Surah At-Tawba (9) — Ayah 97

(Ayah 97) ➊ {اَلْاَعْرَابُ اَشَدُّ كُفْرًا وَّ نِفَاقًا … : ’’ اَلْاَعْرَابُ ‘‘} is a generic term for those who live in the deserts and wilderness of Arabia; for the singular masculine, {’’اَعْرَابِي‘‘} is used, and for the feminine, { ’’اَعْرَابِيَّةٌ‘‘} is used; the plural is {’’اَعَارِيْبُ‘‘}. {’’ اَلْعَرَبُ ‘‘} is a generic term for the race that speaks the Arabic language, whether urban or nomadic; its singular is {’’ عَرَبِيٌّ‘‘}. Here, by "A‘rāb" is meant some individuals of their kind, not every person, because among them are some sincere believers, whose mention is coming in the following verses.

➋ By { ’’ اَلْاَعْرَابُ ‘‘} are meant those people who lived in the rural and desert areas far from Madinah Munawwarah; most of them did not become Muslims with true understanding and sincerity of heart, but rather became Muslims merely being overawed by the growing power of Islam. They had very little opportunity to come to the city (Madinah Munawwarah), to associate with Muslims, and to benefit from the company of the Prophet (peace be upon him), so they were purely rustic and uncouth people, in whose hearts neither gentleness had developed nor had they been touched by knowledge. Therefore, among them, the hypocrisy of those who were hypocrites was even harsher than the hypocrisy of the people of Madinah. Some scholars have written that the difference between the temperament of Bedouins and urban people is like the difference one feels between the fruit of a garden and the fruit of a mountain tree. That is why Allah Almighty sent the messengers from among the people of the towns: «{ وَ مَاۤ اَرْسَلْنَا مِنْ قَبْلِكَ اِلَّا رِجَالًا نُّوْحِيْۤ اِلَيْهِمْ مِّنْ اَهْلِ الْقُرٰى }» [ یوسف : ۱۰۹ ] "And We did not send before you except men to whom We revealed from among the people of the towns." And the last Messenger (peace be upon him) was born in the mother of all towns, Umm al-Qurā, Makkah, so that he would possess the refinement and gentleness of urban society. Shah Abdul Qadir (may Allah have mercy on him) writes: "In the nature of Bedouins, lawlessness, self-interest, and ignorance are deeply ingrained, so Allah Almighty, in His perfect wisdom, did not place much responsibility upon them nor granted them high ranks." (Mawduh)

Due to little interaction with people, it is natural for harshness to develop in temperament. Abdullah bin Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them) narrates that the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: "Whoever lives in the desert becomes hard-hearted, whoever pursues hunting becomes heedless, and whoever comes to the ruler is subjected to trial." [ أحمد : 357/1، ح : ۳۳۶۱۔ أبوداوٗد : ۲۸۵۹۔ ترمذی : ۲۲۵۶۔ نسائی : ۴۳۱۴، وصححہ الألبانی ]

Much light is shed on the harshness of some Bedouins by the hadith narrated by Umm al-Mu’minin Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her), who said that some Bedouins came to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) (they saw him kissing Hasan or Husayn, may Allah be pleased with them), so they said: "Do you people kiss your children?" The people said: "Yes!" So they said: "But by Allah, we do not kiss (them)!" So the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) said: "And what can I do if Allah has removed mercy from your hearts?" [ مسلم، الفضائل، باب رحمتہ صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم الصبیان … : ۲۳۱۷۔ بخاری : ۵۹۹۸ ] The commentators have written many incidents of the harshness of the Bedouins at this place.

97. 1 In the aforementioned verses, there was mention of those hypocrites who resided in the city of Madinah. And there were also some hypocrites who were Bedouins, meaning they lived in the villages outside Madinah; the inhabitants of these villages are called A‘rab, which is the plural of A‘rabi. Among these villagers, there is generally more harshness and roughness in their morals and character. Similarly, among them, those who were disbelievers and hypocrites were even more severe in disbelief and hypocrisy than the city dwellers, and were more ignorant of the commands of Shariah. In this verse, their mention and clarification of their character is given. Some hadiths also shed light on their character. For example, on one occasion, some Bedouins came to the service of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and they asked, أَتُقَبْلُونَ صِبْيَانَكُمْ "Do you kiss your children?" The companions replied, "Yes." They said, "By Allah! We do not kiss (our children)." The Messenger of Allah ﷺ, upon hearing this, said, "If Allah has removed mercy and compassion from your hearts, then what control do I have over that?" (Sahih Bukhari)

97. 2 The reason for this is that since they live far from the city, they do not have the opportunity to hear the words of Allah and His Messenger.

97. The desert Arabs are more severe in disbelief and hypocrisy, and more likely to be unaware of the limits [108] that Allah has revealed to His Messenger. And Allah is All-Knowing, All-Wise.

[108]
The Traits of the Bedouin Disbelievers and Hypocrites:

The number of Bedouins living in the wilderness, deserts, and villages was greater than that of the urban population, and all of them were such people who had no purpose in life except to somehow fill their stomachs. Their lives were on the level of animal existence; beyond this, they neither ever felt the need to think nor were they capable of thinking. When the foundation of the Islamic state was laid in Madinah, such broad news would reach them as well. These people had no moral ideology at all. They were only observing the confrontation that had begun between these Muslims and the Quraysh of Makkah, to see which of them would prevail so that they could join the victorious side. In this way, after the conquest of Makkah, they accepted Islam, but this was merely akin to saluting the rising sun. This did not create any lofty vision in their morals or objectives. In matters of understanding the religion, the villagers are more uncouth: they accepted Islam only because now it seemed more beneficial to do so, but the restrictions imposed by Islam—such as regular observance of prayer, payment of zakat, striving with life and wealth in the way of Allah, and patience and endurance in the face of hardships encountered in this path—these things they were not mentally prepared for. Such people, due to their desert life, possess a roughness and harshness in their nature, and being distant from gatherings of knowledge and wisdom, they are much less receptive to the influence of culture and refinement and the light of knowledge and gnosis. Therefore, their hypocrisy is also harsher than that of the urban hypocrites. Then, they rarely get such opportunities to remain in the company of the people of knowledge and reform, so that they may learn those rules and laws of Islam which Allah Almighty has revealed to His Messenger. Because the knowledge of religion is the very thing that softens a person's heart and makes him civilized, and those who are so deeply immersed in ignorance—neither can softness be created in their hearts, nor are they capable of understanding the wisdom behind the Shariah rulings.