Once upon a time there was a Moroccan student who was very naughty. He caused many loses to his school, and has many troubles with his fellows. The director warned him if he continued doing this, he would expel him from the school for a month. He didn’t stop, and finally the director expelled this Moroccan child.
What is your opinion if someone said this school expels the Moroccan students? He doesn’t know the right cause of the expulsion. He should ask the director directly, ask the fellows of the student because they were part of the incidence and knew the sequence of what happened, or simply make sure if there are any other Moroccan students still in the school.
What is the relation of the story above to this article?
Really, there is a close relation between them. Qur’an exists today in its entirety, exactly as it was at the time of the Prophet Muhammad (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him) who heard the verses directly from the Angel Gabriel. He memorized them, and then recited to his companions, who then memorized and passed on these same verses to their followers. The verses of Qur’an have been revealed for a cause and in different situations for about 20 years. So to understand the correct meanings of the verses of Qur’an, we should follow some points to avoid misconceptions as we showed in the story above:
– Knowing the general and the historical context of them and the causes of revelation of them.
– Observing how the Prophet Muhammad (Blessings and Peace of Allah be Upon Him) applied this matter, and the mechanism he ordered us to apply.
-The explanation of the companions (the people who first heard the Qur’an from the lips of the Prophet Muhammad(PBUH), along with his own definitions and explanations).
Misunderstanding about fighting:
“And kill them wherever you overtake them and expel them“.[Quran/2/91].
By referring to the context of this part of the verse you will find:
“Fight in the way of Allah those who fight you but do not transgress. Indeed, Allah does not like transgressors. And kill them wherever you overtake them and expel them from wherever they have expelled you, and fitnah is worse than killing. And do not fight them at al-Masjid al- Haram until they fight you there. But if they fight you, then kill them. Such is the recompense of the disbelievers.And if they cease, then indeed, Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.Fight them until there is no [more] fitnah and [until] worship is [acknowledged to be] for Allah . But if they cease, then there is to be no aggression except against the oppressors.” [Qur’an/2:190-193]
By looking at the context of the verses, you can conclude that there was aggression on Muslims and the Muslims were ordered to defense this aggression in the way of Allah not for the personal interests or revenge of others, and that this defense is conditioned by the aggression of others. The real intent of the verse is to stress that force should be used only when its use is unavoidable, and only to the extent that is absolutely necessary.
The cause of revelation of these verses:
After the Prophet was prevented from visiting the House in the year of the Ghazwah¹ of Hudaybiyya, he made a pact with the disbelievers that he would be allowed to return the following year. And at that time, they would vacate Mecca for three days. Having prepared to depart for the Visitation (‘umrah’) he and the believers were concerned that Quraysh would not keep to the agreement and instigate fighting. The Muslims were averse to becoming engaged in fighting while in a state of pilgrimage inviolability in the Sacred Enclosure Al-haram and during the sacred months, and so the following was revealed; And fight in the way of God to elevate His religion with those who fight against you( the disbelievers) but aggress not against them by initiating the fighting; God loves not the aggressors (the ones that overstep the bounds which God has set for them.)
Misunderstanding about beating of the wife:
(strike them)
– By explanation of Qur’an:
The context of this verse is :” Men are in charge of women by [right of] what Allah has given one over the other and what they spend [for maintenance] from their wealth. So righteous women are devoutly obedient, guarding in [the husband’s] absence what Allah would have them guard. But those [wives] from whom you fear arrogance – [first] advise them; [then if they persist], forsake them in bed; and [finally], strike them. But if they obey you [once more], seek no means against them. Indeed, Allah is ever Exalted and Grand. And if you fear dissension between the two, send an arbitrator from his people and an arbitrator from her people. If they both desire reconciliation, Allah will cause it between them. Indeed, Allah is ever Knowing and Acquainted [with all things].”[Qur’an/4:34-35].
The full context shows that:
There is purpose and conditions of this beating. The purpose is not to hurt the woman, but to make her feel with her negligence of her husband’s rights, and this occurs after warning her.
The main principle in dealing with wife is “And live with them in kindness” [Qur’an/4/19]
The exception is beating her and there are conditions of this beating.
– The wife is wrongdoer.
– The husband advised her and she persisted. He sake her in bed and no result. Then finally, he could beat her in a specific mechanism.
– Beating isn’t hurting; the husband has to avoid the face of his wife. It is just a symbol to make her feel about her wrong, and cease.
– By looking at the sayings and explanation of the Messenger Muhammad:
It was narrated from Hakim bin Muawiyah, that: a man asked the Prophet(PBUH): “What are the right of the woman over her husband?” He said: “That he should feed her as he feeds himself and clothe her as he clothes himself; he should not strike her on the face nor disfigure her, and he should not abandon her except in the house (as a form of discipline).” [Ibn Majah].
– ‘Ata’ said: I said to Ibn ‘Abbaas, what is the kind of hitting that is not harsh? He said, Hitting with a siwaak and the like. (A siwaak is a small stick or twig used for cleaning the teeth – in the picture below)
You can also watch this video:
To sum up,
Search for the truth by yourself, and be fair in your Judge leaving any preconception of any source. If you have illness, you should go to a doctor. Then if you want to know correctly about Islam, know about it from the authentic sources; the Qur’an(the last divine book) and the sayings of the Prophet Muhammad(PBUH).
If you have any misconception about a verse of Qur’an, I encourage you to read the whole Qur’an and its explanation.
Tafseer (Explanation of Qur’an)
Ask a lot.
What about taking a Journey through this book?
The Holy Qur’an
What about searching 3 things concerning any verse in the Qur’an ?
– How does the Qur’an speak about a specific object in the different positions?( Explain the Qur’an by Qur’an)
– What is the cause of the revelation of specific verses?
– What about the sayings of the prophet and the action of his companions to explain the verses of Qur’an?
¹ Ghazwah : Ghazwah means when the prophet Muhammad (PBUH) went to fight against disblievers.
