Al-Jumu'a (Friday)
Verse 9
Table of Contents
9. O you who believe! When the call is proclaimed for the Friday prayer, hasten toward the remembrance of Allah and leave off business. That is better for you if you did but know!
Friday is accorded particular attention in the Islamic faith and many a tradition reflect such significance. It is narrated from the Noble Prophet (S) that Friday is the lord of the days of the week and possesses the most elevated rank before God Almighty.1 Friday is the day of helping the deprived and the poor and it is narrated that Muslim are supposed to expend alms on Friday.2 The Lord of the Age, the Twelfth Imam (as) will end his Occultation and will arrive on Friday.3
The Noble Prophet (S) says:
“God Almighty renders good deeds many folds and effaces evil deeds on Friday and promotes the ranks of the believers, wards off afflictions, and answers the prayers of the believers on Friday.26 Whoever visits the tomb of his parents or either of them, his sins shall be forgiven and his name will be recorded with the righteous.27 Other traditions have also been narrated in tradition sources regarding the merits of Friday.”
It is worthy of note that the preceding blessed Verses treated of concise discussions on Divine Unity, Prophetic Call, the Hereafter, and criticism of the Mammonist Jews and the blessed Verse in question deal with one of the most significance obligations of the Muslims that is of great significance and constitutes one of the main goals behind the Revelation of the blessed Chapter in question and it is the Friday prayer and some of its laws.
The blessed Verse above all addresses all Muslims saying:
“O you who believe! When the call is proclaimed for the Friday prayer, hasten toward the remembrance of Allah and leave off business. That is better for you [than trade] if you did but know!” The passive verbal form nudiya (“is called”) connotes prayer call, since there is no call in the Islamic faith but that to establishing prayers. Thus, upon hearing the prayer call, it is incumbent upon Muslims to leave off trade and hasten toward the remembrance of God Almighty.
The clause
“That is better for you” (dhalikum khayrun lakum)
connotes that the establishment of Friday prayer and leaving off business at that time entails significant benefits for the Muslims if they truly reflect upon it, since God Almighty is Needless of others and is Most Gracious toward all people. It also alludes to the philosophy and the benefits of the Friday prayer.
It is noteworthy, however, that leaving off trade encompasses any activity interfering with the remembrance of God Almighty. Another point worthy of note is that the Arabic word jum‘a originally denotes congregation which ad hoc connotes the congregation of people for the establishment of the Friday prayer; though the connotation of the word is not restricted to what is mentioned.
It goes without saying that spreading on the earth and seeking daily sustenance are not obligatory acts but they are regarded as the permission to do the same. However, some Qur’anic exegetes maintain that the expression that procurement of daily sustenance after the establishment of the Friday prayer entails Divine Satisfaction and Blessings. It is narrated that the Noble Prophet (S) visited the marketplace after the establishment of the Friday prayer.
The imperative sentence
“Hasten toward the remembrance of Allah” (wa ’dhkuru ’llah kathiran)
denotes that man is supposed to remember God Almighty against the abundant Blessings bestowed upon him.
Some Qur’anic exegets maintain that the word
“remembrance” (dhikr) herein connotes “thought, reflection” (fikr) as it is narrated that one hour of thinking is better than one year of worshipping.4
There are some exegetes who hold that the Injunction reflects keeping God Almighty in mind while trading and refraining from transgressing the principles of truth and justice. Nonetheless, it is crystal clear that the contextual meaning of the blessed Verse is quite broad in the semantic range and encompasses all these interpretations.
It is also certain that the spirit of “remembrance” is “thought” without which it is devoid of meaning and what leads to salvation is the remembrance intertwined with thought at all times. Remembering God Almighty at all times basically makes it penetrate into the depth of soul and eradicates the roots of ignorance and negligence as the main causes of all sins, and set man on the path of salvation and deliverance.