One of the alternative names of Surat at-Tawbah is al-Fadihah, which means the surah that exposed the hypocrites. This surah talks the most about the attributes of the munafiqeen (hypocrites) more than anywhere else in the Quran, so much so that numerous people have written PhD theses on it. Unfortunately, we can see many munafiqeen…
Surat at-Tawbah is a Madani surah in which Allah talks about Hajj. Hajj was the last of the five pillars of Islam that Allah made obligatory: it was only mandated in the year 9 AH, compared to fasting and zakat in 2 AH, salah being made obligatory 18 months before Hijrah, and of course the…
The unique feature of Surat at-Tawbah Surat at-Tawbah, (sometimes also called al-Bara’ah) is the only surah out of all 114 in the Quran which doesn’t begin with the basmalah. The reason for this has been discussed at length by scholars of the Quran. One opinion is that Surat al-Anfal and Surat at-Tawbah are actually one…
The Battle of Badr took place on the 17th of Ramadan, a pivotal moment in Islamic history. In Surah Al-Anfal, Allah teaches the believers the principles of attaining victory and maintaining it, while in Surah Aal-e-Imran, revealed after the Battle of Uhud, Allah dedicates over 70 verses—nearly one-third of one of the longest surahs—to addressing…
Towards the end of Surat al-A’raf, Allah talks about the knowledge He has sent down, and the types of people who receive it. فَخَلَفَ مِنۢ بَعۡدِهِمۡ خَلۡفٞ وَرِثُواْ ٱلۡكِتَٰبَ يَأۡخُذُونَ عَرَضَ هَٰذَا ٱلۡأَدۡنَىٰ وَيَقُولُونَ سَيُغۡفَرُ لَنَا وَإِن يَأۡتِهِمۡ عَرَضٞ مِّثۡلُهُۥ يَأۡخُذُوهُۚ أَلَمۡ يُؤۡخَذۡ عَلَيۡهِم مِّيثَٰقُ ٱلۡكِتَٰبِ أَن لَّا يَقُولُواْ عَلَى ٱللَّهِ إِلَّا ٱلۡحَقَّ وَدَرَسُواْ مَا فِيهِۗ وَٱلدَّارُ ٱلۡأٓخِرَةُ خَيۡرٞ لِّلَّذِينَ يَتَّقُونَۚ أَفَلَا تَعۡقِلُونَ And there followed them successors who inherited the Scripture [while] taking the commodities of this lower life and saying, “It will be forgiven for…
Surat al-A’raf is a Makki surah, which was revealed to show the Prophet Muhammad (peace be on him) what previous Messengers faced from their people. The last story is the story of Musa (peace be upon him), and one of the specific scenes highlighted is when Musa (peace be upon him) asked to see Allah. …
Surat al-A’raf mentions the stories of six prophets: Nuh, Hud, Salih, Lut, Shuayb, and lastly Musa (peace be upon them), whose story is the longest. In fact, the story of Musa (peace be upon him) is the longest in the Quran, and is repeated in many surahs. In verse 96, Allah says: وَلَوۡ أَنَّ أَهۡلَ ٱلۡقُرَىٰٓ ءَامَنُواْ وَٱتَّقَوۡاْ لَفَتَحۡنَا عَلَيۡهِم بَرَكَٰتٖ مِّنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ وَٱلۡأَرۡضِ وَلَٰكِن كَذَّبُواْ فَأَخَذۡنَٰهُم بِمَا كَانُواْ يَكۡسِبُونَ…
Surat Al-A’raf recounts the stories of five prophets: Nuh, Hud, Salih, Lut, and Shuayb (peace be upon them all). As a Makkan surah, it offers consolation to Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), reassuring him that he was not alone in facing rejection, hostility and ridicule. Every prophet before him endured similar opposition from their…
In Surah Al-A’raf, Allah presents us with two contrasting scenes—the people of Jannah (Paradise) and the people of Hellfire. قَالَ ٱدۡخُلُواْ فِيٓ أُمَمٖ قَدۡ خَلَتۡ مِن قَبۡلِكُم مِّنَ ٱلۡجِنِّ وَٱلۡإِنسِ فِي ٱلنَّارِۖ كُلَّمَا دَخَلَتۡ أُمَّةٞ لَّعَنَتۡ أُخۡتَهَاۖ حَتَّىٰٓ إِذَا ٱدَّارَكُواْ فِيهَا جَمِيعٗا قَالَتۡ أُخۡرَىٰهُمۡ لِأُولَىٰهُمۡ رَبَّنَا هَـٰٓؤُلَآءِ أَضَلُّونَا فَـَٔاتِهِمۡ عَذَابٗا ضِعۡفٗا مِّنَ ٱلنَّارِۖ قَالَ لِكُلّٖ…
Surat al-A’raf is a Makki surah, which is untypically lengthy, with 206 verses. It opens with the story of Iblis and Adam – a story that Allah has repeated many times in the Quran. Don’t put your ego first Allah commands the angels and Iblis to prostrate; the angels obey, but Iblis refuses, thinking he…
Surat al-An’am is a Makkan surah, and it is one of the exceptions to the general principle that most Makkan surahs tend not to be very long. Remember that this was a time of transformation for the community, from Jahiliyya (pre-Islamic ignorance) to Islam. It is difficult for a community to develop new discipline, and…
The beauty and timelessness of the Quran is evident in Surat al Anam, when Allah says: وَذَرُوا۟ ظَـٰهِرَ ٱلْإِثْمِ وَبَاطِنَهُۥٓ ۚ إِنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ يَكْسِبُونَ ٱلْإِثْمَ سَيُجْزَوْنَ بِمَا كَانُوا۟ يَقْتَرِفُونَ ١٢٠ Shun all sin—open and secret. Indeed, those who commit sin will be punished for what they earn. (6:120) Throughout all generations and nations, the path…
Seek forgiveness from Allah in the morning and evening ۞وَعِندَهُۥ مَفَاتِحُ ٱلۡغَيۡبِ لَا يَعۡلَمُهَآ إِلَّا هُوَۚ وَيَعۡلَمُ مَا فِي ٱلۡبَرِّ وَٱلۡبَحۡرِۚ وَمَا تَسۡقُطُ مِن وَرَقَةٍ إِلَّا يَعۡلَمُهَا وَلَا حَبَّةٖ فِي ظُلُمَٰتِ ٱلۡأَرۡضِ وَلَا رَطۡبٖ وَلَا يَابِسٍ إِلَّا فِي كِتَٰبٖ مُّبِينٖ With Him are the keys of the Unseen. No one knows them but He. He knows what is in the land and the sea. No leaf ever falls but that He knows about it, and there is no grain in the dark…
Have hope in Allah’s justice Many of the verses in Surat al-An’am are about the challenges faced by the Prophet Muhammad (peace be on him), which are not that different from what we are facing in our communities today: people twisting and changing reality, and pronouncing truth as falsehood and falsehood as truth. In these…
Heavenly Food Blessed are the ones who seize the opportunity of Ramadan. They improve themselves and they become closer to Allah. The ayahs of fasting were revealed in the 2nd year after Hijra in Madinah when it became an obligation to fast for the whole month of Ramadan. It is our chance to rejuvenate and…