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Tafsir of Surah al-Ankabut – 9

March 17, 2025 / editor

Verse 18: If you persist in denial, so did ‘many’ communities
before you. They were punished severely with a painful
chastisement.
Verse 21: He punishes whoever He wills and shows mercy to
whoever He wills. And you will ‘all’ be turned back to Him. As
Allah (swt) is ‘sattarul uyub’ and ‘ghaffaarudh dhunub’ he hides all our flaws, but on the Day of Judgement, it will all be different. The phrase ’You will all be turned back to Him’, means that when we will return to Allah, our secrets will no longer be ours

Tafsir of Surah al-Ankabut – 8

March 17, 2025 / editor

Verse 13: But surely they will carry their own burdens and other burdens along with their own burdens, and they will surely be questioned on the Day of Resurrection concerning that which they used to fabricate. No act can be attributed to anyone else because: (a) actions are living (b) they are inseparably linked to their doers! [These people are astray and they are making others also go astray. This means they will be punished twice. Once for doing what is wrong and secondly for misguiding others. The fact is that if you followed them in doing wrong you will also be punished.
Verse 14: Certainly We sent Nuh to his people, and he remained with them for a thousand-less-fifty years. Then the flood overtook them while they were wrongdoers. Allah (swt) eloquently highlights the length of his tabligh. But 1000 is a rounded off number and is more appealing. Removing 50 does not really reduce the magnitude of 1000. The use of ‘sanah’ and ‘aam’ both mean ‘years’ is used to avoid unnecessary repetition and is a sign of the eloquence of the Holy Qur’an.

Tafsir of Surah al-Ankabut – 7

March 17, 2025 / editor

Verse 9: Those who have faith and do righteous deeds, We will surely admit them among the righteous.
Ayatullah Jawadi Amuli says that there is a difference between a person who is a Salih (righteous) and a person who is included with the Saaliheen. You can be Salih when you do an action that makes you a Salih but when you are amongst the Saaliheen, then it means you are a person for whom it hasbecome a malaka - you only do good deeds. The only thing that comes from you is righteous actions.
Verse 10: Among the people there are those who say, ‘We have faith in Allah,’ but if such a one is tormented in Allah's cause, he takes persecution by the people for Allah's punishment. Yet if there comes any help from your Lord, they will say for sure," We were
indeed with you." Does not Allah know best what is in the hearts of the creatures?
Some people believe in Allah only by their tongue. When the
difficulties come, they change. When they have to suffer for the sake of Allah, then it becomes very difficult for them. Note that these people ‘say’ that they believe. They deem the [threat of] hardships of this life as hindrance to their faith – just as the threat of chastisement is a hindrance to sin. These people believe in the benefit and the profit, not in Allah!

Tafsir of Surah al-Ankabut – 6

March 16, 2025 / editor

Verse 6: Whoever strives, strives only for his own sake. Indeed Allah has no need of the creatures. Allah (swt) does not need
anything from us. He neither needs our struggles, nor our hard work. This means that whoever struggles, he does it for himself. The ulama and muffassireen have mentioned that this verse talks about Jihad al-Asghar (the Smaller Jihad) where the people take their weapons and fight the enemy.
When we believe and then do good deeds, 3 things happen: The first thing is that Allah (swt) wipes away our bad deeds. The
second thing is that we will be rewarded based on the best of what we did. Like sometimes when we go to the grocery store to buy fruits, we choose the best of what is available. Similarly we will all be rewarded based on the best of what we have done.
The third thing is that Allah (swt) will include us among the
swaliheen (to be explained in verse 9). We pray to Allah (swt) to grant us the correct understanding of the Holy Qur’an and help us to be amongst those who are good and also do good deeds. Ameen.

Tafsir of Surah al-Ankabut – 5

March 16, 2025 / editor

Verse 3: When Allah (swt) addresses His believers, He gives them examples of those who came before them. Do you think that only you are suffering and that the people who came before you had an easy time? Some of the muffasireen (commentators) have mentioned that this verse is referring to the tribulations of Ammar ibn Yasir. The believers were suffering and some of them considered leaving Islam. They were told to look at those who came before, like Ammar. He lost his parents - they were both martyred; the first martyrs of Islam, Sumayya and Yasir. May Allah be pleased with them.
Verse 4: Do they think that if they do something evil, they can
outmaneuver (run away from) Us? Evil is the judgement that they make. Imam ‘Ali (a) is reported to have said, “The parts of your body are the army of Allah.” Your body is working for Allah, Your eyes and ears are His witnesses, they will bear testimony. Human beings
cannot escape if they sin.
Verse 5: Whoever hopes to meet Allah, the term appointed by Allah will then most surely come, and He is the Hearing, the Knowing.

Tafsir of Surah al-Ankabut – 4

March 16, 2025 / editor

This surah has 69 Ayaat which we InshaAllah intend to complete, we may not be able to go into the depth of every single verse. Our intention is that we provide a basic understanding of this surah so that when we recite this Surah on the night of Qadr, we understand what we are reciting.
The first thing that Allah (swt) does in this surah after the Huruf al-Muqatta’at, He asks a question. Do the people think that if they say ‘We have faith’, they will not be tested? This is
a rhetorical question meaning that Allah (swt) does not want you to answer. He is telling you that even though you say, “We have faith!” you will still be tested. Human beings face different types of fitnah (tribulations) in their lives

Tafsir of Surah al-Ankabut – 3

March 16, 2025 / editor

This verse was revealed to encourage the Muslims to be
patient in troubles, and put their trust in God and wait for His help.
The believers were of the opinion that, through their mere faith, they could obtain salvation and enter Paradise. The verse denied them that, saying that even the believing people and the Prophets, all together said, “… When will Allah’s help come? ….”
It is evident that the purpose, here, is not a protest against the Providence, but this manner of statement is itself a kind of
invocation and a plea for help. This verse points at one of the everlasting Divine rules and customs; that in all ages the
believers have to work hard for salvation, and encounter sufferings and hardship, if they are willing to enter Paradise.

Tafsir of Surah al-Ankabut – 2

March 16, 2025 / editor

Verse no. 1 The first verse of Surah al-Ankabut starts with
the Muqatta'aat letters, These are unique letter combinations that
appear in the beginning of 29 surahs of the Qur'an. Muqatta'at
literally means abbreviated or shortened. Their meanings remain unclear and are considered by most scholars to be divine secrets.
After all 29 surahs that start with these letters something is spoken about the Qur’an except in surahs: Maryam, ‘Ankabut, Rum and
Qalam.
Verse no. 2 Do the people suppose that they will be let off because they say, ‘We have faith,’ and they will not be tested? Testing is part of ‘Iman.’ If you are a true mu’min, then expect all sorts of difficulties and tests.
When we call ourself ‘Mu’mineen,’ we need to know that this title ‘Mu’mineen’ comes with strings attached eg trials and tribulations. Just like gold is burned and then purified, human beings are also tested with various kinds of tests.
We will have to sacrifice everything for the pleasure of Allah and bear every difficulty with patience.

Tafsir Surat al-Ankabut 1

March 16, 2025 / editor

Our preparation for the Blessed month of Ramadhan starts from the Holy month of Rajab.
When Surah al-Fatiha was revealed it was known as Fatihatul Kitab and that is why we call this Surah, Surah al-Fatiha. Some surahs were not named by the Holy Prophet (saww) but got their name later on. According to Ayatullah Jawadi Amuli, Surah al-Ankabut was previously known as ‘Surat al-Lati Yudhkaru Fiha al-Ankabut’-The Surah in which the spider is mentioned, and only later was the name shortened to Surah al-Ankabut (The Spider).

Ayatullah Syed Muhammad Ridha Husayni Jalali

March 16, 2025 / editor

Ayatullah Syed Muhammad Ridha Husayni Jalali was born in Holy city of Karbala in 1365AH and passed away a few days ago. In 1384AH, he moved to Najaf and studied under Syed al-Khui and other great scholars. He then migrated to Qum in 1400AH.
He was a distinguished scholar, researcher, author and teacher who dedicated his life to the pursuit of Islamic knowledge. His scholarly contributions include editing manuscripts, compilation, and authorship of numerous works.
His funeral was held in Masjid Imam Hasan al-Askari (a) in the Holy city of Qum and then proceeded to the Haram of Janabe Fatimah Ma’sumah (sa). His body was then transferred to Iraq for burial.
May Allah (swt) raise his status in Jannah. Āmīn.

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