The story of Ibrahim (peace be on him) which appears in 17 chapters (juz) of the Quran is the most frequently mentioned story after the story of Musa (peace be on him). In Surat Shuara, we see the discussion between Ibrahim (peace be on him) and his father and community. Ibrahim (peace be on him)…
In the very well known verses about the characteristics of the Ibad ur Rahman ‘Servants of Ar-Rahman’ in Surat al Furqan, the Most Merciful, Allah Almighty describes the qualities that will make us the VIPs of Jannah if we adopt them. Allah Almighty enumerates the attributes of these people and mentions the special treatment they…
In Surat al-Furqan the disbelievers wonder why the Messenger (peace be upon him) walks in the street and in the marketplaces like an ordinary person. Their assumption is that anyone who is important should not be accessible to the public. He should be aloof, dwell in an ivory tower surrounded by bodyguards, travel in fancy…
Allah Almighty addresses the issue of how to resolve a dispute and tells us that the point of reference in a dispute should be the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of the Prophet (peace be on him), and the shariah. Yet if a group of people cannot agree on something, and are told this,…
In Surat Nur there are many rulings, as it was revealed in Madinah, and in general surahs revealed in Madinah contained guidance on what was permissible and impermissible in Islam. [This is] a surah which We have revealed and made ˹its rulings˺ obligatory, and revealed in it clear commandments so that you may be mindful. (24:1)…
Ramadan: victory against your nafs and your enemy Praise be to God, we have received an honourable guest, Ramadan, which will stay with us for around a month. Guests usually brings gifts, and Ramadan generously brings with it forgiveness and mercy in abundance. In Ramadan, God has made it compulsory for us to fast, as…
Arrogance and rebellion In Surat al-Muminoun, Allah Almighty tells us He punished the disbelievers, but despite this they did not turn back to Him, nor did they supplicate to Him. وَلَقَدْ أَخَذْنَـٰهُم بِٱلْعَذَابِ فَمَا ٱسْتَكَانُوا۟ لِرَبِّهِمْ وَمَا يَتَضَرَّعُونَ And We have already seized them with torment, but they never humbled themselves to their Lord, nor…
Among the verses of Surat al-Muminoun, Allah Almighty talks about the creation of mankind and the states from the womb, to childhood, adulthood and eventually death. Then Allah Almighty says that we will be resurrected: And indeed, We created humankind from an extract of clay, then placed each ˹human˺ as a sperm-drop in a secure place, then…
Might is not everything needed in a fight In Surat al-Hajj there are many verses to reflect on, including the verse in which the oppressed are given permission by Allah to fight back: أُذِنَ لِلَّذِينَ يُقَـٰتَلُونَ بِأَنَّهُمْ ظُلِمُوا۟ ۚ وَإِنَّ ٱللَّهَ عَلَىٰ نَصْرِهِمْ لَقَدِيرٌ Permission ˹to fight back˺ is ˹hereby˺ granted to those being fought,…
Towards the end of Surat al-Anbiya, Allah Almighty mentions a group of people who believe in Allah, and what is waiting for them in akhirah – they are far from hellfire, so far from it, that they will not hear the sound of its blazing fire. إِنَّ الَّذِينَ سَبَقَتْ لَهُمْ مِنَّا الْحُسْنَىٰ أُولَٰئِكَ عَنْهَا مُبْعَدُونَ…
The scales On the Day of Judgement, when the scales are erected then our Books of Deeds will be weighed, even the smallest deeds will be weighed. If they are good, then our end will be good, but if they are bad, our destination will be bad. وَنَضَعُ ٱلْمَوَٰزِينَ ٱلْقِسْطَ لِيَوْمِ ٱلْقِيَـٰمَةِ فَلَا تُظْلَمُ نَفْسٌ…
In the first couple of pages of Surat Al Anbiya, we see the complaint in the community against the prophets and messengers Allah sent them. They keep demanding that their prophets produce miracles on demand and at their command. This pattern of behaviour was not exceptional; we see it repeated with Nuh, Ibrahim, Musa, Eesa…
The story of Musa (peace be on him) and Firaun has been mentioned many times in the Quran. Indeed Musa (peace be on him), the most mentioned messenger in the Quran, appears 136 times. The rest of the prophets are mentioned much less. In the exchange between Musa and Firaun, we see a very common…
Two ayahs capture my imagination: وَنَرِثُهُۥ مَا يَقُولُ وَيَأْتِينَا فَرْدًۭا And We will inherit what he boasts of, and he will come before Us all by himself. (19:80) وَكُلُّهُمْ ءَاتِيهِ يَوْمَ ٱلْقِيَمَةِ فَرْدًا And every one of them will come to Him on the day of resurrection alone. (19:95) Allah is saying in the…
In Surat Maryam, one of the beautiful lessons is the story of Prophet Zakariyya (peace be on him) and the story of Maryam. They are connected, as Zakariyya was Maryam’s guardian, and his wife was the sister of Maryam’s mother. Zakariyya was over 80 but had no children. When he noticed that Maryam had unseasonal…