28:56 Al-Qasas (The Stories)

يخبر تعالى أنك يا محمد -وغيرك من باب أولى- لا تقدر على هداية أحد، ولو كان من أحب الناس إليك، فإن هذا أمر غير مقدور للخلق هداية للتوفيق، وخلق الإيمان في القلب، وإنما ذلك بيد اللّه سبحانه تعالى، يهدي من يشاء، وهو أعلم بمن يصلح للهداية فيهديه، ممن لا يصلح لها فيبقيه على ضلاله.وأما إثبات الهداية للرسول في قوله تعالى: { وَإِنَّكَ لَتَهْدِي إِلَى صِرَاطٍ مُسْتَقِيمٍ } فتلك هداية البيان والإرشاد، فالرسول يبين الصراط المستقيم، ويرغب فيه، ويبذل جهده في سلوك الخلق له، وأما كونه يخلق في قلوبهم الإيمان، ويوفقهم بالفعل، فحاشا وكلا.ولهذا، لو كان قادرا عليها، لهدى من وصل إليه إحسانه، ونصره ومنعه من قومه، عمه أبا طالب، ولكنه أوصل إليه من الإحسان بالدعوة للدين والنصح التام، ما هو أعظم مما فعله معه عمه، ولكن الهداية بيد اللّه تعالى.

يقول تعالى لرسوله صلى الله عليه وسلم إنك يا محمد "لاتهدي من أحببت" أي ليس إليك ذلك إنما عليك البلاغ والله يهدي من يشاء وله الحكمة البالغة والحجة الدامغة كما قال تعالى: "ليس عليك هداهم ولكن الله يهدي من يشاء". وقال تعالى: "وما أكثر الناس ولو حرصت بمؤمنين" وهذه الآية أخص من هذا كله فإنه قال: "إنك لا تهدى من أحببت ولكن الله يهدي من يشاء وهو أعلم بالمهتدين" أي هو أعلم بمن يستحق الهداية ممن يستحق الغواية وقد ثبت في الصحيحين أنها نزلت في أبي طالب عم رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم وقد كان يحوطه وينصره ويقوم في صفه ويحبه حبا شديدا طبعيا لا شرعيا فلما حضرته الوفاة وحان أجله دعاه رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم إلى الإيمان والدخول في الإسلام فسبق القدر فيه واختطف من يده فاستمر على ما كان عليه من الكفر ولله الحكمة التامة. قال الزهري حدثني سعيد بن المسيب عن أبيه وهو المسيب بن حزن المخزومي قال: لما حضرت أبا طالب الوفاة جاءه رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم فوجد عنده أبا جهل بن هشام وعبدالله بن أبي أمية بن المغيرة فقال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم: "يا عم قل لا إله إلا الله كلمة أحاج لك بها عند الله" فقال أبو جهل وعبدالله بن أبي أمية يا أبا طالب أترغب عن ملة عبدالمطلب؟ فلم يزل رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يعرضها عليه ويعودان له بتلك المقالة حتى كان آخر ما قال هو على ملة عبدالمطلب وأبى أن يقول لا إله إلا الله فقال رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم: "والله لاستغفرن لك ما لم أنه عنك" فأنزل الله تعالى: "ما كان للنبي والذين آمنوا أن يستغفروا للمشركين ولو كانوا أولي قربى" وأنزل في أبي طالب "إنك لا تهدي من أحببت ولكن الله يهدي من يشاء" أخرجاه من حديث الزهري وهكذا رواه مسلم في صحيحه والترمذي من حديث يزيد بن كيسان عن أبي حازم عن أبي هريرة قال: لما حضرت وفاة أبي طالب أتاه رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم فقال: "يا عماه قل لا إله إلا الله أشهد لك بها يوم القيامة" فقال لولا أن تعيرني بها قريش يقولون ما حمله عليه إلا جزع الموت لأقررت بها عينك لا أقولها إلا لأقر بها عينك نزل الله تعالى "إنك لا تهدي من أحببت ولكن الله يهدي من يشاء وهو أعلم بالمهتدين" وقال الترمذي حسن غريب لا نعرفه إلا من حديث يزيد بن كيسان ورواه الإمام أحمد عن يحيى بن سعيد القطان عن يزيد بن كيسان حدثني أبو حازم عن أبي هريرة فذكره بنحوه وهكذا قال ابن عباس وابن عمر ومجاهد والشعبي وقتادة إنها نزلت في أبي طالب حين عرض عليه رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم أن يقول لا إله إلا الله فأبى عليه ذلك وقال أي ابن أخي ملة الأشياخ وكان آخر ما قاله هو على ملة عبدالمطلب وقال ابن أبي حاتم حدثنا أبي حدثنا أبو سلمة حدثنا حماد بن سلمة حدثنا عبدالله بن عثمان بن خيثم عن سعيد بن أبي راشد قال كان رسول قيصر جاء إلي قال كتب معي قيصر إلى رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم كتابا فأتيته فدفعت الكتاب فوضعه في حجره ثم قال: "ممن الرجل؟ " قلت من تنوخ قال: "هل لك في دين أبيك إبراهيم الحنيفية؟" قلت إني رسول قوم وعلى دينهم حتى أرجع إليهم فضحك رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم ونظر إلى أصحابه وقال: "إنك لا تهدي من أحببت ولكن الله يهدي من يشاء".

Allah guides Whom He wills

Allah says to His Messenger : `O Muhammad:

لاَ تَهْدِى مَنْ أَحْبَبْتَ

(Verily, you guide not whom you like)' meaning, `the matter does not rest with you; all that you have to do is convey the Message, and Allah will guide whom He wills, and His is the ultimate wisdom,' as He says:

لَّيْسَ عَلَيْكَ هُدَاهُمْ وَلَـكِنَّ اللَّهَ يَهْدِى مَن يَشَآءُ

(Not upon you is their guidance, but Allah guides whom He wills.) (2:272)

وَمَآ أَكْثَرُ النَّاسِ وَلَوْ حَرَصْتَ بِمُؤْمِنِينَ

(And most of mankind will not believe even if you desire it eagerly.) (12:103) This Ayah is even more specific than the following:

إِنَّكَ لاَ تَهْدِى مَنْ أَحْبَبْتَ وَلَـكِنَّ اللَّهَ يَهْدِى مَن يَشَآءُ وَهُوَ أَعْلَمُ بِالْمُهْتَدِينَ

(Verily, you guide not whom you like, but Allah guides whom He wills. And He knows best those who are the guided.) meaning: Allah knows best who deserves to be guided and who deserves to be misguided. It was recorded in the Two Sahihs that this Ayah was revealed concerning Abu Talib, the paternal uncle of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. He used to protect the Prophet, support him and stand by him. He loved the Prophet dearly, but this love was a natural love, i.e., born of kinship, not a love that was born of the fact that he was the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. When he was on his deathbed, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ called him to Faith and to enter Islam, but the decree overtook him and he remained a follower of disbelief, and Allah's is the complete wisdom. Az-Zuhri said: "Sa`id bin Al-Musayyib narrated to me that his father, Al-Musayyib bin Hazan Al-Makhzumi, may Allah be pleased with him, said: "When Abu Talib was dying, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ came to him and found Abu Jahl bin Hisham and `Abdullah bin Abi Umayyah bin Al-Mughirah with him. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:

«يَا عَمِّ قُلْ: لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللهُ، كَلِمَةً أُحَاجُّ لَكَ بِهَا عِنْدَ الله»

(O my uncle, say La ilaha illallah, a word which I may use as evidence in your favor before Allah in the Hereafter.) Abu Jahl bin Hisham and `Abdullah bin Abi Umayyah said: `O Abu Talib, will you leave the religion of `Abdul-Muttalib' The Messenger of Allah ﷺ kept urging him to say La ilaha illallah, and they kept saying, `Will you leave the religion of `Abdul-Muttalib' -- until, at the very end, he said that he was on the religion of `Abdul-Muttalib, and he refused to say La ilaha illallah. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:

«وَاللهِ لَأَسْتَغْفِرَنَّ لَكَ مَا لَمْ أُنْهَ عَنْك»

(By Allah, I shall certainly seek forgiveness for you unless I am told not to.) Then Allah revealed:

مَا كَانَ لِلنَّبِىِّ وَالَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ أَن يَسْتَغْفِرُواْ لِلْمُشْرِكِينَ وَلَوْ كَانُواْ أُوْلِى قُرْبَى

(It is not (proper) for the Prophet and those who believe to ask Allah's forgiveness for the idolators, even though they be of kin) (9:113). And there was revealed concerning Abu Talib the Ayah,

إِنَّكَ لاَ تَهْدِى مَنْ أَحْبَبْتَ وَلَـكِنَّ اللَّهَ يَهْدِى مَن يَشَآءُ

(Verily, you guide not whom you like, but Allah guides whom He wills.)" This was recorded (by Al-Bukhari and Muslim) from the Hadith of Az-Zuhri.

The Excuses made by the People of Makkah for not believing, and the Refutation of Their Excuses

وَقَالُواْ إِن نَّتَّبِعِ الْهُدَى مَعَكَ نُتَخَطَّفْ مِنْ أَرْضِنَآ

(And they say: "If we follow the guidance with you, we would be snatched away from our land.") Allah tells us that this is the excuse which was given by some of the disbelievers for not following true guidance. They said to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ:

إِن نَّتَّبِعِ الْهُدَى مَعَكَ نُتَخَطَّفْ مِنْ أَرْضِنَآ

(If we follow the guidance with you, we would be snatched away from our land.), meaning, `we are afraid that if we follow the message of guidance that you have brought, and go against the pagan Arab tribes around us, they will seek to do us harm and wage war against us, and they may snatch us away from wherever we may be.' Allah said in response to them:

أَوَلَمْ نُمَكِّن لَّهُمْ حَرَماً ءَامِناً

(Have We not established for them a secure sanctuary,) meaning, the excuse they give is a lie and is false, because Allah has put them in a secure city and a venerated sanctuary which has been safe from the time it was built -- how could this sanctuary be safe for them when they believed in disbelief and Shirk, and how could it not be safe for them when they become Muslims and follow the truth

يُجْبَى إِلَيْهِ ثَمَرَاتُ كُلِّ شَىْءٍ

(to which are brought fruits of all kinds, ) means, all kinds of fruits from the surrounding regions, from At-Ta'if and elsewhere. Similarly, the people of Makkah engaged in trade and other goods also came to their city.

رِّزْقاً مِّن لَّدُنَّا وَلَـكِنَّ أَكْثَرَهُمْ لاَ يَعْلَمُونَ

(a provision from Ourselves, but most of them know not.) - this is why they said what they said.

The following was revealed regarding the Prophet’s longing for his uncle Abū Tālib to embrace faith You cannot guide whom you like to be guided but it is God Who guides whomever He will and He knows best those who will be guided.

Commentary

The word as am hidayah (guidance) is used for several meanings. One meaning is to show the path, which does not necessarily mean that the one shown the path will reach his destination. Another meaning of hidayah is to make one reach his destination. According to first meaning of the word it is but obvious that the Holy Prophet ﷺ and all other prophets were guides, and that imparting guidance was within their control, because it was the obligation of their duty. If they did not have the control over imparting guidance, how could have they fulfilled their obligation? Therefore, the statement made in this verse that he did not have control over guidance, relate to the second meaning of this word that is to make one reach his destination. It means that it was not his duty or obligation to put faith in one's heart in order to make him convert to Islam by his teachings and preaching. This is in the control of Allah Ta` ala only. The meaning and types of hidayah have already been discussed in detail under Surah Al-Baqarah.

Sahih Muslim has reported that this verse was revealed about the Holy Prophet ﷺ 's uncle, Abu Talib. It was his great desire that Abu Talib should accept the faith. It was for this desire that he was advised that it was not within his control to put faith in anybody's heart. It is observed in Ruh ul-Ma’ ani that one should abstain from discussing or passing judgment unnecessarily on the subject of acceptance of faith or otherwise by Abu Talib, because this may hurt the Holy Prophet ﷺ 's feelings for his natural love toward his uncle. (وَاللہُ سبحانَہُ و تعالیٰ اَعلَم)

Surely thou dost not guide whom thou lovest, but God guides whomsoever He will. “O MuḤammad, guidance is one of the characteristics of lordhood, so it is not proper for anyone described by mortal nature.” Giving the success of felicity and the realization of guidance is a characteristic of lordhood. Human nature has no access to it, and no one is suited for this attribute other than the majestic Unity. “O MuḤammad, you have the eminence of prophethood, the rank of messengerhood, the beauty of mediation, the praiseworthy station [17:79], and the Visited Pool. You are the Seal of the Prophets, the master of the messengers, the interceder for the sinners, and the candle of earth and heaven. The reins of your steed have passed beyond the heavens, and the courtyard of the Splendorous Throne was made the place for the soles of your feet. But guiding the servants and showing them the road to faith is not your work, nor is it in your hands. Surely thou dost not guide whom thou lovest. We drive those We want into the desert of bewilderment and We drag those We want by the chain of severity. In the beginninglessness beginning and in what preceded all prec- edents, We placed the crown of felicity on the heads of the folk of good fortune, and We beat this drum: 'These are in the Garden, and I don't care.' We wrote the inscription of wretchedness on the foreheads of another group, and We struck this knocker: 'These are in the Fire, and I don't care.'” O chevalier, no attribute of God inflicts more pain than the attribute of “I don't care.” When the Prophet said, “Would that MuḤammad's Lord had not created MuḤammad,” he was wailing in fear of these words. What was said by Abū Bakr-“Would that I were a tree to be lopped”-is the pain of this talk. Beautiful words were spoken by the Pir of the Tariqah: “What does the work is not that some- one has indolence and someone else has deeds. What does the work is that someone is unworthy in the Beginningless. The greatest of the abandoned ones, called Iblis, was busy in the workshop of deeds for many years. The folk of the Dominion were all beating the drum of his good fortune. They did not know that a garment of a different color had been woven for him in the workshop of the Beginningless. In the workshop of his deeds they saw scissors and silk, but from the workshop of the Beginningless appeared a black kilim: 'And he was one of the unbelievers' [2:34].”