Aqeel Mahmood – Tafseer of Surah AnNaba Part 1
AI: Summary ©
AI: Transcript ©
If the brothers who are against the walls,
if they wanna come closer, inshallah, unless you've
got a back problem, then I'm not gonna
force you to come forward.
Inshallah, today we're going to be,
covering
the last
or the first surah of
Juzi Ama, 30th Juz,
which is going to be our last,
surah,
before the month of Ramadan starts because Ramadan
is a few weeks
away. We're gonna spend inshallah 2 weeks
on this Surah,
and we may have another class
after that.
But this will definitely for sure be the
last Surah we're going to be covering
inshallah. So Alhamdulillah.
We thank Allah
that he's given us the ability to be
able to complete the whole of Juzi Amma.
We started last
year or the year before last.
It's been so long. I don't remember,
but we started Surah Nas. Well, we started
Surah Fatiha initially. It was Surah Fatiha. It
was a year before last.
And after Fatiha, we started with the smaller
Surah of,
Juzi Ama, the last Surah, and then we
went in that order. So Alhamdulillah,
we're here at this last Surah or the
first Surah of Juzi Ama, the last Surah
we're gonna be covering,
from Jazhi Amah Inshallah.
And last week, we talked about,
a famous
scholar of Islam from the Tabi'in. Who remembers
who that was?
What was his
name? Because, you know, I think sometimes we
we do these lectures every week,
and, you know, we leave and we forget
everything we we we had.
And we come back the following week, and
we're not building.
We don't build on what we learn.
So it's important for us to build on
whatever we've learned, you know, remember things. Otherwise,
it's just like you're starting again every single
week. You're just starting again and again and
again, and it's not really, you you know,
developing.
What was the name of the Tabiri?
The famous Tabiri?
Sa'id?
Al Musayeb or
Al Musayeb.
Some scholar said Musayeb. Some scholar said Musayeb.
And we talked about his life.
Who can mention some something about his life?
Anything.
The talk was over an hour long.
So anything you can mention, inshallah.
Anything you can mention.
Excellent. Good. So he was one of the
7
of
Madinah. Excellent. Zakul Zahir.
So he was one of the he took
a buddy for the team. Everyone else was
looking down.
Like, I don't know. Look. I don't know
what to say. Zakul Zahir. So he was
one of the 7 fuqa'ah of,
Madinah,
And we talked about his life,
just like we've talked about the lives of
other scholars.
So, you know, it was it was interesting,
talking about,
his life and also the lives of other
scholars,
previously. Insha'Allah, maybe after Ramadan we'll continue talking
about the lives of scholars. I think it's
a good,
something good to do.
So as I mentioned today, insha'Allah, we're going
to be covering the first
surah of Juzi Amma and it's surah number
78,
which is the famous surah
An Nabah.
Ummei Tasah Alun.
And the word An Nabah means what?
An Nabah means news.
An Nabah means the news.
And Allah
in this surah, he starts off by asking
a question,
and he says,
What are they asking you about?
Now why is Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala asking
the messenger of Allah SWAN,
about what they're asking him if Allah azza
wa jal already knows?
Or doesn't he know?
A rhetorical question. Good.
It's a rhetorical question. Just like when, for
example,
Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala talks to the angels
and he says, how did you leave my
slave on earth?'
when they go up to Allah.
Of course, does Allah know how he left
how they left his slaves? Of course. So
what does he ask them?
So first of all, so that we can
benefit from the hadith.
Otherwise, Allah wouldn't even say anything to the
angels,
And it's also a a way of showing
one's majesty.
You know, for example, if a king
says to one of his subordinates, he says,
haven't I been been good to you?
The person doesn't say, yeah, of course you've
been good or you know that.
Of course, the reason why he's asking is
to get the appropriate
response.
So likewise, when Allah says to the angels,
how did you leave my slave?
He wants the angels to
talk about
the righteousness
and the good character of the slaves who
they left behind. What were they doing?
They left them behind worshiping Allah. They left
them while they were worshiping Allah, you know,
busy busying themselves in Ibadah.
So this is why Allah mentions,
you know, mentions this where he asks the
angels this question. Same thing here. Same thing
with regards to other questions
that Allah asks in the Quran. So Allah,
he says,
what are they asking you about? And then
he answers himself in the second ayah.
They're asking you about the great news.
Now what's the great news here referring to?
The day of judgment. So the day of
judgment one of the names of the day
of judgment is,
which means the great news.
Now how do you say the day of
judgment in Arabic?
That's what most people think when they,
you know, translate your, day of judgment into
Arabic. But in fact,
doesn't mean the day of judgment literally.
What is
what does mean?
Excellent. Day of judgment is.
Means to judge,
measure, or judge. So what does
mean?
Yeah. From,
which you're gonna be performing, you know, in
a few weeks. So means standing. So why
is the day of judgment called,
the day of standing?
Yeah. Because the day of judgment itself is
a is a long day, longer than any
other day.
So a person will be standing. And, of
course, we know the famous hadith of how
a a person will be standing according to
his sins. His sweat will rise a certain
level up to his knees, his hips, his
chest, his chin, and so on. So
there's many names for the day of judgment
which have been given in the Quran and
the sunnah of the messenger of
Allah is another name for the day of
judgment. What does mean?
And I'm reading many times in the day
when we say
king of
it's the day of judgment, but what does
Yom al Haysaab literally mean? Yom al Din,
what does it literally mean?
Owner of the day of
recompense.
Yeah, somebody said it. Owner of the day
of recompense. What is what's recompense?
Good. Recompense
is paying somebody back.
Now why is it called the day of
paying somebody back?
Why is Allah how is Allah is Allah
paying somebody back for a favor that and
for for him?
Excellent. Good.
Because on the day of judgment and your
moodin, the day of recompense,
you'll be recompensed
with whatever you
did in this world.
And in a way, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala
does owe us
inshallah, if we do righteous deeds.
Allah
has rights over us. We have rights over
Allah.
Allah's right over us is that we worship
Allah and we don't associate partners with Him
as well as other rights.
And our right over Allah
is that if we do good deeds, if
we do righteous deeds, Allah will admit us
into his gardens of eternal bliss
paradise.
So Allah does have certain things that that
he's that he's supposed to do for us
if we worship him, if we obey him.
So this is why it's called yomudin,
because
the word deen refers to recompense,
and the same word is used for religion
for the same reason, because we're going to
be indebted.
And also it's interesting the word
deen has the same root as the word
deen.
What does deen mean?
Debt. Deen is debt
because you're indebted
or you're going to you owe somebody something.
So your moodin is somebody who's owed,
something from Allah, whether it's paradise
as a result of his good deeds, or
whether it's
hellfire as a result of his sins, you're
promised either one or the other. So then
Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala he says,
they're asking you about the great news,
about which they themselves are in disagreement. Meaning
people are divided with regards to the day
of judgment,
and,
some
consider it to be something which will take
place. Others
believe that it's something which won't happen.
Then Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala he says,
know they will come to know.
Know again they will come to know. So
Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala now mentions the same
ayah twice.
That for sure they are eventually going to
realize
that the day of judgment is in fact
true. And I was looking today about,
the ayat in the Quran or at the
ayat in the Quran which,
tackle issues raised to atheism.
And in a way these ayat also tackle
this issue because Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is
talking about those who don't believe in the
day of judgment. Atheists Atheists don't believe in
the day of judgment. They think that's
it. And you know one of the
arguments that here Allah is putting forth
is whether you believe or whether you disbelieve,
at the end of the day, what's for
sure going to happen? The day of judgment
is for sure going to take place.
Now
sometimes, you know, people put this argument forward,
Muslims to non Muslims to atheists.
They'll say to them, the atheist the atheist
will say, I don't believe in a god.
I don't believe the day of judgement is
going to take place.
Or they may say, I'm an agnostic. I
don't know.
I'm not sure about what's going to happen.
And
as Muslims,
a person will say let's say for example
there is nothing.
Let's say there is nothing.
Let's, for argument's sake, say there's nothing that's
going to happen.
Then there's no issue.
But what if there is? You're unsure about
the existence of a god. You're unsure about
the day of judgment taking place. What if
it is? Because you don't know.
If you're an agnostic, you don't know. What
if there is a day of judgment
and
you're not worshiping Allah?
Then you're going to suffer the consequences.
So logically,
if you were to do something,
if you were to choose something, you would
choose worshiping Allah just to be on
the safe side.
So here Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is saying,
they will surely come to know, meaning it's
for sure going to happen.
So a person who worships Allah, believes in
the day of judgment,
okay, is better than the one who doesn't
believe for the obvious reasons, obviously as a
muslim in terms of our iman and paradise
and so on and so forth, but the
agnostic it's better for him as well.
Because if there is nothing, then he doesn't
lose out anyway.
He's lived his life as a as a
Muslim worshiping
Allah according to his mindset. If nothing happens,
he's he's been doing good anyway. He's been
helping people, doing good, doing good things, you
know, being good to eat, you know, showing
kindness and rusty and so on and so
forth.
And if there is the day of judgment
as we believe, then also he's gonna be
rewarded at the same time.
So there's benefit,
you know, for him if he worships Allah.
So it's beautiful how Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala
mentions certain things for sure are going to
take place
and it should, you know, make a person
think
that, you know, if a person was to
weigh out the possibilities,
then in certain situations, it's better for him
to do one thing than the other.
And of course, with regards to a person's
intention and why he's become Muslim and what
his intentions are, what his motives are, that's
between him and Allah
Because we know, for example, when Hamza
accepted Islam,
he accepted Islam
because they were harming the messenger of Allah
SWALLAM.
Abu Jahl said the most vile things
in front of
the tribe of the prophet
and so the people complained. The women complained
to hamza.
Look at what what they're saying about your
your nephew. He's your own nephew.
The meccans, look at what they're saying.
So he went to Abu Jahal when he
came back from, hunting. He used to hunt
tigers.
So Hamza radiaallahuan was known to be a
hunter
and used to hunt tigers and there were
lions and tigers in those days in the
desert in Arabia. Not anymore, but they used
to be. So he came back and he
heard the news. They told him, look this
is what what he what he said. And
he was so angry, he went to Abujal
and he struck him with his bow across
the face.
And so he said, how dare you curse
my nephew?
Whatever he says, I agree with.
If you harm him, then you're harming me.
And then he realized he basically just accepted
the religion of Islam. So he went to
the prophet and he was worried. He said,
look, this is what happened and I don't
know.
So the prophet said, whatever how do you
feel about what's in your heart?
You know, think about think about what's in
your heart and how you feel. So he
spent the night contemplating and thinking, and then
he realized that I'm upon Islam and I
believe in Allah. And so it took time
for him. The point is it took time
for him to eventually realize
what was on his tongue to be in
his
heart. So sometimes it takes time.
And you know other other stories are also
mentioned. So a person doesn't question,
you know, a person's intention about why he
became Muslim. And this is why in the
time of Umar ibn Abdul Aziz, the famous
leader of the Muslims and the scholar,
before he became Muslim, they would interrogate people
before they accept Islam.
They will question them
and they were very stringent. Anybody know why?
Because the muslims were flourishing
and so people, subhanAllah, people would accept Islam
to be part of this thriving,
you know, empire.
Just like people today, they copy, you know,
they used to copy Americans, probably still do,
you know, they copy western
ideas and ideologies and clothing and language and
so on and so forth. It's just the
way it's always been. In those days, it
was the Arabic dress, you know, or the
Muslim, the way Muslims were in terms of
the Arabic language and even the dress and
so on and so forth.
And so Amr ibn Abdul Aziz, when he
became the leader, he realized this is incorrect
because if a person accepts Islam,
we can't interrogate and judge and question why
they accept Islam and whether their intention was
sincere. That's between them and Allah subhanahu wa
ta'ala. There's nothing a person can do to
step between him and his beliefs and his
connection with Allah azza wa jal and his
sincerity. So here Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, the
point being is that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala
is talking about the day of judgment and
that is something which for sure is going
to take place. Then Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala
he says, didn't
we make the earth
as a bed
or as a flat surface.
So Allah
shifts from talking about the day of judgment
to talking about
his creation. And the reason why he does
this is because
people are questioning the day of judgment,
and whether it's going to take place.
So Allah
is now saying, if you're questioning the day
of judgment,
then haven't we already made the earth as
a resting place, as a bed?
Haven't we already done all of these things?
What makes you so sure? Why are you
so doubtful about the day of judgment taking
place when all of these things around you,
everything you see around you is created by
me?
Haven't we made the earth as a resting
place?
And we made the mountains
as pegs or as stakes in the ground.
And
he talks about this ayah, and he says,
this is so that it may be suitable
for living
and not quake with those who are in
it. So the earth doesn't shake as a
result. And what's interesting is scientists recently,
they discovered that the mountains do act as
pegs keeping the earth stable
and and and and secure.
And in fact, you know, they said the
mountains
that we see,
it's up it's just the smaller portion of
the mountain.
The
part of the mountain that's
underground,
that's under the earth is in fact more
than what we see,
you know, outside of the earth.
So even,
even Kathir Rahimahullah,
many years ago talked about how it's something
which makes the earth stable and firm. And
this is from the miracle, scientific miracles of
the Quran in of itself. And sometimes, you
know, I mentioned these scientific
miracles of the Quran,
but it's something I don't like to dwell
on. I don't talk about too much because
science
is something which isn't 100%
anyway.
It's theories and ideas,
and they're subject to
change. They can change over time, just as
they have,
you know. So
when a person talks about these
these miracles in the Quran, which are, you
know, scientific, then
those scientific
theories can be subject to change.
And so if they do change and a
person relies on them all the time, nonstop
talks about them, is, you know, uses them
as primary evidences,
then the problem is if they turn out
to be untrue, if they turn out to
be false, if they turn out to be
incorrect,
then people will say, look, you know, your
Quran is doesn't have any
argument. It's baseless. It's wrong.
So that's why Islamically
is something which regardless if the Quran mentions
it or not, is something we believe.
Regardless if the if science itself mentions it
or not, it's something we believe. If it's
mentioned in the Quran, that's enough for
us. And this is why the companions were
the were the were the best,
of,
of the followers of the prophet shalallahu alaihi
wa sallam because they believed without
knowing any of these things,
without seeing any of these
signs that maybe we've seen today, or we've
heard about, or read about today. Allah Subhanahu
Wa Ta'ala he says, didn't we make the
earth as a bed,
and we made the mountains as stakes,
and we created you in pairs.
And we made your sleep
a means for rest.
When a person sleeps,
he falls asleep
and it just seems like a few minutes
or a short amount of time, and then
he wakes up again after 5 or 6
or 7 hours in fact, even though it
doesn't seem like it was that long.
And he wakes up and he's full of
energy
or he's supposed to be. He's full of
energy, full of vigor, full of strength,
wide awake, ready for the day.
And this in of itself is a miracle
because, you know, even scientists, they don't know
what happens when a person sleeps.
You know,
why this happens.
And the the effects of prolongs
of of of staying awake for a long
time,
okay,
how a person isn't able to function,
okay, scientists still don't understand what happens to
the body when you actually fall asleep.
You know, up till today, obviously they have
their theories but they they don't know exactly
what happens.
And this in of itself is a miracle
of Allah. And this is why, you know,
when we look at the miracles
of and the proof of Allah's existence,
then as Allah says,
look at your own selves, don't you then
see? Don't you then realize?
There's so many things about us that even,
you know,
human beings don't even know.
Things that we do on a daily basis,
you know, being able to, you know, wake
up after a long period of sleep,
and this is happening on a day day
to day basis
and it's something which subhanAllah,
you know, it's happening even though it's happening
on a regular basis, people tend to neglect
and not think about these not think about
these
things. And subhanAllah, even the way the body
works and so on and so forth. Allah
azza wa Jal,
he says,
We made the night or or or we
made you we made your sleep a thing
for rest so that you could rest and
recuperate.
And we have made the night as a
covering.
So the night is a covering for a
person when he goes to sleep.
The night is a means for him to
rest and to sleep and to recuperate its
trade and darkness covers everything.
Means a a cloth,
a covering,
you know, a garment. So it covers
it covers the people. This darkness covers the
light that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala,
blesses us with,
prior to the night setting in.
And he made the day for livelihood.
A person wakes up in the morning, and
we know the hadith of the prophet when
he said that wake up early and make
use of the day because there is in
the mornings.
So this is why it's encouraged for people
to and this is why scholars, they always
talk about the importance of, you know,
learning, memorizing Quran,
and being productive early in the morning.
After fajr,
the best time,
to memorize quran is after fajr, in the
morning
because your mind is fresh, you know, and
the air is fresh as well. It's the
first thing that you do in the morning
and this barakah and this blessing related and
attached to that. Then Then Allah Subhanahu wa
ta'ala he says, that
we constructed above you 7 strong.
What is this referring to? That we're question
above you 7 strong.
Heaven. 7 heavens. What does this mean, 7
heavens?
What does this mean?
What are the 7 heavens?
Okay.
Anybody else?
Sorry?
You can do whatever you want. I'm saying,
what do these 7 heavens mean?
What are these 7 heavens?
So
sometimes we tend to get mixed up
with regards to,
Samawat,
which are skies,
and
heavens which refer to paradise.
So Allah in many ayaat he says,
like verily we created.
We created the 7.
And literally
means sky.
And when Allah says the 7 skies,
Allah is referring to the and the skies
of
this world.
Whereas when with regards to the to paradise,
then some of the scholars they say paradise
in and of itself doesn't just have 7
levels.
Some scholars they say with regards to paradise
itself, there are many, many, many levels
because they mention certain ahadith, for example, when
the messenger of Allah sallallahu sallam
said that the one who had memorized the
Quran or the memorizer of Quran will be
asked to recite and rise on the day
of judgment.
And this person, the more he recites
from the Quran which is memorized,
the higher up he will go in paradise.
So scholars, they said there's many, many levels
of paradise, and it could be the case
that,
you know, there are levels within levels.
It could be the case there are levels
within levels as well. So here Allah
is talking about,
the 7 heavens according to some of them
of.
Specifically,
he's referring to,
the heavens,
them themselves.
He says, the 7 heavens in their vastness,
in their loftiness, in their perfection,
their precision,
and their adornment
with both stable and moving stars.
He's referring to these 7 strong,
okay, as,
7
strong
skies of this dunya, of this world.
So,
he says these are 7 skies of this
world. Allah he
then says,
and we made therein a burning lamp
that as well as the 7 heavens, we've
also
made within it a burning lamp. What's the
burning lamp? The sun in and of itself.
So Allah has
blessed us by
giving us,
something
from which,
we're able to benefit from, and it's a
means of,
you know, sustenance for us. It's something which,
gives us,
food
and, you
know, life basically,
obviously comes from Allah, but the sun supports
life, in this, in this world, on this
earth. Then Allah
he says,
That we have sent down
from He says we've sent down from the
clouds, and the word used isn't sahab, which
is clouds.
The word used
is water which is
which means flowing.
He
mentions something interesting.
He said that
he says
means clouds, Okay. Meaning from the clouds.
Will be sent down,
from the clouds, from.
And he says
that,
this is like the woman being called a,
And the same word is used for
a woman
who's about to start her menstrual cycle, but
it doesn't start,
which signifies
that she's expecting a child.
So just like this, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala
is talking about
the clouds,
okay, filling up with water
and then
bringing down abundant
and continuous
rain.
So Allah
interestingly,
he uses the same,
the same word. He uses the same,
expression
to show the vastness of,
the water that's contained in the clouds and
how the clouds,
send down,
rain as a mercy and as a blessing
from Allah Subhanahu Wa Ta'ala. And then Allah
mentions the result of this rain, and the
consequences,
and the benefits of this
So that we may bring forth as a
result of it
grain and vegetation.
You know, we benefit from this water
because
things grow from the earth as a result
of this.
You know, different types of crops, wheat and
barley, and, you know, all the other types
of, you know, grains that we benefit from
from this earth, rice and so on and
so forth, and vegetation as well,
fruits and vegetables.
So all of this if wasn't for the
water coming down from the sky,
then we wouldn't be blessed with any of
these things.
So it's a blessing from Allah as well
as the sun which Allah already has mentioned.
So both of these things Allah subhanahu wa
ta'ala mentions
and both of these are blessings from Allah
Azzawajal.
And
gardens
which
are,
gathered together. Allah Azzawajal mentions jannat, which is
a pool of jannah. Okay. And then he
says,
and others, they said that
means
gardens which are gathered together, joined together.
Meaning,
you know,
gardens which are rich,
gardens which are lush,
and gardens which produce different types of fruits
and different types of,
vegetation.
Then Allah
he says
that verily
the day of
judgement
is an at an appointed time. And what's
interesting here, another word is mentioned for the
day of judgement.
So So we have we've
had.
And anyone know what a means?
Means to
divide or to separate
or to distinguish.
And some some translations,
also mention a decision.
And that's why you have
the name Faisal,
which means somebody who's able to distinguish.
What do you distinguish between?
Good and bad, right and wrong. So Allah
azzawajal here calls the day of judgment,
because on this day,
an individual
will be separated
from his friend, from his family,
okay, from his loved ones,
and he'll be entering into paradise or he'll
be entering into hellfire according to his deeds.
So people will be separated.
Those who are closest in this world, maybe
they'll be separated in the akhira.
And this is why the famous hadith of
the prophet when,
a man came to him and he asked
him about the hour
and he said I haven't prepared anything except
that I know I love Allah and his
messenger.
So the messenger
said,
you're gonna be with the one who you
love. Because when a person loves Allah and
his messenger, he obeys them.
And so
this shows a person's association in this world
is something
which will aid and help
where he will be in the akhirah.
If a person socializes with the right people,
okay, he'll be in paradise. If you mix
with the wrong types of people who don't
worship Allah, who are committing sins, then it's
gonna hinder you and prevent you and stop
you from entering into paradise. Then Allah subhanahu
wa ta'ala he says,
that
on the day that the horn is blown,
the trumpet is blown, and you will come
forth in multitudes.
So you'll come forth in crowds. You'll come
forth,
in groups.
He says, groups after groups.
And Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala he says,
in fact, Abu
Hoora radiallahu an, he talks about this ayah,
and
he says that,
when
the when this ayah was recited,
he said that which is between the two
blowings of the trumpet, one blow of the
trumpet will cause everything to
be destroyed. The other blowing of the trumpet,
the second blowing will cause everything to be
raised up preparing for the day of judgement.
He said between the two blowings is 40.
And when his students asked him, is it
40 days? Is it 40 months? Is it
40 years? He never said anything. And then
he
continued and he said
that then Allah will
send down a rain from the sky
and the dead bodies will sprout just
as green plants sprout,
And every part of the last person will
deteriorate except for
one bone, meaning on the when a person
dies,
okay, he will disintegrate except for a small
portion
of his
of his body. And it is the tailbone.
From it, the creation
will be assembled on the day of judgment.
So
describes
that the people will be raised up like
when rain comes down from the sky and
plants come out.
He describes human beings coming out in a
similar fashion. Then Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says,
that the heavens will be opened up
and there will become gates.
Means doors or gates. Is one door, one
gate.
He says,
this means that the heavens will open up
and
paths and roots will be created by Allah
so that angels will start to descend.
So subhanallah, you know, very very
vivid images here.
That the heavens will open up, paths and
roots will be created by Allah and the
angels will basically come down preparing for this
day. It's something, subhanAllah,
you know, we we can't even imagine
how that day is going to be. Then
Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala he says,
that the mountains
will be removed
and there will be like a mirage.
Meaning, it will be as if they never
even existed.
They'll they'll
dissolve and they'll disintegrate
as if they they never even existed in
this dunya.
So, you know, all of these descriptions of
the day of judgment really show us
how Allah
is going to
begin and start the day of judgment.
The the
the naba al adhim, this great news. Yomul
Farsa, the day of decision,
the day of separation,
the day of distinguishing between good and bad.
So inshallah, we'll conclude here, and then we'll
carry on with the rest of the Surah
next week inshallah.
If there's any questions, then I'll do my
best to answer them.
No. This word won't exist,
of course, because when the trumpet
is blown, everything will cease to exist. Then
Allah will create
a plane,
okay, of land
on which the people will be judged.
So it won't be this earth itself.
No. It's it's not gonna be there.
Yeah.
So means a great news. Means something,
you know, huge,
something important,
something great.
So it's something it's a big it's gonna
be a you know, an important day for
everyone.
Okay.