of Nekounam, (Session 1025)
Surah An-Nisa, akin to a profound ocean, encompasses divine knowledge, and its verse 144, like a brilliant gem, guides the believers towards the correct choice of allies and the avoidance of hypocrisy. This treatise, relying on Qur'anic themes and profound analyses, elucidates this verse alongside its ethical, social, and psychological implications. The aim is to clarify the path of true faith and warn against the malady of hypocrisy which, like a dark shadow, leads societies towards degeneration. This exegesis, through semantic connections among verses and the use of literary metaphors, serves as an invitation to reflect upon divine knowledge and inner reform.
The Holy Quran, in verse 144 of Surah An-Nisa, addresses the believers and forbids friendship with disbelievers in place of the believers. This address, like a bell, warns that preserving the identity of faith and prioritising believers in social and doctrinal relationships acts as a shield against deviation from the path of truth.
Choosing the believers as allies not only strengthens the bonds of faith but also, like a fortress, protects the Islamic community from the influence of disbelievers and hypocrites.
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا لَا تَتَّخِذُوا الْكَافِرِينَ أَوْلِيَاءَ مِنْ دُونِ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ ۚ أَتُرِيدُونَ أَن تَجْعَلُوا لِلَّهِ عَلَيْكُمْ سُلْطَانًا مُبِينًا
O you who have believed, do not take the disbelievers as allies instead of the believers. Do you wish to give Allah against yourselves a clear authority?
This verse, like a mirror, reveals the danger of doctrinal and practical deviation resulting from friendship with disbelievers. Choosing disbelievers as allies directs the believer towards hypocrisy and misguidance, as if placing the ship of faith in the storm of disbelief at risk.
The verse warns that friendship with disbelievers creates a clear proof (suln mubn) against the believers before Allah. This suln mubn, like a decisive argument, burdens the believers responsibility before God and makes them deserving of punishment. This concept aligns with verse 28 of Surah Al-Munfiqn which condemns the dependence of hypocrites on disbelievers.
Hypocrites are those who associate with disbelievers and choose them as friends instead of believers. This behaviour stems from fear, greed, and worldliness which, like chains, distance them from true faith. The Holy Quran, in verse 141 of Surah An-Nisa, censures hypocrites due to opportunism and instability.
The Holy Quran states in verse 145 of Surah An-Nisa:
إِنَّ الْمُنَافِقِينَ فِي الدَّرْكِ الْأَسْفَلِ مِنَ النَّارِ
Indeed, the hypocrites will be in the lowest depths of the Fire.
The term "lowest depths" is like the deepest abyss of Hell, the place of the hypocrites who, due to duplicity and betrayal of faith, suffer such a torment.
Hypocrites shall find no helper except those who repent and reform. The Holy Quran states in verse 146 of Surah An-Nisa:
إِلَّا الَّذِينَ تَابُوا وَأَصْلَحُوا وَاعْتَصَمُوا بِاللَّهِ وَأَخْلَصُوا دِينَهُمْ لِلَّهِ فَأُولَٰئِكَ مَعَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ ۖ وَسَوْفَ يُؤْتِي اللَّهُ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ أَجْرًا عَظِيمًا
Except for those who repent, reform, hold fast to Allah, and sincerely dedicate their religion to Him. Those will be with the believers, and Allah will grant the believers a great reward.
Repentance and reform act as a key to liberation from hypocrisy and joining the believers. This path requires sincerity and holding fast to God, which, like a firm rope, guides the believer towards felicity.
Sincere repentance and reform save the hypocrite from the abyss of hypocrisy and unite him with the believers, as if stepping from darkness into the light of faith.
The Holy Quran invites believers to hold fast to Allah and to sincerity in religion. Holding fast is like seeking refuge in a fortified castle, protecting the believer from the harms of hypocrisy. Sincerity in religion is like donning a pure garment over the soul, preserving faith from worldly impurities.
Those who repent and purify their religion will be with the believers, and Allah will bestow upon them a great reward. This reward, like a precious gem, is the fruit of steadfast faith and sincerity.
Humans are divided into three groups: independent disbelievers, cowardly and opportunistic hypocrites, and steadfast believers, whose number is few. Disbelievers are like firm rocks in their disbelief; hypocrites resemble weeds weakening faith; and believers, like shining stars, illuminate the path of felicity.
Hypocrites are cowardly, greedy, and worldly. These traits, like chains, drag them toward degeneration. The Holy Quran condemns the deceitfulness of hypocrites in verse 142 of Surah An-Nisa.
Hypocrisy, like a plague, dries up the roots of faith and drives society towards misery.
Due to fear and ignorance, hypocrites constitute the majority in contemporary societies. This dominance, like a heavy shadow, obstructs spiritual and social progress. The Holy Quran states in verse 11 of Surah Ar-Rad:
إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَا يُغَيِّرُ مَا بِقَوْمٍ حَتَّىٰ يُغَيِّرُوا مَا بِأَنْفُسِهِمْ
Indeed, Allah will not change the condition of a people until they change what is in themselves.
The Holy Quran states in verse 147 of Surah An-Nisa:
مَا يَفْعَلُ اللَّهُ بِعَذَابِكُمْ إِنْ شَكَرْتُمْ وَآمَنْتُمْ ۚ وَكَانَ اللَّهُ شَاكِرًا عَلِيمًا
What would Allah do with your punishment if you are grateful and believe? And ever is Allah Appreciative and Knowing.
Gratitude and faith, like two wings, rescue the believer from divine punishment and enable them to soar towards His mercy.
God is Appreciative and Knowing, and He accepts the gratitude and faith of His servants. This description, like a light, shines divine mercy and knowledge upon the believers.
Fear, like a deadly poison, prevents hypocrites from participating in reformist uprisings. This fear stems from ignorance and a fear-driven culture, which, like a wall, hinders societal progress.
Proper education must remove fear from the heart of the individual from childhood. The Holy Quran states in verse 6 of Surah At-Tahrim:
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا قُوا أَنْفُسَكُمْ وَأَهْلِيكُمْ نَارًا
O you who have believed, protect yourselves and your families from a Fire.
Education based on courage and faith, like clear water, cleanses hypocrisy from society.
Proper education, like a skilled gardener, plants courage and faith in the hearts of children and eradicates hypocrisy.
Education based on frightening children is like sowing the seed of hypocrisy that later manifests as cowardice and opportunism. The Holy Quran, in verse 159 of Surah Al-Imran, advises gentleness in education.
The supplication "Allhumma alli al Muammad wa li Muammad" acts as a spiritual key, guiding believers towards courage and faith. This supplication, through intercession with the Ahl al-Bayt, opens the way to knowledge and distancing from hypocrisy.
Intercession through the Ahl al-Bayt, like a light in the darkness, guides the believer from hypocrisy towards true faith.
Verse 144 of Surah An-Nisa, like a blazing torch, warns believers against friendship with disbelievers in place of believers and condemns hypocrisy as a destructive plague. Hypocrites, due to fear and ignorance, lead society to degradation; however, repentance, reform, holding fast to God, and sincerity in religion form their path to salvation. Proper education plants courage and faith in hearts and eradicates hypocrisy. This exegesis is an invitation to ponder Quranic teachings and to step upon the path of true faith.
Under the supervision of Sadegh Khademi
