"Indeed, the Nasi' (postponement) is an increase..."
"The Nasi'" is the verbal noun (masdar) of nasa'ahu when one delays it. An-Nasi' comes like an-nahy (prohibition), an-nas' like al-bad', and an-nasa' like an-nida'; all three are verbal nouns of nasa'ahu. It is also said that it is a description like qatil (slain) and jarih (wounded). The first view is preferred because it does not require estimation, unlike if it were an adjective, for one would not predicate "an increase" to it unless interpreted as "possessor of an increase" or "the causing of delay." "The Nasi' is an increase" has been recited in all these ways. Nafi' recited it as an-nasi by changing the hamza into a ya and merging it into the ya.
The intent is the delaying of the sanctity of a month to another. This is because the Arabs, if a sacred month arrived and they were at war, would make it lawful and make another month in its place forbidden. Thus, they would make Muharram lawful and make Safar forbidden. If they had further need, they would make that lawful as well and make Rabi’ al-Awwal forbidden, and so on. They would continue doing this until the state of sanctity rotated through all the months of the year. They considered sanctity as merely a matter of count, not the specificity of the known months. Sometimes they would increase the number of months, making them thirteen or fourteen, so that the time would be expanded for them, and they would make four months of the year forbidden [in reality]. It is for this reason that the specific number was stipulated in the Book and the Sunnah.
Their Hajj timing would fluctuate because of this. In the ninth year of the Hijrah, the year Abu Bakr (may Allah be pleased with him) led the people in Hajj, it was in Dhu al-Qa'dah; and in the Farewell Hajj, it was in Dhu al-Hijjah. This was what was observed in the era of Ibrahim (peace be upon him) and the prophets before him. Hence, the Prophet (may the blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) said: "Indeed, time has completed its rotation..." [until the end of the hadith]. In another narration, they would perform Hajj in every month for two years; they performed Hajj in Dhu al-Hijjah for two years, then in Muharram for two years, and so on. The Hajj of the Truthful One (Abu Bakr) coincided with Dhu al-Qa'dah of their second year, while the Hajj of the Messenger of Allah (may the blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) was at the time that had been established before.
Therefore, he said what he said, meaning: "That delay is only an increase in disbelief," which they are upon, because it is the prohibition of what Allah the Exalted made lawful, yet they made it lawful and adopted it as a law, and that is a disbelief they added to their disbelief. It is said: It is an act of disobedience added to disbelief; and just as faith increases with obedience, disbelief increases with disobedience. It was objected that disobedience is not part of disbelief, unlike obedience, which is part of faith according to one opinion. It was answered in a way that is not free from impurity.
"By which those who disbelieve are led astray," a leading astray added to their previous misguidance. It has been read as yudillu (active voice), meaning the subject is Allah the Exalted—that He creates in them misguidance when they initiate its causes and beginnings. This is the meaning in the first reading as well. It is said the subject in both readings is Satan. In the second reading, it is permitted that the relative pronoun (those who) is the subject, and the object is omitted—meaning their followers. It is also said the subject is the leaders and the object is the relative pronoun. It was also read yudallu with a fatha on the ya and the dad, from dalla yudallu. And nudillu with the nun of majesty.
"They make it lawful," meaning the delayed month. It is said the pronoun refers to the Nasi' as a fa'il form meaning maf'ul (passive). "One year," from the years, "and they forbid it in its place another month that is not forbidden." "And they make it forbidden," meaning they maintain its sanctity as it was. The expression of this as "prohibition" is in consideration of their making it lawful in the previous year, or because they attributed it to their gods, as will come later if Allah wills. "Another year," when no objective of theirs is attached to changing it.
Al-Kalbi said: The first to do this was a man from Kinana called Nu'aym ibn Tha'labah. When the people intended to depart from the season (of Hajj), he would stand and preach, saying: "I am the one who is not reproached and does not fail." The polytheists would say to him: "At your service." Then they would ask him to postpone a month for them so they could raid during it. He would say: "Make Safar of the year forbidden." If he said that, they would loosen their bowstrings and remove the arrowheads and spearheads. If he said "lawful," they would tighten the bowstrings, mount their horses, and raid.
It is reported from ad-Dahhak that it was Janadah ibn 'Awf al-Kinani, and he was obeyed in the Age of Ignorance. He would stand on a camel during the season and call out at the top of his voice: "Your gods have made the sacred month lawful for you, so make it lawful." Then, the following year, he would stand and say: "Your gods have forbidden the sacred month for you, so make it forbidden."
Ibn Marduyah recorded from Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) that he said: An-Nusa'ah was a clan from Banu Malik ibn Kinana, and the last of them was a man called al-Qalammas. He was the one who would postpone the sacred month, and he was a king among his people. Their poet recited: "And among us is the one who postpones the month, al-Qalammas." Al-Kumayt said: "And we are the ones who postpone for Ma'add the months of lawfulness, making them forbidden." In another narration from Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both), the first to establish the Nasi' was 'Amr ibn Luhayy ibn Qama'ah ibn Khandaf.
The two sentences are an explanation of the misguidance, so they have no place in syntax. It is permitted that they are in a state of being in the accusative as a hal (circumstantial qualifier) from the relative pronoun, and the governor is their verb.
"To agree," meaning to coincide. Az-Zuhri read li-yuwatti'u with a shadda. "With the number of what Allah has made forbidden," of the four months. The lam is attached to "they make it forbidden," meaning they make it forbidden for the sake of that agreement, or it is attached to what the sum of the two actions points to—meaning they did what they did for the sake of agreement. Some have made it a case of tanazu' (conflict of governance). "And they make lawful what Allah has made forbidden," specifically from the designated months. The result is that they were obligated to [maintain] the count and the specification; when they abandoned the specification, they made lawful what Allah the Exalted had forbidden.
"The evil of their deeds has been made fair-seeming to them." It has been read in the active voice—that is, Allah the Exalted—meaning He made their deeds desired by the nature and loved by the soul. It is said: He abandoned them until they saw as good what is not good. It is said: The one who made it fair-seeming is Satan, through whispers and seduction via poetic premises. "And Allah does not guide the disbelieving people."
Guidance that brings one to the desired goal at all. He only guides them to what leads to it when they walk upon it, and they have turned away from it by their own evil choice, so they have wandered in it in the wandering of misguidance. The intent by "the disbelieving people" is either those previously mentioned—in which case it is a placement of the explicit noun in place of the pronoun—or it is general, and they are included in it primarily.
