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Qur'an 14:26

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Qur'an 14:26
Verse's Information
SuraSura Ibrahim (Qur'an 14)
Verse26
Juz'13
AboutComparison of the "bad word" (kalima khabitha) to an impure tree


Qur'an 14:26 compares the "bad word" (kalima khabitha) to a bad tree that lacks stability and has no firm roots. The expression "bad word" has been interpreted as shirk, kufr, or speech involving disobedience to God.

Most exegetes have identified the "bad tree" (shajara khabitha) as the colocynth (hanzal), a plant traditionally described as having no firm roots. In some hadiths, the bad tree is identified with the Umayyads. Some exegetes, however, regard this interpretation as a specific instance of the expression's broader meaning, which includes people characterized by kufr and fisq. Sayyid Muhammad Taqi al-Mudarrisi, a Shi'a scholar and exegete, interprets the expression as referring to misguided partisan and tribal groups, citing Iraq's Ba'ath Party as an example from his time.

In some sources, such as Makarim al-akhlaq, reciting and writing this verse are recommended as remedies for certain diseases. Qur'an 14:26 follows Qur'an 14:24, in which the "good word" (kalima tayyiba) is compared to a pure and firmly rooted tree.

Introduction

In Qur'an 14:26, God compares the "bad word" to a bad tree that lacks stability. Exegetes have interpreted the expression as referring to concepts such as shirk, kufr, and sinful speech.[1] In some sources, such as Makarim al-akhlaq, reciting and writing this verse are recommended as remedies for certain diseases.[2]

At the beginning of Qur'an 14, God refers to the fate of the oppressors and the reward of the believers, and then illustrates spiritual concepts through tangible examples. In verses 24 and 25, the "good word" is compared to a pure and firmly rooted tree, whereas verse 26 contrasts it with the "bad word," which is likened to an unstable tree without firm roots.[3]

The Qur'an frequently uses tangible comparisons to explain intellectual concepts, making abstract meanings easier to understand.[4]

The Bad Word

In Qur'an 14:26, the word kalima does not refer merely to an utterance or spoken expression but also encompasses the meaning or content conveyed by it.[5] Shi'a and Sunni exegetes have interpreted the "bad word" as shirk, kufr, or any sinful speech.[6] Some Qur'anic commentaries interpret the expression as referring to the enemies of the Ahl al-Bayt (a).[7]

Nasir Makarim Shirazi, a Shi'a scholar and exegete, interprets the "bad word" broadly, including kufr, shirk, offensive speech, misleading programs, impure people, and anything considered undesirable.[8] Muhammad Jawad Mughniyya, a Shi'a exegete, also includes harmful speech by Muslims and non-Muslims, as well as silence in the face of falsehood, among its instances.[9]

This expression contrasts with the "good word" in Qur'an 14:24.[10] Other interpretations of the "good word" include traditions (sunan), commands, methods, and pure and blessed deeds.[11]

The Bad Tree

See also: Shajara Tayyiba

In Qur'an 14:26, the "bad tree" (shajara khabitha) is commonly identified with the colocynth (hanzal), a plant described in exegetical sources as lacking firm roots and stability.[12] Some exegetes, including Fakhr al-Razi, argue that the tree need not have a real-world counterpart, since its described characteristics are sufficient for the comparison.[13] This interpretation contrasts with that of the "good tree" (shajara tayyiba) in Qur'an 14:24, which most exegetes and hadith reports identify with the palm tree.[14]

In some hadiths, the bad tree is identified with the Umayyads.[15] Other exegetes, however, interpret it more broadly as referring to people characterized by kufr and fisq,[16] misguided groups such as the Ba'ath Party,[17] and even ignorance of God.[18]

The adjective khabitha ("bad" or "impure") refers to undesirable qualities, such as an unpleasant smell or taste, an unattractive appearance, or harmful effects.[19] At the end of the verse, the tree is described as having been uprooted from the earth and as having no stability.[20] Allama Tabataba'i interprets this description as indicating the tree's fruitlessness. Some exegetes also hold that righteous deeds performed by a disbeliever are not accepted.[21]

Notes

  1. ↑ Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i nimūna, vol. 10, p. 331; Ṭayyib, Aṭyab al-bayān, vol. 7, p. 384.
  2. ↑ Ṭabrisī, Makārim al-akhlāq, p. 384.
  3. ↑ Fayḍ al-Kāshānī, Tafsīr al-ṣāfī, vol. 3, p. 85; Kāshānī, Manhaj al-ṣādiqīn, vol. 5, p. 135.
  4. ↑ Faḍl Allāh, Min waḥy al-Qurʾān, vol. 13, p. 105; Sayyid Quṭb, Fī ẓilāl al-Qurʾān, vol. 4, p. 2098.
  5. ↑ Mudarrisī, Min hudā al-Qurʾān, vol. 5, p. 402.
  6. ↑ Ṭabrisī, Tafsīr Jawāmiʿ al-jāmiʿ, vol. 2, p. 248; Zamakhsharī, al-Kashshāf, vol. 2, p. 553; Maḥallī & Suyūṭī, Tafsīr al-Jalālayn, p. 262; Mughniyya, al-Tafsīr al-kāshif, vol. 4, p. 443.
  7. ↑ ʿAyyāshī, Tafsīr al-ʿAyyāshī, vol. 2, p. 225; Astarābādī, Taʾwīl al-āyāt al-ẓāhira, p. 247.
  8. ↑ Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i nimūna, vol. 10, p. 335.
  9. ↑ Mughniyya, al-Tafsīr al-kāshif, vol. 4, p. 444.
  10. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, Al-Mīzān, vol. 12, p. 52.
  11. ↑ Ṭabrisī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, vol. 6, p. 480; Qarāʾatī, Tafsīr-i nūr, vol. 1, p. 506; Faḍl Allāh, Min waḥy al-Qurʾān, vol. 13, p. 105; Mughniyya, al-Tafsīr al-kāshif, vol. 4, p. 443; Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i nimūna, vol. 10, p. 332.
  12. ↑ Ṭabrisī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, vol. 6, p. 481; Tustarī, Tafsīr al-Tustarī, p. 87; Ṭabarī, Jāmiʿ al-bayān, vol. 13, p. 140.
  13. ↑ Fakhr al-Rāzī, Mafātīḥ al-ghayb, vol. 19, p. 93.
  14. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān, vol. 12, pp. 51–52; Ālūsī, Rūḥ al-maʿānī, vol. 7, p. 202; Dīwbandī, Tafsīr-i Kābulī, vol. 3, p. 367.
  15. ↑ Ṭabrisī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, vol. 6, p. 481.
  16. ↑ Ṭayyib, Aṭyab al-bayān, vol. 7, p. 384.
  17. ↑ Mudarrisī, Min hudā al-Qurʾān, vol. 5, p. 403.
  18. ↑ Fakhr al-Rāzī, Mafātīḥ al-ghayb, vol. 19, p. 93.
  19. ↑ Fakhr al-Rāzī, Mafātīḥ al-ghayb, vol. 19, p. 93.
  20. ↑ Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i nimūna, vol. 10, p. 335.
  21. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān, vol. 12, p. 53; Thaʿlabī, al-Kashf wa l-bayān, vol. 5, p. 316.

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