"As also We have sent in your midst a messenger from among you, who recites to you Our verses, and purifies you, and teaches you the Book and the wisdom, and teaches you what you did not know. Remember Me, then, and I will remember you. And be thankful to Me, and be not ungrateful to Me." (2:151-152)

These verses conclude the discussion on the theme of the Qiblah or religious orientation. So, Verse 151 repeats the second part of the prayer of Sayyidna Ibraheem (A.S) with which the discussion had begun (Verses 127 - 129). He had, as one would recall, prayed Allah to accept his founding of the Ka'bah, and to send among his progeny a Messenger from among themselves. The subsequent discussion on the subject of the Qiblah has already shown that the first prayer has been heard and accepted. Now, Verse 151 declares that similarly the second request has also been granted, suggesting that since the Holy Prophet Sallallahu 'Alayhi Wasallam: Peace be upon him has been sent in answer to the prayer of the founder of the Ka'bah, it is no wonder that it should be appointed as his Qiblah. Verse 151 has specifically mentioned that the new Prophet (Muhammad Sallallahu 'Alayhi Wasallam: Peace be upon him) is sent with the same attributes as specified by Sayyidna Ibrahim (A.S) in his prayer, namely:

(1) He recites to them the verses of the Qur'an;
(2) He teaches them the Book and the wisdom;
(3) He purifies them;
(4) He teaches them things which his listeners did not know of, nor could they be found in the earlier Divine Books or through individual reason.

Since Allah has, in granting the two prayers, sent such great blessings to mankind, Verse 152 asks men to "remember" Him as the Supreme Benefactor, and to render Him thanks by being obedient. As long as they do so, Allah will "remember" them in showering on them His material and spiritual blessings. The verse ends with the reminder that men should not be ungrateful to Allah in denying His blessings or in being disobedient.

In the light of this commentary, one can see that the word "as" (in Arabic, the letter Kaf which denotes a comparison between two terms) provides the link between Verse 151 and Verse 152. But, according to al-Qurtubi, the word Kaf or "as" is connected with the first phrase of Verse 152 - fadhkuruni: "Remember Me, then". Viewed in the line of this syntactical relationship, the two verses, taken together, would mean that the ability to "remember" Allah is as much a blessing for men as the ordination of the new Qiblah and the coming of the Last Prophet Sallallahu 'Alayhi Wasallam: Peace be upon him, and hence it is the duty of men to render thanks to Allah, so that they may continue to receive His favours.

The Merits of 'Dhikr' (Rememberance)

Dhikr or "Remembrance" essentially pertains to the heart, but in so far as the tongue is the interpreter of the heart the oral recitation of a Divine Name or a verse of the Holy Qur'an is also described as Dhikr. In other words, oral Dhikr can be worth the name only when it is accompanied by the "remembrance" of the heart. As the great Sufi poet Rumi points out, the recitation of a Divine Name can have no efficacy if one keeps thinking of cows and donkeys while repeating it mechanically with the tongue. One must, however, bear in mind that even a mechanical Dhikr without the heart being engaged in it is not altogether futile. It is related that the great Sufi Abu 'Uthman, hearing a man complain of such a situation, remarked that one should be grateful to Allah even for this favour of having drawn at least one or­gan of the body, the tongue, into His service. (Qurtubi)

The merits of Dhikr are, indeed, innumerable. What greater merit could one wish for than the assurance that when a man "remembers" Allah, He too "remembers" him. Abu 'Uthman once claimed that he knew the time when Allah remembered His servants. The listeners grew curious as to how he could determine this. He replied that, according to the promise made in the Holy Qur'an, when a Muslim remembers Allah, He too remembers him, and thus everyone can know for himself that as soon as he turns to Allah and remembers Him, Allah too remembers him.

Let us add that Verse 152 means to say that if men "remember" Allah by obeying His commandments, He will "remember" them by granting His pardon and His rewards. The commentator Sa'id ibn Jubayr has, in fact, interpreted the Dhikr or "Remembrance" of Allah as obedience and submission to Him. He says:



"He who has not obeyed Him has not remembered Him, even though he has kept himself externally busy in offering (nafl: supererogatory) prayers and reciting His praises."

This explanation is fully supported by a hadith cited by Al-Qurtubi on the authority of "Ahkam al-Qur'an" by Ibn Khuwayz Mandadh. The Holy Prophet Sallallahu 'Alayhi Wasallam: Peace be upon him has said that one who has been obeying Allah - that is, following the injunctions with regard to the lawful (Halal) and the unlawful (Haram) - has truly been remembering Allah, in spite of being deficient in (nafl: supererogatory) prayers and fasting, while one who has been disobeying divine commandments has, in fact, forgotten Allah, in spite of devoting long hours to nafl prayers, fasting and recitation of His praises.

The great Sufi Master Dhu al-Nun al-Misri has said that the man who remembers Allah in the full sense of the term forgets everything else, and that, in reward of such a total absorption, Allah Himself takes care of all his concerns, and grants him something far more valuable for everything he loses. Similarly, the blessed Companion Mu'adh Radhi-Allahu Anh: Allah be pleased with him has remarked that in so far as winning absolution from divine wrath is concerned, no good deed on the part of man can compare with Dhikr. And in a hadith reported by the blessed Companion Abu Hurayrah Radhi-Allahu Anh: Allah be pleased with him, Allah Himself says that so long as the servant keeps remembering Him and his lips keep moving in Dhikr, Allah is with him (for a more elaborate discussion of the subject, see Dhikrullah by the author).

See also:

Constancy in Remembrance of Allah and Negating Stray thoughts: http://www.muftisays.com/blog/Seifeddine-M/1066_28-01-2011/constancy-in-remembrance-of-allah-and-negating-stray-thoughts.html, and

The Excellence Of The Remembrance Of Allah http://www.muftisays.com/forums/du-aas-supplications/5126/the-excellence-of-the-remembrance-of-allah.html

» Posted by Seifeddine-M on 30th May 2011

0 Comments