35:2 Faatir (The Originator)

ثم ذكر انفراده تعالى بالتدبير والعطاء والمنع فقال: { مَا يَفْتَحِ اللَّهُ لِلنَّاسِ مِنْ رَحْمَةٍ فَلَا مُمْسِكَ لَهَا وَمَا يُمْسِكْ } من رحمته عنهم { فَلَا مُرْسِلَ لَهُ مِنْ بَعْدِهِ } فهذا يوجب التعلق باللّه تعالى، والافتقار إليه من جميع الوجوه، وأن لا يدعى إلا هو، ولا يخاف ويرجى، إلا هو. { وَهُوَ الْعَزِيزُ } الذي قهر الأشياء كلها { الْحَكِيمُ } الذي يضع الأشياء مواضعها وينزلها منازلها.

يخبر تعالى أنه ما شاء كان وما لم يشأ لم يكن وأنه لا مانع لما أعطى ولا معطي لما منع قال الإمام أحمد حدثنا علي بن عاصم حدثنا مغيرة أخبرنا عامر عن وراد مولى المغيرة بن شعبة قال إن معاوية كتب إلى المغيرة بن شعبة: اكتب لي بما سمعت من رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم فدعاني المغيرة فكتبت إليه إني سمعت رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم يقول إذا انصرف من الصلاة "لا إله إلا الله وحده لا شريك له له الملك وله الحمد وهو على كل شيء قدير اللهم لا مانع لما أعطيت ولا معطي لما منعت ولا ينفع ذا الجد منك الجد" وسمعته ينهى عن قيل وقال وكثرة السؤال وإضاعة المال. وعن وأد البنات وعقوق الأمهات ومنع وهات. وأخرجاه من طرق عن وراد به وثبت في صحيح مسلم عن أبي سعيد الخدري رضي الله عنه قال إن رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم كان إذا رفع رأسه من الركوع يقول "سمع الله لمن حمده اللهم ربنا لك الحمد ملء السماء والأرض وملء ما شئت من شيء بعد اللهم أهل الثناء والمجد أحق ما قال العبد وكلنا لك عبد اللهم لا مانع لما أعطيت ولا معطي لما منعت ولا ينفع ذا الجد منك الجد" وهذه الآية كقوله تبارك وتعالى "وإن يمسسك الله بضر فلا كاشف له إلا هو وإن يردك بخير فلا راد لفضله" ولها نظائر كثيرة. وقال الإمام مالك رحمة الله عليه كان أبو هريرة رضي الله عنه إذا مطروا يقول مطرنا بنوء الفتح ثم يقرأ هذه الآية "ما يفتح الله للناس من رحمة فلا ممسك لها وما يمسك فلا مرسل له من بعده وهو العزيز الحكيم" ورواه ابن أبي حاتم عن يونس عن ابن وهب عنه.

None can withhold the Mercy of

Allah Allah tells us that what He wills, happens, and what He does not will, does not happen. None can give what He withholds, and none can withhold what He gives. Imam Ahmad recorded that Warrad, the freed slave of Al-Mughirah bin Shu`bah, said, "Mu`awiyah wrote to Al-Mughirah bin Shu`bah, saying, `Write for me what you heard from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.' So Al-Mughirah called me and I wrote for him: `I heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ say when he finished praying,

«لَا إِلهَ إِلَّا اللهُ وَحْدَهُ لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ، لَهُ الْمُلْكُ وَلَهُ الْحَمْدُ، وَهُوَ عَلَى كُلِّ شَيْءٍ قَدِيرٌ، اللْهُمَّ لَا مَانِعَ لِمَا أَعْطَيْتَ وَلَا مُعْطِيَ لِمَا مَنَعْتَ، وَلَا يَنْفَعُ ذَا الْجَدِّ مِنْكَ الْجَد»

(There is no god (worthy of worship) except Allah alone, with no partner or associate. To Him be praise and dominion, and He is able to do all things. O Allah, there is none who can withhold what You give, and none can give what You withhold, and and good fortune and richness in anything cannot benefit one against Your will.) `And I heard him forbid gossiping, asking too many questions and wasting money, burying girls alive, disobeying one's mother, and withholding from others while asking from them."' This was also recorded by Al-Bukhari and Muslim, with several chain of narration. It was recorded in Sahih Muslim that Abu Sa`id Al-Khudri, may Allah be pleased with him, said, "When the Messenger of Allah ﷺ raised his head from bowing, he would say:

«سَمِعَ اللهُ لِمَنْ حَمِدَهُ، اللْهُمَّ رَبَّنَا لَكَ الْحَمْدُ مِلْءُ السَّمَاءِ وَالْأَرْضِ، وَمِلْءُ مَا شِئْتَ مِنْ شَيْءٍ بَعْدُ، اللْهُمَّ أَهْلَ الثَّنَاءِ وَالْمَجْدِ،أَحَقُّ مَا قَالَ الْعَبْدُ وَكُلُّنَا لَكَ عَبْدٌ، اللْهُمَّ لَا مَانِعَ لِمَا أَعْطَيْتَ وَلَا مُعْطِيَ لِمَا مَنَعْتَ، وَلَا يَنْفَعُ ذَا الْجَدِّ مِنْكَ الْجَد»

(Allah hears those who praise Him. O Allah, our Lord, to You be praise, filling the heavens and the earth, and filling whatever You wish besides. O Allah, the One deserving praise and glory. The truest words that any servant says -- and all of us are Your servants -- are: O Allah, there is none who can withhold what You give, and none can give what You withhold, and no wealth or majesty can benefit anyone against Your will.)" This Ayah is like the Ayah:

وَإِن يَمْسَسْكَ اللَّهُ بِضُرٍّ فَلاَ كَاشِفَ لَهُ إِلاَّ هُوَ وَإِن يُرِدْكَ بِخَيْرٍ فَلاَ رَآدَّ لِفَضْلِهِ

(And if Allah touches you with harm, there is none who can remove it but He; and if He intends any good for you, there is none who can repel His favor) (10:107). And there are many similar Ayat.

Whatever mercy God unfolds for mankind in the way of provision or rain none can withhold it; and whatever He withholds thereof none can release it after Him that is after His withholding it. And He is the Mighty Whose way prevails the Wise in what He does.

The word: رَّ‌حْمَةٍ (rahmah: mercy) appearing in verse 2: مَّا يَفْتَحِ اللَّـهُ لِلنَّاسِ مِن رَّ‌حْمَةٍ فَلَا مُمْسِكَ لَهَا (Whatever blessing Allah opens for the people, there is none to hold it back,) is general at this place. It includes blessings of one's religion in this world along with those of the Hereafter, such as, faith, knowledge, rightly guided conduct as well as the mission of a prophet and the station of a Waliyy or man of Allah. And it also includes material blessings in the present world, such as, provisions, means, comfort, health, wealth, property, recognition and things like that. The meaning of the verse is quite obvious. It is being said here that the person for whom Allah Ta’ ala intends to open the doors of His mercy, there is no one who can stop it.

Similarly, the second sentence: وَمَا يُمْسِكْ (wa ma yumsik: there is none to hold it back) is general, meaning: what Allah Ta’ ala holds back cannot he released by anyone. This includes hardships and sorrows of the world. Y or example, when Allah intends to shield some servant of His from these, then, there is no one who can dare harass or harm him. And included here is the matter of mercy as well in the sense that, should Allah Ta’ ala decide to deprive a person of His mercy due to some wise consideration of His, then, there is no one who can dare pass it on to him. (Abu Hayyan) Related to this very subject of the verse, there is a Hadith that reports that Sayyidna Mu'awiyah ؓ wrote to Sayyidna Mughirah Ibn Shu'abah ؓ ، his governor at Kufah, asking him to send back to him in writing some Hadith he had personally heard from the Holy Prophet ﷺ . Sayyidna Mughirah ؓ called Rawwad, his chief scribe, in his office and dictated his report as: 'I heard from the Holy Prophet ﷺ ", soon after he finished his salah his recitation of the words: اَللَّھُمَّ لَا مَانِعَ لِمَا اَعطَیتَ وَ لَا مُعطیَ لِمَا مَنَعتَ وَ لَا یَنفَعُ ذَا الجَدِّ مِنکَ الجَدُّ (0 Allah, for that which You give, there is no one to stop, and for that which you hold back, there is no one to give it out, and no efforts by any maker of effort1 works against Your will' ). (Ibn Kathir from Musnad of Ahmad)

And according to a narration of Sayyidna Abu Said al-Khudri ؓ عنہ in Sahih of Muslim, he said these words at the time he raised his head from the (bending) position of ruku' before another sentence: اَحَقُ مَا قَالَ العَبدُ وَ کُلُّنا لَکَ (that is, these words, out of all that a servant of Allah can say, are the most true, incumbent and superior).

Trust in Allah delivers from all hardships

The lesson taught by the cited verse (2) to all human beings is that one should not hope any benefit or fear any harm from anyone other than Allah, instead, one should keep his or her sight trained towards Allah alone. This is the master prescription for a better life in this world as well as in the life to come. This simple antidote delivers one from thousands of anxieties and sorrows. (Ruh-ul-Ma’ ani)

Sayyidna ` Amir Ibn ` Abd Qays ؓ said: Once I get to recite four verses of the noble Qur'an in the morning, I stop worrying about what would happen in the morning and what would happen in the evening. These verses are as follows. The first one is this very verse under study: مَّا يَفْتَحِ اللَّـهُ لِلنَّاسِ مِن رَّ‌حْمَةٍ فَلَا مُمْسِكَ لَهَا وَمَا يُمْسِكْ فَلَا مُرْ‌سِلَ لَهُ مِن بَعْدِهِ (Whatever blessing Allah opens for the people, there is none to hold it back, and whatever He holds back, there is none to release it thereafter - 35:2). The second verse having the same sense appears in Surah al-An'am, 6:17: وَإِن يَمْسَسْكَ اللَّـهُ بِضُرٍّ‌ فَلَا كَاشِفَ لَهُ إِلَّا هُوَ وَإِن يُرِ‌دْكَ بِخَيْرٍ‌ فَلَا رَ‌ادَّ لِفَضْلِهِ (And if Allah causes you some harm, no one is there to remove it except He Himself; and if He causes you some good, then He is powerful over everything - 6:17). The third verse is from Surah At-Talaq, 65:7: سَيَجْعَلُ اللَّـهُ بَعْدَ عُسْرٍ‌ يُسْرً‌ا (Allah will soon bring ease after a difficulty). The fourth verse is from Surah Hud, 11:6: وَمَا مِن دَابَّةٍ فِي الْأَرْ‌ضِ إِلَّا عَلَى اللَّـهِ رِ‌زْقُهَا (And there is no creature on earth whose sustenance is not on Allah - 11:6). (Narrated by Ibn al-Mundhir, as in Ruh ul-Ma'ani)

And when Sayyidna Abu Hurairah ؓ saw rain falling, he used to say: مُطِرنَا بنوء الفَتحِ (The rain has come upon us through the rise of fath: (the opening) and would, then, recite the verse: مَّا يَفْتَحِ اللَّـهُ لِلنَّاسِ مِن رَّ‌حْمَةٍ (Whatever blessing Allah opens for the people, there is none to hold it back,- 34:2). This term of 'rise of fath' used by him was in rebuttal of the false notion prevailing among Arabs of those days who used to attribute the coming of rains to the rise of particular stars and said that the rains had come upon them through the rise of such and such star. Sayyidna Abu Hurairah ؓ countered it by saying that (the mercy of) rains came to him through (the statement in) the verse of fath or opening. By this, he meant this very verse quoted above. He used to recite it particularly on such occasions. (Reported by Imam Malik in al-Mu'watta)

[ 1] This translation is based on one way of reading this prayer, that is, jidd (with kasrah on the letter jim, but if it is read as jadd, then the correct translation would be: 'no high status of a person may benefit him against Your decree. (Muhammad Taqi Usmani)

Whatever mercy God opens up to the people, none shall hold it back. In terms of understanding in the tongue of the Tariqah, this verse alludes to the opening of the folk of faith and recognition. Opening is a name for what comes from the Unseen unsought and unasked for. It is of two sorts: One is the influxes of provision and delightful life, unsought and unearned. The other is God-given knowledge, unlearned, conforming to the Shariah, never before heard, but familiar to the heart. The Pir of the Tariqah said, “Alas for this unlearnt knowledge! Sometimes I'm drowned in it, sometimes burnt by it.” In respect of this knowledge the speaker is the ocean, sometimes in flow, sometimes in ebb. When he stands in the station of expansiveness, he fills the world with limpidness. When he stands in the station of awe, he fills the world with human nature. Among the sorts of opening are beautiful dreams, the supplications of good people, and the acceptance of hearts. According to a report, “When God loves a servant, the folk of the heavens and the earth love him, and acceptance is placed for him in the earth.”