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Draft:Verse 3 of Sura al-Tahrim

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Verse 3 of Sura al-Tahrim
Verse's Information
Suraal-Tahrim (Qur'an 66)
Verse3
Juz'28
Content Information
Cause of
Revelation		Disclosure of the Prophet's (s) secret to one of his wives
Place of
Revelation		Medina
Related VersesQur'an 66:1, Qur'an 66:2, Qur'an 66:4, Qur'an 66:5


Qur'an 66:3 discusses a confidential matter that the Messenger of God (s) entrusted to one of his wives, which she subsequently disclosed.
Various sources identify this secret as the Prophet's oath to abstain from consuming honey, while others suggest it was his vow to cease intercourse with his wife, Mariya al-Qibtiyya. Additionally, certain Shi'a commentaries assert that the secret involved foretelling the future caliphates of Abu Bakr and 'Umar. The majority of exegetes identify the wife who divulged the secret as either Hafsa or A'isha.

Introduction

Classified among the Madani verses,[1] Qur'an 66:3 addresses a breach of trust wherein the Prophet confided a secret to one of his wives, who then revealed it to another. The verse notes that the Prophet subsequently confronted her regarding this indiscretion.[2]

What Secret Did the Prophet Share with His Wife?

The cause of revelation and the exact nature of the secret confided by the Prophet are the subjects of diverse accounts across both Shi'a and Sunni commentaries.[3] However, the prominent exegete 'Allama Tabataba'i argued that many of these historical reports do not align seamlessly with the opening verses of this sura.[4]

Abandoning Honey

Several commentaries posit that the Prophet's secret was his oath to abstain from honey. According to Majma' al-bayan, Hafsa had received a jar of honey, which she would serve to the Prophet to prolong his visits in her quarters. Displeased by this, A'isha conspired with other wives of the Prophet, agreeing that whenever he approached them, they would remark, "We smell the scent of Maghafir" (a foul-smelling tree sap). Consequently, whichever wife the Prophet visited, he encountered the same complaint. Being highly sensitive to unpleasant odors, the Prophet swore an oath to A'isha that he would never consume honey again,[5] instructing her to keep the matter strictly confidential.[6] Alternative exegeses suggest the honey was consumed in the home of Zaynab bt. Jahsh, Umm Salama, or Sawda bt. Zam'a, and that A'isha and Hafsa orchestrated the plot, resulting in the Prophet swearing the oath to Hafsa instead.[7] The contemporary commentary Tafsir-i namuna considers this version of events to be the most widely known and contextually plausible.[8]

Abandoning Intercourse with Mariya

Other reports indicate that the Prophet's secret was a vow to abstain from intimacy with Mariya al-Qibtiyya. Shaykh Tabrisi recounts an incident where the Prophet (s) was intimate with Mariya in Hafsa's quarters during her absence. Upon discovering this, Hafsa protested vehemently. To placate her, the Prophet swore an oath that he would no longer engage in relations with Mariya, strictly forbidding Hafsa from sharing this information.[9] Related accounts suggest that the Prophet (s) made intimacy with Mariya haram (forbidden) for himself either at Hafsa's direct insistence or following a threat from A'isha declaring she would never look at him again.[10]

Caliphate of Abu Bakr and Umar

Other historical sources assert that the Prophet's secret was a confidential prophecy regarding the caliphates of Abu Bakr and 'Umar. 'Ali b. Ibrahim al-Qummi, a prominent Shi'a hadith scholar and exegete, records in his commentary book that after swearing to cease relations with Mariya al-Qibtiyya, the Prophet confided another secret to Hafsa: that Abu Bakr, followed by 'Umar, would succeed him in the caliphate. He implored Hafsa to conceal this revelation. However, she immediately relayed it to A'isha. Consequently, Abu Bakr and 'Umar learned of the prophecy and allegedly conspired to poison the Prophet, an event that precipitated the revelation of these verses.[11]

In interpreting the phrase "arrafa ba'dahu wa a'rada 'an ba'd" (he made known part of it and turned aside from part), some exegetes argue that the Prophet confronted Hafsa specifically about disclosing the matter of Mariya al-Qibtiyya, while deliberately ignoring her disclosure of the prophecy regarding the caliphate. They interpret this selective confrontation as a profound demonstration of the Prophet's magnanimity.[12] 'Allama Tabataba'i, however, rejects this interpretation, arguing that it contradicts true magnanimity. He contends that, practically speaking, the incident with Mariya al-Qibtiyya (a strictly private matter) should have remained concealed, whereas the matter of the caliphate (a critical social and political issue) ought to have been publicly disclosed.[13] As previously noted, Tabataba'i concludes that these historical reports do not adequately align with the opening verses of Sura al-Tahrim.[14]

Notes

  1. ↑ Maʿrifat, Āmūzish-i ʿulūm-i Qurʾān, 1371 Sh, vol. 2, p. 168.
  2. ↑ Qur'an 66:3.
  3. ↑ For example, see Ṭabrsī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, 1382 Sh, vol. 10, p. 471; Zamakhsharī, al-Kashshāf, 1407 AH, vol. 4, pp. 562-563; Suyūṭī, al-Durr al-manthūr, 1404 AH, vol. 6, p. 239; Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i namūna, 1374 Sh, vol. 24, p. 271.
  4. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān, 1417 AH, vol. 19, pp. 337-338.
  5. ↑ Ṭabrsī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, 1382 Sh, vol. 10, p. 471.
  6. ↑ Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i namūna, 1374 Sh, vol. 24, p. 271.
  7. ↑ Ṭabrsī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, 1382 Sh, vol. 10, p. 471; Zamakhsharī, al-Kashshāf, 1407 AH, vol. 4, p. 563; Suyūṭī, al-Durr al-manthūr, 1404 AH, vol. 6, p. 239; Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i namūna, 1374 Sh, vol. 24, p. 271.
  8. ↑ Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i namūna, 1374 Sh, vol. 24, p. 271.
  9. ↑ Ṭabrsī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, 1382 Sh, vol. 10, pp. 471-472.
  10. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān, Manshūrāt Ismāʿīlīyān, vol. 19, p. 338.
  11. ↑ Qummī, Tafsīr al-Qummī, 1404 AH, vol. 2, pp. 375-376.
  12. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān, 1417 AH, vol. 19, p. 338.
  13. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān, 1417 AH, vol. 19, p. 339.
  14. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān, 1417 AH, vol. 19, pp. 337-338.

References

  • Zamakhsharī, Maḥmūd, al-Kashshāf ʿan ḥaqāʾiq ghawāmiḍ al-tanzīl, Beirut, Dār al-Kitāb al-ʿArabī, 3rd edition, 1407/1987.
  • Suyūṭī, ʿAbd al-Raḥmān, al-Durr al-manthūr fī l-tafsīr bi-l-maʾthūr, Qom, Kitābkhāna-yi ʿUmūmī-yi Ḥaḍrat-i Āyatullāh Marʿashī Najafī, 1st edition, 1404/1984.
  • Ṭabāṭabāʾī, Sayyid Muḥammad Ḥusayn, al-Mīzān fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān, Qom, Daftar-i Intishārāt-i Islāmī, 5th edition, 1417/1996.
  • Ṭabrsī, Faḍl b. Ḥasan, Majmaʿ al-bayān fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān, intro. Muḥammad Jawād Balāghī, Tehran, Nāṣir Khusraw, 3rd edition, 1382/2003-04.
  • Qummī, ʿAlī b. Ibrāhīm, Tafsīr al-Qummī, ed. Sayyid Ṭayyib Mūsawī Jazāyirī, Qom, Dār al-Kitāb, 3rd edition, 1404/1984.
  • Maʿrifat, Muḥammad Hādī, Āmūzish-i ʿulūm-i Qurʾān, Qom, Markaz-i Chāp wa Nashr-i Sāzmān-i Tablīghāt-i Islāmī, 1st edition, 1371/1992-93.
  • Makārim Shīrāzī, Nāṣir, Tafsīr-i namūna, Tehran, Dār al-Kutub al-Islāmiyya, 1st edition, 1374/1995-96.
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