Explaining the Importance of the Science of Tafsir
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The Shaykh : May Allah send blessings and peace upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and his Companions, and upon those who follow them in excellence until the Day of Judgment. As for what follows, I would like to express my gratitude to the Al-Istiqamah Islamic Foundation in Unaizah for this excellent observation, which is their attention to the needs of people on occasions that require pointing out important matters so that people may be clear in their understanding of the religion of Allah (Mighty and Majestic).
The presenter: The beginning of this tafsir was in the month of Rabi' al-Awwal of 1418 AH, and the end was on the first of Rabi' al-Thani of the completed year 1420 AH, within the lessons of the Shaykh (may Allah have mercy on him) that he holds in the Great Mosque in Unaizah, and now with the first tape.
The Shaykh : Before we begin with the tafsir, I would like to encourage students of knowledge to learn the tafsir of the Qur'an, because the Qur'an is the most noble book and the greatest book, for it is the speech of Allah (Mighty and Majestic), by which He truly spoke, and Jibril heard it and conveyed it to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). Then, this was the practice of the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them), for they did not move on from ten verses until they learned them and the knowledge and action contained in them. They said: "So we learned the Qur'an, and knowledge and action all together". It is well known that if a person reads the Qur'an without knowing its meaning, he benefits nothing from it, just as if he read a book of jurisprudence or a book of medicine or a book of literature and did not know the meaning, he would benefit nothing from it.
The most important thing in the Qur'an is to reflect on its verses and be admonished by them, as Allah the Exalted said:[Sad 38:29] There are some people whose inclination is toward a branch of the sciences, and they neglect the Qur'an. If you discuss with them the least meaning of the verses, you will find that they have no knowledge of it, and they have not come upon any trace or evidence of it. This is a great deficiency in knowledge. The foundation of knowledge, and its most important, noblest, and highest part, is learning the Noble Qur'an, and therefore care must be taken with it.
Know that the Noble Qur'an was not revealed as a book of grammar or a book of morphology or a book of astronomy or the like, but rather it was revealed so that the servant may be upright in his dealings with Allah and his dealings with creation. Therefore, you will find that the Noble Qur'an does not pay much attention to cosmic and astronomical verses, but rather it refers to them briefly. However, in legal rulings, it presents them in detail and explanation. Some of the later scholars tried to bring down the cosmic, astronomical, and terrestrial information, attempting to make the Qur'an indicate them in detail. So he would present the verses and strain to interpret their meaning to make them conform to what was said about the science of astronomy and the earth. This is an error, because the Qur'an was revealed to guide creation in worship and transactions. What it contains of speech regarding cosmic matters is presented in a general way, with little detail if there is any detail. So let the student of knowledge pay attention to the tafsir of the speech of Allah (Mighty and Majestic).
The presenter: The beginning of this tafsir was in the month of Rabi' al-Awwal of 1418 AH, and the end was on the first of Rabi' al-Thani of the completed year 1420 AH, within the lessons of the Shaykh (may Allah have mercy on him) that he holds in the Great Mosque in Unaizah, and now with the first tape.
The Shaykh : Before we begin with the tafsir, I would like to encourage students of knowledge to learn the tafsir of the Qur'an, because the Qur'an is the most noble book and the greatest book, for it is the speech of Allah (Mighty and Majestic), by which He truly spoke, and Jibril heard it and conveyed it to the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). Then, this was the practice of the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them), for they did not move on from ten verses until they learned them and the knowledge and action contained in them. They said: "So we learned the Qur'an, and knowledge and action all together". It is well known that if a person reads the Qur'an without knowing its meaning, he benefits nothing from it, just as if he read a book of jurisprudence or a book of medicine or a book of literature and did not know the meaning, he would benefit nothing from it.
The most important thing in the Qur'an is to reflect on its verses and be admonished by them, as Allah the Exalted said:
[This is] a blessed Book which We have revealed to you, [O Muhammad], that they might reflect upon its verses and that those of understanding would be reminded.
كتاب أنزلناه إليك مبارك ليدبروا آياته وليتذكر أولو الألبابKnow that the Noble Qur'an was not revealed as a book of grammar or a book of morphology or a book of astronomy or the like, but rather it was revealed so that the servant may be upright in his dealings with Allah and his dealings with creation. Therefore, you will find that the Noble Qur'an does not pay much attention to cosmic and astronomical verses, but rather it refers to them briefly. However, in legal rulings, it presents them in detail and explanation. Some of the later scholars tried to bring down the cosmic, astronomical, and terrestrial information, attempting to make the Qur'an indicate them in detail. So he would present the verses and strain to interpret their meaning to make them conform to what was said about the science of astronomy and the earth. This is an error, because the Qur'an was revealed to guide creation in worship and transactions. What it contains of speech regarding cosmic matters is presented in a general way, with little detail if there is any detail. So let the student of knowledge pay attention to the tafsir of the speech of Allah (Mighty and Majestic).