Surah At-Tawba (9) — Ayah 108

(Ayah 108) ➊ {لَا تَقُمْ فِيْهِ اَبَدًا:} This can have two meanings: one is that you should never pray in it, because “standing” also means prayer, as in the hadith: [مَنْ قَامَ رَمَضَانَ اِيْمَانًا ] The second is that, let alone prayer, you should never even stand in that mosque, because that would honor them, just as you were forbidden from praying the funeral prayer for the hypocrites and from standing by their graves: «{ وَ لَا تُصَلِّ عَلٰۤى اَحَدٍ مِّنْهُمْ مَّاتَ اَبَدًا وَّ لَا تَقُمْ عَلٰى قَبْرِهٖ }» [ التوبۃ : ۸۴ ] Accordingly, you sent a man from the road to have that mosque burned and demolished.

➋ { لَمَسْجِدٌ اُسِّسَ عَلَى التَّقْوٰى مِنْ اَوَّلِ يَوْمٍ … :} Which mosque is meant by this? From the context, it is clearly the Mosque of Quba, because, unlike the Mosque of Dhirar, its foundation was laid from the very first day on piety and seeking Allah’s pleasure, and its special virtue is also mentioned in authentic hadiths. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: “Prayer in the Mosque of Quba is like ‘Umrah.” [ ترمذی، الصلاۃ، باب ما جاء فی مسجد قباء : ۳۲۴، عن أسید بن ظہیر رضی اللہ عنہ ] Abdullah ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) used to come to the Mosque of Quba every Saturday, either riding or walking, and would pray two rak‘ahs there. [ مسلم، الحج، باب فضل مسجد قباء… : ۱۳۹۹ ]

In the long hadith about the Hijrah in Sahih Bukhari, it is mentioned that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) stayed with Banu ‘Amr ibn ‘Awf for a little more than ten nights during the migration and laid the foundation of the mosque which is «{ اُسِّسَ عَلَى التَّقْوٰى مِنْ اَوَّلِ يَوْمٍ }», and he prayed in it. Then he mounted his camel and, accompanied by the people, moved forward until his camel sat down at the place of his mosque in Madinah, which was the place where Sahl and Suhayl (may Allah be pleased with them) used to dry dates. [ بخاری، مناقب الأنصار، باب ہجرۃ النبی صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم و أصحابہ إلی المدینۃ : ۳۹۰۶ ] This also shows that what is meant is the Mosque of Quba, but in some hadiths, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) identified it as the Prophet’s Mosque. Abu Sa‘id al-Khudri (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that two men argued about which mosque is meant by «{ اُسِّسَ عَلَى التَّقْوٰى مِنْ اَوَّلِ يَوْمٍ }». One said it is the Mosque of Quba. The other said it is the Mosque of the Messenger (peace be upon him), i.e., the Prophet’s Mosque. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: “It is this mosque of mine (the Prophet’s Mosque).” [ ترمذی، تفسیر القرآن، سورۃ التوبۃ : ۳۰۹۹ ] Its chain is also authentic, and in the hadiths mentioned in Ahmad, Muslim, and Nasa’i, the Prophet (peace be upon him) also identified it as the Prophet’s Mosque. The scholars have said there is no contradiction between these two hadiths, because the foundation of both mosques was laid on piety from the very first day, and the Prophet’s specifying the Prophet’s Mosque was so that no one would think that only the Mosque of Quba was founded on piety from the first day; rather, he clarified that the foundation of the Prophet’s Mosque was also laid on piety from the very first day, and it is even more so the subject of this verse.

➌ Any mosque whose foundation is laid to harm Muslims or to create division among them, it is not permissible to pray in it, and it must be demolished. It is not permissible to build another mosque alongside an existing one, except if the population is so large that they cannot all pray in one mosque. Similarly, any mosque whose founders established it to spread polytheistic beliefs and to show enmity and opposition to monotheism and the people of monotheism and Sunnah, and in which a grave has been built or polytheistic phrases have been written, one should also avoid praying in it. However, if the foundation of a mosque was laid by the whole community for the worship of Allah and for prayer, and later someone with polytheistic beliefs displays a symbol of shirk in it, which one is unable to remove, or if it is an old mosque and it is not known whether its founder laid its foundation on polytheistic beliefs, then it is permissible to pray there, because its foundation is on piety. Just as the polytheists had placed idols inside and around the Ka‘bah, but the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) used to pray and perform tawaf in it before the conquest of Makkah. When Allah granted power, those mosques should be purified from the manifestations and symbols of shirk, as the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) did.

One of the greatest causes of the decline of Muslims is their mutual division, which is why all disbelievers and hypocrites try to increase it as much as possible. Whether the division is of Sufi sects, jurisprudential sects, or political sects, the salvation, progress, and dominance of Muslims lies in ending all sects and uniting solely on the Book and Sunnah. There was a period in our brightest era when the Hanafis, Malikis, Hanbalis, and Shafi‘is each had their own mosques, schools, and courts, to the extent that in the very Masjid al-Haram, there were four separate congregations at four different spots. May Allah reward Sultan Abdul Aziz (may Allah have mercy on him), who ended this division throughout the Kingdom of Najd and Hijaz and in the House of Allah, uniting everyone under one imam. In other countries, there are still separate mosques for each sect. May Allah grant everyone the ability to abandon sectarianism and unite on monotheism and Sunnah, just as the first hundred years of the Muslims’ brightest era were free from these sects, separate courts, and mosques, and because of their unity on the Book and Sunnah, they dominated the whole world. All these sects and those after whom they are named appeared later; in the best generations, there was no trace of them.

➍ { فِيْهِ رِجَالٌ يُّحِبُّوْنَ اَنْ يَّتَطَهَّرُوْا … : ’’ يَتَطَهَّرُوْا ‘‘} and {’’ الْمُطَّهِّرِيْنَ ‘‘} These are from the form “{طَهُرَ } (karam)” in the taf‘ul pattern, i.e., the forms of {’’تَطَهَّرَ يَتَطَهَّرَ‘‘}, so their meaning, due to the addition of letters, is to be very pure and remain so. Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) narrates that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “This verse: «{ فِيْهِ رِجَالٌ يُّحِبُّوْنَ اَنْ يَّتَطَهَّرُوْا وَ اللّٰهُ يُحِبُّ الْمُطَّهِّرِيْنَ }» was revealed about the people of Quba; they used to cleanse themselves with water.” [ أبوداوٗد، الطھارۃ، باب فی الاستنجاء بالماء : ۴۴۔ ترمذی : ۳۱۰۰۔ ابن ماجہ : ۳۵۵، و صححہ الألبانی ]

➎ Hafiz Ibn Hajar al-‘Asqalani (may Allah have mercy on him) has narrated in Bulugh al-Maram from Ibn ‘Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them) that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) asked the people of Quba, “Allah praises you (what is the reason for this)?” They said, “We use water after stones.” Because of this hadith, many people, even where water is available, first use stones and then water, which spreads filth and blocks drains. Many people come out of the toilet holding their trousers in their hands, drying urine with stones, which looks very improper. The reality is that the people of Quba were praised because they used water for cleansing; when water is available, there is no need for stones. If someone is not satisfied with purification using only water, he is suffering from waswasah (obsessive doubts). As for the hadith mentioning water after stones, Hafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him) himself said in Bulugh al-Maram that al-Bazzar narrated it with a weak chain. The original hadith is in Abu Dawud and Tirmidhi, which Ibn Khuzaymah declared authentic from Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him), and it is without mention of stones. Hafiz Ibn Hajar (may Allah have mercy on him) explained in {’’ التلخيص الحبير‘‘} that it was narrated only by Muhammad ibn ‘Abd al-‘Aziz, and he is weak. Abu Hatim declared him weak. Yes, cleansing with only stones is also permissible and sufficient, and if it happens sometimes and then one further cleans with water, that is better; otherwise, when water is available, there is no authentic hadith about using stones, nor is there any need for it.

18. 1 That is, regarding your promise to go there and perform prayer, you did not go there to pray as promised. Rather, not only did you not pray there, but you also sent a few of your companions to demolish the mosque and put an end to it. From this, the scholars have deduced that any mosque built not for the worship of Allah, but with the intention of creating division among Muslims, is a Masjid Dhirar; it should be demolished so that division and discord do not arise among Muslims.

18. 2 Which mosque is meant by this? There is a difference of opinion: some have considered it to be Masjid Quba, and some have considered it to be Masjid Nabawi. A group among the Salaf has held both views. Imam Ibn Kathir states that if Masjid Quba is meant by the verse, then in some hadiths Masjid Nabawi is considered the subject. There is no difference between the two, because if Masjid Quba possesses the quality that its foundation was laid on piety from the very first day, then Masjid Nabawi, all the more so, possesses this quality and is its true subject.

18. 3 It is mentioned in the hadith that by this is meant the people of Quba. The Prophet ﷺ asked them, "Allah has praised your purification; what do you do?" They said, "Along with using stones, we also use water." Ibn Kathir states that this verse is evidence that it is recommended to pray in such an old mosque that was built solely for the worship of Allah, the One without partner, and also to pray with the congregation of the righteous and with those who are diligent in performing complete ablution and maintaining purity and cleanliness.

108. (O Prophet!) Never stand in that (mosque) for prayer. A mosque founded from the first day on piety [121] is more worthy that you should stand in it. In it are people who love to purify themselves, and Allah loves those who purify themselves.

[121]
Which Mosque is Built Upon Taqwa?

Which mosque was it and under what circumstances was it built? For clarification, consider the following ahadith:
1. Sayyiduna Abu Sa‘id Khudri ؓ says that two men disputed about which mosque was founded upon taqwa from the very first day. One said it was the Mosque of Quba, and the other said it was the Mosque of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. Then the Prophet ﷺ said, “It is this mosque of mine.” [ترمذي۔ ابواب التفسير]
2.
The Construction and Later Expansion of Masjid Nabawi:

Sayyiduna Anas ؓ narrates that when the Prophet ﷺ arrived in Madinah, he stayed in the elevated part of Madinah with the tribe of Banu ‘Amr bin ‘Awf. He stayed there for twenty-four (and according to another narration, fourteen) nights. Then he sent for Banu Najjar, who came with their swords hanging. The Prophet ﷺ mounted his she-camel, Sayyiduna Abu Bakr Siddiq ؓ was with him, and the chiefs of Banu Najjar surrounded him. From there, the Prophet ﷺ went and stayed at the house of Abu Ayyub. The Prophet ﷺ liked that wherever the time for prayer came, he would pray there, and he even prayed in the sheep pens. Then the Prophet ﷺ ordered the construction of the mosque. He called the chiefs of Banu Najjar and said, “Set a price for this garden of yours with me.” They replied, “No, by Allah, we will take its price only from Allah, the Exalted.” In that garden, there were some graves of polytheists, some ruins, and some date-palm trees. Then the Prophet ﷺ ordered that the graves of the polytheists be dug up, the ruins leveled, and the date-palm trees cut down and their wood set up towards the qiblah. On both sides, stone embankments were made. The Companions were carrying stones while reciting poetry, and the Prophet ﷺ was also reciting poetry with them and saying:
«اللہم لاخير الا خيرالاٰ خرة»
«فاغفر الانصار والمهاجرة»
(O Allah! The real goodness is the goodness of the Hereafter. O Allah, forgive the Ansar and the Muhajirin.) [بخاري۔ كتاب الصلوة۔ باب هل ينبش قبور مشركي الجاهليه]
3. Abu Sa‘id Khudri ؓ says that (at the time of the construction of Masjid Nabawi) we were each carrying one brick, and ‘Ammar ؓ was carrying two bricks. The Prophet ﷺ saw ‘Ammar ؓ and began to dust the dirt off his body and said, “Alas! A rebellious group will kill ‘Ammar ؓ. He will call them to Paradise, and they will call him to Hellfire.” Thus, ‘Ammar ؓ used to say: I seek refuge with Allah from tribulations. [بخاري۔ كتاب الصلوة۔ باب التعاون فى بناء المسجد]
4. ‘Abdullah bin ‘Umar ؓ says that in the time of the Prophet ﷺ, Masjid Nabawi was built of unbaked bricks, its roof was of palm branches, and its pillars were of palm wood. Sayyiduna Abu Bakr Siddiq ؓ did not add anything to it (during his caliphate), and Sayyiduna ‘Umar ؓ expanded the mosque but kept the building as it was in the time of the Prophet ﷺ, that is, of bricks and palm branches. However, the palm wood pillars were replaced. Then Sayyiduna ‘Uthman (may Allah be pleased with him) changed it, greatly expanded it, had its walls built of decorated stone and plaster, its pillars of decorated stone, and its roof made of teak wood. [بخاري۔ كتاب الصلوة۔ باب بنيان المسجد]