Al-Ahqaf 46:15–25

Allah's Advice about the Parents

After mentioning that one must confess His Oneness, worship Him with sincerity, and remain upright in obeying Him, Allah follows that by giving instructions regarding the parents. These appear together in many places of the Qur'an, such as Allah's saying,

(Your Lord has decreed that you worship none but Him, and that you be dutiful to your parents.) (17:23) Allah says,

(Be grateful to Me and to your parents. Unto Me is the final destination.) (31:14) There are many other Ayat like this as well. Here Allah says,

(And We have enjoined on man to be dutiful and kind to his parents.) (46:15) meaning, `We have commanded him to treat them well and show compassion towards them. Abu Dawud At-Tayalisi recorded from Sa`d bin Abi Waqqas, may Allah be pleased with him, that his mother said to him: "Hasn't Allah commanded that you obey your parents Then I will not eat any food or drink any drink until you disbelieve in Allah." Thus she stubbornly abstained from eating and drinking, until they had to open her mouth with a stick. Then this Ayah was revealed,

(And We have enjoined on man to be dutiful and kind to his parents. ) This was also recorded by Muslim and the Sunan compilers, except for Ibn Majah. Allah continues,

(His mother bears him with hardship.) which means that the mother suffers hardship because of her child, such as fatigue, sickness, vomiting, heaviness, distress, and other forms of hardship that the pregnant women suffer.

(And she delivers him with hardship.) meaning, she also delivers him with hardship, suffering the pains of labor and their severity.

(And (the period of) his gestation and weaning is thirty months,) `Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, used this Ayah along with the following two Ayat to prove that the minimum period of pregnancy (gestation) is six months:

(And his weaning is in two years.) (31:14) and

(The mothers suckle their children two complete years -- for those who desire to complete the term of suckling. ) (2:233) This is a strong and valid conclusion, and it was approved by `Uthman and a number of the Companions. Muhammad bin Ishaq bin Yasar narrated from Ba`jah bin `Abdullah Al-Juhani that a man from his tribe (Juhaynah) married a woman from Juhaynah. She delivered a baby after six months. So her husband went to `Uthman, may Allah be pleased with him, and told him about that. Thus, `Uthman summoned her. When she was getting dressed, her sister started crying. She asked her: "Why do you cry By Allah, no one has ever approached me (for sexual relations) of Allah's creation except him (my husband). So let Allah decree (for me) as He wills." When she was brought before `Uthman, he commanded that she be stoned to death (for adultery). `Ali heard of this, came to `Uthman, and said: "What are you doing" He (`Uthman) said: "She delivered after six months! Can this ever happen" `Ali, may Allah be pleased with him, said: "Don't you read the Qur'an" He said: "Yes, of course!" He (`Ali) then said: `Haven't you heard Allah's saying,

(and his gestation and weaning is thirty months), and;

( two complete years) (2:233) (Subtracting the two numbers) we are only left with six months." `Uthman, may Allah be pleased with him, said: "By Allah, I did not see that! Bring the woman back." But they found that she had already been killed. Ba`jah continued: "By Allah, no two crows and no two eggs are more similar than that child turned out to be to his father! When his father saw that he said, `By Allah! This is my son without any doubt.' Later on, Allah afflicted him with a skin abscess in his face (because of his false accusation to his wife). It kept eating him up until he died." Ibn Abi Hatim related from his father that Farwah bin Abi Al-Maghra' told them that `Ali bin Mushir narrated to them from Dawud bin Abi Hind, who narrated from `Ikrimah that Ibn `Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, said, "When a woman delivers after nine months, the baby will only need twenty-one months of suckling. When she delivers after seven months, the baby will need twenty-three months of suckling. When she delivers after six months, the baby will need two full years of suckling, because Allah says,

(and his gestation and weaning is thirty months, till when he attains full strength)." meaning, he becomes strong, youthful, and attains full ability.

(and reaches forty years,) meaning, his complete intellect, understanding, and patience reach the level of maturity. It has also been said that usually one will not change his ways once he reaches the age of forty.

(he says: "My Lord! Grant me the power and ability) meaning, `inspire me.'

(that I may be grateful for Your favor which You have bestowed upon me and upon my parents, and that I may do righteous good deeds, such as please You,) meaning, in the future.

(and make my offspring good.) meaning, my offspring and descendants.

(Truly, I have turned to You in repentance, and truly, I am one of the Muslims.) This contains an instruction for anyone who reaches forty years of age to renew his repentance and turn to Allah with strong resolution. Allah then says,

(Those are the ones from whom We shall accept the best of what they did and overlook their evil deeds. (They shall be) among the dwellers of Paradise.) meaning, those to whom applies the above description -- those who repent to Allah, turn back to Him, and rectify their shortcomings through repentance and seeking forgiveness - those are the ones from whom We will accept the best of what they did and overlook their evil deeds. Many of their errors will be forgiven and Allah will accept from them a modest amount of deeds.

(among the dwellers of Paradise.) which means that they will be among the dwellers of Paradise. That is Allah's ruling concerning them, as He has promised for those who repent and turn to Him. Thus, He says,

(That is the promise of truth that they had been promised.)

Mention of the Undutiful Children and Their End

In the previous Ayat, Allah mentions the dutiful offspring who supplicate for their parents and treat them with kindness. He describes the success and salvation He has prepared for them. Here He connects to that discussion the situation of the wretched offspring who are undutiful toward their parents. Allah says,

وَالَّذِى قَالَ لِوَلِدَيْهِ أُفٍّ لَّكُمَآ

(But he who says to his parents: "Uff to you! ...") As for the saying "Uff" in this Ayah, it is a general description applying to anyone who says it to his parents. Some people claim that it was revealed about `Abdur-Rahman bin Abi Bakr. But this claim is weak and rejected, because `Abdur-Rahman bin Abi Bakr embraced Islam after this was revealed. His adherence to Islam was excellent, and he was among the best of his contemporaries. Al-Bukhari recorded from Yusuf bin Mahak that Marwan (bin Al-Hakam) was governor of Hijaz (Western Arabia), appointed by Mu`awiyah bin Abi Sufyan. He (Marwan) delivered a speech in which he mentioned Yazid bin Mu`awiyah and urged the people to give a pledge of allegiance after his father. `Abdur-Rahman bin Abi Bakr said something to him in response to that, upon which Marwan commanded his men: "Arrest him!" But he entered `Aishah's house, and they were not able to capture him. Marwan then said: "This is the one about whom Allah revealed:

وَالَّذِى قَالَ لِوَلِدَيْهِ أُفٍّ لَّكُمَآ أَتَعِدَانِنِى أَنْ أُخْرَجَ وَقَدْ خَلَتِ الْقُرُونُ مِن قَبْلِى

(But he who says to his parents: "Uff to you! Do you promise me that I will be raised -- when generations before me have passed")" From behind the curtain, `Aishah responded: "Allah did not reveal any Qur'an in our regard (i.e. the children of Abu Bakr), except for the declaration of my innocence." In another report recorded by An-Nasa'i, Muhammad bin Ziyad reported that when Mu`awiyah was soliciting people to pledge allegiance to his son, and Marwan declared: "This follows the tradition of Abu Bakr and `Umar." On hearing this, `Abdur-Rahman bin Abi Bakr said: "Rather, this is the tradition of Heraclius and Caesar." Marwan responded: "This is the one about whom Allah revealed,

وَالَّذِى قَالَ لِوَلِدَيْهِ أُفٍّ لَّكُمَآ

(But he who says to his parents: "Uff to you!")" When that was conveyed to `A'ishah, she said: "Marwan is lying! By Allah, that was not revealed about him. If I wish to name the person meant by it, I could. On the other hand, Allah's Messenger ﷺ placed a curse on Marwan's father (Al- Hakam bin Abi Al-`As when Marwan was still in his loins, so Marwan (bin Al-Hakam) is an outcome of Allah's curse." As for Allah's statement:

أَتَعِدَانِنِى أَنْ أُخْرَجَ

(Do you promise me that I will be raised) meaning, resurrected.

وَقَدْ خَلَتِ الْقُرُونُ مِن قَبْلِى

(when generations before me have passed) meaning, generations of people have already passed away, and none of them has ever returned to tell (what happened to them)

وَهُمَا يَسْتَغِيثَانِ اللَّهَ

(While they invoke Allah for help) meaning, they ask Allah to guide him, and they say to their son,

وَيْلَكَ ءَامِنْ إِنَّ وَعْدَ اللَّهِ حَقٌّ فَيَقُولُ مَا هَذَآ إِلاَّ أَسَطِيرُ الاٌّوَّلِينَ

("Woe to you! Believe! Verily, the promise of Allah is true." But he says: "This is nothing but the legends of the ancient.") Allah then says,

أُوْلَئِكَ الَّذِينَ حَقَّ عَلَيْهِمُ الْقَوْلُ فِى أُمَمٍ قَدْ خَلَتْ مِن قَبْلِهِمْ مِّنَ الْجِنِّ وَالإِنسِ إِنَّهُمْ كَانُواْ خَسِرِينَ

(They are those against whom the Word (of torment) has justified among the previous generations of Jinn and mankind that have passed away.Verily, they are ever the losers.) This indicates that all such people will be among their likes and their peers among the disbelievers, who will lose themselves and their families on the Day of Resurrection. Allah's saying,

أُوْلَئِكَ

(Those are) after He said,

وَالَّذِى قَالَ

(But he who says ) confirms what we have mentioned above that the latter is a general description of a type of people including all those who fall under that description. Al-Hasan and Qatadah both said, "This applies to the disbelieving, sinful person who is undutiful to his parents and who denies resurrection." Allah then says,

وَلِكُلٍّ دَرَجَتٌ مِّمَّا عَمِلُواْ

(And for all, there will be degrees according to that which they did,) meaning that there will be degrees of punishment for each of them according to what they did.

وَلِيُوَفِّيَهُمْ أَعْمَلَهُمْ وَهُمْ لاَ يُظْلَمُونَ

(so that He might fully recompense them for their deeds, and they will not be wronged.) which means Allah will not be unjust to them even in the amount of a speck of dust or less. `Abdur-Rahman bin Zayd bin Aslam said: "The levels of the Fire descend, and those of Paradise ascend." Allah then says,

وَيَوْمَ يُعْرَضُ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ عَلَى النَّارِ أَذْهَبْتُمْ طَيِّبَتِكُمْ فِى حَيَتِكُمُ الدُّنْيَا وَاسْتَمْتَعْتُمْ بِهَا

(On the Day when those who disbelieve will be exposed to the Fire (it will be said): "You received your good things in the life of the world, and you took your pleasure therein...") which means that this will be said to them by way of blame and reprimand. The Commander of the faithful, `Umar bin Al-Khattab, may Allah be pleased with him, gave up many of the joys of food and drink and refrained from them while saying, "I am afraid of being like those whom Allah has reproached and condemned by saying,

أَذْهَبْتُمْ طَيِّبَتِكُمْ فِى حَيَتِكُمُ الدُّنْيَا وَاسْتَمْتَعْتُمْ بِهَا

(You received your good things in the life of the world, and you took your pleasure therein)." Abu Mijlaz said: "Some people will lose good deeds that they had in the worldly life, and they will be told,

أَذْهَبْتُمْ طَيِّبَتِكُمْ فِى حَيَتِكُمُ الدُّنْيَا

(You received your good things in the life of the world)." Then Allah says,

فَالْيَوْمَ تُجْزَوْنَ عَذَابَ الْهُونِ بِمَا كُنتُمْ تَسْتَكْبِرُونَ فِى الاٌّرْضِ بِغَيْرِ الْحَقِّ وَبِمَا كُنتُمْ تَفْسُقُونَ

(Today, you will be recompensed with the torment of extreme humiliation, because you were arrogant upon the earth without a right, and because you used to rebel against Allah's command.) which indicates that their punishment will be of a type comparable to their deeds. They enjoyed themselves, were arrogant in their denial of the truth, and were involved in sinning and disobedience. Thus, Allah punishes them with extreme humiliation, disgrace, severe pains, continued sorrow, and positions in the terrible depths of Hell -- may Allah protect us from all of that.

The Story of `Ad

Allah says, consoling His Prophet in regard to the rejection of those who opposed him among his people,

وَاذْكُرْ أَخَا عَادٍ

(And remember the brother of `Ad,) This refers to Hud, peace be upon in him. Allah sent him to the first people of `Ad who inhabited Al-Ahqaf. Ahqaf is plural of Haqf. According to Ibn Zayd, it means a sand dune; and according to `Ikrimah, it means a mountain or a cave. Qatadah said: "We were informed that `Ad was a tribe in Yemen. They dwelt among sand (hills), and overlooked the sea in a land called Ash-Shihr." Under the chapter, "He Who supplicates should first mention Himself," Ibn Majah recorded that Ibn `Abbas narrated that the Prophet said:

«يَرْحَمُنَا اللهُ وَأَخَا عَاد»

(May Allah have mercy on us and the Brother of `Ad.) Allah then says,

وَقَدْ خَلَتِ النُّذُرُ مِن بَيْنِ يَدَيْهِ وَمِنْ خَلْفِهِ

(And surely, warners had already passed on before him and after him.) meaning, Allah had sent Messengers and warners to the towns surrounding the land of `Ad. This is similar to Allah's saying,

فَجَعَلْنَهَا نَكَلاً لِّمَا بَيْنَ يَدَيْهَا وَمَا خَلْفَهَا

(And We made it a deterrent punishment for those who were present and those who succeeded them. ) (2:66) And it is also similar to Allah's saying,

فَإِنْ أَعْرَضُواْ فَقُلْ أَنذَرْتُكُمْ صَعِقَةً مِّثْلَ صَعِقَةِ عَادٍ وَثَمُودَ إِذْ جَآءَتْهُمُ الرُّسُلُ مِن بَيْنِ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَمِنْ خَلْفِهِمْ أَلاَّ تَعْبُدُواْ إِلاَّ اللَّهَ

(But if they turn away, then say: "I have warned you of a thunderbolt like the thunderbolt that struck `Ad and Thamud. (That occurred) when the Messengers had come to them from before them and after them (saying): "Worship none but Allah.") (41:13-14) Allah then says,

إِنِّى أَخَافُ عَلَيْكُمْ عَذَابَ يَوْمٍ عَظِيمٍ

(truly, I fear for you the torment of a mighty Day.) meaning, Hud said this to them (his people), and they responded to him saying,

أَجِئْتَنَا لِتَأْفِكَنَا عَنْ ءَالِهَتِنَا

(Have you come to delude us from our gods) meaning, to prevent us.

عَنْ ءَالِهَتِنَا

(from our gods)

فَأْتِنَا بِمَا تَعِدُنَآ إِن كُنتَ مِنَ الصَّدِقِينَ

(Then bring us that with which you threaten us, if you are one of the truthful!) They sought to hasten Allah's torment and punishment, believing that it will not happen. This is similar to Allah's saying,

يَسْتَعْجِلُ بِهَا الَّذِينَ لاَ يُؤْمِنُونَ بِهَا

(Those who do not believe in it (the Last Hour) seek to hasten it) (42:18). Hud's response was,

قَالَ إِنَّمَا الْعِلْمُ عِندَ اللَّهِ

(He said: "The knowledge (of that) is only with Allah.") which means, `Allah knows best about you. If you deserve the punishment to be hastened, He will do that to you. As for me, my duty is to deliver my message to you.'

وَلَكِنِّى أَرَاكُمْ قَوْمًا تَجْهَلُونَ

(But I see that you are a people given to ignorance!) which means, `you have no comprehension or understanding.' Allah then says,

فَلَمَّا رَأَوْهُ عَارِضاً مُّسْتَقْبِلَ أَوْدِيَتِهِمْ

(Then, when they saw it as a dense cloud approaching their valleys,) meaning, when they saw the punishment coming towards them, they thought it to be clouds full of rain. That made them happy and joyful, because they had a drought and needed rain. Allah then said,

بَلْ هُوَ مَا اسْتَعْجَلْتُم بِهِ رِيحٌ فِيهَا عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ

(Nay, but it is that which you were asking to be hastened -- a wind wherein is a painful torment!) meaning, this is the torment that you called for saying, "Bring to us what you promise us if you should be of the truthful."

تُدَمِّرُ كُلَّ شَىْءٍ

(Destroying every thing) meaning, destroying every part of their land that could normally be destroyed.

بِأَمْرِ رَبِّهَا

(by the command of its Lord!) meaning, it had Allah's permission to do that. This is similar to Allah's saying,

مَا تَذَرُ مِن شَىْءٍ أَتَتْ عَلَيْهِ إِلاَّ جَعَلَتْهُ كَالرَّمِيمِ

d(It spared nothing that it reached, but blew it into broken spreads of rotten ruins.) (51:42) meaning, like something dilapidated (or decrepit). Because of this, Allah says,

فَأْصْبَحُواْ لاَ يُرَى إِلاَّ مَسَكِنُهُمْ

(So they became such that nothing could be seen except their dwellings!) means, all of them were destroyed, and none of them were spared. Allah then says:

كَذلِكَ نَجْزِي الْقَوْمَ الْمُجْرِمِينَ

(Thus do We recompense the criminal people!) which means that this is Our judgement regarding those who reject Our Messengers and disobey Our commands. Imam Ahmad recorded from `A'ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, that she said, "I never saw Allah's Messenger ﷺ fully laughing so that I would see his uvula. He would only smile." She added that when Allah's Messenger ﷺ saw clouds or wind, that would reflect on his face (as discomfort). She asked him: "O Allah's Messenger! When the people see clouds, they become happy, hoping that they bring them rain. But I notice that when you see them, displeasure appears on your face." Allah's Messenger ﷺ replied,

«يَا عَائِشَةُ، مَا يُؤْمِنُنِي أَنْ يَكُونَ فِيهِ عَذَابٌ، قَدْ عُذِّبَ قَوْمٌ بِالرِّيحِ، وَقَدْ رَأَى قَوْمٌ الْعَذَابَ وَقَالُوا: هذَا عَارِضٌ مُمْطِرُنَا»

(O `A'ishah! What would guarantee to me that they do not bring punishment Some nations had been punished with wind. On seeing the punishment approaching them, a nation once said: "This is a cloud bringing us rain.") This is also recorded by Al-Bukhari and Muslim. Imam Ahmad recorded that `A'ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, said that when Allah's Messenger ﷺ saw clouds on any of the horizons, he would leave whatever he was doing -- even if he was in prayer -- and say:

«اللْهُمَّ إِنِّي أَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنْ شَرِّ مَا فِيه»

(O Allah! I seek refuge with you from any harm that it (the cloud) contains.) If Allah removed those clouds, the Prophet would praise Allah, and if rain fell, he would say:

«اللْهُمَّ صَيِّبًا نَافِعًا»

(O Allah! Make it pouring and beneficent.) Muslim also recorded in his Sahih from `A'ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, that when the wind blew, Allah's Messenger ﷺ would say,

«اللْهُمَّ إِنِّي أَسْأَلُكَ خَيْرَهَا وَخَيْرَ مَا فِيهَا وَخَيْرَ مَا أُرْسِلَتْ بِهِ،وَأَعُوذُ بِكَ مِنْ شَرِّهَا، وَشَرِّ مَا فِيهَا، وَشَرِّ مَا أُرْسِلَتْ بِه»

(O Allah! I ask You of its good, the good that it contains, and the good with which it has been sent. And I seek refuge in You from its evil, the evil that it contains, and the evil with which it has been sent.) She added that if the sky became cloudy, his color would change; he would exit, enter, come, and go. When it rained, his anxiety would be relieved. When `A'ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, noticed that, she asked him about it and he said:

«لَعَلَّهُ يَا عَائِشَةُ كَمَا قَالَ قَوْمُ عَادٍ:

فَلَمَّا رَأَوْهُ عَارِضاً مُّسْتَقْبِلَ أَوْدِيَتِهِمْ قَالُواْ هَذَا عَارِضٌ مُّمْطِرُنَا»

(O `A'ishah! It could be like what the people of `Ad said, (Then, when they saw it as a dense cloud approaching their valleys, they said: "This is a cloud bringing us rain!")) We have previously mentioned the story of the destruction of the people of `Ad in both Surat Al-A`raf and Surah Hud. Thus, there is no need to repeat it here; and verily Allah is worthy of all praise and gratitude.