Exegesis of the saying of Allah the Exalted: "and the orphans," and the definition of an orphan.
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The Shaykh : Now, "the orphans" is the plural of "orphan," which is the one whose father died before he reached puberty. It is the one whose father died before he reached puberty. The pronoun in "reached puberty" refers to—look, in "the one whose father died before he reached puberty," does it refer to the son or the father? The pronoun refers to the nearest mentioned. Yes, confirm.
The student: The son.
The Shaykh : Why is it the father?
The student: The father cannot...
The Shaykh : Well done, may Allah bless you, may Allah reward you with good. Yes, the one whose father died before he reached puberty. Perhaps some people ask, why don't you clarify? Why don't you say: "the one whose father died before the son reached puberty"? I say: What is the need? Everyone knows that the meaning is before the son reached puberty. It is clear that the orphan whose father died before he reached puberty is certainly a pitiable person whose heart is broken and who needs comfort. Therefore, Allah commanded kindness to them. And after that, there is a lesson between the adhan and the iqamah. We will bring the mu'adhdhin and continue, if Allah wills. Allahu Akbar.
So, "the orphans" is the plural of "orphan," which is the one whose father died before he reached puberty. Now, what about the one whose mother died and his father is present?
The student: He is not an orphan.
The Shaykh : So he is not an orphan because his father is the one who provides for him. That is why financial maintenance is obligatory upon the father, not the mother. Look, financial maintenance is obligatory upon the father, not the mother. If, for example, the mother has a lot of money and the father has money but less than the mother's, upon whom is the maintenance obligatory? The mother or the father? It is upon the father. That is why the one whose father dies is an orphan, and the one whose mother dies is not an orphan. Rather, Allah, Blessed and Exalted is He, commanded kindness to orphans because their hearts may be broken; they do not find a father as other boys do. So Allah the Exalted commanded kindness to them.
And to the near relatives and the orphans
وبذي القربى واليتامىThe student: The son.
The Shaykh : Why is it the father?
The student: The father cannot...
The Shaykh : Well done, may Allah bless you, may Allah reward you with good. Yes, the one whose father died before he reached puberty. Perhaps some people ask, why don't you clarify? Why don't you say: "the one whose father died before the son reached puberty"? I say: What is the need? Everyone knows that the meaning is before the son reached puberty. It is clear that the orphan whose father died before he reached puberty is certainly a pitiable person whose heart is broken and who needs comfort. Therefore, Allah commanded kindness to them. And after that, there is a lesson between the adhan and the iqamah. We will bring the mu'adhdhin and continue, if Allah wills. Allahu Akbar.
So, "the orphans" is the plural of "orphan," which is the one whose father died before he reached puberty. Now, what about the one whose mother died and his father is present?
The student: He is not an orphan.
The Shaykh : So he is not an orphan because his father is the one who provides for him. That is why financial maintenance is obligatory upon the father, not the mother. Look, financial maintenance is obligatory upon the father, not the mother. If, for example, the mother has a lot of money and the father has money but less than the mother's, upon whom is the maintenance obligatory? The mother or the father? It is upon the father. That is why the one whose father dies is an orphan, and the one whose mother dies is not an orphan. Rather, Allah, Blessed and Exalted is He, commanded kindness to orphans because their hearts may be broken; they do not find a father as other boys do. So Allah the Exalted commanded kindness to them.