Al-Ahzaab (The Clans)

35. “Verily the Muslim men and the Muslim women, and the believing men and the believing women, and the obedient men and the obedient women, and the truthful men and the truthful women, and the patient men and the patient women, and the humble men and the humble women, and the alms-giving men and the alms-giving women, and the fasting men and the fasting women, and the men who guard their modesty and the women who guard (their modesty), and the men who remember Allah much and the women who remember Allah (much), for them Allah has prepared forgiveness and a great reward.”

The Occasion of Revelation

A group of commentators have said that when ’Asma’ Bent-i-‘Umays, the wife of Ja‘far-ibn-Abitalib, accompanied with her husband, came back from Ethiopia, she went to visit the Prophet’s wives.

One of the questions she began asking was that whether there was anything of the verses of the Qur’an revealed about women. They responded a negative answer to her.

Then she came to the Prophet (S) and, concerning it, she said:

“O’ the Messenger of Allah! Women are in loss!”

The Prophet (S) asked her:

“Why?”

She answered:

“For the reason that there has not come in the Islam and Qur’an anything about the excellence of women.”

It was here that the above verse was revealed (and gave them certainty that the men and women are equal with Allah from the point of nearness and rank. The important thing is that they should have the conditions of excellence from the view of belief, action, and Islamic morals).

This verse has numerated ten virtues for the general men and women in the subjects of belief, ethics, and practice. If we study the differences that Arabs and non-Arabs used to consider between men and women and we search the heart-rending history of woman, the value of this verse will be made clear.

Next to the discussions about the duties of the Prophet’s wives mentioned in the former verses, now, in this verse, there are some comprehensive and expressive statements stated about the whole men and women as well as their outstanding qualities.

After mentioning ten specialties from among their ideological, ethical, and practical qualities, their great reward has been pointed out at the end of the verse.

A part of these ten specialties is about the stages of belief: (confession by the tongue, attesting by the heart, and practicing by the limbs).

Another part of them speak about controlling the tongue, the stomach, and lust, which are three important factors in the life and morals of human beings.

Another part of the discussion is about the subject of supporting the deprived, standing against hard and heavy events with patience, which is the root of faith, and finally, it is about the main element of the continuation of these qualities, i.e., remembering Allah.

It says:

“Verily the Muslim men and the Muslim women, and the believing men and the believing women, and the obedient men and the obedient women…”

Some commentators have taken the words: ‘Islam’ and ‘faith’ mentioned in the above verse, with the same meaning, but it is clear that this repetition indicates that the purpose of them is two different things.

It refers to the same matter which is mentioned in Surah Al-Hujurat, No. 49, verse 14, which says:

“The dwellers of the desert say: ‘We believe’. Say: ‘You do not believe but say: ‘We submit’, and faith has not yet entered into your hearts, and if you obey Allah and His Apostle, He will not diminish aught of your deeds; surely Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.”

This shows that Islam is that very confession by tongue which sets man in the row of Muslims and includes him in their ordinances, but faith is something testified by the heart and mind. Some Islamic narrations have referred to this difference, too.

In a narration we read that one of the companions of Imam Sadiq (as) once asked him about the meaning of ‘Islam’ and ‘Faith’, and he also asked him whether they are different from each other.

In answer to him, the Imam (as) said:

“Yes, Faith accompanies Islam, but Islam may not accompany faith.”

The man requested him (as) to explain it more, and the Imam (as) continued saying:

“Islam is a confession denoting that there is no god but Allah, and testifying to the messengership of the Messenger of Allah (S).

Whoever confesses these two, his life will be protected (in Islamic government), the marriage of Muslims with him is permissible, and he can inherit from Muslims. Some group of people are involved in this very apparent of Islam.

But ‘Faith’ is a light of guidance and reality that will be established in the hearts from the quality of Islam, and by which the deeds will be appeared (and come into being).”1

The Arabic word /qanit/ is derived from the word /qunut/ in the sense of ‘obedience accompanied with veneration’, an obedience which originates from Faith and belief. This fact points to the practical aspects and effects of Faith.

Then, the verse refers to another man’s quality, which is one of the most important qualities of the true believers. That is, ‘tongue protection’.

It says:

“…and the truthful men and the truthful women…”

It is understood from the Islamic narrations that the man’s veracity of faith lies in the veracity of his tongue. A tradition says:

“A man’s faith does not become true until his heart becomes true; and his heart does not become true until his tongue becomes true.”2

And since the foundation of Faith is patience in difficulties and its function in spiritualities is as the function of ‘the head’ for ‘the body’, the fifth qualification of the believers stated as follows:

“…and the patient men and the patient women…”

On one side; we know that one of the worst ethical corruptions is pride and the love of rank.

The opposite point of it is humbleness, therefore concerning their sixth quality, the verse says:

“…and the humble men and the humble women…”

Besides the love of rank, the love of wealth is a great corruption, too, so that being captured in its grips is a painful captivity, and its opposite is charity and helping to the needy.

So, in their seventh quality, the verse says:

“…and the alms-giving men and the alms-giving women…”

We said that there are three things that if a man protects him from their vice, he will be secure from many ethical vices and corruptions. They are: tongue, stomach and sexual lust.

Here the verse points to the second and the third ones of these things as the eighth and the ninth qualities of the true believers as follows:

“…and the fasting men and the fasting women, and the men who guard their modesty and the women who guard (their modesty)…”

At last, the verse refers to their tenth and their last quality, on which all former qualities depend for their continuation, where it says:

“…and the men who remember Allah much and the women who remember Allah (much)…”

Yes, in any case and in any condition, they remove the curtains of negligence and unawareness from their hearts by the remembrance of Allah. By this means, they cast away the temptations of Satans, and if they may commit a fault, they immediately try to compensate it so that they do not become far from the straight way.

Concerning the purpose of the Arabic phrase: /ŏikr-i-kaθir/ (remembrance of (Allah) much), there are mentioned different commentaries in the Islamic narrations and in the statements of the commentators, so all of them are apparently of the kind of mentioning the denotation expansion, and the vast meaning of this phrase envelops all of them.

Among them is a tradition stated by the Prophet of Islam (S) who said:

“When a man awakens his wife at night and both of them make ablution and establish (night) prayer, they will be written among those men and women who remember Allah very much.”3

Imam Sadiq (as) in a tradition said:

“Whoever recites Hadrat Zahra’s hymns at night he will be involved in this verse.”4

Some of commentators have said that the meaning of ‘the remembrance of Allah much’ is that a person remembers Allah in the states that he stands, he sits and at the time he goes to bed.

However, ‘remembrance’ is a sign of having thought, and contemplation is preliminary condition for action; and the aim is never a mere remembrance with no contemplation and practice.

At the end of the verse, the great reward of this group of men and women, who possess these ten abovementioned qualities, is stated as follows:

“…for them Allah has prepared forgiveness and a great reward.”

At first, it washes out their sins which cause the pollution of their soul and spirit with the water of forgiveness. Then, He gives them a great reward, the greatness of which is not known to anyone save Allah (s.w.t.). In fact one of these two is for the negation of afflictions and the other is for the attraction of pleasures.

The application of the Qur’anic word /’ajran/ (reward) is itself an evidence for its greatness; and qualifying it by /‘azim/ (great) is an emphasis on this greatness; and also this greatness being absolute is another evidence for its vast scope. It is evident that the thing which Allah counts great is extraordinary great.

This point is also noteworthy here that the Arabic verb /’a‘adda/ (he has prepared), mentioned in perfect present tense, is a statement for showing the certainty of this reward and that there is no fail in it; or it is an indication that Paradise and its bounties are prepared just now for the believers.

At the end, you may also make notice of this matter that: sometimes some persons consider that Islam has set the main scale of personality for ‘men’ and women have not a fair considerable place in the programs of Islam.

May be, the source of their mistake is a few legal differences, while each of them has a particular reason and philosophy. But, apart from such differences that relate to their social position and natural conditions, there is not any difference between men and women in Islamic programs from the point of human aspects and spiritual ranks.

The abovementioned verse is a clear evidence upon this reality, because, at the time of stating the qualities of believers and the most fundamental theological and ethical issues, it has set them beside each other equally and has mentioned the same reward for both of them with no difference.

In other words, the bodily difference of man and woman, as well as their spiritual difference, can not be denied, and it is evident that this difference is necessary for the continuation of the system of the society of mankind and creates some effects in some legal laws of man and woman.

But never Islam criticizes the human personality of women, like the manner that some Christian clergymen in former centuries did. Islam does not consider any difference between man and woman from the point of human spirit.

Surah An-Nahl, No. 16, verse 97 in this regard says:

“Whoever does a righteous deed, whether male or female, and is a believer, We shall certainly give him to live a goodly pure life and, definitely, We will pay them a recompense in proportion to the reward for the best of what they used to do.”

Islam has maintained the same economical independence for woman that for man; (contrast to many laws of the former nations, and even today, that they absolutely maintain rather no economical independence for woman).

That is why that in Islamic biography and criticism of traditionists we find a particular section related to the learned women who were in the row of traditionists and jurisprudents whom have been mentioned as some unforgettable persons.

If we refer to the history of Arab before Islam and study the circumstance of the female in that society, that how they were deprived from the least human rights, and that occasionally they had not the right of living and some of them were buried alive after birth, and also if we observe the situation of woman in the world of today some of whom have been changed into the form of some unauthorized factors with no authority in the hand of some persons who claim civilization, we will testify that how a great service Islam has given to woman, and how a great right it has over them.