AL BAYAN - Surah AL IMRAN - Part 14 - Verses 100 - 104 - Javed Ahmed Ghamidi

Al-Bayan, Discourses on the Qur'an
Javed Ahmad Ghamidi

Surah Aal i Imran
Aayaat 100 to 104.

Gratitude is only for God,
the Lord of the World,

and may His peace and mercy
be on Muhammad, the trustworthy.

I seek refuge with God
from the accursed Devil.

In the Name of God, the Most Gracious,
the Ever Merciful.

Ladies and Gentlemen, We are beginning

the study of Surah Aal I Imran from
verse 100 in the Quran.

Earlier, the first section of the chapter
concluded on verse 99

This Surah comprises of two sections,
one introduction and one conclusion.

This is the structure of its subject
matter.

There is an introduction.

Then begins a section on the completion of
proof on the People of the Book

and it reaches a conclusion on verse 99.

Now begins the second section which
would finally lead

to the conclusion of the chapter.

This verse onwards the address is
directed towards the Muslims.

The direction of the address has changed.

In these verses of the Quran, this
method is generally adopted.

Either the address is
directed towards the Muslims,

as in Surah Nisa and then the
People of the Book are discussed.

After the introduction of the chapter,
the chapter will either begin

by addressing the People of the Book
and then Muslims will be addressed.

If you look here, the conclusive proof
of Allah was demonstrated

to the People of the Book.

All evidences were supplied and as we
saw in the last lecture,

at the end of that topic, the Quran
provided answers to the

three main objections raised by
the people of the book.

After providing answers to their
objections

they were sternly reprimanded and
then they were also invited to Islam

and they were asked to not reject
the Quranic verses

and not to stop people from Allah's
path

and not to sully those things that
they have been made witness to

because this is not the correct attitude.

Now the address is directed
towards the Muslims,

Muslims are first warned of the
deviant schemes of the People of the Book

which they would employ to turn away
the Muslims from the path of the truth

But they should stay steadfast
on the path of Allah.

After this, the stages of purification
and cleanliness of the Muslims will begin

In other words, Muslims should
reform themselves,

they should fulfil their obligation
towards islam,

they should hold on to the rope
of Allah steadfastly,

they should follow the way of Allah
and the Prophet (pbuh) in difficult times.

So, these things which are important
for their purification, cleansing

the purification of their wisdom and
character will be discussed.

So, this is the order of this
Surah.

Allah says, "Yaaa ayyuhal lazeena aamanoo
in tutee'oo fareeqam

minal lazeena ootul Kitaaba"

Believers! If you yield to a group from
among these People of the Book,

It is obvious that from all the things
that have been said,

one of these includes telling the
people of the book

about things they have been
doing wrong.

On the other hand, since they are
religious people

and they are at the forefront of religious
issues,

people look up to them with respect to
these issues,

in a way, they have the status
of religious leaders,

the common people of Arabia,
those from the tribes of Aws and Khazraj

and people from other tribes think that
these people have the best understanding

of issues relating to Prophethood for
they have a whole history of Prophets.

We can make a mistake but

these people would not easily fall into
mistakes in this regard.

So, these people would be influenced
by them to an extent as well.

That is why this issue was introduced
by stating that:

Believers! If you yield to a group
from among these People of the Book,

By 'a group', Quran refers to those
people who are stubborn

and these people usually include their
religious leaders,

something which the Quran tells us.

They are the leaders and hence trusted
by the common populace.

It is mostly those people.

By 'a group', Quran refers to those
people only.

And by 'a group', Quran also refers to
those people

who are not part of this group.

It Is not as though every one from
among the people of the Book

has become an ingrate.

A group from among them which also
plays the leadership role

indulges in such activities.

If you yield to this group from
among the People of the Book,

then what will these people do?

yaruddookum ba'da eemaanikum kaafireen

Yaaa ayyuhal lazeena aamanoo in
tutee'oo fareeqam

minal lazeena ootul Kitaaba

Believers! If you yield to a group from
among these People of the Book,

they will turn you back from belief to
disbelief.

Their real intention is that you
yield to these people

so that they will also lead the
Muslims into disbelief like themselves.

I have already mentioned that the justice
loving people from among them,

those people that the Quran will praise
later on,

the Quran always mentions them by setting
them apart from these people.

The Quran tells us that there are such
people who talk of justice,

and don't act stubbornly at all.

Although it can be the case that

their minds may still lack
clarity,

but they ask questions and they
engage and then again

there are people who have a
clarity in their thoughts

but there still persists a dissonance
in their actions.

In other words, he pauses regularly
wondering

if his decision was right of not.

Even those people that have such
ambiguities are different.

But these people are the ones who are
in such a place

because of their stubbornness that if you
listen to them,

then you should know their objective.

It is that they will also lead you into
disbelief

just as they disbelieve out of
their sheer stubbornness.

And you think that since they are
believers

and hence they cannot lead you into
disbelief...

It is obvious that if religious leaders
and believers are like that

then people feel that the leaders
have no reason to lead them away.

The Quran stated that their religion
is merely ritualistic

and they are the primary enemies of
religion.

They not only themselves are
its disbelievers, but they will also

lead the Muslims into disbelief if they
are led away by them.

The Quran stated that their actions
would lead to such consequences.

Wa kaifa takfuroona wa antum
tutlaa 'alaikum Aayaatul laahi

O Muslims [Be forewarned of this].
In other words, [Be forewarned of them]

Be forewarned of what you have been told.

[just reflect] how can you disbelieve
when God’s verses are being recited to you

It is understandable that they want
to lead you away

but how can you disbelieve
when God’s Book has been revealed to you

and His own Messenger is among you,
when God’s verses are being recited to you

when the truth is being manifested
before you

wa antum tutlaa
'alaikum Aayaatul laahi

when God’s verses are being
recited to you

wa feekum Rasooluhu;
and His own Messenger is among you.

If in spite of this they disregard
the truth

then there is no bigger
deprivation and misfortune than that.

They will now have no excuse to present
before the Almighty

which in other words would mean
that they have slipped in broad daylight.

The result would be that even though
everything was visible even then

they surrendered themselves to the dark.

wa feekum Rasooluh; wa mai ya'tasim

billaahi faqad hudiya ilaa Siraatim
Mustaqeem

[So hold fast to God]

"To hold fast to God” means that

in good and bad circumstances
a person adheres to the truth

and does not swerve in any way from
the directives of God

and the teachings of His Book.

[So hold fast to God] and [remember that]
he who holds fast to God

[then know that] the one who holds fast to
Allah shall be guided to the straight path

So, he who holds fast to God
shall never be misguided

If you hold fast to your own ego
then you will face the same misfortune

that these people have faced.

Yaaa ayyuhal lazeena aamanut
taqul laaha haqqa tuqaatihee

Believers! Fear God as you should
by [His] right.

This is an explanation of what holding
fast to God actually means:

When it was instructed to
hold fast to God

and when it was said that

he shall be guided
to the straight path

who holds fast to God and
shall never be misguided.

So, what does holding fast to
God actually mean?

The Quran makes clear its meaning in the
next verse:

to fear God the way a person rightly
should.

The word 'fear' that is usually used...

Here, the Quran uses the word
'Taqwa' or God-consciousness.

In other words, they should be vary of
the limits.

They should be wakeful with respect
to Allah.

So, generally people feel that it is a
way of intimidation.

Fear is both rational as well as
superstitious.

The fear of ghosts, for example, is a fear
that stems from superstition.

You come across such a situation when
you, for instance,

visit some house.

It is a fear that stems from delusions.

Fear is also rational.

It is a rational fear when you know
that the bridge in front of you

is broken and there are chances that
you will fall off the bridge.

One has to be cautious about it ...

In other words, a child is quite
courageous.

He can catch hold of a snake.

But why?

Because, rationally speaking, he does
not understand the concept of a snakebite.

By 'fear of God', it does not mean that
you are frightened by a ghost.

It entails that you should be conscious of
the fact that one day

you will stand before Allah.

He is your almighty.
You have to face him.

If you go before him as a dishonest,
fraudulent person,

if you are guided by stubbornness
and hauteur

do you know the consequence of such
an action?

Every reasonable person should
be apprehensive of it.

Our discourse is based on the
same principle in this world as well.

This is what the Quran is
trying to explain.

So, this is being stated.

The word 'righteousness' that has
been used,

it is obvious that the Quran has said:

ittaqul laaha haqqa tuqaatihee

Believers! Fear God as you rightly should.

But Fearing God is required to the extent
that a person is capable of.

The Qur’ān itself has explained this in
Surah Taghabun.

Fataqul la masta ttaatu

You should fear God as much as you
are capable of.

In other words, such an attitude
is not detrimental for the individual.

If he is fearful and apprehensive,
if he is conscious of the transgressions

and if he bound by the limits set
by God,

he will do it to the extent that
a person is capable of.

God doesn't ask you to shoulder
more responsibility

than you are capable of shouldering.

But he will fear God by accepting
the truth of fearing God.

In other words, he will fear God
with the consciousness that

he is dealing with God himself.

Firstly, the obligations a person owes to
God

are ones which he owes to no other person.

Secondly, the limits and bounds set
by God

and the punishments for violating them

have been prescribed for the worldly
and next-worldly benefit of people;

God does not stand to gain from obeying
these limits; it is they who stand to gain

Even when we apply the system of
recompense and Punishment

we do it for the reformation of the
community and the people,

we do it for their welfare.

In other words, the system of
recompense and Punishment

and the judicial system does not
stand to benefit from it.

It is meant for human beings
only.

And if they transgress the set limits
then everyone feels

that they should be criticised.

So, the law of
recompense and Punishment

that has been legislated by Allah

is meant for the benefit of human beings
only.

Thirdly, God is watching over
everything; so much so,

He even knows what is in the
hearts of people.

Fourthly, no one can save a person
from God’s punishment

and the Almighty can punish a person
both in this world

and in the Hereafter and this
punishment can be eternal.

So, these are the things which when an
individual takes into consideration

while fearing God, it is only then that
he fears God as he rightly should.

Unless a person keeps an eye on all these
aspects of fearing God,

he cannot grasp the real meaning of
fearing God.

There are lot of things for which
man fears man,

but it is the fear of God, his virtue
that is stated here.

itaqul laaha haqqa tuqaatihee

Believers! Fear God as
you rightly should.

wa laa tamootunna illaa wa
antum muslimoon

and when you leave this world, then
leave it only as followers of Islam

In other words, when the time comes
to leave this world

then you should be a follower
of Islam until that time.

Wa'tasimoo bi Hablil laahi jamee'anw

and together cling to the rope of God.

wa laa tafarraqoo
and let nothing divide you

These are the things that have
been stated.

and we should take note of each
of the aforementioned aspects.

wa laa tamootunna illaa wa
antum muslimoon

It means that the instruction to fear
Allah

or when you are instructed to be
obedient towards Allah,

it is a commitment for a lifetime.

There is no scope for leave in it.

Once you have become mature,

once God-consciousness has become a
part of your thought process,

once it has become part of your intellect,
and inner life,

then this struggle will go on until your
last breath.

Therefore, you should be mindful.

If you leave this struggle before your
death,

then your hardwork will go to waste.

So, when the Quran stated that:
wa laa tamootunna illaa wa antum muslimoon

it entails that this matter is not meant
for a day or two,

instead the duration that Allah has
decided for this test,

the entire duration must be spent in this
very piety, by fearing Allah.

It also makes clear that it is an
uneven path,

we will face ups and downs,
we will face difficulties,

we will face discord, we will face
Satans who will ambush us at night

and come across many hitches
and obstacles from enemies.

At times, greed will try to lure us
and, at others,

fear will try to intimidate us.

Those who passed through all these
phases while protecting their faith

and reached their destination that
Allah has ordained for the believers.

And what is the nature of that
destination?

It is that man should continue to live
under the principles and

instructions of Islam, He should be
God-fearing till the end of his life.

At that point when they give up their
soul to the Supreme Being,

as the Quran rightly depicts that they
will say that,

Oh God! we have come to you,

And in turn God will instruct them to
enter paradise,

Raaziyatum marziyah

Man is pleased with God,
and God is pleased with Man.

This is what the Quran has termed as
Ahtisam Billah

cling to the rope of God steadfastly,
mentioned the Quran and

then elaborated it at length.

What is the rope of Allah?

It is the Quran. This refers to the Qur’ān
because this is the rope which is

stretched from the heavens to the earth
between God and His servants.

It is this rope which is the means to
reach God

and it is also our covenant with Him.

Consequently, holding firmly
the rope of God means nothing but

to firmly grasp the Book of God and
in no situation leave it.

Holding steadfast is qualified by the word
la tafariqu

and then the Quran has used the words
verse

the Quran has instructed us against
any sort of dissension.

What does it mean?

This means that this requirement is from
Muslims in their collective and

individual capacity to cling firmly to
the rope of Allah.

They should not become divided
by forsaking it.

While being united they should
adhere to the Qur’ān,

read it and reflect on its verses.

They should gather counsel from it,
turn to it in all their affairs

considering it to be a
scale of justice

and before its verdicts give no importance
to any other yardstick whatsoever.

This is what the words
'etisaam bi hablillah' mean.

You should firmly grasp this rope
of Allah as the Quran said:

Wa'tasimoo bi Hablil laahi jamee'anw

Take it that as it was said earlier that
you should hold on to Allah firmly,

and a person holds on to Allah by fearing
him and by fully obeying God

and once you have the fear of God,

then you are inclined towards
the book of Allah

so that I do not transgress
the limits set by Allah.

And how to cling to the rope of
Allah is further emphasized

and portrayed in the reality of
the Quran that,

If you really want to abstain from
any sort of discord then this thing

must be taken in consideration.

You must cling to the book of God.

wazkuroo ni'mat allaahi alaikum

And the Quran said:

and remember the favour
God has bestowed upon you:

What favours?

iz kuntum a'daaa'an

Here, the companions are the addressee,
that when you were enemies of one another

fa allafa baina quloobikum
so He united your hearts

fa asbah tum bini'matiheee ikhwaananw

and with His grace, Allah's grace,
you became brothers.

And remember, the Quran said:

wa kuntum 'alaa shafaa
hufratim minan Naari

and [remember] when you stood
at the very brink of an abyss of fire;

fa anqazakum minhaa;
then He saved you from it

The companions, who were party to
the Prophet (pbuh) are told

about the grace that Allah has bestowed
upon them.

Anyone who is aware of the history
of Pre-islamic Arabia knows that

Before the revelation of this Book,
every tribe was an enemy of the other

and they would be engaged in
fighting and warfare.

The stories of their warfare

are spread across their literature
and poetry.

There was no unifying thread between
them on the basis of religion also.

They were, each one of the them,
the progeny of Abraham,

but only in name.

Each tribe had its own deity.

Their interests clashed with one
another

in the fields of politics and
economics as well.

With the coming of the Quran,

it knitted them together and
weaved them into a locket of pearls

and those erstwhile foes became
friends, well-wishers, and brothers.

Here, they are reminded of the
blessings bestowed upon the arrival

of the Prophet (pbuh) and the Quran.

They were told that:

they stood at the very
brink of an abyss of fire;

Warfare, hatred for each other, Shirk,
and consequently, internal grudges

which were founded on disbelief,
and colliding with each others profits

had dragged you to a place
where you stood at the very

brink of that abyss of fire.

And the nature of that fire is such
that

it is quite extraordinary for nations
in this world as well as in the next world

where it won't spare anyone indulging in
idolatry,

injustice, oppression and transgressions
against others.

So, the Quran said:

then the Prophet (pbuh) and the Quran
saved you from it.

kazaalika yubaiyinul laahu lakum
aayaatihee

Thus God explains to you
His revelations

la'allakum tahtadoon
so that you may be guided.

Through these verses we come to know
that

one really important blessing from
among God's blessings

bestowed upon a nation or a group or a
collective is that

a bond of love comes into
being between them

The truth is that it doesn't happen
easily.

Hence, look at the words that the
Quran uses:

iz kuntum a'daaa'an fa allafa
baina quloobikum

Allah put love between you people
when you were foes.

This is a great blessing by Allah.

Otherwise, minor issues result in
the disintegration of nations.

The ego of human beings is such
and it breeds suspicions so easily

and they are so prone to looking
after their own profits,

that it is even difficult for even four
people to work together.

At every step we are anxious that
they might fall in a ditch.

And internal conflicts, the sort that
we see amongst Muslims...

People are slaves to profits.

If two people work together, then we
do not expect them

to live their lives together and
put faith in each other.

Mistrust is in the family and outside,
it is in the society,

in the cultural and the political world.

In other words, they have engulfed the
entire community.

If you look at the environment in
your social milieu,

you will find out that moral
degradation is exemplified

in national divisiveness.

The entire community will become
discordant and perturbed

because from a moral point of view,

people are not able to trust each other.

This environment of mistrust creates a
crisis of trust.

And then it is very difficult to come out
of it.

Hence, Allah has especially brought it to
the attention of the Companions that:

my greatest blessing towards you was to
turn your enmity into love

You became brothers because of My
blessings.

And the situation of your nation was such
that

it would have resulted in a pit of fire
in this world as well as the next

and Allah pulled you out of it.

Then the Quran stated that:
this is the manner in which

Allah explains his verses.

And this is how Allah explains to
you that

a slight mistake in this matter
can result in grave trials.

if they want to sustain love
and unity among them

In other words, Allah has united you
and if you want to sustain it

they must hold fast to this Book
otherwise

they will revert to the age of ignorance
that they used to be in.

It was undeniable that they were
standing at the brink of an abyss of fire

If you read their history, it becomes
absolutely clear.

the Almighty caught them
by their hands and saved them from it.

So now if they forsake this Book,

there is a strong chance that they
will fall in this abyss

and then will not be able to
save themselves from its flames.

This directive that was applicable to the
muslim collectivity at that point of time

it is applicable in the same manner even
today.

The discord and disagreement,
the ugliness

which has become part of our
culture, politics, economics,

one of the major reasons behind that
is that

Muslims have abandoned the book
of Allah.

The instructions and guidance that
was there in the Quran,

the manner in which our moral being
was made the real objective of our lives,

this is the most foundational and
axial point of the Quran

that you have to purify your
moral being,

you have to be of service to others,
your wealth is not your own,

others have a right to it as well.

You have to spend in the way of your lord
and it is obvious that when

someone is willing to spend their wealth

then how is it possible that he commits
injustice and transgressions

and how is it possible for him
to steal from others?

This is something which purifies human
beings from a moral point of view.

This was the real message of the Quran.

Even today if you read the Quran,

you will find that the Quran does not
consist of things like

which are very common in our
culture such as:

stories of the Prophet being
Nur or Bashar.

He invites human beings to the simple
message that

they should try to verify the true
essence of virtue.

That is the real faith in God.

It is a feeling of being present
before Him.

You should live with the sentiment
that you will be accountable to god.

and the basis for this accountability
is the purification of your moral being.

Moral being should be as pure as possible.

The Quran calls it
amale saaleh

You should act in such a way that

it guides you, your society, your
environment to the straight path,

When things become part of a jargon
then people stop focusing on its meaning.

It is a very beautiful expression.

In other words, there are certain
actions which when commited

result in internal friction within
yourself.

These actions stem discord at your home,
in your community,

And then there is a sort of action which
leads to goodness and success everywhere.

What is that action?

It is obvious that it is the same action
where an individual has a knowledge

of his moral being and acquires it.

He should recognise himself and
the essence of his dignity.

I am a moral being and I will take
moral purification to that level

where it is supposed to be and
then I will achieve eminence.

If I fail to do that then there is no
difference between myself and an animal.

So, this is the teaching of the Quran.

If you hold steadfast to the
directives of the Qur’ān

and if you make it the center and
axis of all things

which I always translate as the
following:

The main reason for the decline of
the Muslim community is that

it neither made Quran the center and
axis of its knowledge

nor did it make the Quran the center and
axis of its actions.

In terms of knowledge, if you visit
the religious schools,

if you look at religious education,
philosophy or debates in jurisprudence

making Quran the axis of your religion
and then trying to comprehend the Quran

as the Quran wants us to do has escaped
our knowledge.

Due to this reason we are left with
the stories of virtuous men, fables

the debates on furu'aat, and those things
that have no relevance to our lives

The most important reality of our life
is that which the Quran states as

the act of leading one's life with the
sentiment of accountability before god

One day I will have to stand in the
court of my lord

and I cannot take any chances.

I cannot deceive anyone, I cannot
do adulteration,

I cannot be dishonest, I cannot
be unjust towards others.

You will feel this sentiment only when

you will lead your life with the
consciousness that

you are accountable to your lord.

And then there is the issue of making
aspects of religion such as:

rituals, the organisation of the society,
and reminder of things that are symbolic,

aspects that are, in fact, supplementary,
but replace the real essence of religion.

The is the aspect that the Quran is
explaining here.

Even today, if Quran becomes
a central and axial part of our lives

then what will be the consequences?

It will result in you acquiring such a
scale in religious matters

that you will be able to examine
everything.

If you overcome your prejudices, then
you will be able to decide

between good and bad in a jiffy.
You will find a way out of

those metaphysical debates that
people found very interesting

in our tradition and such exceptional
people surrendered themselves

to these debates.
Then your entire focus...

It is obvious that when it becomes
clear what God is,

what his knowledge is like, his attributes
and the correct method

to be accountable in the court of Allah.
When these issues become clear

then you abandon the debates of philosophy
and Kalam

and stand on the correct path, then only
your entire focus will be on

natural sciences and development
of your own life.

It will result in you focusing on
scientific disciplines

and you will abandon superstitions.
Quran germinates both these things

within you when you focus on the
Quran. Here it is stated that:

hold steadfast to this rope of Allah,
if you hold firmly the rope of Allah,

then it will have certain consequences
and those consequences are the following:

kazaalika yubaiyinul laahu lakum
aayaatihee la'allakum tahtadoon

Thus, God explains to you His
revelations so that you may be guided,

that you may be on the right path.

Waltakum minkum ummatuny yad'oona
ilal khairi wa ya'muroona

bil ma'roofi wa yanhawna 'anil munkar;

Now muslims have become a community.
A system has been established by them.

They have established their government
in Medina,

even though it is of a tribal nature.

The community has become organized.

There is a stage when people profess
faith individually,

they don't even own a piece of land,
they are spread throughout the world.

So, an organisation is not possible
in such a scenario.

But when a society comes into being,
when Muslims become a group

then the Quran tells them that
they are in a position to do so.

First, the Quran gave an introduction:
Fear Allah, Obey Him,

steadfastly hold on to the rope of Allah,

make the Quran a central and axial
part of your life.

Stay united and let nothing
divide you in groups.

God has been kind to you that

He has put love between you and
made you brothers when you were foes.

Allah has made this thing clear to you,
now stay true to it.

Stay true to it,
it is your collective responsibility.

In a society...

Children are born and they go through the
stages of early years and adolescence.

Then they become adults, attain the age
of maturity.

They are involved in a lot of
contradictions.

A society cannot be termed as
something that can stay motionlessness.

Therefore, in a society it is certain
that like an individual has a part to

play in a society by virtue of his
individual responsibilities,

likewise society too has some collective
responsibilities.

For instance, parents cannot say that they
have a child and they are feeding him,

but they do not have a responsibility for
his fostering, education and upbringing.

If they do not foster and raise their
children, the society would turn out

to be a jungle full of animals.

In a way, there will be kids who would
be clueless about

the traditions of the society.

They would not want to live their life
in any sort of rule or code of conduct.

Who would be unaware to the basic facts
about edification and civilizations.

They would be alien to any transmissions
of civilized code of conduct

or gentle behavior.

In terms of their inheritance, these
children

would have received nothing of worth.

And they would be left without
anything.

Similarly, when a society transforms to be
an organized collective of people.

It is imperative to establish order.

Hence, even today all of humanity
is unanimous about the fact that

humans cannot be left without any checks
and balances.

Since, man has an innate quality of both
good and evil.

It is always anticipated that people with
evil intentions would incorporate in

evil activities like robbery, fornication,
murder etc.,

They would develop discord in society.

So, in order to tackle these kind of
situations, a order is established.

It used to take the form of tribal laws,

but now these laws are implemented on
a state level.

This is the work of the government
of a nation.

A complete rule of law is established
and implemented in a nation state.

In a nation state, there are three
foundational institutions.

A judicial system.

It is evident that if you are
incorporating a system of

reward and punishment.

Allah has employed this method of
reward and reprimand

on the day of judgement.

As a corollary of that principle a similar
system for reward and punishment

has emerged in the globe, which is
interpreted as the court of law.

For instance, society comes up
with certain laws, code of conduct

and anyone who rebukes them faces
punishment for the same.

And anyone who lives in consonance with
the established law,

develops a way forward for himself.

Therefore, justice, judicial system or
a system of reward or punishment

is a pre-requisite for a society.

It must be established in every society.

In today's parlance police department is
constituted for the same purpose.

In order words, you establish such a
department in the society that

works like a watchdog to uphold and
support good things

and rebukes anything that is
ill-intentioned and crosses its limit.

All the nations have had this police
department from the start,

even in the tribal societies some people
were appointed for a similar kind of job.

At times, it is impossible to handle the
rebellion of states themselves.

As you say, if you have established a
national system,

demarcated a territory for your state,
then you cannot just expect the rebellious

attitude of people individually but
a collective.

At times an entire nation becomes
rebellious.

As a result, you organise your own
army to deal with anything of this nature.

Therefore, this system of law is nothing
but the manifestation

of the natural attributes of humanity.

Man would have constituted this system
even in the absence

of any religious teachings.

Every society accepts it.

Philosophical debates have their own
prominence, but it is a reality that

we cannot visualize a society without a
legal framework.

Communism tried to envisage a journey
without a system of judiciary and police,

but that could not be fulfilled.

Because it was against the natural
instincts of man.

Man has such a being that entails
a struggle for both good and bad,

It is a pre-requisite as He has been
given the divine inspiration

for both good and evil.

There, a society was being
organised there.

The reason I gave this lengthy
introduction was that,

under the Quranic milieu,
a society was getting organized,

Medina emerged as a small nation-state.

Those Muslims after being given some
basic yet fundamental instructions were

asked to established a code of conduct,

in order to sustain this aforementioned
system in the society.

Waltakum minkum ummatun

to accomplish this task, it is
required that some individuals

be deputed from amongst you.

And what is this task that is
to be carried out?

yad'oona ilal khairi
who calls society towards righteousness

Notice that a different word has
been used.

The word righteousness has been
used for virtue;

you should call towards those things
that are meant

for the betterment of humans

wa ya'muroona bil ma'roofi
enjoin virtue, to enjoin good

wa yanhawna 'anil munkar
and forbid evil.

Both these words are very important.

Maroof signifies those things which
are agreed upon unanimously

by each and every individual that
they are good deeds

and Munkar signifies those things which
are agreed upon unanimously

by each and every individual that
they are evil deeds.

The Quran stated that they should
do that:

wa ulaaa'ika humul muflihoon

[Diligently arrange for this]

and [remember that those who do so]
will only attain salvation.

This directive is given to the
Muslims in their collective capacity:

in order to hold [steadfast to this
directive of the Qur’ān]

they must depute some people
from among themselves.

In modern times,
if you look at the department of police

it in the light of the
Quran, in the light of a muslims society

it serves this very purpose.

Their real job is to keep the organisation
of the society intact,

spread righteousness, encourage virtue
in the society

and not let crimes breed in the society.

To accomplish this task, two arrangements
were made by muslims in their society;

one of them is the same which is
done throughout the world

But the police department has become
exclusive to hold people accountable

who perpetrate acts which
are considered as crimes as per law,

for those acts that are considered
cognizable.

But, in a Muslim society, the institution
of a Masjid was created

for pedagogical reasons.

Such an institution, such a training
institute, such a place of worship

was constructed where a law was
legislated that

on every Friday, the leader or
representative of the Muslims will come,

who will be accountable to the people
and at the same time

he will instruct and counsel them as well.

According to this verse, two institutions
came into being:

the institution of police, and an
organisation in the form of a Mosque

which unfortunately became vulnerable
to sectarianism.

There are certain other things as well and
we will discuss those in the next session.

It is because it is a very important
verse and

people have gone on to misunderstand
it as well.

There have been mistakes made with respect
to its meaning and subject matter.

We need a caution on that
as well.

I will mention those things in detail.
Let us end it on this note today.

And now let us have a look at its
translation.

The Quran has stated:

Believers! If you yield to a group
from among these People of the Book,

they will turn you back
from belief to disbelief.

[Be forewarned of this]
and [just reflect]

how can you disbelieve when
God’s verses are being recited to you

and His own Messenger is
among you. [So hold fast to God]

and [remember that] he
who holds fast to God

[then know that] he shall
be guided to the straight path.

Believers! Fear God as you
rightly should,

and when you leave this world, leave it
only as followers of Islam

and together cling to the rope of God
and let nothing divide you

and remember the favour God has
bestowed upon you:

when you were enemies of one
another so He united your hearts

and with His grace you became brothers

and [remember] when you stood at
the very brink of an abyss of fire;

then He saved you from it.

Thus God explains to you His revelations
so that you may be guided.

And let there be appointed
among you a number

which calls towards righteousness,
enjoin virtue and forbid evil.

[Diligently arrange for this] and

[remember that those who do so]
will only attain salvation.

I say this saying of mine, and

I seek forgiveness from Allah
for me and for you.