Surah Al-A'raaf (7) — Ayah 28

(Ayah 28) ➊ {وَ اِذَا فَعَلُوْا فَاحِشَةً …… :} Here, by {’’ فَاحِشَةً ‘‘} and { ’’ بِالْفَحْشَآءِ ‘‘ }, those acts of worship are meant which they themselves invented, for example, their men and women would perform Tawaf naked, saying, “How can we perform Tawaf in the clothes in which we have sinned?” Besides this, in this verse, two excuses of the polytheists for persisting in their indecency and immorality have been mentioned: one is that they found their elders doing so, and the other is that Allah has commanded it. The first point, that they found their elders doing so, was indeed true, so its negation is not mentioned here. However, in several other verses, it has been explained that following in the footsteps of forefathers is not a valid argument. See Surah Al-Baqarah (170) and Surah Al-Ma’idah (104). Shah Abdul Qadir (may Allah have mercy on him) says: “That is, you have heard that your father was deceived by Satan, so why do you bring your father’s authority as proof?” (Mawaddih) As for the second excuse, since it was incorrect both as a fact and as an argument, its refutation is mentioned here. The meaning is that when the evil and reprehensible nature of these acts has been established through the words of the Prophets, then how is it possible that Allah would command such indecency? (Razi)
➋ { اَتَقُوْلُوْنَ عَلَى اللّٰهِ …… :} In this verse, there is also a severe warning for those who, merely considering the customs of their forefathers as religion, think that acting upon them is a source of reward, and also for those followers who are caught up in the excessive veneration of Imams, Shaykhs, or any personality cult. Whenever the truth is presented to them with evidence and they are left speechless, they say, “Did our elders not know this? Were they ignorant? Our elders have always done this, and we will also remain upon it.” This is the very trait due to which the Jews remained upon Judaism, the Christians upon Christianity, and the innovators upon innovation.

28. 1. Before Islam, the polytheists used to perform Tawaf of the Ka'bah naked and would say that we perform Tawaf in the same state in which our mothers gave birth to us. Some say that they interpreted it as: the clothes we wear are those in which we continuously disobey Allah, so it is not appropriate to perform Tawaf in these clothes. Therefore, they would remove their clothes and perform Tawaf, and women would also perform Tawaf naked, only covering their private parts with a piece of cloth or leather. For this shameful act, they presented two more excuses. One was that Allah has commanded us to do this. Allah refuted this by saying: how can it be that Allah commands indecency? In the same way, you attribute to Allah that which He has not said. When they are told the truth, they present the same excuse in response: our elders have always done this, or our leaders and spiritual guides have commanded this. This is the very trait because of which the Jews remained on Judaism, the Christians on Christianity, and the innovators on their innovations (Fath al-Qadeer).

And when they commit an indecent act, they say, "We found our forefathers doing this [26], and Allah has commanded us to do it." Say, "Allah never commands indecency. Do you attribute to Allah what you do not know?"

[26]
Performing Tawaf Naked; Nudity is a Part of Every Ignorant Civilization:

In the era of ignorance, the Arabs did not consider becoming naked to be a shameful act. Bathing naked without any covering or screen, sitting on the roadside without hesitation to relieve themselves, or someone’s private parts being exposed in a gathering—these were not considered faults by them. And not only the Arabs, but in every ignorant society, this was the condition. Among the Arabs, an even more shameful act was that they would perform Tawaf of the Ka’bah while naked, and they had given this act a religious sanctity. In this shameful act, women were even ahead of men, as is evident from the following hadith. Abdullah bin Abbasؓما narrates that in the days of ignorance, a woman would perform Tawaf of the Ka’bah naked and would say, “Is there anyone who can lend me a cloth so that I may cover my private parts with it?” Then she would say, “Today, either some part of my private area will remain uncovered or all of it will remain uncovered; in any case, however much remains uncovered, I will not make it lawful for anyone.” The verse ﴿خُذُوْا زِيْنَتَكُمْ عِنْدَ كُلِّ مِسْجِدٍ﴾ [الاعراف: 31] was revealed regarding this [مسلم۔ كتاب التفسير], and this evil custom was abolished by the command of Allah after the conquest of Makkah. In 9 AH, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ sent Sayyiduna Abu Bakr Siddiq ؓ as the leader of Hajj, and later, for further emphasis, sent Sayyiduna Ali ؓ. Thus, in the gathering of Hajj, the general announcement that was made had two important points: after this year, no polytheist can enter the House of Allah, and secondly, from now on, no one can perform Tawaf of the Ka’bah naked. [بخاري۔ كتاب المناسك۔ باب لايطوف بالبيت عريانا]

Any Act Involving Indecency Cannot Be a Command of Allah:

Although the polytheists of Makkah did not consider nudity to be a source of shame or a disgraceful act, they did admit that such nudity and indecency were not good deeds. Then, when they were stopped from this act, they would reply that their forefathers and elders also used to perform Tawaf of the Ka’bah naked; those elders were more religious than them, so why should they not do it? In response to this blind following of ancestors, Allah gave this answer: when your greatest father and elder, Adam ؑ, was led astray by Satan, then why could these elders not fall prey to Satan? And since they considered this Tawaf to be sacred and a command of religion, they would immediately say that this must be Allah’s command, as our elders performed Tawaf naked. Allah gave this answer: Allah forbids indecent acts; how could He command such a thing? In other words, anything that involves indecency can never be a command of Allah.