Surah Ibrahim (14) — Ayah 37

(Ayah 37) ➊ {رَبَّنَاۤ اِنِّيْۤ اَسْكَنْتُ مِنْ ذُرِّيَّتِيْ : ’’ مِنْ ‘‘} is partitive (denoting 'some of'). "Some offspring" indicates that when Ibrahim (peace be upon him) made this supplication, Ishaq (peace be upon him) had already been born. He and his mother Sarah (peace be upon her) had been settled by Ibrahim (peace be upon him) in another place (in Syria).

➋ {بِوَادٍ غَيْرِ ذِيْ زَرْعٍ:} refers to a low-lying valley, a place where water sometimes flows, especially a deep place between mountains is called a "valley." {’’ غَيْرِ ذِيْ زَرْعٍ ‘‘} In Makkah and its surroundings, and in fact in the entire land of Arabia, there was no agriculture, because apart from rain, there was no water available, and the land was either rocky or sandy. Especially in the area of Makkah, there was absolutely no water or agriculture. The long incident of bringing Ismail and his mother Hajar (peace be upon them) and leaving them among these uninhabited, barren mountains, then Hajar (peace be upon her) running between Safa and Marwah, searching for water, and the gushing forth of Zamzam, is mentioned in detail in Sahih Bukhari from Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both). [بخاری، أحادیث الأنبیاء، باب «یزفون » النسلان في المشي : ۳۳۶۴، ۳۳۶۵ ] Even after thousands of years, it is still {’’ غَيْرِ ذِيْ زَرْعٍ ‘‘}, although there is some agriculture and fruit, etc., in Taif, but the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: [ لَا تَقُوْمُ السَّاعَةُ حَتّٰی يَكْثُرَ الْمَالُ وَيَفِيْضَ، حَتّٰی يَخْرُجَ الرَّجُلُ بِزَكَاةِ مَالِهٖ فَلَا يَجِدُ أَحَدًا يَقْبَلُهَا مِنْهُ، وَحَتّٰی تَعُوْدَ أَرْضُ الْعَرَبِ مُرُوْجًا وَأَنْهَارًا ] "The Hour will not be established until wealth becomes abundant, so much so that a man will go out with the zakat of his wealth but will not find anyone to accept it from him, and until the land of Arabia returns to being meadows and rivers." [مسلم، الزکاۃ، باب الترغیب في الصدقۃ قبل أن… : 157/60، قبل ح : ۱۰۱۳ ] The word {’’ تَعُوْدَ ‘‘} (returns again) indicates that previously these mountains were also green and full of rivers like the mountains of Kashmir, and near the Day of Judgment, they will become like that again.

➌ {عِنْدَ بَيْتِكَ الْمُحَرَّمِ:} From this, some commentators have deduced that this supplication was made by Ibrahim (peace be upon him) after building the House of Allah. It is possible that this is so, but the House of Allah had been built long before Ibrahim (peace be upon him) went there, because it is the first house built on earth for the worship of Allah, and everyone knows that the worship of Allah on earth started from Adam (peace be upon him) or even before him. Its first founder is Adam (peace be upon him) or even a creation before him, such as angels or jinn, etc. However, in the time of Ibrahim (peace be upon him), due to floods, it had turned into a mound. Allah Almighty showed Ibrahim (peace be upon him) that place, and the Ka'bah was rebuilt on those original foundations. See Surah Al-Baqarah (128) and Surah Al-Hajj (26) { ’’ الْمُحَرَّمِ ‘‘ } because several acts that are lawful elsewhere, such as hunting, cutting trees, etc., are forbidden here, and it is forbidden to seize this House by force for anyone who does not honor it; it is not possible. That is why this House is also called {’’اَلْبَيْتُ الْعَتِيْقُ‘‘}, meaning it has always been free. One meaning of 'Ateeq is also ancient.

➍ { رَبَّنَا لِيُقِيْمُوا الصَّلٰوةَ: } It is understood that a person should settle himself and his children in a place where a mosque of the people of Tawheed already exists, or when a person settles in a place, the very first thing he should do is build his house and mosque simultaneously, even if it is just a four-walled structure of unbaked bricks, as our beloved Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) did upon arriving in Madinah, so that there is no difficulty in establishing prayer. Those settlements are not fit for living, no matter how grand they are, if they are devoid of mosques built for the worship of Allah alone, or if the mosques are so far from the house that it is difficult to reach them in time for prayer.

➎ {فَاجْعَلْ اَفْىِٕدَةً مِّنَ النَّاسِ تَهْوِيْۤ اِلَيْهِمْ : ’’ اَفْىِٕدَةً ‘‘ ’’فُؤَادٌ‘‘} is the plural, meaning hearts, or {’’وَفُوْدٌ‘‘}, meaning those who come. (Ayni) {’’ مِنَ النَّاسِ ‘‘} means some people's hearts. {’’ مِنْ ‘‘ } is partitive (denoting 'some of'). {’’ تَهْوِيْۤ ‘‘ ’’ هَوَي يَهْوِيْ ‘‘} (from the form hawā-yahwī) means to fall, and { ’’ هَوِيَ يَهْوٰي ‘‘ } (from the form hawiya-yahwā) means to desire and love. When something falls from a height, it falls very quickly and uncontrollably, meaning make some people's hearts such that they rush towards it uncontrollably. In the commentaries, it is narrated from some Companions and Followers that if Ibrahim (peace be upon him) had not specified "some people" in his supplication, then the hearts of all people, whether Muslims, Jews, or Christians, would have been drawn towards it. The acceptance of this supplication can be witnessed by every Muslim in the longing for this House in his heart and in the abundance of those who go there repeatedly for Hajj, etc.

➏ {وَ ارْزُقْهُمْ مِّنَ الثَّمَرٰتِ :} In Makkah, seeing fresh fruits from all regions of the world in every season is a visible sign of the acceptance of this supplication. For further explanation of this supplication, see Surah Al-Baqarah (124 to 127).