Draft:Verse of Mashiyya
| Verse's Information | |
|---|---|
| Name | Verse of Mashiyya |
| Sura | al-Kahf (Qur'an 18) |
| Verse | 23-24 |
| Juz' | 15 |
| Content Information | |
| Cause of Revelation | Promise of the Prophet (s) to answer the Jews' question without saying Insha'Allah |
| Place of Revelation | Medina |
| Topic | Theological - Ethical |
| About | Dependence of performing actions on God's power and will |
Qur'an 18:23-24 are the twenty-third and twenty-fourth verses of Sura al-Kahf, commonly known as the Verse of Mashiyya.[1] These verses serve as a recommendation and advice to the Prophet (s), instructing him that whenever he intends to perform an action in the future, he should condition it upon God's will and permission by uttering the phrase "Insha'Allah".[2] According to the Shi'a exegete Allama Tabataba'i, regardless of whether these two verses are addressed exclusively to the Prophet (s) or to the general public, their underlying purpose is to assert that everything in the universe is owned by and under the absolute authority of God. He disposes of all matters as He wills; consequently, no one possesses anything or produces any effect unless God has granted them ownership or permission to act.[3]
| “ | وَلَا تَقُولَنَّ لِشَيْءٍ إِنِّي فَاعِلٌ ذَٰلِكَ غَدًا ﴿٢٣﴾ إِلَّا أَن يَشَاءَ اللَّهُ ۚ وَاذْكُر رَّبَّكَ إِذَا نَسِيتَ وَقُلْ عَسَىٰ أَن يَهْدِيَنِ رَبِّي لِأَقْرَبَ مِنْ هَٰذَا رَشَدًا ﴿٢٤﴾
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” |
| “ | Do not say about anything, ‘I will indeed do it tomorrow,’ without [adding], ‘if Allah wishes.’ And when you forget, remember your Lord, and say, ‘Maybe my Lord will guide me to [something] nearer to rectitude than this.’
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” |
| — Qur'an 18:23-24 | ||
The injunction to utter "Insha'Allah" in this verse is not considered a obligatory command; rather, it is advisory (Irshadi), meaning that omitting it does not constitute a sin. Furthermore, this practice protects an individual from inadvertently telling a lie should they ultimately lack the ability to complete the intended action.[4]
The verse is also referred to as the Verse of Istithna (Exception).[5] The concept of exception conveyed by "Insha'Allah" implies that the speaker is effectively declaring: "illa an yasha' Allah an la af'ala" (unless God wills that I do not do it). In other words, the individual commits to the action, provided God does not will otherwise.
Regarding the cause of revelation of this verse, historical accounts suggest that a group of Jews instructed the Meccan polytheists to question Muhammad (s) about Dhu l-Qarnayn, the Ruh al-Qudus (Holy Spirit), and the Companions of the Cave. Following their inquiry, the Prophet (s) promised to answer their questions the next day without appending the phrase "Insha'Allah." Consequently, according to certain narrations, Gabriel withheld revelation from the Prophet (s) for a period of forty or fifty days. This delay led the polytheists to mock the Prophet (s), claiming that his God had forgotten him. When the revelation eventually resumed with these verses, God admonished the Prophet (s) to always append "Insha'Allah" when announcing future intentions, thereby imparting a divine lesson in etiquette.[6]
Elsewhere in the Qur'an, the use of Insha'Allah is attributed to various prophets in different contexts. It is spoken by Joseph (a) concerning the arrival of his parents and brothers in Egypt,[7] by Ishmael (a) in response to the vision of Abraham (a) and his patience towards his divine mission,[8] and by Moses (a) regarding his resolve to maintain patience while accompanying Khidr (a).[9]
Notes
- ↑ Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i namūna, 1371 Sh, vol. 12, p. 384.
- ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān, 1390 AH, vol. 13, pp. 270-271.
- ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān, 1390 AH, vol. 13, pp. 270-271.
- ↑ Ṭabrsī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, 1372 Sh, vol. 6, p. 711.
- ↑ Daftar-i Tablīghāt-i ʿUlūm-i Islāmī, Farhang-nāma-yi ʿulūm-i Qurʾān, 1394 Sh, p. 223.
- ↑ Abū l-Futūḥ Rāzī, Rawḍ al-jinān, 1408 AH, vol. 12, p. 338; Suyūṭī, al-Durr al-manthūr, 1404 AH, vol. 4, p. 217; Ibn ʿĀshūr, al-Taḥrīr wa l-tanwīr, 1420 AH, vol. 15, p. 47; Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i namūna, 1371 Sh, vol. 12, p. 385.
- ↑ Qur'an 12:99.
- ↑ Qur'an 37:102.
- ↑ Qur'an 18:69.
References
- Ibn ʿĀshūr, Muḥammad Ṭāhir, Tafsīr al-taḥrīr wa l-tanwīr, Beirut, Muʾassasat al-Tārīkh al-ʿArabī, 1420 AH.
- Abū l-Futūḥ Rāzī, Ḥusayn b. ʿAlī, Rawḍ al-jinān wa rūḥ al-jinān fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān, ed. Muḥammad Mahdī Nāṣiḥ, Muḥammad Jaʿfar Yāḥaqqī, Mashhad, Āstān-i Quds-i Raḍawī, Bunyād-i Pazhūhishhā-yi Islāmī, 1408 AH.
- Huwayzī, ʿAbd ʿAlī b. Jumʿa, Tafsīr nūr al-thaqalayn, ed. Hāshim Rasūlī, Qom, Ismāʿīlīyān, 1415 AH.
- Daftar-i Tablīghāt-i ʿUlūm-i Islāmī, Farhang-nāma-yi ʿulūm-i Qurʾān, 1394 Sh.
- Suyūṭī, ʿAbd al-Raḥmān b. Abī Bakr, al-Durr al-manthūr fī l-tafsīr bi-l-maʾthūr, Qom, Kitābkhāna-yi ʿUmūmī-yi Ḥaḍrat-i Āyatullāh al-ʿUẓmā Marʿashī Najafī, 1404 AH.
- Ṭabāṭabāʾī, Sayyid Muḥammad Ḥusayn, al-Mīzān fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān, Beirut, Muʾassasat al-Aʿlamī lil-Maṭbūʿāt, 1390 AH.
- Ṭabrsī, Faḍl b. Ḥasan, Majmaʿ al-bayān, ed. Faḍl Allāh Ṭabāṭabāʾī Yazdī and Hāshim Rasūlī, Tehran, Nāṣir Khusraw, 1372 Sh.
- Kulaynī, al-Kāfī, ed. ʿAlī Akbar Ghaffārī and Muḥammad Ākhūndī, Tehran, Dār al-Kutub al-Islāmiyya, 1407 AH.
- Makārim Shīrāzī, Nāṣir, Tafsīr-i namūna, Tehran, Dār al-Kutub al-Islāmiyya, 1371 Sh.