Tafsir of Surah At-Taubah - Verse 107

Masjid Ad-Dirar and Masjid At-Taqwa

The reason behind revealing these honorable Ayat is that before the Messenger of Allah ﷺ migrated to Al-Madinah, there was a man from Al-Khazraj called "Abu `Amir Ar-Rahib (the Monk)." This man embraced Christianity before Islam and read the Scriptures. During the time of Jahiliyyah, Abu `Amir was known for being a worshipper and being a notable person among Al-Khazraj. When the Messenger of Allah ﷺ arrived at Al-Madinah after the Hijrah, the Muslims gathered around him and the word of Islam was triumphant on the day of Badr, causing Abu `Amir, the cursed one, to choke on his own saliva and announce his enmity to Islam. He fled from Al-Madinah to the idolators of Quraysh in Makkah to support them in the war against the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. The Quraysh united their forces and the bedouins who joined them for the battle of Uhud, during which Allah tested the Muslims, but the good end is always for the pious and righteous people. The rebellious Abu `Amir dug many holes in the ground between the two camps, into one of which the Messenger fell, injuring his face and breaking one of his right lower teeth. He also sustained a head injury. Before the fighting started, Abu `Amir approached his people among the Ansar and tried to convince them to support and agree with him. When they recognized him, they said, "May Allah never burden an eye by seeing you, O Fasiq one, O enemy of Allah!" They cursed him and he went back declaring, "By Allah! Evil has touched my people after I left." The Messenger of Allah ﷺ called Abu `Amir to Allah and recited the Qur'an to him before his flight to Makkah, but he refused to embrace Islam and rebelled. The Messenger ﷺ invoked Allah that Abu `Amir die as an outcast in an alien land, and his invocation came true. After the battle of Uhud was finished, Abu `Amir realized that the Messenger's ﷺ call was still rising and gaining momentum, so he went to Heraclius, the emperor of Rome, asking for his aid against the Prophet . Heraclius gave him promises and Abu `Amir remained with him. He also wrote to several of his people in Al-Madinah, who embraced hypocrisy, promising and insinuating to them that he will lead an army to fight the Messenger of Allah ﷺ to defeat him and his call. He ordered them to establish a stronghold where he could send his emissaries and to serve as an outpost when he joins them later on. These hypocrites built a Masjid next to the Masjid in Quba', and they finished building it before the Messenger ﷺ went to Tabuk. They went to the Messenger ﷺ inviting him to pray in their Masjid so that it would be a proof that the Messenger ﷺ approved of their Masjid. They told him that they built the Masjid for the weak and ill persons on rainy nights. However, Allah prevented His Messenger from praying in that Masjid. He said to them,

«إِنَّا عَلَى سَفَرٍ وَلَكِنْ إِذَا رَجَعْنَا إِنْ شَاءَ الله»

(If we come back from our travel, Allah willing.)" When the Messenger of Allah ﷺ came back from Tabuk and was approximately one or two days away from Al-Madinah, Jibril came down to him with the news about Masjid Ad-Dirar and the disbelief and division between the believers, who were in Masjid Quba' (which was built on piety from the first day), that Masjid Ad-Dirar was meant to achieve. Therefore, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ sent some people to Masjid Ad-Dirar to bring it down before he reached Al-Madinah. `Ali bin Abi Talhah reported that Ibn `Abbas said about this Ayah (9:107), "They are some people of the Ansar to whom Abu `Amir said, `Build a Masjid and prepare whatever you can of power and weapons, for I am headed towards Caesar, emperor of Rome, to bring Roman soldiers with whom I will expel Muhammad and his companions.' When they built their Masjid, they went to the Prophet and said to him, "We finished building our Masjid and we would like you pray in it and invoke Allah for us for His blessings."Allah revealed this verse,

لاَ تَقُمْ فِيهِ أَبَدًا

(Never stand you therein), until,

الْظَّـلِمِينَ

(...wrongdoers) " Allah said next,

وَلَيَحْلِفَنَّ

(they will indeed swear), those who built it,

إِنْ أَرَدْنَا إِلاَّ الْحُسْنَى

(that their intention is nothing but good.) by building this Masjid we sought the good and the comfort of the people. Allah replied,

وَاللَّهُ يَشْهَدُ إِنَّهُمْ لَكَـذِبُونَ

(Allah bears witness that they are certainly liars) for they only built it to harm Masjid Quba', and out of disbelief in Allah, and to divide the believers. They made it an outpost for those who warred against Allah and His Messenger , such as Abu `Amir the Fasiq who used to be called Ar-Rahib, may Allah curse him! Allah said,

لاَ تَقُمْ فِيهِ أَبَدًا

(Never stand you therein), prohibiting His Prophet and his Ummah from ever standing in it in prayer.

Virtues of Masjid Quba

Allah encouraged His Prophet to pray in Masjid Quba' which, from the first day, was built on Taqwa, obedience to Allah and His Messenger , for gathering the word of the believers and as an outpost and a fort for Islam and its people. This is why Allah the Exalted said,

لَّمَسْجِدٌ أُسِّسَ عَلَى التَّقْوَى مِنْ أَوَّلِ يَوْمٍ أَحَقُّ أَن تَقُومَ فِيهِ

(Verily, the Masjid whose foundation was laid from the first day on Taqwa is more worthy that you stand therein (to pray).) in reference to the Masjid of Quba'. An authentic Hadith records that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said,

«صَلَاةٌ فِي مَسْجِدِ قُبَاءٍ كَعُمْرَة»

(One prayer in Masjid Quba' is just like an `Umrah.) It is recorded in the Sahih that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ used to visit Masjid Quba' while riding and walking. Imam Ahmad recorded that `Uwaym bin Sa`idah Al-Ansari said that the Prophet went to Masjid Quba' and asked,

«إِنَّ اللهَ تَعَالَى قَدْ أَحْسَنَ عَلَيْكُمُ الثَّنَاءَ فِي الطُّهُورِ فِي قِصَّةِ مَسْجِدِكُمْ، فَمَا هَذَا الطُّهُورُ الَّذِي تَطَهَّرُونَ بِهِ؟»

(In the story about your Masjid, Allah the Exalted has praised you concerning the purification that you perform. What is the purification that you perform) They said, "By Allah, O Allah's Messenger! We do not know except that we had neighbors from the Jews who used to use water to wash with after answering the call of nature, and we washed as they washed." Ibn Khuzaymah collected this Hadith in his Sahih. Allah's statement,

لَّمَسْجِدٌ أُسِّسَ عَلَى التَّقْوَى مِنْ أَوَّلِ يَوْمٍ أَحَقُّ أَن تَقُومَ فِيهِ فِيهِ رِجَالٌ يُحِبُّونَ أَن يَتَطَهَّرُواْ وَاللَّهُ يُحِبُّ الْمُطَّهِّرِينَ

(Verily, the Masjid whose foundation was laid from the first day on Taqwa is more worthy that you stand therein (to pray). In it are men who love to clean and purify themselves. And Allah loves those who make themselves clean and pure.) This encourages praying in old Masjids that were built for the purpose of worshipping Allah alone, without partners. It is also recommended to join the prayer with the believing group and worshippers who implement their faith, those who perform Wudu' perfectly and preserve themselves from impure things. Imam Ahmad recorded that one of the Companions of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ led them in a Dawn (Subh) prayer in which he recited Surat Ar-Rum (chapter 30) and made mistakes in the recitation. When he finished the prayer, he said,

«إِنَّهُ يَلْبِسُ عَلَيْنَا الْقُرْآنَ أَنَّ أَقْوَامًا مِنْكُمْ يُصَلُّونَ مَعَنَا لَا يُحْسِنُونَ الْوُضُوءَ، فَمَنْ شَهِدَ الصَّلَاةَ مَعَنَا فَلْيُحْسِنِ الْوُضُوء»

(We sometimes make mistakes in reciting the Qur'an, there are people among you who attend the prayer with us, but do not perform Wudu' perfectly. Therefore, whoever attends the prayer with us let him make perfect Wudu'.) This Hadith indicates that complete purification helps in the performance of acts of worship and aids in preserving and completing them.

Commentary

Anti-Islam activities of hypocrites have been described in several previous verses. The present verses mention yet another conspiracy hatched by them. It has been reported that there was a man in Madinah. His name was Abu ` Amir. He had become a Christian during the days of Jahiliyyah and was known as Abu ` Amir the Rahib (that is, a monk). This is the same Abu ` Amir whose son Hanzalah ؓ is a well-known Sahabi whose dead body was washed by angels and which gave him the sobriquet of ` the one who was bathed by angels.' But, the father stuck by his error and remained a Christian.

When the Holy Prophet ﷺ came to Madinah, Abu ` Amir the Rahib visited him and criticized Islam. Even the answers given by the Holy Prophet ﷺ did not satisfy this unfortunate man. In fact, he said, ` may the liar between the two of us be cursed and die in travel far away from friends and relatives.' He also said, ` I shall be there to help any aggressor against you.' And so he did. He fought on the side of the enemies of Muslims in all battles right through the battle of Hunain. When the big and strong tribe of Hawazin too was defeated, he lost hope. He ran away to Syria, the stronghold of Christians where he died far away from his friends and relatives. The prayer he had made was before him. When disgrace is destined for someone, this is how he acts. His own prayer brought that disgrace upon him.

But, as long as he lived, he remained busy hatching conspiracies against Islam and Muslims. He virtually tried to induce the Byzantine ruler to attack Madinah and expel Muslims from there.

One aspect of this conspiracy materialized when he wrote a letter to the hypocrites of Madinah with whom he had a sinister understanding. He told them that he was working on the Byzantine ruler to attack Madinah. But, it was necessary to have group strength to lend lo-cal support to the invader. For this purpose, he suggested that they should make a building right there in Madinah giving people the im-pression that they were building a mosque so that Muslims do not get to be suspicious. After that, they should get their men together in this place and collect as much of weapons and supplies as they could. He wanted this to become an undercover center where his accomplices would be conducting their activities against Muslims by mutual consultation.

It was on his suggestion that twelve hypocrites got together in Quba', a locality of Madinah where the Holy Prophet ﷺ had first stayed during his hijrah and where he had built a masjid. They chose the same place to lay the foundation of another ` masjid.' Ibn Ishaq and others have also reported the names of these hypocrites. Then, to keep Muslims under deception, the hypocrites made a plan that they would have the Holy Prophet ﷺ lead a Salah in congregation at their socalled masjid so that all Muslims are convinced that this new place was also a masjid very much like the one built there earlier.

A delegation from them came to the Holy Prophet ﷺ . They pleaded that the existing Masjid of Quba' was far away. It was difficult for old and sick people to reach there. Moreover, they argued, the Masjid of Quba' itself was not spacious enough to accommodate all residents of the locality. Therefore, they claimed, they had founded another masjid for that purpose so that older Muslims may benefit by it. Finally, (releasing their punch line) they said, ` please lead a Salah in this ` masjid' so that it stands blessed!'

That was a time when the Holy Prophet ﷺ was getting ready for the battle of Tabuk. He told them that he would be unable to do that as he was about to leave the city but he promised that he would pray there when he returned.

However, on his return from the battle of Tabuk, when he camped at a place close to Madinah, the verses cited above were revealed to him which had exposed the conspiracy of these hypocrites. After the revelation of these verses, the Holy Prophet ﷺ ordered some of his Companions, ` Amir ibn Sakan, Wahshi, the killer of Hamzah and others, to go, demolish and burn the structure (of the ill-intentioned ` masjid' ). So these gentlemen took off, carried out the orders and the structure was leveled flat on the ground. (This event has been abridged from narratives reported in Tafsir al-Qurtubi and Mazhari.)

Quoting Muhammad ibn Yusuf Salihi, Tafsir Mazhari also reports that the site of Masjid Dirar ضِرَار was still lying vacant at the time the Holy Prophet ﷺ had reached and settled in Madinah. When he allowed ` Asim ibn ` Adiyy to build his house on that site, he submitted, ` ya rasulallah, I do not like to build a house on a cursed site about which these verses of the Qur'an have been revealed. Nevertheless, Thabit ibn Aqram is really in need of a house for he has none. Please allow him to make a house here.' So, going along with his suggestion, he gave this plot of land to Thabit ibn Aqram. But, as fate would have it, since the time Sayyidna Thabit ؓ ، came to live in the house he made there, he either had no child or if he did, the child did not live.

Historians have added that this place was cursed not only for human beings but also for domestic birds and animals that could not survive with their normal way of living. Thus, after that time, this place lies desolate at some distance from the well-known Masjid Quba'.

After having gone through the details of the event, let us now turn to the text of the cited verses. It was said in the first verse (107): وَالَّذِينَ اتَّخَذُوا مَسْجِدًا (And [ there are ] those who have built a mosque) to bring harm upon Muslims.

This verse points out to three motives behind the making of this ` masjid':

1\. The first one is: ضِرَ‌ارً‌ا (diraran: to cause harm to Muslims). The words dirar' ضِرَ‌ار and ` ضرر :darar' are both used in the Arabic language to carry the sense of causing harm. As for difference between the two, it has been said that ` darar' is a harm that brings gain for the person harming but causes loss for the harmed. And dirar' ضِرَ‌ار is the inflicting of a loss upon other people while it brings just no gain for the person inflicting it. Since, this was going to be the fate of this ` masjid' - that its founders gain nothing out of it - therefore, the word ` dirar' was used here.

2\. The second motive reads: تَفْرِ‌يقًا بَيْنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ :(to cause dissention among the believers). It means that, by setting up this ` masjid', they looked forward to creating a division among the community of Muslims. They hoped to wean out a group that would be offering Salah in their masjid as a sort of separate entity. Then, it may have also resulted in reducing the number of Muslims going for their prayers to the old Masjid Quba'.

3\. The third motive was spelt out as: i.e. to provide a sanctuary to enemies of Allah and His Messenger and a forum to conspire against Muslims.

This presentation as a whole proves that the ` masjid' which was declared to be a ` harmful mosque' (Masjid Dirar ضِرَ‌ار) by the Holy Qur'an, and which was demolished and burnt down under the orders of the Holy Prophet ﷺ was no masjid in the real sense. Nor was it intended to be a place where people could pray. The three objectives behind it have been mentioned immediately above. From here we learn the rules that should be followed in our time. Today, may be some Muslims were to make a masjid close to and in competition of another Masjid, while their purpose is nothing but the same mutual discord, the same old effort to split up the congregation of the first masjid, or any other evil interest of this nature. If so, the maker of such a masjid will deserve no reward from Allah. Rather, he would be a sinner because of having created dissention between Muslims - but, despite all this, that place shall be called a masjid in terms of Islamic law, and the etiquette and rules relating to mosques shall apply to it. Demolishing it or putting it on fire shall not be permissible. And the Salah of those who pray in it will also be valid - though, doing so shall continue to be a sin in itself.

From here we also learn about another rule relevant in contemporary setting. If a Muslim makes a masjid in that manner, either to show off or to take an opposing stance out of obstinacy and enmity, the maker will, though, not get the reward of making a masjid, instead, will incur a sin, yet it will not be what Masjid Dirar is in the terminology of the Holy Qur'an, that is, it will not be called by that name. When some people notice a masjid like that, they would say that it was Masjid Dirar. This is not correct. However, one could say that it was like Masjid Dirar. Therefore, its building can also be stayed - as done by Sayyidna ` Umar ؓ through a court order where he had instructed that another masjid should not be made close to the one already there lest the congregation and flourish of the first masjid is affected adversely. (Tafsir Kashsha)

There are two foundations for the building of life. One is piety (taqwa) and the other is self-centredness. In the first case the whole structure of life is built on a firm foundation of being God-fearing. In this case all the activities of the individual are influenced by one central thought. That is, he has to be accountable for all his words and deeds to a Being Who is aware of all things, whether open or hidden, and Who is to award punishments or rewards accordingly. One who considers himself accountable to God has erected his building on a solid foundation that will never be shaken. In contrast to him is the man who builds on the crumbling edge of an abyss. Free from all fears and apprehensions, he leads a self-oriented life in the world. He does not accept any restrictions, and speaks and acts at will. The example of the life of such a person can be compared to a building which has been constructed on the brink of a gorge which is about to cave in; all of a sudden it will collapse, carrying all the building’s residents down into its depths.