Tafsir of Al-Hujurat 49:18

Al-Hujurat: 18

"Indeed, Allah knows the unseen of the heavens and the earth" — that is, what is hidden within them. "And Allah is All-Seeing of what you do" — that is, in your secret and your public affairs. How, then, could what is in your innermost thoughts be hidden from Him, Glory be to Him? This is to indicate their falsehood, and to indicate His, the Exalted and Majestic’s, informing of the elite among His servants—the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and his followers, may Allah be pleased with them. Ibn Kathir and Aban from Asim read [it] as "ya'lamun" (they know) with a 'ya' denoting the third person. And Allah the Exalted knows best.

Regarding the esoteric allusions (Isharat) in some of the verses:

"O you who have believed, do not put yourselves forward before Allah and His Messenger" — this alludes to the necessity of acting in accordance with the Sacred Law (Sharia), observing etiquette, and abandoning the dictates of base nature.

His saying, the Exalted: "O you who have believed, if there comes to you a disobedient one with information, investigate" — this indicates that if the soul that commands evil (nafs al-ammara) incites and brings news of a worldly desire, one must verify it to discern its profit from its loss, "lest you harm a people" — from the hearts and their qualities — "out of ignorance and become, over what you have done, regretful." For that which provides healing and life to the souls often contains the sickness and death of the hearts.

"And know that among you is the Messenger of Allah" — this alludes to the messenger of Divine inspiration within the souls, inspiring them with their wickedness and their righteousness.

His saying, the Exalted: "But if one of them oppresses the other, then fight against the one that oppresses until it returns to the command of Allah" — this indicates that if the soul oppresses the heart by the dominance of its desires, it must be fought until it is wounded by the swords of struggle (mujahada). If it then responds with obedience, it is pardoned, for it is the mount to the door of Allah, the Exalted and Majestic.

"The believers are but brothers, so make settlement between your brothers" — this alludes to the observance of the right of religious brotherhood, the origin of whose seed is the loin of Prophethood and whose reality is the Light of Allah the Exalted. Reconciling their affairs is done by lifting the curtains of humanity from the faces of the hearts, so that light may connect with light through the window of the heart, until they become as one soul.

"O you who have believed, let not a people ridicule [another] people; perhaps they may be better than them" — this alludes to abandoning self-admiration and looking at no one with the eye of contempt. For the outward appearance is of no account, and the inward state is not known. Many a disheveled, dusty person, wearing two worn-out garments, if he were to swear by Allah, Allah would surely fulfill his oath.

"The bedouins say, 'We have believed'" — until the end [of the verses]. This contains an allusion that one should abandon the act of seeing one's own deeds, and realize that the favor in guidance belongs to Allah, the King, the Most High. It contains guidance on how to address the ignorant and refute those who are veiled, as has previously been indicated. We ask Allah for success in that which pleases Him on the Day they are presented to Him.