Verses 1–6
58. Al-Mujaadila · The Pleading Woman
Madinan22 verses
بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ
قَدْ سَمِعَ ٱللَّهُ قَوْلَ ٱلَّتِى تُجَٰدِلُكَ فِى زَوْجِهَا وَتَشْتَكِىٓ إِلَى ٱللَّهِ وَٱللَّهُ يَسْمَعُ تَحَاوُرَكُمَآ ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ سَمِيعٌۢ بَصِيرٌ
58:1Allah has certainly heard the speech of her who pleads with you about her husband and complains to Allah. Allah hears the conversation between the two of you. Indeed Allah is all-hearing, all-seeing.
ٱلَّذِينَ يُظَٰهِرُونَ مِنكُم مِّن نِّسَآئِهِم مَّا هُنَّ أُمَّهَٰتِهِمْ ۖ إِنْ أُمَّهَٰتُهُمْ إِلَّا ٱلَّٰٓـِٔى وَلَدْنَهُمْ ۚ وَإِنَّهُمْ لَيَقُولُونَ مُنكَرًۭا مِّنَ ٱلْقَوْلِ وَزُورًۭا ۚ وَإِنَّ ٱللَّهَ لَعَفُوٌّ غَفُورٌۭ
58:2As for those of you who repudiate their wives by zihar, they are not their mothers; their mothers are only those who bore them, and indeed they utter an outrage and a lie. Indeed Allah is all-excusing, all-forgiving.1
وَٱلَّذِينَ يُظَٰهِرُونَ مِن نِّسَآئِهِمْ ثُمَّ يَعُودُونَ لِمَا قَالُوا۟ فَتَحْرِيرُ رَقَبَةٍۢ مِّن قَبْلِ أَن يَتَمَآسَّا ۚ ذَٰلِكُمْ تُوعَظُونَ بِهِۦ ۚ وَٱللَّهُ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ خَبِيرٌۭ
58:3Those who repudiate their wives by ³ih¡r and then retract what they have said, shall set free a slave before they may touch each other. This you are advised [to carry out], and Allah is well aware of what you do.2
فَمَن لَّمْ يَجِدْ فَصِيَامُ شَهْرَيْنِ مُتَتَابِعَيْنِ مِن قَبْلِ أَن يَتَمَآسَّا ۖ فَمَن لَّمْ يَسْتَطِعْ فَإِطْعَامُ سِتِّينَ مِسْكِينًۭا ۚ ذَٰلِكَ لِتُؤْمِنُوا۟ بِٱللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِۦ ۚ وَتِلْكَ حُدُودُ ٱللَّهِ ۗ وَلِلْكَٰفِرِينَ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ
58:4He who cannot afford [to free a slave] shall fast for two successive months before they may touch each other. If he cannot [do so], he shall feed sixty needy persons. This, that you may have faith in Allah and His Apostle. These are Allah’s bounds, and there is a painful punishment for the faithless.3
إِنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ يُحَآدُّونَ ٱللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُۥ كُبِتُوا۟ كَمَا كُبِتَ ٱلَّذِينَ مِن قَبْلِهِمْ ۚ وَقَدْ أَنزَلْنَآ ءَايَٰتٍۭ بَيِّنَٰتٍۢ ۚ وَلِلْكَٰفِرِينَ عَذَابٌۭ مُّهِينٌۭ
58:5Indeed those who oppose Allah and His Apostle will be subdued just as those who passed before them were subdued. We have certainly sent down manifest signs, and there is a humiliating punishment for the faithless.
يَوْمَ يَبْعَثُهُمُ ٱللَّهُ جَمِيعًۭا فَيُنَبِّئُهُم بِمَا عَمِلُوٓا۟ ۚ أَحْصَىٰهُ ٱللَّهُ وَنَسُوهُ ۚ وَٱللَّهُ عَلَىٰ كُلِّ شَىْءٍۢ شَهِيدٌ
58:6The day when Allah will raise them all together, He will inform them about what they have done. Allah has kept account of it, while they have forgotten, and Allah is witness to all things.
Tafsir
Commentary on this passage
Verse 1
1.It is said that, this is the story of Khawlah, whose husband had told her that she was like his mother, and both of them had felt ashamed. So husband sent his wife to the Prophet (s.a.). She narrated the story of her dilemma. The Prophet (s.a.) remained quiet, she again persisted, then again he remained quiet and kept on waiting for the order of Allah, till she complained to Allah and this Ayat was revealed that a woman of Zihar cannot become mother (Zihar means saying to one’s wife she is like one’s mother or sister) and after expiation relations can be established (between husband and wife). It is possible that may be this delay in reply was so that man should remain in mental agony at least for some time to see what judgement is coming. May be the judgement is going to be against him. So that the next time he would not dare to attempt such things again and the woman should not give reasons due to which Zihar occurs, and man also should not attempt to do such things. That is why Allah has promised forgiveness after kaffarah. So that man does not get misled due to natural tendencies. Otherwise if religion were to become an obstacle in the husband and wife relationship many people would prefer to give up religion and would not allow their relations to be hurt. May Allah protect man from the evil of feelings (passions) and desires and protect us from all such attempts which are against the wish of Allah and His Prophet (s.a.) and are contrary to the laws of Islam.
Footnotes
Explanations of words and phrases in these verses
Benefit
Afw - Forgiving of sins and obliterating them. Maghferat is to put a veil over them. Afw and Ghafoor indicate that He not only forgives the sin, but also conceals them so that the honour of the sinner remains intact.
- 1
Zihar means that a man says to wife : You are to me like the back of my mother. After this the wife becomes haraam for him and can be legalized after paying the Kaffara (penalty). But there are some conditions for this action : (i) Zihar should be before just witnesses. (ii) The woman should be ritually pure. (iii) The woman should be fit for intercourse. Zihar is actually haraam in Islam but if a man repents Allah forgives his sins.
- 2
Some scholars think that without paying Kaffara the two of them could not even touch each other, and some say that ‘not touching’ indicates sexual intercourse is not permitted without paying Kaffara and there is no harm in touching and even the intercourse will not be considered fornication because the woman is after all his wife and intercourse with her has become haraam only due to Zihar.
- 3
This facility is given so that the man remains on faith as there are many people who are ready to leave Islam and Imaan for their wives. And they prefer woman to the command of Al1ah.