Transliteration:( Huwal lazeee anzala 'alaikal Kitaaba minhu Aayaatum Muh kamaatun hunna Ummul Kitaabi wa ukharu Mutashaabihaatun fa'ammal lazeena fee quloobihim zaiyghun fa yattabi'oona ma tashaabaha minhubtighaaa 'alfitnati wabtighaaa'a taaweelih; wa maa ya'lamu taaweelahooo illal laah; warraasikhoona fil 'ilmi yaqooloona aamannaa bihee kullum min 'indi Rabbinaa; wa maa yazzakkaru illaaa ulul albaab )
8. By Substance of the Book' is meant that these verses are the origin of Islamic Code (SHARIAH) and these are the verses which are cited as proof in respect of theological issues. Action too is based on these.
9. By "those in the meaning of which there is doubt" is meant either one does not understand their meaning like the MUQATTIAT - 'verses in short metre' or that their literal meaning cannot be correctly defined like the verses of Attributes.
10. From this it is hinted that interpretation of these ambiguous verses to cause mischief is totally prohibited, but is permissible if done to remove mischief e.g. some learned scholars interpret these verses emphatically, to protect the layman from being misguided by these mischief mongers. Such interpretation will not be regarded as sinful.
11. By this is meant that it is Allah Almighty who taught its interpretation to His Beloved Prophet Says Allah Almighty. "The Most Affectionate. Taught the QUR'AAN". (S 55: VI-2). It is an absolute fact that Allah Almighty Himself taught the entire QUR'AAN to His Beloved Prophet which included the ambiguous verses. Thus if the Holy Prophet was not given the full knowledge of this ambiguous verses then their revelation would have been a futile act. It would be just like conversing in Arabic with someone who only knows Urdu as he will not understand anything of it. The Truth of the matter is that these ambiguous verses are a divine secret between Allah Almighty and His Prophet through whom some of the Saints and chosen scholars have been blessed with their true interpretation.
12. It is evident from this verse that an educationally mature learned person is he who will not claim to know an issue about which he has no knowledge. We also learn that it is permissible to have collective faith e.g. to have faith in all the Prophets collectively without knowing their exact number. Furthermore, whether one understands or not, it is compulsory to accept and act upon all Islamic Laws. Medicine will always prove beneficial whether we understand or don't understand their chemical composition. Likewise, the QUR'AAN will benefit the general Muslims even though they may not understand Arabic,and recite without understanding its translation. If understanding its translation was an absolute pre-requisite, then the ambiguous verses would not have been revealed.
13. From this we learn that at certain places it is an act of worship and a reward to remain ignorant as well as not making an effort to acquire its knowledge. Anything, which is a means of obtaining Divine pleasure, is indeed an act of worship. Remaining ignorant in respect of ambiguous verses is a means of obtaining Divine pleasure. Hence, it is an act of worship and reward.
The tafsir of Surah Imran verse 7 by Ibn Kathir is unavailable here.
Please refer to Surah Imran ayat 5 which provides the complete commentary from verse 5 through 9.
(3:7) It is He Who has revealed the Book to you. Some of its verses are absolutely clear and lucid, and these are the core of the Book.[5] Others are ambiguous.[6] Those in whose hearts there is perversity, always go about the part which is ambiguous, seeking mischief and seeking to arrive at its meaning arbitrarily, although none knows their true meaning except Allah. On the contrary, those firmly rooted in knowledge say: ‘We believe in it; it is all from our Lord alone.’[7] No one derives true admonition from anything except the men of understanding.
5. Muhkam means that which has been made firmly and perfectly. The muhkam verses mentioned here are those Qur’anic verses which are embodied in clear and lucid language and whose meaning is not liable to any ambiguity and equivocation. The words of these verses are clear pointers to their true meaning and, therefore, it is difficult to subject them to arbitrary interpretation. Such verses form the core of the Holy Book; they are the verses which fulfil the true purpose for which the Qur’an was revealed, and they invite the whole world to Islam. They embody admonition and instruction as well as the refutation of erroneous doctrines and the elucidation of the Right Way. They also contain the fundamentals of the true faith; teachings relating to belief, worship and morality, and mandatory duties and prohibitions. These are the verses which will guide the genuine seeker after Truth who turns to the Qur’an in order to find out what he ought and ought not to do.
6. ‘Ambiguous’ verses are those whose meaning may have some degree of equivocation. It is obvious that no way of life can be prescribed for man unless a certain amount of knowledge explaining the truth about the universe, about its origin and end, about man’s position in it and other matters of similar importance, is intimated to him. It is also evident that the truths which lie beyond the range of human perception have always eluded and will continue to elude man; no words exist in the human vocabulary which either express or portray them. In speaking about such things, we necessarily resort to words and expressions generally employed in connection with tangible objects. In the Qur’an, too, this kind of language is employed in relation to supernatural matters; the verses which have been characterized as ‘ambiguous’ refer to such matters.
At best, such expressions may serve to either bring man close to or enable him to formulate some view of reality, even if it is a faint one. The more one tries to determine the precise meaning of such verses, the more their ambiguities proliferate, and the more one is confronted with choosing between several plausible interpretations. All this is likely to alienate one progressively further away’ from the Truth instead of bringing one closer to it. Those who seek the Truth and do not hanker after the satisfaction of their egocentric quest for exotic superfluities, will be satisfied with the dim vision of reality derived from these verses. They will concentrate their attention instead on the clear and lucid ‘core’ verses of the Qur’an. It will be left to those who are either out to make mischief and mislead people or who have an abnormal passion for superfluities to devote their attention to hair-splitting discussions about the contents of the ‘ambiguous” verses.
7. This might give rise to an unnecessary problem: How can people believe in ‘ambiguous’ verses when the contents of these cannot be grasped?
The fact is that a reasonable person will believe that the Qur’an is the Book of God through his reading of its clear and lucid verses, rather than by learning fanciful interpretations of the ambiguous verses. Once so convinced, he is not likely to be worried by doubts and anxieties caused by the ambiguities of the verses concerned. One who seeks the Truth is satisfied with the obvious meaning of these verses, and wherever he encounters complications and ambiguities he abstains from pursuing their solution too far. Instead of wasting his time splitting hairs, he is content to believe in the things laid down in the Book of God, without seeking to know them precisely and in detail. He turns his attention, in the main, to questions of a practical nature.
[116]- Those which are stated in such a way that they are open to more than one interpretation or whose meaning is known only to Allāh, such as the opening letters of certain sūrahs.
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