Surah 33. Al-Ahzab, Ayah 6
| النَّبِيُّ أَوْلَىٰ بِالْمُؤْمِنِينَ مِنْ أَنْفُسِهِمْ ۖ وَأَزْوَاجُهُ أُمَّهَاتُهُمْ ۗ وَأُولُو الْأَرْحَامِ بَعْضُهُمْ أَوْلَىٰ بِبَعْضٍ فِي كِتَابِ اللَّهِ مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَالْمُهَاجِرِينَ إِلَّا أَنْ تَفْعَلُوا إِلَىٰ أَوْلِيَائِكُمْ مَعْرُوفًا ۚ كَانَ ذَٰلِكَ فِي الْكِتَابِ مَسْطُورًا |
| Asad | : | The Prophet has a higher claim on the believers than [they have on] their own selves, [seeing that he is as a father to them] and his wives are their mothers:8 and they who are [thus] closely related havein accordance wuth God's decree, a higher claim upon one another than [was even the case between] the believers [of Yathrib] and those who had magrated [there for the sake of Good].9 none the less, you are to act wth utmost goodness towards your [other] close friends as well:10 this [too] is written down in God's decree. |
| Malik | : | The Prophet is closer to the believers than their own selves and his wives are as their mothers. Blood relatives have a greater claim on one another than the other believers and the Muhajirin (early Muslims who migrated from Makkah to Madinah) according to the Book of Allah: although you are permitted to some good (through leaving bequests) for your friends . This has been written in the Book of Allah. |
| Pickthall | : | The Prophet is closer to the believers than their selves, and his wives are (as) their mothers. And the owners of kinship are closer one to another in the ordinance of Allah than (other) believers and the fugitives (who fled from Mecca) except that ye should do kindness to your friends. This is written in the Book (of nature). |
| Yusuf Ali | : | The Prophet is closer to the Believers than their own selves and his wives are their mothers. Blood-relations among each other have closer personal ties in the Decree of Allah than (the Brotherhood of) Believers and Muhajirs: nevertheless do ye what is just to your closest friends: such is the writing in the Decree (of Allah). 3674 3675 3676 |
| Transliteration | : | an- nabey awlaa bi- al- mu'minen min anfus -him wa- azwaaj -hu 'ummahaat -hum wa- 'olo al- arh.aam bacd. -hum awlaa bi- bacd. fe kitaab 'allaah min al- mu'minen wa- al- muhaajiren 'illaa 'an tafcalo 'ilaa awliyaa' -kum macrof(an) kaana dhaalika fe al- kitaab mast.or(an) |
Note - 8Thus, connecting with the preceding mention of voluntary,
elective relationships (as contrasted with those by
blood), this verse points to the highest manifestation of
an elective, spiritual relationship: that of the
God-inspired Prophet and the person who freely chooses to
follow him. The Prophet himself is reported to have said:
"None of you has real faith unless I am dearer unto him
than his father, and his child, and all mankind" (Bukhari
and Muslim, on the authority of Anas, with several almost
identical versions in other compilations). The Companions
invariably regarded the Prophet as the spiritual father
of his community. Some of them - e.g., Ibn Mas'ud (as
quoted by Zamakhshari) or Ubayy ibn Ka'b, Ibn ''Abbas and
Mu'awiyah (as quoted by Ibn Kathir) - hardly ever recited
the above verse without adding, by way of explanation,
"seeing that he is [as] a father to them"; and many of
the tabi'in - including Mujahid, Qatadah, 'Ikrimah and
Al-Hasan (cf. Tabari and Ibn Kathir) - did the same:
hence my interpolation, between brackets, of this phrase.
(However, see also verse {40} of this surah and the
corresponding note [50].) As regards the status of the
Prophet's wives as the "mothers of the believers", this
arises primarily from the fact of their having shared the
life of God's Apostle in its most intimate aspect.
Consequently, they could not remarry after his death (see
verse {53} below), since all the believers were,
spiritually, their "children".
|
Note - 9See note [86] on the last but one sentence of 8:75. As
explained in that note, neither of these two passages
(8:75 and 33:6) can be satisfactorily interpreted as
bearing on the laws of inheritance: all endeavours to
interpret them in that sense only do violence to the
logical build-up and inner cohesion of the Qur'anic
discourse. On the other hand, it is obvious that both
passages have basically a similar (namely, spiritual)
import - with the difference only that whereas the
concluding sentences of Al-Anfal refer to the brotherhood
of all believers in general, the present passage lays
stress on the yet deeper, special relationship between
every true believer and God's Apostle.
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Note - 10I.e., towards all other believers, as stressed so often
in the Qur'an, and particularly in 8:75 (see preceding
note): in other words, a believer's exalted love for the
Prophet should not blind him to the fact that "all
believers are brethren" (49:10). The extremely complex
term ma'ruf, rendered by me in this context as "innermost
goodness", may be defined as "any act [or attitude] the
goodness whereof is evident to reason" (Raghib).
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Note - 3674In human relationship the Prophet is entitled to more
respect and consideration than blood-relations. The
Believers should follow him rather than their fathers or
mothers or brothers, where there is conflict of duties.
He is even nearer-closer to our real interests-than our
own selves.
|
Note - 3675See last note. This Sura establishes the dignity and
position of the Holy Prophet's wives, who had a special
mission and responsibility as Mothers of the Believers.
They were not to be like ordinary women: they had to
instruct women in religious matters visit and minister to
those who were ill or in distress, and do other kindly
offices in aid of the Prophet's mission.
|
Note - 3676In the early Madinah period, there was a bond of
brotherhood between its inhabitants and the Muslims who
migrated. This bond was the reason for mutual inheritance
between them. Once the stability of Muslim Ummah was
established, the law of inheritance according to blood
relationship was revealed superceding the previous
brotherhood relationship. This verse and verse No. 75 of
Sura 8 abrogate the earlier arrangement.
|
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Thus, connecting with the preceding mention of voluntary, elective relationships (as contrasted with those by blood), this verse points to the highest manifestation of an elective, spiritual relationship: that of the God-inspired Prophet and the person who freely chooses to follow him. The Prophet himself is reported to have said: "None of you has real faith unless I am dearer unto him than his father, and his child, and all mankind" (Bukhari and Muslim, on the authority of Anas, with several almost identical versions in other compilations). The Companions invariably regarded the Prophet as the spiritual father of his community. Some of them - e.g., Ibn Mas'ud (as quoted by Zamakhshari) or Ubayy ibn Ka'b, Ibn ''Abbas and Mu'awiyah (as quoted by Ibn Kathir) - hardly ever recited the above verse without adding, by way of explanation, "seeing that he is [as] a father to them"; and many of the tabi'in - including Mujahid, Qatadah, 'Ikrimah and Al-Hasan (cf. Tabari and Ibn Kathir) - did the same: hence my interpolation, between brackets, of this phrase. (However, see also verse {40} of this surah and the corresponding note [50].) As regards the status of the Prophet's wives as the "mothers of the believers", this arises primarily from the fact of their having shared the life of God's Apostle in its most intimate aspect. Consequently, they could not remarry after his death (see verse {53} below), since all the believers were, spiritually, their "children". |
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See note [86] on the last but one sentence of 8:75. As explained in that note, neither of these two passages (8:75 and 33:6) can be satisfactorily interpreted as bearing on the laws of inheritance: all endeavours to interpret them in that sense only do violence to the logical build-up and inner cohesion of the Qur'anic discourse. On the other hand, it is obvious that both passages have basically a similar (namely, spiritual) import - with the difference only that whereas the concluding sentences of Al-Anfal refer to the brotherhood of all believers in general, the present passage lays stress on the yet deeper, special relationship between every true believer and God's Apostle. |
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I.e., towards all other believers, as stressed so often in the Qur'an, and particularly in 8:75 (see preceding note): in other words, a believer's exalted love for the Prophet should not blind him to the fact that "all believers are brethren" (49:10). The extremely complex term ma'ruf, rendered by me in this context as "innermost goodness", may be defined as "any act [or attitude] the goodness whereof is evident to reason" (Raghib). |
| |
In human relationship the Prophet is entitled to more respect and consideration than blood-relations. The Believers should follow him rather than their fathers or mothers or brothers, where there is conflict of duties. He is even nearer-closer to our real interests-than our own selves. |
| |
See last note. This Sura establishes the dignity and position of the Holy Prophet's wives, who had a special mission and responsibility as Mothers of the Believers. They were not to be like ordinary women: they had to instruct women in religious matters visit and minister to those who were ill or in distress, and do other kindly offices in aid of the Prophet's mission. |
| |
In the early Madinah period, there was a bond of brotherhood between its inhabitants and the Muslims who migrated. This bond was the reason for mutual inheritance between them. Once the stability of Muslim Ummah was established, the law of inheritance according to blood relationship was revealed superceding the previous brotherhood relationship. This verse and verse No. 75 of Sura 8 abrogate the earlier arrangement. |
