Surah Al-Mujadilah: (22) "You will not find a people..."
(You will not find a people who believe in Allah and the Last Day loving those who oppose Allah and His Messenger)
This is an address to the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) or to anyone to whom it may apply. The verb "find" (tajid) either takes two objects—in which case the second object is the clause "loving (yuwadduna)..."—or it takes one object, in which case the clause is a circumstantial qualifier (hal) for the object because it is characterized by that attribute. It has also been said that it is another description of the people, meaning: a people combining belief in Allah and the Last Day with love for the enemies of Allah and His Messenger (may Allah bless him and grant him peace). This [latter view] is not well-founded.
The discourse, according to al-Kashshaf, is of the category of "imaginative representation" (takhayyul), meaning that it is an impossibility that you would find a group of believers who love the polytheists. Its purpose is to state that such a thing ought not to exist, and that it is fitting that it be forbidden and found in no way whatsoever. It serves as an exaggeration in forbidding it, a deterrent against engaging in it, and an emphasis on the necessity of distancing oneself from the enemies of Allah. The essence of this, as stated in al-Kashf, is that it portrays a non-existent situation as if it were a tangible reality, since it negates the finding of the attribute while intending to negate the appropriateness of that attribute existing. Thus, the reality is the negation of appropriateness, but it is imagined to be the negation of the existence itself. The representation lies in making that which is not impossible seem impossible.
It is said: The meaning is that you will not find a people who are complete in their faith in this state; thus, the negation remains in its literal sense. The "love" (muwadda) of those who oppose (al-muhaddin) is to show them allegiance and support. The imperfect verb (yuwadduna) is used, it is said, to narrate a past state.
"Those who oppose Allah and His Messenger" refers ostensibly to the disbeliever. Some traditions suggest it includes the corrupt (fasiq), and the reports explicitly forbid taking the corrupt as allies just as one would not take the polytheists. In fact, Sufyan said: "They hold that the aforementioned verse was revealed regarding those who associate with the rulers." In a long tradition related by al-Tabarani, al-Hakim, and al-Tirmidhi from Wathila ibn al-Asqa' as a prophetic statement (marfu'), it is stated: "Allah the Blessed and Exalted says: By My Might, My mercy shall not reach him who does not befriend My allies and show enmity to My enemies." Ahmad and others reported from al-Bara' ibn 'Azib as a prophetic statement: "The strongest bond of faith is love for the sake of Allah and hatred for the sake of Allah."
Al-Daylami reported from the path of al-Hasan from Mu'adh, who said: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) said: "O Allah, do not grant any wicked person—or in another narration, any corrupt person—any power or favor over me that my heart might love, for I found in what You revealed to me: 'You will not find a people who believe in Allah and the Last Day loving those who oppose Allah and His Messenger.'"
Al-Kawashi related from Sahl that he said: "Whoever validates his faith and purifies his monotheism will not find comfort in an innovator, nor will he sit with one, eat with one, or keep company with one. He will show him enmity and hatred from himself. Whoever compromises with an innovator, Allah will strip him of the sweetness of the Sunnah. Whoever humbles himself to an innovator seeking worldly honor or some of its benefits, Allah will humiliate him through that very honor and impoverish him through that wealth. Whoever smiles at an innovator, Allah will snatch the light of faith from his heart. Let him who does not believe this try it." End quote.
It is a wonder that some who claim to be among the Sufis—while they are not among them, not even to the clipping of a fingernail—ally themselves with the oppressors, or rather, those among them who have no connection to religion, supporting them in falsehood and showing them a love that the expanse of paper could not contain. When the verses of Allah and the hadiths of His Messenger (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) are recited to them, which forbid such things, they say: "I will treat my heart by reading two pages of the Mathnawi al-Sharif by our Master Jalal al-Din al-Qunawi (may his secret be sanctified), and I will remove its darkness through the lights I receive while reading it." This, by my life, is the farthest straying.
Believers should avoid such people, even if they are their [relatives]—that is, the relatives of those who oppose Allah and His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). The plural [in "their fathers"] is used considering the meaning of "those" (min), just as the singular was used previously considering its grammatical form. "Their fathers," meaning the ones who show love [to the opponents], "or their sons, or their brothers, or their kindred." For the requirement of belief in Allah and the Last Day—the day on which a person is gathered with whom he loves—is that they abandon everyone completely. The intent of what is mentioned is not specifically those individuals, but relatives in an absolute sense. Fathers were mentioned first because it is incumbent upon children to obey and treat them with kindness in the world; then sons, because they are more attached to them as being the fruits of their hearts; then brothers, because they are their helpers: "Your brother, your brother; for he who has no brother is like one walking into battle without a weapon." It concludes with the kindred, because one relies upon them and is supported by them after the brothers, in most cases.
Abu Hayyan read "asha'iruhum" (kindreds) in the plural. "These" (ula'ika) is a reference to those who do not show them love, even if they are the closest of people to them and the most tightly bound by kinship, with an implication of distance [in status] due to the loftiness of their rank in virtue. This is the subject, and its predicate is His saying: (He has inscribed faith in their hearts), meaning: Allah the Exalted has established it within them. Since a thing is first intended, then spoken, then inscribed, He expressed the beginning by the end for the sake of emphasis and hyperbole. This contains evidence that deeds are excluded from the concept of faith, for a portion that is established in the heart is fixed there definitively, and none of the deeds of the limbs are established therein.
Abu Haywah and al-Mufaddal from 'Asim read "kutiba" (it was inscribed) in the passive voice, with "al-iman" (faith) in the nominative as the substitute for the subject.
(And strengthened them with a spirit from Him), meaning: He empowered them with a spirit from Himself (the Exalted and Majestic), assuming "from" (min) is for origination. The "spirit" (ruh) here refers to the light of the heart, a light that Allah the Exalted casts into the heart of whomever He wills among His servants, through which tranquility is attained and one ascends the stages of realization. Naming it "spirit" is a metonymy, because it is the cause of eternal, wholesome life. It is also permissible that it is a metaphor. Some scholars said: The light of the heart is what physicians call "spirit," which is the subtle radiance formed in the heart by which perception occurs; so the spirit, in its reality, is not something else, as is not hidden. Or, the meaning may be the Quran, based on the two aforementioned possibilities, and the metaphor is chosen. Or, it may be Gabriel (peace be upon him), and that was on the day of Badr; the application of "spirit" to him is based on common views.
It is said: The pronoun "from Him" (minhu) refers back to "faith," and the spirit also refers to faith. The discourse is based on "artistic abstraction" (tajrid badi'i). Thus, "min" (from) explains it or denotes origination, according to the disagreement regarding it. The application of "spirit" to faith is as previously mentioned. His saying: (And He will enter them...) is an explanation of the consequences of His mercy in the Hereafter, following the mention of His mundane favors (the Exalted). That is, He will enter them in the Hereafter into (gardens beneath which rivers flow, abiding therein) forever and ever.
His saying: (Allah is pleased with them) is a new sentence functioning as a justification for the effects of His mercy (the Exalted and Majestic) which He bestowed upon them, both immediate and delayed. His saying: (And they are pleased with Him) is a declaration of their joy regarding what they were given immediately.
His saying: (These are the party of Allah) is a way of honoring them by declaring their exclusive relation to Him (the Exalted). His saying: (Unquestionably, the party of Allah are the successful) is a declaration of their exclusivity to the happiness of both abodes. The discussion regarding embellishing the sentence with "ala" (unquestionably) and "inna" (indeed) is as previously discussed in similar contexts.
It is said the verse was revealed regarding Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him). Ibn al-Mundhir reported from Ibn Jurayj, who said: "I was told that Abu Quhafa insulted the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), so Abu Bakr struck him a blow, and he fell. This was mentioned to the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), who asked: 'Did you do that, O Abu Bakr?' He replied: 'Yes.' He said: 'Do not do it again.' He said: 'By Allah, if the sword had been near me, I would have killed him.' Then [this verse] was revealed."
It is also said it was revealed regarding Abu 'Ubaydah ibn 'Abdullah ibn al-Jarrah. Ibn Abi Hatim, al-Tabarani, Abu Nu'aym in al-Hilyah, and al-Bayhaqi in his Sunan reported from Ibn 'Abbas from 'Abdullah ibn Shawdhab: "The father of Abu 'Ubaydah began to confront him on the day of Badr, and Abu 'Ubaydah began to evade him. When [the father's] persistence increased, Abu 'Ubaydah aimed for him and killed him. Then 'You will not find...' was revealed." In al-Kashshaf, it is stated that Abu 'Ubaydah killed his father, 'Abdullah ibn al-Jarrah, at the day of Uhud. Al-Waqidi said concerning the story of him: "This is what the people of the Levant say, but I asked men from Banu Fihr, and they said: 'The father died before Islam—that is, in the Age of Ignorance—before the appearance of Islam.'" End quote. The truth is that he killed him at Badr. Al-Bukhari and Muslim reported from Anas: "Abu 'Ubaydah killed his father—who was among the captives of Badr—with his own hand, when he heard him say what he disliked about the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), and he forbade him, but he did not desist."
It is said it was revealed regarding [Abu 'Ubaydah] for killing his father; regarding Abu Bakr, when he challenged his son to a duel at Badr and said to the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace): "Let me be in the first wave," which is the cavalry; the Prophet said: "Comfort us with yourself, O Abu Bakr; do you not know that you are to me in the place of my hearing and my sight?"; regarding Mus'ab ibn 'Umayr, who killed his brother 'Ubayd ibn 'Umayr at the day of Uhud; regarding 'Umar, who killed his maternal uncle al-'As ibn Hisham at Badr; and regarding 'Ali (may Allah honor his face), Hamzah, and 'Ubaydah ibn al-Harith, who killed 'Utbah and Shaybah the sons of Rabi'ah, and al-Walid ibn 'Utbah at Badr. The details of that are what Abu Dawud narrated from 'Ali (may Allah honor his face), who said: "On the day of Badr, 'Utbah ibn Rabi'ah advanced, accompanied by his son and brother, and called out: 'Who will duel?'... The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) said: 'Rise, O Hamzah; rise, O 'Ali; rise, O 'Ubaydah ibn al-Harith.' Hamzah faced 'Utbah, I faced Shaybah, and there were two strikes exchanged between 'Ubaydah and al-Walid, and each of them severely wounded the other. Then we turned upon al-Walid and killed him, and we carried 'Ubaydah away."
Some exegetes arranged the phrase (Even if they were their fathers, or their sons, or their brothers, or their kindred) according to the story of Abu 'Ubaydah, Abu Bakr, Mus'ab, 'Ali (may Allah honor his face), and those with them. It is said: The saying (You will not find a people...) was revealed concerning Hatib ibn Abi Balta'ah. The apparent meaning, as it is said, is that it is connected to the verses regarding the hypocrites who took the Jews as allies. Regardless, the ruling of the verses is general, even if they were revealed concerning specific individuals, as is not hidden. And Allah the Exalted knows best.
