Tafsir of Surah Al-A'raf - Verse 184

أَوَلَمْ يَتَفَكَّرُواْ

(Do they not reflect) `those who deny Our Ayat,'

مَا بِصَاحِبِهِم

(there is not in their companion), Muhammad ,

مِّن جِنَّةٍ

(madness) Muhammad is not mad, rather, he is truly the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, calling to Truth,

إِنْ هُوَ إِلاَّ نَذِيرٌ مُّبِينٌ

(but he is a plain warner), and this is clear for those who have a mind and a heart by which they understand and comprehend. Allah said in another Ayah,

وَمَا صَـحِبُكُمْ بِمَجْنُونٍ

(And (O people) your companion is not a madman.)81:22 Allah also said,

قُلْ إِنَّمَآ أَعِظُكُمْ بِوَحِدَةٍ أَن تَقُومُواْ لِلَّهِ مَثْنَى وَفُرَادَى ثُمَّ تَتَفَكَّرُواْ مَا بِصَـحِبِكُمْ مِّن جِنَّةٍ إِنْ هُوَ إِلاَّ نَذِيرٌ لَّكُمْ بَيْنَ يَدَىْ عَذَابٍ شَدِيدٍ

(Say: "I exhort you to one (thing) only, that you stand up for Allah's sake in pairs and singly, and reflect, there is no madness in your companion. He is only a warner to you in face of a severe torment.") 34:46 meaning, `I ask you to stand for Allah in sincerity without stubbornness or bias,'

مَثْنَى وَفُرَادَى

(in pairs and singly) 34:46 individuals and in groups,

ثُمَّ تَتَفَكَّرُواْ

(and reflect) 34:46, about this man who brought the Message from Allah, is he mad If you do this, it will become clear to you that he is the Messenger of Allah ﷺ in truth and justice. Qatadah bin Di'amah said, "We were informed that the Prophet of Allah once was on (Mount) As-Safa and called the Quraysh, subtribe by subtribe, proclaiming,

«يَا بَنِي فُلَانٍ، يَا بَنِي فُلَانٍ فَحَذَّرَهُمْ بَأْسَ اللهِ وَوَقَائِعَ الله»

(O Children of so-and-so, O Children of so-and-so! He warned them against Allah's might and what He has done (such as revenge from His enemies).) Some of them commented, `This companion of yours (Prophet Muhammad) is mad; he kept shouting until the morning' Allah sent down this Ayah,

أَوَلَمْ يَتَفَكَّرُواْ مَا بِصَاحِبِهِم مِّن جِنَّةٍ إِنْ هُوَ إِلاَّ نَذِيرٌ مُّبِينٌ

(Do they not reflect There is no madness in their companion. He is but a plain warner) 7:184."'

The verse no. 184 has refuted the false notion of the disbelievers that the Holy Prophet , 1n was a man of unsound mind or was possessed by devil. It said:

أَوَلَمْ يَتَفَكَّرُ‌وا مَا بِصَاحِبِهِم مِّن جِنَّةٍ إِنْ هُوَ إِلَّا نَذِيرٌ‌ مُّبِينٌ

"Have they not reflected that with their friend there is no madness? He is but an open warner."

The verse said that a little reflection on their part shall be enough to prove that the Holy Prophet ﷺ was neither a man of unsound mind, nor was he under the influence of Jinns. His matchless wisdom and knowledge is an obvious feature of his personality. Those having claim to wisdom and knowledge are astoundingly bewildered how a man of such extraordinary insight and sagacity could be blamed of madness? Blaming him with madness, in fact, is madness itself. He is only an elucidator of realities and a warner against the punishment from Allah.

A man with a mission is a man of principle. His thinking is unconditioned thinking. He has risen above all kinds of worldly interests. Truth becomes his sole concern. He sacrifices his life and property for a goal, which does not appear to yield any result in this world. That is why a man with a mission is called crazy, out of his mind. A prophet of God was the greatest man with a mission of his time. So, people in every age have called the prophets of God fanatics. To call a missionary of God’s religion a madman is the greatest of all transgressions, because the message with which he comes is one which is corroborated by the entire heaven and earth. He calls mankind towards God who is supremely manifest in His Creations in the Universe. He informs people of the Hereafter which, in heaven and on the earth, is equal in gravity to a full pregnancy in a woman’s womb. But people are not serious about the truth. So, a man who sacrifices his life for the sake of the truth appears mad to them. Had they known the real value of truth, they would never have used the word ‘mad’.