Exegesis of Surat al-Duha: "And the morning brightness, and the night when it becomes still" and clarification of the ruling on swearing by created things
Machine translationRead the Arabic original
The Shaykh : As for the surah we heard this evening, is it al-Duha? And what?
The student: ... .
The Shaykh : Al-Sharh and al-Inshirah, good.
Glory be to Allah, this surah has been repeated to us several times, but perhaps some of you were not present for His Blessed and Exalted saying: These are two opposing things. The morning brightness is the rising of the sun until the sky lightens. The night when it becomes still means when it covers the earth. What happens? Darkness. Darkness and light are opposites. Allah the Exalted swore by the morning brightness, so He said: Who can bring the day except Allah? Who can bring the night except Allah? So they are two great signs among the signs of Allah Mighty and Majestic. Allah the Exalted made the day a means of livelihood in which people live, and He made the night a rest in which they sleep, relieving them of fatigue and giving them energy for the future. But unfortunately, in this time, the day has become a rest and the night is not a means of livelihood; it is not a means of livelihood. The night is spent in wakefulness without benefit, and perhaps even with harm. And this is a reversal of the facts. In reality, for this reason, if it happens that you sleep from the time you pray 'Isha', that is better for you in religion and in this world.
[Ad-Duhaa 93:2-3] Is there a problem with this swearing? Who knows the nature of the problem? There is no god but Allah. What do you say about swearing by other than Allah? What do you say about the oath of one who swears by other than Allah? We say: Riyad as-Salihin 1711 That is, if I said, for example, "By the Prophet Muhammad, I will certainly do such and such," this is a type of shirk (associating partners with Allah). If I said, "By the homeland, I will certainly do such and such," this is a type of shirk. If I said, "By the Ka'bah, I will certainly do such and such," this is a type of shirk. Swearing is not permissible except by Allah alone. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: Musannaf Ibn Abi Shaybah 7:126 Sahih al-Bukhari 2679 Here the problem becomes clear. What is the problem? The morning brightness is a created thing. The night is a created thing. How did Allah swear by it?
We say, may Allah bless you. We say: because the Ruler is Allah, and He has the right to rule as He wills. So He has the right to forbid the servants from swearing by created things, and He, Mighty and Majestic, has the right to swear by created things, is that not so? We say: Allah has the right to swear by whatever He wills of His creation, because Allah is the Ruler and no one rules over Him, so He has the right to swear by whatever He wills of His creation. But know that Allah does not swear by anything except that it is among His greatest signs until the Day of Resurrection. Allah swore by it, saying:[Al-Qiyamah 75:1] Because it is among the greatest signs that people will rise from their graves to the Lord of the worlds with a single call. Good.
Allah has the right to swear by whatever He wills of His creation.
The student: ... .
The Shaykh : Al-Sharh and al-Inshirah, good.
And the morning brightness, and the night when it becomes still
الضحى والليل إذا سجىAnd the morning brightness, and the night when it becomes still
والضحى والليل إذا سجىAnd the morning brightness, and the night when it becomes still
والضحى والليل اذا سجىThe Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) used to dislike sleeping before the 'Isha prayer and disliked talking after the 'Isha prayer
كان النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم يكره النوم قبل صلاة العشاء ويكره الحديث بعد صلاة العشاء(2) And [by] the night when it covers with darkness, (3) Your Lord has not taken leave of you, [O Muhammad], nor has He detested [you].
والضحى والليل إذا سجى ما ودعك ربك وما قلىHe who swears by anyone or anything other than Allah, has indeed committed an act of Kufr or Shirk
من حلف بغير الله فقد كفر أو أشركWhoever swears, let him swear by Allah or let him remain silent
من حلف فليحلف بالله أو ليصمتshould swear by Allah or remain silent
فليحلف بالله أو ليصمتWe say, may Allah bless you. We say: because the Ruler is Allah, and He has the right to rule as He wills. So He has the right to forbid the servants from swearing by created things, and He, Mighty and Majestic, has the right to swear by created things, is that not so? We say: Allah has the right to swear by whatever He wills of His creation, because Allah is the Ruler and no one rules over Him, so He has the right to swear by whatever He wills of His creation. But know that Allah does not swear by anything except that it is among His greatest signs until the Day of Resurrection. Allah swore by it, saying:
I swear by the Day of Resurrection
لا أقسم بيوم القيامةAllah has the right to swear by whatever He wills of His creation.
