Al-Musabbihat
Al-Musabbiḥāt (Arabic: الْمُسَبِّحَاتِ) are suras which begin with glorification of God. Based on the famous viewpoint, al-Musabbihat are seven suras of Qur'an 17 (al-Isra'), Qur'an 57 (al-Hadid), Qur'an 59 (al-Hashr), Qur'an 61 (al-Saff), Qur'an 62 (al-Jumu'a), Qur'an 64 (al-Taghabun) and Qur'an 87 (al-A'la). But, some scholars considered the number of al-Musabbihat five or nine suras. Discussing the principles of religion in Shi'a Islam is one of the common features of al-Musabbihat. Based on some hadiths, the Prophet (s) used to recite al-Musabbihat suras every night before sleeping.
Meaning
Al-Musabbihat are suras which begin with glorification of God. "Tasbih" of God means saying that He is away from any badness or ugliness. "Al-Musabbihat" is not a new term in the Qur'anic sciences, but this term was used in historical and hadith sources since the time of revelation of the Qur'an and following centuries.
Number of al-Musabbihat
In hadiths which mentioned the merits of al-Musabbihat, the names of these suras are not mentioned; therefore, there is different views about the numbers of al-Musabbihat suras among jurists, exegetes and researchers of the Qur'anic sciences. There are three views in this regard:
- The famous view, seven suras: Based on the famous view, al-Musabbihat are seven suras of Qur'an 17 (al-Isra'), Qur'an 57 (al-Hadid), Qur'an 59 (al-Hashr), Qur'an 61 (al-Saff), Qur'an 62 (al-Jumu'a), Qur'an 64 (al-Taghabun) and Qur'an 87 (al-A'la).[1]
- The view of Allama al-Majlisi and Allama Tabataba'i, five suras: Allama al-Majlisi and Allama Tabataba'i believe that suras beginning either with the past form of the verb "sabbah-a", (Arabic: سَبَّحَ) or its present form "Yusabbih-u" (Arabic: یُسَبِّحُ) are al-Musabbihat suras; thus, only the five suras of Qur'an 57, Qur'an 59, Qur'an 61, Qur'an 62 and Qur'an 64 are called al-Musabbihat.[2] Makarim Shirazi ,too, has accepted this view.[3]
- View of Ayatullah Ma'rifat, nine suras: Muhammad Hadi Ma'rifat, among contemporary scholars of the Qur'an considered the number of al-Musabbihat as nine suras. He considered al-Musabbihat, including the two suras of Qur'an 25 (al-furqan) and Qur'an 67 (al-Mulk) as well as the seven famous suras.[4] These two suras do not begin with glorification of God.[5]
Common Features
Al-Musabbihat have common features and messages such as the following:
- Including the five principles of religion in Shi'a Islam: Messages of al-Musabbihat include the five principles of religion in Shi'a Islam, i.e. Unity of God, the prophethood, the hereafter, the justice and the imamate.[6]
- The central role of Qur'an 17 on other al-Musabbihat: Some scholars of the Qur'anic sciences believe that with regards to the messages of al-Musabbihat, there is a special relation between them and Qur'an 17 and it is the center among al-Musabbihat. Based on this view, the seven al-Musabbihat suras are like a book, the introduction of which is Qur'an 17 and the other five suras are like the chapters of the book and Qur'an 87 is like its conclusion.[7]
- Time coverage: The third feature of al-Musabbihat is about the order of their revelation so that, they almost cover all the period of the Prophet's (s) mission. Sura al-A'la is the seventh. Qur'an 17 was revealed in Mecca and was the fiftieth sura and Qur'an 57, Qur'an 59, Qur'an 61, Qur'an 62 and Qur'an 64 were revealed in Medina ordered 94th to 110th suras of the Qur'an.[8]
Merits
- A verse better than a thousand verses: In authentic sources, it is reported that the Prophet (s) used to recite al-Musabbihat suras every night before sleeping and said, "There is a verse in al-Musabbihat better than a thousand verse."[9]
- Meeting Imam al-Mahdi (a) and being resurrected with the Prophet (s): In a hadith from Imam al-Baqir (a), it is mentioned, "One who recites al-Musabbihat before sleeping would meet Imam al-Mahdi (a) before dying and if he dies, he will be with the Prophet (s)."[10]
Notes
- ↑ Suyūṭī, al-Itqān fī ʿulūm al-Qurʾān, vol. 3, p. 361; Zarkashī, al-Burhān fī ʿulūm al-Qurʾān, vol. 1, p. 254.
- ↑ Majlisī, Mirʾāt al-ʿuqūl, vol. 12, p. 508; Ṭabāṭabāyī, al-Mīzān, vol. 19, p. 123.
- ↑ Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i Nimūna, vol. 23, p. 292.
- ↑ Maʿrifat, al-Tamhīd, vol. 5, p. 293.
- ↑ Qurʾān, 25:1; 67:1.
- ↑ Āl-i Rasūl & Iʿtiṣāmī, "Sura shināsī-yi musābbiḥāt", p. 52.
- ↑ Āl-i Rasūl & Iʿtiṣāmī, "Sura shināsī-yi musābbiḥāt", p. 52.
- ↑ Āl-i Rasūl & Iʿtiṣāmī, "Sura shināsī-yi musābbiḥāt", p. 52.
- ↑ Suyūṭī, al-Durr al-manthūr, vol. 6, p. 170; Qurṭubī, al-Jāmiʿ li-aḥkām al-Qurʾān, p. 235.
- ↑ Ṣadūq, Thawāb al-aʿmāl, p. 138.
References
- Āl-i Rasūl, Sūsan & Iʿtiṣāmī, Zahrā. 1389 Sh. "Sura shināsī-yi musābbiḥāt." Faṣlnāma-yi Fadak 1:29-54.
- Majlisī, Muḥammad Bāqir al-. Mirʾāt al-ʿuqūl fī sharḥ akhbār Āl al-Rasūl. Second edition. Tehran: Dār al-Kutub al-Islāmīyya, 1363 Sh.
- Makārim Shīrāzī, Nāṣir. Tafsīr-i Nimūna. Twelfth edition. Tehran: Dār al-Kutub al-Islāmīyya, 1371 Sh.
- Maʿrifat, Muḥammad Hādī. Al-Tamhīd fī ʿulūm al-Qurʾān. Second edition. Qom: Daftar-i Nashr-i Islāmī, 1416 AH.
- Qurṭubī, Muḥammad b. Aḥmad al-. Al-Jāmiʿ li-aḥkām al-Qurʾān. Tehran: Nāṣir Khusru, 1364 Sh.
- Ṣadūq, Muḥammad b. Muḥammad al-. Thawāb al-aʿmāl wa ʿiqāb al-aʿmāl. Edited by ʿAlī Akbar Ghaffārī. Second edition. Tehran: Intishārāt-i Sadūq, 1373 Sh.
- Suyūṭī, Jalāl al-Dīn al-. Al-Durr al-manthūr fī tafsīr bi-l-maʾthūr. Beirut: Dār al-Fikr, [n.d].
- Suyūṭī, Jalāl al-Dīn al-. Al-Itqān fī ʿulūm al-Qurʾān. Second edition. Qom: Manshūrāt al-Raḍī, 1363 Sh.
- Ṭabāṭabāyī, Sayyid Muḥammad Ḥusayn al-. Al-Mīzān fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān. Fifth edition. Beirut: Muʾassisat al-Aʿlamī, 1403 AH.
- Zarkashī, Muḥammad b. ʿAbd Allāh al-. Al-Burhān fī ʿulūm al-Qurʾān. Second edition. Beirut: Dār al-Maʿrifa, 1415 AH.