And who turns away from the religion of Ibrahim-AS.....in the Akhirah.
The noble model of Prophet Ibrahim-AS, his-AS religion, his-AS beliefs and practices are the pinnacle of humanity from whom only someone extremely stupid, totally devoid of human values, can turn away. Whereas anyone blessed with a sound disposition would strive to adopt his-AS model.
Prophet Ibrahim-AS is such a noble personality that Allah-SWT conferred upon him-AS the Prophethood, and chose him-AS for Himself, and he-AS will also be amongst Allah-SWT’s closest and beloved personages in the Akhirah. So any sensible person cannot ignore a conduct, which ensures success in both the worlds, and is a source of attaining Allah-SWT’s nearness. In fact the wiser a person, the more will he value the example of Prophet Ibrahim-AS. Now see his conduct.
When his-AS Rabb-SWT said to him…. I surrender myself to the Rabb-SWT of the Universe."
When his-AS Rabb-SWT ordered him-AS to total submission, he-AS simply complied with. Mark his-AS words; he-AS did not just say that he-AS surrendered to Allah-SWT , but keeping in view His-SWT Attributes of being the Provider, the Cherisher and the Sustainer of the universe, said that he-AS submitted to the Rabb-SWT of the worlds. His-AS words not only praise Allah-SWT , but also constitute an acknowledgement of the fact that the capability to submit to Him-SWT is also bestowed by His-SWT Grace.
The Apex Of Cognition
The apex of cognition is that one accepts his own goodness as a favour from Allah-SWT.If he takes any of his virtues as his personal achievement, he is a stranger to this path and unacquainted with the pleasures of Divine Cognition. It is the ignorant who claim to qualify for high spiritual stations after doing a couple of Sujud, considering it a great effort on their part. They claim that they burnt the midnight oil in struggling for Allah-SWT little realizing that the capacity to do Sajdah is after all given by Him-SWT .
The standard of excellence is not judged by ones powers of Kashf or Karamah, but by the extent of devotion and submission to Allah-SWT.And the more one progresses in this, the more he should thank Him-SWT , and pray for steadfastness. However, if this fervour is missing, a few dreams or other such phenomena are no standard for excellence.
Believer And Non-Believer
Kashf itself is a Karamah if accompanied by obedience to Allah-SWT.A non-believer has no access to the heavens or realms beyond or the unseen realms such as Barzakh, Akhirah etc. The doors of the heavens do not open to non-believers (7:70). However, to tell about something located in another part of the world, or to tell a visitor his past, or to foretell about future by speculation, are skills that can be acquired even by a non-believer. Such things are popular among the ignorant and they take them as Kashf.
The real excellence is the inculcation of a spirit of submission, a deep-rooted total surrender to the will and purpose of Allah-SWT . This was the virtue of Prophet Ibrahim-AS and all other Prophets-AS of Allah-SWT , as well as of the righteous. And this is the most precious quality, which must be acquired from them.
And Ibrahim-AS enjoined...so do not die except as Muslims.
Prophet Ibrahim-AS himself, and in turn, his-AS grandson Prophet Y’aqub-AS personally advised their children, at the time of passing away. This is the time when a dying parent tells the offspring about the most precious possession he or she might have. For them the most valuable wealth was the faith and the spirit of total surrender to Allah-SWT.They instructed their sons that Allah-SWT had chosen for them the true religion; so they should not die save as Muslims. The earth may shift, the heavens may fall, the times may change; but they must hold fast to the true Din, and never even think of disobeying Allah-SWT .
The Bani Israil claim to be the followers of Prophet Ibrahim-AS while sticking to their own vain desires instead of submitting to Allah-SWT.Here is what Prophet Y’aqub-AS, from whom they derive the title Bani Israil, said:-
“Did you witness Y’aqub-AS’s hour of death? ...And to Him-SWT do we surrender.”
Were you present at that time? No, you were not there to witness that, but We-SWT will tell you, that when Prophet Y’aqub-AS was breathing his-AS last, he-AS sent for his-AS sons. Whereas Prophet Ibrahim-AS had directed his-AS successors to remain steadfast on Islam; Prophet Y’aqub-AS adopted an interrogative style and asked his-AS sons, “Whom will you worship after me?” While the successors of Prophet Ibrahim-AS, namely Isma’il-AS and Ishaq-AS were themselves Prophets-AS, here only Prophet Yusuf-AS was a Prophet-AS amongst all the sons. So Prophet Y’aqub-AS adopted a more emphatic method, by putting them the question as to whom would they worship once he-AS is gone? They replied: We will worship your God; the God of your forefathers Ibrahim-AS, Ishaq-AS and Isma’il-AS, as He-SWT is the Only God, worthy of worship and praise. He-SWT is worthy of worship from the very beginning till the very end; we surrender unto Him-SWT and shall always remain as His-SWT obedient subjects.
In reality, Islam is the true faith, and has always been so since the advent of mankind on earth; though undoubtedly it assumed different names through different ages. Judaism, propagated by Prophet Musa-AS or Christianity propagated by Prophet ‘Isa-AS, are two names of the same reality, because the beliefs about Unity of Allah-SWT , the Akhirah, the Day of Reckoning, the Paradise and the Hell, the angels, and all other basic teachings are common. The difference is only in the timings and methods of worship, but the object of worship is the same. And then this difference itself indicates excellence of obedience, that whenever and whatever was commanded, was obeyed. And now that the Last Prophet-SW is inviting the Bani Israil to rightfully submit to Islam, it is hard for them to swallow due to the false notion that a mere claim of being an Israili or an Ibrahimi will entitle them to a share in their noble deeds. Well, it will not happen to be so.
These are the people who ... you will not be asked about what they used to do.
This was a group, a class of noble people, who honoured this world for a while, and then shifted to the eternal abode. So whatever they did-their acts of piety and their endeavours-will earn Divine Rewards and Pleasure only for themselves. You will get what you earn, and for sure, you are not accountable for their actions. No one will be accountable for the actions of his ancestors, because he was not even born at that time. The best course is to follow the ancestors who were righteous in their beliefs and conduct. One should not only follow them personally, but also guide the progeny on their line of obedience to Allah-SWT .
And they say, “Become Jews or Christians... was not among the polytheists.”
The Bani Israil claim that the true religion is Judaism or Christianity, and both claim to be rightly guided. The former renounce Prophet ‘Isa-AS and the latter repudiate Prophet Musa-AS, yet in their own way, they claim to be the followers of Prophet Ibrahim-AS. This is what even the idolaters claim. It is the greatness of Prophet Ibrahim’s-AS leadership, that even the polytheists respect him-AS, and the Jews and the Christians take pride in claiming to be his-AS followers. O Prophet-SW! Let them know that the figure that is at the centre of their claims is Prophet Ibrahim-AS, who was certainly not a polytheist, but was indeed the most righteous. He-AS can be the model of unity between us.
Certain people claim to be true devotees of their pious precursors, but devise their own beliefs and practices, but the preceding paragraph lays down the rule that a mere claim of devotion cannot build any relationship, for this the noble precursors must be followed in beliefs and conduct. If Allah-SWT gives Muslims the comprehension of this point, many differences can be abridged. The followers of the truth should not lean towards falsehood; rather they should invite others to follow the truth.
Say, “We believe in Allah-SWT ...and to Him-SWT do we surrender”.
The Muslim should tell the non-believers, that the Holy Prophet-SW himself and all his-SW Companions-RAU who were the principal addressees of the revelation, believe in Allah-SWT and accept Him-SWT as the only One worthy of worship and the Absolute Ruler. None can dare deviate from His-SWT Revelations. And all Muslims believe in all the Messengers-AS of Allah-SWT and the revealed Books, may it be Prophet Ibrahim-AS or Isma’il-AS or Ishaq-AS or Y’aqub-AS or other Prophets-AS from their lineage such as Prophets Musa-AS or ‘Isa-AS, without any discrimination. This is because they have surrendered themselves to Allah-SWT , and dare not deny any of His-SWT Prophets-AS or His-SWT Commands. And if the non-believers embrace Islam and believe like the Companions-RAU did, they are the rightly guided otherwise they are in schism. No matter even if such people exceed in number or power, they are worthless, and Allah-SWT Alone is sufficient to take them to task, as He-SWT is all-Hearing, all-Knowing.
So if they believe, as you have believed...All-Hearing and the All-Knowing.
Exemplary Faith Of Companions
Here the faith of the Companions-RAU has been declared as a standard; a criterion for righteousness. Although at the time of this revelation, the addressees were the natives, yet the Quran and its teachings are for all times to come. The criterion for righteousness will, therefore, always be the Companions-RAU. And anyone who would act contrary to their model would do so out of sheer contumacy. Allah-SWT’s Knowledge is all Encompassing and He-SWT is the Creator; Who-SWT instilled in them such a high standard of virtue that they are the yardsticks of truth forever and chosen to be Companions-RAU of the leader of all Prophets-AS. Now if someone is so callous that he considers himself to be a Muslim and the Companions-RAU non-believers and maligns them on various counts, it indeed would boomerang and he would become a non-believer himself, because Allah-SWT pronounced them as the criterion of truth. We have just discussed that the People of the Book claimed to be believers in truth, whereas their conduct did not endorse it. Here Allah-SWT declared the Companions-RAU as the standard of righteousness; had they not excelled in their conduct, they would never have been proclaimed as such. Just ponder over the Divine words: “and if they believe in the like of that which you believe.” Can faith, without practice be deemed as exemplary? Not at all! Also take note of the warning to the opponents of the Companions-RAU: “Allah-SWT will suffice you (for defence) against them”. Allah-SWT will directly deal with the opponents of the Holy Prophet-SW, i.e. those who fail to believe in him-SW like the Companions-RAU did.
When Caliph ‘Uthman-RAU was attacked by his assassins, he-RAU was reciting the Quran, and his-RAU blood fell on these Divine Words: “So Allah-SWT will suffice you against them...” There indeed was bloodshed and a great turmoil for years to follow. According to a cautious estimate, almost seventy thousand people were killed. Obviously, the more one is against the Companions-RAU the greater is he within the sphere of Allah-SWT’s Wrath.
(Say) The colour of Allah-SWT ........and Him-SWT Alone do we worship.
Mere Colouring of Cloth does not make a religion just as the Christians dip the infant into coloured water and it is assumed that he has turned a Christian. This is absurd. The real colour is that of Allah-SWT , which should be reflected in ones beliefs, ideology, actions and character and which should dominate the life of a person, as it did in case of the Companions-RAU. They are being commanded to tell the non-believers to take a look at the pattern of their lives; how they spend their days and nights, how they conduct the affairs in peace and war, in their business and politics. The non-believers will find the colour of Allah-SWT predominant in the life of Companions-RAU. And most certainly there is no colour better than Allah-SWT s. The Companions-RAU are the real devotees of Allah-SWT ; His-SWT worship and His-SWT obedience is the sole aim of their lives.
These few inviolable words repudiate all the false sects. Anyone who adds or deletes anything in His-SWT Being and Attributes, or in the status of the Prophets-AS, or the existence of angels would be considered a reprobate. This was not conceivable during the times of the Holy Prophet-SW. Neither the Prophets-AS can be made partners in Divine Attributes nor their status be compromised under any circumstances. There was no concept of any new shadow Prophet in the Companions-RAU era. Any such belief is reprobation. Or any false interpretations in the matters of Reckoning, such as twisting the concept of Resurrection of bodies and confining the reckoning to Spirits or distorting the belief about Scales and Accountability, is no service to Islam. In fact, to believe in the facts revealed about the Akhirah in Quran and the Sunnah, without making any false interpretation, is the right conduct. This was the practice of the Companions-RAU and a proof of their conformity and acceptability.
“Do you dispute with us about Allah-SWT ....And Allah-SWT is not unaware of what you do.
So tell the non-believers: You indulge in arguments over Allah-SWT , Who-SWT is our Sustainer and in Whose Providence, we believe and Whose disobedience is beyond our way. Whereas you too, benefit from His-SWT Blessings; He-SWT is your Provider too. We shall be accountable for our conduct and you shall be responsible for your actions. We act with utmost sincerity and devotion only to seek His-SWT Pleasure, while you argue and try to find faults just to maintain a face before the society. You say that Prophets Ibrahim-AS, Ismail-AS, Ishaq-AS and Y’aqub-AS, and their descendants were either Jews or Christians. Is your knowledge more authentic than Allah-SWT’s, Who-SWT has endorsed these Prophets-AS to be Muslims, through His-SWT Revelations? You are the transgressors who deliberately concealed the Divine evidence about the Holy Prophet-SW, his-SW noble era, his-SW disposition, his-SW teachings and his-SW faithful Companions-RAU, revealed in your Books. These facts you not only hesitate to accept out of sheer greed for temporal benefits, but also conceal them from others. And when you can maltreat such a great Prophet-SW who is amidst you, how can you then deter from speaking ill of those gone by? You must remember that Allah-SWT is well aware of your activities.
These are the people who have gone by...about what they used to do.
This was the group of those noble souls who departed after successfully completing their mission. Their reward awaits them, and you (the Bani Israil) shall only get what you strive for. Surely you will not be held accountable for them, nor your claim of being their heirs is acceptable. The best course of action for you is to follow them in their beliefs and actions with steadfastness. You just cannot trick Allah-SWT by false claims of loving them, while pursuing your own vain desires.
