24. [an-Nur, Medina 102]

Creating SLANDERS

Asad’ version

24:10

AND WERE it not for God's favour upon you, [O man,] and His grace, and that God is a wise acceptor of repentance...!"

(24:11)

Verily, numerous among you are those who would falsely accuse others of unchastity: 12 [but, O you who are thus wronged,] deem it not a bad thing for you: nay, it is good for you! 13 [As for the slanderers,] unto every one of them [will be accounted] all that he has earned by [thus] sinning; and awesome suffering awaits any of them who takes it upon himself to enhance this [sin] ! "

[[Asad’s notes - 1 1 This sentence, which introduces the section dealing with the condemnation of all unfounded or unproven accusations of unchastity - as well as the similar sentence which closes it in verse 20 - is deliberately left incomplete, leaving it to man to imagine what would have happened to individual lives and to society if God had not ordained all the above-mentioned legal and moral safeguards against possibly false accusations, or if He had made a proof of adultery dependent on mere circumstantial evidence. This idea is further elaborated inverses 14-15.

12 Lit., "those who brought forth the lie (al-ifk, here denoting a false accusation of unchastity) are a numerous group ('usbah) among you" . The term 'usbah signifies any group of people, of indeterminate number, banded together for a particular purpose (Taj al-'Arus). - According to all the commentators, the passage comprising verses 1 1 -20 relates to an incident which occurred on the Prophet's return from the campaign against the tribe of Mustaliq in the year 5 H. The Prophet's wife 'A'ishah, who had accompanied him on that expedition, was inadvertently left behind when the Muslims struck camp before dawn. After having spent several hours alone, she was found by one of the Prophet's companions, who led her to the next halting-place of the army. This incident gave rise to malicious insinuations of misconduct on the part of A'ishah; but

these rumours were short-lived, and her innocence was established beyond all doubt. - As is the case with all Qur'anic allusions to historical events, this one, too, is primarily meant to bring out an ethical proposition valid for all times and all social circumstances: and this is the reason why the grammatical construction of the above passage is such that the past-tense verbs occurring inverses 11-16 can be - and, I believe, should be - understood as denoting the present tense.

1 3 I.e., in the sight of God: for, the unhappiness caused by unjust persecution confers - as does every undeserved and patiently borne suffering - a spiritual merit on the person thus afflicted. Cf. the saying of the Prophet, quoted by Bukhari and Muslim: "Whenever a believer is stricken with any hardship, or pain, or anxiety, or sorrow, or harm, or distress - even if it be a thorn that has hurt him - God redeems thereby some of his failings."]]

Ali’s version

إِنَّ الَّذِينَ جَاؤُوا بِالْإِفْكِ عُصْبَةٌ مِّنكُمْ...

24:11. Those who brought forward the lie are a body among yourselves:

C2962. The particular incident here referred to occurred on the return from the expedition to the Banui Mustaliq, A.H. 5-6.

When the march was ordered, Hadhrat Aisha was not in her tent, having gone to search for a valuable necklace she had dropped. As her litter was veiled, it was not noticed that she was not in it, until the army reached the next halt. Meanwhile, finding the camp had gone, she sat down to rest, hoping that some one would come back to fetch her when her absence was noticed.

It was night, and she fell asleep. Next morning she was found by Safwan, a Muhajir, who had been left behind the camp expressly to pick up anything inadvertently left behind. He put her on his camel and brought her, leading the camel on foot.

This gave occasion to enemies to raise a malicious scandal. The ringleader among them was the chief of Madinah Hypocrites, Abdullah ibn Ubai, who is referred to in the last clause of this verse.

He had other sins and enormities to his debit, and he was left to the punishment of an unrepentant sinner, for he died in that state. The minor tools were given the legal punishment of the law, and after penitence mended their lives. They made good.

...لَا تَحْسَبُوهُ شَرًّا لَّكُم بَلْ هُوَ خَيْرٌ لَّكُمْ...

think it not to be an evil to you: on the contrary it is good for you:

C2963. It is worse for a scandal to be whispered about with bated breath, than that it should be brought into the light of day and disproved.

...لِكُلِّ امْرِئٍ مِّنْهُم مَّا اكْتَسَبَ مِنَ الْإِثْمِ...

to every man among them (will come the punishment) of the sin that he earned,

...وَالَّذِي تَوَلَّى كِبْرَهُ مِنْهُمْ لَهُ عَذَابٌ عَظِيمٌ ﴿١١﴾

and to him who took on himself the lead among them, will be a Penalty grievous.

C2964. The ringleader: see n. 2962 above.

Yuksel’s version

24:6 Those who accuse their wives, but they have no witnesses except for themselves, then the testimony of one of them is to be equivalent to that of four witnesses if he is swearing by God that he is being truthful.

24:7 The fifth shall be God's curse upon him if he is one of those lying.

24:8 The punishment will be averted from her if she testifies four times by God that he is of the liars.

24:9 The fifth shall be that God's curse is upon her if he is speaking the truth.

24:10 All this is from God's favor upon you and His mercy. God is Forgiving, Wise.

24:11 Those who have brought forth the false accusation were a group from within you. Do not think it is bad for you, for it is good for you. Every person amongst them will have what he deserves of the sin. As for he who had the greatest portion of it, he will have a great retribution.*

24:12 If only when you heard it the acknowledging men and women should have thought good of themselves and said: "This is an obvious lie!"

24:13 If only they had brought four witnesses to it. If they did not have the witnesses, then these with God are the liars.

[[*024:011 By not mentioning the person's name in this historical event, the Quran wants to keep its universal application clear. See 111:1 ]]

24:12 [an-Nur, Medina 102]

Why do not the believing men and women, whenever such [a rumour] is heard, 15 think the best of one another and say, "This is an obvious falsehood"? (24:13) Why do they not [demand of the accusers 16 that they] produce four witnesses to prove their allegation? 17 - for, if they do not produce such witnesses, it is those [accusers] who, in the sight of God, are liars indeed!

24:14

And were it not for God's favour upon you, [O men,] and His grace in this world and in the life to come, awesome suffering would indeed have afflicted you 18 in result of all [the calumny] in which you indulge

24:15 [an-Nur, Medina 102]

(24:15) when you take it up with your tongues, uttering with your mouths something of which you have no knowledge, and deeming it a light matter whereas in the sight of God it is an awful thing!

Ith talaqqawnahu bi-alsinatikum wataqooloona bi-afwahikum ma laysa lakum bihi AAilmun watahsaboonahu hayyinan wahuwa AAinda Allahi AAatheemun

إِذْ تَلَقَّوْنَهُ بِأَلْسِنَتِكُمْ وَتَقُولُونَ بِأَفْوَاهِكُم مَّا لَيْسَ لَكُم بِهِ عِلْمٌ...

15. Behold, ye received it on your tongues, and said out of your mouths things of which ye had no knowledge;

...وَتَحْسَبُونَهُ هَيِّنًا وَهُوَ عِندَ اللَّهِ عَظِيمٌ ﴿١٥﴾

and ye thought it to be a light matter, while it was most serious in the sight of Allah.

C2968. There are three things here reprobated by way of moral teaching:

1. if others speak an evil word, that is no reason why you should allow it to defile your tongue;

2. if you get a thought or suspicion which is not based on your certain knowledge, do not give it currency by giving it expression; and

3. others may think it is a small matter to speak lightly of something which blasts a person's character or reputation: in the eyes of Allah it is a most serious matter in any case, but specially when it involves the honour and reputation of pious women.

24:16

And [once again]: Why do you not say, whenever you hear such [a rumour], "It does not behoove us to speak of this, O Thou who art limitless in Thy glory: this is an awesome calumny"? 18 '

(24: 17) God admonishes you [hereby] lest you ever revert to the like of this [sin], if you are [truly] believers;

(24: 18) for God makes [His] messages clear unto you - and God is all-knowing, wise!

[[Asad’s notes -

18 Sc, "yourselves and your whole society" . With this and the next verse the discourse returns to,

and elaborates, the idea touched upon in verse 10 and explained in note 1 1 .

19 The interjection subhanaka ("O Thou who art limitless in Thy glory") stresses here the believer's moral duty to bethink himself of God whenever he is tempted to listen to, or to repeat, a calumny (since every such rumour must be considered a calumny unless its truth is legally Proved). ]]

24:19

(19) Verily, as for those who like [to hear] foul slander 20 spread against [any of] those who have attained to faith - grievous suffering awaits them in this world 21 and in the life to come: for God knows [the full truth], whereas you know [it] not. 22

24:20

And were it not for God's favour upon you and His grace, and that God is compassionate, a dispenser of grace...

(24:21) O YOU who have attained to faith! Follow not Satan's footsteps: for he who follows Satan's foot steps [will find that], behold, he enjoins but deeds of abomination and all that runs counter to reason. 24 And were it not for God's favour upon you and His grace, not one of you would ever have remained pure. For [thus it is:] it is God who causes whomever He wills to grow in purity: for God is all-hearing, all-knowing.

(24:22) Hence, [even if they have been wronged by slander,]

let not those of you who have been graced with [God's] favour and ease of life ever become remiss in helping 25 [the erring ones among] their near of kin, and the needy, and those who have forsaken the domain of evil for the sake of God, 26 but let them pardon and forbear. [For,] do you not desire that God should forgive you your sins, seeing that God is much-forgiving, a dispenser of grace? 27

[[ Asad’s notes -

20 The term fahishah signifies anything that is morally reprehensible or abominable: hence, "immoral conduct" in the widest sense of this expression. In the above context it refers to unfounded or unproven allegations of immoral conduct, in other words, "foul slander" .

21 I.e., the legal punishment as stipulated inverse 4 of this surah.

22 This Qur'anic warning against slander and, by obvious implication, against any attempt at seeking out other people's faults finds a clear echo in several well-authenticated sayings of the Prophet: "Beware of all guesswork [about one another], for, behold, all [such] guesswork is most deceptive (akdhab al-hadith); and do not spy upon one another, and do not try to bare [other people's] failings" (Muwatta 1 ); almost identical versions of this Tradition have been quoted by Bukhari, Muslim and

Abu Da'ud); "Do not hurt those who have surrendered themselves to God (al-muslimin), and do not impute evil to them, and do not try to uncover their nakedness [i.e., their faults] : for, behold, if anyone tries to uncover his brother's nakedness, God will uncover his own nakedness [on the Day of Judgment]" (Tirimidhi); and, "Never does a believer draw a veil over the nakedness of another believer without God's drawing a veil over his own nakedness on Resurrection Day" (Bukhari). All these injunctions have received their seal, as it were, in the Qur'anic exhortation: "Avoid most guesswork [about one another] - for, behold, some of [such] guesswork is [in itself] a sin"

(49:12).

23 See verse 10 of this surah and the corresponding note 11.

24 In this context, the term al-munkar has apparently the same meaning as in 16:90 (explained in the corresponding note 109) since, as the sequence shows, it clearly relates to the unreasonable self-righteousness of so many people who "follow Satan's footsteps" by imputing moral failings to others and forgetting that it is only due to God's grace that man, in his inborn weakness, can ever remain pure.

25 Or: "Swear that [henceforth] they would not help [lit., "give to"] , etc. Both these meanings - "he swore [that]" and "he became remiss [in]" - are attributable to the verb ala; which appears in the above sentence in the form ya'tal. My rendering is based on the interpretation given to this verb by the great philologist Abu al-Qasim al-Harawi (cf Lane I, 84). ]]