Tafsir of Surah Fussilat - Verse 7

The Call to Tawhid Allah says,

قُلْ

(Say) `O Muhammad, to these disbelievers and idolators,'

إِنَّمَآ أَنَاْ بَشَرٌ مِّثْلُكُمْ يُوحَى إِلَىَّ أَنَّمَآ إِلَـهُكُمْ إِلَـهٌ وَاحِدٌ

(I am only a human being like you. It is revealed to me that your God is One God,) `not like these idols and false gods which you worship. Allah is one God,'

فَاسْتَقِيمُواْ إِلَيْهِ

(therefore take straight path to Him) means, `worship Him Alone sincerely, in accordance with what He has commanded you through His Messengers.'

وَاسْتَغْفِرُوهُ

(and seek forgiveness of Him) means, `for your past sins.'

وَوَيْلٌ لِّلْمُشْرِكِينَ

(And woe to the polytheists.) means, doom and destruction is their lot.

الَّذِينَ لاَ يُؤْتُونَ الزَّكَوةَ

(Those who give not the Zakah) `Ali bin Abi Talhah reported from Ibn `Abbas that this means those who do not bear witness that there is no God except Allah. This was also the view of `Ikrimah. This is like the Ayat:

قَدْ أَفْلَحَ مَن زَكَّـهَا - وَقَدْ خَابَ مَن دَسَّـهَا

(Indeed he succeeds who purifies himself. And indeed he fails who corrupts himself.) (91:9-10) And;

قَدْ أَفْلَحَ مَن تَزَكَّى - وَذَكَرَ اسْمَ رَبِّهِ فَصَلَّى

(Indeed whosoever purifies himself shall achieve success. And remembers (glorifies) the Name of his Lord, and prays.) (87:14-15) And;

فَقُلْ هَل لَّكَ إِلَى أَن تَزَكَّى

(And say to him: "Would you purify yourself") (79:18) What is meant by Zakah here is purification of the soul, ridding oneself of all bad qualities, the worst of which is Shirk. The Zakah paid on one's wealth is so called because it purifies wealth, and it is a means of increasing it, blessing it and making it more beneficial, and a means of assisting one to use it in doing good deeds. Qatadah said, "They withheld the Zakah of their wealth." This is the apparent meaning according to many of the scholars of Tafsir, and this is the view favored by Ibn Jarir. But the matter is subject to further examination, because the obligation of Zakah was instituted during the second year after the Hijrah to Al-Madinah, according to what is stated by several scholars. Yet this Ayah was revealed in Makkah. However, it is not unlikely that the principle of giving charity and Zakah was already in place and had been enjoined at the beginning of the Prophet's mission, as Allah says:

وَءَاتُواْ حَقَّهُ يَوْمَ حَصَادِهِ

(but pay the due thereof on the day of their harvest) (6:141). As for the details of Zakah and how it is to be calculated according to the Nusub, were explained in Al-Madinah. This is how we may reconcile between the two opinions. Similarly, prayer was originally enjoined before sunrise and before sunset at the beginning of the Prophet's mission; it was only on the Night of the Isra', a year and a half before the Hijrah, that Allah enjoined upon His Messenger the five daily prayers. The conditions and essential elements of prayer were explained later, in stages. And Allah knows best. Then Allah says:

إِنَّ الَّذِينَ ءامَنُواْ وَعَمِلُواْ الصَّـلِحَـتِ لَهُمْ أَجْرٌ غَيْرُ مَمْنُونٍ

(Truly, those who believe and do righteous good deeds, for them will be an endless reward that will never stop.) Mujahid and others said, "It will never be cut off or decrease." This is like the Ayat:

مَّاكِثِينَ فِيهِ أَبَدًا

(They shall abide therein for ever.) (18:3)

عَطَآءً غَيْرَ مَجْذُوذٍ

(a gift without an end) (11:108)

Toward the end of the address, both the aspects of glad tidings and of warnings of the Qur'n have been presented to them, making it clear that there are dire consequences for the mushrikin (those who associate partners with Allah) and eternal rewards for the believers. In the context of the evil fate of the Mushriks, one reason for it has been mentioned that these people did not use to pay Zakah. This gives rise to some questions. The first one is that these verses were revealed in Makkah, whereas Zakah was made obligatory in Madinah. So, how can they be accused of non-payment of Zakah before Zakah was made obligatory?

Ibn Kathir, in reply to this question, has said that Zakah, in principle, had been obligated along with Salah right from the beginning of Islam, as mentioned in Surah Muzzammil. However the determination of the Nisab (minimum capital and property for the applicability of Zakah) and the arrangements for its collection were made in Madinah. Therefore it is not correct to say that Zakah was not obligated in Makkah.

Are Non-Muslims required to follow the practical injunctions of Shari'ah?

The second doubt is that many jurisprudents do not consider Non-Muslims to have been asked or required to carry out religious deeds such as Salah, Fasting, Hajj and Zakah. The direction is that they have to embrace the faith first, and then they are liable to the practical precepts of Shari'ah. According to this view, they are not liable to pay zakah. Why then have they been reprimanded for not paying Zakah in this verse?

It can be said in reply that many of the leading scholars and experts of Islamic jurisprudence are of the view that even the Non-Muslims are required to carry out the obligatory duties of religion; If this view is adopted, there remains no doubt about this verse that has mentioned non-payment of zakah as one of the reasons for their being punished. As for those scholars who do not consider Non-Muslims to have been asked to carry out the obligatory duties, they can say that the real denunciation is not for non-payment of Zakah, but because this non-payment is due to their disbelief and is a sign of it. Therefore the object of the reprimand is that had they been believers, they would have been strict in paying Zakah; their fault is their failure to embrace the faith. (Bayan-ul-Qur’ an).

The detailed discussion of whether or not the infidels have been asked to follow the practical precepts of Shari` ah may be found in the fifth volume of the author's Arabic book "Ahkam-ul-Qur’ an".

The third question which arises here is that the commandment for Salah is the most important of all the commandments of Islam which has not been mentioned here, so what is the wisdom behind making a special mention of Zakah? Qurtubi etc., have said in reply that Quraysh of Arabia were wealthy people, and they were known for their trait of giving alms and charity and helping the poor. But when somebody would become a Muslim, they would deprive him of such financial help and social assistance also. Zakah has been specially mentioned because the object is to denounce this practice. (Allah knows best)

Whenever the call for Truth is issued, it takes place at the level of human beings. But people are unable to understand how it is possible for a man to speak in the language of God, and therefore they deny his message. But God communicates his message through a human being. One who cannot see beyond the humanness of the prophet and recognise the divineness of the message delivered by him, must remain deprived of God’s guidance in the present world of trial. Only that belief in the Hereafter is reliable which is accompanied by a firm belief in the oneness of God and the giving of alms for the sake of God’s pleasure. One who truly finds God can never be held in thrall by the greatness of any other being. Similarly, one who truly finds God cannot prevent himself from spending his wealth for the cause of God. ‘So take the straight path to Him’ means ‘keep your worship purely for God’, i.e. your whole attention should be directed towards God; the sole object of your prayers and worship should be the one and only God; your entire thinking should become God-oriented. God’s perpetual blessings will be showered on those who conduct themselves in this way.