(65) Say, "He is the [one] Able to send upon you affliction from above you or from beneath your feet or to confuse you [so you become] sects and make you taste the violence of one another." Look how We diversify the signs that they might understand.
(68) And when you (Muhammad SAW) see those who engage in a false conversation about Our Verses (of the Quran) by mocking at them, stay away from them till they turn to another topic. And if Shaitan (Satan) causes you to forget, then after the remembrance sit not you in the company of those people who are the Zalimun (polytheists and wrong-doers, etc.).
Allah's compassion and generosity, and His power and torment.
(63 & 64) In these ayaat, Allah subhanahu wa ta`ala mentions how He favors His servants, saving them during times of need, in the darkness of land and at sea, such as when storms strike. In such cases, they call on Allah alone, without partners, in supplication.
Here in the ayah, the expression has been used to refer to the many types of darkness found on land and sea, such as, the darkness of night, the darkness of rain clouds, the darkness of dust storms and the darkness under the waves of the sea.
When the Arab idolaters found themselves in deep trouble during the land trips or sea journeys they would forget their idols and call out to Allah instead. They would confess to their helplessness, admitting openly that no one other than Allah could really save them from such torment. At such times, they would make promises that should Allah save them from this torment they would definitely take to the ways of following truth and being grateful. In other words, once rescued, they would be grateful to Allah, would take Him as their real rescuer and helper, never ascribing any partner to His Divinity because no one they have been worshiping came up to help them in their hour of need.
Therefore, in the ayah the Prophet sallAllahu `alayhi wa sallam is being asked to inquire from them who delivers them from their distress and possible destruction? Since their answer was already known as they could have not denied the fact that no one but Allah came to their help.
– When a person is saved from a difficulty he should thank Allah subhanahu wa ta`ala. After relief has been provided people begin thanking others instead of Allah. He made the asbaab work for us. He sent the people to rescue us. He made the medicine work for us. Therefore, we should thank Him before we thank the people.
– Showing humility and imploring Allah at the time of difficulty arouses the Rahmah [mercy] of Allah subhanahu wa ta`ala.
– We learn that du`as can be made in two ways: openly and privately. A person who is in the habit of making praying doesn’t shy away from doing so in public. On the other hand, the one who barely prays he shies away from even making sajdah before Allah.
– We also learn about the permissibility of making du`a loudly as well as privately. Making du`a loudly doesn’t mean shouting or showing off. Allah subhanahu wa ta`ala can hear even the slightest whisper.
– When a person makes promises to Allah subhanahu wa ta`ala and commits to do something then he should act on his commitment. For example, people say, “If I’m taken out from this difficulty I’ll become regular in prayers or I’ll give regular sadaqah,” but when they have been rescued they forget their promises or say, “We only made an intention.” This is ingratitude.
(6:65) Allah's power and torment.
Here are three kinds of Divine punishment:
- That which comes from above,
- that which comes from beneath, and
- that which spreads out from within.
Punishments from Above:
The people of Prophet Nuh [Noah] `alayhi salaam were punished with rain storm. The people of `Ad were punished with a wind storm. The people of Prophet Lut [Lot] `alayhi salaam were punished with the raining of stones. The Bani Isra`eel [Children of Israel] were punished with rain of blood and frogs. And Abraha [the Christian ruler of Yemen] and his army was pelted with pebbles by flights of birds reducing them to chaff chewed out.
Punishments from Below:
The people of Prophet Nuh who were already caught up in a punishment from above in the form of rain storm were punished from beneath as well. The ground under their feet expelled water from inside whereby they were gripped by two punishments at the same time. The people of Fir`awn [Pharaoh] were drowned in the punishment from beneath their feet. Qaroon [Korah] was swallowed by the earth along with his legendary treasures.
Commenting on the ayah `Abdullah ibn `Abbas and Mujahid said that the punishment from above means that cruel rulers and merciless officials come to rule over a people while the punishment from beneath means that one’s own subordinates and servants turn into traitors, idlers and thieves.
Some other examples of punishment from above and below are earthquakes, landslides, snowstorm, hurricane, tornados, cyclones, volcanic eruptions, soil erosion and flooding.
The third type of punishment stated in the ayah is “confusion so that we become divided into groups” as denoted by the word yalbisakum shiya`an [يَلْبِسَكُمْ شِيَعاً] . The word yalbisakum is from the root letters lam-ba-seen [labasa] which means“to mix something such that it becomes jumbled up and cannot be separated”. The word shiya`an is the plural of Shia and literally it means “a group of people or a sect”.
This means that it is part of Allah’s punishment that He confuses two groups of people and creates differences between them. Sometimes we see this in the same family and between siblings and spouses. When we are divided and in a state of confusion we should do astaghfar and pray to Him in the following way:“Allahumma aranee al-haqqu haqqan wa arzuqnee itiba’ahu, wa aranee al-baatilu baatilan wa arzuqnee ijtinaaba [O Allah, show me the truth as the truth, and enable me to follow it. O Allah, show me show me falsehood as falsehood and enable me to stay away from it and do not let it confuse me, so that I become misguided].
Further explaining the third type of punishment Allah subhanahu wa ta`ala says,“…and make you taste the violence of one another…” meaning that in the state of confusion and division people reach such a stage of animosity and hatred where they become violent towards one another. We can see this in our daily lives. People slandering and abusing one another; eating up others’ rights; one religious group throws bombs in another’s masjid; the other group kills the people of first group and so on. While people go on asserting it’s a conspiracy against them, in the light of this ayah they should understand that it is not a conspiracy against us but a “punishment” from Allah subhanahu wa ta`ala.
Allah subhanahu wa ta`ala ends the ayah by saying that this is how He diversifies meaning clarifies His ayaat so that we may understand.
Imam Ahmad recorded that Sa`d bin Abi Waqqas said, We accompanied the Messenger of Allah sallAllahu `alayhi wa sallam and passed by the Masjid of Bani Mu`awiyah. The Prophet went in and offered a two Rak`ah prayer, and we prayed behind him. He supplicated to his Lord for a long time and then said,
“I asked my Lord for three: I asked Him not to destroy my Ummah (Muslims) by drowning and He gave that to me. I asked Him not to destroy my Ummah by famine and He gave that to me. And I asked Him not to make them taste the violence of one another, but He did not give that to me.” [Saheeh Muslim, the Book of Trials]Lessons to learn:
– After a calamity passes away we should not think now we will never be afflicted again. Allah subhanahu wa ta`ala can afflict us any time. Therefore, we should remain humble at all times and seek His forgiveness.
– Allah’s punishment can be tangible as well as intangible. Tangible punishment is any physical punishment that we’re harmed with. In the intangible sense it can be someone who is above us and oppresses us or is unkind to us.
– Disunity in the family where the husband says something else and the wife says the opposite; where the children are disrespectful to their parents or where the parents are negligent towards their children; where we work under a tyrant boss or where our subordinates cheat us; where the society or the Ummah is divided between various sects and groups leaving one confused which path to follow is a form of punishment of Allah. All of this might be a consequence of our own deeds therefore we should seek His refuge.
– When people don’t get along they should increase in their astaghfar: La ilaha illa Anta, Subhanaka, innee kuntu mina th-thalimeen [There is no deity except You; exalted are You. Indeed, I have been of the wrongdoers.] [21:87]
The invitation to the truth is guidance without complusion.
(6:66) Allah subhanahu wa ta`ala says to the Prophet salAllahu `alayhi wa sallam that his people have denied the Qur’an. He is being told to convey to the Quraysh that he is not a wakeel over them. Wakeel means a trustee or guardian – one to whom all matters are handed over. Meaning the Prophet’s responsibility was only to convey Allah’s message to the people. The recompense is not in his hands. He is only a warner and a Messenger. He can neither reward them nor punish them.
(6:67) [...Naba...] means important news or relevant information. This means that every information that Allah subhanahu wa ta`ala given us through His Messenger salAllahu `alayhi wa sallam, there is a reality. The event that we have been given news of will take place at its fixed time.
LESSONS:
– We learn that a da`ees’s responsibility is to convey the message of Allah subhanahu wa ta`ala. it is not a da`ee’s job to reward or punish someone. He should only be worried about his own responsibility and leave the recompense to Allah.
– Allah subhanahu wa ta`ala has fixed a time for every person’s death as well as for the destruction of a nation.
– Everything has its fixed time whether it’s death or rizq [provision], hastening for it will not make it happen. One has to wait until it is written to happen. Be patient and focus on that which is important. When time for something has not come don’t keep thinking about it. Do something else.
(6:68) The prohibition of sitting with those who deny and mock Allah's ayat.
In these ayaat, Muslims have been instructed that they should as a matter of principle, abstain from being a part of the gatherings frequented by those who prefer to follow falsehood. We have been instructed so because a sin is a sin whether we do it ourselves or watch others do it.The word yakhudoona [يَخُوضُونَ] is from the root letters kha-wau-daad[khawd] which basically means to enter into water and wade through it. When a person goes for swimming or when a child enters water, does he want to come out? He wants to keep swimming, keep playing or go deeper inside. So isn’t it good that people want to go deeper in the Ayaat of Allah? No. These people don’t go deeper in the Ayaat to learn something or to change themselves but rather they are indulged in it only to mock or deny them, in fault finding and looking for discrepancies and for disputes and debates. It’s a futile intellectual exercise.Therefore, fa`rid [فَأَعْرِضْ] that is “then turn away,” from these people until they talk about something other than ridiculing the Ayaat of Allah subhanahu wa ta`ala. “Turning away” means leaving the gathering or getting busy doing something else. People will say, “Look we are studying the Qur’an. We are talking about the religion.” But when they mock and ridicule there is no khair[goodness] in sitting with them. One should rise and leave such a gathering, until they talk about a subject other than the denial they were engaged in. If one keeps sitting with them he will be influenced and become like them.
This command is for everyone. Those who were present at the time of the Prophet salAllahu `alayhi wa sallam as well as for us. This command is for every member of the Ummah. No one is to sit with those who deny and distort Allah’s Ayaat. The same subject appears in another ayah where it has been said, “If you kept sitting there, you will be like them.” [Surah an-Nisa : 140]
At the end of the ayah, Allah subhanahu wa ta`ala says if Shaytan makes one forget this command then one should leave the gathering as soon as he recalls. To keep sitting there after having remembered is a sin. A hadeeth states,
“My Ummah was forgiven unintentional errors, forgetfulness and what they are coerced to do.”
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