Tafsir

Allah hates Disbelief and is pleased with Gratitude

Allah tells us that He is Independent and has no need of anything in creation. This is like the Ayah in which Musa, peace be upon him, says: إِن تَكْفُرُواْ أَنتُمْ وَمَن فِى الاٌّرْضِ جَمِيعًا فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ لَغَنِىٌّ حَمِيدٌ("If you disbelieve, you and all on earth together, then verily, Allah is Rich, Owner of all praise.") (14:8). In Sahih Muslim, it says: «يَا عِبَادِي لَوْ أَنَّ أَوَّلَكُمْ وَآخِرَكُمْ وَإِنْسَكُمْ وَجِنَّكُمْ كَانُوا عَلَى أَفْجَرِ قَلْبِ رَجُلٍ مِنْكُمْ، مَا نَقَصَ ذَلِكَ مِنْ مُلْكِي شَيْئًا»("O My servants, if the first and the last of you, men and Jinn alike, were all to be as evil as the most evil man among you, that would not diminish from My sovereignty in the least.") وَلاَ يَرْضَى لِعِبَادِهِ الْكُفْرَ(He likes not disbelief for His servants.) means, He does not like it and He does not enjoin it. وَإِن تَشْكُرُواْ يَرْضَهُ لَكُمْ(And if you are grateful, He is pleased therewith for you.) means: He likes this for you and He will increase His favor upon you. وَلاَ تَزِرُ وَازِرَةٌ وِزْرَ أُخْرَى(No bearer of burdens shall bear the burden of another.

) means, no person can bear anything for another; each person will be asked about his own affairs. ثُمَّ إِلَى رَبِّكُمْ مَّرْجِعُكُـمْ فَيُنَبِّئُكُـمْ بِمَا كُنتُمْ تَعْمَلُونَ إِنَّهُ عَلِيمٌ بِذَاتِ الصُّدُورِ(Then to your Lord is your return, and He will inform you what you used to do. Verily, He is the All-Knower of that which is in breasts.) means, nothing whatsoever is hidden from Him.

It is an aspect of Man's Disbelief that He remembers Allah at times of difficulty then associates ..وَإِذَا مَسَّ الإِنسَـنَ ضُرٌّ دَعَا رَبَّهُ مُنِيباً إِلَيْهِ(And when some hurt touches man, he cries to his Lord, turning to Him in repentance.) means, at times of need, he prays to Allah and seeks His help alone, not associating anything with Him. This is like the Ayah: وَإِذَا مَسَّكُمُ الْضُّرُّ فِى الْبَحْرِ ضَلَّ مَن تَدْعُونَ إِلاَ إِيَّاهُ فَلَمَّا نَجَّـكُمْ إِلَى الْبَرِّ أَعْرَضْتُمْ وَكَانَ الإِنْسَـنُ كَفُورًا (And when harm touches you upon the sea, those that you call upon vanish from you except Him. But when He brings you safe to land, you turn away. And man is ever ungrateful.) (17:67). Allah says: ثُمَّ إِذَا خَوَّلَهُ نِعْمَةً مِّنْهُ نَسِىَ مَا كَانَ يَدْعُو إِلَيْهِ مِن قَبْلُ(But when He bestows a favor upon him from Himself, he forgets that for which he cried for before,) means, at the time of ease, he forgets that supplication and prayer.

This is like the Ayah: وَإِذَا مَسَّ الإِنسَـنَ الضُّرُّ دَعَانَا لِجَنبِهِ أَوْ قَاعِدًا أَوْ قَآئِمًا فَلَمَّا كَشَفْنَا عَنْهُ ضُرَّهُ مَرَّ كَأَن لَّمْ يَدْعُنَآ إِلَى ضُرٍّ مَّسَّهُ(And when harm touches man, he invokes Us, lying on his side, or sitting or standing. But when We have removed his harm from him, he passes on as if he had never invoked Us for a harm that touched him!) (10:12). وَجَعَلَ لِلَّهِ أَندَاداً لِّيُضِلَّ عَن سَبِيلِهِ(and he sets up rivals to Allah, in order to mislead others from His path.) means, at times of ease, he associates others in worship with Allah and sets up rivals to Him. قُلْ تَمَتَّعْ بِكُفْرِكَ قَلِيلاً إِنَّكَ مِنْ أَصْحَـبِ النَّارِ(Say: "Take pleasure in your disbelief for a while, surely, you are (one) of the dwellers of the Fire!") means, say to those whose way this is, `enjoy your disbelief for a while!' This is a stern threat and solemn warning, as in the Ayat: قُلْ تَمَتَّعُواْ فَإِنَّ مَصِيرَكُمْ إِلَى النَّارِ(Say: "Enjoy! But certainly, your destination is the Fire!") (14:30).

نُمَتِّعُهُمْ قَلِيلاً ثُمَّ نَضْطَرُّهُمْ إِلَى عَذَابٍ غَلِيظٍ (We let them enjoy for a little while, then in the end We shall oblige them to (enter) a great torment.) (31:24)

Commentary

In the opening verse (7), it was said: إِن تَكْفُرُ‌وا فَإِنَّ اللَّـهَ غَنِيٌّ عَنكُمْ (If you disbelieve, then, Allah does not need you at all,) that is, neither does your faith bring any benefit to Allah Ta’ ala, nor does your disbelief or ingratitude, any loss. According to a Hadith in Sahih of Muslim, Allah Ta’ ala said: "0 My servants, even if the first and the last among you and the humans and the Jinns, all of them, were to fall in sin and disobedience, it does not affect My power and authority in the least." (Ibn Kathir)Next it was said: لَا يَرْ‌ضَىٰ لِعِبَادِهِ الْكُفْرَ‌ (however He does not like for His servants to be disbelievers,) The word: رِضاء (rida) means love, liking, pleasure, or to intend to do something without objection. Its antonym: سَخَط (sakhat) means to detest something or take it to be objectionable - even if it is coupled with intention.

Ruling

Ahl-us-sunnah wa-l-Jama'ah believe that nothing good or bad, faith or disbelief can come into existence without the will and intention of Allah Ta’ ala. Therefore, for everything to come into existence, the intention of Allah Ta’ ala is a binding condition. However, the pleasure and favor of Allah Ta’ ala relates to 'iman (faith) and good deeds only. Kufr (disbelief), Shirk (ascribing of partners to Allah) and acts of disobedience are things He does not like. Shaikh-ul-Islam Nawawi writes in his book, اَلاصُول وَ الضَوَابِط ، al-usul wa-d- dawabit:مذھب اھل الحق الایمان بالقدر و اثباتہ وان جمیع الکایٔنات خیرھا و شرھا بقضاء اللہ وقدرہ و ھو مرید لھا کلھا ویکرہ المعاصی مع اَنہ، تعالیٰ مرید لھا لحکمۃ یعلمھا جلّ وعلا۔

(روح المعانی)The creed (madhhab) of people who follow the truth (ahl-ul-haqq) is to believe in destiny (al-qadr) and that all existents, good or bad, come into existence under the decision (qada' ) and destination (qadar) of Allah Ta’ ala, and Allah Ta’ ala does make the intention to create these, but He dislikes acts of disobedience and sin - though, the intention of creating these materializes in view of some wise consideration which He alone knows in His most exalted majesty. (Ruh-ul-Ma` ani)