'It is Ahmed, stunning on 'one chord to two bows' (qasida 19:10)

This is the motto of this section, which is for talking about our beloved prophet Mohammad [PPBUH].

You can find all special expressions in the Glossary. We need your comments to develop this site for you.

Submit with Full Submission

Allah says: [But no, by your Lord, they are not believres until they make you judge in all that is in dispute between them and then find not in their hearts any demur concerning that which you decide and submit with full submission] an-Nisa' 4:65.

This verse is a quranic constitution in which Allah defines the Prophet [PPBUH]'s right on his people and how much Allah loves, glorifies, honors, and supports him. This is proved by the fact that Allah swore by himself in this verse, and such an oath does not exist in any other verse in the Quran. He swore that, he is not a believer, whoever does not seek the Prophet's judgement in conflicts, submits totally to his judgement, and does not have, even within his heart, any objection. So whoever does not do that should know that he is not, in his heart, a believer. Seeking the Prophet's judgement is not limited to his life, but it also includes respecting his Sunna, honoring and glorifying his biography and his name. One should not deny any hadith by the Prophet. When someone says that "the Prophet said" no one should fail or deny him. Believers should avoid doubting deeds, as Imam Fakhreddin said:

[Avoid denying even a letter          as hostility the nobles is slipping the feet]

[You may say it could be true, may be,      or that you do not know for sure]

[The Devisor's affair is mercy             He sponsors the orphans and widows]

Allah has ended the verse by telling the believers to fully submit to the Prophet [PPBUH], otherwise doors will be closed for them. Is not it honoring and glorification from Allah Almighty to this Beloved Prophet [PPBUH]. We, his nation, are lucky to have him as our Prophet and our Intercessor in the Day of Judgement. Allah has confirmed such a submission in the following verses; [Allah and His angels send prayers on the Prophet. O ye who believe! you also should invoke prayers on him and submit with full submission] al-Ahzab 33:56, and [And it is not fitting for a believer, man or woman, when Allah and His Messenger have decided a matter, to have any choice in the matter concerning them. And whoso disobeys Allah and His Messenger, surely strays away in manifest error] al-Ahzab 33:36, In the latter, Allah has connected between his order and the Prophet's to support him [PPBUH].

Let's see how the scholars interpreted the following verse; [But no, by your Lord, they are not believres until they make you judge in all that is in dispute between them and then find not in their hearts any demur concerning that which you decide and submit with full submission] an-Nisa' 4:65.

In the interpretation of Imam ibn Katheer, he says that, in this verse, Allah swears by His Glorious Self that one is not a believer, unless he seeks the Prophet's judgement in all matters. Whatever the Prophet [PPBUH] judges is the truth and it should be followed without any doubts in heart or mind. The believers should fully submit the Prophet without any argument. In a hadith, the Prophet says (I swear by Who owns my soul, that no one believes, unless he loves what I say).

Al-Bukhary, Imam Ahmed, and an-Nesa'i said that az-Zubair narrated that he was fighting with a man from al-Ansar [the supports] over a water source in Medina. They sought the Prophet's judgement. The Prophet [PPBUH] said to az-Zubair (Water your land then send the water to your neighbor)! The man got angry and said to the Prophet "O, Prophet, is this because he is your cousin"? The Prophet's face changed in color and said to az-Zubair (Water your land, keep the water till it reaches the walls, then send the water to your neighbor). The Prophet first gave a judgment which served both of them, but when the man did not like it, then the Prophet fulfilled the rights of az-Zubair. Az-Zubair said that he did not think that the verse [But no, by your Lord, they are not believres... and submit with full submission] was revealed down except for that incident. 

Ibn Katheer narrated another story from Abi al-Asawad who said that two men sought the judgment of the Prophet [PPBUH] in a conflict between them. When the Prophet judged, one of them, whom the judgement was against, asked the Prophet [PPBUH] to to turn them to Omar ibn al-Khattab for judgment. The Prophet [PPBUH] said to them (go to him). When they reached Omar, they told him what happened. Omar asked them to wait, until he came out. He brought a sword and killed the one who sought Omar's judgment, while the other ran to the Prophet [PPBUH] and told him that Omar killed his friend. The Prophet replied (I never thought that Omar would dare to kill a believer). Then this verse was revealed down; [But no, by your Lord, they are not believres... and submit with full submission]. So the man was declared an unbeliever, thus apostate. So his killing became legitimate and Omar became innocent of the sin of killing a believer. However, Allah hated to make this a rule, so He followed the verse with another; [And if We had commanded them, ‘Kill your people or leave your homes’, they would not have done it except a few of them; and if they had done what they are exhorted to do, it would surely have been better for them and conducive to greater strength] an-Nisa' 4:66.

Ibn Katheer narrated the same story but added a little more to it. He said: they went first to Abo-Bakr, who told them to follow the judgment of the Prophet, but the man, who was complaining, did not like it and went to Omar... and the Hadith continued. Omar was known for his innate agreement with Allah and his Messenger. Many verses came down to support his point of view. In brief, this verse came down to confirm the believers' obligation to follow the Prophet's judgement without argument. That was the case with the great companions. The state of such great companions reflected this, as they never gave an opinion, unless they were asked for it, or had the Prophet's permission. If the Prophet did not say anything, they would have known that they were not permitted and they would have kept silent. That was the manner of the great companions who knew the prestige and the rights of their Prophet [PPBUH] over them and over all the believers. Whoever does not know His right is not a believer. 

In the interpretation of Imam Muqatel to this previous verse, he also narrated the story of az-Zubair and the man of al-Ansar, Hateb ibn Balta'a. He said that the verse [But no, by your Lord, they are not believres...] was revealed down for this incident and added that the Jews said "How insane those people are! they believe in Mohammad, sacrifice their soul and money for him and then refuse to accept his judgment. When Moses asked us to kill ourselves for a sin we committed, we killed up to 70000 of us until Allah has forgiven us. No one could do this but us". Then Thabit ibn Qays ibn Shammas al-Ansari commented "I swear that Allah knows that if He orders us to kill ourselves, we will do". Therefore, the following verse came down;  [And if We had commanded them, ‘Kill your people or leave your homes’, they would not have done it except a few of them]. Among those few were Ammar ibn Yasser, Abdullah ibn Mas'ud and Thabit ibn Qays. Omar ibn al-Khattab said "I swear that if Allah orders us to do so, we will. Alhumd-lil-lah that He didn't do this to us". The Prophet [PPBUH] said (I swear that faith, is firmer in the hearts of the believers than the mountains). 

In the interpretation of Imam al-Baydawy, he said that because Allah has granted and ordered people to obey the Prophet, whoever disagrees with his judgement is a disbeliever who should be killed, even he tries to show Islam. Allah has sent the Prophet to be followed and obeyed. Whoever does not follow him has denied his message and is considered a disbeliever and is proscribed. 

In the interpretation of Imam Fakhr al-Razy, one has to know that [But no, by your Lord, they are not believres...] is an oath from Allah that people can not be described as believers, unless certain conditions are fulfilled; [until they make you judge in all that is in dispute between them]. This shows that whoever does not accept the Prophet's judgement is not a believer. Through this verse, one knows that there is no way to know Allah but through the tips of the infallible Prophet [PPBUH]. [they are not believres until they make you judge in all that is in dispute between them] is a declaration that people won't be believers, unless they seek the Prophet's judgement in all their conflicts, thus believing is not accomplished except through the Prophet's guidance, tips, and judgment. This was established as the minds of most people is incomplete and unable to understand the attributes of Allah and His religion. The mind of the infallible Prophet [PPBUH] is complete and bright. When his bright light is connected to the minds of the people of his nation, they become complete, bright and strong. Therefore, people would be able to know the divine secrets. What proves this is that the people at the age of the Prophet [PPBUH] had a complete faith and firmly established belief, whereas those far from his age are confused and in conflict. Also, schools like: the inoperative claimers, the analogous claimers, and the alleging fate and forcing proclaim. Thus proving our first condition.

The second condition is [then find not in their hearts any demur concerning that which you decide] which means, according to the interpretation of al-Zajjaj, that they should not have hard feelings towards the Prophet's judgement. This verse shows that content should not be external but also internal, by heart. The works of the heart are beyond human control, however, what it means here that one should have a heartily assertion and certainty that the Prophet's judgment is the truth. The third condition is [submit with full submission]. One may know by heart that the Prophet's judgment is the truth, but he disagrees due to arrogance. Allah shows here that, in order to become a believer, not only one has to believe by heart that the Prophet's judgement is the truth but also his outer appearance has to show complete submission. So [then find not in their hearts any demur concerning that which you decide] refers to the inside submission and [submit with full submission] refers to the outside one. 

In the interpretation of the scholar al-Alousy, [submit with full submission] means to listen to all the Prophet's orders and submit internally and externally, as the word [full] indicate. This verse applies up to the day of judgement, not only to the people at the age of the Prophet [PPBUH], as the judgment of his Shari'a is his judgment. It was narrated that as-Sadiq [AAH] said "If some people worship Allah, perform their prayers, give alms, fast in Ramadan, perform al-Hajj, and then disagree with the Prophet or just dislike what he did even in their hearts, they will be considered as polytheists". Then, he recited the previous verse. the scholar al-Alousy said "the reason behind this verse, as said by al-Sha'by and Mujahid, is the story of Beshr and the Jew who went to Omar ibn al-Khattab to seek his judgement. Al-Sheikhan, abo-Dawud, at-Turmuzy, al-Nesa'i, ibn Magah and al-Bayhaqi said "Orwa ibn az-Zubair said about az-Zubair ibn al-Awam that he had a conflict with a man from al-Ansar ... the Hadith".

Edited by Samer el-Lail   

Translated by Nahed Abul-Hasan

Whoever wants to get more about this subject, can seek it in the website of Al-Nabi [PPBUH]

the Editorial Team