20:94 Taa-Haa (Taa-Haa)

ثم أخذ موسى بلحية هارون ورأسه يجرُّه إليه، فقال له هارون: يا ابن أمي لا تمسك بلحيتي ولا بشعر رأسي، إني خفتُ - إن تركتهم ولحقت بك - أن تقول: فرَّقت بين بني إسرائيل، ولم تحفظ وصيتي بحسن رعايتهم.

فأخذ موسى برأس هارون ولحيته، يجره من الغضب والعتب عليه، فقال هارون: { يَا ابْنَ أُمَّ } ترقيق له، وإلا فهو شقيقه { لَا تَأْخُذْ بِلِحْيَتِي وَلَا بِرَأْسِي إِنِّي خَشِيتُ أَنْ تَقُولَ فَرَّقْتَ بَيْنَ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ وَلَمْ تَرْقُبْ قَوْلِي } فإنك أمرتني أن أخلفك فيهم، فلو تبعتك، لتركت ما أمرتني بلزومه وخشيت لأئمتك، و { أَنْ تَقُولَ فَرَّقْتَ بَيْنَ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ } حيث تركتهم، وليس عندهم راع ولا خليفة، فإن هذا يفرقهم ويشتت شملهم، فلا تجعلني مع القوم الظالمين، ولا تشمت فينا الأعداء، فندم موسى على ما صنع بأخيه، وهو غير مستحق لذلك فـ { قَالَ رَبِّ اغْفِرْ لِي وَلِأَخِي وَأَدْخِلْنَا فِي رَحْمَتِكَ وَأَنْتَ أَرْحَمُ الرَّاحِمِينَ }

يخبر تعالى عن موسى عليه السلام حين رجع إلى قومه فرأى ما قد حدث فيهم من الأمر العظيم فامتلأ عند ذلك غضبا وألقى ما كان في يده من الألواح الإلهية وأخذ برأس أخيه يجره إليه وقد قدمنا في سورة الأعراف بسط ذلك وذكرنا هناك حديث " ليس الخبر كالمعاينة " وشرع يلوم أخاه هارون فقال ما منعك إذ رأيتهم ضلوا ألا تتبعن أي فتخبرنى بهذا الأمر أول ما وقع أفعصيت أمري أي فما كنت قدمت إليك وهو قوله اخلفني في قومى وأصلح ولا تتبع سبيل المفسدبن قال يا ابن أم ترفق له بذكر الأم مع أنه شقيقه لأبويه لأن ذكر الأم ههنا أرق وأبلغ في الحنو والعطف ولهذا قال يا ابن أم لا تأخذ بلحيتي ولا برأسي الآية. هذا اعتذار من هارون عند موسى في سبب تأخره عنه حيث لم يلحقه فيخبره بما كان من هذا الخطب الجسيم قال إنى خشيت أن أتبعك فأخبرك بهذا فتقول لي لم تركتهم وحدهم وفرقت بينهم ولم ترقب قولي أي وما راعيت ما أمرتك به حيث استخلفتك فيهم قال ابن عباس وكان هارون هائبا مطيعا له.

He Aaron said ‘O son of my mother read ya’bna’ummi or ya’bna’umma meaning ummī ‘my mother’ the mention of her is more effective in provoking the affection of his heart — do not clutch my beard which he had seized with his left hand or my head! for he had seized his hair with his right hand in anger. Indeed I feared that if I followed you for inevitably a group of those who did not worship the calf would have followed me you would have said “You have caused division among the Children of Israel — and have been furious with me — and you did not wait for my word”’ concerning what my opinion would have been in this matter.

Commentary

When the Bani Isra'il were smitten with the mischief of calf-worship Sayyidna Harun (علیہ السلام) as the deputy of Sayyidna Musa (علیہ السلام) remonstrated with them but to no avail. They split into three factions. Those who remained loyal to Sayyidna Harun (علیہ السلام) and refused to be misled by Samiri and who numbered, according to Qurtubi, twelve thousand. The second faction adopted calf-worship with the reservation that if Sayyidna Musa (علیہ السلام) ، on his return, forbade them they would give it up. The third faction consisted of zealots who believed that Sayyidna Musa علیہ السلام would approve of their action and would himself join them in calf-worship but even if he did not, they themselves would never give up their new faith. When Sayyidna Musa (علیہ السلام) returned to his people he rebuked them for the mischief they had caused (as related in the earlier verses). Then he turned to Sayyidna Harun (علیہ السلام) and in a rage seized him by his beard and the hair of his head. He asked him that when the unbelief (کُفر) of the Bani Isra'il had become obvious, why he did not follow him to the Tur mountain and why he disobeyed his orders.

مَا مَنَعَكَ إِذْ رَ‌أَيْتَهُمْ ضَلُّوا ﴿92﴾ أَلَّا تَتَّبِعَنِ (What did prevent you from following me when you saw them going astray. - 20:92-93) One meaning of ittiba' (following) referred to in this verse is that when Sayyidna Haran (علیہ السلام) discovered that the Bani Isra'il had strayed from the righteous path, and were beyond recall, he should have abandoned them and joined Sayyidna Musa (علیہ السلام) at the Tur mountain. The other meaning of the word 'follow', as adopted by some commentators is that when the Bani Isra'il had forsaken the True Faith, Sayyidna Haran (علیہ السلام) should have fought them as Sayyidna Musa (علیہ السلام) would have done had he been present there. In any case Sayyidna Musa blamed Sayyidna Haran (علیہ السلام) that he should either have fought the Bani Isra'il or should have parted company with them and joined Sayyidna Musa (علیہ السلام) at the Tur mountain, and that his continuing to live with them was an unwise act. Sayyidna Haran (علیہ السلام) addressed him as يَا ابْنَ أُمَّ (0 my mother's son! ) which implied a plea not to judge him too harshly. His excuse was that if he had fought the Bani Isra'il or abandoned them with his twelve thousand men, it would have caused discord and strife among them. He said that he had understood the parting advice of Sayyidna Musa اخْلُفْنِي فِي قَوْمِي وَأَصْلِحْ (Take my place among my people and keep things right - 7:142) to mean that he should maintain harmony among the people and prevent differences at all cost. Besides, he said, he had hoped that when he (Sayyidna Musa علیہ السلام) would return, he would be able to handle the situation satisfactorily. A further excuse which he offered and which is reported elsewhere in the Qur'an was: إِنَّ الْقَوْمَ اسْتَضْعَفُونِي وَكَادُوا يَقْتُلُونَنِي (7:150) which means that the Bani Isra'il have taken me as weak because of the small number of my supporters and were about to kill me. Sayyidna Musa (علیہ السلام) did not press the matter any further with his brother. He then turned to Samiri and asked him to explain his conduct in this whole affair. Qur'an-does not indicate whether he accepted the excuses offered by Sayyidna Haran (علیہ السلام) or whether he considered the latter's mistake as one of ijtihad (assessment) and dropped the matter.

Differences between two prophets when the opinions of both could be right

In this affair the considered opinion of Sayyidna Musa (علیہ السلام) ، by way of ijtihad was that in the situation as it took shape Sayyidna Harun (علیہ السلام) should have totally dissociated himself from the Bani Isra'il by removing himself and his followers from their company, and that by continuing to stay with them he had compromised his position. On the other hand Sayyidna Harun (علیہ السلام) felt, by way of ijtihad, that such an action would have caused a permanent split among the Bani Isra'il and divided them into factions, and since there was hope that they would see the error of their way when Sayyidna Musa (علیہ السلام) returned, he thought it wise to adopt a conciliatory attitude towards them. The purpose of both the prophets was a strict adherence to the commands of Allah and to ensure that the Bani Isra'il remained steadfast in the observance of the True Faith and in their belief in the Oneness of Allah. Where they differed, however, was the manner in which these objectives could be achieved whether to make a complete break with the dissidents or to bear with them in the hope those things would improve ultimately. Both these views have merit and it is not possible to pass a firm and final judgment on them. The differences among the jurists based on ijtihad are of a similar nature and those holding different opinions cannot be charged of having broken any religious laws. As regards Sayyidna Musa (علیہ السلام) seizing his brother by the hairs, it only shows his anger and frustration with the situation which had developed during his absence, but on hearing his explanation, he prayed to Allah to forgive them both.