The Cave — Verse 5

Which was revealed in Makkah What has been mentioned about the Virtues of this Surah and the first and last ten Ayat Imam Ahmad recorded that Al-Bara' said: "A man recited Al-Kahf and there was an animal in the house which began acting in a nervous manner. He looked, and saw a fog or cloud overhead. He mentioned this to the Prophet , who said: «اقْرَأْ فُلَانُ، فَإِنَّهَا السَّكِينَةُ تَنْزِلُ عِنْدَ الْقُرْآنِ أَوْ تَنَزَّلَتْ لِلْقُرْآن» (Keep on reciting so and so, for this is the tranquillity which descends when one reads Qur'an or because of reading Qur'an;) This was also recorded in the Two Sahihs. This man who recited it was Usayd bin Al-Hudayr, as we have previously mentioned in our Tafsir of Surat Al-Baqarah. Imam Ahmad recorded from Abu Ad-Darda' that the Prophet said: «مَنْ حَفِظَ عَشْرَ آيَاتٍ مِنْ أَوَّلِ سُورَةِ الْكَهْفِ عُصِمَ مِنَ الدَّجَّال» (Whoever memorizes ten Ayat from the beginning of Surat Al-Kahf will be protected from the Dajjal.) This was also recorded by Muslim, Abu Dawud, An-Nasa'i and At-Tirmidhi. According to the version recorded by At-Tirmidhi, «مَنْ حَفِظَ ثَلَاثَ آيَاتٍ مِنْ أَوَّلِ الْكَهْف» (Whoever memorizes three Ayat from the beginning of Al-Kahf.) He said, it is "Hasan Sahih. " In his Mustadrak, Al-Hakim recorded from Abu Sa`id that the Prophet said: «مَنْ قَرَأَ سُورَةَ الْكَهْفِ فِي يَوْمِ الْجُمُعَةِ أَضَاءَ لَهُ مِنَ النُّورِ مَا بَيْنَهُ وَبَيْنَ الْجُمُعَتَيْن» (Whoever recites Surat Al-Kahf on Friday, it will illuminate him with light from one Friday to the next.) Then he said: "This Hadith has a Sahih chain, but they (Al-Bukhari and Muslim) did not record it." Al-Hafiz Abu Bakr Al-Bayhaqi also recorded it in his Sunan from Al-Hakim, then he narrated with his own chain that the Prophet said: «مَنْ قَرَأَ سُورَةَ الْكَهْفِ كَمَا نَزَلَتْ، كَانَتْ لَهُ نُورًا يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَة» (Whoever recites Surat Al-Kahf as it was revealed, it will be a light for him on the Day of Resurrection.) بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَـنِ الرَّحِيمِ In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. The Revelation of the Qur'an brings both Good News and a Warning In the beginning of this Tafsir, we mentioned that Allah, praises His Holy Self at the beginning and end of matters, for He is the One to be praised in all circumstances, all praise and thanks be to Him, in the beginning and in the end. He praises Himself for revealing His Mighty Book to His Noble Messenger Muhammad ﷺ, which is the greatest blessing that Allah has granted the people of this earth. Through the Qur'an, He brings them out of the darkness into light. He has made it a Book that is straight, neither distorted nor confusion therein. It clearly guides to a straight path, plain and manifest, giving a warning to the disbelievers and good news to the believers. This is why Allah says: وَلَمْ يَجْعَل لَّهُ عِوَجَا (and has not placed therein any crookedness.) meaning, there is nothing twisted or confusing about it. But He has made it balanced and straightforward as He said; قَيِّماً ((He has made it) straight), meaning straightforward, لِّيُنْذِرَ بَأْسًا شَدِيدًا مِّن لَّدُنْهُ (to give warning of a severe punishment from Him,) meaning, to those who oppose His Prophet and disbelieve in His Book, He issues a warning of severe punishment hastened in this world and postponed to the world Hereafter. مِن لَّدُنْهُ (from Him) means, from Allah. For none can punish as He punishes and none is stronger or more reliable than Him. وَيُبَشِّرُ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ (and to give good news to the believers,) means, those who believe in this Qur'an and confirm their faith by righteous actions. أَنَّ لَهُمْ أَجْرًا حَسَنًا (that they shall have a fair reward.) means, a beautiful reward from Allah. مَّاكِثِينَ فِيهِ (They shall abide therein) means, in what Allah rewards them with, and that is Paradise, where they will live forever. أَبَدًا (forever.) means, for always, never ending or ceasing to be. وَيُنْذِرَ الَّذِينَ قَالُواْ اتَّخَذَ اللَّهُ وَلَدًا (And to warn those who say, "Allah has begotten a child.") Ibn Ishaq said: "These are the pagan Arabs, who said, `We worship the angels who are the daughters of Allah."' مَا لَهُمْ بِهِ مِنْ عِلْمٍ (No knowledge have they of such a thing, ) meaning, this thing that they have fabricated and made up. وَلاَ لاَبَآئِهِمْ (nor had their fathers.) meaning, their predecessors. كَبُرَتْ كَلِمَةً (Mighty is the word) This highlights the seriousness and enormity of the lie they have made up. Allah says: كَبُرَتْ كَلِمَةً تَخْرُجُ مِنْ أَفْوَاهِهِمْ (Mighty is the word that comes out of their mouths.) meaning, it has no basis apart from what they say, and they have no evidence for it apart from their own lies and fabrications. Hence Allah says: إِن يَقُولُونَ إِلاَّ كَذِبًا (They utter nothing but a lie.) Reason why this Surah was revealed Muhammad bin Ishaq mentioned the reason why this Surah was revealed. He said that an old man from among the people of Egypt who came to them some forty-odd years ago told him, from `Ikrimah that Ibn `Abbas said: "The Quraysh sent An-Nadr bin Al-Harith and `Uqbah bin Abi Mu`it to the Jewish rabbis in Al-Madinah, and told them: `Ask them (the rabbis) about Muhammad, and describe him to them, and tell them what he is saying. They are the people of the first Book, and they have more knowledge of the Prophets than we do.' So they set out and when they reached Al-Madinah, they asked the Jewish rabbis about the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. They described him to them and told them some of what he had said. They said, `You are the people of the Tawrah and we have come to you so that you can tell us about this companion of ours.' They (the rabbis) said, `Ask him about three things which we will tell you to ask, and if he answers them then he is a Prophet who has been sent (by Allah); if he does not, then he is saying things that are not true, in which case how you will deal with him will be up to you. Ask him about some young men in ancient times, what was their story For theirs is a strange and wondrous tale. Ask him about a man who travelled a great deal and reached the east and the west of the earth. What was his story And ask him about the Ruh (soul or spirit) -- what is it If he tells you about these things, then he is a Prophet, so follow him, but if he does not tell you, then he is a man who is making things up, so deal with him as you see fit.' So An-Nadr and `Uqbah left and came back to the Quraysh, and said: `O people of Quraysh, we have come to you with a decisive solution which will put an end to the problem between you and Muhammad. The Jewish rabbis told us to ask him about some matters,' and they told the Quraysh what they were. Then they came to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and said, `O Muhammad, tell us,' and they asked him about the things they had been told to ask. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said, «أُخْبِرُكُمْ غَدًا عَمَّا سَأَلْتُمْ عَنْه» (I will tell you tomorrow about what you have asked me.) but he did not say `If Allah wills.' So they went away, and the Messenger of Allah ﷺ stayed for fifteen days without any revelation from Allah concerning that, and Jibril, peace be upon him, did not come to him either. The people of Makkah started to doubt him, and said, `Muhammad promised to tell us the next day, and now fifteen days have gone by and he has not told us anything in response to the questions we asked.' The Messenger of Allah ﷺ felt sad because of the delay in revelation, and was grieved by what the people of Makkah were saying about him. Then Jibril came to him from Allah with the Surah about the companions of Al-Kahf, which also contained a rebuke for feeling sad about the idolators. The Surah also told him about the things they had asked him about, the young men and the traveler. The question about the Ruh was answered in the Ayah; وَيَسْـَلُونَكَ عَنِ الرُّوحِ قُلِ الرُّوحُ (And they ask you concerning the Ruh (the spirit); say: "The Ruh...") 17:85.

They do not have in this in this saying any knowledge nor did their fathers before them who also used to say this. Dreadful grave is the word that comes out of their mouths kalimatan ‘word’ is for specification and it explains the unidentified feminine person of the verb kaburat ‘dreadful’; and that which is the object of censure has been omitted and that is their above-mentioned saying that God has taken a son. They speak nothing thereby but an utterance of lies.

They say nothing but a lie.

They say nothing but a lie.

They say nothing but a lie.

They say nothing but a lie.

They say nothing but a lie.

ليس عند هؤلاء المشركين شيء من العلم على ما يَدَّعونه لله من اتخاذ الولد، كما لم يكن عند أسلافهم الذين قلَّدوهم، عَظُمت هذه المقالة الشنيعة التي تخرج من أفواههم، ما يقولون إلا قولا كاذبًا.

" ما لهم به من علم " أي بهذا القول الذي افتروه وائتفكوه ولا لآبائهم أي لأسلافهم " كبرت كلمة" نصب على التمييز تقديره كبرت كلمتهم هذه وقيل على التعجب تقديره أعظم بكلمتهم كلمة كما تقول أكرم بزيد رجلا قاله بعض البصريين وقرأ ذلك بعض قراء مكة كبرت كلمة كما يقال عظم قولك وكبر شأنك والمعنى على قراءة الجمهور أظهر فإن هذا تبشيع لمقالتهم واستعظام لإفكهم ولهذا قال " كبرت كلمة تخرج من أفواههم " أي ليس لها مستند سوى قولهم ولا دليل لهم عليها إلا كذبهم وافتراؤهم ولهذا قال " إن يقولون إلا كذبا" وقد ذكر محمد بن إسحاق سبب نزول هذه السورة الكريمة فقال: حدثني شيخ من أهل مصر قدم علينا منذ بضع وأربعين سنة عن عكرمة عن ابن عباس قال: بعثت قريش النضر بن الحارث وعقبة بن أبي معيط إلى أحبار يهود بالمدينة فقالوا لهم سلوهم عن محمد وصفوا لهما صفته وأخبروهم بقوله فإنهم أهل الكتاب الأول وعندهم ما ليس عندنا من علم الأنبياء فخرجا حتى أتيا المدينة فسألوا أحبار يهود عن رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم ووصفوا لهم أمره وبعض قوله وقالا: إنكم أهل التوراة وقد جئناكم لتخبرونا عن صاحبنا هذا قال: فقالوا لهم سلوه عن ثلاث نأمركم بهن فإن أخبركم بهن فهو نبي مرسل وإلا فرجل متقول فتروا فيه رأيكم: سلوه عن فتية ذهبوا في الدهر الأول ما كان من أمرهم فإنهم قد كان لهم حديث عجب وسلوه عن رجل طواف بلغ مشارق الأرض ومغاربها ما كان نبؤه وسلوه عن الروح ما هو؟ فإن أخبركم بذلك فهو نبي فاتبعوه وإن لم يخبركم فإنه رجل متقول فاصنعوا في أمره ما بدا لكم فأقبل النضر وعقبة حتى قدما على قريش فقالا: يا معشر قريش قد جئناكم بفصل ما بينكم وبين محمد قد أمرنا أحبار يهود أن نسأله عن أمور فأخبروهم بها فجاءوا رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم فقالوا: يا محمد أخبرنا فسألوه عما أمروهم به فقال لهم رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم " أخبركم غدا عما سألتم عنه " ولم يستثن فانصرفوا عنه ومكث رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم خمس عشرة ليلة لا يحدث الله له في ذلك وحيًا ولا يأتيه جبرائيل عليه السلام حتى أرجف أهل مكة وقالوا: وعدنا محمد غدًا واليوم خمس عشرة قد أصبحنا فيها لا يخبرنا بشيء عما سألناه عنه وحتى أحزن رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم مكث الوحي عنه وشق عليه ما يتكلم به أهل مكة ثم جاءه جبرائيل عليه السلام من الله عز وجل بسورة أصحاب الكهف فيها معاتبته إياه على حزنه عليهم وخبر ما سألوه عنه من أمر الفتية والرجل الطواف وقول الله عز وجل " ويسألونك عن الروح قل الروح" الآية.

و " من " فى قوله : ( مَّا لَهُمْ بِهِ مِنْ عِلْمٍ ) مزيدة لتأكيد النفى ، والجملة مستأنفة ، و " لهم " خبر مقدم ، و ( من علم ) مبتدأ مؤخر ، وقوله ( ولا لآبائهم ) معطوف على الخبر .أى : ما لهم بذلك شئ من العلم أصلا ، وكذلك الحال بالنسبة لآبائهم ، فالجملة الكريمة تنفى ما زعموه نفيا يشملهم ويشمل الذين سبقوهم وقالوا قولهم .قال الكرخى : فإن قيل : اتخاذ الولد محال فى نفسه ، فكيف قال : ( مَّا لَهُمْ بِهِ مِنْ عِلْمٍ؟ ) فالجواب أن انتفاء العلم بالشئ قد يكون للجهل بالطريق الموصل إليه ، وقد يكون لأنه فى نفسه محال لا يمكن تعلق العلم به ، ونظيره قوله - تعالى - : ( وَمَن يَدْعُ مَعَ الله إِلَهَا آخَرَ لاَ بُرْهَانَ لَهُ بِهِ ) وقوله - تعالى - : ( كَبُرَتْ كَلِمَةً تَخْرُجُ مِنْ أَفْوَاهِهِمْ إِن يَقُولُونَ إِلاَّ كَذِباً ) ذم شديد لهم على ما نطقوا به من كلام يدل على فرط جهلهم ، وعظم كذبهم .وكبر : فعل ماض لإِنشاء الذم ، فهو من باب نعم وبئس ، وفاعله ضمير محذوف ، مفسّر بالنكرة بعده وهى قوله ( كلمة ) المنصوبة على أنها تمييز ، والمخصوص بالذم محذوف .والتقدير : كبرت هى كلمة خارجة من أفواههم تلك المقالة الشنعاء التى تفوهوا بها ، وهى قولهم : اتخذ الله ولدا فإنهم ما يقولون إلا قولا كاذبا محالا على الله - تعالى - ومخالفا للواقع؛ ومنافيا للحق والصواب .وفى هذا التعبير ما فيه من استعظام قبح ما نطقوا به ، حيث وصفه - سبحانه - بأنه مجرد كلام لاكته ألسنتهم ، ولا دليل عليه سوى كذبهم وافترائهم .قال صاحب الكشاف : قوله ( كبرت كلمة ) قرئ ، كبرت كلمة بالرفع على الفاعلية ، وبالنصب على التمييز ، والنصب أقوى وأبلغ ، وفيه معنى التعجب كأنه قيل : ما أكبرها كلمة .وقوله ( تَخْرُجُ مِنْ أَفْوَاهِهِمْ ) صفة للكلمة تفيد استعظاما لاجترائهم على النطق به ، وإخراجها من أفواههم ، فإن كثيرا مما يوسوسه الشيطان فى قلوب الناس ويحدثون أنفسهم به من المنكرات ، لا يتمالكون أن يتفوهوا به ، ويطلقوا به ألسنتهم ، بل يكظمون عليه تشوُّرًا من إظهاره؛ فكيف بهذا المنكر؟فإن قلت : إلام يرجع الضمير فى ( كبرت ) ؟ قلت : إلى قولهم اتخذ الله ولدا . وسميت كلمة كما يسمون القصيدة بها .وشبيه بهذه الآية فى استعظام ما نطقوا به من قبحٍ قوله - تعالى - : ( وَقَالُواْ اتخذ الرحمن وَلَداً لَّقَدْ جِئْتُمْ شَيْئاً إِدّاً تَكَادُ السماوات يَتَفَطَّرْنَ مِنْهُ وَتَنشَقُّ الأرض وَتَخِرُّ الجبال هَدّاً أَن دَعَوْا للرحمن وَلَداً وَمَا يَنبَغِي للرحمن أَن يَتَّخِذَ وَلَداً )

القول في تأويل قوله تعالى : مَا لَهُمْ بِهِ مِنْ عِلْمٍ وَلا لآبَائِهِمْ كَبُرَتْ كَلِمَةً تَخْرُجُ مِنْ أَفْوَاهِهِمْ إِنْ يَقُولُونَ إِلا كَذِبًا (5)وقوله : ( مَا لَهُمْ بِهِ مِنْ عِلْمٍ ) يقول: ما لقائلي هذا القول، يعني قولهم (اتَّخَذَ اللَّهُ وَلَدًا)(بِهِ ) : يعني بالله من علم، والهاء في قوله (بِهِ) من ذكر الله, وإنما معنى الكلام: ما لهؤلاء القائلين هذا القول بالله إنه لا يجوز أن يكون له ولد من علم، فلجهلهم بالله وعظمته قالوا ذلك.وقوله (ولا لآبائِهمْ) يقول: ولا لأسلافهم الذين مضوا قبلهم على مثل الذي هم عليه اليوم، كان لهم بالله وبعظمته علم، وقوله: ( كَبُرَتْ كَلِمَةً تَخْرُجُ مِنْ أَفْوَاهِهِمْ ) اختلفت القراء في قراءة ذلك، فقرأته عامة قراء المدنيين والكوفيين والبصريين: (كَبُرَتْ كَلِمَةً) بنصب كلمةً بمعنى: كبُرت كلمتهم التي قالوها كلمةً على التفسير، كما يقال: نعم رجلا عمرو، ونعم الرجل رجلا قام، ونعم رجلا قام، وكان بعض نحوييّ أهل البصرة يقول: نُصبت كلمة لأنها في معنى: أكْبِر بها كلمة ، كما قال جل ثناؤه وَسَاءَتْ مُرْتَفَقًا وقال: هي في النصب مثل قول الشاعر:ولقـدْ عَلِمْـتُ إذَا اللِّقاحُ تَرَوَّحتْ هَدَجَالرّئــــالِ تكُـــبُّهُنَّ شَـــمالا (1)أي تكبهنّ الرياح شمالا فكأنه قال: كبرت تلك الكلمة، وذُكِر عن بعض المكيين أنه كان يقرأ ذلك: ( كَبُرَتْ كَلِمَةٌ ) رفعا ، كما يقال: عَظُمَ قَولك وكَبُر شأنُك. وإذا قرئ ذلك كذلك لم يكن في قوله (كَبُرَتْ كَلِمةٌ) مُضمر، وكان صفة للكلمة.والصواب من القراءة في ذلك عندي، قراءة من قرأ: (كَبُرَتْ كَلِمةً) نصبا لإجماع الحجة من القراء عليها، فتأويل الكلام: عَظُمت الكلمة كلمة تخرج من أفواه هؤلاء القوم الذين قالوا: اتخذ الله ولدا، والملائكة بنات الله.كما حدثنا ابن حميد، قال: ثنا سلمة، عن ابن إسحاق (كَبُرَتْ كَلِمةً تَخْرُجُ مِنْ أَفْوَاهِهِمْ) قولهم: إن الملائكة بنات الله، وقوله: ( إِنْ يَقُولُونَ إِلا كَذِبًا ) يقول عز ذكره:ما يقول هؤلاء القائلون اتخذ الله ولدا بقيلهم ذلك إلا كذبا وفرية افتروها على الله.

( ما لهم به من علم ولا لآبائهم ) أي : قالوه عن جهل لا عن علم ( كبرت ) أي : عظمت ( كلمة ) نصب على التمييز يقال تقديره : كبرت الكلمة كلمة وقيل : من كلمة فحذف " من " فانتصب ( تخرج من أفواههم ) أي : تظهر من أفواههم ( إن يقولون ) ما يقولون ( إلا كذبا )

لما كان النهي عن الجهر بالدعاء أو قراءة الصلاة سداً لذريعة زيادة تصميمهم على الكفر أعقب ذلك بأمره بإعلان التوحيد لقطع دابر توهم من توهموا أن الرحمان اسم لمسمى غير مسمى اسم الله ، فبعضهم توهمه إلهاً شريكاً ، وبعضهم توهمه مُعيناً وناصراً ، أمر النبي بأن يقول ما يقلع ذلك كله وأن يعظمه بأنواع من التعظيم .وجملة { الحمد لله } تقتضي تخصيصه تعالى بالحمد ، أي قصر جنس الحمد عليه تعالى لأنه أعظم مستحق لأن يحمد . فالتخصيص ادعائي بادعاء أن دواعي حمد غير الله تعالى في جانب دواعي حمد الله بمنزلة العدم ، كما تقدم في سورة الفاتحة .و ( مِن ) في قوله : { من الذل } بمعنى لام التعليل .والذل : العجز والافتقار ، وهو ضدّ العز ، أي ليس له ناصر من أجل الذل . والمراد : نفي الناصر له على وجه مؤكد ، فإن الحاجة إلى الناصر لا تكون إلا من العجز عن الانتصار للنفس . ويجوز تضمين ( الولي ) معنى ( المانع ) فتكون ( من ) لتعدية الاسم المضمن معناه .ومعنى { كبره } اعتقد أنه كبير ، أي عظيم العِظم المعنوي الشامل لوجوب الوجود والغِنى المطلق ، وصفات الكمال كلها الكاملة التعلقات ، لأن الاتصاف بذلك كله كمال ، والاتصاف بأضداد ذلك نقص وصغار معنوي .وإجراء هذه الصلات الثلاث على اسم الجلالة الذي هو متعلق الحمد لأن في هذه الصلاة إيماء إلى وجه تخصيصه بالحمد . والإتيان بالمفعول المطلق بعد { كَبّره } للتوكيد ، ولما في التنوين من التعظيم ، ولأنّ من هذه صفاته هو الذي يقدر على إعطاء النعم التي يعجز غيره عن إسدائها .

لا علم منهم، ولا علم من آبائهم الذين قلدوهم واتبعوهم، بل إن يتبعون إلا الظن وما تهوى الأنفس { كَبُرَتْ كَلِمَةً تَخْرُجُ مِنْ أَفْوَاهِهِمْ } أي: عظمت شناعتها واشتدت عقوبتها، وأي شناعة أعظم من وصفه بالاتخاذ للولد الذي يقتضي نقصه، ومشاركة غيره له في خصائص الربوبية والإلهية، والكذب عليه؟" { فَمَنْ أَظْلَمُ مِمَّنِ افْتَرَى عَلَى اللَّهِ كَذِبًا } ولهذا قال هنا: { إِنْ يَقُولُونَ إِلَّا كَذِبًا } أي: كذبا محضا ما فيه من الصدق شيء، وتأمل كيف أبطل هذا القول بالتدريج، والانتقال من شيء إلى أبطل منه، فأخبر أولا: أنه { مَا لَهُمْ بِهِ مِنْ عِلْمٍ وَلَا لِآبَائِهِمْ } والقول على الله بلا علم، لا شك في منعه وبطلانه، ثم أخبر ثانيا، أنه قول قبيح شنيع فقال: { كَبُرَتْ كَلِمَةً تَخْرُجُ مِنْ أَفْوَاهِهِمْ } ثم ذكر ثالثا مرتبته من القبح، وهو: الكذب المنافي للصدق."

ما لهم به من علم " من " صلة ، أي ما لهم بذلك القول علم ; لأنهم مقلدة قالوه بغير دليل .ولا لآبائهم أي أسلافهم .كبرت كلمة كلمة نصب على البيان ; أي كبرت تلك الكلمة كلمة . وقرأ الحسن ومجاهد ويحيى بن يعمر وابن أبي إسحاق كلمة بالرفع ; أي عظمت كلمة ; يعني قولهم اتخذ الله ولدا . وعلى هذه القراءة فلا حاجة إلى إضمار . يقال : كبر الشيء إذا عظم . وكبر الرجل إذا أسن .تخرج من أفواههم في موضع الصفة .إن يقولون إلا كذبا أي ما يقولون إلا كذبا .

The Quran is the corrected edition of previous divine scriptures. In the case of previous scriptures, successive generations made the divine teachings complicated by indulging in hair-splitting. Furthermore, the original teachings were subjected to distortion by means of interpolation, and in this way the very direction of these teachings was deflected. The Quran is free of both these types of human interference. On the one hand, it contains religion in its natural, pure and simple form, and on the other, its direction is unwaveringly towards God, as in fact it should be. Why is it that God has arranged for the revelation of scriptures to the people of the world? The purpose of this is to acquaint them with His divine scheme. God has created man in this world for the purpose of trial. Thereafter, He will take a reckoning of everybody, and according to his deeds, will send him to hell or settle him in the eternal gardens of heaven. God wants everybody to be aware of this before death, so that nobody should have any excuse for wrongdoing. One cause of man’s going astray in this world is his taking someone other than God as his supporter. This deviance is at its worst when someone is believed to be the son of God. All such beliefs are false, because there is nobody on earth or in heaven who wields any power or authority except God.

The properties and merits of Surah al-Kahf According to a narration of Sayyidna Abu al-Darda' ؓ appearing in Muslim, Abu Dawud, Tirmidhi, al-Nasa'i and the Musnad of Ahmad, one who has memorized the first ten verses of Surah al-Kahf will remain protected from the ill effects of Dajjal (imposter). In another report in the same books and from the same authority, the same thing has been said about having memorized the last ten verses of Surah al-Kahf. And it has been reported in the Musnad of Ahmad on the authority of Sayyidna Sahl ibn Mu` adh ؓ that the Holy Prophet ﷺ said, "One who recites the first and the last verses of Surah al-Kahf, for him there is light from his feet up to his head. And the one who were to recite the whole Surah, then, for him there is light from the earth up to the sky." And it appears in some narratives that a person who recites Surah al-Kahf on the day of Jumu'ah will have light from his feet up to the sky. This light will serve him well on the day of Qiyamah, and every sin committed by him between the past and the present Jumu'ah will be forgiven." (Imam Ibn Kathir has declared this report to be mawquf (a Hadith the narration of which stops at a Sahabi and does not ascend to the Holy Prophet ﷺ). And Hafiz Zya' al-Maqdisi, in his book Al-Mukhtarah, has reported on the authority of Sayyidna ` Ali ؓ that the Holy Prophet ﷺ said, "One who recites Surah al-Kahf on the day of Jumu'ah will remain protected from every fitnah. And if Dajjal appears, he will stay safe against the trying challenges released by him as well." (All these narrative reports have been taken from Tafsir ibn Kathir) According to a report from Dailami on the authority of Sayyidna Anas ؓ appearing in Ruh al-Ma’ ani, the Holy Prophet ﷺ said, "The entire Surah al-Kahf was revealed at one time and seventy thousand angels came with it" - which shows its majesty. The cause of revelation Imam ibn Jarir al-Tabari has reported from Sayyidna ` Abdullah ibn ` Abbas ؓ عنہما that the Quraysh of Makkah (disturbed by the rising influence of the Holy Prophet ﷺ as a prophet) sent two of their men, Nadr ibn Harith and 'Uqbah ibn Abi Mu` ayt, to the Jewish scholars of Madinah. Their mission was to find out what they said about him as they were learned in past scriptures of the Torah and Injil. The Jewish scholars told them, "put three questions before him. If he answers these correctly, you should know that he is a Prophet and Messenger of Allah ﷺ ، and if he fails to do that, you should know that he is a pretender and not a messenger. Firstly, ask him about the young men who had left their city in the distant past and what had happened to them, for this is a unique event. Secondly, ask him about the person who had traveled through the East and West of the Earth and what had happened to him. Thirdly, ask him about the Ruh (soul, spirit) as to what it was?" That is, he gives the answer he should give (and his correct answer to the question about 'Rte' will be that Allah Ta` ala knows its reality best). So, this report which appears in Tafsir al-Tabari, p. 191, v. 15 is not contrary to the report which has appeared on pages 544-47 of this volume under the commentary on verse 85 of Surah Banff Isra'il - Muhammad Taqi Usmani. The two Quraysh emissaries returned to Makkah al-Mukarramah, informed their tribesmen that they had come back with a decisive plan of action and told them all about their encounter with the Jewish scholars of Madinah. Then, these people took these questions to the Holy Prophet ﷺ . He heard the questions and said that he will answer them tomorrow. But, he forgot to say 'insha Allah' at that time. These people went back and the Holy Prophet ﷺ kept waiting for the Divine revelation in the hope that he will be told about answers to these questions through wahy. But, no wahy came until the next day as promised. In fact, fifteen days went by and things stood as they were, neither did Sayyidna Jibra'il come nor did the revelation. The Quraysh of Makkah started throwing taunts which caused real pain to the Holy Prophet ﷺ . After fifteen days, came angel Jibra'il with Surah al-Kahf (wherein the delay caused has also been explained by saying that one should say 'insha Allah' when promising to do something in the future. Since, this was not done in the event concerned, therefore, revelation was delayed as a measure of reminder. In this Surah, verses relating to this matter such as: وَلَا تَقُولَنَّ لِشَيْءٍ إِنِّي فَاعِلٌ ذَٰلِكَ غَدًا إِلَّا أَن يَشَاءَ اللَّـهُ (18:23, 24) will be appearing later). Also related in this Surah there was the event about the young men known as Ashab al-Kahf or the People of the Cave, and the event concerning the travel of Dhul-Qarnain from the East to the West. Also included therein was the answer to the question asked about 'Ruh' (Qurtubi and Mazhari with reference to Ibn Jarir). But, answering the question about Ruh (soul, spirit) briefly was as dictated by wisdom. This was taken up separately at the end of Surah Bani Isra'il (17:85) and this is the reason why Surah al-Kahf has been placed after Surah Bani Isra'il [ al-Isra'] - as mentioned by Al-Suyuti. Commentary The word: عوج ('iwaj) in: وَلَمْ يَجْعَل لَّهُ عِوَجًا (and allowed no crookedness in it - 1) means crookedness of any kind, or inclination towards one side or deviation from the norms of rectitude. The Holy Qur'an remains pure and free of all that in terms of the perfection of its words and meanings. It simply admits of no distortion anywhere, either in eloquence or in knowledge and wisdom. The sense which has been conveyed in a negative or eliminative form through: ` وَلَمْ يَجْعَل لَّهُ عِوَجًا (and allowed no crookedness in it) has been fortified positively through the word: قَيِّمًا (qayyima) which follows immediately for emphasis. The reason is that this word carries the sense of: مُستَقِیمَا (mustaqima) and that which is: مُستَقِیم (mustaqim: straightforward, straight, upright) will not have the least crookedness or tilt towards any side. However, قَیَّم (qayyim) can also have another sense, that of caretaker, custodian and protector. Given this probability, the sense of the expression would be that the Qur’ an, while perfect in itself as free from all kinds of excess, deficiency and crookedness, keeps others upright, firm and unflinching and protects the inter-ests and advantages of all servants of Allah. Thus the gist of the two expressions would be that the Holy Qur'an stands perfect in itself and has the ability to make men and women created by Allah become equally perfect. (Mazhari)

((A thing) whereof they have no knowledge) they have no proof or argument for what they claim, (nor (had) their fathers) nor did their fathers have any knowledge. (Dreadful is the word) dreadful is the word of idolatry (that cometh out of their mouths) that is uttered by their mouth. (They speak naught but a lie) about Allah.