2. Al-Baqara

Verse 51 refers to other incidents in the same story. When the Pharaoh had been drowned, the Israelites, according to one report, went back to Egypt, or, according to another, began to live somewhere else. Having at last found a peaceful existence, they now wished they could receive a Shari` ah, or a religious code of laws, from Allah which they should follow. Allah answered the prayer of Sayyidna Musa (علیہ السلام) and promised that if he came to the Mount Tur طور (Sinai) and devoted himself to worship for a month, he would receive a Divine Book. He gladly obeyed the Commandment, and was granted the Torah تورات . But he was ordered to continue to worship for ten days more, because he had broken his fast after a month and thus lost the special odour which rises from the mouth of a fasting person and which is very pleasant to Allah; so Allah commanded him to fast for ten additional days and regain that odour. Thus, Sayyidna Musa (علیہ السلام) completed forty days of total fasting and devotion. While he was on Mt. Sinai, something very odious happened to the Israelites. Among them there was a man called Samiriyy سامری . He fashioned the figure of a calf out of gold or silver, and put into it some of the dust which he had picked up from under the hooves of the horse of Jibra'il (the Archangel Gabriel علیہ السلام), at the time when the Pharaoh and his army had been drowned by the Archangel. The golden calf immediately acquired life. The ignorant among the Israelites were so impressed that they started worshipping it.

Verse 51 calls them "unjust" for having committed this sin, for 'injustice' lies in putting things in the improper places, and idolatory is essentially just that.

The Israelites were forgiven only when they had offered Taubah توبہ (repentance), as recounted in Verse 54. In saying that they were pardoned so that they might learn gratefulness, the present verse employs the Arabic word لَعَلَ La` lla which indicates expectation. In the present context it does not mean that Allah had or could have any doubt or misgiving about this or any other matter; what the word implies here is just that when a man receives a pardon, the onlookers may expect him to feel grateful.

Torah is the book which was given to Sayyidna Musa (علیہ السلام)

In the language of the Holy Qur'an, al-Furgan الفرقان is a term signifying something which separates truth from falsehood or distinguishes the one from the other. In the present verse, it refers either to (a) the injunctions of the Shari` ah which are to be found in the Torah, for the Shari` ah resolves all the differences that may arise with regard to the doctrines or the practice of good deeds; or to (b) miracles which decide between a true or a false claim in a palpable manner; or even to (c) the Torah itself which has the twin qualities of being a Book of Allah and of being an instrument for separating truth from falsehood.

This verse describes the special mode of offering their Taubah توبہ (repentance) which was prescribed for the Israelites in this situation, -- that is to say, those who had not indulged in the worship of the golden calf should execute those who had. Similarly, in the Islamic Shari'ah too, certain major sins necessarily entail capital punishment even when the sinner has offered this Taubah توبہ -- for example, life in return for a life in the case of intentional homicide, or death by stoning in the case of adultery established through proper evidence.

Then the Israelites acted upon this divine commandments, they became worthy of receiving the mercy and favour of Allah in the other world.

Then Sayyidna Musa (علیہ السلام) (Moses) brought the Torah from Mount Tur طور (Sinai) and presented it to the Israelites as the book of Allah, some of them were insolent enough to say that they could not believe it until and unless Allah Himself told them in so many words. With the permission of Allah, Sayyidna Musa (علیہ السلام) replied that even this condition would be fulfilled, if they went with him to Mount Tur طور . The Israelites chose seventy men for this purpose. Arriving there, they heard the words of Allah with their own ears. Now, in their perversity, they invented a new ruse. It was not enough, they said, to hear the speech, for they could not be sure whether it was Allah Himself who had spoken to them or someone else. But they promised that they would be finally convinced if they could see Allah with their own eyes. Since it is beyond the power of a living being to be able to see Allah in the physical world, they had to pay for their impertinence, and were killed by a thunderbolt -- the next verse reports their death.

This verse refers to death, which suggests that the thunderbolt had killed them. Since the Israelites had always been mistrusting Sayyidna Musa (علیہ السلام) ، he feared that they would suspect him of having taken the men to a solitary place and got them slaughtered. So, he prayed to Allah to save him from such a vile accusation. Allah granted his prayer, and gave those a new life.

There are two views as to when this incident took place. According to Shah ` Abd al-Qadir (رح) ، when the Israelites grew weary of eating the same Mann مَن and Salwa سلوا every day and prayed for being granted the kind of food they were used to (2:61), they were commanded to go to a certain city where they could get what they wished for. So, the commandment in the present verse pertains to the mode of entering this city, and lays down the spiritual etiquette for action and speech on this occasion. On the other hand is the view that the commandment pertains to the city against which the Israelites had been ordered to engage themselves in a Jihad جہاد . They obeyed it only after their long wanderings in the wilderness, and conquered the city. The commandment reported in Verse 58 was sent to them through Sayyidna Yusha' (علیہ السلام) (Joshua ) who was the prophet among them at the time.

The discrepancy between the two views, which raises a question about the chronological sequence of the events, should not confuse us as to the nature of the stories narrated in the Holy Qur'an. The Holy Qur'an does not tell the stories for the sake of telling stories, the usual purpose of which is to provide entertainment. The real intention here is to draw certain conclusions from the stories, and to illustrate or point out certain spiritual principles. Now, the various episodes of a story help to bring out various principles. So, in view of a particular effect sought in a particular context, the chronological sequence of the episodes may be invented and the incidents re-arranged to serve the interest of the pattern of meaning that is intended. This is just what the Holy Qur'an does; in fact, this is a quite usual literary method, and the disturbance of the chronological order in the stories narrated by the Holy Qur'an should not raise irrelevant questions in the mind of the reader - after all, in any and every piece of writing, or even speech, it is the intention which governs the ordering of the material.

The Verse holds out the promise that if the Israelites obeyed the commandment, their errors would be forgiven. On the basis of the first of the two views we have referred to, one must include among the errors their rejection of the Mann مَن and the Salwa سلوا and their request for the normal kind of food. The demand was really insolent, but Allah promised that if they showed their obedience by following the new commandment, He would forgive this error too. Anyhow, the promise of pardon was general, and extended to everyone who was ready to obey the new commandment, while a special reward was promised to those who devoted themselves to good deeds sincerely and wholeheartedly.

The meaning of Ihsan احسان

"We may add that 'sincerity' and 'wholeheartedness' are a very weak rendering in English of the essential quality of the text's Muhsinun محسنون (rendered here as "those who are good in deeds" ). This word comes from Ihsan احسان which signifies "doing a thing beautifully - that is, in the manner that is proper to it." Beside this lexical meaning, Ihsan احسان has a technical meaning which has been defined in a famous Hadith: تعبداللہ کانک تراہ ، فالم تکن تراہ …

This verse is a continuation of the preceding verse. Allah had commanded the Israelites to keep, while entering the city, repeating the word Hittatun حِطَّةٌ (which indicates repentance for one's sin and the request for pardon). But they replaced this word with another phrase by way of mockery, and started saying, Habbatun fi sha` irah (grain in the midst of barley), or Hintatun حِطَّةٌ (wheat).

The punishment which descended on them was plague that wiped out seventy thousand men (Qurtubi). In passing, we may recall a hadith which says that plague is a punishment for the disobedient, and a blessing for the obedient.

Injunctions and related considerations

The Israelites were punished for having changed a word ordained by Allah, and substituted a phrase of their own invention, thus distorting the meaning itself. According to the consensus of the Fuqaha ' (Muslim jurists), a change in the words of the Holy Qur'an, or of a Hadith, or of a divine commandment which invents or distorts the actual meaning is impermissible.

This should be obvious enough. But there is another question -- is it permissible to change the words in such a way that the meaning does not suffer but remains intact? In his commentary, Imam al-Qurtubi (رح) says that in certain texts and in certain kinds of speech the words are as much a part of the intention as the meanings and equally necessary for conveying an idea, and that in such a case it is not permissible to change the words. For example, in the Adhan اذان (the call for prayers) it is not permissible to employ words other than those which have been laid down for the purpose by the hadith. Similar is the case of the Salah: the different things to be recited in them (like Subhanaka Allahumma سبحانک اللہم ، At-Tahiyyat التحیات ، Qunut قُنُوت ) or the glorification of Allah during the Ruku' رکوع (bowing down) and the Sajdah سجدہ (prostration) all these must be said exactly in the words which have been reported in the hadith; substituting other words is not allowed, even if the meaning does not undergo a change.

This rule applies to each and every word of the Holy Qur'an. All the Injunctions with regard to the recitation of the Holy Qur'an strictly pertain to those words alone which Allah has revealed to the Holy Prophet ﷺ . According to the hadith, the merit of reciting the Holy Qur'an is so great that for every letter that one reads or recites one gets the reward which one would get for performing ten good deeds. But if one reads a very accurate translation of the Holy Qur'an or even an Arabic version in which the original words have been replaced by certain other words without injuring the sense, the Shari'ah shall not accept it as a recitation of the Holy Qur'an, and one will not get any reward of recitation for it. For, it is not the meanings alone which constitute the Holy Qur'an; "Qur'an" is the name of meanings inherent in the words revealed by Allah to the Holy Prophet ﷺ so that the two are inseparable from each other.

It appears from the present verse that Allah had commanded the Israelites to say this particular word, Hittatun حِطَّةٌ , while offering their Taubah توبہ (repentance), and hence changing the …

This incident too belongs to the story of the wanderings of the Israelites in the wilderness. Parched with thirst, they requested Sayyidna Musa (رح) ، 1t to pray to Allah for water. Allah commanded him to strike a certain rock with his staff. As he did so, twelve streams gushed forth out of the rock, one for each of the twelve tribes. Sayyidna Ya` qub (علیہ السلام) (Jacob) had twelve sons, and each had a large family of his own. So, the families were considered as tribes, each with its own administrative organisation and its own head. Hence, the number twelve ]. What they have been asked to eat is the Mann مَن and the Salwa سلوا (manna and quails), and the water is, of course, the one which had come out of the rock.

The Israelites have, in this verse, been asked not to spread disorder which in this context signifies disobedience to Allah and transgression of His Commandments.

The great Commentator al-Qadi al-Baydawi (رح) points out that it is a great error22 to deny miracles. When Allah has given a certain stone the unusual property of drawing iron to itself, it cannot be, logically and rationally speaking, impossible that He should also give another stone the property of absorbing water from the earth and of releasing it again. Even this explanation is meant for those who take a superficial view of things. Otherwise, it is in no way impossible that Allah should produce water within a stone itself. Those who call it impossible do not actually understand the technical meaning of the term "impossible."

22. Even a great error in logic.

An answer to a doubt about the Israelites

It has been asked whether it is necessary, in times of drought, to offer formal prayers in order to beseech Allah for rains. The present verse tells us that Sayyidna Musa (علیہ السلام) just prayed for water, and Allah made a miraculous provision. It shows that the essential thing in beseeching Allah for rains is just a prayer. In the Shari'ah of Sayyidna Musa (علیہ السلام) a mere prayer was considered to be sufficient for the purpose. According to Imam Abu Hanifah (رح) ، this principle holds good for the Islamic Shari` ah too. The Holy Prophet ﷺ has, in this respect, acted differently on different occasions. An authentic hadith reports that once he went outside the city to the open space where the congregational prayers were held on the day of the ` Id عید ، offered formal prayers, delivered a Khutbah خطبہ (address), and then prayed to Allah for rains. According to another hadith reported by Al-Bukhari and Muslim from the blessed Companion Anas ؓ ، once the Holy Prophet ﷺ prayed for rains while delivering the Khutbah on Friday, and Allah sent down rains.

No matter what form the prayer takes, all the scholars agree that it cannot be effective unless it is accompanied by a repentance for one's sins, a confession of one's powerlessness, a sincere expression of humility and an affirmation of servitude to Allah. So long as one persists in sin and transgression, one has no right to hope that the prayer would be answered. But if Allah may, in His mercy and benevolence, grant the prayer without this condition being fulfilled, it is His will, and He is All-Powerful.