Al-Israa (The Night Journey)
Verse 111
Table of Contents
111. “And say: ‘(All) Praise is Allah’s, Who has not taken unto Him a son; nor has He got any partner in the Sovereignty; and there is not for Him any helper out of humbleness.’ And magnify Him with all magnificence.”
We finally arrive at the last verse of this Surah, the verse which ends with the praise of Allah just as it started with the praising of His pure existence. In fact, this holy verse is a conclusion, culminating all of the monotheistic issues of this Surah and the content of all those monotheistic concepts.
Addressing the Prophet (S), He says:
“And say: ‘(All) Praise is Allah’s, Who has not taken unto Him a son; nor has He got any partner in the Sovereignty; and there is not for Him any helper out of humbleness.’…”
Such a Lord, with those attributes, stands far too superior to whatever you conjecture. Thus, glorify Him and get to know His immensely boundless magnitude.
The verse concludes:
“…And magnify Him with all magnificence.”
The above verse negates all assistance and generic like being for Allah whether be it of a lower grade (like a son) or some counterpart for Him, (like a partner), or that one who stands as superior, (like a guardian).
The Late Tabarsi quotes from some commentators (in Majma‘-ul-Bayan) that this verse provides the refutation of the belief of three groups:
First, that of the Christians and the Jews who regarded Allah as having a son; the secondly that of the Arab pagans who regarded Him as having a partner; thirdly, that of those star-worshippers and the Zoroastrians who regarded Allah as having a guardian and an assistant.
In Conclusion: What is ‘Takbir’, or Glorification of Allah?
Here, the blissful Qur’an commands the Prophet (S) emphatically to glorify Allah. This does not merely imply that one must believe in the glory of the Lord just by saying the words ‘Allah is the greatest’.
This point is also worth considering that the belief in the glory of the Lord does not imply that we regard Him as greater when comparing Him to other beings. Such a comparison is by far irrelevant in principle and by definition.
We must regard Him as greater than in comparative terms, as Imam Sadiq (as) has said in a concise and meaningful speech. An Islamic tradition declares: Someone called on that Imam, saying:
‘Allah is the greatest!’
The Imam asked him:
“Of what is He greater or the greatest?
He answered:
“Of all things.”
The Imam (as) explained:
“You confined Allah by saying that, as you made a comparison between Him and other beings, then considering Him as superior.”
That man asked:
“Then, what must I say?”
He answered:
“Say: Allah is far too superior to what one can characterize.”1
A Persian poet declares:
O’ You Who are superior to all imaginations, comparisons, conjectures, and hallucinations:
And also excelling in whatever we have seen, written, or heard.
Our audience came to an end and our life is over, nevertheless, we are stuck in the first phases of our attempt at our depicting of your profile.
Incidentally, some quotations from Ahl-ul-Bayt (as) indicates that the reading of this verse has been considered as effective in removing of one’s dues, removing of passing whims and passions, discarding of poverty, and expelling of diseases.1
O’ Lord! Replenish our heart and soul with the illumination of the lights of knowledge and faith so that we can remain humble before Your grandeur, staying faithful to Your promises and obeying fully Your commands, worshipping no one but You and relying on no one except on You.
O’ Lord! Bestow upon us the means of success not to violate the frontiers of justice and moderation, avoiding all sorts of extremism.
O’ Lord! We thank You; consider You as One; glorify You beyond what can be explicable. You, too, provide us with forgiveness, make our determination ever stronger and help us prevail over the enemies who have surrounded us from interior and from exterior.
Help us to join our victories to those ultimate victories of the uprising of the promised Mahdi (as), and provide us with the means for completing this commentary as it would be pleasing to You.
Our Lord! Let not our hearts deviate after You have guided us, and bestow on us from Your mercy, for You are, indeed, the Ever-Bestower.2