The Forgiver, The Forgiving One — Verse 2

The Virtues of the Surahs that begin with Ha Mim Ibn `Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, said, "Everything has an essence and the essence of the Qur'an is the family of Ha Mim," or he said, "the Ha Mims." Mis`ar bin Kidam said, "They used to be called `the brides'." All of this was recorded by the the Imam, great scholar, Abu `Ubayd Al-Qasim bin Sallam, may Allah have mercy upon him, in his book Fada'il Al-Qur'an. Humayd bin Zanjuyah narrated that `Abdullah, may Allah be pleased with him, said, "The parable of the Qur'an is that of a man who sets out to find a place for his family to stay, and he comes to a place where there is evidence of rainfall. While he is walking about, admiring it, he suddenly comes upon beautiful gardens. He says, `I liked the first traces of rainfall, but this is far better.' It was said to him, `The first place is like the Qur'an, and these beautiful gardens are like the splendor of family of Ha Mim in relation to the rest of the Qur'an'." This was recorded by Al-Baghawi. Ibn Mas`ud, may Allah be pleased with him, said, "When I reach the family of Ha Mim, it is like reaching a beautiful garden, so I take my time." بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَـنِ الرَّحِيمِ In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. «إِنْ بُيِّتُّمُ اللَّيْلَةَ فَقُولُوا: حم لَا يُنْصَرُون» (When you go to bed tonight, recite Ha Mim, La Yunsarun.)" Its chain of narrators is Sahih. تَنزِيلُ الْكِتَـبِ مِنَ اللَّهِ الْعَزِيزِ الْعَلِيمِ (The revelation of the Book is from Allah, the Almighty, the All-Knower.) means, this book -- the Qur'an -- is from Allah, the Owner of might and knowledge, Who cannot be overtaken and from Whom nothing is hidden, not even an ant concealed beneath many layers. غَافِرِ الذَّنبِ وَقَابِلِ التَّوْبِ (The Forgiver of sin, the Acceptor of repentance,) means, He forgives sins that have been committed in the past, and He accepts repentance for sins that may be committed in the future, from the one who repents and submits to Him. شَدِيدُ الْعِقَابِ (the Severe in punishment,) means, to the one who persists in transgression and prefers the life of this world, who stubbornly turns away from the commands of Allah and commits sin. This is like the Ayah: نَبِّىءْ عِبَادِى أَنِّى أَنَا الْغَفُورُ الرَّحِيمُ - وَأَنَّ عَذَابِى هُوَ ٱلْعَذَابُ ٱلْأَلِيمُ (Declare unto My servants that truly I am the Oft-Forgiving, the Most-Merciful. And that My torment is indeed the most painful torment.) (15:49-50). These two attributes (mercy and punishment) are often mentioned together in the Qur'an, so that people will remain in a state of both hope and fear. ذِى الطَّوْلِ (the Bestower.) Ibn `Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, said, "This means He is Generous and Rich (Independent of means)." The meaning is that He is Most Generous to His servants, granting ongoing blessings for which they can never sufficiently thank Him. وَإِن تَعُدُّواْ نِعْمَةَ اللَّهِ لاَ تُحْصُوهَا (And if you would count the favors of Allah, never could you be able to count them...) (16:18). لاَ إِلَـهَ إِلاَّ هُوَ (La ilaha illa Huwa) means, there is none that is equal to Him in all His attributes; there is no God or Lord besides Him. إِلَيْهِ الْمَصِيرُ (to Him is the final return.) means, all things will come back to Him and He will reward or punish each person according to his deeds. وَهُوَ سَرِيعُ الْحِسَابِ (and He is Swift at reckoning) (13:41).

The revelation of the Book the Qur’ān tanzīlu’l-kitābi is the subject is from God mina’Llāhi is its predicate the Mighty in His kingdom the Knower of His creatures.

تنزيل القرآن على النبي محمد صلى الله عليه وسلم من عند الله- عزَّ وجل- العزيز الذي قهر بعزته كل مخلوق، العليم بكل شيء.

أي تنزيل هذا الكتاب وهو القرآن من الله ذي العزة والعلم فلا يرام جنابه ولا يخفى عليه الذر وإن تكاثف حجابه.

وقوله - تعالى - : ( تَنزِيلُ الكتاب مِنَ الله ) جملة من مبتدأ وخبر ، أى : هذا الكتاب منزل عليك - أيها الرسول الكريم - من الله - تعالى - وحده ، وليس من عند أحد غيره .ثم وصف - سبحانه - ذاته بثمانى صفات تليق بذاته فقال : ( العزيز ) أى : الغالب لكل من سواه ، من العز بمعنى القوة والغلبة . يقال : عزَّ فلان يعز - من باب تعب - فهو عزيز ، إذا كان معروفا بالقوة والمنعة ، ومنه قولهم : أرض عزاز إذا كانت صلبة قوية .( العليم ) أى : المطلع على أحوال خلقه دون أن يخفى عليه شئ منها .

وقوله: ( تَنـزيلُ الْكِتَابِ مِنَ اللَّهِ الْعَزِيزِ الْعَلِيمِ ) يقول الله تعالى ذكره: من الله العزيز في انتقامه من أعدائه, العليم يما يعملون من الأعمال وغيرها تنـزيل هذا الكتاب; فالتنـزيل مرفوع بقوله: ( مِنَ اللَّهِ ) .

" تنزيل الكتاب من الله العزيز العليم "

تَنْزِيلُ الْكِتَابِ مِنَ اللَّهِ الْعَزِيزِ الْعَلِيمِ (2)القول فيه كالقول في فاتحة سورة الزمر . ويُزاد هنا أن المقصود بتوجيه هذا الخبر هم المشركون المنكرون أن القرآن منزل من عند الله . فتجريد الخبر عن المؤكد إخراج له على خلاف مقتضى الظاهر بجعل المنكِر كغير المنكر لأنه يحف به من الأدلة ما إِنْ تَأَمَّلَه ارتدع عن إنكاره فما كان من حقه أن ينكر ذلك .

يخبر تعالى عن كتابه العظيم وبأنه صادر ومنزل من الله، المألوه المعبود، لكماله وانفراده بأفعاله، { الْعَزِيزِ } الذي قهر بعزته كل مخلوق { الْعَلِيمِ } بكل شيء.

قوله تعالى : تنزيل الكتاب ابتداء والخبر من الله العزيز العليم . ويجوز أن يكون تنزيل خبرا لمبتدأ محذوف ، أي : هذا تنزيل الكتاب . ويجوز أن يكون " حم " مبتدأ و " تنزيل " خبره ، والمعنى : أن القرآن أنزله الله وليس منقولا ولا مما يجوز أن يكذب به .

The appellations, the Almighty and All Knowing (al-‘Aziz and al-‘Alim), have been used here by way of argument in support of the Quran. At the time the Quran was revealed, this was in the nature of a forecast. Today it is an established fact. The Quran was revealed before the age of science and in the most unfavourable of circumstances. But, exactly according to its claim, it won over its opponents. The polytheists of Arabia, the Jews and the great Roman and Iranian empires–all were its enemies. But, in a very short period, it overcame all of them. This is an event which amply proves that the Quran had been sent by the All-Powerful and Supreme God. The other quality of the Quran is that it is a book based on facts. Even after the passage of fifteen hundred years, no statement of the Quran has been found to be at variance with the discoveries of science. This is proof of the fact that the Being who revealed it is All Knowing and All Aware. No matter relating either to heaven or earth is hidden from Him. He is uniformly aware of the past, present and future. This is the very Almighty God who is truly worthy of worship by man. It befits His Power and Knowledge that He should gather all human beings and take stock of their deeds, and then decide everyone’s fate with perfect justice, pardon those who turned towards Him and punish for their misdeeds those who rebelled against Him.

Commentary Surah A1-Mu'min: Characteristics and Merits From here (40) to Surah Al-Ahqaf (46) starts a series of seven Surahs that begin with the isolated letters: حم (Ha Meem). These are called: اَل حٰمٓ('Al Ha Mim) or حوامیم (hawamim). Sayyidna ` Abdullah Ibn Masud ؓ said, اَل حٰم ('Al Ha Mim) is: دیباج القرآن (dibaj-ul- Qur’ an): Dibaj, in Arabic, is the cloth of pure silk, and here it signifies embellishment. Mis'ar Ibn Kidam says, 'These are called: عَرَایٔس (ara'is: brides).' Sayyidna Ibn ` Abbas ؓ said, 'Every thing has an essence. The essence of the Qur'an lies in اَل حٰم ('Al Ha Mim) ' or said, حوامیم۔ (hawamim).' All these reports appear in Fada'il-ul-Qur'an by the great scholar, Abu ` Ubaid Qasim Ibn Sallam. And Sayyidna ` Abdullah (Ibn Mas` ad) ؓ said that the example of the Qur'an is similar to that of a person who started out to look for a place where he and his family could live. Here, he finds some green open land and is pleased with it. Then, he moves ahead, and finds gardens and settling places far more verdant and growth-prone. He says, 'I was wondering about the greenery produced by rains that I saw first, but these are more wonderful'. Then, it would be said to him, 'The first all green layout is like the Qur'an in general, and the gardens and lodges are like اَل حٰم (` Al Ha Meem) from out of the Qur'an.' Therefore, Sayyidna ` Abdullah Ibn Masud ؓ said, 'As for me, when I, during the recitation of the Qur'an, arrive at: اَل حٰم (` Al Ha Meem), it is as if I am enjoying myself.' Protection against everything unwelcome Al-Bazzar, quoting his own chains of authority in his Musnad, reports from Sayyidna Abu Hurairah ؓ that the Holy Prophet ﷺ said, "A person who has recited the 'Ayah of Kursiyy and the first three verses (1-3) of Surah Al-Mu'min up to:إِلَيْهِ الْمَصِيرُ‌ (ilaihil-masir: To Him is the return) early during the day, he (or she) will, on that day, remain safe from everything bad and painful.' It has also been reported by Tirmidhi, though, one of the reporting links in the chain of authority is doubtful. (Ibn Kathir, page 69, volume 4) Protection against an enemy There appears a narration from Sayyidna Muhallab Ibn Abi Safrah ؓ in Abu Dawud and Tirmidhi through a chain rated as 'Sahib' in which he said, 'it was reported to me by a person who had himself heard the Holy Prophet ﷺ saying (on the occasion of some Jihad concerning a night vigil) that 'should you be attacked at the time of night, you recite: حٰم لَا یُنصَرُونَ (Ha Mim la yunsarun) which means reciting (Ha Meem) and praying that the enemy does not succeed. Then there are some narrations in which this formulation appears as: حٰم لَا یُنصَرُوا (Ha Meem la yunsaru -without the letter: of (nun) at the end) the outcome of which is that, 'should you say: حٰم (Ha Meem), the enemy will not succeed.' From this we learn that حٰم (Ha Meem) serves as a fortress against the enemy. (Ibn Kathir) A strange event Thabit Bunani says, 'I was with Sayyidna Mus` ab Ibn Zubayr ؓ in a certain section of the city of Kufah. I walked into a garden to make two raka’ at of salah there. Before I would start my salah, I recited the verses of Ha Meem Al-Mu'min (40:1-3) حم ﴿1﴾ تَنزِيلُ الْكِتَابِ مِنَ اللَّـهِ الْعَزِيزِ الْعَلِيمِ ﴿2﴾ غَافِرِ‌ الذَّنبِ وَقَابِلِ التَّوْبِ شَدِيدِ الْعِقَابِ ذِي الطَّوْلِ ۖ لَا إِلَـٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ۖ إِلَيْهِ الْمَصِيرُ‌ ﴿3﴾ up. Of a sudden, I saw a man in Yemeni attire astride a white mule standing behind me. This man said to me, 'when you say: غَافِرِ‌ الذَّنبِ (ghafiradh-dhanbi: Forgiver of sins), with it, you should pray: یاغَافِرِ‌ الذَّنبِ اِغفِرلِی (ya ghafiradh-dhanbi, ighfirli: 0 Forgiver of sins, forgive me). And when you say: (qabilit-tawbi: Accepter of repentance), you should pray: یا قَابِلِ التَّوْبِ اقبَل تَوبَتِی (ya qabilata-tawbi, iqbal tawbati: 0 Accepter of repentance, accept my repentance). After that, when you say: شَدِيدِ الْعِقَابِ (shadidil-'iqabi: Severe in punishment), you should pray: یَا شَدِيدِ الْعِقَابِ لَا تُعَاقِبنِی (ya shadidal-` igabi, la tu'aqibni: 0 Allah, severe in punishment, please do not punish me). And when you say: ذِي الطَّوْلِ (dhit-tawli: Source of all power), you should pray: یَا ذِي الطَّوْلِ طُل عَلَیَّ بِخَیرِ (ya dhat-tawli, tul ` alaiyya bikhayr: 0 source of power, bestow the best on me). Thabit Bunani says, 'After having heard this good counsel from him, when I looked back at him, there was no one there. Looking for him, I went to the gate of the garden. I asked people there if they had seen a person in Yemeni attire passing through here. Everyone said that they had not seen anyone like that.' In another narration from Thabit Bunani, it has also been said that people think this person was Sayyidna Ilyas (علیہ السلام) while it has not been mentioned in the other. (Ibn Kathir) The effect of these verses in reforming people, and a great directive of Sayyidna ` Umar ؓ Ibn Kathir has reported on the authority of Ibn Abi Hatim that there was a man of strong and dignified bearing among the Syrians who used to visit Sayyidna ` Umar ؓ . When he did not show up for a longer than usual period of time, Sayyidna ` Umar inquired about him. People said, 'ya amiral-mu'minin, please do not ask about him. He has become a drunkard. Sayyidna ` Umar ؓ called his scribe and dictated a letter to him in which he said: من عمر بن الخطاب الی فلان بن فلان ۔ سلام علیک فانی احمد الیک اللہ الذی لا اَلٰہ اَلِّا ھو غافر الذَّنب و قابل التَّوب شدید العقاب ذی الطول لَا اِلٰہَ اِلَّا ھُو اِلَیہِ المَصیرُ ۔ "From ` Umar son of al-Khattab to --- son of ---. salamun ` alaik, peace on you. After that, I praise Allah before you, other than whom there is no god worthy of worship. He is the One who forgives sins and accepts repentance, the One who is severe in punishment, the One who is the source of all power. There is no god but He. To Him is the ultimate return (of all)." Then he turned toward those around him and said, 'Let us all join in to pray for him that Allah Ta’ ala reverses his heart and accepts his repentance.' Sayyidna ` Umar ؓ had instructed the messenger who was to deliver his letter that he was not to hand over the letter to the person addressed until such time that he became sober, and that he was not to hand over the letter to anyone other than the person intended to receive it. So, when this person received this letter, he read it repeatedly and thoughtfully while realizing that it carried a warning of punishment against him with a concurrent promise of forgiveness for him. Then he started weeping. Finally, he stopped drinking and made such a firm taubah that he never touched it again. When Sayyidna ` Umar ؓ learnt about the effective manifestation of these words, he said to people around, 'In such matters, you too should do the same. When some brother falls into some slip of conduct, think of ways to bring him back to his normal and better self. Prompt him to turn to Allah, to place his trust in Him, to rely on His mercy. Pray to Allah for him, pray that he is enabled to repent and make his taubah. And do not become an accomplice of Shaitan against him (that is, if you chide him or infuriate him and thereby estrange him from his religion, then, you would actually be helping the Shaitan). (Ibn Kathir) A warning For people who work for the betterment of Allah's creation and serve in the field of tabligh and da'wah, this verse offers great guidance. Here is a person you would love to become a better person. First, you yourself pray for him. Then, use soft ways to bring him towards that betterment. Do not be aggressive towards him, for it would do no good to him, in fact, it would amount to helping the Shaitan, for he would push him onto more ways of error. Explanation of Verses Some commentators have said that: حٰم (Ha Meem) is the name of Allah Ta’ ala. But, in the sight of early authorities, these isolated letters (al-huruf-ul-muqatta` at) are all from the category of: مُتَشابِھَات (mutashabihat: of hidden meaning). Their meanings are known to Allah Ta’ ala alone - or, that they are a secret between Allah Ta’ ala and the Holy Prophet ﷺ .

(The revelation of the Scripture is) this Qur'an is a revelation (from Allah, the Mighty, the Knower) unto Muhammad (pbuh); Allah is Mighty in retribution against those who disbelieve in Him and He is also the Knower of those who believe in Him as well as of those who disbelieve in Him,

Ḥā Mīm.! The revelation of the Book is from God, the Almighty, the All-Knowing,He said:That is, the Living (al-Ḥayy), the King (al-Malik), who sent down the Book to you. He is ⸢God⸣, who turns thereby [by the Revelation] the hearts of mystics (ʿārifūn). He is Almighty (al-ʿAzīz) beyond the grasp of created beings, the All-Knowing (al-ʿAlīm) with regard to what He has produced and ordained.