17:110 Al-Israa (The Night Journey)

بقول تعالى لعباده: { ادْعُوا اللَّهَ أَوِ ادْعُوا الرَّحْمَنَ } أي: أيهما شئتم. { أَيًّا مَا تَدْعُوا فَلَهُ الْأَسْمَاءُ الْحُسْنَى } أي: ليس له اسم غير حسن، أي: حتى ينهى عن دعائه به، أي: اسم دعوتموه به، حصل به المقصود، والذي ينبغي أن يدعى في كل مطلوب، مما يناسب ذلك الاسم. { وَلَا تَجْهَرْ بِصَلَاتِكَ } أي: قراءتك { وَلَا تُخَافِتْ بِهَا } فإن في كل من الأمرين محذورًا. أما الجهر، فإن المشركين المكذبين به إذا سمعوه سبوه، وسبوا من جاء به. وأما المخافتة، فإنه لا يحصل المقصود لمن أراد استماعه مع الإخفاء { وَابْتَغِ بَيْنَ ذَلِكَ } أي: بين الجهر والإخفات { سَبِيلًا } أي: تتوسط فيما بينهما.

يقول تعالى قل يا محمد لهؤلاء المشركين المنكرين صفة الرحمة لله عز وجل المانعين من تسميته بالرحمن "ادعوا الله أو ادعوا الرحمن أياما تدعوا فله الأسماء الحسنى" أي لا فرق بين دعائكم له باسم الله أو باسم الرحمن فإنه ذو الأسماء الحسنى كما قال تعالى "هو الله الذي لا إله الا هو عالم الغيب والشهادة هو الرحمن الرحيم - إلى أن قال - له الأسماء الحسنى يسبح له ما في السموات والأرض" الآية وقد روى مكحول أن رجلا من المشركين سمع النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم وهو يقول في سجوده "يا رحمن يا رحيم" فقال إنه يزعم أنه يدعو واحدا وهو يدعو اثنين فأنزل الله هذه الآية وكذا روي عن ابن عباس رواهما ابن جرير وقوله "ولا تجهر بصلاتك" الآية. قال الإمام أحمد حدثنا هشيم حدثنا أبو بشر عن سعيد بن جبير عن ابن عباس قال نزلت هذه الآية ورسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم متوار بمكة "ولا تجهر بصلاتك ولا تخافت بها" قال كان إذا صلى بأصحابه رفع صوته بالقرآن فلما سمع ذلك المشركون سبوا القرآن وسبوا من أنزله ومن جاء به قال: فقال الله تعالى لنبيه صلى الله عليه وسلم "ولا تجهر بصلاتك" أي بقراءتك فيسمع المشركون فيسبون القرآن "ولا تخافت بها" عن أصحابك فلا تسمعهم القرآن حتى يأخذوه عنك "وابتغ بين ذلك سبيلا" أخرجاه في الصحيحين من حديث أبي بشر جعفر بن إياس به وكذا رواه الضحاك عن ابن عباس وزاد فلما هاجر إلى المدينة سقط ذلك يفعل أي ذلك شاء وقال محمد بن إسحاق: حدثني داود بن الحصين عن عكرمة عن ابن عباس قال: كان رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم إذا جهر بالقرآن وهو يصلي تفرقوا عنه وأبوا أن يسمعوا منه فكان الرجل إذا أراد أن يسمع من رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم بعض ما يتلو وهو يصلى استرق السمع دونهم فرقا منهم فإذا رأى أنهم قد عرفوا أنه يستمع ذهب خشية أذاهم فلم يسمع فإن خفض صوته صلى الله عليه وسلم لم يسمع الذين يستمعون من قراءته شيئا فأنزل الله "ولا تجهر بصلاتك" فيتفرقوا عنك "ولا تخافت بها" فلا يسمع من أراد أن يسمع ممن يسترق ذلك منهم فلعله يرعوي إلى بعض ما يسمع فينتفع به "وابتغ بين ذلك سبيلا" وهكذا قال عكرمة والحسن البصري وقتادة نزلت هذه الآية في القراءة في الصلاة وقال شعبة عن أشعث بن سليم عن الأسود بن هلال عن ابن مسعود "ولا تخافت بها" من أسمع أذنيه قال ابن جرير: حدثنا يعقوب حدثنا ابن علية عن سلمة بن علقمة عن محمد بن سيرين قال: نبئت أن أبا بكر كان إذا صلى فقرأ خفض صوته وأن عمر كان يرفع صوته فقيل لأبي بكر لم تصنع هذا؟ قال أناجي ربي عز وجل وقد علم حاجتي فقيل أحسنت. وقيل لعمر لم تصنع هذا؟ قال أطرد الشيطان وأوقظ الوسنان قيل أحسنت فلما نزلت "ولا تجهر بصلاتك ولا تخافت بها وابتغ بين ذلك سبيلا" قيل لأبي بكر ارفع شيئا وقيل لعمر اخفض شيئا وقال أشعث بن سوار عن عكرمة عن ابن عباس: نزلت في الدعاء وهكذا روى الثوري ومالك عن هشام بن عروة عن أبيه عن عائشة رضي الله عنها أنها نزلت في الدعاء وكذا قال مجاهد وسعيد بن جبير وأبو عياض ومكحول وعروة بن الزبير وقال الثوري عن ابن عياش العامري عن عبدالله بن شداد قال كان أعرابي من بني تميم إذا سلم النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم قال: اللهم ارزقني إبلا وولدا: قال فنزلت هذه الآية "ولا تجهربصلاتك ولا تخافت بها". "قول آخر" قال ابن جرير حدثنا أبو السائب حدثنا حفص بن غياث عن هشام بن عروة عن أبيه عن عائشة رضي الله عنها نزلت هذه الآية في التشهد "ولا تجهر بصلاتك ولا تخافت بها" وبه قال حفص عن أشعث بن سوار عن محمد بن سيرين مثله "قول آخر" قال علي بن أبي طلحة عن ابن عباس في قوله "ولا تجهر بصلاتك ولا تخافت بها" قال لا تصل مراآة للناس ولا تدعها مخافة الناس وقال الثوري عن منصور عن الحسن البصري "ولا تجهر بصلاتك ولا تخافت بها" قال لا تحسن علانيتها وتسيء سريرتها وكذا رواه عبدالرزاق عن معمر عن الحسن به وهشام عن عوف عنه به وسعيد عن قتادة عنه كذلك. "قول آخر" قال عبدالرحمن بن زيد بن أسلم في قوله "وابتغ بين ذلك سبيلا" قال أهل الكتاب يخافتون ثم يجهر أحدهم بالحرف فيصيح به ويصيحون هم به وراءه فنهاه أن يصيح كما يصيح هؤلاء وأن يخافت كما يخافت القوم ثم كان السبيل الذي بين ذلك الذي سن له جبريل من الصلاة.

To Allah belong the Most Beautiful Names

Allah says:

قُلْ

(Say) O Muhammad, to these idolators who deny that Allah possesses the attribute of mercy and refuse to call Him Ar-Rahman,

ادْعُواْ اللَّهَ أَوِ ادْعُواْ الرَّحْمَـنَ أَيًّا مَّا تَدْعُواْ فَلَهُ الاٌّسْمَآءَ الْحُسْنَى

("Invoke Allah or invoke Ar-Rahman (the Most Gracious), by whatever name you invoke Him (it is the same), for to Him belong the Best Names.) meaning, there is no difference between calling on Him as Allah or calling on Him as Ar-Rahman, because He has the Most Beautiful Names, as He says:

هُوَ اللَّهُ الَّذِى لاَ إِلَـهَ إِلاَّ هُوَ عَالِمُ الْغَيْبِ وَالشَّهَـدَةِ هُوَ الرَّحْمَـنُ الرَّحِيمُ

(He is Allah, beside Whom none has the right to be worshipped but He the All-Knower of the unseen and the seen. He is the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.) (59:22) Until His saying;

لَهُ الاٌّسْمَآءُ الْحُسْنَى يُسَبِّحُ لَهُ مَا فِى السَّمَـوَتِ وَالاٌّرْضِ

(To Him belong the Best Names. All that is in the heavens and the earth glorify Him.) 59:24 Makhul reported that one of the idolators heard the Prophet saying when he was prostrating: "O Most Gracious, O Most Merciful." The idolator said, he claims to pray to One, but he is praying to two! Then Allah revealed this Ayah. This was also narrated from Ibn `Abbas, and by Ibn Jarir.

The Command to recite neither loudly nor softly

وَلاَ تَجْهَرْ بِصَلاتِكَ

(And offer your Salah neither aloud) Imam Ahmad reported that Ibn `Abbas said: "This Ayah was revealed when the Messenger of Allah ﷺ was preaching underground in Makkah."

وَلاَ تَجْهَرْ بِصَلاتِكَ وَلاَ تُخَافِتْ بِهَا

(And offer your Salah neither aloud nor in a low voice,) Ibn `Abbas said: "When he prayed with his Companions, he would recite Qur'an loudly, and when the idolators heard that, they insulted the Qur'an, and the One Who had revealed it and the one who had brought it. So Allah said to His Prophet :

وَلاَ تَجْهَرْ بِصَلاتِكَ

(And offer your Salah (prayer) neither aloud) means, do not recite it aloud, lest the idolators hear you and insult the Qur'an,

وَلاَ تُخَافِتْ بِهَا

(nor in a low voice,) means, nor recite it so quietly that your companions cannot hear the Qur'an and learn it from you.

وَابْتَغِ بَيْنَ ذَلِكَ سَبِيلاً

(but follow a way between. )" This was also reported in the Two Sahihs. Ad-Dahhak also narrated something similar from Ibn `Abbas, and added: "When he migrated to Al-Madinah, this no longer applied, and he recited as he wished." Muhammad bin Ishaq said that Ibn `Abbas said, "When the Messenger of Allah ﷺ recited Qur'an quietly while he was praying, the (idolators) would disperse and refuse to listen to him; if one of them wanted to hear some of what he was reciting in his prayer, he would try to listen without anyone seeing him, because he was afraid of them. If he realized that anybody knew he was listening, he would go away lest they harm him, so he would stop listening. If the Prophet lowered his voice, those who wanted to listen to his recitation could not hear anything, so Allah revealed,

وَلاَ تَجْهَرْ بِصَلاتِكَ

(And offer your Salah neither aloud) meaning, do not recite aloud, lest those who want to listen disperse for fear of attracting unwelcome attention,

وَلاَ تُخَافِتْ بِهَا

(nor in a low voice,) but do not make your voice so soft that the one who is trying to listen without being seen cannot hear anything at all. Perhaps he will pay attention to some of what he hears and benefit from it.

وَابْتَغِ بَيْنَ ذَلِكَ سَبِيلاً

(but follow a way between. )" This was the view of `Ikrimah, Al-Hasan Al-Basri and Qatadah that this Ayah was revealed concerning recitation in prayer. It was narrated from Ibn Mas`ud: "Do not make it so soft that no one can hear it except yourself."

Declaration of Tawhid

وَقُلِ الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ الَّذِى لَمْ يَتَّخِذْ وَلَدًا

(And say: "All the praises and thanks be to Allah, Who has not begotten a son...") because Allah has stated that the Most Beautiful Names belong to Him, and has declared Himself to be above having any faults or defects.

وَقُلِ الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ الَّذِى لَمْ يَتَّخِذْ وَلَدًا وَلَم يَكُنْ لَّهُ شَرِيكٌ فِى الْمُلْكِ

(And say: "All the praises and thanks be to Allah, Who has not begotten a son, and Who has no partner in (His) dominion...") indeed, He is Allah, (the) One, the Self-Sufficient Master, Who begets not, nor was He begotten, and there is none co-equal or comparable unto Him.

وَلَمْ يَكُنْ لَّهُ وَلِىٌّ مَّنَ الذُّلِّ

(nor He is low to have a supporter.) means, He is not so humble or weak that He needs to have a helper or supporter or adviser, rather He Alone, with no partner or associate, may He be exalted, is the Creator of all things and is the One Who is running and controlling them by His will, with no partner or associate.

وَلَمْ يَكُنْ لَّهُ وَلِىٌّ مَّنَ الذُّلِّ

(nor He is low to have a supporter).) Mujahid said: He does not form an alliance with anyone, nor does He seek the support or help of anyone.

وَكَبِّرْهُ تَكْبِيرًا

(And magnify Him with all magnificence.) means, glorify and extol Him far above whatever the transgressors and aggressors say. Ibn Jarir recorded that Al-Qurazi used to say about this Ayah,

وَقُلِ الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ الَّذِى لَمْ يَتَّخِذْ وَلَدًا

(And say: "All the praises and thanks be to Allah, Who has not begotten a son...") that the Jews and Christians said that Allah has taken a son; the Arabs said, "At Your service, You have no partner except the partner You have, and You possess him and whatever he owns;" and the Sabians and Magians said, "If it were not for the supporters of Allah, He would be weak." Then Allah revealed this Ayah :

وَقُلِ الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ الَّذِى لَمْ يَتَّخِذْ وَلَدًا وَلَم يَكُنْ لَّهُ شَرِيكٌ فِى الْمُلْكِ وَلَمْ يَكُنْ لَّهُ وَلِىٌّ مَّنَ الذُّلِّ وَكَبِّرْهُ تَكْبِيرًا

(And say: "All the praises and thanks be to Allah, Who has not begotten a son, and Who has no partner in (His) dominion, nor is He low to have a supporter. And magnify Him with all magnificence.") End of Tafsir Surah Subhan Surat Al-Isra'. And to Allah be the praise and blessings.

The Prophet s would often say ‘O God O Compassionate One’. So they said ‘He Muhammad (s) forbids us to worship more than one god and yet he calls upon another god together with Him God’. The following was then revealed Say to them ‘Invoke God or invoke the Compassionate One that is to say invoke Him by either of these Names or call upon Him by saying ‘O God! O Compassionate One!’ whichever ayyan is conditional; mā is extra in other words whichever of these two Names you invoke is beautiful — this predicate ‘beautiful’ is indicated by the following statement to Him to the One called by these two Names belong the Most Beautiful Names’ these two Names being from among them; and they the other Names are the following as mentioned in hadīth God there is no god except Him the Compassionate the Merciful the King the Holy the Peace the Securer the Controller the Mighty the Compeller the Sublime the Creator the Maker out of nothing the Fashioner the ever Forgiving the Almighty the Bestower the Provider the Deliverer the Knower the Seizer the Extender the Lowerer the Raiser the Glorifier the Abaser the Hearer the Seer the Arbiter the Just the Subtle the Aware the Forbearing the Tremendous the Forgiver the Thankful the High the Great the Preserver the Conserver the Reckoner the Majestic the Generous the Watcher the Responsive the Embracing the Wise the Loving the Glorious the Resurrector the Witnessing the Truth the Guardian the Strong the Firm the Patron the Praiseworthy the Numberer the Initiator the Restorer the Life-giver the Death-maker the Living the Eternal Sustainer the Originator the Magnificent the One the Single the Everlasting Refuge the Powerful the Omnipotent the Advancer the Deferrer the First the Last the Outward the Inward the Ruler Exalted the Benign the Relenting the Avenger the Pardoning the Gentle Master of the Kingdom One of Majesty and Munificence the Equitable the Gatherer the Independent the Availing the Restrainer the Harming the Benefactor the Light the Guiding the Innovator the Enduring the Inheritor the Reasonable the Patient as reported by al-Tirmidhī. God exalted be He says And do not be loud in your prayer when you recite the Qur’ān therein lest the idolaters hear you and curse you as well as the Qur’ān and the One Who has revealed it; nor be silent do not murmur therein so that your companions might be able to hear it and benefit therefrom; but seek between that loudness and silence a middle way.

Commentary

These are the last verses of Surah Bani Isra'il (Al-'Isra' ). The Surah began with a declaration of the purity and oneness of Allah Ta’ ala, and this is how it is being concluded. The revelation of these verses was based on some events. The first one came to pass on a certain day when the Holy Prophet ﷺ ، during his supplication, said 'Ya Allah' and 'Ya Rahman.' The Mushriks thought that he was calling two Gods. They said, 'he forbids us to call anyone else other than the One while he himself calls two deities.' The answer to this comment was given in the first part of the verse by saying that the most exalted Allah does not have a mere two names. He has many more names and all of them are the best of names. Call Him by any of these and it means the One and Only Allah. So, it was made clear that their apprehensions on that count were wrong.

As for the second incident, when the Holy Prophet ﷺ would recite the Qur'an loudly during Salah, the Mushriks made fun of him and passed audacious remarks berating the Qur’ an, archangel Jibra'il, even Allah Ta` ala. In response to that, the last part of this very verse was revealed where he has been advised to take to a middle course between the loud and the low, as the average voice took care of the functional necessity. And as for the opportunity the Mushriks had to cause pain to them over the loud pitch of the voice, they would be relieved of that too.

The third problem was that the Jews and Christians proposed children for Allah Ta` ala and the pagan Arabs said that idols were partners of Allah. The Sabians and the Magians used to hold that not being particularly close to Allah amounted to a personal loss of worth and honor. In answer to these three religious groups, the last verse was revealed where their three notions have been refuted.

It will be noted that, in this world, the one from whom strength and support is received is sometimes younger than one, like children, and sometimes an equal, like a partner, and sometimes older than one, like a supporter and helper. Here, in this verse, Allah Ta’ ala has refuted all three in the same order.

Ruling

The etiquette of recitation in Salah as given in verse no is that it should not be in a voice raised very high, nor should it be in a voice so lowered that those standing behind in the congregation cannot hear it. This injunction, as obvious, is particular with prayers wherein the recitation is voiced. As for the prayers of Zuhr and ` Asr, the recitation therein is totally unvoiced as proved from uninterrupted Sunnah.

In prayers with voiced recitation, included there are the Fard of Maghrib, ` Isha' and Fajr, as well as the prayer of Tahajjud - as in a Hadith which says: Once the Holy Prophet ﷺ passed by Sayyidna Abu Bakr and Sayyidna ` Umar ؓ at the time of Tahajjud. Sayyidna Abu Bakr was reciting in a lowered voice while Sayyidna ` Umar was reciting in a loud voice. The Holy Prophet ﷺ said to Sayyidna Abu Bakr ؓ ، 'why would you recite in such a lowered voice?' Sayyidna Abu Bakr said, 'the One I wanted to talk to in secret, Him I have made to hear, because Allah Ta` ala hears every voice, even the lowest of the low.' The Holy Prophet ﷺ said, 'recite somewhat loudly.' Then he said to Sayyidna ` Umar ؓ ، 'why do you recite in such a loud voice?' Sayyidna ` Umar (رح) said, 'I recite loudly to wake up the drowsy, and shaitan.' He ordered him too, 'you should recite in a voice somewhat lowered.' (Tirmidhi as quoted Mazhari)

Problems and their solutions relating to the loud or lowered rendering of the recitation of the Qur'an in Salah, or on occasions other than it, have been already explained in Surah al-A` raf (see commentary under Verse 55, Volume III). About the last verse beginning with: قُلِ الحَمدُ للہِ (say, 'alhamdulillah: praise belongs to Allah' ), the Hadith says that this is the 'ayah' (verse) of 'izzah' (power and glory). [ The reference is to the efficacy of the verse in seeking the help of Allah to overcome weaknesses and difficulties ]. (Reported by Abmad and at-Tabarani on the authority of Sayyidna Mu۔ adh al-Juhaniyy as in Mazhari) This verse also provides an essential guidance. The drive of the meaning is that it does not matter how much one devotes to the worship of Allah, one is still obligated to take his or her deed to be deficient as compared with His due right and confess to the likely shortfall in performing it. (Mazhari)

(Say (unto mankind): Cry unto Allah, or cry unto the Beneficent�) [17:110]. Said Ibn �Abbas: �One night in Mecca, The Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, stood up for the night vigil prayer. He kept saying in his prostration: �O Beneficent, O Merciful!� And so the idolaters said: �Muhammad used to call unto one Allah; now he is calling unto two gods: Allah and the Beneficent. We do not know of anyone by the name of the Beneficent except the beneficent of al-Yamamah (meaning Musaylimah the liar)�, and so Allah, exalted is He, revealed this verse�. Said Maymun ibn Mihran: �At the beginning of revelation, the Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give peace, used to write �In Thy name, O Allah� until this verse was revealed (Lo! It is from Solomon, and lo, it is: In the name of Allah the Beneficent, the Merciful) [27:30], after which he always wrote �In the name of Allah the Beneficent, the Merciful�. The Arab idolaters then commented: �We know this Merciful but who is the Beneficent?� As a response, Allah, exalted is He, revealed this verse�. Said al-Dahhak: �The people of the Book said to the Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace: �You mention very little the Beneficent and yet Allah mentions this name in the Torah in abundance�. Allah, exalted is He, revealed this verse as a response to them�. (And thou (Muhammad), be not loud-voiced in thy worship nor yet silent therein, but follow a way between) [17:110]. Abu �Abd Allah Muhammad ibn Ibrahim ibn Muhammad ibn Yahya informed us> his father> Muhammad ibn Ishaq al-Thaqafi> �Abd Allah ibn Muti� and Ahmad ibn Mani�> Hushaym> Abu Bishr> Sa�id ibn Jubayr> Ibn �Abbas who said regarding the words of Allah, exalted is He (And thou (Muhammad), be not loud-voiced in thy worship nor yet silent therein�): �This verse was revealed while the Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, was in hiding in Mecca. Whenever the unbelievers heard the Qur�an being recited, they reviled it and reviled the person who had brought it. Hence, Allah, glorious and majestic is He, said to His Prophet, Allah bless him and give him peace (And thou (Muhammad), be not loud-voiced in thy worship) i.e. upon reciting the Qur�an in prayer, lest the idolaters hear it and revile the Qur�an, (nor yet silent therein) such that your Companions do not hear you, (but follow a way between)�.