Surah-5 105

SURAH-5

AL-MAIDAH

This Madni Surah takes its name from verse 112 wherein the word “Maidah” has occurred in connection with the demand of the Disciples of Jesus who asked Jesus that a table spread with food be sent from heaven and the prayer of Prophet Jesus was accepted by Allah. The exact period of its revelation is not known. However, the contents of this Surah indicate that most of it was revealed in the end of the year 6 A.H. or in beginning of 7 A.H. i.e. after the Treaty of Hudabiyah. But verse number 3 is reported to have been revealed during Prophet’s Farewell Pilgrimage and is one of the last verses revealed to the Prophet. The Surah comprises 120 verses.

This Surah, being one of the last revelations sent to Prophet Muhammad (PBUH), lays down ordinances relating to religious rites and social obligations. The Surah repeatedly brings the fact to the notice of the Muslims that the Jews and the Christians broke their covenants with God, abandoned and corrupted the truths conveyed to them by their Prophets, and so they no longer adhere to the original teachings of the Bible.

The gist of the teachings of this Surah is as under:

The believers have been advised, in the very opening sentence, to fulfil their obligations and undertakings.

Do not profane Allah’s monuments nor the sacred months, nor the offerings. Do not stop those who stopped you from going to the Sacred Mosque.

Help not one another unto sin and transgression, but cooperate with each other unto righteousness and piety.

Rules of Halal and Haram (lawful and unlawful) are prescribed in matters of food. (see verses 1-4)

The cardinal statement of this Surah is found in verse No. 3 which informs the Prophet that Allah has chosen for him the religion Al-Islam, has perfected this religion and has thus completed His favour to him.

The food of the People of the Scripture (the Jews and Christians) and their virtuous women are made lawful for the Muslims. (verse 5)

Regulations about bath, ablution and dry ablution are made (verse 6).

www.shaufi.com

Surah-5 106

Zakat and prayer were also obligatory for the Jews and Christians.

Allah made covenant with the Jews and Christians which they did not fulfill.

Those (the Christians) who say that Jesus, son of Mary, is God are disbelievers. Divine Trinity is rejected (verses 17, 72 and 73).

The Jews and Christians are advised to believe in Muhammad, peace be upon him (verses 15, 16, 19)

Story of two sons of Adam (Cain and Abel) is related (verse 27-31) to warn the wrongdoers.

Whosoever kills a human being without just cause, it shall be as if he has killed all mankind; and whose saves the life of one, it shall be as if he had saved the life of all mankind (v. 32). This golden rule of the Qur’an sanctifies human life.

Punishment for rebellion (v. 33) and for theft (v. 38) prescribed.

Do justice with equity. Those who do not judge by what Allah has revealed are disbelievers, evil doers, wrongdoers.

The Jews and Christians are permitted to decide their matters according to their religious Scriptures.

Believers are warned not to take the Jews, Christians and disbelievers as their friends (v. 51, 57).

Those who believe and those who are Jews, and Sabaeans and Christians—whosoever believes in Allah and the Last Day and does right deeds—need not fear (v. 69)

Christians are closer to Muslims than the Jews and the polytheists—those Christians who believe and recognize the Truth.

Drinking and gambling, being Satan’s handiwork, forbidden to Muslims.

Rules of hunting promulgated (94-100).

Rule of evidence in case of wills during journey laid down (verses 106-108).

On the Day of Resurrection, Allah will remind Jesus of His favours and then ask him whether he had advised his followers to take him and his mother as God. Jesus would deny (verses 110 to 119).

www.shaufi.com

Surah-5 107

Lesson-66 : Food laws In the name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the

Most Merciful. 1. O you who believe! Fulfill your obligations. Lawful to you (for food) are all four legged animals except those which are hereby announced to you. Hunting is, however, unlawful when you are in pilgrim’s dress. Verily, Allah commands that which He pleases. 2. O you who believe! Do not violate the sanctity of Allah’s monuments, nor of the Sacred Months, nor of the animals brought for sacrifice, nor of the garlands that mark such animals, nor of the people visiting the Sacred House seeking the grace and pleasure of Allah. But when you put off pilgrim’s dress, you may hunt. Let not the hatred of a people, who had once stopped you from going to the Sacred Mosque, incite you to transgress. Cooperate with one another in righteousness and piety; but do not cooperate in sin and transgression. And fear Allah. Verily Allah is severe in punishment.

3. Forbidden unto you (for food) are: The meat of dead animal (who dies itself), and the blood, and swine-flesh (pork), and the meat of that which has been slaughtered in the name of others than Allah, and that which has been strangled to death, and that killed by a violent blow, and that which died through falling from height, and that which has been killed by the goring of horns, and that which has been partly eaten by wild animals save that which you make lawful by slaughtering it (before its death) and that which is sacrificed on alters, and also that you swear by the divining arrows. All these are sinful acts. This day, those who disbelieve have given up all hope of ever harming your religion; so fear them not, fear Me! This day, I have perfected your religion for you and completed My favour upon you and have chosen Al-Islam as religion for you. But as for him who is compelled by hunger to eat (the above mentioned forbidden things), with no inclination to sin, then certainly, Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.

www.shaufi.com

Surah-5 108

4. They ask you (O Muhammad) what is lawful for them (to eat). Say (to them): All good things are made lawful for you. And (that which is caught for you by) those hunting beasts and birds of prey which you have trained with the knowledge given to you by Allah. So eat of that which they catch (and hold) for you and mention Allah’s name on it (while slaughtering). And fear Allah. Verily, Allah is swift to take account.

5. This day, all good things are made lawful for you. The food of those who were given the Scripture is lawful for you, and your food is lawful for them. And likewise the virtuous free believing women and the virtuous women of the people who were given the Scripture before you are lawful for you when you give them their fixed dower (Mahr) and take them in honest wedlock not committing fornication nor taking them as concubines. And whoso denies the faith, all his (good) deeds are in vain and he will be among the losers in the Hereafter.

Lesson-67 : Ablution 6. O you who believe! When you rise up for prayer, wash your faces and your hands up to the elbows, and lightly rub your heads (with wet hands), and (wash) your feet up to the ankles. And if you are unclean (because of sexual discharge), then purify yourselves (by taking a full bath). And if you are sick or on a journey or one of you comes from the toilet or you have had (sexual) contact with women and you find no water, then go to clean soil and rub your faces and hands therewith. Allah does not want to place you in difficulty, but He wants to purify you and to complete His favour upon you, so that you may give thanks.

7. Remember Allah’s favour on you and His covenant by which He bound you when you said: “We hear and we obey”. And fear Allah. Verily, Allah knows what is in the breasts.

www.shaufi.com

Surah-5 109

8. O you who believe! Stand up firmly for Allah as just witnesses, and let not the enmity of a people seduce you to do injustice. Do justice, that is nearer to piety, and fear Allah. Verily, Allah is well Informed of what you do.

9. Allah has made promise with those who believe and do good deeds that for them there is forgiveness and immense reward.

10. But they who disbelieve and deny Our revelations, they are the ones who are the companions of the Hell-fire.

11. O you who believe! Remember Allah’s favour unto you when a people were determined to stretch out their hands against you (to harm you) but He withheld their hands from you. So have fear of Allah; and in Allah (alone) let the believers put their trust. Lesson-68 : Jews and Christians 12. Indeed Allah took a covenant from the Children of Israel and We appointed twelve chieftains among them. And Allah said (to them): I am with you. If you establish prayer and give obligatory charity and believe in My messengers and help them and lend to Allah good loan, surely, I will remit your sins and admit you to Gardens (of Paradise) underneath which rivers flow. But if any of you disbelieves after this, he has indeed gone astray from the right way.

13. Then, because of their breaking of their covenant, We have cursed them and have hardened their hearts. They change the words from their context and have forgotten a good part of that whereof they were admonished. You will always find deceit in them, except a few of them. But forgive them and overlook (their faults). Verily, Allah loves those who are good to others.

www.shaufi.com

Surah-5 110

14. And (similarly) from those who say, “we are Christians”, We took their covenant, but they forgot a good part of that whereof they were admonished. So We planted amongst them enmity and hatred till the Day of Resurrection, and Allah will inform them of what they used to do. 15. O People of the Scripture! Now Our messenger has come to you to explain to you much of that which you used to hide from the Scripture and to pass over much (of it). Now has come to you indeed a light from Allah and a plain Scripture (the Quran). 16. Whereby Allah guides all those who seek His good pleasure to the ways of safety, and He brings them out of darkness to light by His commandment and guides them to straight path.

17. They indeed have disbelieved who say: Allah is the Messiah, son of Mary. Say (O Muhammad to them): Then who has the power to do anything against Allah if He intends to destroy the Messiah, son of Mary, and his mother and all those who are on earth together? And to Allah belongs the sovereignty of the heavens and the earth and all that is between them. He creates what He pleases. And Allah has power over everything.

18. The Jews and the Christians say: We are sons of Allah and His loved ones. Say: Why then does He punish you for your sins? Nay, you are but human beings, of those He has created. He forgives whom He pleases and He punishes whom He pleases. And to Allah belongs the Sovereignty of the heavens and the earth and of all that is between them and to Him is the return.

19. O People of the Scripture! Now has Our messenger come to you to make things clear to you after a long break (in the chain) of messengers, lest you should say: No bringer of glad tidings and no warner came to us. Now has a messenger of glad tidings and a warner come to you. And Allah has power over everything.

Lesson-69 : Cain and Abel

www.shaufi.com

Surah-5 111

20. And (remember) when Moses said to his people: O my people! Remember Allah’s favour on you, how He raised Prophets among you, and made you kings, and gave you that which He had not given to any other in the World.

21. O my people! Enter the holy land (of Palestine) which Allah has assigned to you, and do not turn back (from fighting for it) for then you will become losers. 22. They said: O Moses! Certainly a giant (i.e. powerful) people live therein and we shall never enter it till they go out of it. When they leave it then we will surely enter it.

23. Then two of those who feared, upon whom Allah had bestowed His grace, said: Enter in (and attack) upon them from the gate, for if you enter from it, you will be surely victorious. And put your trust in Allah if you are really believers.

24. They said: O Moses! We will never enter the land as long as they are in it. So you and your Lord both should go and fight, we are sitting here (and waiting).

25. He (Moses) said: O My Lord! I have no control over anyone except myself and my brother, so make separation between us and the wrongdoing people. 26. Allah said: For this (disobedience), the (holy) land will surely be forbidden to them for forty years that they will wander homeless in the earth. So be not sorry for the wrongdoing people. 27. And recite (O Muhammad) to them the story of the two sons of Adam (Abel and Cain) in truth, each offered a sacrifice to Allah, and it was accepted from one of them but it was not accepted from the other. The latter said to the former: I will surely kill you. The former said: Allah accepts only from those who are pious. 28. (And) even if you stretch out your hand against me to kill me, I will not stretch my hand against you to kill you. Verily, I fear Allah, the Lord of the Worlds.

www.shaufi.com

Surah-5 112

29. I would rather intend to let you bear the burden of my sins as well as your sins and thus be one of the companions of the Hell-fire, and that is the reward of the evil doers. 30. But the latter’s soul persuaded him to kill his brother, so he killed him and became one of the losers.

31. Then Allah sent a crow which dug up the ground to show him how to hide his brother’s dead body. He said: Woe to me! I could not be even like this crow and so hide my brother’s dead body. Thus he became one of those who regret.

32. Because of that (incident) We decreed for the Children of Israel that whoever kills a human being, unless it be for murder or for spreading mischief in the land, it shall be as if he had killed all mankind; and whoever saves the life of one, it shall be as if he had saved the life of all mankind. And Our messengers indeed came to them with clear signs yet even after that many of them continued committing excesses in the land.

Lesson-70 : Punishment of rebel and thief 33. The punishment of those who wage war against Allah and His messenger and strive to create mischief in the land is only that they shall be killed or crucified or their hands and feet on alternate sides shall be cut off or they shall be exiled from the land. Such is their degradation in this world, and in the Hereafter there is an awful doom for them.

34. Except those who repent before you overpower them. For (in that case) you know that Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.

35. O you who believe! Fear Allah and seek the means to be closer to Him, and strive hard in His way so that you may attain success.

www.shaufi.com

Surah-5 113

36. As for those who disbelieve, if they have all that is in the earth and as much again therewith, to ransom themselves thereby from the doom on the Day of Resurrection, it will not be accepted from them, and for them there will be a painful doom.

37. They will wish to get out of the Fire (of Hell), but they will never be able to get out of it, and for them there will be a lasting doom.

38. As for the thief, male and female, cut off their hands. It is the reward of that which they did, an exemplary punishment from Allah, And Allah is Mighty, Wise. 39. But whoso repents after his crime and reforms (his conduct), Allah will surely relent toward him. Verily, Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.

40. Do you not know that to Allah belongs the sovereignty of the heavens and the earth? He punishes whom He pleases and He forgives whom He pleases. And Allah has power over everything.

41. O Messenger! Let not those grieve you who fall hurriedly into disbelief, from among such who say with their mouths: “We believe”, but their hearts do not believe. And (also be not grieved) by those of the Jews who listen to lies and spy for other people who have not come to you. They change the words (of the Torah) from their context and say: If you are given this, take it, and if this is not given to you, then beware! And he whom Allah intends to put in trial, you can do nothing for him against Allah. Such people are those whose hearts Allah does not wish to purify. For them there is disgrace in this world and in the Hereafter they will have an awful doom.

www.shaufi.com

Surah-5 114

42. (That is because) they are the listeners of falsehood, devourers of illicit gain! So if they come to you (with their disputes), either judge between them or turn away from them. If you turn away from them, they cannot harm you at all. And if you judge, then judge between them with justice. Verily, Allah loves those who act justly.

43. But why do they come to you for judgment when they have the Torah, wherein Allah has made (a plain) judgment? Yet even after that they turn away. And they are not true believers.

Lesson-71 : Judicial autonomy 44. Verily, We did reveal Torah, in which there is guidance and light. By this all the Prophets, who had submitted to Allah, judged the Jews, and so did the rabbis and the priests as they were entrusted the protection of Allah’s Book and they were witnesses thereto. So fear not the people, but fear Me, and sell not My revelations for a little price. Whoso judge not by what Allah has revealed; such are disbelievers.

45. And We prescribed for them therein: Life for life, and eye for eye, and nose for nose, and ear for ear, and tooth for tooth, and for a wound an equal retaliation. But if anyone remits retaliation by way of charity, it shall be an expiation for him. And whoso judge not by what Allah has revealed; such are wrong doers.

46. And in the footsteps of those (Prophets) We sent Jesus, son of Mary, confirming that which was before him from the Torah; and We gave him Gospel wherein is guidance and light and which is confirmation of what was before it from the Torah – a guidance and an admonition to those who are pious.

www.shaufi.com

Surah-5 115

47. Let the People of the Gospel judge by that which Allah has revealed therein. And whoso judge not by that which Allah has revealed; such are evil-doers. 48. And unto you (O Muhammad) We have revealed the Book (al –Quran) with the truth confirming whatever from the Scripture was before it, and a watcher over it. So judge between them by what Allah has revealed, and follow not their desires diverging from truth which has come to you. To each among you, We have prescribed a law and clear way. Had Allah willed He could have made you one community. But (He willed otherwise) in order that He may try you by that which He has given you. So try to excel one another in good deeds. Unto Allah you will all return, and He will then inform you of that wherein you differ.

49. So judge between them (O Muhammad) by that which Allah has revealed and follow not their vain desires, rather beware of them lest they turn you away from some of that which Allah has revealed unto you. And if they turn away then know that Allah’s will is to punish them for some of their sins. Verily, many of men are evil-doers.

50. Do they then seek the judgment of the time of ignorance? And who is better than Allah in judgment for a people who have firm faith.

Lesson-72 : Friendship with non-Muslims 51. O you who believe! Take not the Jews and the Christians as protecting friends: they are only protecting friends of one another. And whoever of you takes them for protecting friends, he will be (considered as) one of them. Surely Allah does not guide the wrongdoing people. 52. You see those in whose heart there is a disease (of hypocrisy), they race toward them saying: We fear lest a change of fortune befall us. And it may happen that Allah will bring (to you) victory or a decision from His presence, then they will repent for what they are hiding in their hearts.

53. And those who believe will then say: Are these the same people who swore by Allah their most binding oaths that they were surely with you? All their deeds have been in vain and they have (definitely) become the losers.

www.shaufi.com