Surah Al-Hajj (22) — Ayah 52

(Ayah 52) ➊ In the language, the word {’’تَمَنّٰي يَتَمَنّٰي تَمَنِّيًا‘‘} means to wish, desire, and long for, and it also means to recite and read. In Surah Al-Baqarah, verse (78): «{ وَ مِنْهُمْ اُمِّيُّوْنَ لَا يَعْلَمُوْنَ الْكِتٰبَ اِلَّاۤ اَمَانِيَّ }», {’’اَمَانِيَّ‘‘} is the plural of {’’أُمْنِيَّةٌ‘‘}, which also means desire and to recite. According to the first meaning, the point is that whenever We sent a Messenger or Prophet before you, Satan kept putting obstacles in the way of his every wish and desire. Obviously, what could be the Prophet’s wish except for people to accept faith and for the true religion to prevail? For this purpose, Satan kept trying to thwart every effort of the Prophets and Messengers, but Allah removed all obstacles coming from him and made His verses firm and His religion dominant, as He said: «{ هُوَ الَّذِيْۤ اَرْسَلَ رَسُوْلَهٗ بِالْهُدٰى وَ دِيْنِ الْحَقِّ لِيُظْهِرَهٗ عَلَى الدِّيْنِ كُلِّهٖ }» [ التوبۃ : ۳۳ ] “He it is Who sent His Messenger with guidance and the religion of truth, so that He may make it prevail over every religion.” According to the second meaning, it means that whenever a Messenger or Prophet came before you and recited the verses of Allah, Satan would create obstacles in people’s listening to them, as He said: «{ وَ قَالَ الَّذِيْنَ كَفَرُوْا لَا تَسْمَعُوْا لِهٰذَا الْقُرْاٰنِ وَ الْغَوْا فِيْهِ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَغْلِبُوْنَ }» [ حٰمٓ السجدۃ : ۲۶ ] “And those who disbelieved said, ‘Do not listen to this Qur’an and make noise in it, so that you may prevail.’” But Allah removes his obstacles and makes His verses firm. It can also mean that at the time of the Prophets’ recitation of the verses, Satan would cast doubts and suspicions in people’s hearts about the meanings of those verses, which Allah would later clarify and remove, as in Surah An-Nahl, verse (115): «{ اِنَّمَا حَرَّمَ عَلَيْكُمُ الْمَيْتَةَ }», a doubt was cast that, “Look, they declare what they themselves kill as lawful and what Allah kills as unlawful.” In Surah Al-Anbiya, verse (98): «{ اِنَّكُمْ وَ مَا تَعْبُدُوْنَ مِنْ دُوْنِ اللّٰهِ حَصَبُ جَهَنَّمَ }», a doubt was cast that then, Jesus (peace be upon him) would also, God forbid, be in Hell. Allah clarified both and removed the doubt cast by Satan and made His verses firm.

➋ { وَ اللّٰهُ عَلِيْمٌ حَكِيْمٌ :} That is, Allah knows very well all those devils who put obstacles in the way of the Prophets’ wishes, or who cast doubts and suspicions in people’s hearts at the time of the Prophets’ recitation of the verses, and He knows very well those doubts and suspicions and the ways to refute them. And He is the Most Wise, due to which He has given respite to the devils so that they themselves remain astray and lead others astray as well.

➌ Some commentators have written in the context of the revelation of this verse that once the Prophet (peace be upon him) was reciting Surah An-Najm, and when he reached verse (20): «{ وَ مَنٰوةَ الثَّالِثَةَ الْاُخْرٰى }», then unconsciously, Satan made these words flow from his tongue, or recited them in his tone and voice: {’’ تِلْكَ الْغَرَانِيْقُ الْعُلٰي وَ إِنَّ شَفَاعَتَهُنَّ لَتُرْتَجَي‘‘} “These are exalted goddesses, and their intercession is to be hoped for.” At this, the disbelievers of Quraysh became very happy that today our idols have also been praised, and the Prophet (peace be upon him) became very distressed. So this verse of Surah Al-Hajj was revealed and he was comforted that even before, Satan used to interfere in the revelation to the Prophets in this way, but Satan’s tricks do not succeed, etc. This story is in clear contradiction to those verses in which Allah has stated that He keeps a strong guard all around the Prophets until they have delivered Allah’s messages to the people (in such strict protection, it is not possible for Satan to have any effect in any way). See the last verses of Surah Al-Jinn from {’’ عٰلِمُ الْغَيْبِ فَلَا يُظْهِرُ ‘‘} to the end of the surah. The verifying scholars have strongly refuted this story. Al-Bayhaqi (may Allah have mercy on him) says, this story is fabricated. Ibn Khuzaymah (may Allah have mercy on him) has written that this story was fabricated by the heretics (atheists and irreligious people). Qadi Iyad has refuted it in “Al-Shifa.” Razi said that this story is false. Hafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him) tried to establish some basis for this incident on the basis of three mursal narrations and to interpret it, but the hadith scholar Al-Albani (may Allah have mercy on him) in his treatise {’’نَصْبُ الْمَجَانِيْقِ لِنَسْفِ قِصَّةِ الْغَرَانِيْقِ‘‘} has, with strong scholarly discussion, proved this story to be absolutely baseless and has cited references from ancient and modern hadith scholars and jurists who have refuted this incident with evidence.

52. 1. "Tamanni" has one meaning as "wish" or "an idea that came to the heart." The second meaning is "recited" or "read aloud." Accordingly, "umniyyah" will be translated as "wish," "thought," or "recitation." According to the first meaning, the implication is that Satan placed obstacles in the way of his wish so that it would not be fulfilled. And the wish of a Messenger or Prophet is always that as many people as possible should come to faith; Satan, by placing obstacles, wants to keep as many people as possible away from faith. According to the second meaning, the implication is that whenever Allah's Messenger or Prophet recites the revealed word and reads it aloud, Satan tries to insert his own words into its recitation or casts doubts about it into people's hearts and tries to undermine it. Allah Almighty removes Satan's obstacles or foils his attempts to mix things into the recitation, and by dispelling the doubts and suspicions created by Satan, He makes His word or His verses firm (established). In this, the Prophet ﷺ is being comforted that these tricks of Satan are not only with you ﷺ; with every Messenger and Prophet before you ﷺ, he has always done the same. However, you ﷺ should not be distressed by these mischiefs and conspiracies of Satan; just as We have always protected the previous Prophets (peace be upon them), you ﷺ will certainly remain protected, and despite Satan, Allah Almighty will make His word firm. Here, some commentators have mentioned the story of the Gharaniq (the cranes), which, according to the researchers, is not established at all, so there is no need to present it here at all.

52. And We did not send any messenger [80] or prophet before you but when he desired something, Satan would cast a suggestion into his desire. But Allah removes what Satan casts, then Allah makes His verses firm [82]. And Allah is All-Knowing, All-Wise.

[80]
The Difference Between a Messenger and a Prophet:

From this sentence, it is understood that a Messenger (Rasul) and a Prophet (Nabi) are two distinct personalities. A Prophet is general, and a Messenger is specific; in other words, every Messenger is indeed a Prophet, as has been said regarding Musa (Moses) ؑ: ﴿وَكَانَ رَسُوْلًا نَّبِيًّا﴾ [51: 19] meaning that Musa ؑ was both a Messenger and a Prophet. But not every Prophet is a Messenger. The difference between a Prophet and a Messenger has already been clarified under Surah Al-Ma'idah, verse 67.

[81] The meaning of "tamanni" as "desire" or "wish" is linguistically correct, as is "recitation." In the translation, the first meaning has been adopted. In this sense, it would mean that when a Prophet or Messenger wishes for something (and the greatest wish of a Prophet or Messenger is that people accept his call and that this call spreads and gains general acceptance), Satan creates various obstacles in the fulfillment of his wish. Sometimes, Satan casts such a whisper into the hearts of the Prophet and his followers. For example, when the disbelievers demanded a tangible miracle, even the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and the Companions began to think that if Allah were to show such a miracle, many benefits could be gained from it. Or, for instance, when the chiefs of Quraysh demanded that if you would, at some time, remove these weak and insignificant people (i.e., the weak Muslims) from your gathering, we would be willing to sit with you and listen to your call attentively, and the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, for the sake of the Muslims not being opposed and for the dominance of Islam, was even prepared to consider the demand of the disbelievers. At such times, timely admonition would come from Allah, and Allah would reveal such verses as He willed. The other aspect is that Satan begins to cast whispers into the hearts of other people in the way of fulfilling the wish of the Prophet or Messenger. These are those who deny the signs of Allah, create obstacles in the path of Islam, and begin to conspire against it. These people can only be of two types: one, the hypocrites, and the other, those whose hearts have become as hard as stone regarding the acceptance of the truth. But Allah ultimately foils all the conspiracies and efforts of such people. And the purpose for which He sends a Prophet or Messenger, He makes it firmer and firmer.

Satanic Whispers in the Wish of a Prophet or Messenger?

And if "tamanni" is understood to mean "recitation," then it would mean that when a Prophet or Messenger recites a verse, Satan casts whispers into the hearts of people regarding its correct understanding, causing them to fall into doubts and suspicions. For example, when Allah revealed this verse: ﴿حُرِّمَتْ عَلَيْكُمْ أُمَّهَاتُكُمْ﴾ some people immediately objected, saying, "How can it be that an animal killed by Allah is forbidden, but one killed by a human (slaughtered) is lawful?" This was purely a satanic whisper. Similarly, when this verse was revealed: ﴿اِنَّكُمْ وَمَا تَعْبُدُوْنَ مِنْ دُوْنِ اللّٰهِ حَصَبُ جَهَنَّمَ﴾ (meaning, "You and those whom you worship besides Allah will all be fuel for Hell"), and the Prophet ﷺ recited this verse, the disbelievers immediately objected, saying, "Worship has also been offered to Musa ؑ, Uzair ؑ, and the angels, so will these personalities also be fuel for Hell?" This too was purely a satanic whisper. On such occasions, Allah would reveal other clear and decisive verses, removing doubts, suspicions, and satanic whispers, and clarifying His command.

The Fabricated Story of the Intercession of Lat and Manat:

Here, it also seems necessary to clarify that regarding the context of revelation of this verse, a certain incident is mentioned in some tafsirs, which is as follows: Once, the Prophet ﷺ was reciting Surah An-Najm, and the polytheists of Makkah were also present nearby. When you recited the verses: ﴿اَفَرَاَيْتُمُ اللآَتَ وَالْعُزّيٰ وَمَنَات الثَّالِثَةَ الاُخْريٰ﴾ Satan, mixing his voice with yours, recited the following words in such a way that it seemed as if these words were uttered from your own tongue: ﴿تِلْكَ الْغَرَانِيْقُ الْعُليٰ وَاِنْ شَفَاعَتُهُنَّ لَتُرْجيٰ﴾ (These are exalted goddesses, i.e., Lat, Uzza, and Manat. And surely, their intercession can be expected with Allah.) Thus, when the polytheists of Makkah heard these words, their hearts were gladdened that their idols had been mentioned in a good way. So, they began to listen to your recitation with great attention, and at the end of Surah An-Najm, when you and the other Muslims prostrated, the polytheists also prostrated. But the story does not end here; the next part is that the news spread that a reconciliation and agreement had taken place between the Muslims and the disbelievers of Makkah. When this news reached the emigrants in Abyssinia, some of them returned to Makkah. But upon arrival, they found out that this news was false. This incident is incorrect for several reasons, for example:
1. All these narrations have interrupted and disconnected chains of transmission. Therefore, these narrations are unreliable. For this reason, there is no such narration mentioned in the six authentic books (Sihah Sitta).
2. In these verses, even before "this satanic whisper," the condemnation of idols and goddesses is mentioned, and also after. Therefore, this praiseworthy mention of the idols in between does not fit in any way.
3. From a historical perspective, these narrations are incorrect because the incident of migration occurred in the 5th year of Prophethood, and those emigrants who returned to Makkah due to this false rumor came back only three months later, whereas this Surah is Madinan, and there is at least an eight or nine-year gap between the return from Abyssinia and the revelation of this Surah.

[82]
The Different Effects of Satanic Whispers on Different People:

In these narrations, in fact, a response is given to an objection of the disbelievers, which is: "Why does Allah, Who later sends clear and decisive verses to refute doubts and suspicions, not send such clear commands in the first place that doubts and suspicions do not arise at all?" This objection, in fact, reflects the cunning of the perverse and ill-natured disbelievers, and its answer has already been given at the beginning of Surah Al-Imran regarding the verses that are allegorical (mutashabihat) and those that are decisive (muhkamat) [آيت نمبر 7], and here it is also stated in other words. In summary:
1. Only those people fall into doubts who are hypocrites or stubborn disbelievers.
2. Such verses only increase the faith of the believers, and they understand that all of this is from Allah and is true.
3. Such verses are, in fact, a test and trial for all people, through which it can be known where each person stands—whether he belongs to the hypocrites or to those who believe in Allah.