IMPURITY OF IGNORANCE AND INFIDELITY
NEVER TOUCHED ANY OF THE HOLY PROPHET ANCESTORS FROM ADAM TO ABDULLAH
وَإِذْ قَالَ إِبْرَاهِيمُ لِأَبِيهِ آزَرَ
أَتَتَّخِذُ أَصْنَامًا آلِهَةً ۖ إِنِّي أَرَاكَ وَقَوْمَكَ فِي ضَلَالٍ
مُبِينٍ {6:74}
[Q6:74] Wa iz qaala Ibraaheemu li abeehi
Aazara a-tattakhizu asnaaman aalihatan inneee araaka wa qawmaka fee dalaalim
mmubeen.
[Q6:74]
And when Ibrahim said to his sire, Azar: Do you take idols for gods? Surely
I see you and your people in manifest error.
[Q6:74] Dan (ingatlah) ketika Nabi Ibrahim berkata kepada bapanya Aazar: Patutkah ayah menjadikan berhala-berhala sebagai tuhan-tuhan? Sesungguhnya aku melihatmu dan kaummu dalam kesesatan yang nyata.
[Q6:74] Dan (ingatlah) ketika Nabi Ibrahim berkata kepada bapanya Aazar: Patutkah ayah menjadikan berhala-berhala sebagai tuhan-tuhan? Sesungguhnya aku melihatmu dan kaummu dalam kesesatan yang nyata.
It
is a historical fact that in the days of Ibrahim the patriarch of the family was addressed as father. The christians
address their priests as father, and in the same sense they refer to ALLAH
(swt) as the father in heaven.
Ì
Many traditions say that the real father of Ibrahim died before his birth and he was brought up by Azar, his uncle, who was the patriarch
of his family. It is also said that Azar, his uncle, married his mother
after his father's death, therefore Azar
was also his step-father.
THE HOLY PROPHET (ALLAHUMA
SALI ALA MUHAMMAD WA ALA ALI MUHAMMAD)'S CLAIM THAT IMPURITY OF IGNORANCE AND INFIDELITY NEVER
TOUCHED ANY OF HIS ANCESTORS FROM ADAM TO
ABDULLAH ALSO CONFIRMS THE ABOVENOTED FACT.
§ The word ab may
mean an uncle or an ancestor as Ismail, the uncle of Yaqub, has been addressed as ab in
verse 2:133
of al Baqarah.
§ According to Genesis 11:27 the name of Ibrahim's
father was Terah. In the Talmud his
name is Therach.
§ In verse 14:41 of Ibrahim, Ibrahim prays for his parents along with the other believers which shows that his father was a believer, OTHERWISE a prophet of ALLAH (SWT)
could never have associated an infidel with believers and prayed to cover him
with ALLAH (SWT)'s mercy. Azar was his uncle or the brother of his grandfather.
Ibrahim lived among the Chaldeans,
who had great knowledge of the stars and heavenly bodies. The Babylonian
religion was an admixture of animism and nature worship. The two powers most
commonly chosen were the sun and the moon.
ALLAH (SWT) showed him the spiritual
glories behind the magnificent powers and laws of the physical universe. When
he saw the waning of the stars, the moon and the sun, he saw through the folly
of idol-worship and the futility of worshipping distant beautiful things that
shine, to which the ignorant ascribe a power which is not in them. They rise and set according
to laws whose author is ALLAH (SWT).
ITS
WORSHIP IS THEREFORE FUTILE. APPEARANCES ARE DECEPTIVE. THAT IS NOT ALLAH (SWT). It is a folly to
worship created things and beings when the
author and the creator is there. ALL MUST TURN TO THE TRUE ALLAH (SWT),
RENOUNCE ALL THESE FOLLIES, AND PROCLAIM ONE TRUE ALLAH (SWT).
Ibrahim was free from superstitious
fears, for he had found the true ALLAH (SWT), without whose will nothing can
happen. He admonished his people to come in the security of faith instead of
wandering in the wilderness of fear by worshipping the "setting ones" creatures created by Him.
Ø THOSE WHO BELIEVE AND DO NOT
INTERMIX BELIEF WITH INIQUITY (ZULM) ARE
THE RIGHTLY GUIDED. In view of this Qur’anic condition the position of those
companions, who deserted the Holy Prophet (ALLAHuma sali ala Muhammad
wa ala ali Muhammad) in battlefields, now and then, doubted his integrity and judgement,
becomes dubious.
THE SPIRITUAL
EDUCATION OF IBRAHIM (GIVEN TO HIM BY ALLAH (SWT)) ENABLED HIM TO PREACH THE
TRUTH AMONG HIS PEOPLE.
ZULM MEANS (ANY) EVIL OR
TRANSGRESSION IN THOUGHT OR ACTION.
© In their
supplications, the prophets and the
Imams have used the word zalim for themselves
in order to describe their humble position before ALLAH (SWT) at the time of
seeking His mercy (refer to Anbiya 21:87) BECAUSE all created beings,
be they prophets or Imams, need His mercy at all times in their lives here and
hereafter.
© They have used it to avoid **vanity or **pride so that through utmost humility they could
become thoroughly devoted to the service of ALLAH (SWT). Such a confession is a part of the tasbih (glorification of ALLAH (SWT))
they used to recite again and again, sitting, standing, walking or reclining.
The Holy
Prophet (ALLAHuma
sali ala Muhammad wa ala ali Muhammad) said:
"We
do not know Thee, O Lord, as Thou should be known, nor do we worship Thee as
Thou should be worshipped."
______________________________________________________________________________________________
(6:74) And recall when Abraham said to his father, Azar:
'Do you take idols for gods? *50 I see you and your people in obvious error.'
*50. The incident relating to
Abraham (peace be on him) is adduced in order to confirm and reinforce the view
that just as Muhammad (peace he on him) and his Companions - thanks to the
guidance vouchsafed by God - had denounced polytheism and had turned away from
all false gods, bowing their heads in obedience to the One True Lord of the
universe, so had been done by Abraham in his time. In the same way as ignorant
people were then opposing the Prophet Muhammad (peace be on him) and those who
believed in him, Abraham, too, had been opposed in his day by the people among
whom he lived. Furthermore, the answer Abraham gave to his people in the past
can also be given by Muhammad (peace be on him) and his followers, for he was
on the same path as Noah, Abraham and the other Prophets who had descended from
Abraham. Those who had refused to follow the Prophet (peace be on him) should
therefore take note that they had deviated from the way of the Prophets and
were lost in error.
At this point it should also be noted that Abraham was generally acknowledged by the Arabs to be their patriarch and their original religious leader. The Quraysh, in particular, were proud of their devotion to Abraham, of being his progeny and of being servants to the shrine built by him. Hence, the mention of Abraham's doctrine of monotheism, of his denunciation of polytheism and his remonstration with his polytheistic people, amounted to demolishing the very basis on which the Quraysh had prided themselves. It also amounted to destroying the confidence of the people of Arabia in their polytheistic religion. This also proved to them that the Muslims stood in the shoes of Abraham himself, whereas their own position was that of an ignorant nation which had remonstrated with Abraham out of ignorance and folly.
At this point it should also be noted that Abraham was generally acknowledged by the Arabs to be their patriarch and their original religious leader. The Quraysh, in particular, were proud of their devotion to Abraham, of being his progeny and of being servants to the shrine built by him. Hence, the mention of Abraham's doctrine of monotheism, of his denunciation of polytheism and his remonstration with his polytheistic people, amounted to demolishing the very basis on which the Quraysh had prided themselves. It also amounted to destroying the confidence of the people of Arabia in their polytheistic religion. This also proved to them that the Muslims stood in the shoes of Abraham himself, whereas their own position was that of an ignorant nation which had remonstrated with Abraham out of ignorance and folly.
وَكَذَٰلِكَ نُرِي إِبْرَاهِيمَ مَلَكُوتَ
السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ وَلِيَكُونَ مِنَ الْمُوقِنِينَ {6:75}
[Q6:75] Wa kazaalika nureee Ibraaheema
malakootas samaawaati wal ardi wa liyakoona minal mooqineen.
[Q6:75] And thus did We show Ibrahim the kingdom of the heavens and the earth and that he might be of those who are sure.
[Q6:75] And thus did We show Ibrahim the kingdom of the heavens and the earth and that he might be of those who are sure.
[Q6:75] Dan demikianlah Kami perlihatkan kepada Nabi Ibrahim kebesaran dan
kekuasaan (Kami) di langit dan di bumi dan supaya menjadilah dia dari
orang-orang yang percaya dengan sepenuh-penuh yakin.
(see
commentary for verse 74)
______________________________________________________________________________________________
(6:75) And thus We showed Abraham the kingdom of the
heavens and the earth, *51 so that he might become one of those who have sure
faith. *52.
The adversaries are told that they can observe
God's signs in the phenomena of the universe, just as Abraham could. The
difference is that they see nothing, as if they were blind, whereas Abraham saw
with open eyes. The sun, moon and stars which rise and set before their eyes
day after day and night after night witness them as misguided at their setting
as at their rising. Yet the same signs were observed by the perceptive Abraham,
and the physical phenomena helped him arrive at the Truth.
*51. The adversaries are told
that they can observe God's signs in the phenomena of the universe, just as
Abraham could. The difference is that they see nothing, as if they were blind,
whereas Abraham saw with open eyes. The sun, moon and stars which rise and set
before their eyes day after day and night after night witness them as misguided
at their setting as at their rising. Yet the same signs were observed by the
perceptive Abraham, and the physical phenomena helped him arrive at the
Truth.
*52. To obtain a full understanding of this section, as well as of those verses which mention the dispute between Abraham and his people, it is necessary to cast a glance at the religious and cultural condition of the latter. Thanks to recent archaeological discoveries, not only has the, city where Abraham is said to have been born been located, but a good deal of information is also available about the condition of the people of that area during the Abrahamic period. We reproduce below a summary of the conclusions which Sir Leonard Wooley arrived at as a result of the researches embodied in his work, Abraham (London, 1935).
It is estimated that around 2100 B.C., which is now generally accepted by scholars as the time of the advent of Abraham, the population of the city of Ur was at least two hundred and fifty thousand, maybe even five hundred thousand. The city was a large industrial and commercial metropolis. Merchandise was brought to Ur from places as far away as Palmir and Nilgiri in one direction, and in the other it had developed trade relations with Anatolia. The state, of which this city was the capital, extended a little beyond the boundaries of modern Iraq in the north, and exceeded its present borders further to the west. The great majority of the population were traders and craftsmen. The inscriptions of that period, which have been discovered in the course of archaeological research, make it clear that those people had a purely materialistic outlook on life. Their greatest concern was to earn the maximum amount of wealth and enjoy the highest degree of comfort and luxury. Interest was rampant among them and their devotion to money-making seemed all-absorbing. They looked at one another with suspicion and often resorted to litigation. In their prayers to their gods, too, they generally asked for longer life, prosperity and greater commercial success, rather than for spiritual growth, God's pardon and reward in the Hereafter.
The population comprised three classes of people: (1) amelu, the priests, the government and military officers; (2) mushkinu, the craftsmen and farmers; and (3) the slaves.
The people of the first class mentioned, i.e. amelu, enjoyed special privileges. In both criminaI and civil matters, their rights were greater than those of the others, and their lives and property were deemed to be of higher value. It was in such a city and in such a society that Abraham first saw the light of day. Whatever information we possess with regard to him and his family through the Talmud shows that he belonged to the amelu class and that his father was the highest functionary of the state. (See also Towards Understanding the Qur'an, vol. 1, Surah 2, n.290.)
In the inscriptions of Ur there are references to about five thousand deities. Each city had its own deity. Each city had a chief deity which it considered its chief protector and, therefore, that deity was considered worthy of greater reverence than all the others. 'The chief deity of Ur was Nannar (the moon god), and it is for this reason that the city later became known as Kamarina.* The other major city was Larsa, which replaced Ur as the capital of the kingdom. Its chief deity was Shamash (the sun god). Under these major deities there was a myriad of minor deities which had generally been chosen from among the heavenly bodies - stars and planets. People considered them responsible for granting their innumerable minor prayers. Idols had been carved in the image of these celestial and terrestrial gods and goddesses and were made objects of ritual worship.
*Qamar is the Arabic word for 'moon'- Ed.
The idol of Nannar had been placed in a magnificent building on the top of the highest hill. Close to it was the temple of Nin-Gal, the wife of Nannar. The temple of Nannar resembled a royal palace. Every night a female worshipper went to its bedroom, adorned as a bride. A great number of women had been consecrated in the name of this deity and their position was virtually that of religious prostitutes. The woman who would sacrifice her virginity for the sake of her 'god' was held in great esteem. For a woman to give herself to some unrelated person 'for the sake of God' was considered a means to salvation. Needless to say, it was generally the priests who made most use of this institution. Nannar was not merely a deity, but the biggest landlord, the biggest trader, the biggest industrialist and the most powerful ruler. Many orchards, buildings and huge estates had been consecrated to his temple. In addition to this, cereals, milk, gold, cloth, etc., were brought as offerings to the temple by peasants, landlords and merchants, and there was a large staff in the temple to receive the offerings. Many a factory had been established on behalf of the temple. Large-scale trading was also carried out on its behalf. All these activities were conducted by the priests in the name of the deity. Moreover, the country's main court was also located in the temple. The priests functioned as judges and their judgements were equated with those of God. The authority of the royal family was derived from Nannar. The concept was that Nannar was the true sovereign and that the ruler of the country governed merely on his behalf. Because of this relationship, the king himself was raised to the rank of a deity and was worshipped.
The founder of the dynasty which ruled over Ur at the time of Abraham was Ur-Nammu. In 2300 B.C. he had established an extensive kingdom, stretching from Susa in the east to Lebanon in the west. Hence the dynasty acquired the name 'Nammu', which became Nimrud in Arabic. After the emigration of Abraham, both the ruling dynasty and the nation of Ur were subjected to a succession of disasters. Firstly, the Elamites sacked Ur and captured Nimrud along with the idols of Nannar. Later on, an Elamite state was established in Larsa which governed Ur as well. Later still, Babylon prospered under a dynasty of Arabian origin and both Larsa and Ur came under its hegemony. These disasters shook the people of Ur's faith in Nannar, for he had failed to protect them.
It is difficult to say much, with certainty, about the extent of the subsequent impact of the teachings of Abraham on these people. The laws which were codified by the Babylonian King Hammurabi in 1910 B.C. show the impress of the prophetic influence, whether direct or indirect. An inscription of this code was discovered in 1902 by a French archaeologist and its English translation by C. H. W. John was published in 1903 under the title The Oldest Code of Law. Many articles of this code, both fundamental principles and substantive laws, bear some resemblance to the Mosaic Law.
If the conclusions of these archaeological researchers are correct, it becomes quite evident that polytheism did not consist merely of a set of religious beliefs and polytheistic rites, it rather provided the foundation on which the entire order of economic, cultural, political and social life rested. Likewise, the monotheistic mission which was undertaken by Abraham was not merely directed against the practice of idol-worship. It had far wider implications, so much so that it affected the position of the royal family both as rulers and deities. It also affected the social, economic and, political status and interests of the priestly class, and the aristocracy in general, and in fact the entire fabric of the social life of the kingdom. To accept the teaching of Abraham meant that the entire edifice of the existing society should be pulled down and raised anew on the basis of belief in the One God. Hence, as soon as Abraham launched his mission, ordinary people as well as the privileged classes, ordinary devotees as well as Nimrud. rose at once to oppose and suppress it.
*52. To obtain a full understanding of this section, as well as of those verses which mention the dispute between Abraham and his people, it is necessary to cast a glance at the religious and cultural condition of the latter. Thanks to recent archaeological discoveries, not only has the, city where Abraham is said to have been born been located, but a good deal of information is also available about the condition of the people of that area during the Abrahamic period. We reproduce below a summary of the conclusions which Sir Leonard Wooley arrived at as a result of the researches embodied in his work, Abraham (London, 1935).
It is estimated that around 2100 B.C., which is now generally accepted by scholars as the time of the advent of Abraham, the population of the city of Ur was at least two hundred and fifty thousand, maybe even five hundred thousand. The city was a large industrial and commercial metropolis. Merchandise was brought to Ur from places as far away as Palmir and Nilgiri in one direction, and in the other it had developed trade relations with Anatolia. The state, of which this city was the capital, extended a little beyond the boundaries of modern Iraq in the north, and exceeded its present borders further to the west. The great majority of the population were traders and craftsmen. The inscriptions of that period, which have been discovered in the course of archaeological research, make it clear that those people had a purely materialistic outlook on life. Their greatest concern was to earn the maximum amount of wealth and enjoy the highest degree of comfort and luxury. Interest was rampant among them and their devotion to money-making seemed all-absorbing. They looked at one another with suspicion and often resorted to litigation. In their prayers to their gods, too, they generally asked for longer life, prosperity and greater commercial success, rather than for spiritual growth, God's pardon and reward in the Hereafter.
The population comprised three classes of people: (1) amelu, the priests, the government and military officers; (2) mushkinu, the craftsmen and farmers; and (3) the slaves.
The people of the first class mentioned, i.e. amelu, enjoyed special privileges. In both criminaI and civil matters, their rights were greater than those of the others, and their lives and property were deemed to be of higher value. It was in such a city and in such a society that Abraham first saw the light of day. Whatever information we possess with regard to him and his family through the Talmud shows that he belonged to the amelu class and that his father was the highest functionary of the state. (See also Towards Understanding the Qur'an, vol. 1, Surah 2, n.290.)
In the inscriptions of Ur there are references to about five thousand deities. Each city had its own deity. Each city had a chief deity which it considered its chief protector and, therefore, that deity was considered worthy of greater reverence than all the others. 'The chief deity of Ur was Nannar (the moon god), and it is for this reason that the city later became known as Kamarina.* The other major city was Larsa, which replaced Ur as the capital of the kingdom. Its chief deity was Shamash (the sun god). Under these major deities there was a myriad of minor deities which had generally been chosen from among the heavenly bodies - stars and planets. People considered them responsible for granting their innumerable minor prayers. Idols had been carved in the image of these celestial and terrestrial gods and goddesses and were made objects of ritual worship.
*Qamar is the Arabic word for 'moon'- Ed.
The idol of Nannar had been placed in a magnificent building on the top of the highest hill. Close to it was the temple of Nin-Gal, the wife of Nannar. The temple of Nannar resembled a royal palace. Every night a female worshipper went to its bedroom, adorned as a bride. A great number of women had been consecrated in the name of this deity and their position was virtually that of religious prostitutes. The woman who would sacrifice her virginity for the sake of her 'god' was held in great esteem. For a woman to give herself to some unrelated person 'for the sake of God' was considered a means to salvation. Needless to say, it was generally the priests who made most use of this institution. Nannar was not merely a deity, but the biggest landlord, the biggest trader, the biggest industrialist and the most powerful ruler. Many orchards, buildings and huge estates had been consecrated to his temple. In addition to this, cereals, milk, gold, cloth, etc., were brought as offerings to the temple by peasants, landlords and merchants, and there was a large staff in the temple to receive the offerings. Many a factory had been established on behalf of the temple. Large-scale trading was also carried out on its behalf. All these activities were conducted by the priests in the name of the deity. Moreover, the country's main court was also located in the temple. The priests functioned as judges and their judgements were equated with those of God. The authority of the royal family was derived from Nannar. The concept was that Nannar was the true sovereign and that the ruler of the country governed merely on his behalf. Because of this relationship, the king himself was raised to the rank of a deity and was worshipped.
The founder of the dynasty which ruled over Ur at the time of Abraham was Ur-Nammu. In 2300 B.C. he had established an extensive kingdom, stretching from Susa in the east to Lebanon in the west. Hence the dynasty acquired the name 'Nammu', which became Nimrud in Arabic. After the emigration of Abraham, both the ruling dynasty and the nation of Ur were subjected to a succession of disasters. Firstly, the Elamites sacked Ur and captured Nimrud along with the idols of Nannar. Later on, an Elamite state was established in Larsa which governed Ur as well. Later still, Babylon prospered under a dynasty of Arabian origin and both Larsa and Ur came under its hegemony. These disasters shook the people of Ur's faith in Nannar, for he had failed to protect them.
It is difficult to say much, with certainty, about the extent of the subsequent impact of the teachings of Abraham on these people. The laws which were codified by the Babylonian King Hammurabi in 1910 B.C. show the impress of the prophetic influence, whether direct or indirect. An inscription of this code was discovered in 1902 by a French archaeologist and its English translation by C. H. W. John was published in 1903 under the title The Oldest Code of Law. Many articles of this code, both fundamental principles and substantive laws, bear some resemblance to the Mosaic Law.
If the conclusions of these archaeological researchers are correct, it becomes quite evident that polytheism did not consist merely of a set of religious beliefs and polytheistic rites, it rather provided the foundation on which the entire order of economic, cultural, political and social life rested. Likewise, the monotheistic mission which was undertaken by Abraham was not merely directed against the practice of idol-worship. It had far wider implications, so much so that it affected the position of the royal family both as rulers and deities. It also affected the social, economic and, political status and interests of the priestly class, and the aristocracy in general, and in fact the entire fabric of the social life of the kingdom. To accept the teaching of Abraham meant that the entire edifice of the existing society should be pulled down and raised anew on the basis of belief in the One God. Hence, as soon as Abraham launched his mission, ordinary people as well as the privileged classes, ordinary devotees as well as Nimrud. rose at once to oppose and suppress it.
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