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Qur'an 2:148

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Qur'an 2:148
Verse's Information
SuraSura al-Baqara (Qur'an 2)
Verse148
Juz'2
Content Information
Cause of
Revelation		Prohibition of entering into disputes with Jews and hypocrites regarding the Change of the Qibla
Place of
Revelation		Medina
TopicTheological and Jurisprudential
AboutChange of the Qibla; Gathering on the Day of Resurrection


Qur'an 2:148 speaks of God determining the Qibla for every nation and religious community according to its interests and circumstances. It also instructs Muslims not to engage in futile disputes over the Change of the Qibla that the Jews and hypocrites had stirred up. According to exegetes, the verse indicates that the Qibla is a conventional matter subject to the conditions of time and place, rather than an immutable ontological reality or a fixed principle of religion. In interpreting the word wijha (Arabic: وِجْهَةٌ), exegetes have suggested meanings beyond Qibla, including a way or method. In this broader interpretation, the word has also been associated with divine decree and destiny.

The verse urges Muslims to compete in doing good deeds rather than engage in verbal disputes over outward matters. Exegetes have interpreted khayrat (good deeds) as obedience to God or righteous deeds, while some hadiths interpret it as Islam or the wilayah of the Ahl al-Bayt (a). The end of the verse refers to God's power to bring all human beings together on the Day of Resurrection. This part of the verse has been given both an apparent and an inner interpretation. The apparent interpretation refers to the universal gathering on the Day of Resurrection, while many Shi'a hadiths interpret its inner meaning as the gathering of the Companions of Imam al-Mahdi (a) from across the world during the Era of Reappearance.

Every Nation Has a Qibla

Verse 148 of Sura al-Baqara has been interpreted as addressing the diversity of religious practices among communities, urging people to compete in doing good deeds, and affirming God's power to resurrect human beings.[1] It is said to have been revealed in response to the Jews, who had initiated disputes among Muslims over the Change of the Qibla.[2] Exegetes explain that the verse was revealed after the verses concerning the change of the Qibla to prevent Muslims from becoming embroiled in futile arguments about the matter. They also infer that God determines the Qibla for each community according to its circumstances and the requirements of its time and place. The Qibla is therefore a prescribed practice that may change, rather than an immutable ontological reality or one of the principles of religion.[3] Muhammad Jawad Mughniyya regards the insistence of the Jews and Christians on their own Qibla and way as particularly significant because, in his view, they were fully aware that their position was invalid.[4]

Sayyid Muhammad Taqi al-Mudarrisi, author of the Qur'anic commentary Min huda l-Qur'an, regards turning toward a Qibla, whether the Ka'ba or Bayt al-Maqdis, as an outward manifestation of worship that does not, by itself, guarantee salvation. Rather, he considers true worship—which entails submission to God and the performance of righteous deeds—to be among the factors that lead to human flourishing and salvation.[5]

Sayyid Muhammad Husayn Fadlallah, a Qur'anic exegete, understands the verse as addressing a social principle: every community builds its relationships with others on the basis of its intellectual and religious foundations, and this principle also applies to the Prophets. Therefore, Muslims should not allow the propaganda of the Jews and hypocrites concerning the Qibla to make them doubt the spiritual and moral teachings they received through the Prophet (s).[6] Fadlallah also explains that the verse refers to God's blessing upon Muslims, namely, the gradual completion of the Shari'a and the attainment of stability, security, and eventual victory.[7]

Qibla, Method, or Way

Exegetes have proposed several interpretations of the word wijha (Arabic: وِجْهَةٌ) in the phrase وَلِكُلٍّ وِجْهَةٌ هُوَ مُوَلِّيهَا ("For everyone there is a direction toward which he turns"), beyond its usual meaning of Qibla. For example, al-Tabrisi, citing several exegetes, gives interpretations that include the Qiblas of the Jews and Christians, the way or method followed by each prophet, and the different directions taken by various groups of Muslims while facing the Ka'ba.[8] The word has also been understood more broadly to mean a way or method. According to this interpretation, every group of people has a way toward which it is drawn. Some exegetes have associated this meaning of wijha with divine decree and destiny.[9]

Wilayah and Love for the Ahl al-Bayt (a) as Instances of Good Deeds

In the second part of Qur'an 2:148, God urges Muslims to compete with one another in doing good deeds. Exegetes explain that this instruction directs Muslims away from futile disputes with the Jews over the change of the Qibla and toward the substance of religion: striving to perform good deeds and thereby attaining spiritual and moral excellence.[10]

Exegetes have offered various interpretations of the word khayrat (Arabic: خَيْرَاتٌ; good deeds). These include obedience to God[11] and the performance of religious practices and rulings that help people attain what has been divinely ordained for them.[12] However, a number of hadiths interpret khayrat as Islam, wilayah, or love for the Ahl al-Bayt (a).[13]

The Gathering of the Companions of Imam al-Mahdi (a)

The final part of Qur'an 2:148 has been interpreted as referring to the Resurrection and God's power to resurrect human beings on the Day of Resurrection.[14] According to al-Tafsir al-kashif, the phrase أَيْنَ مٰا تَكُونُوا يَأْتِ بِكُمُ اَللّٰهُ ("Wherever you may be, God will bring you all together") refers to God's promise of reward for the obedient and His warning of punishment for the disobedient. The verse's affirmation of God's power to do all things, following this promise and warning, is taken as evidence of His power to bring people back to life after death and gather them for reckoning.[15]

However, a number of Shi'a hadiths state that this part of the verse refers to the gathering of the Companions of Imam al-Mahdi (a) from across the world at the time of his Reappearance.[16] Several hadiths supporting this interpretation are cited in Tafsir al-Burhan.[17] Nasir Makarim Shirazi explains that Qur'anic verses may have both an apparent and an inner meaning. In his view, the apparent meaning of this verse concerns God's power to resurrect human beings on the Day of Resurrection, while its inner meaning concerns the gathering of the Companions of Imam al-Mahdi (a) to establish a global government.[18]

Notes

  1. ↑ Riḍāʾī Iṣfahānī, Tafsīr-i Qurʾān-i Mihr, vol. 2, pp. 35–37.
  2. ↑ Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i nimūna, vol. 1, p. 501; Riḍāʾī Iṣfahānī, Tafsīr-i Qurʾān-i Mihr, vol. 2, p. 35.
  3. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān, vol. 1, p. 327; Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i nimūna, vol. 1, p. 501; Qurashī Bunābī, Tafsīr-i aḥsan al-ḥadīth, vol. 1, p. 275; Riḍāʾī Iṣfahānī, Tafsīr-i Qurʾān-i Mihr, vol. 2, p. 35.
  4. ↑ Mughniyya, al-Tafsīr al-kāshif, vol. 1, p. 235.
  5. ↑ Mudarrisī, Min hudā al-Qurʾān, vol. 1, p. 278.
  6. ↑ Faḍl Allāh, Min waḥy al-Qurʾān, vol. 1, pp. 496–497.
  7. ↑ Faḍl Allāh, Min waḥy al-Qurʾān, vol. 1, p. 497.
  8. ↑ Ṭabrisī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, vol. 1, p. 425.
  9. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān, vol. 1, p. 327; Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i nimūna, vol. 1, p. 504; Riḍāʾī Iṣfahānī, Tafsīr-i Qurʾān-i Mihr, vol. 2, p. 36; Qarāʾatī, Tafsīr-i nūr, vol. 1, p. 227.
  10. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān, vol. 1, p. 327; Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i nimūna, vol. 1, p. 501.
  11. ↑ Ṭabrisī, Majmaʿ al-bayān, vol. 1, p. 426.
  12. ↑ Ṭabāṭabāʾī, al-Mīzān, vol. 1, p. 327.
  13. ↑ Kulaynī, al-Kāfī, vol. 8, p. 313; Baḥrānī, al-Burhān, vol. 1, p. 349; Sharaf al-Dīn al-Astarābādī, Taʾwīl al-āyāt al-ẓāhira, p. 87.
  14. ↑ Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i nimūna, vol. 1, pp. 502–503; Qurashī Bunābī, Tafsīr-i aḥsan al-ḥadīth, vol. 1, p. 275; Riḍāʾī Iṣfahānī, Tafsīr-i Qurʾān-i Mihr, vol. 2, pp. 36–37.
  15. ↑ Mughniyya, al-Tafsīr al-kāshif, vol. 1, p. 236.
  16. ↑ Kulaynī, al-Kāfī, vol. 8, p. 313; Nuʿmānī, al-Ghayba, vol. 1, pp. 279–282; Majlisī, Biḥār al-anwār, vol. 52, p. 291.
  17. ↑ Baḥrānī, al-Burhān, vol. 1, pp. 347–354.
  18. ↑ Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i nimūna, vol. 1, pp. 503–504.

References

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