Surah 58: Al Mujadilah (Day 2) and Q&A | Original English Commentary | Project Illumine

Dr. Khaled Abou El Fadl presents his Quranic commentary on Surah 58: Al Mujadilah (Day 2) as part of the ongoing Project Illumine: Light of the Quran series at The Usuli Institute (www.usuli.org). There is a Q&A at the end.
Project Illumine is a year-long intensive immersion into the unique moral messages in each of the 114 surahs (chapters) of the Quran, the fruit of this scholar's lifetime relationship with the Quran. This is the seventy-fifth chapter in the series. This is not the traditional line-by-line exegesis, but a chapter-by-chapter thematic approach that seeks to rediscover the original meaning received by the early Muslims that sparked their passion such that they transformed from desert dwellers to civilization builders. It is an investigation of the timeless moral and ethical lessons of the Quran then applied to our modern day. In the introduction, our Executive Director Grace Song announces the first release from Usuli Press, “The Prophet’s Pulpit: Commentaries on the State of Islam” along with some history. Recorded at The Usuli Institute on 23 April 2022.
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[@saadiausmani8555]

What a beautiful introduction Grace..just bought six copies of the book to distribute as Eid presents. This Ramadan I have been hooked on 'The Search For Beauty in Islam'.....totally taken aback by it, as I had never read it with such a need for guidance before. Can't wait to read this new book. May Allah bless you all.. So proud of you all....onward and upward for raising awareness InshAllah. Thank you so much for all your efforts.

[@stephenconnolly1830]

TIMESTAMPS Bismillah al-Rahman al-Raheem [Grace Song's preamble announcing the establishment of the Usuli Press until 48:52] 49:50 a mistaken tendency, treating the key subject matter of Surah al-Mujadilah as distinctly separate and highly segmented issues; e.g. the matter of the Jidal \ woman's complaint + the Medinese dissenters' al-Najwa \ secret council & gossip + social ethics of personal conduct in gatherings... 53:55 the problematic development of a tendency to attempt to organise public gatherings/events along the lines of determining positioning according to status based on a misreading of the chapter. 1:00:25 a symptom of an underdeveloped culture or society exemplified in the dishonest discourse and treatment of Surah al-Mujadilah - taking its content as an amalgamation of rulings and averring to this mischaracterisation/trivialisation even in the face of an alternative more convincing angle; that it is a cohesive whole in order to understand it. 1:06:45 the unreliable Riwayat \ reports relating to the chapter - the issue of why a chapter is a chapter and the role of consecutive/related events, more particularly in the case of Surah al-Mujadilah. 1:11:00 the importance of al-Qasas \ history or narratives in creating realities. 1:14:21 the problematic approach in considering the woman's complaint about ظھار \ Dhihar \ divorce as a legal matter only. 1:19:25 equating demonic al-Najwa to any speech which is the opposite of solving problems, by, instead, creating enmity and anger... 1:22:17 ...engagement in the practice turning one into a hypocrite/dissenter. 1:23:49 the crucial aspect of speech in reality. 1:26:15 Ayah #11: "...idha qeela lakum tafassahoo fi al-majalisi faf'sahoo yafsahi al-laahu lakum wa-idha qeela unshuzoo fanshuzoo..." (...When you are told to make room in your gatherings, make room; God will make room for you. And when you are told to disperse, disperse...)... 1:27:44 Ayah #11 continued: "...yarfa'i al-lahu alladheena amanoo minkum wa-alladheena ootoo al-'il'ma darajat..." (...God elevates those among you who believe, and those given knowledge, many steps...). 1:31:21 discussion on the wider meaning of the term "tafassahoo fi majalisi" in Ayah #11 = making room/assembly in social life... 1:36:53 ...the need for inclusivity to address people's problems - being socially inclusive. 1:37:24 "qeela lakum unshuzoo / انْشُزُوْا" = get moving; being responsive to people's problems. 1:43:32 commentary on the grammatical construction of this passage which supports this interpretation rather than its opposite. 1:45:42 Ayah #12: "yaayyuha alladheena amanoo idha najaytumu ar-rasoola faqaddimoo bayna yaday najwakum sadaqa dhalika khayrun lakum wa-athar fa-in lam tajidoo fa-inna al-laaha ghafooru raheem" (O you who believe! When you converse privately with the Messenger, offer something in charity before your conversation. That is better for you, and purer. But if you do not find the means-God is Forgiving and Merciful) 1:45:57 Ayah #13: "a-ashfaqtum an tuqaddimoo bayna yaday najwakum sadaqat fa-idh lam taf'aloo wataba al-laahu alaykum fa-aqeemoo as-salata waatu az-zakata wa-atee'oo al-laaha warasoolah wal-laahu khabeerun bima ta'maloon" (Are you reluctant to offer charity before your conversation? If you do not do so, and God pardons you, then perform the prayer, and give alms, and obey God and His Messenger. God is Aware of what you do). 1:47:33 the problematic traditions relating to these Ayat discussed - invocation of abrogation, sectarian in nature... 1:53:55 ...instead, the Ayat advocating for the need to value knowledge (financially) - talk being cheap... 1:56:20 ...predicated on the post-colonial/Wahhabi notion of getting knowledge for free... 1:57:14 the difference in attitude toward seeking secular knowledge in the STEM subjects versus Islamic knowledge, philosophy, social sciences etc... 1:58:20 reference to George Makdisi's 2013 book "Rise of Colleges". 1:59:09 the Qur'an merely pointing out that picking the Prophet's brain - gaining knowledge \ Ilm from him - must come at a cost. 2:00:18 the attitudinal difference between different types of talk...fighting the demons of Najwa through the cleansing medium of charity \ Sadaqa... 2:04:35 ...narrations from the Prophet's companions identifying the time wasters among the Muslims who were careless around the Prophet's and didn't pay the requisite dues... 2:04:25 ...the hypocrites' deprecation of the Prophet as an easily influenced light weight. 2:06:24 the layered picture of God's book as a result of performing reflection \ Tadabbur on the Qur'an - different from the popularised historical versions available. 2:08:00 the majority of the people in Medina going along with the Prophet and the Islamic project - Islam as radically different from the extant religions and religiosity which people were familiar with... 2:09:07 ...amid the egotistical endeavours, social stratification and maintenance of the status quo due to the existing religions (particularly Judaism and Christianity) - the lack of social transformation engendered... 2:11:00 ...Islam as a unique force with a social agenda working for the transformation of people and society on earth to engage with justice in preparation for the hereafter. 2:12:25 Ayah #14: "alam tara ila alladheena tawallaw qawman ghadiba al-laahu alayhim ma hum minkum wala min'hum wayahlifoona ala al-kadhibi wahum ya'lamoon" (Have you considered those who befriended a people with whom God has become angry? They are not of you, nor of them. And they swear to a lie while they know). 2:15:18 people who obstruct the moral path referred to in Ayah #16: "ittakhadhoo aymanahum junnatan fasaddoo an sabeeli al-lahi..." (They took their oaths as a screen, and prevented others from God's path...)... 2:18:23 ...the corruption of self-deception given in Ayah#18: "yawma yab'athuhumu al-laahu jamee'an fayahlifoona lahu kama yahlifoona lakum..." (On the Day when God will resurrect them altogether-they will swear to Him, as they swear to you...)... 2:22:13 ...reaching the state of no longer seeing right from wrong in Ayah #19: "is'tahwadha alayhimu ash-shaytanu fa-ansahum dhik'ra al-laah oola-ika hiz'bu ash-shaytan ala inna hiz'ba ash-shaytani humu al-khasiroon" (Satan has taken hold of them, and so has caused them to forget the remembrance of God. These are the partisans of Satan. Indeed, it is Satan's partisans who are the losers). 2:32:43 the quashing of complaints naturally leading to a state of demonic gossip \ Najwa al-Shaytani resulting in being overcome by the demonic \ Is'tahwadha al-Shaytani. 2:36:18 Ayah #20: "inna alladheena yuhaddoona al-laaha warasoolahu oola-ika fi adh-adhaleen" (Those who fall away from the boundaries of God and His Messenger are among the lowliest) [translation corrected according to the Professor's indication] 2:38:53 Ayah #21: "kataba al-laahu la-aghlibanna ana warusuli inna al-laaha qawiyyun azeez" (God has written: "I will certainly prevail, I and My messengers." God is Strong and Mighty). 2:40:55 the usual historical background applied to Ayah #22. 2:46:57 Ayah #22: "la tajidu qawma yu'minoona bil-lahi wal-yawmi al-akhiri yuwaddoona man hadd al-laaha warasoolah..." (You will not find a people who believe in God and the Last Day, loving those who oppose God and His Messenger...). 2:47:52 the party of God \ Hizb Allah the embodiment of the Qur'an, averse to spreading sin and aggression or degrading and demeaning the other \ al-Ithm wal-Adwan . 2:50:00 the issue of deference - the predominant influence hence immitation of family and clan... 2:54:25 ...the opposition to which is the morally conscientious position of responsiveness & inclusion \ al-Nushuz wal-If'sah as well as action rather than exclusion and apathy/inaction. 2:55:15 Surah al-Mujadilah the prime example of coherence & cohesiveness not disjointedness (as so often claimed) in the Qur'an. 2:55:43 the independence of mind exhibited in the lady in question's refusal to defer to inherited practices and culture allowing God to send new laws - an example of picking the right side by exercising moral strength and courage, taking action, confronting and solving problems. 2:58:05 Imam al-Thawri's ( en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sufyan_al-Thawri ) commentary on Ayah #22: (You will not find a people who believe in God and the Last Day, loving those who oppose God and His Messenger, even if they were their parents, or their children, or their siblings, or their close relatives...)... 2:59:12 the meaning of the term Yuwaddoona \ یُوَآدُّوْنَ \ amenable to, in Ayah #22. 3:00:05 al-Thawri's citation of the Tabi'een Abdul Aziz bin Abi Ruwad who warned Caliph al-Mansour using Ayah #22 against him... 3:03:20 ...living a truly morally conscientious life whether convert or inherited. 3:04:36 [Ameen] 3:04:40 [Grace Song's outro - on "do no harm" & convert power etc] Q&A SESSION 3:09:42 concerning the term Aymanahum Junnatan \ اَیْمَانَهُمْ جُنَّةً \ "their oaths as a cover" in Ayah #16, is there an alternative reading to this? What does "oaths" mean in this context? 3:13:57 concerning Ayah #21: "kataba al-laahu la-aghlibanna ana warusuli..." (God has written: "I will certainly prevail, I and My messengers"...), does this evoke the sense that happiness involves living a morally upright life - gaining the moral victory - rather than seeking success and material gain? 3:19:58 Q: what is the remembrance \ Dhikr for the chapter? A: Ayah #19. 3:27:51 could the Professor talk about his journey with the content of the chapter? 3:34:38 is it true the Professor hasn't found the same interpretation or the ability to pull it all together in the sources consulted prior to delivering this commentary? 3:35:51 what role can consensus \ Ijma play in our age to encourage scholars to pay respect to the tradition before someone tries to contribute intellectually while not using it to silence new thought?

[@autumnleaf7953]

When will the Sheikh cover Surah Al Maidah and Surah An Nur? I have questions regarding the punishments of theft and adultery mentioned in these two surahs

[@stephenconnolly1830]

patience is a virtue...