Ahmad recorded that Khuwaylah bint Tha`labah said, "By Allah! Allah sent down
the beginning of Surat Al-Mujadilah in connection with me and `Aws bin
As-Samit. He was my husband and had grown old and difficult. One day, he came
to me and I argued with him about something and he said, out of anger, `You are
like my mother's back to me.' He went out and sat with some of his people. Then
he came back and wanted to have sexual intercourse with me. I said, `No, by the
One in Whose Hand is the soul of Khuwaylah! You will not have your way with me
after you said what you said, until Allah and His Messenger issue judgement
about our case.' He wanted to have his way regardless of my choice and I pushed
him away from me; he was an old man.' I next went to one of my neighbors and
borrowed a garment from her and went to the Messenger of Allah . I told him
what happened and kept complaining to him of the ill treatment I received from
`Aws. He said,
«يَاخُوَيْلَةُ، ابْنُ
عَمِّكِ شَيْخٌ كَبِيرٌ، فَاتَّقِي اللهَ فِيه»
(O Khuwaylah! Your cousin is an old man, so have Taqwa of Allah regarding him.)
By Allah! Before I departed, parts of the Qur'an were revealed about me.
Allah's Messenger felt the hardship upon receiving the revelation as he usually
did and then became relieved. He said to me,
«يَا خُوَيْلَةُ، قَدْ
أَنْزَلَ اللهُ فِيكِ وَفِي صَاحِبِكِ قُرْآنًا»
(O Khuwaylah! Allah has revealed something about you and your spouse.) He
recited to me,
[قَدْ سَمِعَ اللَّهُ
قَوْلَ الَّتِى تُجَادِلُكَ فِى زَوْجِهَا وَتَشْتَكِى إِلَى اللَّهِ وَاللَّهُ
يَسْمَعُ تَحَاوُرَكُمآ إِنَّ اللَّهَ سَمِيعٌ بَصِيرٌ ]
(Indeed Allah has heard the statement of her that disputes with you concerning
her husband, and complains to Allah. And Allah hears the argument between you
both. Verily, Allah is All-Hearer, All-Seer.), until,
[وَلِلكَـفِرِينَ
عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ]
(And for disbelievers, there is a painful torment.) He then said to me,
«مُرِيهِ فَلْيُعْتِقْ
رَقَبَة»
(Command him to free a slave.) I said, `O Allah's Messenger! He does not have
any to free.' He said,
«فَلْيَصُمْ شَهْرَيْنِ
مُتَتَابِعَيْن»
(Let him fast for two consecutive months.) I said, `By Allah! He is an old man
and cannot fast.' He said,
«فَلْيُطْعِمْ سِتِّينَ
مِسْكِينًا وَسْقًا مِنْ تَمْر»
(Let him feed sixty poor people a Wasq of dates.) I said, `O Allah's Messenger!
By Allah, he does not have any of that.' He said,
«فَإِنَّا سَنُعِينُهُ
بِعَرَقٍ مِنْ تَمْر»
(We will help him with a basket of dates.) I said, `And I, O Allah's Messenger!
I will help him with another.' He said,
«قَدْ أَصَبْتِ
وَأَحْسَنْتِ فَاذْهَبِي فَتَصَدَّقِي بِهِ عَنْهُ، ثُمَّ اسْتَوْصِي بِابْنِ
عَمِّكِ خَيْرًا»
(You have done a righteously good thing. So go and give away the dates on his
behalf and take care of your cousin.) I did that.''' Abu Dawud also collected
this Hadith in the Book of Divorce in his Sunan, according to which her name is
Khawlah bint Tha`labah. She is also known as Khawlah bint Malik bin Tha`labah,
and Khuwaylah. All these are close to each other, and Allah knows best. This is
what is correct about the reason behind revealing this Surah. Therefore,
Allah's statement,
[الَّذِينَ يُظَـهِرُونَ
مِنكُمْ مِّن نِّسَآئِهِمْ]
(Those among you who make their wives unlawful to them by Zihar) refers to
Zihar, which is derived from Az-Zahr, meaning, the back. During the time of
Jahiliyyah, when one wanted to declare Zihar towards his wife, he would say,
"To me, you are like the back of my mother.'' That was one way they issued
divorce during that time. Allah allowed this Ummah to pay expiation for this
statement and did not render it as a divorce, contrary to the case during the
time of Jahiliyyah. Allah said,
[مَّا هُنَّ
أُمَّهَـتِهِمْ إِنْ أُمَّهَـتُهُمْ إِلاَّ اللاَّئِى وَلَدْنَهُمْ]
(they cannot be their mothers. None can be their mothers except those who gave
them birth.) meaning, when the husband says to his wife that she is like his
mother, or the back of his mother etc., she does not become his mother. Rather
his mother is she who gave birth to him. This is why Allah said,
[وَإِنَّهُمْ
لَيَقُولُونَ مُنكَراً مِّنَ الْقَوْلِ وَزُوراً]
(And verily, they utter an ill word and a lie.) meaning, false and sinful
speech,
[وَإِنَّ اللَّهَ
لَعَفُوٌّ غَفُورٌ]
(And verily, Allah is Oft-Pardoning, Oft-Forgiving.) meaning, `what you used to
do during the time of Jahiliyyah, and what accidentally slips out of your
mouth, unintentionally.' Allah's statement,
[وَالَّذِينَ
يُظَـهِرُونَ مِن نِّسَآئِهِمْ ثُمَّ يَعُودُونَ لِمَا قَالُواْ]
(And those who make unlawful to them (their wives) by Zihar and wish to free
themselves from what they uttered,) Ash-Shafi`i said, "It means to keep her for
a while after the Zihar, without divorcing her, even though his is able to do
so.'' Ahmad bin Hanbal said, "To return to having sexual relations with her or
to merely intend to do so, but only after he pays the expiation mentioned in
the Ayah for his statement.'' It has been quoted from Malik that it is the
intention to have sexual relations or to keep her or actually having sexual
intercourse. Sa`id bin Jubayr said that this Ayah,
[ثُمَّ يَعُودُونَ لِمَا
قَالُواْ]
(and wish to free themselves from what they uttered,) meaning, if they want to
return to having sexual intercourse which was forbidden between them. Al-Hasan
Al-Basri said that it is to utilize her sexual organ, and he did not see any
harm in doing what is less than that before paying the expiation. `Ali bin Abi
Talhah reported from Ibn `Abbas:
[مِّن قَبْلِ أَن
يَتَمَآسَّا]
(before they touch each other.) "The `touching' refers here to sexual
intercourse.'' Similar was said by `Ata', Az-Zuhri, Qatadah and Muqatil bin
Hayyan. Az-Zuhri added, "He is not to kiss or touch her until he pays the
expiation.'' The Sunan compilers recorded from `Ikrimah, from Ibn `Abbas that a
man said, "O Allah's Messenger! I pronounced Zihar on my wife, but then had
sexual intercourse with her before I paid the expiation.'' The Messenger said,
«مَا حَمَلَكَ عَلى
ذَلِكَ يَرْحَمُكَ الله»
(May Allah grant you His mercy, what made you do that) He said, "I saw the
adornment she was wearing shining in the moon's light.'' The Prophet said,
«فَلَا تَقْرَبْهَا
حَتْى تَفْعَلَ مَا أَمَرَكَ اللهُ عَزَّ وَجَل»
(Then do not touch her until you do what Allah the Exalted and Most Honored has
ordered you to do.) At-Tirmidhi said, "Hasan Gharib Sahih.'' Abu Dawud and
An-Nasa'i also recorded it. Allah said,
[فَتَحْرِيرُ رَقَبَةٍ]
((the penalty) in that case is the freeing of a slave) indicating the necessity
of freeing a slave before they touch each other. This Ayah mentions any slave,
not only believing servants as in the case of the expiation for (unintentional)
killing,
[ذَلِكُمْ تُوعَظُونَ
بِهِ]
(That is an admonition to you.) meaning, a warning to threaten you in this case.
[وَاللَّهُ بِمَا
تَعْمَلُونَ خَبِيرٌ]
(And Allah is All-Aware of what you do.) meaning, He is All-Knower in what
brings you benefit. Allah's statement,
[فَمَن لَّمْ يَجِدْ
فَصِيَامُ شَهْرَيْنِ مُتَتَابِعَيْنِ مِن قَبْلِ أَن يَتَمَآسَّا فَمَن لَّمْ
يَسْتَطِعْ فَإِطْعَامُ سِتِّينَ مِسْكِيناً]
(And he who finds not must fast two successive months before they both touch
each other. And he who is unable to do so, should feed sixty of the poor.) is
explained by the Hadiths that prescribe these punishments in this order, just
as in the Hadith collected in the Two Sahihs about the man who had sexual
intercourse with his wife during the day, in Ramadan. Allah said,
[ذَلِكَ لِتُؤْمِنُواْ
بِاللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ]
(That is in order that you may have perfect faith in Allah and His Messenger.)
meaning, `We legislated this punishment so that you acquire this trait,'
[وَتِلْكَ حُدُودُ
اللَّهِ]
(These are the limits set by Allah.) meaning, the things that He has forbidden,
so do not transgress them,
[وَلِلكَـفِرِينَ
عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ]
(And for disbelievers, there is a painful torment.) meaning, those who do not
believe and do not abide by the rulings of Islamic legislation should never
think they will be saved from the torment. Rather theirs will be a painful
torment in this life and the Hereafter.
[إِنَّ الَّذِينَ
يُحَآدُّونَ اللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ كُبِتُواْ كَمَا كُبِتَ الَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِهِمْ
وَقَدْ أَنزَلْنَآ ءَايَـتٍ بَيِّنَـتٍ وَلِلْكَـفِرِينَ عَذَابٌ مُّهِينٌ -
يَوْمَ يَبْعَثُهُمُ اللَّهُ جَمِيعاً فَيُنَبِّئُهُمْ بِمَا عَمِلُواْ أَحْصَـهُ
اللَّهُ وَنَسُوهُ وَاللَّهُ عَلَى كُلِّ شَىْءٍ شَهِيدٌ - أَلَمْ تَرَ أَنَّ
اللَّهَ يَعْلَمُ مَا فِى السَّمَـوَتِ وَمَا فِى الاٌّرْضِ مَا يَكُونُ مِن
نَّجْوَى ثَلَـثَةٍ إِلاَّ هُوَ رَابِعُهُمْ وَلاَ خَمْسَةٍ إِلاَّ هُوَ
سَادِسُهُمْ وَلاَ أَدْنَى مِن ذَلِكَ وَلاَ أَكْثَرَ إِلاَّ هُوَ مَعَهُمْ أَيْنَ
مَا كَانُواْ ثُمَّ يُنَبِّئُهُم بِمَا عَمِلُواْ يَوْمَ الْقِيَـمَةِ إِنَّ
اللَّهَ بِكُلِّ شَىْءٍ عَلِيمٌ ]
(5. Verily, those who oppose Allah and His Messenger will be disgraced as those
before them were disgraced. And We have sent down clear Ayat. And for the
disbelievers is a disgraceful torment.) (6. On the Day when Allah will
resurrect them all together and inform them of what they did. Allah has kept
account of it, while they have forgotten it. And Allah is Witness over all
things.) (7. Have you not seen that Allah knows whatsoever is in the heavens
and whatsoever is on the earth There is no Najwa of three but He is their
fourth nor of five but He is their sixth nor of less than that or more but He
is with them wheresoever they may be. And afterwards on the Day of Resurrection
He will inform them of what they did. Verily, Allah is the All-Knower of
everything.)
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