How the Sahabah and Tabi’oon Learned Tafsir: ibn Taymiyah

In his famous primer of the foundations of tafsir, ibn Taymiyah wrote:

يجب أن يعلم أن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم بَيَّنَ لأصحابه معاني القرآن كما بين لهم ألفاظه، فقوله تعالى‏:‏{‏لِتُبَيِّنَ لِلنَّاسِ مَا نُزِّلَ إِلَيْهِمْ‏ ‏‏‏} ‏[‏النحل‏:‏44‏]‏ يتناول هذا وهذا، وقد قال أبو عبد الرحمن السلمي‏:‏ حدثنا الذين كانوا يقرئوننا القرآن كعثمان بن عفان، وعبد اللّه بن مسعود وغيرهما أنهم كانوا إذا تعلموا من النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم عشر آيات لم يجاوزوها حتى يتعلموا ما فيها من العلم والعمل، قالوا‏:‏ فتعلمنا القرآن والعلم والعمل جميعاً‏‏. ـ

You ought to know that the Prophet made the meanings of the Qur’an clear to his companions just as He made its wordings clear to them, for Allah’s statement:

‏لِتُبَيِّنَ لِلنَّاسِ مَا نُزِّلَ إِلَيْهِمْ‏

… so that you could explain to the people what has been sent down to them … [16:44]

includes both of those things. And Abu ‘Abd al-Rahman al-Sulami said:

Those from whom we learned the Qur’an such as ‘Uthman ibn ‘Affan, ‘Abdullah ibn Mas’ood and others told us that whenever they used to learn ten ayaat from the Prophet, they wouldn’t go beyond that until they had learned the knowledge and actions contained within those ayaat. They said, “We would learn the Qur’an, knowledge and actions all together.”

ولهذا كانوا يبقون مدة في حفظ السورة‏.‏ وقال أنس‏:‏ كان الرجل إذا قرأ البقرة وآل عمران جَلَّ في أعيننا‏.‏ وأقام ابن عمر على حفظ البقرة عدة سنين، قيل‏:‏ ثماني سنين، ذكره مالك‏‏. ـ

That is why it would take them a long time to memorize a surah. Anas said:

If a man memorized surah al-Baqarah and surah Aal ‘Imran, we would hold him in high esteem.

And ibn ‘Umar spent a number of years memorizing surah al-Baqarah. Some, including Maalik, said that he spent a total of eight years.

The Linguistic Meaning of the Word “al-Qur’an”: Tafsir al-Baghawi

In his famous book of tafsir at the first mention of the word “Qur’an” in the mushaf [see surah al-Baqarah 185], Imam Abu Muhammad al-Baghawi wrote:

سمي القرآن قرآنا لأنه يجمع السور والآي ، والحروف وجمع فيه القصص والأمر والنهي والوعد ، والوعيد . وأصل القرء الجمع وقد يحذف الهمز منه فيقال قريت الماء في الحوض إذا جمعته وقرأ ابن كثير ” القران ” بفتح الراء غير مهموز وكذلك كان يقرأ الشافعي ويقول ليس هو من القراءة ولكنه اسم لهذا الكتاب كالتوراة والإنجيل

The Qur’an is called “Qur’an” because it brings together the surahs, ayaat and letters and it brings together stories, commands, prohibitions, promises and threats.

The root meaning of the word qar’ [ ق ر ء ] is “gathering”, and the letter hamzah can be omitted from it. For instance, one could say, “qarayt water in a cistern” when he gathered water together.

Conditions for Benefiting from the Qur’an: Ibn al-Qayyim

Commenting on part of surah Qaf which describes the effect of the Qur’an on a receptive listener, Imam ibn al-Qayyim wrote:

قال تعالى: {إن في ذلك لذكرى لمن كان له قلب أو ألقى السمع وهو شهيد} إذا حصَل المُؤثِّر وهو القرآن، والمَحِل القابِل وهو القلبُ الحَيُّ، ووُجِدَ الشَّرطُ وهو الإصغاء، وانتَفَى المانِعُ وهو اشتِغالُ القَلب وذُهولُه عن مَعنى الخِطاب وانصِرافُه عنه إلى شيءٍ آخَر؛ حصَل الأَثرُ وهو الانتِفاعُ والتَّذكُّر.ـ

Allah said:

إِنَّ فِي ذَٰلِكَ لَذِكْرَىٰ لِمَن كَانَ لَهُ قَلْبٌ أَوْ أَلْقَى السَّمْعَ وَهُوَ شَهِيدٌ

Surely in that there is a reminder for whoever has a heart or gives an ear while he is heedful. [50:37]

So, if

-the stimulus is there – i.e. the Qur’an

-and there is a receptive site – i.e. a living heart

-and the condition is met – i.e. listening

-and there is no preventative factor present – i.e. one’s heart being preoccupied or indifferent to the message being given or turning away from that message to something else

then in that case, there will be an effect, which is benefiting from it and being reminded.

[al-Fawa’id pg. 3]

Should I Continue or Restart Reading at the Start of Ramadan?: Sheikh Salih al-Fawzan

Sheikh Salih al-Fawzan was asked and responded to the following question:

السؤال: إذا لم أختم قراءة القرآن قبل رمضان، فهل أبدأ من جديد مع بداية رمضان ، أم أكمل ختمة ثم ابدا من جديد؟ ـ

Question: If I didn’t complete a full reading of the Qur’an before Ramadan, should I begin a new reading at the start of Ramadan or should I finish my current reading and then begin a new one?

الجواب: لا، أكمل القرآن ثم إذا أكملته تبدأ من جديد، أما إذا إنك ما أكملته وتترك باقيه وتبدأ من جديد بعد كل رمضان، لا، ما هو طيب، أكمل القرآن، ثم بعد ذلك تبدأ من جديد . ـ

Response: No, finish the Qur’an. Then after you have finished it you can start a new one.

Why is Jibril Called a Rooh?: Sheikh ‘Abd al-Razzaq al-Badr

In one of his classes in al-Masjid al-Nabawi, sheikh ‘Abd al-Razzaq al-Badr mentioned the following point of benefit:

قوله تعالى { تَنَزَّلُ الْمَلَائِكَةُ وَالرُّوحُ فِيهَا} أي: جبريل، فجبريل هو المراد بقوله {الروح} . وهنا يأتي سؤال لماذا سمي جبريل روحًا؟، قالوا: لأنه ينزل بالوحي الذي به حياة القلوب، كما أن الوحي نفسه روحًا؛ لأن به حياة القلوب في مثل قوله تعال: {وَكَذَٰلِكَ أَوْحَيْنَا إِلَيْكَ رُوحًا مِّنْ أَمْرِنَا} سمى الوحي روحًا، وسمى من ينزل بالوحي وهو جبريل روحًا؛ لأن بالوحي حياة القلوب

Allah’s statement:

تَنَزَّلُ الْمَلَائِكَةُ وَالرُّوحُ فِيهَا

On that night, the angels and the Rooh descend … [97:4]

i.e. Jibril, for Jibril is who is meant by Allah’s statement “the Rooh“.

Here one might ask, “why is Jibril called Rooh – a soul -?”

The scholars say: because he comes down with the revelation, and it is through this that the hearts have life.

Likewise, the revelation itself is a Rooh, because it is through this that the hearts have life. This usage comes, for instance, in Allah’s statement:

Tafsir of Surah al-Inshiqaaq: al-Tafsir al-Muyassar

The book Al-Tafsir al-Muyassar was written by a group of scholars under the direction of sheikh Saalih Aal al-Sheikh, Minister of Islamic Affairs for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It was designed to be a simple and easy-to-understand tafsir according to the understanding of the salaf. What follows is its brief tafsir of surah al-Inshiqaaq (84) and translation:

ـ {إِذَا السَّمَاءُ انشَقَّتْ (1) وَأَذِنَتْ لِرَبِّهَا وَحُقَّتْ (2) وَإِذَا الأَرْضُ مُدَّتْ (3) وَأَلْقَتْ مَا فِيهَا وَتَخَلَّتْ (4) وَأَذِنَتْ لِرَبِّهَا وَحُقَّتْ (5)}
إذا السماء تصدَّعت، وتفطَّرت بالغمام يوم القيامة، وأطاعت أمر ربها فيما أمرها به من الانشقاق، وحُقَّ لها أن تنقاد لأمره. وإذا الأرض بُسطت وَوُسِّعت، ودكت جبالها في ذلك اليوم، وقذفت ما في بطنها من الأموات، وتخلَّتْ عنهم، وانقادت لربها فيما أمرها به، وحُقَّ لها أن تنقاد لأمره. ـ

إِذَا السَّمَاءُ انشَقَّتْ * وَأَذِنَتْ لِرَبِّهَا وَحُقَّتْ * وَإِذَا الأَرْضُ مُدَّتْ * وَأَلْقَتْ مَا فِيهَا وَتَخَلَّتْ * وَأَذِنَتْ لِرَبِّهَا وَحُقَّتْ

When the sky is split (1) And listens to its Lord as it must (2) And when the earth is flattened (3) And casts out what is in it and discards (4) And listens to its Lord as it must (5)

When the sky will be cracked and split apart by the clouds on the Day of Resurrection and it will obey the command of its Lord for it to be split apart, and it had to fulfill His order. And when the earth will be spread out and widened and its mountains will be leveled on that Day, and it will throw out the dead contained inside it and discard them. It will obey its Lord in what He commanded it to do, for it has to fulfill His command.

ـ {يَا أَيُّهَا الإِنسَانُ إِنَّكَ كَادِحٌ إِلَى رَبِّكَ كَدْحًا فَمُلاقِيهِ (6)}
يا أيها الإنسان إنك ساعٍ إلى الله، وعامل أعمالا من خير أو شر، ثم تلاقي الله يوم القيامة، فيجازيك بعملك بفضله أو عدله. ـ

يَا أَيُّهَا الإِنسَانُ إِنَّكَ كَادِحٌ إِلَى رَبِّكَ كَدْحًا فَمُلاقِيهِ

O mankind, you are certainly laboring toward your Lord with exertion and will meet Him. (6)

O man, you are certainly traveling forward quickly toward Allah while performing deeds – either good or bad -. Then you will meet Allah on the Day of Resurrection where you will be repaid for your deeds, either that He will be gracious to you or fair to you.

Being Deprived of One’s Memorization of the Qur’an: Sheikh ‘Abd al-Kareem al-Khudayr

Sheikh ‘Abd al-Kareem al-Khudayr was asked the following question on the Noor ‘Alaa al-Darb program:

س ـ زوجي يُشاهد أفلامًا إباحية على (الإنترنت) مع أنه حافظ للقرآن الكريم، ونصحتُه أكثرَ مِن مرة وكان يغضب مني، فماذا أفعل؟

Question: My husband watches pornographic videos on the internet despite the fact that he is a hafidh of the Qur’an. I have advised him more than once but he gets angry with me. What should I do?

ج ـ لا يسوغ للمسلم ولا يليق به، ولا بمروءة الرجل أن يشاهد هذه الأفلام، مع أن الله -جل وعلا- أغناه بزوجةٍ ومَنَّ عليه بحفظ القرآن، على أن هذا الأمر عام لجميع المسلمين، لا يجوز لهم رجالًا ونساءً، متزوجين وغير متزوجين أن يشاهدوا ما حرم الله عليهم. ألا يخشى هذا الحافظ من أن يُسلبَ هذه النعمة وهي حفظ القرآن؟ وقد أُثِر عن بعض السلف أنه نسي القرآن بعد مدة طويلة؛ لأنه نظرَ نظرةً محرمةً، فكيف بمن يعكف على هذه الآلات؟! ألا يخشى الله -جل وعلا- ويخاف منه أن يسلبه هذه النعمة التي لا تعدلها نعمة بعد نعمة الإسلام، نعمةَ الحفظ للقرآن الذي يحل معه حيثما كان، ويَسهُل عليه أن يقرأ منه ما شاء متى شاء؟ والله المستعان.ـ

Response: That not acceptable or befitting for a Muslim, nor is it befitting of a man’s dignity, to watch such videos. What’s more, Allah has freed him from bring in need of that due to his having a wife, and has blessed him with memorization of the Qur’an. And this is something applicable to all Muslims – that it is not allowed, neither for men or women, married or unmarried, to watch what Allah has forbidden.

The Reading Schedule of the Salaf in Ramadan

Sheikh Muhammad Hisham Tahiri, (PhD in ‘Aqeedah from the Islamic University of al-Madinah and one of the scholars of Kuwait), authored a beneficial pamphlet on how to complete a reading of the Qur’an in alignment with the reading practices of the salaf. The main feature of his proposed reading schedules are that they are based around complete surahs rather than word count. We have translated the complete pamphlet below and also published it as a free PDF here:

جدول السلف في رمضان

The Reading Schedule of the Salaf In Ramadan

جمع وإعداد : د. محمد هشام طاهري (أبو صلاح)

Compiled & Prepared by: Dr. Muhammad Hisham Tahiri (Abu Salah)

بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم

Bismillah al-Rahman al-Rahim

الحمد الله ، والصلاة والسلام على رسول الله ، وعلى آله وصحبه ومن والاه ، وبعد ، فإننا مقبلون على رمضان ، شهر القرآن ـ شهر الختمات والبركات ، شهر الصيام والخيرات ، بهذه المناسبة فإني أقدم بين يدي جمهور المصلين والصائمين جدولا تقريبا لختمات السلف الصالح رضوان الله تعالى عليهم ، وهي بعيدة عن جدولة الأجزاء التي تقف على مواضع فيها قطع للمعاني ، لأنه روعي فيه مجرد الحروف ، والله تعالى أعلم . ـ

All praise is due to Allah, and may His praise and peace be on Allah’s Messenger, as well as on his family, companions and followers.

To proceed: We are approaching Ramadan, which is the month of the Qur’an, a month of reading the Qur’an in full multiple times and a month of blessings, a month of fasting and a month of goodness. So to make this event, we would like to present for all those praying and fasting a schedule that approximates the Qur’an reading schedules of the pious predecessors (may Allah be pleased with them). These are distinct from the Juz’ divisions which stop in certain places that interrupt a message or passage since they are only concerned with the word-count. And Allah knows best.

وضعت هذا الجدول بحسب ما قرأت وسمعت ، ثم رتبته بالأول للمجتهدين ، وفي الأخير للمقصرين ـ وبينهما مراتب ، والله أسأل أن يرفع مراتبنا في عليين ، وأن يوفقنا لمراتب الصديقين ، وأن يجعلنا من السابقين ، ومن المسارعين في الخيرات ، لا سيما في هذا الشهر شهر البركات . ـ

I made the reading schedules according to what I have read and heard. I then arranged them, placing the first one for those who are striving to do the maximum and the last for those who are doing the minimum, with a number of levels between the two.

I ask Allah to raise our level to the high ones, and to enable us to reach the level of the truthful ones, and to make us those who race and rush forward to good, especially in this month of blessings.

Key Points of ‘Aqeedah in Surah al-A’raaf: Tafsir al-Baghawi

Allah says in surah al-A’raaf:

إِنَّ رَبَّكُمُ اللَّهُ الَّذِي خَلَقَ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضَ فِي سِتَّةِ أَيَّامٍ ثُمَّ اسْتَوَىٰ عَلَى الْعَرْشِ يُغْشِي اللَّيْلَ النَّهَارَ يَطْلُبُهُ حَثِيثًا وَالشَّمْسَ وَالْقَمَرَ وَالنُّجُومَ مُسَخَّرَاتٍ بِأَمْرِهِ ۗ أَلَا لَهُ الْخَلْقُ وَالْأَمْرُ ۗ تَبَارَكَ اللَّهُ رَبُّ الْعَالَمِينَ

Your Lord is Allah Who created the heavens and the earth in six days and then settled upon the throne. He covers the night with the day, chasing it rapidly. And the Sun, the Moon, and the stars – all are subjected to His command. He certainly owns the creation and holds authority. Blessed is Allah, Lord of all creation. [7:54]

Commenting on this in his book of tafsir, Imam Abu Muhammad al-Baghawi wrote:

قوله تعالى : ( إن ربكم الله الذي خلق السماوات والأرض في ستة أيام ) أراد به في مقدار ستة أيام لأن اليوم من لدن طلوع الشمس إلى غروبها ، ولم يكن يومئذ يوم ولا شمس ولا سماء ، قيل : ستة أيام كأيام الآخرة وكل يوم كألف سنة . وقيل : كأيام الدنيا ، قال سعيد بن جبير : كان الله – عز وجل – قادرا على خلق السماوات والأرض في لمحة ولحظة ، فخلقهن في ستة أيام تعليما لخلقه التثبت والتأني في الأمور وقد جاء في الحديث : ” التأني من الله والعجلة من الشيطان ” . ـ

Regarding His statement:

إِنَّ رَبَّكُمُ اللَّهُ الَّذِي خَلَقَ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضَ فِي سِتَّةِ أَيَّامٍ

Your Lord is Allah Who created the heavens and the earth in six days …

What Allah means by this is: in a length of time equivalent to six days as a day runs, from the rising to the setting of the sun. And at the time of creation there was no such thing as a day, the sun or the sky yet.

Meanwhile, others have said that it means: six days like the days of the hereafter in which each day is like one thousand years.

However others have said that what is meant here is: the days of this world.

Sa’eed ibn Jubayr said, “Allah is completely able to create the heavens and the earth in a single second, but He created them in six days in order to teach His creation to be careful and steady in their actions.” And it is mentioned in a hadith, “Steadiness is from Allah and hastiness is from the shaytaan.”

Tafsir of Surah al-Mutaffifeen: al-Tafsir al-Muyassar

The book Al-Tafsir al-Muyassar was written by a group of scholars under the direction of sheikh Saalih Aal al-Sheikh, Minister of Islamic Affairs for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. It was designed to be a simple and easy-to-understand tafsir according to the understanding of the salaf. What follows is its brief tafsir of surah al-Mutaffifeen (83) and translation:

ـ {وَيْلٌ لِلْمُطَفِّفِينَ (1) الَّذِينَ إِذَا اكْتَالُوا عَلَى النَّاسِ يَسْتَوْفُونَ (2) وَإِذَا كَالُوهُمْ أَوْ وَزَنُوهُمْ يُخْسِرُونَ (3) أَلا يَظُنُّ أُولَئِكَ أَنَّهُمْ مَبْعُوثُونَ (4) لِيَوْمٍ عَظِيمٍ (5) يَوْمَ يَقُومُ النَّاسُ لِرَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ (6)}
عذابٌ شديد للذين يبخسون المكيال والميزان، الذين إذا اشتروا من الناس مكيلا أو موزونًا يوفون لأنفسهم، وإذا باعوا الناس مكيلا أو موزونًا يُنْقصون في المكيال والميزان، فكيف بحال من يسرقهما ويختلسهما، ويبخس الناس أشياءهم؟ إنه أولى بالوعيد من مطففي المكيال والميزان. ألا يعتقد أولئك المطففون أن الله تعالى باعثهم ومحاسبهم على أعمالهم في يوم عظيم الهول؟ يوم يقوم الناس بين يدي الله، فيحاسبهم على القليل والكثير، وهم فيه خاضعون لله رب العالمين. ـ

وَيْلٌ لِلْمُطَفِّفِينَ * الَّذِينَ إِذَا اكْتَالُوا عَلَى النَّاسِ يَسْتَوْفُونَ * وَإِذَا كَالُوهُمْ أَوْ وَزَنُوهُمْ يُخْسِرُونَ * أَلا يَظُنُّ أُولَئِكَ أَنَّهُمْ مَبْعُوثُونَ * لِيَوْمٍ عَظِيمٍ * يَوْمَ يَقُومُ النَّاسُ لِرَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ

Woe to the defrauders (1) Who, when they take a measure from people, take in full. (2) But if they give by measure or by weight to them, they cause loss. (3) Don’t they know that they will be resurrected (4) For a tremendous Day – (5) The Day when mankind will stand before the Lord of all creation? (6)

There will be a severe punishment for those who are stingy in the measuring out the proper amounts and weighing correctly. Those who, if they are buying from people – whether by volume or by weight – then they make sure that they get the full measure, but when the are selling to people – whether by volume or by weight – they fall short in the amount or weight agreed upon. So then how much more of a punishment for the one who steals, misuses, and pilfers people’s things? Such a person is even more deserving of a threat than those who fall short in measuring and weighing.

Don’t these defrauders believe that Allah will resurrect them and take them to account for their deeds on a stunningly frightful day? A day on which the people will stand in front of Allah and He will take them to account for things both big and small. And on that day they will be submissive to Allah, the Lord of all creation.