Tebyan Contest for Everything - Episode 5

Episode Introduction

All praise is due to Allah. We begin with Allah's blessing after this technical disruption. Today, we have ten questions from the fifth part of the Noble Quran, and we will announce the leaders of the past contests tomorrow, Allah willing. The questions range from easy to difficult, so be prepared to answer.

Question One: The Reality of Faith and Submitting to Islamic Law

Question: It is of no benefit to a servant to increase in acts of worship and good deeds and claim faith if he is not submissive in all his affairs to the law of Allah, the Most High. Mention a verse that indicates this meaning from the fifth part.

Answer: Allah, the Most High, says: {But no, by your Lord, they will not believe until they make you a judge concerning that over which they dispute among themselves; then they will not find within themselves any discomfort from what you have judged, and they will submit [in Islam] in full submission.}

Explanation: This is a great verse that Muslims should reflect upon today. A person may claim faith, pray, and fast, but he may reject the rulings of the Shariah or see other things as better than it; this is not faith according to the definition of Allah, the Mighty and Majestic. A believer may fall into sins and acknowledge his sin, but he does not reject referring to the Shariah. The verse sets conditions: referring to the Sunnah, having a pure heart free from discomfort towards the ruling, and absolute submission.

Question Two: The Eloquence of the Quranic Expression

Question: Some people think that a certain word is something that should not be mentioned, while in reality, it is an expression of the place where the action is performed, and this is from the eloquence of the Quran in expression. What is this word?

Answer: The word (al-gha'it) in His saying, the Most High: {Or one of you comes from the place of relieving oneself.}

Explanation: Some people think that al-gha'it refers to the excrement itself, but in the language, "al-gha'it" is the low place on the ground where a person would go to relieve himself, hidden from view. It is from the eloquence of the Quran that it used the name of the place instead of the disdained word.

Question Three: The Difference Between Sound Nature and the Base Self

Question: A person with sound nature, if he sees someone better than himself, wishes to rise to his level. As for the one with the base self, he wants others to lower themselves to his level. Mention three places (verses) from the fifth part that indicate this meaning.

Answer:

1. {They wish that you would disbelieve as they have disbelieved, and thus be alike.}
2. {Have you not seen those who were given a portion of the Scripture, purchasing error [in the form of worldly gain] and wishing you would go astray from the way?}
3. {Those who are stingy and enjoin stinginess upon the people and conceal what Allah has given them of favor.} (And there is a fourth place mentioned by the followers: {And those who follow [their] lusts want you to deviate [from the right path] a great deviation.})

Question Four: The Response to "Jabr" and the Denial of Free Will

Question: Some misguided groups claim that man is compelled to his actions (the doctrine of jabr). Mention a verse from the fifth part that responds to this claim in a tone of astonishment at those who have deprived themselves of reward despite performing the action.

Answer: His saying, the Most High: {And what is [the matter] with them that they do not believe and seek forgiveness of Allah while they are being given provision from Him? And Allah is ever, with them, Acquainted.}

Explanation: Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, is astonished at their condition; they have indeed spent their wealth, but they spent it for show. If they had combined this action with good intention and faith, they would have received the reward. The phrase "what is [the matter] with them if they had believed" is only said to those who have the ability and will to act. If they were compelled, it would not be appropriate to rebuke them and be astonished at their condition.

Question Five: The Stance Towards Hypocrites

Question: The principle is to think well of Muslims, but when the hypocrisy and deceit of some become clear, this should not be the case. Mention the verse that rebuked those who were lenient towards the hypocrites.

Answer: His saying, the Most High: {Then what is [the matter] with you concerning the hypocrites, two parties among them? And Allah has caused to sit back those who disbelieved among them [in respect to Islam]. Do you wish to guide those whom Allah has sent astray?}

Question Six: The Increase and Decrease of Faith

Question: An action (a single word) that scholars have used as evidence that faith increases and decreases, and it is found in the fifth part. What is it?

Answer: The action (believe) in His saying, the Most High: {O you who have believed, believe in Allah and His Messenger...}

Explanation: Allah addresses the believers and commands them to believe, and the intended meaning is the realization of faith, its establishment, and its increase, which indicates that faith has degrees and levels.

Question Seven: The Response to Feminist Tendencies

Question: A verse in the fifth part responds to those with feminist tendencies and advises that each person should know their role and right, for Allah is Wise in determining destinies. What is it?

Answer: His saying, the Most High: {And do not desire the thing in which Allah has made some of you to excel over others. For men is a share of what they have earned, and for women is a share of what they have earned. And ask Allah of His bounty.}

Question Eight: The Reward for Evil in This World and the Hereafter

Question: One of us may disobey and not see an immediate effect on his body or wealth and think that he has escaped. There are five words in the fifth part that indicate that every sinner will receive his reward. What are they?

Answer: {Whoever does an evil deed will not be recompensed except by the like thereof.}

Explanation: Abu Bakr as-Siddiq, may God be pleased with him, asked the Prophet ﷺ about this verse out of fear, and the Prophet informed him that what befalls the believer in terms of illness, sadness, and trials is from the reward for evil deeds and expiation for them. The reward may be physical or emotional, such as being deprived of closeness to Allah.

Question Nine: The Condition of Those Who Hesitate to Support Muslims

Question: A verse describes the condition of one who sees the tribulations of his brothers and is pleased that he was not with them and was not afflicted by what afflicted them instead of thinking about supporting them.

Answer: His saying, the Most High: {But if an affliction should touch you, he would say, "Indeed, Allah has favored me in that I was not present with them."}

Question Ten: Interpreting the Quran with the Quran

Question: A verse in the fifth part explains categories that Allah has blessed in a verse from the first part (Surah Al-Fatihah). What is it?

Answer: His saying, the Most High: {And whoever obeys Allah and the Messenger - those will be with the ones upon whom Allah has bestowed favor - of the prophets, the steadfast affirmers of truth, the witnesses, and the righteous. And excellent are those as companions.}

Explanation: This verse explains His saying, the Most High, in Al-Fatihah: {The path of those upon whom You have bestowed favor}, and it clarifies who these favored ones are.

May Allah, the Most High, benefit us with what we have learned, and until we meet again tomorrow, Allah willing. Peace be upon you and the mercy of Allah and His blessings.