Prophet in various ways, called him a magician or a liar. They could not reconcile themselves to the possibility of their great men being in the wrong as against an ordinary man.

‘Hold fast to your deities’. These words refer to the paucity of argument of those who oppose the Quran. Finding themselves helpless they try to keep their people away from the powerful effect of the Quran with the help of age-old traditions.

9-16. God’s blessing of guidance is not meted…

God’s blessing of guidance is not meted out in such a way that one who is favoured with worldly greatness is also granted God’s guidance. If worldly greatness were enough to make people great in the eyes of God, it would have become possible for them to confer God’s grace on anybody they liked, while withholding blessings from all others. But the fact is that God bestows His grace by His own standards and not by those laid down by human beings on the basis of appearances.

Those who rejected the Prophet used to say, ‘Bring upon us God’s punishment with which you are threatening us.’ The non-believers were so audacious because they believed that they were not going to face God’s punishment. The previous communities had also considered themselves safe and behaved insolently with their prophets, but all of them were destroyed.

17-20. Islam attaches immense importance to…

Islam attaches immense importance to patience, however an unpleasant situationcan only be borne patiently by one who leads a God-oriented life.

David presents a good example of being a devout subject. God bestowed him withextraordinary strength, yet he remained ever grateful to Him. David used to sit in the foothills of the mountains and sing praises of God. He praised with such devotion that would turn the entire environment spiritual.

God also blessed David with a very strong empire. The secret of this strength was his wisdom (hikmah) and his decisiveness (fasl al-khitab) which made him capable of taking right decisions at the right time. These two attributes make a ruler efficient. His innate wisdom ensures that he does not take any action which will bring more harm than good. And his ability to distinguish between right and wrong ensures that his decisions will always be based on justice.

21-24. It is said that David had fixed each of…

It is said that David had fixed each of the three days for different purposes – one day for holding court and deciding cases, a second day for spending with his family and a third day for remaining in solitude and praying to God. It happened once that on a day fixed for prayers, as he sat engrossed in his devotion, two men who had jumped over the wall of the palace, entered the room and stood beside him. This was an extraordinary occurrence and, therefore, he was somewhat afraid. But the two men allayed his fears and said that they were parties to a dispute and begged him to settle it for them.

25-26. The two intruders presented their case…

The two intruders presented their case before David. The case was in allegorical language and bore a reference to some incident in the life of David himself and was meant as an admonition to him. While David gave his decision, he recounted the incident from his life, having quickly understood the analogy. Realising his mistake, he immediately asked for forgiveness and prostrated himself before God.

David enjoyed tremendous power at that time, but he did not punish or even scold the intruders. This is a sign of a true subject of God. He is never unduly stubborn and when his attention is drawn towards his shortcoming he readily accepts it and rectifies it, even if the person who pointed out the error does so in a rude manner.

A ruler always has two options before him – to decide cases according to his own whims or in consonance with principles of justice. The ruler who decides matters according to his own whims and desires, has in fact gone astray, and will ultimately have to suffer the scourge of God. But the ruler who decides cases by abiding by the principles of truth and justice, is the one who is on the right path. God will reward him immensely.

The divine injunction which is applicable to a ruler is equally applicable to his subjects and must be followed by the common man in his respective spheres of authority.

27-29. The system governing the functioning…

The system governing the functioning of our world is bound by wise and firm principles, when a random and unreliable system could very well have existed in its place. Between these two possibilities, the choice of the better one?the one which is governed by firm laws?is indicative of the fact that the Creator of such a world created it for a purpose. It follows that a world whose beginning was purposeful cannot have an end which is purposeless.

Similarly, every man in this world enjoys a certain amount of freedom. From amongst them, are those who submit to the truth and strive to lead their life on the principles of truth and justice whereas those who do not submit to the truth, indulge in unbridled talk and unrestrained actions. Such distinctly different persons cannot have the same fate.

30-33. Solomon, the son of David was the…

Solomon, the son of David was the ruler of a great empire. Once the thoroughbred horses of his army were brought before him and a race was held. The galloping horses moved further and further away until they were out of sight.

This was a magnificent moment upon witnessing which, an ordinary man would have become full of pride and vanity. But Solomon started remembering God. He said that he had not chosen these horses to flaunt his grandeur, but only for the sake of God. In the shape of the horses, he could discern the great workmanship of God, and by way of appreciating the greatness of God, he started to stroke the necks and legs of the horses. A believer, therefore, has the ability to observe the glory of God in everything, while a non-believer remains entrapped in the false notions of self-glory.

34-40. Every human being is liable to err…

Every human being is liable to err. But, for the pious and righteous subjects of God, a wrongful act leads them to great virtue, because after the misdeed, they turn towards their Lord with true repentance and devotion.

On one occasion, Solomon made an error in judging a matter. When the truth dawned on him, he turned towards God with the utmost devotion and repentance. God forgave him and rewarded him with a great empire; He was given such extraordinary powers as no other man had ever enjoyed.

41-44. Job was one of the Israeli prophets…

Job was one of the Israeli prophets who lived probably in the ninth century B.C. He was very rich, but, far from being lost in his riches, he used to pray to God and call people towards God.

Some evil-minded people started saying that Job remembered God because he was blessed by God with so much wealth. In order to settle all argument God took away all His blessings from Job but he continued to be a sincere worshipper of God. He said, ‘It was God who gave and God has taken away. Glory be to the name of God.’

Even then, mischievous people were not silenced. They said that the real test would be if he suffered physical affliction and remained patient and grateful. To prove his sincerity, God made Job contract a serious skin disease; yet he remained the embodiment of patience and gratitude. When the process of convincing the people was complete, God caused a spring to come into existence for Job’s nourishment. By bathing in this spring, his body became healthy and, restoring him to his family, God gave him much more wealth.

When God makes someone an example for the sake of religion and he surrenders himself to God without any reservation, God restores to him more than what was taken away from him during his period of trial.

45-48. For which special assignment does God…

For which special assignment does God choose messengers from amongst human beings? The special mission of prophets entails that they make men aware of the fact that their real destination is the Hereafter, and that they should prepare themselves for it. This is the most crucial problem for man, one which warrants utter seriousness.

49-58. Paradise will be for those servants…

Paradise will be for those servants of God who submit to Him while He is invisible. They will be the fortunate ones who will relish the everlasting joy of the Hereafter.

The blessings bestowed upon men in the Hereafter will be of the same nature as those confered in this world. Yet there will be a tremendous difference between these two forms of divine grace. In this world, favours are given for the time being and in a rudimentary form whereas, in the Hereafter, these favours will be given forever and in their ultimate form. God will banish all kinds of fear in the Hereafter, which is not possible in the present world.

Hell would also be everlasting and will be an amalgam of all troubles and tortures which can be imagined in the present world. When those who were arrogant in this world and rejected the truth gather in Hell, leaders and followers will quarrel with each other and curse one another. But, none of it would be of avail.

59-64. When the people who rejected the truth…

When the people who rejected the truth see their miserable lot in the Hereafter, they will remember those who had taken the side of the Truth and as such had come to be regarded as inferior in their society. The rejectors of the truth used to say of the supporters of truth that the latter disrespected the great ones; that they had deviated from their ancestral religion and had made their own path separate from that of the community.

These rejectors of the truth had considered themselves to be on the right path. But in the Hereafter, the tables will be turned. At that time it will be clear to them that those whom they looked at with contempt and ridiculed, are the very people who are now enjoying the foremost position of success.

65-74. It is stated in the Quran that Satan had…

It is stated in the Quran that Satan had become man’s enemy from the very first day. He dissuaded Adam’s progeny from adopting the right path by his glib and deceitful talk. Man should therefore be wary of Satan and try to save himself from his evil designs.

Satan pursues man at all times and, surreptitiously entering his thoughts, manages to misguide him. Man must save himself from Satan and his promptings.

75-82. God made man a creature of exalted…

God made man a creature of exalted stature and, as a token thereof, He ordered the angels and the jinn to prostrate themselves before him. When Satan (Iblis) did not bow before Adam, he became the eternally cursed one. But this incident was not only serious from the viewpoint of Satan; it was of the utmost importance for Adam himself.

By refusing to bow down before Adam, Satan forever became the enemy of the entire human race. This event foreboded that man’s journey through life would not be an easy one, and would be full of serious impediments. Man would have to strive to keep himself on the right path and resist the inducements and promptings of Satan in order to reach his destination safely.

Satan’s evil scheming stands between man and Paradise. Only one who keeps himself safe from Satan’s machinations will enter the everlasting gardens of Paradise; those who fail to tear down the barrier of Satan’s treachery, will be deprived of Paradise.

In the present world of trial, Satan has been given every opportunity to misguide man. But Satan can do so only till Doomsday arrives. When the Day of Judgement tears apart the veil of falsehood, everything will become plain and clear. Thereafter, there will neither be anybody who can deceive nor anybody who can be deceived.

83-86. The chosen (mukhlas) subject of God is…

The chosen (mukhlas) subject of God is one who is free of mental perversion. While Satan has no practical power over man, he misguides human beings by supplying plausible justification for their wrong deeds; presenting untruth as Truth; enshrouding baseless facts in beautiful words; raising unnecessary issues in straightforward matters and raising doubts. However, only those who harbour complexes will be deceived by this beautification of Satan (taz’in). Those who retain their sincerity and are wise enough to objectively analyse a situation will immediately detect Satan’s machinations. Such people are never misled by Satan’s ruses.

One basic virtue of a preacher is that he does not demand any remuneration from his hearers. Another is that he does not raise any material issues between them and himself. The call of the Quran is the call of the Hereafter. Therefore, if a man, on the one hand, gives the call of the Hereafter and of the Quran and, on the other, runs a campaign for material gain, then he figures as an insincere person. And who will pay attention to the pleadings of a person who has proved himself to be insincere?

Similarly, a preacher does not make statements concocted by himself. He simply passes on whatever he has received from God. Masruq Tabi‘i (a contemporary of the Prophet’s Companions) recounts a tradition of ‘Abdullah ibn Mas‘ud who said, ‘O, people! One who knows should talk, and one who does not know should simply say that God knows better. He will seem wise if he states that God knows better (with regard to things which he does not know), because God said to his Prophet, ‘Say, no reward do I ask of you for this, nor am I a pretender.’ (Tafsir ibn Kathir, vol. IV, p. 44).

Similarly, it is also required of the preacher of truth to present his call in the shape of well-meaning advice. His discourse should be that of a well-wisher and should not be in the nature of debate or polemics.