quraninplainenglish

Bismillāh ir Raḥmān ir Raḥīm

The Women

This week we complete work on the fourth sūrah, posting the final 100 ayāt of Sūrat an Nisā’ ~ the Women.

Next week marks exactly one year since our belovèd Alicia passed on from this world, her mortal remains placed

in the earth at the American Islamic Association of Antelope Valley. May Allāh receive her soul and bless her

beloved offspring, our children.

No doubt many of you recall Alicia with fondness ~ whether from her presence for years every Sunday morning at AIT,

or her delicious Mexican, Moroccan, and Persian cooking as the hostess of Coffee & Converts, or with our kids on

Saturday mornings at the food bank, or from her service on the board of directors of the Inter Religious Council of Southern

California for many years, where she had the sad honour to be appointed by the ICSC to follow in the footsteps of dearest

Jahan Stanazai, another beloved soul who passed through the ummah of this world far too quickly.

Balam, Alicia’s firstborn, reminded me a couple of days ago that during the last week of her life, he had read Sūrat an Nisā’

to his mom each night, completing his reading of it to her just before she died. Other than our ṣalāt and dhikr together on the

night she passed, these were the last ayāt of the Qur’ān she heard prior to going to her Lord, insha’Allāh, may God accept her soul.

I had not recalled that, when I chose to work on an Nisā’ at this time. Subḥanallāh.

As for the ongoing discussion of this sūrah, I would like to express my enduring gratitude to Dr. Ragaa Hathout

for her supportive presence and repeated encouragement in this effort, which is simply an attempt to foster understanding,

mutual respect, and appreciation among all human beings for each other, and for the precious gifts of material and spiritual

existence.

And in this blessèd week of the ḥajj, this day of the standing at ‘Arafat, let us again remember the words of the Prophet Muḥammad,

salla llāhu ‘alayhi wa sallam, which provide sound guidance to all of humanity, so beautifully spoken in his final khutba, an

English version of which is available via the link on the weekly blog menu.

Revisiting 4:34 ~ Sūrat an Nisā’ Completed

https://www.quraninplainenglish.com/4-Sūrat-An-Nisā’.php

Does the Qur’ān give permission for a husband to strike his wife or not? This is a very significant question for Muslims.

Our opinion is that clearly no such permission is ever given, and that such an idea goes against the entire life led, and the

example given by the Seal of the Prophets. We may not cover all the scholarship of fourteen centuries on the issue in this

space, but we can give it the old school try to make a convincing presentation.

The prophet Muḥammad’s beloved wife ‘Aisha said: The Messenger of Allāh never struck a servant or a woman.

Aṭāʾ ibn Abī Rabāḥ, a Meccan scholar of the seventh century reiterated this message and the examples from the Prophet.

A century later, Aḍ Ḍārimī, a teacher of the scholars Tirmidhī and Muslīm, wrote a book chapter entitled

The Prohibition on Striking Women, based upon the entirety of the aḥādīth and the sunnah.

Scholarly treatises have been written about the meaning of one word in the context of ayat 4:34 ~ iḍribūhunna*:

So virtuous women are obedient,

Guarding in the [husband’s] absence that which Allāh guards.

And those from whom you fear rebellion,

Then advise them, and shun them in bed, and leave* them.

Then if they obey you, then do not seek a way against them.

Indeed, Allāh is exalted, great.

The root verb daraba can mean to set forth an example, to strike literally or figuratively, or to set forth on a journey.

In ayah 4:34, husbands who encounter a conflict with a wife (the precise problem is not specified), are instructed first

to admonish them. If this is unsuccessful in resolving the matter, they are told to shun them in the marital bed. If the

problem remains intractable, husbands are instructed to separate from them. But then if the conflict is resolved, they are

instructed “not to seek a way against them.” The sense of this phrase implies the further step of a divorce as the legal

recourse available.

Over eleven hundred years ago, the Persian scholar Aṭ Ṭabari wrote that the Prophet never raised his hand against

one of his wives, nor against any slave, nor against anyone at all. But when the Prophet faced rebellion from one

of his wives, he would stay away from them for twenty-nine nights, i.e. a lunar month.

This certainly lends strong support to the understanding of iḍribūhunna to mean leave them, or go away from them.

This understanding is lent further support later in Sūrat an Nisā’, in ayatayn 94 and 101:

In ayat 94, daraba is used to mean to go forth [in the way of God].

In ayat 101, daraba is used to mean to travel about, or journey in the earth.

Ayat 127 suggests that a remedy for a woman who fears brutality from her husband is best resolved

peacefully, either by making amends and reconciliation, or via separation and terms of settlement.

Indeed, in Qur’ān 60:8, God charges us even in the context of war to be kind to enemies captured in battle.

Does the noble book instruct us not to harm our defeated foes in war, yet go ahead and strike our spouses?

This is completely illogical, and it seems absurd on the face of it.

To us, the meaning of 4:34 is indeed crystal clear. Some who have scholarly credentials dispute this.

Indeed, God allows us to see and to hear as we will, within the limits of our gifts.

May God give us a vision of nonviolence and peaceful coexistence with even our enemies,

and certainly no less so with our spouses and children.

Our profound thanks to Dr. Ragaa Hathout, whose original lecture to the Academy of Islamic Thought

on ayat 4:34 many years ago provided much of the insight and direction for our understanding now.

May Allāh guide rightly the men [and women] who berate or beat their spouses or their partners,

or do worse, even to people whom they do not know. And may Allāh guide those who are under assault

to physical safety, and make them whole and secure in their souls. May we each turn in tawbah for

our transgressions, whatever those may be, and may the Almighty accept our sincere repentance,

and forgive each of us for our multitude of shortcomings.

The work on this sūrah is offered in memory of our beloved wife, the mother of our family, who was

beaten and brutalized for many years in an earlier relationship, after being raped at the age of fourteen,

and raped again later in her adult life. For her suffering, her faith, her kindness and her compassion,

for the joy she spread to any and everyone, and for her many good works, may she now know the peace

she surely deserves in the presence of her Rabb, insha'Allāh. For this I pray.

May Allāh accept this attempted English version of the ayāt He sent down, and allow it to shed light

on His revelation to humanity for those who comprehend English but not Arabic.

Notice of Potential Service Interruption

There may be some interruption after posting the next sūrah. In ten weeks our family faces an uncertain future,

and a possible period of at least temporary homelessness looming at the end of September. In the months thus far

we have received seven blessed contributions, six on LaunchGood for a total of forty four dollars, and one via PayPal

for fifteen dollars. We are surely thankful for the generosity of those kind souls, truly humbled by and most appreciative

of their kindness.

Our effort has been approved for zakāt on LaunchGood A monthly contribution option is also available on Paypal.

Any contribution at all, no matter how modest, is deeply appreciated, even a dollar per month, if that is possible for anyone.

Please go to the zakāt link on the main menu of this website if you wish to contribute to this endeavor.

We would deeply appreciate it if this website, this English version of the Qur’ān, and the brief weekly commentaries

could be more widely distributed and read. No one in our family does any social media at all. We ask anyone who believes

there is some benefit to be derived from this effort, to please post it on your social media. It is the only way other people will

have the opportunity to find out about it or benefit from it, insha’Allāh.

If anyone would like to add a name to our email list, or subtract their name, please be kind enough to let us know.

Singing to the Hearer

At the risk of being accused of committing poetry,

an offering for lovers of God, and for all lovers of life,

with gratitude to the Merciful, the Compassionate, the One ~

When before there was a woman or a man,

Before this human life we know began,

Before there was a home or any hearth,

Before there was a bounty or a dearth,

Before there was a rain, or any drought,

Before there was a north, east, west, or south,

Before there was a whirling cosmic void,

Before nor yin nor yang became alloyed,

Before Unmanifest let it be Shown,

Before the Knower let the seeds be sown,

Before there was a darkness from the Light,

Before there was a single day or night,

Before the spirit moved or had one thought,

Before there was a seeker or a Sought,

Before there was a destiny or fate,

Before there was an early or a late,

Before there was a garden or a tree,

Before there was a will determined free,

Before then water, air, or earth, nor fire,

Before, there was but Truth, not any liar.

Within the One, Complete, the Giver, moved

Love, and the wish to give ~ thus love be proved ~

And so from the Unseen arose Belovèd.

And from this longing, wistfulness arose,

A sighing breath, desiring to be close,

And so on down the line unfolded time,

In couplets split and paired in perfect rhyme.

For every infinitesimal thing,

There is a perfect complementary ring,

The sound it makes in being half a pair ~

Harmonious mates in beautiful song share

Love’s melodies in contrapuntal parts,

Sing to the Hearer, Witness to our hearts.

‘Īd Mubarak. ‘Īd Karīm.

~ Rasheed al Ḥajj abū Muṭahhar 9 Dhūl Ḥijjah 1442 | 19 July 2021