Surah At-Tawba (9) — Ayah 24

(Ayah24) ➊ {قُلْ اِنْ كَانَ اٰبَآؤُكُمْ وَ اَبْنَآؤُكُمْ …:} This verse and the previous one are not related to any specific group of Muslims or any particular incident, but are general and for all times. In them, all Muslims are taught that the love of Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him) should be greater than anything else in the world. All these things that Allah has enumerated are naturally beloved to every human being. He said: «زُيِّنَ لِلنَّاسِ حُبُّ الشَّهَوٰتِ مِنَ النِّسَآءِ وَ الْبَنِيْنَ وَ الْقَنَاطِيْرِ الْمُقَنْطَرَةِ مِنَ الذَّهَبِ وَ الْفِضَّةِ وَ الْخَيْلِ الْمُسَوَّمَةِ وَ الْاَنْعَامِ وَ الْحَرْثِ ذٰلِكَ مَتَاعُ الْحَيٰوةِ الدُّنْيَا وَ اللّٰهُ عِنْدَهٗ حُسْنُ الْمَاٰبِ » [ آل عمران : ۱۴ ] “The love of desires has been beautified for people—women, children, heaped-up treasures of gold and silver, branded horses, cattle, and tilled land. These are the enjoyments of the worldly life, but with Allah is the best abode.” Loving these things is not a sin, rather, loving them and fulfilling their rights is a person’s responsibility. The only demand from Allah is that the love of any of these things should not exceed the love of Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him) and striving in His path. The measure for this is that if ever there comes a time when on one side is the command of Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him) and the need to sacrifice everything for the sake of Islam, and on the other side is the love of parents and relatives, and other worldly relationships or interests and dangers become obstacles in this path, then it is the duty of a Muslim to disregard everyone and every interest and follow the command of Allah and His Messenger (peace be upon him), and there should be no worldly benefit or danger that prevents him from obeying Allah’s command and striving in His path. Otherwise, Allah’s punishment can come at any time. This is the same subject that the Prophet (peace be upon him) has repeatedly clarified, as the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: “By Him in Whose hand is my soul! None of you can be a believer until I am more beloved to him than his own soul.” [ بخاری، الإیمان، باب حب الرسول صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم من الإیمان : ۱۵، عن أنس رضی اللہ عنہ] Abdullah bin Hisham (may Allah be pleased with him) says that we were walking with the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) and Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) was holding his hand. Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “You are more beloved to me than anything in the world except my own soul.” The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: “No, by Him in Whose hand is my soul! Not until I am more beloved to you than your own soul.” Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “Now you are more beloved to me than my own soul.” He said: “Now, O Umar! (Your faith is correct).” [ بخاری، الأیمان والنذور، باب کیف کانت یمین النبی صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم : ۶۶۳۲ ]

➋ { حَتّٰى يَاْتِيَ اللّٰهُ بِاَمْرِهٖ:} Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both) says that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: “When you engage in ‘inah (a form of usury through legal trickery), hold onto the tails of cattle, become content with agriculture, and abandon jihad, Allah will impose such humiliation upon you that He will not remove it until you return to your religion.” [ أبوداوٗد، البیوع، باب فی النہی عن العینۃ : ۳۴۶۲، و صححہ الألبانی ] Zamakhshari (may Allah have mercy on him) said that this verse is very severe; you will not see any verse more severe than this. It points to a person’s religious weakness and lack of conviction. Let a very pious and God-fearing person think justly in his heart: does he really have such religious firmness that he can leave all the things mentioned in this verse for the sake of Allah’s pleasure if they go against it, or does he fall into confusion over a little displeasure from someone or a minor worldly benefit, wondering what to keep and what to leave? Then, most often, the demands of his wife, children, friends, society, and business interests prevail over the demands of Allah’s religion. (Except whom Allah wills)

24. 1. In this verse as well, the subject has been stated in a very emphatic manner. عشیرۃ is a collective noun; it refers to the closest relatives with whom a person spends the days and nights of life, that is, family and tribe. اقتراف is used in the sense of earning or income. تجارت refers to trade, the buying and selling of goods with the aim of making a profit. کساد means recession, that is, goods are available for sale but there are no buyers, or the time for that thing has passed, due to which people no longer need it. Both situations are considered recession. مساکن refers to those houses which a person builds to protect himself from the severity of the seasons and accidents, to live in a dignified manner, and to protect his children. All these things are necessary in their own place, and their importance and usefulness are also indispensable, and the love for all these things in human hearts is natural (which is not blameworthy). But if the love for these things becomes greater than the love for Allah and His Messenger, and becomes an obstacle in striving in the way of Allah, then this is extremely disliked by Allah and becomes a cause of His displeasure. And this is the فسق (disobedience) due to which a person can be deprived of Allah’s guidance, as is clear from the threatening words at the end. In the ahadith, the Prophet ﷺ has also explained this subject clearly. For example, on one occasion, Hazrat Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: O Messenger of Allah! You are more beloved to me than everything except my own self. The Prophet ﷺ said: Until I become more beloved to him than his own self, he cannot be a believer. Hazrat Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: By Allah! Now you are more beloved to me than my own self. The Prophet ﷺ said: O Umar! Now you are a believer. (Sahih Bukhari) In another narration, the Prophet ﷺ said: By Him in Whose hand is my soul, none of you is a believer until I am more beloved to him than his father, his children, and all people. (Sahih Bukhari, Book of Faith) In another hadith, while stating the importance of jihad, he said: When you adopt بیع عینۃ (giving something on credit for a fixed period and then buying it back at a lower price), and hold the tails of cows and become content and satisfied with agriculture, and abandon jihad, then Allah will impose such humiliation upon you that you will not be able to come out of it until you return to your religion. (Abu Dawood)

24. (O Prophet! Say to the believers:) If your fathers, your sons, your brothers, your wives, your relatives, the wealth you have acquired, the trade you fear may decline, and the dwellings you love [22] are dearer to you than Allah, His Messenger, and striving in His way, then wait until Allah brings about His command. And Allah does not guide the defiantly disobedient people.

[22]
The Punishment for Abandoning Jihad Due to Worldly Desires:

In this verse, the relationships that are mentioned are those to which a person has a natural attachment, and some Muslims had fathers, sons, or wives who were disbelievers, making it difficult for them to leave them and migrate. Similarly, a person has great love for his earned wealth, his business, and his property, because these things are obtained as a result of his hard-earned labor and sweat. Therefore, the faith of the believers was tested with these very things: whether they would leave them and migrate and strive in the path of religion or not. Thus, the majority of the noble Companions ؓ fulfilled this standard as well. Only a few Muslims remained in Makkah or its surroundings due to these natural weaknesses. In this verse, Muslims are warned that if you do not remove these weaknesses, and if you show negligence in striving with your lives and wealth, and if you choose the path of love for relatives, ease, and worldly pursuits, and become entangled in the desires of the self and do not comply with Allah’s commands, then you will not attain true success. And it is mentioned in the hadith that when you abandon jihad, Allah will impose such humiliation upon you that you will never be able to escape from it. [ابن ماجه۔ كتاب الجهاد، باب التغليظ فى الجهاد]