"They ask you about the new moons. Say: They are indicative of time for the people, and of the Hajj. And it is not righteousness that you come into your houses from their backs but righteousness is that one fears Allah. And come to the houses through their doors. And fear Allah so that you may be successful. And fight in the way of Allah against those who fight you and do not transgress. Verily, Allah does not like the transgressors. And kill them wherever you find them and drive them out from where they drove you out, and Fitnah (to create disorder) is more severe than to kill. And do not fight them near Al-Masjid al-Haram unless they fight you there. However, if they fight you (there) you may kill them. Such is the reward of the disbelievers." (2:189-191)

The theme of righteousness which started from Verse 177 still continues. The six injunctions that have appeared so far relate to even retaliation, bequest, fasting, I'tikaf and abstention from the unlawful. Now come those of Hajj and Jihad prior to which it was clarified that lunar months and days will be followed in Hajj and in other religious obligations. Also erased here is a custom of jahiliyyah (days of ignorance) which required people in Ihram to go into their houses, if needed, from the back even if it had to be through a hole in the wall bored for this purpose, as they thought it was prohibited to enter houses from the front door when in Ihram. They even rated it as 'righteousness'. So, it is immediately after the mention of Hajj that Allah Almighty tells them that entering the houses from the backs is no righteousness. Real righteousness lies in abstaining from what has been made unlawful by Allah. Since coming into houses through their doors is not forbidden, the question of abstaining from it does not arise. So, those who wish to go into their houses should enter through their doors, but the center-piece of all principles is that people must keep fearing Allah so that they can hope to have the best of both the worlds.

Verse 190-191 carry the injunction relating to fighting with disbelievers. It was the month of Dhul-Qa'dah in the year 6 A.H. that the Holy Prophet Sallallahu 'Alayhi Wasallam: Peace be upon him began his journey to the sacred city of Makkah in order to perform 'Umrah. Makkah was still controlled by the mushrikin (the infidels). They did not allow him and his Companions to go into the city and 'Umrah could not be performed as intended. It took a great deal of negotiating to arrive at the agreement that the Muslims would perform 'Umrah next year. This pact is known as the 'Peace of Hudaybiyyah'; a detailed explanation of the verse in this context will appear later.

Commentary

Reported in the first Verse (189) there is a question asked by the noble Companions and its answer given by Allah Almighty. Sayyidna 'Abdullah ibn 'Abbas Radhi-Allahu Anh: Allah be pleased with him says that the Companions of the Holy Prophet Sallallahu 'Alayhi Wasallam: Peace be upon him had a distinct mannerliness of their own. On account of the great respect they had for him, they asked very few questions from their Prophet Sallallahu 'Alayhi Wasallam: Peace be upon him. This is contrary to the practice of the communities of the past prophets who asked many questions and thus failed to observe the etiquette due before a prophet. Sayyidna 'Abdullah ibn 'Abbas Radhi-Allahu Anh: Allah be pleased with him adds that the total number of questions asked by the noble Companions as mentioned in the Holy Qur'an is fourteen, one of which has just appeared above: 'And when My servants ask you...' (186). The other question is right here. Other than these, there are six more questions appearing in Surah al-Baqarah itself. The rest of the six questions come up in various other Surahs.

It is mentioned in the present verse that the noble Companions asked the Messenger of Allah about the new moon as it appears in the early part of the month, having a shape different from the sun. The new moon begins as a thin crescent slowly growing into full circle, then, it starts reducing itself in the same manner. So, they asked either about its cause or about the wisdom underlying its gradual growth. Both possibilities exist. But the answer given states the wisdom and benefit behind it. Now, if the question itself was concerned with the wisdom and benefit behind the waning and waxing of the new moon, then the answer obviously synchronizes with the question. But, if the question aimed at finding out the cause of the waning and waxing of the new moon, which is far away from the mannerliness of the noble Companions, then the answer, by electing to state its wisdom and benefit rather than its reality, simply hints that finding out the reality of the heavenly bodies is not an area under man's control anyway, and then, for that matter, the knowledge of its reality is not necessary for any practical purpose, neither in this world nor in the Hereafter.

Therefore, the question of reality is absurd. What could be asked and what could be explained is that there are certain benefits that accrue to us through the waning and waxing, the setting and the rising of the moon in this manner. Therefore, in response to this, the Holy Prophet Sallallahu 'Alayhi Wasallam: Peace be upon him, was told that he should tell them that their benefits tied to the moon are that they will find it easy to determine the time factor in their transactions and contracts, and to know about the days of the Hajj.

The Lunar Calendar is the Islamic Choice

This verse tells us no more than that the moon will help identify the count of months and days on which rest transactions and acts of worship, such as, the Hajj. The same subject has been dealt with in Surah Yunus in the following manner:

"And determined it (the moon) by stations, that you might know the number of the years and the reckoning." (10:5)

This tells us that the benefit of having the moon pass through different stages and conditions is that people may find out through it the count of years, months and days. But, in a verse of Surah Bani Isra'il, this count has been connected to the sun as well in the following words:

"Then We erased the sign of the night and brought out the sign of the day to see, so that you seek the blessing from your Lord and get to know the number of years and the reckoning." (17:12)

Although this third verse proves that years and months can be counted with the help of a solar calendar also, yet the words used by the Holy Qur'an with regard to the moon very clearly indicate that the lunar calendar is a fixed choice in the Shari'ah of Islam, specially in prescribed acts of worship which relate to a particular month and its dates; for instance, the months of Ramadan and Hajj, as well as injunctions related to the days of Hajj, Muharram and Lailatul-Qadr are all tied to the sighting of the new moon, all this because in this verse, by saying (They are indicative of time for the people and of the Hajj), it has been established that the lunar calendar is the one to be trusted upon in the sight of Allah, although, the count of months can come out of a solar calendar as well.

The Shari'ah of Islam has opted for the lunar calendar because it is based on something which every sighted person can see on the horizon and be informed accordingly; the knowledge of it is equally easy for the scholars, the ignorant, the villagers, the islanders and the dwellers of the mountains. This stands in contrast with the solar calendar which depends on meteorological equipment and mathematical computations which cannot become the common personal experience of everybody so easily. Then comes the matter of religious observances, the 'ibadat, where the lunar calendar has been fixed as an obligation. This has also been favoured in social and business transactions because it serves as a basis for the acts of Islamic worship, and a symbol of Islamic identity, notwithstanding the position of the solar calendar which has not been prohibited juristically, the only condition being that the use of the solar calendar should not become so widespread that people forget all about the lunar calendar.

If this happens, it would necessarily affect the obligatory 'ibadat like Fasting and Hajj adversely, a sampling of which is visible in our time, in offices and businesses, government and private, where the solar calendar is being used with such frequency that many people do not seem to even remember all Islamic months by name. Apart from the juristic position of the lunar system, this situation is a deplorable demonstration of our lack of will to approach and uphold such a matter of national and religious identity with a sense of self-respect. It is not difficult to use the solar calendar only in office situations where one has to deal with non-Muslims as well, but for the rest of office correspondence, private dealings and dailv requirements the lunar calendar may be used with advantage, that is, if this is done, the user will earn the thawab of performing a fard 'ala al-kifayah (an obligation which, if performed by some, suffices for others), and of course, national identity will be preserved.

Ruling

From the verse (And it is not righteousness that you come into your houses from their backs) comes the ruling that something which the Shari'ah of Islam has not classed as 'necessary' (wajib) or has not given it the status of an act of 'Ibadah, should not be taken as 'necessary' or an act of 'Ibadah on one's own. This is not permissible. Similarly, taking something to be a sin while it is permissible under Islamic law is a sin in itself. This is exactly what those people had done. Entering houses through doors was permissible under religious law, yet they made it out to be a sin, while coming into the house from its back by breaking through the wall was not 'necessary' under the religious law, yet they made it out to be necessary. This was why they were admonished.

The reason why bid'at (innovations in religious matters) are not permissible is that unnecessary things are taken to be necessary like the obligatory - fard, or wajib. Or, things permissible are taken to be forbidden or unlawful. This verse makes it very clear that doing so is prohibited, and incidentally, this gives us the guiding rule in thousands of acts in vogue.

Jihad: To Fight in the Way of Allah

That Jihad and Qital or fighting against disbelievers was prohibited prior to the emigration to Madinah is a fact the entire Muslim community agrees upon. All verses revealed during that time advised Muslims to be patient against pains inflicted on them by disbelievers, even to ignore and forgive when they can. It was after the emigration to Madinah that the first command to fight against them came through this verse (as said by al-Rabi' ibn Anas and others). Another narration from Sayyidna Abu Bakr al-Siddiq Radhi-Allahu Anh: Allah be pleased with him says that the first verse relating to this subject is: [v]"Leave is' given to those who are fought against because they were wronged"[/v], but according to a majority of the blessed Companions and their successors, the first verse commanding to fight the disbelievers is this very verse from Surah al-Baqarah while the verse which has been identified as the first verse on this subject by Sayyidna Abu Bakr al-Siddiq, that too, being among the very initial verses revealed, could be called the first.

The command in this verse is that Muslims should fight only those disbelievers who come to fight against them. It means that there are other people too who do not take part in fighting, such as, the women, the children, the very old, the priests and monks and others devoting themselves to quiet religious pursuits, and the physically handicapped, and those casual labourers who work for disbelievers and do not go to fight along with them; it is not permissible to kill such people in a Jihad. The reason is that the command in the verse is restricted to fighting those who come to fight Muslims. The kind of people mentioned above are not all fighters. That is why Muslim Jurists rahimahumullah, have also ruled that should a woman, an old man or. religious person take part in actual fighting along with disbelievers or be helping them in any manner in their fight against the Muslims, then, killing them is permissible because they come under the purview of: 'those who fight you'. (Mazhari, Qurtubi and Jassas)

The battle orders of the Holy Prophet Sallallahu 'Alayhi Wasallam: Peace be upon him given to the mujahidin of Islam at the time of Jihad carry a good explanation of this injunction. fn a hadith from al-Bukhari and Muslim, as narrated by the blessed Companion 'Abdullah ibn 'Umar, it is said:

'The Holy Prophet Sallallahu 'Alayhi Wasallam: Peace be upon him has prohibited the killing of women and children.'

The following instructions from the Holy Prophet Sallallahu 'Alayhi Wasallam: Peace be upon him given to the Companions going on Jihad have been narrated in a hadith from Sayyidna Anas Radhi-Allahu Anh: Allah be pleased with him which appears in Abu Dawud: 'Go for Jihad in the name of Allah adhering to the community of the Messenger of Allah. Do not kill anyone old and weak, any young child or any woman.' (Mazhari)

When Sayyidna Abu Bakr al-Siddiq Radhi-Allahu Anh: Allah be pleased with him sent Yazid ibn Abi Sufyan to Syria, he gave him the same instructions. Also added there is the prohibition of killing the religiously-devoted, the monks and priests, and the labourers employed by disbelievers, specially when they do not take part in fighting (Qurtubi).

The expression wa la ta'tadu (and do not transgress) towards the end of the verse, according to the majority of the commentators means - 'do not go beyond the limit in fighting as to start killing women and children'.

As already explained briefly in the opening remarks, the verse 191, that is (And kill theirs wherever you find them and drive them out from where they drove you out...), was revealed after the happening at Hudaybiyyah at a time when the Holy Prophet Sallallahu 'Alayhi Wasallam: Peace be upon him, decided, in accordance with the condition agreed upon in the Peace Treaty of Hudaybiyyah, to embark on a journey to Makkah to perform the qada' of 'Umrah along with his Companions, something he was stopped from doing a year before by the disbelievers of Makkah. The noble Companions, on the eve of this projected journey, had started to worry about the disbelievers who could not be trusted upon in a peace treaty. If they chose to be aggressive, as they did a year before, what option are they going to take? Thereupon, the words used in the present verse gave them the permission to meet the challenge of their aggression and kill them where they find them. And if they could, it was permissible for them to drive the disbelievers out from where they had driven the believers out.

Since Muslims, during their entire Makkan period, were made to stay away from fighting against the disbelievers and were repeatedly asked to forego and forgive, so much so, that the noble Companions were, before the revelation of this verse, under the impression that killing disbelievers was bad, and prohibited. It was to remove this misconception that it was said: "And Fitnah is more severe than to kill," that is, it is true that to kill someone is a terribly evil act, but more terrible and severe is what the disbelievers of Makkah have done by insisting on their kufr and shirk (infidelity and the associating of others with Allah) and by stopping Muslims from fulfillling their religious obligations, and from performing Hajj and 'Umrah. It is to avoid this greater evil that killing them has been permitted. The word, Fitnah in the verse (not translated for want of a perfect equivalent in English) inescapably means kufr and shirk and to prevent Muslims from fulfilling their religious obligations of ibadah. (Jassas, Qurtubi and others)

Since the generality of the words 'kill them wherever you find them' might lead to the misconception that killing the disbelievers is allowed even in the precincts of Haram, this generality has been particularized in the next sentence of the verse by saying:

"And do not fight them near Al-Masjid al-Haram unless they fight you there."

That is, 'you should not fight them close to Al-Masjid al-Haram, which includes all its environs in Makkah, unless they themselves start fighting you there.'

See also:

Definition And Ruling Of Jihad - http://www.muftisays.com/blog/Seifeddine-M/1154_08-02-2011/definition-and-ruling-of-jihad.html

The Shortest Path To Jannah - http://www.muftisays.com/forums/virtues/5397/the-shortest-path-to-jannah-.html

Progression Of Jihad - http://www.muftisays.com/blog/Seifeddine-M/1047_25-01-2011/progression-of-jihad-.html

Rulings

1) In the Haram (the sacred precincts) of Makkah, it is just not permissible to kill even a bird or animal, let alone the human beings. However, this same verse tells us that in the event someone starts killing somebody else within the sacred precincts, then, that other person is permitted to fight back in defence. There is a consensus of the jurists on this point.

2) It also comes out from this verse that the prohibition of initiating Jihad or Qital is restricted to Al-Masjid al-Haram and its environs to which the sacred precincts extend in Makkah. At other places, just as the defensive Jihad is necessary, the initiating of Jihad and Qital is also valid. (Ma'ariful Qur'an, Vol.1)

» Posted by Seifeddine-M on 29th June 2011

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