TAFSEER BAQARAH Ayat 186 - SISTERSNOTES · PDF file28.05.2013 · Tafseer Al Baqarah Ayat 186 Page 1 Revision Ayat 1- 110 - Reciting only *** TAFSEER BAQARAH Ayat 186 : ةرَقَبَلا

Tafseer Al Baqarah Ayat 186

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Revision Ayat 1- 110 - Reciting only

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TAFSEER BAQARAH Ayat 186 :

سورة البقرة

وإذا سألك عبادى عنى فإنى قريب إذا دعا ا للدا و يبج دعو ج

و شجدج منجوا بى لعلاهجمو يرو يجؤو يبجوا لى ولو ت يسو (٦٨١)فلو

And when My slaves ask you (O Muhammad SAW) concerning Me, indeed I am near (to them by My Knowledge). I respond to the invocations of the supplicant when he calls on Me

(without any mediator or intercessor). So let them obey Me and believe in Me, so that they may be rightly guided (186)

Be One for one Master and be in one way ( of Rasul). We travel to Allah by our hearts. We get close to

Allah by the Quran . Every Ayat in the Quran will penetrate a pure heart . If the heart changes , then

everything will change . No worries or difficulties. Every Ayat make us reach Allah . One Ayat (if acted

upon) will be a means to take us to Paradise because this is Kalamullah.

It was mentioned :

برا س للو ,It is not Al-Birr (piety, righteousness, and each and every act of obedience to Allâh“ لايو

etc.)” in Ayat 177 . This statement was followed by different scenes :

o We need to be Truthful to be a Muttaqeen.

o Qisas

o Wasiat

o Fasting ; followed by a page about fasting as a means to attain taqwa .


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Allah want our fasting to be a means to magnify Allah. From our ibadah , we must achieve 3 things :

1. Magnify Allah & see Allah is the Greatest & is Kabeer ;

2. feel shukr / grateful &

3. appreciate guidance when doing ibadah .

Ayat 186 is a heart softener. It is generally about the doa. After the verses about Ramadan , it

followed with doa . What did Allah say about doa ? What are the virtues of doa, & what do you get if

you doa ? This Ayat started with :

وإذا سألك عبادى عنى فإنى قريب

And when My slaves ask you (O Muhammad SAW) concerning Me, then (answer them), I am indeed

near (to them by My Knowledge).

The sahabah knew that making doa is one way to get close to Allah . They asked Rasulullah “ O


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Messenger of Allah, is Allah , our Rabb, so near that He Hears even when we whisper ? Or is He far

so that we need to shout loudly ?”. This was when Allah revealed this Ayat. Let us see the benefit of

each word :

بادى عنىوإذا سألك ع

And when My slaves ask you (O Muhammad SAW) concerning Me …

The Quran was revealed in verses , or as Ayats revealed together or revealed as full Surah . Allah said

‘ when ‘ وإذا

indicates ‘you’ , ie the sahabah asked Rasulullah . The sahabah could be ask ك – ‘ ask you ‘ سألك

questions to the Rasulullah during his time because he was still alive . But we cannot do this nowadays

because he is not alive anymore ’My slave‘ عبادى

عنى ‘about Me’

Though this Ayat was revealed a long time ago , it is still applicable now for everybody eventhough

Rasulullah had died. All Ayats in the Quran are all applicable through time. Humans need Quran in

our life. Needed to fulfill our need regarding knowledge .


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/ ‘ibaadi How Allah beautifully described the sahabah . In , we can see Allah’s

Gentleness, Passion & Love for the sahabah because He said “ MY slave” or “ MY servant “ . The

in shows Allah’s Gentleness, Rahmatallah , His Passion, His Love . He is saying you

are HIS Slave & He did not say عباد . You feel so close to Allah just hearing:

. How Allah Honors the believers in saying . وإذا سألك عبادى عنى

We are the ones who need Allah, yet see How Allah speak to us. Read the Quran & feel the

attachment. The moment we are not attached to the Quran , that is the moment we deviate. The more

we feel Allah is Talking personally to us , the more we realize that no one care about us more than our

Creator. That is why His Message is so beautiful, so gentle because Allah is so Beautiful. We fly to Allah,

feel so attached, & we feel so special to Allah just from one word : Subhanallah. Allah

Knows the psychology of humans . He first draw close to his servant first. And He often calls “ Ya

Aiyyuhal ladzi na aamanu “, “ ‘ibaadi” and makes you feel His Love & make you feel that one can

reach Him eventhough we sin. It is for everybody .

In وإذا سألك عبادى عنى , the word “about Me” / عنى makes it personal – My servant is

asking about Allah.

In the tafseer , what are we asking about regarding Allah in عنى ? عنى is regarding the following :

1. Al Qurbi / that is ‘ asking about Allah’s Closeness’

2. Ijaabati / that is , ‘asking about Allah’s Response’


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Example : Say there is someone famous in a society who is taking care of every aspect of everyone’s

need in the community . What would you say if someone in the community do not know this man ? You

will be shocked because the whole society & even generations later, they should know this man. Noone

is more important than Allah because he is the Owner & the Rich for everybody. Allah gives whatever

we want whether we know it or not.

We can see humans giving to others but we cannot physically see Allah Giving because He is

Ghaib . Allah wants to put everything in its place by saying

وإذا سألك عبادى عنى

because people may NOT be aware of Allah (So he stresses on عنى / ‘about Me’) . Allah is ghaib so

we need Ayat ul Quran to explain about Allah .

Allah’ s Nearness & His Response

“Is Allah Near & how does He Respond ? “ : This is the main question in humans but not everybody

will voice out this question. The Quran fulfills the answers to all questions that humans need answered.

The source of Guidance should be Qaalallah Qaala Rasul ; if these 2 sources are correct, then humans

will be with Guidance . But if the sources are books ( written by humans) or what people say , then the

sources may be wrong & the human mind may be filled with unimportant things.


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What does the Ulamak say about سألك ‘asking ‘ the Rasulullah salallahu alaihi wa

sallam?

The root is Yas*aluulaka . In the Quran, 14 Ayats starts with سألك or Yas*aluulaka /

“They ask you” ( Rasulullah ) ? . Of these , in 13 places in the Quran , سألك or Yas*aluulaka is

followed by QUL / “ say to them” except in Ayat 186 ( where .(is NOT followed by QUL سألك

Instead , ONLY in Ayat 2/186, Allah Gives the answer directly to us . Allah is so close to the believers

that there is no separation through the word QUL (meaning Allah did not tell the Rasulullah salallahu

alaihi wa sallam to answer us . Instead Allah answered us directly).


And when My slaves ask you (O Muhammad SAW) concerning Me, indeed I am near

There is Wisdom in Allah not saying QUL after the word سألك .

Allah SAID in Ayat 186 : And when My slaves ask you (O Muhammad SAW) concerning Me, indeed I

am near

Allah DID NOT say : And when My slaves ask you (O Muhammad SAW) concerning Me, SAY ( in

answering to them that ) indeed I am near Allah Shows His Closeness to the believers

This is the miracle of the Quran. This is Kalamullah & it is only later that people realized how amazing

this is . This is Allah Responding to our doa. Even if we do not say out, Allah will respond to us.


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Allah’s Answer فإنى قريب / “ Indeed I am Near” shows His Closeness to us . Allah Rose over

the Throne, above the 7 Heavens, in a way Suits His Majesty . We have 2 types of seas : (i) the one seen

on Earth (ii) the sea under the Throne of Allah ( in an Ayat in the Quran) . Whatever Allah Says, we

believe. Allah have a Throne – the biggest Creation of Allah . & Allah Rose over the Throne . The 7

Heavens, compared to Al Kursi , ie the Footstool of Allah ,is like a ring in the barren desert . In turn ,

the Kursi is like a ring in the barren desert compared to the throne of Allah. Allah, the One over the

Throne, is greater. This is referring to the Name of Allah Al ‘Ali , meaning very high. Allah is very High ,

& He rose over the Throne.

Allah said فإنى قريب / “ Indeed I am Near” . In the Quran, you can see “Inna” or “Inni “ , ie


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sometimes “I” and sometimes “We” is used . When it is about Allah Himself, إنى / ’ Inni’ is used .

Noone in between . It is about Him personally. We need correct Aqeedah before studying the Quran

because if we do not have the correct Aqeedah, we may misinterprete this Ayat . We may misinterprete

“Allah Al Qareeb “ to mean Allah is everywhere and we get the concept of Nearness wrong .

For ahli Sunnah wa al Jama’ah, “ Allah Rose over the Throne in a manner that suits His Majesty “ and

the Throne is over the sea . This Ayah said فإنى قريب / ‘ Indeed I am near’ . As Samawat wa al

Ardh is in the Hands of Allah like a mustard seed . So it’s close to Allah.

Meaning of Allah Saying ‘ so I am near ‘

1. As Samawat wa al Ardh is in the Hands of Allah like a mustard seed,

So we are tiny in relativity. So wherever we go, Allah is Close & Knows about us

2. Allah Qareeb but His Qurb/nearness is by His Knowledge , not physical.

He is above the ‘Arsh . So He is near to the believers by His Knowledge . Alah is Near to us by

His Knowledge than yourself to yourself . Subhanallah. Whatever we do, Allah Knows; even

what is in our heart. So none can hide anything from Allah because He knows what is in the

heart . Allah Knows even when your eyes speak , & when you are thinking. Allah is All Knower

& All Aware . He Knows your past, present & future. And Allah Knows matters in your heart :

your intentions, desires, sickness of the heart, how much you love & fear Allah, attach to Allah,

hope in Allah. This is ( the absolute) Closeness. Eg a close friend is one who knows you,

understands you , cares for you, she is there when you need her, you can talk at any time. No

one in Closer to us than Allah . But those who do not know Allah will be in a maze. We do not

know what we are doing. 200% of problems (meaning you feel the problems are worse than


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what they really are) is because we do not know Allah : mental problems, health problems,

marriage problems, work problems , family problems, friends problems. We need to know Allah.

We are eating & drinking from Allah’s Provision, thinking from Allah’s Provision, enjoying

Allah’s Provision, so we cannot leave this Dunia without wondering & knowing who is Allah .

Allah is Closer than anyone . This gives richness to the believer. If there is any

imbalance in a person, ie if one is always not satisfied with anything , or he always wants

something else other than what is given to him, or he is bored when given something. We need to

feel full ( satisfied). Some will turn to wrong/haram to feel full eg excessive eating, torture self

when depressed . One who always feel satisfied with what he has is Ghaniy / full. When we

know Allah , we will go to Him .

فإنى قريب How is Allah قريب ? Answer : By His Knowledge .

Allah is Close because He Knows . Sometimes you go through a situation & no one understands

you … except ALLAH (because He Knows you.) He Knows exactly who you are . Nooen ever

really knows you . That is why Allah says فإنى قريب. When you feel sad and you don’t

know how to express what is in your heart , be sure that Allah Knows what you are going

through. He does not need you to express your pain. He does not need you to explain.

3. Allah’s Qurb / Nearness by Hearing . Allah is the All Hearer indicating His Closeness . We have communication between us being

made possible even when we are afar – eg Skype, mobiles, internet, etc. Communication makes

the world small; makes the world close. Noone is comparable to Allah who is Most High . Allah

is Close by His Hearing . Whatever you whisper , speak, complain from ingratitude , etc are all


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Heard by Allah . Allah Knows what is said in secret. Allah even Hears what you are saying to

yourself. Subhanallah. A believer is the same regardless if she is with people or not. We cannot say “ Don’t

speak like this in front of her (so she’s not angry) “ but with other people : “ with her , we can

speak whatever we like because she is our friend , & she is like us “. This is a disturbed mind.

We change our talk depending on who is listening – like a chameleon. This is stressful. We

should remain just the way we are & not feel embarrassed of people . We should be

embarrassed with Allah. Watch our tongue because Allah is Al Qareeb.

4. Allah Qareeb by His Seeing.

Imagine a camera on all the time , watching you live all the time . And people see you & they

judge you .The higher one is in society, the more cautious he is. Angels are around us all the

time . What more Allah’s Closeness. Whatever we do, wherever we go, Allah Sees us in every

situation; so there is a manner between us & Allah. Allah watches your actions – what you say &

do.

THE 2 TYPES OF NEARNESS :

A. GENERAL NEARNESS / Al Qurb il ‘Aam /

Allah’s Nearness by His Knowledge , His Hearing & His Seeing is called GENERAL NEARNESS /

Al Qurb il ‘Aam /


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General Nearness: Allah is Close to everybody through (all His Attributes but) mainly His Knowledge ,

Hearing & Seeing . That is why Allah is the ONLY ONE who Nurture us & Reform us because He is

All Aware of what we are doing. Noone is more Aware of us than Al Rabb who Provides, Sustains,

Guides , Brings the Goodness & Nurtures us . This is Allah’s Lordship through His Rububiyyah

Action.


And when My slaves ask you (O Muhammad SAW) concerning Me, indeed I am near (to them by My

Knowledge).

When we know about Allah , our reaction should be to Allah & from Allah . What I need to know

about Allah & how I need to do it. Whatever we need to do in our lives, whatever we say or do , do it

for Allah. Make ‘us & Allah’ as our relation. eg help for the sake of Allah, love our friend for the sake

of Allah, & everything we give as waqf is for Allah. There is impact when we know Allah is Qareeb .

Allah is so High but so Near . Not like humans – people get close to those so high in society . But our

Rabb is Close to us . People can still escape (from other humans) when they do wrong eg the radar (to

detect overspeeding) often fail to detect speeding because people know where the radars are & they

reduce their speed when the radar is near. Or people stop gossiping when one person comes near but

continues once she leaves . This is how humans behave when they know someone hears them .

People can get out of trouble (with other humans) BUT NOONE ESCAPES ALLAH because

Allah is Close. Al Qurb il ‘Aam / is the way to account yourself, and to be Mustaqeem

in life. When everybody believe in Al Qurb il ‘Aam / , they will not do wrong because


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they will fear Allah & fear the Punishment from Allah. Then the whole society will be Mustaqeem like

the society of the sahabah of the Rasulullah salallahu alaihi wa salam ( only very few cases of adultery

– 2 cases in 10 years).

B. SPECIAL NEARNESS / Al Qurb il ‘Khaas /

Al Qurb il ‘Khaas / is Special Closeness with Allah by His Love, His Mercy.

This Closeness is for the one who makes themselves close to Allah . Allah is Generally Close to

everybody so that they will generally guard their tongue, their thinking & stay on the straight Path. But

the one receiving Special Closeness / receives special advantages . When we know that

Special Closeness, we long for that Closeness with Allah. We humans are happy when we have close

friends. But no one is Closer to us than Allah & the most Beautiful Closeness is with Allah. There is

no comparison once you taste the Special Closeness of Allah & it will make you self sufficient. Eg

When Yusuf a.s. was jailed, he did not complain . He was alone yet he did not feel lonely or empty

because he had had richness (feeling of fulfilment) through the Closeness of Allah by His Support ,

Love , Mercy, & by His Compassion . When you feel this Special Closeness of Allah, you feel nothing is

better compared to it. We need from Allah.

To be close to humans, we need to please them, give gifts, listen to them , communicate well ,

etc. What more to be close to Allah , the Absolute King , in whose Hands are life & death, the Creator,

Provider, the Most Beautiful . You may feel you do not deserve it. But Allah Said He is Close . WE are

the ones who need to draw close to Him . And yet Allah gives us good news. When we draw a little bit

to Allah, He Draw Nearer to you . Noone is like Al Illah – this good news . Whoever you are , Allah

Welcomes you . Not like humans who have so much expectation so that closeness becomes difficult.


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When our HEART moves towards Allah even by a little bit, or our heart flee to Allah for

just seconds , Allah will do MORE to Draw Close to you. If you draw to Allah by a little effort ( like

walking) , Allah will take the bigger effort HIMSELF to Draw closer to you. We, who are the servants,

the slaves , we who are poor, desperate & are in need , yet the KING take more effort to draw Closer to

you .

So grants us a different , SPECIAL treatment . We need to INITIATE the

move to draw close to Allah to deserve the . Allah is Ash Shhakr Ash Shakuur ,

so even if you initiate a little effort to draw close to Allah, He will take bigger effort to Draw Closer to

you.

Don’t you find Names of Allah to be Jannatullah ‘ala al Ardh / Paradise on Earth ? It is like

Paradise . It goives you a beautiful life with beautiful fragrance. The bond between 2 people who draw

close to Allah will each have a special bond with each other . Subhanallah .

Special Closeness with Allah

is for people

who

draw close to Allah .


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Documents

TAFSEER BAQARAH Ayat 186 - SISTERSNOTES · PDF file28.05.2013 · Tafseer Al Baqarah Ayat 186 Page 1 Revision Ayat 1- 110 - Reciting only *** TAFSEER BAQARAH Ayat 186 : ةرَقَبَلا