Zia Sheikh – Tafseer of Surah Nahal Session 4
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In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious,
the Most Merciful.
In the name of Allah, the
Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
We are going to read the Seerah of
Surah An-Nahl and Insha'Allah we will
be starting to read from Ayah number 14.
As we've written before, in the Makki Surahs
they talk about the creation of Allah SWT
and His Might.
And in discussing the creation of Allah SWT,
it is to make us understand His greatness.
Today, the first Ayah, and in fact all
the Ayahs, they talk about that creation of
Allah SWT.
And the purpose of talking about the greatness
again is to instill into the people the
importance of tawheed and worshipping only one Allah
SWT.
And rejecting the falsehoods and statues that people
worship other than Allah SWT.
So the first Ayah today is Ayah number
14, and in it Allah SWT talks about
the creation of Allah.
And the thing that is mentioned and we
have to understand is that the majority of
people, the whole age travelled out of the
oceans.
Not many people used to do that.
But yet, Allah SWT describes in detail this
thing that is very very common nowadays, that
is the travelling out of the ocean.
And the different treasures that we can derive
from the ocean, the food, resources and so
on.
That is inshallah going to be mentioned.
Allah says, It is he who made musaffar
the ocean.
The word musaffar, generally it means made available
to him.
But if you look at the background of
this word tasbeeh, it is opposite to iftiyat.
It means when a person has a choice
to do something.
So I tell you, So this is iftiyat.
So you have the choice to come to
the masjid.
If you don't come to the masjid, this
is iftiyat.
Let's say I have a 5-6 year
old.
I want him to get into the habit
of praying.
I will pull him by the ear and
bring him to the masjid for ishaat, that's
tasbeeh.
Whether you like it or not, you have
no choice.
So since Allah SWT when He talks about
His creation, He uses the word tasbeeh for
that.
Why?
Because the creation of Allah SWT, it has
no choice.
This is why Allah SWT created the creation.
Everything has been created for humanity.
So that's why Allah SWT uses the word
tasbeeh.
And it's not to say that Allah SWT
did not give the creation a choice in
the beginning.
Allah SWT says that in the beginning, all
of this creation actually had a choice.
To either be musaffar or muftar.
Musaffar meaning to be forced into a certain
category, to be forced to do something or
to have the choice.
But the creation refused to take the iftiyat
because of the weight and the responsibility associated
with it.
Allah SWT says at the end of surah
al-ahzab, We
presented the amanah to the heavens and the
earth and the mountains.
And all the creations, they refused this responsibility,
this amanah.
And what is this amanah?
Amanah meaning the choice of being able to
worship Him.
Just like human beings.
So the creation refused to take it.
They were afraid of taking that responsibility.
Because it was a consequence which was unfulfilled.
We're going to be punished eternally.
Rather have this limited role.
Do what Allah SWT tells us to do
and then be destroyed.
Better to do that.
But the human being took up the responsibility.
As a choice.
To do good, to do bad.
Whatever he wants, he can do.
Allah SWT did not remove his hand and
prevent him from doing things that he wants
to do.
And that is why the concept of accountability,
the concept of punishment and reward, it is
for the human being.
So Allah has made the ocean musafsar for
the human being.
It is available for the human being.
It submits itself to the human being.
And it is in the service of the
human being.
So that you can consume from it fresh
meat.
It refers to, Allah SWT has used this
word specifically for the meat of the fish.
Which means moist and fresh.
Moist and fresh meat which is specific to
the fish.
Once the meat of the fish basically dries
up, that means it's gone rotten.
Now, when it comes to fish, there are
different ways that a person gets these fish.
Sometimes the fish just wash themselves up onto
the shore.
And you can consume from it because you
have not delivered or slaughtered the fish.
A dead fish basically is consumable.
Then sometimes you have these special morning seasons
where the fish, they go upriver.
They swim upriver.
You see all these nature programs where the
salmon, they go out to the ocean.
But then they come back to where they
were born to come and lay eggs.
And they, not only do they swim, they
actually swim upriver.
They are not coming down.
This river took them into the ocean.
And then what these salmon do, they actually
come back to the same river.
And they swim upriver against the stream.
They jump and they try their best to
get back to exactly where they were born.
And then they lay their eggs where they
were born.
And then after laying the eggs, amazing.
So, you have probably seen again in the
nature program where the bear, it knows where
the salmon is going to be.
It knows the season that the salmon is
going to be there.
And it goes and it basically catches the
salmon as it is trying to swim upstream
to try to lay eggs in its specific
location.
So, this is another thing that the Basmala
Park provides for the human.
Those same salmon actually, they come and they
are made available for the person to catch
and utilize and use.
And then there are other fish too.
I saw a video once on YouTube somewhere
where the person is basically taking his boat
and he is just sailing through the ocean.
And fish are basically just jumping out, jumping
out in their hundreds.
And they are jumping into the boat by
themselves.
And it is again some kind of mating
season or something that makes them do that.
But again, one of the wonders of the
Basmala Park is creation.
Allah says, if you catch fish in all
the different forms that you have to and
you can catch fish, you will be able
to consume them.
Of course, putting out the line or putting
out a net is fairly normal way of
catching fish.
What this does is you manipulate the Basmala.
And you extract from the same ocean jewelry
that you wear.
The women usually wear jewelry.
And it is referring here to the pearls
that people extract from the bottom of the
sea in their oysters.
So, people have to dive deep down into
the ocean and get these oysters and inside
them you will find these beautiful pearls.
So, Allah says again, in order of the
availability of those things.
So, fish, it is more necessary, it is
more needed.
And jewelry, it is not as needed, it
is a luxury.
So, Allah mentions that later on.
And the word used for it is istighfar.
Istighfar basically means to want to extract, to
want to take out.
Not to free you, but just to free
you.
You want to extract.
Of course, everybody wants to find something precious,
something valuable.
So, everybody wants to do it.
But sometimes that person gets a huge pearl
or a huge diamond that becomes very valuable
to him.
Otherwise, you know, even those fishermen that dive
into the ocean and get oysters, they may
find 10 in a week or 20 in
a week.
And it provides for their day-to-day
living expenses.
So, this is what we do in the
period of Jum'ah.
Also, Sheikh Shahbawi mentioned that the resources Allah
has given us, they are according to our
needs.
And in different times, Allah SWT has enabled
the human being to take out and extract
those resources from different parts of the world.
For example, when, you know, we needed coal
to run the engines and so on, the
steam engines, Allah SWT gave us a lot
of coal.
Even now, we are using that same coal
to be able to run our own services.
Then, you know, 100 years or so ago,
we saw in the middle of the desert,
the Middle East, Saudi Arabia, the Gulf states,
oil became very prevalent.
And because, again, we needed it to, you
know, for the fuel for our cars, for
the airplanes and everything.
So, Allah SWT gave that to the governments
and in different parts of the world.
Now, different technology has enabled us to extract
different resources using a new technology called fracking,
which is quite controversial.
If you know about it, some people say
it's causing earthquakes and so on.
So, this fracking, basically, they dip deep down
into the earth and they shoot high-powered
water into the cracks of the earth and
it basically extracts oil and gas from the
shale.
So, different resources that Allah SWT has put
into the earth, further, you will be utilised
on a different line.
Allah SWT will extract them when they are
needed.
And you see the boats, Mawakir.
Mawakir, this word Mawakir, is derived from the
word Masra.
And the word Masra means to actually, when
sailing through the ocean, it makes a sound.
So, you see that any kind of sailboat,
first of all, we have engines nowadays and
the engines make most of the sound.
But if you have a boat, which doesn't
have any type of engine, you disassemble it
and you put it in the water, it
actually makes a sound as it's cutting through
the ocean.
And that is why the cutting, most of
the boats at the top, they have a
very sharp blade, which enables the boat to
move very smoothly as it cuts through the
ocean.
So, Allah is using that word here.
You see, boats, Mawakir, they are cutting what
He tells them to be cutting and also
they are doing this wide so that you
can travel to different lands and see what
He tells them to be cutting.
So, you can see from His public, so
you can see from His sustenance, go to
different lands and find and explore.
And the Muslims were at the forefront of
travelling to different lands, different lands, different civilizations
and so on.
This was something the Muslims were very, very
good at doing.
And when you get His sustenance and you
get the Qadr from the different lands, you
will be grateful for doing that.
And He put to the earth Rawasi.
Rawasi is the plural of Rasi and it
refers to the mountains.
Allah SWT has put these mountains in the
middle of the moon, meaning Allah is in
the middle of the moon, so that the
earth will not shake.
And again, we have this earthquake in the
far right.
We find that most of the earthquakes, they
happen usually in areas which are mountains.
Allah SWT actually put the mountains there to
prevent earthquakes from happening.
But sometimes what happens is that, to just
give us a lesson, He shows us how
Allah SWT shows us those earthquakes.
Okay, so the majority of the places where
there are earthquakes, Allah SWT has put mountains
there to stabilize the earth, just like names
on the earth.
And He made rivers, streams, and ways so
that you could be guided.
So here if you look at this verse,
Allah actually mentioned three important aspects of the
earth.
Mountains, rivers, and land.
Mountains, rivers, and land.
So in the old days, the Arabs actually
used to use mountains as focal points too.
So as they were traveling through a desert,
a particular mountain came up, they know, okay,
we have to pass by this mountain, we
are on the right track.
And then another mountain comes up on the
right-hand side, they knew that they were
on the right track.
And of course, rivers.
You come across a river, you know that
this is the direction that I'm supposed to
be in because I'm supposed to cross a
river, or go along a river.
And some of them, some of them need
to wait.
So in ways nowadays we have on roads,
but in the old days, people basically used
to tread a certain path and it used
to become a way for people to follow.
So he made mountains, and he made rivers,
and ways, لَعَلَّةٌ مَعْتَدُونَ so that you could
be guided, وَعَلَىٰ اعْمَالٍ and he made signs
too.
Signs meaning, when you're traveling, you use all
of these things as signs.
And especially, Allah mentions after that, وَبِالنَّجْمِ مُمْ
يَعْتَدُونَ and especially through the stars, they are
guided.
They take guidance.
Now, the way for these to travel, they
used to have two main seasons of travel.
One was the summer time, and one was
the winter time.
Which Allah SWT said, رِحْلَةَ شِيْدَارِي وَسَّيْتِ رِحْلَةَ
شِيْدَارِي وَسَّيْتِ They used to travel in summer
and winter.
In summer, they used to go north, to
the lands of Syria.
They used to do the preparing over there.
And in the winter, they used to go
south, to Yemen.
And they used to trade over there.
So, in both of these situations, they used
to use the stars to get guidance.
So, Allah SWT uses very strong terminology here.
And the word He uses, وَبِالنَّجْمِ مُمْ يَعْتَدُونَ
And specifically, through the stars, they, the Quraish,
are guided.
So, you could have used this word in
different ways.
For example, it could be used وَيَعْتَدُونَ People
get guidance through the stars.
And it could be وَبِالنَّجْمِ مُمْ And with
the stars, people are guided.
But specifically وَبِالنَّجْمِ مُمْ يَعْتَدُونَ Especially through the
stars, referring to the Quraish, they get guidance.
So, the Quraish used to, in their travels,
used to be very particular about looking at
the stars, providing the guidance through the stars,
and guiding their way through the stars.
And this is also very common in the
Quraish, sailors, pilots, and so on.
They used the stars for the guidance.
And of course, now, with modern technology, you
know, GPS, and different kinds of beacons that
guide planes.
But originally, guidance was done through the stars
themselves.
Now, there are many other common dialogues.
How about that other comment?
So now, after mentioning all of these things
from the power of Allah, Allah asks the
question.
He says, can that entity or that who
creates be equal to the one who doesn't
create?
And there will be people, one is creating,
one is making, one is getting to the
ocean, one is having a statue that you
worship, just sitting there, not doing anything.
So even the Quraish used to believe that
Allah SWT is the creator of everything.
They used to believe that.
But at the same time, they used to
say, well, this statue allows Allah SWT to
do this already.
This one allows Allah SWT to do this.
This one allows Allah SWT to do that.
So Allah is asking the question that can
the one who creates or the one who
doesn't create, even according to your own belief,
can they be equal?
No, they cannot be equal.
And on top of that, really, if you
think, you have statues, they have two parts.
They have a shape, and they just sit
there.
They don't have any heart or they don't
have any kind of organs.
They cannot see, they cannot hear, they cannot
speak.
The human being is even better than the
statues.
Yet, those humans who worship those statues doesn't
make sense.
In terms of seeing, hearing, talking, human beings
have these qualities which make them better than
even the statues.
So how can they worship the statues?
In what sense?
Allah SWT says, can you not take a
lesson, do you not pay attention, do you
not think?
Allah SWT says, وَإِن كَانْتُ مِحْمَدَ اللَّهِ وَإِن
كَانْتُ سُوحًا If you were to count the
blessings of Allah SWT, you would not be
able to gather them.
There are so many blessings that Allah SWT
has received in our bodies, in our houses,
in our wives, in our children, in the
heavens and the earth.
Allah SWT says, you will not be able
to count them.
Allah SWT says in another surah, وَإِن كَانْتُ
مِحْمَدَ اللَّهِ وَإِن كَانْتُ سُوحًا وَإِن كَانْتُ سُوحًا
In the earth are signs for the people
who have conviction.
And even in yourselves, even in yourselves, you
do not see.
So even in the human being, just open
up any biology book and think about how
the heart functions, how the blood system works,
how the lungs work, how the brain works,
how the hearing works, how your reproductive system
works, how the digestive system works.
Even the balance that you have, as a
child, as a baby, they don't have the
balance to be able to walk properly.
But then the balance, how is it controlled?
Do you know how it is controlled?
There are small things inside your ears.
There are small things inside your ears that
enable you to balance.
If those go out of whack, then you
start becoming dizzy.
You suffer from vertigo.
So the first thing, if you are suffering,
what are you going to do?
You are going to look inside your ears.
You are going to check your ears to
see if there is any kind of infection.
And that stabilizes the condition of your ears
to see if there is parotid infection.
And then you have saliva, which can differentiate
between so many different tastes.
Sour, sweet, bitter, and all the different flavors
that we enjoy when we eat the food.
And the saliva that we produce, that enables
us to soften the food.
If we didn't have saliva, if we didn't
put bread in our mouth, that bread would
not become soft enough for us to swallow
it.
If you don't have, there is an opposite
in here.
I am saying all of these things.
Maybe I am wrong or not.
So, Allah SWT is saying, وَإِن كَرَّتُ الْمِعْنِ
قَوْلًا إِلَىٰ تَبْصُوهَا If you count, so, what
that means is, that pay attention and worship
that Allah SWT gave you.
Don't worship the statues.
Allah SWT is redeeming, forgiving and merciful.
But He has a disorder that He takes
away night and day.
He doesn't take those blessings away.
He continues to give you those blessings.
Even those people now who are worshiping the
Shaitan, He continues to give them the blessings.
Those who have denied His existence, He continues
to give them their blessings.
Yes.
I don't know about the rest of the
day, but I will continue next week.
I will not cover the rest of the
week.
I will cover the rest of the week.
Allah Hafiz.
Ola Ola Ola Ola Ola Ola Ola Ola
Ola Ola Ola Ola Ola Ola Ola Ola
Ola Ola Ola Ola Ola Ola Ola