53:33 An-Najm (The Star)

إلى آخر السورة يقول تعالى: { أَفَرَأَيْتَ } قبح حالة من أمر بعبادة ربه وتوحيده، فتولى عن ذلك وأعرض عنه؟

يقول تعالى ذاما لمن تولى عن طاعة الله "فلا صدق ولا صلى ولكن كذب وتولى".

Chastising Those Who disobey Allah and stop giving Charity

Allah the Exalted chastises those who turn away from His obedience,

فَلاَ صَدَّقَ وَلاَ صَلَّى - وَلَـكِن كَذَّبَ وَتَوَلَّى

(So he (the disbeliever) neither believed nor prayed! But on the contrary, he belied and turned away!)(75:31-32),

وَأَعْطَى قَلِيلاً وَأَكْدَى

(And gave a little, then stopped) Ibn `Abbas said, "Gave a little, then stopped giving." Similar was said by Mujahid, Sa`id bin Jubayr, `Ikrimah, Qatadah and several others. `Ikrimah and Sa`id said: "Like the case of a people who dig a well, during the course of which they find a rock preventing them from completing their work. So they say, `We are finished' and they abandon the work." Allah's statement,

أَعِنْدَهُ عِلْمُ الْغَيْبِ فَهُوَ يَرَىٰ

(Is with him the knowledge of the Unseen so that he sees) means, does this person, who stopped giving for fear of poverty and ended his acts of charity have knowledge of the Unseen and thus knows that if he does not stop giving, his wealth will go away No. Such a person has stopped giving in charity for righteous causes and did not keep relations with kith and kin because of his miserliness, being stingy and out of fear of poverty. The Prophet said in a Hadith,

«أَنْفِقْ بِلَالُ، وَلَا تَخْشَ مِنْ ذِي الْعَرْشِ إِقْلَالًا»

(O Bilal, spend and fear not less provisions from the Owner of the Thone.) Allah the Exalted and Most honored said,

وَمَآ أَنفَقْتُمْ مِّن شَىْءٍ فَهُوَ يُخْلِفُهُ وَهُوَ خَيْرُ الرَّازِقِينَ

(And whatsoever you spend of anything (in Allah's cause), He will replace it. And He is the Best of providers.)(34:39)

The Meaning of `fulfilled

Allah the Exalted said,

أَمْ لَمْ يُنَبَّأْ بِمَا فِى صُحُفِ مُوسَى - وَإِبْرَهِيمَ الَّذِى وَفَّى

(Or is he not informed with what is in the Suhuf of Musa. And of Ibrahim who fulfilled), Sa`id bin Jubayr and Ath-Thawri said it means: "Conveyed all that he was ordered to convey." Ibn `Abbas said about:

وَفَّى

(fulfilled) "He delivered all that Allah ordered him to deliver." Sa`id bin Jubayr said about:

وَفَّى

(fulfilled), "What he was ordered." Qatadah said about:

وَفَّى

(fulfilled), "He obeyed Allah and delivered His Message to His creatures." This is the view preferred by Ibn Jarir because it includes the statement before it and supports it. Allah said,

وَإِذِ ابْتَلَى إِبْرَهِيمَ رَبُّهُ بِكَلِمَـتٍ فَأَتَمَّهُنَّ قَالَ إِنِّى جَـعِلُكَ لِلنَّاسِ إِمَامًا

(And (remember) when the Lord of Ibrahim tried him with (certain) commands, which he fulfilled. He said: "Verily, I am going to make you an Imam (a leader) for mankind.")(2:124) Therefore, Ibrahim fulfilled all the commands of his Lord, stayed away from all the prohibitions, and conveyed Allah's Message in its entirety. Therefore, he is worthy of being made a leader for mankind in all of his affairs, statements and actions. Allah the Exalted said,

ثُمَّ أَوْحَيْنَآ إِلَيْكَ أَنِ اتَّبِعْ مِلَّةَ إِبْرَهِيمَ حَنِيفًا وَمَا كَانَ مِنَ الْمُشْرِكِينَ

(Then, We have sent the revelation to you (saying): "Follow the religion of Ibrahim, a Hanif, and he was not of the idolators.")(16:123)

None shall carry the Burden of Any Other on the Day of Resurrection

Allah the Exalted explained what He has revealed in the Scripture of Ibrahim and Musa,

أَلاَّ تَزِرُ وَزِرَةٌ وِزْرَ أُخْرَى

(That no burdened person shall bear the burden of another.) Meaning, every soul shall carry its own injustices, whether disbelief or sin, and none else shall carry its burden of sin, as Allah states

وَإِن تَدْعُ مُثْقَلَةٌ إِلَى حِمْلِهَا لاَ يُحْمَلْ مِنْهُ شَىْءٌ وَلَوْ كَانَ ذَا قُرْبَى

(And if one heavily laden calls another to (bear) his load, nothing of it will be lifted even though he be near of kin.)(35:18) Allah said,

وَأَن لَّيْسَ لِلإِنسَـنِ إِلاَّ مَا سَعَى

(And that man can have nothing but what he does.) So just as no soul shall carry the burden of any other, the soul shall only benefit from the good that one earns for himself. As for the Hadith recorded by Muslim in the Sahih, that Abu Hurayrah said that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said,

«إِذَا مَاتَ الْإِنْسَانُ انْقَطَعَ عَمَلُهُ إِلَّا مِنْ ثَلَاثٍ: مِنْ وَلَدٍ صَالِحٍ يَدْعُو لَهُ، أَوْ صَدَقَةٍ جَارِيَةٍ مِنْ بَعْدِهِ، أَوْ عِلْمٍ يُنْتَفَعُ بِه»

(When a person dies, his deeds will cease except in three cases: from a righteous son who invokes Allah for him, or an ongoing charity after his death, or knowledge that people benefit from.) These three things are, in reality, a result of one's own deeds, efforts and actions. For example, a Hadith states,

«إِنَّ أَطْيَبَ مَا أَكَلَ الرَّجُلُ مِنْ كَسْبِهِ، وَإِنَّ وَلَدَهُ مِنْ كَسْبِه»

(Verily, the best type of provision that one consumes is from what he himself has earned, and one's offspring are among what he has earned.) The ongoing charity that one leaves behind, like an endowment, for example, are among the traces of his own actions and deeds. Allah the Exalted said,

إِنَّا نَحْنُ نُحْىِ الْمَوْتَى وَنَكْتُبُ مَاَ قَدَّمُواْ وَءَاثَارَهُمْ

(Verily, We give life to the dead, and We record that which they send before (them) and their traces.)(36:12) The knowledge that one spreads among people which they are guided by is among his actions and deeds. A Hadith collected in the Sahih states,

«مَنْ دَعَا إِلَى هُدًى كَانَ لَهُ مِنَ الْأَجْرِ مِثْلُ أُجُورِ مَنِ اتَّبَعَهُ، مِنْ غَيْرِ أَنْ يَنْقُصَ مِنْ أُجُورِهِمْ شَيْئًا»

(Whoever invites to guidance, he will earn as much reward as those who follow him, without decreasing anything out of their own rewards.) Allah said,

وَأَنَّ سَعْيَهُ سَوْفَ يُرَى

(And that his deeds will be seen.) meaning, on the Day of Resurrection,

وَقُلِ اعْمَلُواْ فَسَيَرَى اللَّهُ عَمَلَكُمْ وَرَسُولُهُ وَالْمُؤْمِنُونَ وَسَتُرَدُّونَ إِلَى عَـلِمِ الْغَيْبِ وَالشَّهَـدَةِ فَيُنَبِّئُكُمْ بِمَا كُنتُمْ تَعْمَلُونَ

(And say: "Do deeds! Allah will see your deeds, and (so will) His Messenger and the believers. And you will be brought back to the All-Knower of the unseen and the seen. Then He will inform you of what you used to do.")(9:105), Then Allah will remind you of your actions and recompense you for them in the best manner, good for good and evil for evil. Allah's statement here,

ثُمَّ يُجْزَاهُ الْجَزَآءَ الأَوْفَى

(Then he will be recompensed with a full and the best recompense.)

Did you see him who turned away from faith — that is the one who recanted when he was derided for it. He said ‘But I fear the punishment of God!’. But when the one deriding him guaranteed him that he would bear God’s chastisement for him provided that he reverted to his former idolatry and he then gave him a stated sum money he reverted —

Background of Revelation

Ad-Durr-ul-Manthur reports from Ibn Jarir that a person embraced Islam and one of his friends rebuked him for having abandoned his forefather's religion. He responded that he fears Allah's chastisement. The friend told him to make a certain payment to him, and he will take upon himself his punishment of the Hereafter. Thus he [ the new Muslim ] will be spared from the chastisement, and consequently he made the payment to him. The friend demanded more payment. After a scuffle, he made the additional payment to him, and for the balance a document was drawn up with signatures of witnesses. That person, according to Ruh-ul-Ma’ ani, was Walid Ibn Mughirah who was inclined towards Islam. But his friend reproached him and took the responsibility of punishment upon his own shoulders.

أَفَرَ‌أَيْتَ الَّذِي تَوَلَّىٰ (Did you see the one who turned away,… 53:33 word tawalla literally means 'to turn the face away', and it connotes in this context a person who turns away from Allah's obedience.

(Didst thou (O Muhammad) observe him who turned away, And gave a little, then was grudging?) [53:33-34]. Ibn �Abbas, al-Suddi and al-Musayyib ibn Sharik said: �This was revealed about �Uthman ibn �Affan who used to spend his wealth on alms and good causes. His milk brother, �Abd Allah ibn Abi Sarh, said to him: �What is this that you are doing? You have almost nothing left�. �Uthman said: �I have committed sins and mistakes and I seek the pleasure of Allah, glorious and majestic is He, in that which I do; I hope He will pardon me�. �Abd Allah said to him: �Give me your camel with its load and I will bear for you all your sins�. He gave him what he asked for and got people to witness it. He also stopped giving some of the alms he used to give. Allah, glorious and majestic is He, therefore, revealed (Didst thou (O Muhammad) observe him who turned away, And gave a little, then was grudging?) upon which �Uthman returned to what he used to do; he did even better�. Mujahid and Ibn Zayd said: �This was revealed about al-Walid ibn al-Mughirah. The latter had followed the religion of the Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace. But one of the idolaters reviled him for it, saying: �Why did you leave the religion of the elders whom you claimed were in error and are abiding in hellfire?� He said: �I feared Allah�s chastisement�. The man gave him assurances that he will bear in his stead the chastisement of Allah, glorious and majestic is He, in exchange for some of his wealth and on condition that he reverts to his idolatry. Al-Walid ibn al-Mughirah gave the man some of what they had agreed but then felt miserly and refused to give him the rest. Allah, exalted is He, then revealed this verse�.