Surah Al-Muzzammil

It is entirely Meccan according to the opinion of Al-Hasan, Ikrimah, Ata, and Jabir. Ibn Abbas and Qatadah said—as mentioned by Al-Mawardi—that two verses of it: "And be patient over what they say" and the one following it, are [Medinan]. It is narrated in Al-Bahr on the authority of the majority that it is Meccan, except for His saying, the Exalted, "Indeed, your Lord knows..." until the end of it. Al-Jalal Al-Suyuti critiqued this after transmitting the exception from the narrative of Ibn al-Faras, saying: "It is refuted by what Al-Hakim recorded on the authority of Aishah, that this was revealed one year after the revelation of the beginning of the Surah, at the time when standing in prayer at night was made obligatory in the early days of Islam, before the prescription of the five daily prayers." What pertains to this will come, God Almighty willing.

Its verses are eighteen in the final Medinan count, nineteen in the Basran count, and twenty in others. Since He, Glorified be He, concluded Surah Al-Jinn with the mention of the messengers, blessings and peace be upon them, He, the Almighty and Majestic, opened this one with what pertains to their seal, blessings and peace be upon him and them. This is one aspect of the thematic connection. In Tanasuq al-Durar, the connection between the beginning of it, "Stand the night," and His saying, the Exalted, at the end of that [previous] Surah, "And when the servant of Allah stood up supplicating Him," and His saying, Glorified be He, "And [that] the masjids are for Allah," is not hidden.

Al-Muzzammil: (1) O you who covers himself

In the name of Allah, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful.

"O you who covers himself"—that is, the one who is mutazammil, from tazammul with his garments, meaning he wrapped himself in them. The 'ta' has been assimilated into the 'za'. Ubayy read it according to the original root (mutazammil). Ikrimah read it as al-muzzammil with a light 'za' and a kasra on the 'mim' (referring to his body or himself). Some of the predecessors read it as al-muzammil with a light 'za' and a fatha on the 'mim' (as a passive participle). There is no contradiction between these readings, for he—peace and blessings be upon him—is indeed the one who wrapped his noble self without doubt. However, if one considers that all his actions are from Allah, the Exalted, then another has wrapped him. There is no need to say that he—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—wrapped himself first, then slept and was wrapped by another, or that another wrapped him first, then what he was wrapped in fell off, and he wrapped himself.

The majority hold that when the angel came to the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—in the cave of Hira with what he conversed with him, he returned to Khadija—may Allah be pleased with her—and said, "Wrap me up." Then “O you who wraps himself” (Al-Muddaththir) was revealed, and following it, “O you who covers himself” (Al-Muzzammil) was revealed. Al-Bazzar, Al-Tabarani in Al-Awsat, and Abu Nu'aym in Al-Dala'il narrated from Jabir—may Allah be pleased with him—who said: "When the Quraysh gathered in the Dar al-Nadwa, they said, 'Give this man a name so that people may turn away from him.' Some said, 'A soothsayer.' They said, 'He is not a soothsayer.' They said, 'A madman.' They said, 'He is not a madman.' They said, 'A magician.' They said, 'He is not a magician.' They said, 'He separates a man from his beloved.' The polytheists dispersed upon this. This reached the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—so he wrapped himself in his garments and covered himself. Gabriel—peace be upon him—came to him and said, 'O you who covers himself! O you who wraps himself!'"

His addressing him—peace and blessings be upon him—in this manner is a form of consolation and kindness, according to the custom of the Arabs in deriving a name for the addressee from the state he is in. This is like the saying of the Prophet—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—to Ali—may Allah ennoble his face—when he was angry with Fatima—may Allah be pleased with her—and he came to him while he was sleeping with dust sticking to his side: "Rise, Abu Turab (Father of Dust)," intending to lift the veil, fold the carpet of reproach, and invigorate him so he might receive what is to be said to him without lethargy. "Whatever the beloved does is beloved."

Al-Zamakhshari claimed that he—peace and blessings be upon him—was called by this to excite the state he was in of being wrapped in a velvet cloak, prepared for deep sleep, as one who is not concerned with any matter and to whom no affair matters, and so on. This is what calls out, as the majority said, for poor etiquette. Some of those who agreed with him concurred in part. The author of Al-Kashf said: "He meant that he—peace and blessings be upon him—was described by what he was engaged in, which reminds him of his withdrawal. It is a gentle reproach mixed with pure compassion, intended to invigorate him and make him prepared for what He, the Exalted, promised him by His saying, 'Indeed, We will cast upon you a heavy word.' It is not beneath the Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—to receive such a call; he was addressed with what was more severe in the saying of the Exalted, 'He frowned and turned away.' This type of address of intimacy and kindness does not undermine the blessing and closeness contained within it, compared to the magnification and welcome in 'O Prophet' or 'O Messenger.'"

It is clear, however, that this does not excuse the poor etiquette in Al-Zamakhshari’s expression. For even if He, the Exalted, has the right to address His beloved however He wishes, we do not act upon how He, the Exalted, treated him; rather, we are required to show etiquette and magnification toward his noble presence. If one of the subjects were to address a minister as the Sultan addresses him, the chamberlains would cast him out, and the punishment might be the response.

It has been said that he—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—was wrapped in a mirat (a garment) of Aisha—may Allah be pleased with her—praying, and was called by this as a praise for him and an enhancement of the state he was in. The command to rise afterward does not forbid this, either because it was a command for continuity and persistence in that, or as instruction for him—peace and blessings be upon him—and a clarification of the amount he should stand, as has been said. Yes, it has been objected that the Surah is among the first to be revealed in Makkah, while the Messenger of Allah—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—only consummated his marriage with Aisha—may Allah be pleased with her—in Madinah. Furthermore, the authentic reports are consistent that the aforementioned call took place while he was in the house of Khadija—may Allah be pleased with her. From this, the nature of what was narrated from Aisha is known, that his wrapping—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—was, as she said, "a mirat fourteen cubits long, half of it over me while I was sleeping, and half of it over him while he was praying; its warp was hair and its weft was wool."

The author of Al-Kashf struggled with this and said: "The answer is that he—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—performed the contract in Makkah, so perhaps the mirat reached him after the contract." This suggests it was after the death of Khadija. The problem remains regarding Aisha’s statement, "Half of it over me..." The answer is that it is possible he spent a night in the house of the Truthful (Abu Bakr)—may Allah be pleased with him—and the mirat was upon Aisha while she was a child, and the remainder, due to its length, was upon the Prophet—peace and blessings be upon him—so the Mother of the Believers narrated that, as there is no indication that it is a narration of what happened after the consummation. This is what is contrived for the validity of this statement.

You know that this hadith does not occur in the authentic books, as Ibn Hajar said; rather, it contradicts them. Such possibilities are not sufficient. Indeed, Abu Hayyan said it is an explicit lie.

According to Qatadah, he—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—had wrapped himself in his clothes for prayer and prepared for it, so he was called "O you who covers himself" in the sense of "O you who is prepared for worship." Ikrimah said the meaning is "O you who covers himself for Prophethood and its burdens." Zaml is like haml (load) in wording and meaning. It is said, azdamalahu, meaning he carried it. In this is a simile of performing the rites of Prophethood to carrying a heavy load, due to the hardship in both. It has been permitted that it is a metonymy for the one who is sluggish due to lack of training. This was objected to with the same objections as Al-Zamakhshari’s view. With the validity of the literal meaning and its support by authentic hadiths, there is no need for anything else, as has been said.