In the name of Allah, Most
Gracious, Most Merciful
Holy Quran
Surah 104 Al Humazah (The
Scandalmonger)
Interpretation of
the Meanings of the Noble Quran in English Language
by A.Yusuf Ali
1 Woe to every (kind of)
scandal-monger and backbiter 6266
2 Who pileth up wealth and layeth it by
3 Thinking that his wealth would make him last for ever!
4 By no means! He will be sure to be thrown into that which breaks
to pieces. 6267
5 And what will explain to thee That
which Breaks to Pieces?
6 (It is) the Fire of (the Wrath of) Allah kindled (to a blaze)
7 The which doth mount (Right) to the Hearts: 6268
8 It shall be made into a vault over them
9 In columns outstretched. 6269
Introduction
Name
The Surah takes its name from the word humazah
occurring in the first verse.
Period of Revelation
All commentators
are agreed that it is a Makki Surah;
a study of its subject matter and style shows that this too is one of the
earliest Surahs to be revealed at Makkah.
Theme and Subject Matter
In it
some of the evils prevalent among the materialistic hoarders of wealth in the
pre-Islamic days have been condemned. Every Arab knew that they actually
existed in their society; they regarded them as evils and nobody thought they
were good. After calling attention to this kind of ugly character, the ultimate
end in the Hereafter of the people having this kind of character has been
stated. Both these things (i.e. the character and his fate in the Hereafter)
have been depicted in a way which makes the listener automatically reach the
conclusion that such a man fitly deserves to meet such an end. And since in the
world, people of such character do not suffer any punishment, but seem to be
thriving instead, the occurrence of the Hereafter
becomes absolutely inevitable.
If
this Surah is read in the sequence of the Surahs beginning with Az-Zilzal,
one can fully well understand how the fundamental beliefs of Islam and its
teachings were impressed on the peoples minds in the
earliest stage in Makkah. In Surah
Az-Zilzal, it was said that in the Hereafter man's
full record will be placed before him and not an atom's weight of good or evil
done by him in the world will have been left unrecorded. In Surah
Al-Adiyat, attention was drawn to the plunder and
loot, blood-shed and vandalism, prevailing in Arabia before Islam; then making
the people realize that the way the powers given by God were being abused was
indeed an expression of sheer ingratitude to Him; they were told that the
matter would not end up in the world, but in the second life after death--not
only their deeds but their intentions and motives too would be examined, and
their Lord fully well knows which of them deserves what reward or punishment.
In Surah Al-Qariah after
depicting Resurrection the people were warned that in the Hereafter a man's
good or evil end will be dependent on whether the scale of his good deeds was
heavier, or the scale of his evil deeds was heavier: In Surah
At-Takathur the people were taken to task for the
materialistic mentality because of which they remained occupied in seeking
increase in worldly benefits, pleasures, comforts and position, and in vying
with one another for abundance of everything until death overtook them. Then,
warning them of the evil consequences of their heedlessness, they were told
that the world was not an open table of food for then to pick and choose
whatever they pleased, but for every single blessing that they were enjoying in
the world, they would have to render an account to their Lord and Sustainer as
to how they obtained it and how they used it. In Surah
Al-Asr it was declared that each member, each group
and each community of mankind, even the entire world of humanity, was in
manifest loss, if its members were devoid of Faith and righteous deeds and of
the practice of exhorting others to truth and patience. Immediately after this comes Surah Al-Humazah
in which after presenting a specimen of leadership of the pre-Islamic age of
ignorance, the people have been asked the question: "What should such a
character deserve if not loss and perdition?"
Notes
6266 Three
vices are here condemned in the strongest terms: (1) scandal-mongering, talking
or suggesting evil of men or women by word or innuendo, or behaviour,
or mimicry, or sarcasm, or insult; (2) detracting from their character behind
their backs, even if the things suggested are true, where the motive is evil;
(3) piling up wealth, not for use and service to those who need it, but in
miserly hoards, as if such hoards can prolong the miser's life or give him
immortality: miserliness is itself a kind of scandal. (104.1)
6267 Hutama: that which smashes or breaks to pieces: an apt
description of the three anti-social vices condemned. For scandal-mongering and
backbiting make any sort of cohesion or mutual confidence impossible; and the
miser's hoards up the channels of economic service and charity, and the
circulation of good-will among men. (104.4)
6268 The
Fire of Punishment mounts right up to the hearts and minds of such men, and
shuts them out of the love of their fellows. "Heart" in Arabic means
not only the seat of affection, pity, charity, etc., but also of understanding
and intelligent appreciation of things. (104.7)
6269 Those
guilty of these vices will be choked and suffocated, for this Vault of Fire
will cover them all over, and its scorching columns will extend over a far
wider area than they imagine. (104.9)
End of Surah
Al-Humazah