Chapter: The saying of Allah the Exalted: “Allah has made the Ka'bah, the Sacred House, a standing point for the people, and the Sacred Month, and the sacrificial animals, and the garlands. That is so that you may know that Allah knows what is in the heavens and what is in the earth, and that Allah is All-Knowing of everything.”
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The reciter: Chapter: The saying of Allah the Exalted: [Al-Ma'idah 5:97]
The Shaykh : Allah the Exalted said:[Al-Ma'idah 5:97] The name likewise the name and al-Haram is a description of al-Haram, meaning that which possesses sanctity and magnification in their religion and their worldly affairs. So it is a standing point for people in their religion, where they perform the rites which are one of the pillars of Islam, Hajj, and in their worldly affairs, where they obtain sustenance and earnings, as Allah the Mighty and Majestic said: [Al-Baqarah 2:198] meaning trade and earning, as He the Mighty and Majestic said regarding Jumu'ah, when the prayer is completed [Al-Jumu'ah 62:10] So it is a standing point for people in their religious and worldly affairs. Likewise, the Sacred Month. The word “month” here is singular, but the generic meaning is intended, meaning the Sacred Months. And what are the Sacred Months, Yahya?
The student: Dhul-Qa'dah and Dhul-Hijjah, and the one before Dhul-Qa'dah.
The Shaykh : No, Shawwal is before Dhul-Qa'dah, but it is not one of them. It is one of the months of Hajj, but it is not one of the Sacred Months. Dhul-Qa'dah, Dhul-Hijjah, Muharram, and Rajab are the Sacred Months. In these Sacred Months, fighting is forbidden, even against disbelievers; it is not permissible to fight them in these months unless they aggress against you. The scholars, may Allah have mercy on them, differed on whether the prohibition of fighting in them was abrogated or not. The correct view is that it was not abrogated, and that it is not permissible to initiate fighting against disbelievers in them, unless they initiate the fighting, or if it is a continuation of a previous war. Now, I said that the Sacred Month is singular, and the generic meaning is intended, so it includes all four: Dhul-Qa'dah, Dhul-Hijjah, Muharram, and Rajab. Allah the Exalted made it a standing point for people because people feel safe in these Sacred Months, even in the pre-Islamic age of ignorance. A man would pass by his enemy in the desert in these months and not kill him. They are respected and magnified months. So how are they a standing point for people? By the safety that enables them to travel for trade and other purposes. And the sacrificial animals are also a standing point for people, as are the garlands. The sacrificial animals are well known, and the garlands are what are placed on the sacrificial animals. How did Allah make them a standing point for people? For the poor who benefit from them, is that clear or not? Clear. They eat and enjoy. For the rich, it is also clear, because the market for livestock and animals becomes active, and thus it is a standing point for people. Then He the Mighty and Majestic said: meaning He conveyed to you [Al-Ma'idah 5:97]. He the Mighty and Majestic knows what is in the heavens and what is in the earth, the minute and the great, the apparent and the hidden, even what a person hides in his heart. Allah the Exalted said: [Qaf 50:16] Rather, He the Mighty and Majestic knows what your state will end up being, and you do not know, as He the Mighty and Majestic said: [Luqman 31:34] Now, is there knowledge beyond the heavens and the earth? Yes. And for this reason He said: [Al-Ma'idah 5:97] This is a generalization after the specification of the heavens and the earth, regarding every thing. Some is part of the whole, so His saying: [Al-Ma'idah 5:97] is from the perspective of appending what, my brother? From the perspective of what kind of appending?
The questioner : I do not know.
The Shaykh : You do not know? Why are you in front of me now, being one of the closest people to me? If I said, “Muhammad came, and the students...”
The questioner : ... the specific and the general.
The Shaykh : No, ... the specific is appended to the general. I said no, ... I said it is from the perspective of appending the specific to the general. It appears so without knowledge. Which one is more general if I said, “Muhammad came, and he is one of the students, and the students”? Which one is more general?
The questioner : The second one.
The Shaykh : If[Al-Ma'idah 5:97] is more general than His saying: [Al-Baqarah 2:116], yes.
Allah has made the Ka'bah, the Sacred House, standing for the people and [has sanctified] the sacred months and the sacrificial animals and the garlands [by which they are identified]. That is so you may know that Allah knows what is in the heavens and what is in the earth and that Allah is Knowing of all things.
جعل الله الكعبة البيت الحرام قياما للناس والشهر الحرام والهدي والقلائد ذلك لتعلموا أن الله يعلم ما في السماوات وما في الأرض وأن الله بكل شيء عليمThe Shaykh : Allah the Exalted said:
Allah has made the Ka'bah, the Sacred House, standing for the people
جعل الله الكعبة البيت الحرام قياماً للناسthe Ka'bah
الكعبةand the House
والبيتthe Sacred
الحرامa standing point for the people
قياماً للناسThere is no blame upon you for seeking bounty from your Lord
ليس عليكم جناح أن تبتغوا فضلاً من ربكمdisperse within the land and seek from the bounty of Allah
فانتشروا في الأرض وابتغوا من فضل اللهThe student: Dhul-Qa'dah and Dhul-Hijjah, and the one before Dhul-Qa'dah.
The Shaykh : No, Shawwal is before Dhul-Qa'dah, but it is not one of them. It is one of the months of Hajj, but it is not one of the Sacred Months. Dhul-Qa'dah, Dhul-Hijjah, Muharram, and Rajab are the Sacred Months. In these Sacred Months, fighting is forbidden, even against disbelievers; it is not permissible to fight them in these months unless they aggress against you. The scholars, may Allah have mercy on them, differed on whether the prohibition of fighting in them was abrogated or not. The correct view is that it was not abrogated, and that it is not permissible to initiate fighting against disbelievers in them, unless they initiate the fighting, or if it is a continuation of a previous war. Now, I said that the Sacred Month is singular, and the generic meaning is intended, so it includes all four: Dhul-Qa'dah, Dhul-Hijjah, Muharram, and Rajab. Allah the Exalted made it a standing point for people because people feel safe in these Sacred Months, even in the pre-Islamic age of ignorance. A man would pass by his enemy in the desert in these months and not kill him. They are respected and magnified months. So how are they a standing point for people? By the safety that enables them to travel for trade and other purposes. And the sacrificial animals are also a standing point for people, as are the garlands. The sacrificial animals are well known, and the garlands are what are placed on the sacrificial animals. How did Allah make them a standing point for people? For the poor who benefit from them, is that clear or not? Clear. They eat and enjoy. For the rich, it is also clear, because the market for livestock and animals becomes active, and thus it is a standing point for people. Then He the Mighty and Majestic said:
That is so that you may know
ذلك لتعلمواThat is so you may know that Allah knows what is in the heavens and what is in the earth and that Allah is Knowing of all things.
ذلك لتعلموا أن الله يعلم ما في السماوات والارض وأن الله بكل شيء عليمAnd We have already created man and know what his soul whispers to him
ولقد خلقنا الإنسان ونعلم ما توسوس به نفسهIndeed, Allah [alone] has knowledge of the Hour and sends down the rain and knows what is in the wombs. And no soul perceives what it will earn tomorrow, and no soul perceives in what land it will die
إن الله عنده علم الساعة وينزل الغيث ويعلم ما في الأرحام وما تدري نفسٌ ماذا تكسب غدا وما تدري نفسٌ بأي أرض تموتand that Allah is Knowing of all things.
وأن الله بكل شيء عليمand that Allah is Knowing of all things.
وأن الله بكل شيء عليمThe questioner : I do not know.
The Shaykh : You do not know? Why are you in front of me now, being one of the closest people to me? If I said, “Muhammad came, and the students...”
The questioner : ... the specific and the general.
The Shaykh : No, ... the specific is appended to the general. I said no, ... I said it is from the perspective of appending the specific to the general. It appears so without knowledge. Which one is more general if I said, “Muhammad came, and he is one of the students, and the students”? Which one is more general?
The questioner : The second one.
The Shaykh : If