Transliteration:( Ara 'aytal lazee yukazzibu biddeen )
1. The first half of Surah Ma'oon is Makkan and was revealed regarding Abu Jahl or Aas bin Waa'il and the second half is Madinite, which was revealed regarding the hypocrites Abdullah bin Salool, etc.
Reason for its Revelation:
Whenever a wealthy person would be on his deathbed in the holy city of Makkah, Abu Jahl, etc. would go to him and say that leave your children and wealth with us so that they can be taken care of in a proper way. The dying person would do exactly that. After his death, these people would take full control of the wealth, but they would throw out the orphaned children of the deceased.
Thus, one such oppressed orphan went to the Holy Prophet to complain about his ill treatment. The Holy Prophet ? went with him to these people and said: "Do you not fear Allah and the Last Day?" These people began to make fun of the Day of Judgement. The Holy Prophet came back dejected. In response to it, the first part of this Surah was revealed.
1. Have you seen him who denies Ad-Din 2. That is he who repulses the orphan, 3. And urges not the feeding of Al-Miskin. 4. So, woe unto those performers of Salah, 5. Those who with their Salah are Sahun. 6. Those who do good deeds only to be seen, 7. And withhold Al-Ma`un.
Here the word Din means the Hereafter, the Recompense and the Final Reward.
(That is he who repulses the orphan, ) meaning, he is the one who oppresses the orphan and does not give him his just due. He does not feed him, nor is he kind to him.
(And urges not the feeding of Al-Miskin.) This is as Allah says,
(Nay! But you treat not the orphans with kindness and generosity! And urge not one another on the feeding of Al-Miskin!) (89:17-18) meaning, the poor man who has nothing to sustain him and suffice his needs. Then Allah says,
(So, woe unto those performers of Salah, those who with their Salah are Sahun.) Ibn `Abbas and others have said, “This means the hypocrites who pray in public but do not pray in private.” Thus, Allah says,
(unto those performers of Salah,) They are those people who pray and adhere to the prayer, yet they are mindless of it. This may either be referring to its act entirely, as Ibn `Abbas said, or it may be referring to performing it in its stipulated time that has been legislated Islamically. This means that the person prays it completely outside of its time.
`Ata’ bin Dinar said, “All praise is due to Allah, the One Who said,
(with their Salah are Sahun.) and He did not say, `those who are absent minded in their prayer.”’ It could also mean the first time of the prayer, which means they always delay it until the end of its time, or they usually do so. It may also refer to not fulfilling its pillars and conditions, and in the required manner. It could also mean performing it with humility and contemplation of its meanings. The wording of the Ayah comprises all of these meanings. However, whoever has any characteristic of this that we have mentioned then a portion of this Ayah applies to him. And whoever has all of these characteristics, then he has completed his share of this Ayah, and the hypocrisy of actions is fulfilled in him. This is just as is confirmed in the Two Sahihs that the Messenger of Allah said,
(This is the prayer of the hypocrite, this is the prayer of the hypocrite, this is the prayer of the hypocrite. He sits watching the sun until it is between the two horns of Shaytan. Then he stands and pecks four (Rak`ahs) and he does not remember Allah (in them) except very little.) This Hadith is describing the end of the time for the `Asr prayer, which is the middle prayer as is confirmed by a text (Hadith). This is the time in which it is disliked to pray. Then this person stands to pray it, pecking in it like the pecking of a crow. He does not have tranquility or humility in it at all. Thus, the Prophet said,
(He does not remember Allah (in them) except very little.) He probably only stands to pray it so that the people will see him praying, and not seeking the Face of Allah. This is just as if he did not pray at all. Allah says,
(Verily, the hypocrites seek to deceive Allah, but it is He Who deceives them. And when they stand up with laziness and to be seen of men, and they do not remember Allah but little.) (4:142) and Allah says here,
(Those who do good deeds only to be seen,) Imam Ahmad recorded from `Amr bin Murrah that he said, “We were sitting with Abu `Ubaydah when the people mentioned showing-off. A man known as Abu Yazid said, “I heard `Abdullah bin `Amr saying that the Messenger of Allah said,
(Whoever tries to make the people hear of his deed, Allah, the One Who hears His creation, will hear it and make him despised and degraded.)” from what is related to his statement,
(Those who do good deeds only to be seen.) is that whoever does a deed solely for Allah, but the people come to know about it, and he is pleased with that, then this is not considered showing off. Allah said:
(And withhold Al-Ma`un.) This means that they do not worship their Lord well, nor do they treat His creation well. They do not even lend that which others may benefit from and be helped by, even though the object will remain intact and be returned to them. These people are even stingier when it comes to giving Zakah and different types of charity that bring one closer to Allah. Al-Mas`udi narrated from Salamah bin Kuhayl who reported from Abu Al-`Ubaydin that he asked Ibn Mas`ud about Al-Ma`un and he said, “It is what the people give to each other, like an axe, a pot, a bucket and similar items.” This is the end of the Tafsir of Surat Al-Ma`un, and all praise and thanks are due to Allah.
(107:1) Did you see him[1] who gives the lie to the Reward and Punishment[2] of the Hereafter?[3]
1. The words “have you seen”, apparently, are directed to the Prophet (peace be upon him), but the Quranic style is that on such occasions it generally addresses every intelligent and thinking person. And seeing means seeing with the eyes, for what has been described in the succeeding verses can be seen by every seer with his eyes, as well as knowing, understanding and considering something deeply. If the word araaita is taken in the second meaning, the verse would mean: Do you know the kind of man who belies the rewards and punishments. Or: Have you considered the state of the person who belies the Judgment?
2. The word ad-din as Quranic term is used for the rewards and punishments of the Hereafter as well as for the religion of Islam. But the theme that follows is more relevant to the first meaning, although the second meaning is also not out of the context. Ibn Abbas has preferred the second meaning, while a majority of the commentators have preferred the first. In case the first meaning is taken, the theme of the Surah would mean that denial of the Hereafter produces such and such a character in man. In case the second meaning is taken, the object of the Surah would be to highlight the moral importance of Islam, to stress that Islam aims at producing an altogether different character in its adherents from that found in its deniers.
3. The style shows that the object of asking this question at the outset is not to ask whether he has seen the person or not, but to invite the listener to consider as to what kind of character is produced in man when he denies the judgment of the Hereafter, and to urge him to know the kind of the people who belie this creed so that he tries to understand the moral significance of belief in the Hereafter.
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