Tafsir of At-Tawbah 9:2

( So travel freely in the land ) means: travel therein wherever you wish. The root of al-siyahah (traveling) is the flowing and spreading of water; then it was used for traveling according to one's own will. From this is the saying: "Had I feared this from you, you would not have reached me until you saw horses before me traveling (tasiḥ)." In this imperative command, there is a degree of indication toward complete latitude and ease that is not present in "travel" (sirū) and its equivalents. The addition of "in the land" is an extension in generalization. The speech implies a hidden verb, meaning: "Say to them: Travel freely," or it is without it, constituting an iltifat (shift) from the third person to the second person. The intention is to grant permission and to inform them of the attainment of safety from killing and warfare during the stipulated period. This is so that they may reflect, take precautions, prepare as they wish, and know that there is nothing for them thereafter but Islam or the sword. Perhaps this will lead them toward Islam, and because if the Muslims had killed them immediately following the declaration of the breach of treaty, they might have been accused of treachery. Thus, they were granted a respite to close the door of suspicion and to demonstrate the strength of their might, their lack of concern for them, and their readiness. To emphasize this, the imperative form was chosen instead of "You may travel freely" (falakum an tasiḥū). The fa (so) is for the sequential ordering of the command to travel and what follows it upon what the aforementioned Bara’ah (Declaration of Immunity) signals regarding war—given that the first is consequential to itself, and the second, with both its attachments, is consequential to the title of it being from the Almighty, the Majestic. It is as if it were said: "This is a declaration of immunity necessitating your combat; therefore, strive to obtain what will save you and prepare what will be of benefit to you."

( Four months )—which are Shawwal, Dhu al-Qa'dah, Dhu al-Hijjah, and Muharram, according to al-Zuhri, because the verse was revealed in the first month. It is also said that even though it was revealed in that month, its recitation to the disbelievers and its conveyance to them was on the Day of the Greatest Hajj. Thus, the beginning of the period was the 10th of Dhu al-Hijjah until the expiration of the 10th of the month of Rabi' al-Thani. This is narrated from Abu 'Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with him), Mujahid, and Muhammad ibn Ka'b al-Qurazi.

It is also said that the beginning of that period was the Day of Sacrifice (the 10th) of Dhu al-Qa'dah until the expiration of the 10th of the month of Rabi' al-Awwal, because the Hajj in that year fell at that time due to the nasi’ (intercalation) that existed among them. It then fell in the second year in Dhu al-Hijjah, which was the Farewell Pilgrimage, about which the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "Behold, time has completed its cycle as it was on the day Allah created the heavens and the earth." Al-Jubba’i leaned toward this, and some scholars deemed the second opinion correct, claiming that the majority support it.

It has been narrated through several interconnected reports—some of which are in the Sahihayn—that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) made a treaty with Quraysh in the year of Hudaybiyyah that they would lay down arms for ten years, during which people would be safe. Khuza'ah entered into the covenant of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), and Banu Bakr entered into the covenant of Quraysh. Then, Banu Bakr assaulted Khuza'ah and inflicted harm upon them, and Quraysh aided them with weapons. When Banu Bakr and Quraysh colluded against Khuza'ah and broke their covenant, 'Amr al-Khuza'i went forth until he stood before the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and recited poetry […].

The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) said: "I am not aided if I do not aid you." Then he prepared to march to Makkah and conquered it in the eighth year after the Hijrah. When the ninth year arrived, the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) wished to perform Hajj, but he said: "The polytheists will be present, and they circumambulate while naked." So, the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) sent Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) that year as the leader of the people to establish the Hajj for them, and he wrote its rites for him. Then, he sent 'Ali (may Allah honor his face) after him on his she-camel, al-'Adba’, to recite the beginning of Bara’ah to the people of the season. When 'Ali (may Allah honor his face) approached him, Abu Bakr heard the grunting of the camel and stood up, saying: "This is the grunting of the Messenger of Allah's camel." When he caught up to him, he asked: "Are you an emir or an emissary?" He replied: "An emissary." When it was before the day of Tarwiyah, Abu Bakr delivered a sermon and informed them of their rites. On the Day of Sacrifice, at the Jamrat al-'Aqabah, 'Ali (may Allah honor his face) stood and said: "O people, I am the messenger of the Messenger of Allah to you." They asked: "With what?" So he recited thirty or forty verses of the Surah, then said: "I have been commanded with four things: that no polytheist shall approach the House after this year, that no one shall circumambulate the House naked, that no soul shall enter Paradise except a believing soul, and that every covenant holder shall have his covenant fulfilled."

There is a difference in the reports regarding whether Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) had been commanded to recite it first or not. The majority hold that he was commanded, and that when 'Ali (may Allah honor his face) caught up with him, he took from him what he had been commanded to recite. In a narration by Ibn Hibban and Ibn Mardawayh from Abu Sa'id al-Khudri, it is stated that when Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) had it taken from him, he went to the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), fearing that something had been revealed regarding him. When he came to him, he said: "What is the matter, O Messenger of Allah?" He replied: "All is well. You are my brother and my companion in the Cave, and you are with me at the Cistern; however, no one conveys for me except myself or a man from me."

In a narration by Ahmad and al-Tirmidhi (who classified it as hasan), and Abu al-Shaykh and others from Anas, it is said: "The Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) sent Bara’ah with Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him), then he called him and said: 'It is not appropriate that anyone conveys this except a man from my family,' so he called 'Ali (may Allah honor his face) and gave it to him." This is apparent in that 'Ali did not take it from Abu Bakr on the road, while most reports are to the contrary. In some, it is clear that Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) was not removed from the command, but rather 'Ali (may Allah honor his face) was joined to him. Al-Tirmidhi (who classified it as hasan), al-Bayhaqi in al-Dala’il, Ibn Abi Hatim, and al-Hakim (who authenticated it) narrated from Ibn 'Abbas that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) sent Abu Bakr and commanded him to call out these words, then sent 'Ali after him and commanded him to call out these words. So they performed Hajj. 'Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) stood during the days of Tashriq and called out: "Allah is free from the polytheists, and His Messenger; so travel freely in the land for four months, and let no polytheist perform Hajj after this year, and let no one circumambulate the House naked, and no one shall enter Paradise except a believer." 'Ali (may Allah honor his face) would call out, and when he grew weary, Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) would stand and call it out.

Regardless, there is nothing in any of the narrations indicating that 'Ali (may Allah be pleased with him) is the caliph after the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) to the exclusion of Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him). His (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) saying: "No one conveys for me except myself or a man from me"—whether by revelation or not—was in accordance with the custom of the Arabs, that no one undertakes the ratification of a covenant and its breach except a man from the kin, so that the argument may be cut off entirely. Thus, the negation of conveyance is not general, as the Hadith of Ahmad and al-Tirmidhi guides. How could generality be intended when many of the rulings of the Shari'ah were conveyed on his behalf during his life and after his death by many who were not his kin, such as 'Ali (may Allah honor his face)? Among them was Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him), for he performed Hajj with the people that year and taught them the rituals of Hajj and what is required in it, which is one of the five matters upon which Islam is built. Moreover, whoever is fair to himself knows that in the appointment of Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) to establish such a great pillar of the religion, in accordance with what His saying—"And due to Allah from the people is a pilgrimage to the House"—indicates, there is an allusion that he is the caliph after the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) in establishing the rituals of his religion. Especially since this was reinforced by his having stood in his place (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) in leading the people in prayer at the end of his life (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), and it is the greatest pillar and firmest foundation of his religion. The claim that he (may Allah be pleased with him) was removed in both matters, as some Shi'a claim, has no basis. The claimant is responsible for the proof, and towering mountains are below that. In short, the indication—as is not hidden—for the caliphate is something that should not be claimed. The utmost that is in the report is an indication of the virtue of the Commander (may Allah honor his face) and his closeness to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), and the believer does not deny that; however, it is far from necessitating precedence in the caliphate over the Siddiq (may Allah be pleased with him).

Some scholars of the Sunnah mentioned a subtlety in appointing Abu Bakr as leader of the people in their Hajj, and appointing the Commander (may Allah honor his face) as the one to announce the breach of the covenant in that assembly: the Siddiq (may Allah be pleased with him), being a manifestation of the attribute of mercy and beauty—as the Hadith of the Isra’ and what came in his (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) saying "The most merciful of my nation to my nation is Abu Bakr" indicates—the Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) entrusted him with the affairs of the Muslims, who are the object of mercy. And since 'Ali (may Allah honor his face), who is the Lion of Allah, was a manifestation of His Majesty, he entrusted to him the breach of the covenant of the disbelievers, which is one of the effects of Majesty and attributes of Might. Thus, they were like two gushing springs, from one of which gushed the attribute of beauty, and from the other the attribute of majesty, in that great assembly which was a model for the Gathering and a source for both Muslim and disbeliever. This is finished, and its elegance is not hidden, had there not been the explanation provided by the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) himself.

He set the duration at four months, it is said, because it is one-third of the year, and one-third is a significant portion. The accusative case of the number is for adverbial time for "travel freely," meaning: travel freely in the regions of the earth for four months. ( And know that you )—by that traveling of yours—( cannot escape Allah )—you will not evade Him, may He be glorified, by fleeing or fortifying yourselves—( and that Allah will disgrace the disbelievers ) in this world by killing and captivity, and in the hereafter by a humiliating punishment. He manifested the Majestic Name to cultivate awe and to emphasize the gravity of "disgrace," which is abasement involving scandal and shame. The intended meaning of "the disbelievers" is either the polytheists addressed earlier—and the shift from "your disgracer" to this is to censure them for disbelief after describing them with polytheism, and to signal that the cause of the disgrace is their disbelief—or it is the category inclusive of them and others, with the addressed entering into it primarily.