سُوْرَةُ الْحَشْرِ
Surah Al-Hashr (59) — Ayah 5
مَا قَطَعْتُم مِّن لِّينَةٍ أَوْ تَرَكْتُمُوهَا قَآئِمَةً عَلَىٰٓ أُصُولِهَا فَبِإِذْنِ ٱللَّهِ وَلِيُخْزِىَ ٱلْفَـٰسِقِينَ ﴿5﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
What you (O Muslims) cut down of the palm-trees (of the enemy), or you left them standing on their stems, it was by Leave of Allâh, and in order that He might disgrace the Fâsiqûn (the rebellious, the disobedient to Allâh).
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
مَا
mā
Whatever
قَطَعْتُم
qaṭaʿtum
you cut down
مِّن
min
of
لِّينَةٍ
līnatin
(the) palm-trees
أَوْ
aw
or
تَرَكْتُمُوهَا
taraktumūhā
you left them
قَآئِمَةً
qāimatan
standing
عَلَىٰٓ
ʿalā
on
أُصُولِهَا
uṣūlihā
their roots
فَبِإِذْنِ
fabi-idh'ni
it (was) by the permission
ٱللَّهِ
l-lahi
(of) Allah
وَلِيُخْزِىَ
waliyukh'ziya
and that He may disgrace
ٱلْفَـٰسِقِينَ
l-fāsiqīna
the defiantly disobedient
Tafsir Taiseer ul-Quran — Maulana Abdul Rahman Kilani
Tafsir Taiseer ul-Quran (Facilitation of the Quran) is a comprehensive Quran commentary by Maulana Abdul Rahman Kilani, a renowned Salafi (Ahl al-Hadith) scholar from Pakistan. Known for his eloquent and accessible writing style, Kilani authored this tafsir with a focus on clarity — making Quranic meanings understandable to the common reader. The tafsir provides detailed historical context for verses related to battles and expeditions, and firmly refutes modernist ideologies using strong scriptural evidence. It is widely regarded as an invaluable resource for understanding the Quran and countering deviant interpretations. The tafsir is originally written in Urdu, translated to English by tohed.com.
Whatever palm trees you cut down or left standing on their roots, it was by Allah’s [4] permission, and so that He might disgrace the defiantly disobedient [5].
[4]
The Cutting of Trees by Muslims During the Siege and the Uproar of the Opponents:
Around Madinah, there was a very beautiful orchard belonging to Banu Nadir, which was called Buwairah. It had many date palm trees. When the Muslims wanted to lay siege to Banu Nadir, these trees were becoming an obstacle. Therefore, the Muslims cut down those trees which could become a hindrance, and where they were more dense, they set them on fire to clear the way for the siege. When the flames engulfed this orchard, at that time Sayyiduna Hassan bin Thabitؓ recited this poem:
﴿وَهَانَ عَلٰي سَرَاةِ بَنِي لُؤيٍّ﴾
﴿حَرِيْقٌ بالْبُوَيْرَةِ مُسْتَطِيْرٌ﴾
[بخاری۔ کتاب المغازی۔ باب حدیث بنی نضیر]
That is, the chiefs of Banu Lu'ayy (Quraysh) were tolerating this matter as something trivial, that the orchard of Buwairah was completely engulfed in flames and burning. When the Muslims cut these trees to clear the way, the opponents raised an uproar that, look, the Muslims are cutting down trees and committing fasad fil-ardh (corruption in the land), even though they claim to be reformers of the land. In response, Allah Almighty comforted the Muslims, saying that whatever date palm tree you cut or left standing on its roots, all of it was by Allah's command. And the reality was that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ had forbidden the Muslims from cutting trees during times of war and had declared it fasad fil-ardh. But due to the continuous breaches of trust by Banu Nadir, their eradication had become necessary. Therefore, for this specific occasion, Allah Almighty granted permission for it. And since the mention of this permission is not found anywhere in the Quran, it is also incidentally known from this that revelation would come to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ besides the Quran as well, which is generally called wahy khafi or wahy ghayr matlu (non-recited revelation). And another issue that is understood is that any destructive action that is unavoidable due to the necessities of war does not fall under the definition of fasad fil-ardh.
[5]
The Expulsion of Banu Nadir:
After the exile of Banu Qaynuqa', Banu Nadir were also exiled and expelled from Madinah in disgrace. As for Banu Qurayzah, the details of what happened to them have already been mentioned in the footnote of verse 26 of Surah Ahzab. Also, in the following hadith, they are mentioned in brief. Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Umar رضي الله عنهما narrates that Banu Nadir and Banu Qurayzah fought in battle, so the Prophet ﷺ exiled Banu Nadir and allowed Banu Qurayzah to remain and showed kindness to them, until Banu Qurayzah fought (after the Battle of Ahzab), so the Prophet ﷺ killed their men and distributed their women, children, and wealth among the Muslims, except for those who had already come to the Prophet ﷺ and joined him. The Prophet ﷺ granted them safety and they became Muslims. And the Prophet ﷺ exiled all the Jews. Among them were the Jews of Banu Qaynuqa' (the tribe of Abdullah bin Salam, and also Banu Harithah. In short, all the Jews of Madinah were exiled. [بخاری۔ کتاب المغازی۔ باب حدیث بنی نضیر۔ مسلم۔ کتاب الجہاد۔ باب اجلاء الیہود من الحجاز]
[4]
The Cutting of Trees by Muslims During the Siege and the Uproar of the Opponents:
Around Madinah, there was a very beautiful orchard belonging to Banu Nadir, which was called Buwairah. It had many date palm trees. When the Muslims wanted to lay siege to Banu Nadir, these trees were becoming an obstacle. Therefore, the Muslims cut down those trees which could become a hindrance, and where they were more dense, they set them on fire to clear the way for the siege. When the flames engulfed this orchard, at that time Sayyiduna Hassan bin Thabitؓ recited this poem:
﴿وَهَانَ عَلٰي سَرَاةِ بَنِي لُؤيٍّ﴾
﴿حَرِيْقٌ بالْبُوَيْرَةِ مُسْتَطِيْرٌ﴾
[بخاری۔ کتاب المغازی۔ باب حدیث بنی نضیر]
That is, the chiefs of Banu Lu'ayy (Quraysh) were tolerating this matter as something trivial, that the orchard of Buwairah was completely engulfed in flames and burning. When the Muslims cut these trees to clear the way, the opponents raised an uproar that, look, the Muslims are cutting down trees and committing fasad fil-ardh (corruption in the land), even though they claim to be reformers of the land. In response, Allah Almighty comforted the Muslims, saying that whatever date palm tree you cut or left standing on its roots, all of it was by Allah's command. And the reality was that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ had forbidden the Muslims from cutting trees during times of war and had declared it fasad fil-ardh. But due to the continuous breaches of trust by Banu Nadir, their eradication had become necessary. Therefore, for this specific occasion, Allah Almighty granted permission for it. And since the mention of this permission is not found anywhere in the Quran, it is also incidentally known from this that revelation would come to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ besides the Quran as well, which is generally called wahy khafi or wahy ghayr matlu (non-recited revelation). And another issue that is understood is that any destructive action that is unavoidable due to the necessities of war does not fall under the definition of fasad fil-ardh.
[5]
The Expulsion of Banu Nadir:
After the exile of Banu Qaynuqa', Banu Nadir were also exiled and expelled from Madinah in disgrace. As for Banu Qurayzah, the details of what happened to them have already been mentioned in the footnote of verse 26 of Surah Ahzab. Also, in the following hadith, they are mentioned in brief. Sayyiduna Abdullah bin Umar رضي الله عنهما narrates that Banu Nadir and Banu Qurayzah fought in battle, so the Prophet ﷺ exiled Banu Nadir and allowed Banu Qurayzah to remain and showed kindness to them, until Banu Qurayzah fought (after the Battle of Ahzab), so the Prophet ﷺ killed their men and distributed their women, children, and wealth among the Muslims, except for those who had already come to the Prophet ﷺ and joined him. The Prophet ﷺ granted them safety and they became Muslims. And the Prophet ﷺ exiled all the Jews. Among them were the Jews of Banu Qaynuqa' (the tribe of Abdullah bin Salam, and also Banu Harithah. In short, all the Jews of Madinah were exiled. [بخاری۔ کتاب المغازی۔ باب حدیث بنی نضیر۔ مسلم۔ کتاب الجہاد۔ باب اجلاء الیہود من الحجاز]
