Verses 278 and 279 of Surah Al-Baqarah address the believers in a decisive and commanding tone, urging them to observe the fear of God and to abandon the remainder of usury. These verses continue the prior Qur'anic discussions regarding the prohibition of usury and the presentation of a model for the faithful life. They adopt a direct and threatening approach emphasising the necessity of practical adherence to divine ordinances. This treatise, through a profound and systematic examination of these verses, endeavours to extract and analyse the core concepts and key points employing a refined and scholarly language. The interpretation, preserving the entire content of the original lecture and integrating complementary analyses, is composed to serve as a comprehensive and valuable resource for an educated audience and academic environments. The structure of this work, divided into specialised sections and utilising distinguished allegories, elucidates the Quranic wisdom and the philosophy underpinning Islamic rulings.
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللَّهَ وَذَرُوا مَا بَقِيَ مِنَ الرِّبَا إِنْ كُنْتُمْ مُؤْمِنِينَ ٢٧٨ فَإِنْ لَمْ تَفْعَلُوا فَأْذَنُوا بِحَرْبٍ مِنَ اللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ وَإِنْ تُبْتُمْ فَلَكُمْ رُءُوسُ أَمْوَالِكُمْ لَا تَظْلِمُونَ وَلَا تُظْلَمُونَ ٢٧٩
O you who have believed, fear Allah and relinquish what remains of usury, if you are indeed believers. And if you do not, then be informed of a war from Allah and His Messenger. But if you repent, you shall have your principal capital; you shall neither wrong nor be wronged.
These verses, addressing the believers directly with the phrase "O you who have believed", call them to two fundamental duties: the fear of God and the abandonment of the remainder of usury. The decisive and threatening tone of verse 279, with reference to "a war from Allah and His Messenger", underscores the gravity of this ruling and the consequences of disobedience. Simultaneously, the promise of justice ("you shall neither wrong nor be wronged") reflects divine wisdom in maintaining balance and equity in transactions.
alh, as a spiritual bridge between man and the Creator, is an essential and internal act that connects the believer's heart with divine remembrance. This worship is like a lamp that illuminates the interior and guides man towards spiritual perfection. In contrast, Zakh is an outward and multiplicative act that strengthens the connection between the individual and society. Zakh is akin to a stream flowing from the believer's wealth towards the needy, realising social justice.
Together, these two acts form the Islamic educational system as a robust structure whose pillars are individual faith and social commitment. alh refines the soul, while Zakh liberates society from poverty and inequality. This balance exemplifies Islams comprehensive attention to both personal and social dimensions.
Previous verses on usury (such as verse 275) articulated its prohibition and emphasised the forgiveness of past transactions (sulaf). Verse 277 described the characteristics of true believers by presenting a model for a faithful life. However, verses 278 and 279, adopting a direct and threatening tone, explicitly call believers to abandon the remaining usury (baq).
Earlier verses, without threats, stated the ruling and granted pardon for past cases, but verses 278 and 279, by referring to war with Allah and His Messenger, stress the necessity of practical commitment. This tonal shift resembles the sounding of a bell awakening believers from negligence and warning them of the seriousness of divine rulings.
Islam is a descriptive religion that presents rulings with rational criteria and reasons rather than issuing orders without explanation. This feature acts like a torch illuminating the path of guidance, inviting the audience to reflection and awareness. Unlike command-based systems that dictate orders forcibly and without reason, Islam institutionalises rationality within faith by elucidating the wisdom of its laws.
Although Islam contains commands and prohibitions, these are presented within a descriptive context. Like a teacher who explains the lesson before assigning homework, God first clarifies the criteria of the rulings and then commands implementation. This method resembles a map that shows the route prior to the journey.
Shia jurisprudence, as a brilliant jewel among juridical systems, presents rulings with their subject and criteria. Contrary to command-based jurisprudence that orders without explanation, this approach centres rationality and wisdom. For example, in the case of Qiss (retribution), the Quran first expresses the criterion life in retribution before commanding its implementation.
Taqwa, meaning self-restraint and avoidance of sin, functions as a brake preventing deviation. In verse 278, taqwa is limited to the abandonment of usury, indicating the particular application of this concept in specific contexts.
The word ذَرُوا, derived from the root ذَرَ, means to leave or abandon. This word, with a phonetic modification from وَذَرَ, intensifies the meaning of abandonment in derivational literature. The phonetic closeness of ذَرَ to وَزَرَ (meaning burden and heaviness) indicates a semantic opposition: abandoning usury brings lightness, whereas persisting in it leads to burden and penalty.
Usury in these verses is divided into two types: Sulaf (pre-legislation transactions) which have been forgiven, and Baq (post-legislation transactions) which must be abandoned. This distinction acts as a dividing line separating past from present and highlights divine justice in legislation.
The phrase لَا تَظْلِمُونَ وَلَا تُظْلَمُونَ (you shall neither wrong nor be wronged) functions as a pillar establishing the Islamic economic system on the foundation of justice and fairness. This principle prevents not only injustice (acquiring usurious profit) but also being wronged (loss of capital).
This principle summons believers to maintain fairness in commerce. The principal capital must be preserved, but usurious profit, which is like a poison destroying the economy, must be relinquished.
One of the historical challenges has been the confusion of past transactions (Sulaf) with current ones (Baq), leading to chaos and revival of futile disputes. This error resembles rekindling extinguished embers, yielding no benefit but harm.
Societal management requires precise engineering and expertise. Administration by non-specialist methods, akin to a general practitioner performing surgery, results in failure. This metaphor serves as a warning emphasising the necessity of rational planning.
Scientific elites are like jewels overlooked in alienation and neglect. Preventing the honouring of true scholars and promoting unworthy individuals leads to societal degeneration.
Scientific domains must identify, code, and introduce elites to the world. This act resembles raising a flag demonstrating the scientific grandeur of Shiism globally.
The Western world, by attracting Iranian elites, plunders the nation's human capital. This phenomenon is comparable to bleeding from the body of a nation, leading to weakness and deterioration.
Elites must remain in their homeland and, through steadfastness, continue serving the people. This resilience is like a tree whose roots penetrate the native soil and bear fruit for the nation.
Assessing students before their teachers is a mistake leading to misdiagnosis of faults. Elders of religious knowledge must first be examined to determine the quality of education.
The students dependence on commentaries and lack of deep engagement with primary texts impede scientific progress. This approach resembles leaning on others crutches, damaging intellectual independence.
Some teachers, instead of mastering primary texts, rely on unsupported and subjective discourse. This approach is like building on a weak foundation that will collapse.
Scholars such as Sharani, Adib Nishapuri, and Modarres Afghani, possessing mastery over texts and knowledge, shone like stars in the firmament of religious sciences. These great figures, with transformative abilities, serve as unparalleled role models for future generations.
Scholars like Sayyid Abul Hasan Qazvini, with their scientific and spiritual grandeur, resembled former prophets whose words were like revelation, imbued with purity and sincerity.
The interpretation of verses 278 and 279 of Surah Al
