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Draft:Verse 37 of Sura al-Tawba

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Verse 37 of Sura al-Tawba
Verse's Information
NameVerse 37 of Sura al-Tawba
SuraSura al-Tawba (Qur'an 9)
Verse37
Juz'10
Page193
Content Information
Place of
Revelation		Mecca
AboutIdolaters of Mecca


Qur'an 9:37 prohibits the practice of transferring the sanctity of the Forbidden Months to other months, citing its detrimental impact on Islamic society. Exegetes maintain that the sanctity of the Forbidden Months was established during the era of Prophet Abraham (a); however, during the Era of Ignorance, the polytheists of Mecca, driven by a penchant for warfare and looting, frequently altered the timing of these months.

Because this practice constituted a manipulation of Divine ordinances and an innovation in religion, the Qur'an characterizes it as "an increase in disbelief" (ziyādatun fī l-kufr).

Occasion of Revelation and Text of Verse

Most exegetes report that during the Hajj season, a representative from the Banu Kinana tribe would publicly declare the blood of certain groups from the Tayy and Khath'am tribes to be permissible. He would thereby revoke the sanctity of a specific Forbidden Month and transfer it to the month of Safar. In the subsequent year, he would reinstate the original order. This verse was revealed to forbid such acts.[1]

Prohibition of Changing Forbidden Months

Main article: Nasi'

Citing 'Allama Tabataba'i in Tafsir al-Mizan, Qur'an 9:36 and 37 of Sura al-Tawba reaffirmed the sanctity of the Forbidden Months and abolished the Jahili practice of Nasi' (the postponement of Forbidden Months).[2] The majority of exegetes trace the origins of this sanctity to the time of Prophet Abraham (a),[3] noting that it was also respected during the Era of Ignorance.[4] Some scholars have interpreted this displacement as a temporary expedient[5] intended to preserve ancestral traditions.[6]

Exegetes and historians differ regarding the specific mechanics of Nasi' and the identity of its perpetrators. The prevailing view identifies warfare as the primary motivation.[7] According to this perspective, because the Jahili Arabs were inclined toward looting and combat,[8] observing three consecutive Forbidden Months (Dhu l-Qa'da, Dhu l-Hijja, and Muharram) proved onerous for them,[9] as they viewed it as a hindrance to their martial spirit.[10] Consequently, during the Hajj ceremony, a leader from the Banu Kinana would announce the displacement of a month's sanctity.[11] Some exegetes have attributed this practice to tribes such as the Hawazin, Ghatafan, and Banu Sulaym.[12] It is narrated from Ibn 'Abbas that 'Amr b. Luhayy was the first to establish this tradition.[13]

Other exegetes suggest that the regulation of the Hajj season was the motive behind Nasi'.[14] Because the Hajj, being based on the lunar calendar, would cycle through winter and summer, potentially disrupting trade, they sought to fix the timing of the pilgrimage by manipulating the months.[15]

The Qur'an designates Nasi' as an "increase in disbelief."[16] In explaining this phrase, scholars note that Nasi' constitutes an innovation[17] and a distortion of Divine rulings.[18] According to Nasir Makarim Shirazi, the Jahili Arab thereby committed practical disbelief in addition to doctrinal disbelief, as he rendered God's haram permissible (halal) and His permissible haram.[19]

Interpretations differ regarding the phrase "their evil deeds were made fair-seeming to them" (zuyyina lahum sūʾu aʿmālihim). Tabrasi identifies the beautifier as al-Nafs al-Ammara (the imperious self),[20] while 'Allama Tabataba'i identifies it as Satan.[21] Others have suggested that Jewish leaders are the referent.[22]

Philosophy of Prohibition of War in Forbidden Months

See also: Forbidden Months

According to Nasir Makarim Shirazi, the prohibition of war during the Forbidden Months served as a mechanism to curtail prolonged conflicts and establish a foundation for peace and social tranquility.[23] 'Allama Tabataba'i similarly posits that this ruling facilitated the establishment of public security, allowing society to organize its affairs and pursue Divine nearness.[24]

Notes

  1. ↑ Qummī, Tafsīr al-Qummī, 1363 Sh, vol. 1, p. 290; Ḥuwayzī, Tafsīr Nūr al-thaqalayn, 1415 AH, vol. 2, p. 217; Jurjānī, Darj al-durar fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān al-ʿaẓīm, 1430 AH, vol. 1, p. 765; Ibn al-ʿArabī, Aḥkām al-Qurʾān, 1408 AH, vol. 2, p. 943.
  2. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, Tafsīr al-Mīzān, 1421 AH, vol. 9, p. 266.
  3. ↑ Kāshānī, Manhaj al-ṣādiqīn, Tehran, vol. 4, p. 267; Ṭabāṭabāʾī, Tafsīr al-Mīzān, 1421 AH, vol. 9, p. 271; Ibn al-ʿArabī, Aḥkām al-Qurʾān, 1408 AH, vol. 2, p. 943; Suyūṭī, al-Durr al-manthūr, Dār al-Fikr, vol. 4, p. 188.
  4. ↑ Ṭayyib, Aṭyab al-bayān, 1369 Sh, vol. 8, p. 218.
  5. ↑ Jurjānī, Darj al-durar fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān al-ʿaẓīm, 1430 AH, vol. 1, p. 765; Ṭabāṭabāʾī, Tafsīr al-Mīzān, 1421 AH, vol. 9, p. 271.
  6. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, Tafsīr al-Mīzān, 1421 AH, vol. 9, p. 271.
  7. ↑ For example, see: Abū l-Futūḥ Rāzī, Rawḍ al-jinān wa rūḥ al-jinān fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān, 1408 AH, vol. 9, p. 243; Kāshānī, Manhaj al-ṣādiqīn, Tehran, vol. 4, p. 267; Ibn ʿĀshūr, al-Taḥrīr wa l-tanwīr, 1984, vol. 10, p. 189; Ṭabrasī, Tafsīr Jawāmiʿ al-jāmiʿ, 1412 AH, vol. 2, p. 54.
  8. ↑ Zamakhsharī, al-Kashshāf, 1407 AH, vol. 2, p. 270; Makārim, Tafsīr-i nimūna, 1371 Sh, vol. 7, p. 409.
  9. ↑ Abū l-Futūḥ Rāzī, Rawḍ al-jinān wa rūḥ al-jinān fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān, 1408 AH, vol. 9, p. 243; Ṭabrasī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, 1431 AH, vol. 5, p. 70.
  10. ↑ Makārim, Tafsīr-i nimūna, 1371 Sh, vol. 7, p. 409.
  11. ↑ Makārim, Tafsīr-i nimūna, 1371 Sh, vol. 7, p. 409.
  12. ↑ Ibn Saʿd, Tafsīr al-Qurʾān al-karīm, 1431 AH, vol. 2, p. 67.
  13. ↑ Thaʿlabī, al-Kashf wa l-bayān al-maʿrūf bi-tafsīr al-Thaʿlabī, 1422 AH, vol. 5, p. 45.
  14. ↑ Ṭabarī, Jāmiʿ al-bayān, 1412 AH, vol. 10, p. 93; Fakhr Rāzī, al-Tafsīr al-kabīr, 1420 AH, vol. 16, p. 45; Ibn ʿĀshūr, al-Taḥrīr wa l-tanwīr, 1984, vol. 10, p. 190.
  15. ↑ Fakhr Rāzī, al-Tafsīr al-kabīr, 1420 AH, vol. 16, p. 45.
  16. ↑ Ṭūsī, al-Tibyān fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān, Beirut, vol. 5, p. 216.
  17. ↑ Nahāwandī, Nafaḥāt al-raḥmān, 1386 Sh, vol. 3, p. 151; Ḥusaynī, Anwār-i drakhshān, 1380 AH, vol. 8, p. 11.
  18. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, Tafsīr al-Mīzān, 1421 AH, vol. 9, p. 271.
  19. ↑ Makārim, Tafsīr-i nimūna, 1371 Sh, vol. 7, p. 410.
  20. ↑ Ṭabrasī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, 1431 AH, vol. 5, p. 72.
  21. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān, 1421 AH, vol. 9, p. 272.
  22. ↑ Shāh ʿAbd al-ʿAẓīmī, Tafsīr-i ithnā ʿasharī, 1363 Sh, vol. 5, p. 88.
  23. ↑ Makārim, Tafsīr-i nimūna, 1371 Sh, vol. 7, p. 408.
  24. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, Tafsīr al-Mīzān, 1421 AH, vol. 9, p. 268; al-Durr al-manthūr, Dār al-Fikr, vol. 4, p. 185.

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