Surah Al-Mujaadila (58) — Ayah 11

(Ayah 11) ➊ {يٰۤاَيُّهَا الَّذِيْنَ اٰمَنُوْۤا اِذَا قِيْلَ لَكُمْ تَفَسَّحُوْا … :} In the previous verses, among the etiquettes of gatherings, the etiquette of prohibition from whispering was mentioned. In this verse, some more etiquettes are described. The need for these etiquettes arose because every person in the gathering of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) wished to be as close to him as possible, which would cause crowding in the gathering. Allah Almighty taught this etiquette that when it is said for the convenience of those present in the gathering to make room, so that everyone can sit comfortably and openly, then make room; do not insist on sitting on top of each other just for the sake of being close to the leader of the gathering. Similarly, if some more people come into the gathering and it is said to make room for them, then make room and do not feel constricted in your heart.

➋ { يَفْسَحِ اللّٰهُ لَكُمْ: ’’ يَفْسَحِ ‘‘} The verb is in the present tense, which is jussive because it is the answer to the imperative {’’ تَفَسَّحُوْا ‘‘}, and it has been given a kasrah for connection. That is, if you make room in the gathering, Allah Almighty will grant you spaciousness. The very first spaciousness is the spaciousness of the heart, that if you make room with happiness, the constriction of the hearts will be removed and there will be breadth for your brothers. Besides this, Allah Almighty will grant you spaciousness in every matter of this world and the Hereafter, because every deed is rewarded in kind. As Uthman bin Affan (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: [ مَنْ بَنٰی مَسْجِدًا لِلّٰهِ بَنَی اللّٰهُ لَهُ فِي الْجَنَّةِ مِثْلَهُ ] [مسلم، المساجد، باب فضل بناء المساجد والحث علیھا: ۲۵ /۵۳۳۔ بخاري: ۴۵۰ ] "Whoever builds a mosque for Allah, Allah will build for him a house like it in Paradise." And Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: [ مَنْ نَفَّسَ عَنْ مُّؤْمِنٍ كُرْبَةً مِّنْ كُرَبِ الدُّنْيَا نَفَّسَ اللّٰهُ عَنْهُ كُرْبَةً مِّنْ كُرَبِ يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ وَمَنْ يَسَّرَ عَلٰی مُعْسِرٍ يَسَّرَ اللّٰهُ عَلَيْهِ فِي الدُّنْيَا وَالْآخِرَةِ وَمَنْ سَتَرَ مُسْلِمًا سَتَرَهُ اللّٰهُ فِي الدُّنْيَا وَالْآخِرَةِ وَاللّٰهُ فِيْ عَوْنِ الْعَبْدِ مَا كَانَ الْعَبْدُ فِيْ عَوْنِ أَخِيْهِ ] [مسلم، الذکر، باب فضل الاجتماع علی تلاوۃ القرآن وعلی الذکر : ۲۶۹۹ ] "Whoever relieves a believer from one of the hardships of this world, Allah will relieve him from one of the hardships of the Day of Resurrection. And whoever makes things easy for someone in difficulty, Allah will make things easy for him in this world and the Hereafter. And whoever conceals the faults of a Muslim, Allah will conceal his faults in this world and the Hereafter. And Allah is in the aid of the servant as long as the servant is in the aid of his brother."

➌ {وَ اِذَا قِيْلَ انْشُزُوْا فَانْشُزُوْا: ’’ نَشَزَ يَنْشِزُ نَشْزًا‘‘ (ض،ن) ’’اَلرَّجُلُ عَنْ مَّكَانِهٖ‘‘} A person standing up from his place. When it is said, "Stand up," then stand up. That is, when the leader of the gathering or the organizers, in view of someone's knowledge, virtue, honor, or status, ask someone to vacate his place to bring him closer to the leader, he should stand up and not feel any constriction or resentment in his heart. Because the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: [ لِيَلِنِيْ مِنْكُمْ أُوْلُو الْأَحْلَامِ وَالنُّهٰی ثُمَّ الَّذِيْنَ يَلُوْنَهُمْ ثُمَّ الَّذِيْنَ يَلُوْنَهُمْ ] [مسلم، الصلاۃ، باب تسویۃ الصفوف و إقامتہا …: ۴۳۲ ] "Those closest to me among you should be those who are people of understanding and intellect, then those who are closest to them (in understanding and intellect)." Similarly, if the leader asks someone to vacate his place to consult with someone or to listen to them, he should stand up without any resentment. This etiquette was prescribed because sometimes ordinary Muslims, out of love for the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), or the hypocrites, due to the evil in their hearts, would occupy all the space near the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), and then if a senior companion like Abu Bakr or Umar (may Allah be pleased with them) came, they would not leave space for them, and if asked to stand up, they would take offense. Obviously, if this etiquette is not observed, no leader's gathering can function properly. Similarly, if the leader dismisses the gathering and asks everyone to stand up, they should do so and not feel insulted by it.

➍ {يَرْفَعِ اللّٰهُ الَّذِيْنَ اٰمَنُوْا …: ’’ يَرْفَعِ ‘‘} The verb is in the present tense, which is jussive because it is the answer to the imperative {’’ فَانْشُزُوْا ‘‘}, and it has been given a kasrah for connection. That is, when you are told to stand up, then stand up. When you adopt humility by understanding it as Allah's command and do not consider standing up as any kind of insult or lowering of status, Allah Almighty will raise in degrees those among you who believe, because the requirement of faith is humility, and faith and arrogance can never coexist. Abdullah bin Mas'ud (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: [ لاَ يَدْخُلُ الْجَنَّةَ مَنْ كَانَ فِيْ قَلْبِهِ مِثْقَالُ حَبَّةٍ مِنْ خَرْدَلٍ مِّنْ كِبْرٍ وَلاَ يَدْخُلُ النَّارَ مَنْ كَانَ فِيْ قَلْبِهِ مِثْقَالُ خَرْدَلٍ مِّنْ إِيْمَانٍ ] [ أبو داوٗد، اللباس، باب ما جاء في الکبر : ۴۰۹۱، وقال الألباني صحیح ] "He will not enter Paradise who has even a mustard seed's weight of arrogance in his heart, and he will not enter the Fire who has even a mustard seed's weight of faith in his heart."

➎ {يَرْفَعِ اللّٰهُ الَّذِيْنَ اٰمَنُوْا مِنْكُمْ:} Apparently, the words here should have been {’’يَرْفَعِ اللّٰهُ الَّذِيْنَ نَشَزُوْا مِنْكُمْ‘‘}, meaning "(when you are told to stand up, then stand up) so Allah will raise in degrees those who stand up," but Allah Almighty added the condition of {’’ اٰمَنُوْا مِنْكُمْ ‘‘} to exclude the hypocrites, that even if the hypocrites stand up on this command, they will not attain the honor of being raised in degrees; their abode is {’’الدَّرْكِ الْاَسْفَلِ مِنَ النَّارِ ‘‘} (the lowest level of the Fire). See Surah An-Nisa (145).

➏ {وَ الَّذِيْنَ اُوْتُوا الْعِلْمَ دَرَجٰتٍ:} This is actually the attribute of {’’ الَّذِيْنَ اٰمَنُوْا ‘‘}, because Allah Almighty has declared all the noble Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) as {’’ الَّذِيْنَ اُوْتُوا الْعِلْمَ ‘‘}. See the commentary of Surah Muhammad (16), and even the lowest level of faith cannot be attained without knowledge, as He said: « فَاعْلَمْ اَنَّهٗ لَاۤ اِلٰهَ اِلَّا اللّٰهُ » [ محمد : ۱۹ ] "So know that there is no deity except Allah." Yes, there are differences in the levels of knowledge and faith. Similarly, in Paradise, the ranks of the believers will be elevated according to their knowledge. Abdullah bin Amr (may Allah be pleased with them both) narrated that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: [ يُقَالُ لِصَاحِبِ الْقُرْآنِ اقْرَأْ وَارْتَقِ وَ رَتِّلْ كَمَا كُنْتَ تُرَتِّلُ فِي الدُّنْيَا فَإِنَّ مَنْزِلَكَ عِنْدَ آخِرِ آيَةٍ تَقْرَؤُهَا ] [ أبو داوٗد، الوتر، باب کیف یستحب الترتیل في القراء ۃ : ۱۴۶۴، وقال الألباني حسن صحیح ] "It will be said to the person of the Qur'an: Recite and ascend, and recite slowly as you used to recite slowly in the world; your position will be at the last verse you recite." And the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: [ إِنَّ اللّٰهَ يَرْفَعُ بِهٰذَا الْكِتَابِ أَقْوَامًا وَيَضَعُ بِهِ آخَرِيْنَ ] [ مسلم، صلاۃ المسافرین، باب فضل من یقوم بالقرآن ویعلمہ… : ۸۱۷، عن عمر رضی اللہ عنہ ] That is, Allah Almighty will raise in degrees those who believe and those who have been given knowledge; the more they have in faith and knowledge, the higher they will be raised in degrees. This verse proves the virtue of knowledge.

➐ Here is a question: Allah Almighty has mentioned {’’ الَّذِيْنَ اٰمَنُوْا مِنْكُمْ ‘‘} and {’’ وَ الَّذِيْنَ اُوْتُوا الْعِلْمَ ‘‘} with conjunction, which is for distinction, so how can both be attributes of the same described entity? The answer is that here, distinction is intended in the attributes, not in the described entity, and sometimes the attributes of the same described entity are brought in this way, as in Surah Al-A'la: « سَبِّحِ اسْمَ رَبِّكَ الْاَعْلَى (1) الَّذِيْ خَلَقَ فَسَوّٰى (2) وَ الَّذِيْ قَدَّرَ فَهَدٰى (3) وَ الَّذِيْۤ اَخْرَجَ الْمَرْعٰى » [ الأعلٰی : ۱ تا ۴ ] "Glorify the name of your Lord, the Most High, Who created and proportioned, and Who determined and guided, and Who brought forth the pasture."

➑ {وَ اللّٰهُ بِمَا تَعْمَلُوْنَ خَبِيْرٌ:} That is, Allah Almighty is fully aware of all your deeds, whether you stand up happily when commanded or stand up reluctantly due to hypocrisy and arrogance, and He will reward you according to your deeds.

11. 1. In this, Muslims are being taught the etiquettes of gatherings. The word "majlis" is general and includes every gathering in which Muslims assemble for the attainment of goodness and reward, whether it is a gathering of admonition and advice or the Friday gathering. Tafsir al-Qurtubi states that "sit openly" means to keep the circle of the gathering wide so that there remains space for those who come later to sit. Do not keep the circle tight so that a latecomer has to remain standing or has to make someone already seated stand up so that he may sit in his place, as both these things are inappropriate. Thus, the Prophet ﷺ also said: No person should make another person stand up from his place and then sit there himself. Therefore, make the circle of the gathering spacious and wide. Sahih Bukhari.

11. 2. That is, in return for this, Allah will grant you spaciousness in Paradise, or wherever you seek spaciousness and abundance, for example, in your home, in sustenance, in the grave, in every place, He will grant you abundance.

11. 3. That is, for jihad, for prayer, or for any good deed. Or it means that when you are told to rise and leave the gathering, then immediately go. This command was given to the Muslims because the Companions did not like to leave the Prophet's gathering, but in this way, sometimes those people were inconvenienced who wanted to have a private conversation with the Prophet.

11. 4. That is, Allah will raise the ranks of the people of faith above those who do not have faith, and the ranks of the people of knowledge above the people of faith, which means that along with faith, familiarity with the sciences of religion is a cause for further elevation of ranks.

11. O you who believe! When you are told, "Make room in assemblies [12]," then make room; Allah will make room [13] for you. And when you are told, "Rise [14]," then rise. Allah will raise those among you who have believed and those who have been given knowledge in degrees [15]. And Allah is fully aware of what you do.

[12]
Etiquettes of Gatherings:

In any gathering or assembly, for two or more people to separate themselves and whisper to each other is also against the etiquettes of a gathering. In this context, in this verse, Muslims are being commanded to observe a few more etiquettes of gatherings. In this regard, consider the following ahadith:
1. Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Umar رضي الله عنهما narrates that the Prophet ﷺ said: "No person should make another stand up and then sit in his place. He also said: (When space is tight) do not sit in a way that takes up too much room, and make space for those who come." [بخاری۔ کتاب الاستیذان۔ باب اذا قیل لکم تفسحوا فی المجالس]
2. Sayyiduna Jabir ؓ narrates that the Prophet ﷺ said: "None of you should make his brother stand up from his place on the day of Jumu'ah and then sit there himself, rather he should say: 'Spread out.'" [مسلم۔ کتاب السلام۔ باب من اتٰی مجلسا فوجد فرجۃ فیجلس۔۔]
3. Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah ؓ narrates that the Prophet ﷺ said: "If any of you stands up from his place (for some need) and then returns, he is more entitled to that place." [مسلم۔ کتاب السلام۔ باب اذاقام من مجلسہ ثم عاد الیہ فھواحق بہ]
[13] That is, Allah will remove the constriction of your hearts and material difficulties and will open the doors of His mercy for you.
[14] From this verse, the aforementioned ahadith, and some other texts, the etiquettes of gatherings that have been taught to Muslims are as follows:
1. Upon arriving at a gathering, one should greet the people present.
2. Then, wherever space is found, one should sit there. One should not inconvenience others, nor should one feel insulted by this.
3. When the people in the gathering see that space is becoming tight and newcomers are not finding a place, they should widen the circle of the gathering. Or, if it is a gathering like Jumu'ah, they should contract and sit closer together so that space is made for those arriving.
4. Every Muslim used to wish to sit close to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ in a gathering, or as in the Friday sermon, most people wish to sit close to the Imam. In such a situation, no one, no matter how great in honor or status, is permitted to make someone stand up and then sit in his place.
5. Observing ranks also has its place. If a junior, upon seeing a senior arrive, out of humility and respect for the newcomer, vacates his place and moves back, this will become a means of honor and elevation of ranks for the junior. And this often happened in the gatherings of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
6. If someone, for example during the Friday sermon, stands up from his place due to his wudu breaking or for some other reason, and after performing wudu returns, no one else should take possession of his place. Rather, the first person is more entitled to that place.
7. If the leader of the gathering commands the assembly to disperse and leave, or tells a particular person to leave for some reason, he should not feel any shame in this command, nor should he feel insulted or humiliated in complying with it.
8. If it is a gathering for eating, after finishing the meal, one should not engage in conversation and trouble or inconvenience the host, but rather, after finishing, should quickly seek permission and depart.
[15]
Discipline in Gatherings:

Do not think that if you sit farther from the leader of the gathering to make space for others, your status has been lowered, or if you are told to stand up and leave, you have been insulted. The real purpose of raising ranks is faith and knowledge, not who sits close to the leader of the gathering and who sits far from him. It should be clear that these commands or etiquettes of gatherings are not limited only to the gatherings of the Prophetic era, but even today it is necessary to act upon them, so that discipline is maintained and everyone gets the opportunity to benefit according to their rank. Islam teaches utmost discipline and refinement, not disorder. Then, when there are such commands of discipline regarding ordinary gatherings, in the field of jihad and the ranks of battle, even greater discipline and obedience to the leader is necessary.