Surah 45: Al-Jathiyah | Original English Commentary | Project Illumine

Dr. Khaled Abou El Fadl presents his original commentary on Surah al Jathiya using the same methodology he presented in the previous halaqa on Surah al Hadid. Part 3 is Q&A. For more info: www.usuli.org/project-illumine/

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TIMESTAMPS by Dr. Stephen Connolly [Video suitable for viewing at higher Playback speed without loss of fidelity/comprehension] Bismillah al-Rahman al-Raheem 2:17 competing names for Surah al-Jathiya\chapter The Kneeling, #45; for example, "al-Shari'ah" because (as the Prof. says at 4:16) this is the only point in the Qur'an which makes explicit reference to the term/word, but these names not surviving. 5:05 one of the Ha wa Mim chapters; Ayah #1: "ha meem" (H-M). 7:16 Surah al-Jathiya being a Meccan chapter revealed well before the time of Hijrah\migration; #45, #64 or #65 chronologically, after the migration to Abyssinia. 9:43 Ayah #2: "tanzeelu al-kitabi mina al-laahi al-'azeezi al-hakeem" (The revelation of the Book is from God, the Exalted in Might, the Wise). 12:17 five main parts to the chapter mentioned: (1) programming according to God's signs (Ayat); (2) those who ignore the signs; (3) a reminder by reference to the people of the past; (4) those who deny God; and (5) the consequences after resurrection. 16:57 overcoming familiarity breeds contempt. 18:40 Ayah #3: "inna fi as-samawati wal-ardi laayati lil'mu'mineen" (In the heavens and the earth are proofs for the believers). 19:12 Ayah #4: "wafi khalqikum wama yabuthu min dabbatin ayatu liqawmin yuqinoon" (And in your own creation, and in the creatures He scattered, are signs for people of firm faith). 19:20 the gradations of certitude. 21:43 existence of two Qur'ans - text & creation. People with Yaqeen\certainty of belief see & read signs of God in both. 27:19 Ayah #5: "wakh'tilafi al-layli wan-nahari wama anzala al-laahu mina as-samai min riz'qin fa-ahya bihi al-arda ba'da mawtiha watasreefi ar-riyahi ayatu liqawmi ya'qiloon" (And in the alternation of night and day, and in the sustenance God sends down from the sky, with which He revives the earth after its death, and in the circulation of the winds, are marvels for people who reason). 27:58 intricateness of balance/relationship in creation which if it didn't exist or is disturbed would be threatened or cease to exist. 31:29 Ayah #6: "til'ka ayatu al-laahi natlooha alayka bil-haqq fabi-ayyi hadeethin ba'da al-laahi waayatihi yu'minoon" (These are God's Verses which We recite to you in truth. In which message, after God and His revelations, will they believe?). 31:58 the Qur'an encouraging the intimate relationship with existence, the opposite of ascetic monasticism. 32:51 Ayah #7: "waylu likulli affakin atheem" (Woe to every sinful liar). Ayah #8: "yasma'u ayati al-laahi tut'la alayhi thumma yusirru mus'takbiran ka-a lam yasma'ha fabashir'hu bi'adhabin aleem" (Who hears God's revelations being recited to him, yet he persists arrogantly, as though he did not hear them. Announce to him a painful punishment). 34:00 human ego resulting in arrogance being the basic reason for denying/refusing to see God's signs. 34:40 discussion of the tradition relating to the أسباب النزول\Asbāb al-Nuzūl\occasion of revelation of Ayah #8 related to Nadr ibn al-Harith ( en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nadr_ibn_al-Harith ). 40:52 Ayah #11: "hadha huda wa-alladheena kafaroo biayati rabbihim lahum adhabun mi rij'zin aleem" (This is guidance. Those who blaspheme their Lord's revelations will have a punishment of agonising pain). 41:29 Ayah #12: "al-laahu alladhee sakhara lakumu al-bahra litajriya al-ful'ku feehi bi-amrihi walitabtaghoo min fadlihi wala'allakum tashkuroon" (It is God who placed the sea at your service, so that ships may run through it by His command, and that you may seek of His bounty, and that you may give thanks). 43:37 Ayah #14: "qul lilladheena amanoo yaghfiroo lilladheena la yarjoona ayyama al-laahi liyajziya qawman bima kanoo yaksiboon" (Tell those who believe to forgive those who do not hope for the Days of God. He will fully recompense people for whatever they have earned) Ayah #15: "man amila salihan falinafsih waman asaa fa'alayha thumma ila rabbikum tur'ja'oon" (Whoever does a good deed, it is for his soul; and whoever commits evil, it is against it; then to your Lord you will be returned). 45:48 al-Ghazali ( en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Ghazali ) maintaining the requirement of sympathy/forgiveness for those who cannot appreciate God's signs (in relation to Ayah #14). 47:51 the claim that Ayat #14 & #15 were revealed in Medina and hence were not abrogated because of this fact. 50:22 the convoluted and politically motivated nature of the argument rendering it problematic. 52:38 the existence of Divine time (in a different time dimension from that experienced by humans) and the illusion of the material reality.

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58:00 materialism as the only reality shutting the door to true spirituality. 58:30 history constituting one of the categories of the Ayat\signs of God. 59:30 Ayah #17: "...fama ikh'talafoo illa min ba'di ma ja-ahumu al-'il'mu baghyan baynahum inna rabbaka yaqdi baynahum yawma al-qiyamati feema kanoo feehi yakhtalifoon" (...They fell into dispute only after knowledge came to them, out of mutual rivalry. Your Lord will judge between them on the Day of Resurrection regarding the things they differed about). 59:45 Ayah #17 dealing with the monotheism of Abraham forgotten by the rest of humanity only preserved by the Israelites, but the egotistical differences among their rabbis leading to disagreement leading to losing sight of God's path. 1:03:15 the misrepresentation of God's law by arrogant religious leaders being among the most jarring of experiences. 1:04:36 becoming the modern day equivalent of the Israelites - exemplified by the egotistical traits of jealousy, envy, and using God's knowledge mainly for bragging rights. 1:07:34 the only occurrence of the word Shari'ah (meaning a righteous path) in the Qur'an, Ayah #18: "thumma ja'alnaka ala shari'atin mina al-amri fa-ttabi'ha wala tattabi' ahwa-a alladheena la ya'lamoon" (Then We set you upon a pathway of faith, so follow it, and do not follow the inclinations of those who do not know) [a relevant peer reviewed journal article examining the occurrence of the term Shari'ah in Surah al-Jathiya, Ayah #18: brill.com/view/journals/alq/32/4/article-p315_2.xml papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=2885492 ] 1:08:48 Ayah #19: "...ath-thalimeena ba'duhum awliyau ba'd..." (...The wrongdoers are allies of one another...). 1:10:08 the importance of creating the right associations in life - being considered according to the company kept. 1:15:33 two reports concerning the occasion of revelation related to incidents in Medina involving Abd-Allah ibn Ubayy and rabbi Finhas and why these are problematic. 1:22:38 Ayah #23: "...ilahahu hawahu wa-adallahu al-laahu ala il'min..." (...him who has taken his desire for his god?...)... 1:23:08 ... exemplified according to the common experience of impulses driving an individual leading to the rationalisation of their wrongdoing rather than it being at the end of a process of an intellectual journey - backwards projection. 1:28:08 Ayah #24: "waqaloo ma hiya illa hayatuna ad-dun'ya namootu wanahya wama yuh'likuna illa ad-dahr wama lahum bidhalika min il'min in hum illa yazunnoon" (And they say, "There is nothing but this our present life; we die and we live, and nothing destroys us except time." But they have no knowledge of that; they are only guessing). 1:31:38 Ayah #27: "walillahi mul'ku as-samawati wal-ard wayawma taqoomu as-sa'atu yawma-idhi yakhsaru al-mub'tiloon" (To God belongs the kingship of the heavens and the earth. On the Day when the Hour takes place, on that Day the falsifiers will lose). 1:31:55 Ayah #28: "watara kulla ummatin jathiyatan kullu ummatin tud'a ila kitabiha al-yawma tuj'zawna ma kuntum ta'maloon" (You will see every community on its knees; every community will be called to its Book: "Today you are being repaid for what you used to do") Ayah #29: "hadha kitabuna yantiqu alaykum bil-haqq inna kunna nastansikhu ma kuntum ta'maloon" ("This Book of Ours speaks about you in truth. We have been transcribing what you have been doing"). 1:33:30 covering the jarring picture conveyed in Ayah #28 of the final day for every Ummah being on their knees (the pinnacle and hence name of the Surah). 1:35:50 the groups of people unable to stand due to the magnitude of the situation - knees buckling. 1:36:32 accountability due to membership of a community\Ummah... 1:36:52 ...shown an account of its history, track record... 1:38:21 ...followed by, as Ayah #29 describes, being shown a hologram of one's life, warts and all. 1:41:10 previous generations not having the familiarity with the appropriate technology to appreciate the meaning of the key Ayah in the chapter - putting us in a position to better understand it. 1:41:57 the terrifying prospect apparent from the chapter - being confronted by something every human is averse to. 1:44:31 Ayah #20: "hadha basairu linnasi wahuda warahmatun liqawmin yuqinoon" (This is an illumination for mankind, and guidance, and mercy for people who believe with certainty). 1:45:15 Ayah #21: (Do those who perpetrate the evil deeds assume that We will regard them as equal to those who believe and do righteous deeds, whether in their life or their death? Evil is their judgment!). 1:46:30 summary of the Surah - forgetting God in the here and now will result in being forgotten in the hereafter. 1:47:29 the principle of accountability encapsulated in Ayah #34: "waqila al-yawma nansakum kama naseetum liqaa yawmikum hadha... (And it will be said, "Today We forget you, as you forgot the encounter of this Day of yours...). 1:48:25 Ayah #36: "falillahi al-hamdu rabbi as-samawaati warabbi al-ardi rabbi al-'alameen" (Praise belongs to God; Lord of the heavens, Lord of the earth, Lord of humanity) Ayah #37: "walahu al-kib'riyau fi as-samawaati wal-ardi wahoowa al-'azeez ul-hakeem" (To Him belongs all supremacy in the heavens and the earth. He is the Majestic, the Wise). 1:49:40 the Tasbih/remembrance for the Surah = Ayat #36 & #37. 1:50:54 [Ameen]