A Warning For Such As Have Eyes To See.

هُوَ الَّذِي أَخْرَجَ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا مِنْ أَهْلِ الْكِتَابِ مِن دِيَارِهِمْ لِأَوَّلِ الْحَشْرِ مَا ظَنَنتُمْ أَن يَخْرُجُوا وَظَنُّوا أَنَّهُم مَّانِعَتُهُمْ حُصُونُهُم مِّنَ اللَّهِ فَأَتَاهُمُ اللَّهُ مِنْ حَيْثُ لَمْ يَحْتَسِبُوا وَقَذَفَ فِي قُلُوبِهِمُ الرُّعْبَ يُخْرِبُونَ بُيُوتَهُم بِأَيْدِيهِمْ وَأَيْدِي الْمُؤْمِنِينَ فَاعْتَبِرُوا يَا أُولِي الْأَبْصَارِ

059:002 "It is He who got out the disbelievers among the people of the Book from their homes at the first gathering of the forces. Little did you think that they would get out and they thought that their fortresses would protect them from Allah; but the wrath of Allah came to them from quarters from which they little expected it and cast terror in their hearts so that they destroyed their dwellings by their own hands and the hands of the believers. So do take warning you people with eyesight."

Allah (SWT) orders people at the end of this Holy verse to take warning; hence we aim at reminding the Muslims with this Holy verse.

"It is He who got out the disbelievers from among the people of the Book from their homes.", i.e. it is Allah (SWT) Who achieved the victory for you and expelled the Kuffar, not only your own strength. Those were the Jews of Bani Nadhir. Ibnu Abbas (R) used to refer to Surah Al-Hashr as being the Surah of Bani Nadhir, as reported by Bukhari. The Surah of Al-Hashr has as a whole been revealed concerning the raid on Bani Nadhir. Ibnu Is'haq reported in the Sira that the raid on Bani Nadhir took place in the month of Rabi'i Al-Awwal in the fourth year after Hijra. Bukahri reported that it took place six months after the battle of Badr; it seems that what Ibnu Is'haq mentioned is in fact sounder.

There had been a treaty between the Messenger of Allah (SAW) and Bani , and Amr Ibnu Umayyah Al-Dhumri,one of the companions of the Messenger of Allah (SAW), had killed two men from Bani Amer without knowing that they had signed a treaty with the Messenger of Allah (SAW). Hence the Messenger of Allah (SAW) decided to pay their blood money and set off to Bani Nadhir to seek their assistance in paying the blood money; their homes was to the east of Madinah few miles away. They said: Yes Abul Qasim, we shall help you. Then they started holding separate meetings among themselves and the Messenger of Allah (SAW) noticed their worrying behaviour while he was sitting with his companions, Abu Bakr, Omar, Ali Ibnu Abi Talib (R) against a wall; so the Messenger of Allah (SAW) stood up and pretended that he wanted to do something. When he failed to return his companions got up and started looking for him and then they learnt that he (SAW) returned to Madinah. In another narration it is reported that the Revelation came to him (SAW) from Allah (SWT) that Bani conspired to throw a rock over him from the roof while he was leaning against the wall. So he (SAW) prapared his army and went out to besiege them as punishment for their conspiracy and their violation of the treaty. Their fortresses were known to be impregnable and their force was such that the Muslims did not think that they would be able to get them out of their fortresses, and they themselves used to think tha their fortresses and their force was invincible. During the siege, Abdullah Ibnu Ubay (the hypocrite) sent to Bani exhorting them to resist and that he would not abandon them.

"To the first gathering": This was the first gathering of those Jews. Some commentators understood from the Holy verse that the land they went to is the land of gathering in the Day of Judgement i.e. the land of Al-Sham, for one part of them went to Athra'at known today as Dara'a and the other part went to Khaybar, while the second gathering will be in the Day of judgement.

"Little did you think that they would get out.". Allah (SWT) describes how the Muslims did not think that the Jews would get out.

"And they thought that their fortresses would protect them." Allah (SWT) describes here the Jews and how they felt secure about their force. So what happened?

"But the wrath of Allah came to them from quarters little did they know about and cast terror in their hearts."

This is where the lesson must be learnt. Allah (SWT) is capable of conducting matters in a way that turns all the criteria and equations upside down, and also He (SWT) is capable of changing the concepts and convictions, and transforming bravery into cowardice, and peace of mind into terror or vice-versa. Allah (SWT) does what He wants within the norms of the universe, hence things would seem natural after they occur, though he who ponders over these things would think that they are very remote before they have occured.

"They destroyed their dwellings with their own hands." This means that when the siege around them intensified and no help came to them from the hypocrites, they decided to surrender and the siege lasted six days only, for terror had crept into their hearts. Then the Messenger of Allah (SAW) made peace with them on his own terms: That he would spare their lives, that they would leave their land and their homes to be banished to Athra'at (Dara'a) in Al-Sham. He (SAW) allowed for each three of them one camel and some water. In another narration it was reported that they were allowed to take with them what the camels could carry in terms of monies and provisions except for their weapons. Hence some of them destroyes their homes with their own hand so that he could take with him a door or a pillar or similar.

"And the hands of the believers", means that the Muslims continued the destroying of the Jews' homes.

"So take warning o you people with eyesight." Similar to this Aya would be Allah's (SWT) saying in Surah Aal Imran:


قَدْ كَانَ لَكُمْ آيَةٌ فِي فِئَتَيْنِ الْتَقَتَا فِئَةٌ تُقَاتِلُ فِي سَبِيلِ اللّهِ وَأُخْرَى كَافِرَةٌ يَرَوْنَهُم مِّثْلَيْهِمْ رَأْيَ الْعَيْنِ وَاللّهُ يُؤَيِّدُ بِنَصْرِهِ مَن يَشَاء إِنَّ فِي ذَلِكَ لَعِبْرَةً لَّأُوْلِي الأَبْصَارِ

003:013 "There has already been a sign for you in the two armies who met in combat: One was fighting in the way of Allah, the other resisting Allah, these saw with their own eyes, twice their number, but Allah does support with HIS aid whom He pleases. In this is a warning for such as have eyes to see."

Our final Dua:

لاَ يُكَلِّفُ اللّهُ نَفْسًا إِلاَّ وُسْعَهَا لَهَا مَا كَسَبَتْ وَعَلَيْهَا مَا اكْتَسَبَتْ رَبَّنَا لاَ تُؤَاخِذْنَا إِن نَّسِينَا أَوْ أَخْطَأْنَا رَبَّنَا وَلاَ تَحْمِلْ عَلَيْنَا إِصْرًا كَمَا حَمَلْتَهُ عَلَى الَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِنَا رَبَّنَا وَلاَ تُحَمِّلْنَا مَا لاَ طَاقَةَ لَنَا بِهِ وَاعْفُ عَنَّا وَاغْفِرْ لَنَا وَارْحَمْنَآ أَنتَ مَوْلاَنَا فَانصُرْنَا عَلَى الْقَوْمِ الْكَافِرِينَ


Tia Bughale

29/06/2006

Freelance Activist