Baqarah 106-107

 

 

106- IF WE ABROGATE AN AYAH OR CAUSE IT TO BE FORGOTTEN, WE REPLACE IT WITH WHAT IS BETTER THAN IT OR LIKE IT, DO YOU NOT KNOW THAT ALLAH HAS POWER TO DO ALL THINGS.

 

107- DO YOU NOT KNOW THAT TO ALLAH BELONGS THE KINGDOM OF THE HEAVENS AND OF THE EARTH, AND YOU HAVE NEITHER AN ALLY NOR SUPPORTER OTHER THAN HIM.

 

 

There are two facts in these Ayahs; they are both important for understanding the Quran.  I will mention the second first, which is that Allah the Highest caused some of the Ayahs of the Quran to be forgotten.  These Ayahs are not known to us, this was a way of abolishing a temporary rule included in these Ayahs.  By causing them to be forgotten, this ruling would have been abolished totally from the minds as well as from the Quran.

 

Abrogation is for the rule mentioned in the Ayah to be overruled.  It is not necessarily totally cancelled, but almost. 

 

The reasons for that were that Islam went through phases:

 

-  The Muslims were living in Mekka for 13 years before migrating to Medina.  There, they were few and were persecuted.  The commands to regulate their lives were mainly, in general moral and ethical terms, but there was no Law, Sharia, or Hodoud (the penalties of the Islamic law), as there was no authority to implement it.  

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-         When the Muslims migrated to Yathrib (Medina), they soon became the Majority.  Allah the Highest sent down Quran with commands and Laws to regulate the Muslim’s society, which the Muslims were then able to enforce, as they had a state and Allah’s messenger, prayer and peace upon him, was the Head of this State.

-         Allah the Highest did not send the Quran down as one piece, but an Ayah or a few Ayahs at a time.  The same happened with the Islamic Law, it was sent down gradually mostly over the last 10 years of Allah’s messenger’s life.

 

-         Some of the Laws were introduced gradually.  Like Inheritance.

 

Initially, Allah the Highest commanded the Muslims to make wills, and to make these wills in favour of their parents and close kin.  Allah the Highest sent this Ayah first: “IT IS PRESCRIBED FOR YOU THAT SHOULD DEATH APPROACHES ONE OF YOU AND HE HAS SOME GOODS TO LEAVE BEHIND, TO MAKE A WILL TO THE PARENTS, CLOSE KIN, KINDLY.  THIS IS A DUTY UPON THE PIOUS”.  (S: 2 A: 180)

 

This was later followed by the commands in Sorah Al-Nesae, and other Ayahs detailing the portion every inheritor should have.  This did not abolish the will altogether, but limited it to no more than one third of the estate and this has two conditions: a- It should not be unjust.  b- It should not be made to one of the inheritors.  Detailed discussion of this will be made when discussing these Ayahs.

 

-         Some prohibitions were done gradually also, as with Intoxicants and Gambling.  This was out of Allah’s Mercy, as these idle worshipping societies were full of many evil habits, and stopping them suddenly could have been difficult.

 

First Allah the Highest sent this Ayah down: “THEY ASK YOU ABOUT INTOXICANTS AND GAMBLING; SAY: ‘THEY HAVE A GREAT SIN AS WELL AS BENEFITS TO PEOPLE, BUT THEIR EVIL IS GREATER THAN THEIR BENEFITS”. 

(S: 2 A: 219)

 

Then Allah the Highest commanded the Muslims not to pray while drunk so that they did not make mistakes in their Salah, saying: “YOU WHO BELIEVE, DO NOT APPROACH THE SALAH WHILE YOU ARE DRUNK, SO THAT YOU MAY KNOW WHAT TO SAY”. 

(S: 3 A: 43)

This meant that the Muslims could not drink wine and intoxicants during the day, but only after they prayed Esha Salah, which was too late for most of them.  They were people who worked manually all day; they woke up for Fajr and slept when it was dark.

 

Then Allah the Highest forbad intoxicants and gambling totally saying: “BUT SATAN WISHES TO CAUSE ANIMOSITY AND HATRED BETWEEN YOU THROUGH WINE (INTOXICANTS) AND GAMBLING, AND PREVENTS YOU FROM REMEMBERING ALLAH AND FROM SALAH, SO WOULD YOU NOT BE FORBIDDEN”.  (S: 5 A: 91)

 

-         Some commands were hard for the Muslims to follow, and they were abrogated to make things easier for them.  This was Allah the Highest showing His Mercy and Compassion to the Muslims after they showed their willingness to obey and submit to difficult commands.  For Example; Allah the Highest sent down this Ayah: “TO ALLAH BELONGS ALLAH BELONGS ALL THERE IS IN THE HEAVENS AND IN THE EARTH, AND WHETHER YOU SHOW WHAT IS INSIDE YOU OR HIDE IT, ALLAH WILL JUDGE YOU BY IT, FORGIVING WHOM HE WILLS AND PUNISHES WHOM HE WILLS, AND ALLAH IS ABLE TO DO ALL THINGS”.  (S:2 A:284)

 

This was difficult for the believers, and they told Allah’s messenger, prayer and peace upon him, so.  He told them to accept Allah’s rule and say we hear and we obey.  When they did this, Allah the Highest sent the next two Ayahs down: “THE MESSENGER BELIEVED IN WHAT WAS SENT DOWN TO HIM FROM HIS LORD, SO DID THE BELIEVERS; THEY ALL BELIEVED IN ALLAH, HIS ANGELS, HIS BOOKS AND HIS MESSENGER, WE DO NOT MAKE A DISTINCTION BETWEEN HIS MESSENGERS, AND THEY SAID: ‘WE HEAR AND WE OBEY, OUR LORD FORGIVE US, FOR TO YOU IS OUR DESTINY  *  ALLAH DOES NOT DEMAND FROM A SOUL MORE THAN IT CAN BEAR, FOR IT WHAT IT HAS EARNED AND UPON IT WHAT IT HAS EARNED, …………………….”  (S: 2 A: 285-286)

 

And Allah’s messenger, prayer and peace upon him, said: “Allah pardoned for my nation what they thought of inside themselves, as long as they did not do it or speak of it”.  (B: Talaq; 11)

 

-         Testing People’s faith; as happened when the Qibla (the direction one faces when praying) was changed from Al-Aqsa Mosque to the Sacred Mosque (in Mekka).

 

Before Migration to Medina in the North, the Muslims prayed towards both Al-Aqsa mosque and the Kabba.  After migrating, they prayed towards Al-Aqsa mosque for some 17 months.  Then, Allah the Highest sent down Quran changing the Qibla to the Kabba saying: “WE SEE THE TURNING OF YOUR FACE FROM THE SKY, SO WE WILL TURN YOU TOWARDS A QIBLA WHICH WILL PLEASE YOU, SO TURN YOUR FACE TOWARDS THE SACRED MOSQUE, AND WHEREVER YOU ARE TURN YOUR FACE TOWARDS IT.  THOSE WHO WERE GIVEN THE BOOK KNOW THAT IT IS THE TRUTH FROM THEIR LORD, AND ALLAH IS NOT UNAWARE OF WHAT THEY DO”.  (S: 2 A: 144)

 

Allah the Highest made it clear that this was a test to distinguish the true from the untrue believers saying: “AND WE DID NOT MAKE YOU FACE THE QIBLA YOU USED TO FOLLOW EXCEPT TO KNOW WHO FOLLOWS THE MESSENGERS FROM THOSE WHO TURN BACK ON THEIR HEALS, INDEED IT IS HARD EXCEPT FOR THOSE TRULY GUIDED BY ALLAH”.  (S: 2 A: 143)

 

These were just some examples to explain the concept of abrogation in the Quran and in Islam.  They are certainly not all the cases, but just examples to explain the idea and concept.  I hope it made the issue clear. 

 

 

 

 

B: Bukhari   M: Muslim    Mal: Malek   A: Ahmed   D: Abu Dawood     

 Da: Daremy       Ma: Ibn Magah            N: Nesae          T: Termezi  

 

 

 

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