The Mercy of Qur'an and the Advent of Zaman - Commentary On Four Suras

Sura 1 : Surat Ul-ankabut (the Spider)

Introduction

Whoever professes, confesses, or witnesses the one Creator of creation in all its diversity will undergo the strengthening process of affliction. Duality and association with the one Creator will gradually be worn away from him. In Arabic, the verb to afflict also means to become old and worn.

Some of the early Muslims in Mecca could not withstand the pressure exerted upon them to return to the convenience of old habits. This sura historically reflects that situation in Mecca. The name of the sura refers to the flimsy, insecure home or structure on which we tend to depend, like the spider's web. The only structure which is inde­structible is based on the knowledge of God and His laws that govern existence.

In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful.

1 Alif Lam Mim.

2 Do men think that they will be left alone on saying, we believe, and not be tried?

3 And certainly We tried those before them, so Allah will certainly know those who are true and He will certainly know the liars.

There is a purpose in creation, a visible, subtle, and deep purpose, which is to discover the meaning of existence. However, man must trust in Allah in order to fully commit himself to the quest. No matter how hard man may try to reckon and calculate the purpose of this existence, he will not succeed without iman (trust); which has its root in the heart. Deflection from this ultimate source will only result in fitna, which is trial, affliction and discord.

Fitna implies superficial trial or affliction. It is a plot, that seems charming and captivating; but a plot can be easily discovered - it is not substantial. A fatin is a woman who decorates herself to attract a man, hiding what may be a most dreadful character. No matter how man reckons or calculates, he will be afflicted in a superficial way so that his Imam his trust, becomes more real and certain of the absolute and not of the relative.

Trust begins in the outward and existential but leads to the inward. There is no separation of the deep inner reality and the outer reality because they are a continuum. There is no end to Reality. It is only for the sake of illustration that we talk about the outer and the inner.

Fitna is derived from the verb fatana which amongst other things, means to prove. Dinar maftun is a gold coin that has been tested and proven to be true gold. Imam Has­san, `alayhi-s-salam ( upon him be peace), defined fitna as that which proves man's reality, his divine origin, by what appears to be affliction, turmoil and trouble. Divine mercy puts man through processes that appear to be undesirable and troublesome, showing man that he has no power over anything. Man has, in fact, no claim over anything except the witnessing and the recognition of the one and Only - La ilaha illa-llah

4 Or do they who work evil think that they will escape Us? Evil is it that they judge!

5 Whoever hopes to meet Allah, the term of Allah will then most surely come; and He is the Hearing, the Knowing.

6 And whoever strives hard, he strives only for himself; most surely Allah is Self-sufficient, above (need of) the worlds.

7 And (as for) those who believe and do good, We will most certainly do away with their evil deeds and We will most certainly reward them the best of what they did.

Man in his arrogance and cleverness thinks that he can escape from the prescribed laws governing existence. He thinks he can cheat Allah and imagines himself as a separate entity, which is shirk (associating other-than-Allah with Allah). The nature of he who has complete and utter trust is that he does not see himself; he sees only one higher Self.

He sees himself and his actions only as an outer mani­festation of oneness. He has absolute security, certainty, serenity and independence by having discovered dependence on Allah. The opposite of this tawhid (divine unity) is man's imagination that he exists alongside Allah. Full dependence on Allah brings about inde­pendence because man becomes independent of other-than-Allah.

Love of Reality guides and draws man towards tawhid. If he claims trust in Reality, that claim will be put to the test. It is Allah's mercy by which He helps man to recognize the degree of his sincerity and honesty. The iman of the early followers of the Prophet Muham­mad, salla-llahu alayhi wa alihi wa sallam was tested; pressure was exerted upon them by the pre­vailing system which saw this revolutionary message as a threat to its own survival.

Many families urged their relatives who followed Muhammad, salla-lla`hu alayhi wa alihi wa sallam (peace and blessings be upon him and his family), to return to the traditional, inherited and ignorant ways. Some had one or both of their parents threaten to take their lives and the lives of their offspring in order to deflect them from diving deeper into their belief.

For those who remain in iman is the promise that they will come to know Allah and the truth of the Resurrection. The more they exert themselves in this life, the closer they will get to this state of knowl­edge. The mu'minun (believers) are given a clear code of conduct. By righteously doing their utmost they will be amply re­warded.

8 And We have enjoined on man goodness to his parents, and if they contend with you that you should associate (others) with Me, of which you have no knowledge, do not obey them; to Me is your return, so I will inform you of what you did.

9 And (as for) those who believe and do good, We will most surely cause them to enter among the good.

The first thing a child witnesses is his parents. If he does not show loyalty towards them, he cannot show loyalty in a subtler way towards Allah. A child's rebellion against his parents is a rebellion against all those who have physical power over him and sustain him. If a child is rebellious against his parents, he is likely to be rebellious against anything.

The parents may be, from a spiritual point of view, mis­guided, but the child can only be qualified to reflect upon or witness that when his own self-guidance begins to emerge. Irrespective of anything, the child should have compassion for them.

Under all circumstances, a person is advised to be respectful to his parents. It does not mean he is to be under their domination, but when their names are mentioned, he should ask for their forgiveness. After all, they were the means by which he had come about. Regardless of whether one is good or bad one still has the mercy of the Creator upon him. Allah is the invisible origin from which man has come forth through his parents.

There are various degrees of iman. A true mu'min regards every­thing that happens to him as his destiny. It must be, for it has occurred and is itself the proof of its truth and reality. It has occurred not out of a whim but from Reality. A mu'min takes knowledge from everything, whether it appears to be good or bad. If he has not identified himself with a specific, fixed viewpoint, he will derive knowledge and benefit from affliction.

10 And among men is he who says: We believe in Allah; but when he is persecuted in (the way of) Allah he thinks the persecution of men to be as the chastisement of Allah; and if there come assistance from your lord, they would most certainly say: Surely we were with you. What! is not Allah the best knower of what is in the breasts of mankind.

11 And most certainly Allah will know those who believe, and most certainly He will know the hypocrites.

The aspect most difficult for the nafs (lower self) to witness is hypocrisy. Most actions are justified in a hypocritical way. A man may say he is working fi sabili-llah (in the way of Allah), but may actually want to gain a high reputation, or become the imam of a community or the leader of a country. If his actions are for Allah's sake the afflic­tions from people will drive him more towards the source, into his innermost, into dependence upon Reality. The people themselves are not in awareness but they are nonetheless a reflection of Reality to the mu'min.

Because that reflection may not be seen clearly, those who are weak in their trust and do not derive wisdom and spiritual growth from events, may read afflictions brought about by the wrongdoings of man as being signs that Allah is punishing them, that Allah is not rewarding them for being on the path of iman. The weak at heart look for signs in order to weaken themselves further.

The man of discrimination simply dismisses such occurrences as men's injustices. It is an imposition, a natural occurrence which strengthens those who are strong at heart, strong in iman, and weakens those who are weak at heart. It is nature's way of sifting out those without wisdom.

12 And those who disbelieve say to those who believe: Follow our path and we will bear your wrongs. And never shall they be the bearers of any of their wrongs; most surely they are liars.

13 And most certainly they shall carry their own burdens, and other burdens with their own burdens, and most certainly they shall be questioned on the resurrection day as to what they forged.

The early people, when their iman was weak, when other people were causing them trouble, wanted to give up their belief in the Prophet Muhammad, salla-llahu alayhi wa alihi wa sallam. They claimed that Allah was sending them messages in the form of afflictions, indicating that they should take the path of least resistance.

But it was the path of expediency that they wanted to follow, and therefore, in time would become the more difficult path. Afflictions are the test of nature upon man. Those who turned away from the right path lacked discrimination and 'iman. They read into the signs the most obvious meanings, without considering the direction in which they were being led.

What occurred at the dawn of Islam is repeated- at all times. It is man who reads loss into afflictions. This has nothing to do with Real­ity. A sign is sent by Allah in order that the mu'min recognizes that the others are wrongly guided. Man reads into signs what he wishes according to the strength of his iman and the purity of his intention.

Allah says: "My mercy encompasses everything." Man must try to see it. The law is there, written; it is up to him to penetrate into the sub­tleties of how that law operates at all times, under all circumstances, everywhere and for everyone. Allah's mercy is instantaneous and the degree of its being seen, felt and tasted is the degree of the sincerity of one's iman.

14 And certainly We sent N'uh to his people, so he remained among them a thousand years save fifty years. And the deluge overtook them, while they were unjust.

15 So We delivered him and the inmates of the ark, and made it a sign to the nations.

The Prophet, salla-llahu alayhi wa blihi wa sallam, said: "My ex­ample and the example of the close and selected members of my family is like the ship of Nuh (Noah): he who rides in it will be safe, but he who does not will flounder."

If man takes on the conduct of the Prophet and his family, car­rying a passport issued from their way, he will move safely from one port to another. He will pass from the port of mortality to the port of immortality. If he does not, he will flounder and at best be confused. That is the state of the majority of people whether or not they call themselves Muslims.

They do not hold to His rope. The Qur'an says very clearly: Those of you that want to follow Allah and know Him, follow the Prophet, follow what he stood for and what he reflected. Follow in the footsteps of those who came after him. A hadith (tradition, saying) says: "Men of knowledge are the heirs of the prophets." What is there to inherit from a prophet but his knowledge and its application in one's life?

In existence everything we witness is based on duality, such as life and death, guidance and misguidance, leading and being led. Man experiences opposites simultaneously. He loves and hates simultaneously. If a man loves truth, justice compassion and generosity, then he is bound to hate injustice, tyranny and meanness.

By understanding and actually experiencing this concept man can guide his actions toward the higher opposites so that they emanate from the opposites that are closer to the attributes of Reality. He recognizes that he has travelled a great distance from the lower tendencies toward the higher tendencies. He has left fear and insecurity and approaches positiveness, secure in the knowledge that he will come to know and be able to improve the quality of life around him.

16 And (We sent) Ibrahim, when he said to his people: Serve Allah and be careful of (your duty to) Him; this is best for you, if you did but know.

17 You only worship idols besides Allah and you create a lie; surely they whom you serve besides Allah do not control for you any sustenance, therefore seek the sustenance from Allah and serve Him and be grateful to Him; to Him you shall be brought back.

18 And if you reject (the truth), nations before you did indeed reject (the truth); and nothing is incumbent on the apostle but a clear delivering (of the message).

Follow those who possess 'ulu ul- amr, those who possess that command by idhn (permission), hold the order in their hands and can interpret it. The order of Allah is the way of Allah, which is the recognition of the truth and reality that comes by abandonment and submission into the one and only Reality. Outer order and command brings about physical order. The order of Allah is in the purpose of His creation which is that His highest creation, man, should come to know His will as it manifests in His laws which govern existence.

Man stumbles on in his life with the purpose of knowing the laws that govern right and wrong action. Affliction and turmoil are only the natural means for man to come to know the boundaries so that he does not transgress them, so that he knows .at what point he is be­ginning to cause himself harm. The ulu ul amr are the people who know the order of affairs, who have wisdom and the innate, innermost knowledge that there is only Reality and that It manifests in every man and form. Taking on their knowledge is bound to lead one to suc­cess and not to self-harm.

Man has no control over what he may inherit. It may be that a people must pay back a debt accumulated by those who came earlier. If a man has abused his land, his children will start off with a handi­cap which they can do nothing about except seek to overcome it over a period of time. That again is the Reality. If they had knowledge, they would recognize their difficult situation and make allowances for it and not be disappointed.

Ulu' ul- amr is often misunderstood. Tyrants throughout the history of Islam, acting selfishly and despotically, simply interpreted it as `those who are in power'. It is generally recognized that those who are in power do not deserve to be. They do not represent the highest in man.

According to the true followers of the Muhammadi light, as exemplified by the holy Ahl ul-Bayt ( the Prophet's family) and illustrated amply by Imam Ja'far as-Sadiq, alayhi-s-salam, the ulu ul amr are those who deserve to be leading us to the knowl­edge of Allah. They have gained authority first and foremost over their lower tendencies and have knowledge that can lead others to ultimate bliss, in this life, by correct conduct, working and living in a manner that befits man, the highest of creation.

People who have often strayed off the true path use taqiyya (dissimulation of one's religion) to excuse themselves from jihad (utmost exertion in the cause of righteousness) or from exercising energy and doing their utmost as part of the will of Reality. Everything is evolving towards the higher. Man must also reflect that by doing his utmost to change circumstances that are wrong and cast dark shadows of ignorance.

Life is based upon dynamic movement. It echoes the meaning of samadiyya, foreverness. Perpetuity manifests from within us. Often man is fearful of dynamic movement, but he is much better off guard­ing against downward movement within himself and his conscience. A man of taqwa (fearful awareness) fears only Allah while showing complete fearlessness in his actions. Yet he is not disrespectful nor does he promote chaos. Everything has its boundary and its adab ( courtesy).

19 Do they not see how Allah originates the creation, then reproduces it? Surely that is easy to Allah.

Creation follows the cycle of beginning, maturing, ending and then recreating. Recreation is the reflection of creation in the timeless zone. The brief flicker of creation is a hint of the state of being frozen in absolute non-time in the next life.

Man loves the `beyond time.' He cannot do without sleep which is the nearest he can taste of timelessness in this life. Some people have had the opportunity of a near fatal accident and have experienced a similitude of death. Also, in the state of dhikr (remembrance), in what the sufis call fana' (self-obliteration), there is a death of meaning.

Life is a cycle of creation and recreation. As this creation came and went, so will another creation begin with a resurrection (ba'th). As man rose into wakefulness, so will another form of rising occur in a purer energy form without the physical matter which belongs to this little speck called earth.