A misconception about the Tafsir of Qur'an- By Mufti Taqi Usmani

A misconception about the Tafsir of Qur'an

By Mufti Taqi Usmani

The tafsir (exegesis or interpretation) of the noble Qur'an is an extremely delicate and difficult undertaking for which getting to know the Arabic language alone is not enough. In fact, it is necessary to have expertise in all related branches of knowledge. Therefore, scholars say that a mufassir or commentator of the Qur'an must have vast and deep knowledge of the syntax, etymology, rhetoric, and literature of the Arabic language, as well as, that of prophetic Traditions, principles governing jurisprudence and exegesis, doctrinal articles of belief and scholastics. The reason is that one cannot arrive at correct conclusions while explaining the Qur'an unless there be that adequacy in these fields of knowledge.

It is regretable that a dangerous epidemic has overtaken Muslims

lately whereby many people have started taking the sole reading

ability of Arabic sufficient for the tafsir (interpretation) of the Qur'an.

As a result, anyone who gets to read ordinary Arabic starts passing

out opinions in the domain of Qur'anic exegesis. Rather, it has been

noticed on occasions that people having just passable familiarity with the Arabic language, and who have yet to master their Arabic to perfection, take it upon themselves to engage in explaining the Qur'an following their whims, even going to the limit of finding faults with classical commentators. Bad come to worse, there are some subtle tyrants who would, by simply reading the translation, imagine that they have become scholars of the Qur'an, not even feeling shy of criticising commentators of great stature.

It should be understood very clearly that this is a highly dangerous

pattern of behaviour which, in matters of religion, leads to fatal

straying. As regards secular arts and sciences, everyone can claim to understand that should a person simply learn the English language and go on to study books of medical science, he would not be acknowledged as a physician by any reasonable person anywhere in the world, and certainly not trustworthy enough to take care of somebody's life unless he has been educated and trained in a medical college. Therefore, having learnt English is not all one needs to become a doctor.

Similarly, should anyone knowing English hope to become an

engineer just by reading through engineering books, it is clear that no sane person in this world would accept him as an engineer. The reason is that this technical expertise cannot be acquired simply by learning the English language. It would, rather, need a formal training in the discipline under the supervision and guidance of expert teachers.

When these stringent requirements are inevitable in order to become a doctor or engineer, how can the learning of Arabic language alone become sufficient in matters relating to the Qur'an and Hadith? 

In every department of life, everyone knows and acts upon the principle that every art or science has its own particular method of learning and its own peculiar conditions. Unless these are fulfilled, the learner's opinion in given arts and sciences will not be considered trustworthy.

If that is so, how can the Qur'an and the Sunnah become so unclaimed a field of inquiry that there be no need to acquire expertise of any art or science in order to explain them, and anyone who so wishes starts passing out opinions in this matter?

Regarding "Allah has made the Quran easy":

Some people say that the Qur'an has itself stated that:

'And surely We have made the Qur'an easy for the sake of good

councel’ (Surah-Qamar)

 And since the noble Qur'an is a simple book, its explanation

hardly needs much of a support from any art or science. But this

argument is terribly fallacious, which is, in itself, based on lack of

intellect and plenty of superficiality. The fact is that the verses of the Qur'an are of two kinds. Firstly, there are the verses that offer general good counsel, relate lesson-oriented events and introduce subjects dealing with taking of warning and acting on sound advice. Examples of this are the mortality of the world, the accounts of Paradise and Hell, the discourses likely to create the fear of God and the concern for the Hereafter, and other very simple realities of life. Verses of this kind are undoubtedly easy and anyone who knows the Arabic language can benefit from their good counsel by understanding them.

It is in relation to teachings of this kind that, in the verse cited above, it was said that 'We have made them easy'. Hence, the word "Liddhikri" (for the sake of good counsel) in the verse itself is pointing out towards this meaning.

Contrary to this, the other kind consists of verses which include

injunctions, laws, articles of faith and intellectual subjects.

Understanding verses of this kind as they should be rightfully

understood and deducing and formulating injunctions and rulingsfrom them cannot be done by just any person unless one has the insight and permeating reach into the Islamic areas of knowledge.

The approach of Sahaba regarding the Quran:

This is why the noble Companions [Radhi Allahu anhum], whose mother-tongue was Arabic, and they did not have to go anywhere to get trained into understanding Arabic, used to spend long periods of time in learning the Qur'an from the Holy Prophet [SAWS] . 'Allamah al-Suyuti has reported from Imam Abu 'Abd al-Rahman Sulami that the Companions,.who formally learned the Qur'an from the Holy Prophet SAWS such as Sayyidna 'Uthman ibn 'Affan and 'Abdullah ibn Mas'ud and others, have told us that, after having learnt ten verses of the Qur'an from the Holy Prophet SAWS , they would not proceed on to the next verses until such time that they had covered all that was intellectually and practically involved in the light of these verses. 
They used to say:

“We have learnt the Qur'an, knowledge and action all in one”.

(al-Itqan 2/176)

Consequently, as reported in Mu'atta' of Imam Malik, Sayyidna

'Abdullah ibn 'Umar [RA].; spent full eight years memorizing Surah

al-Baqarah alone and, as in the Musnad of Ahmad, Sayyidna Anas

[RA].; says that 'one of us who would learn Surah al-Baqarah and

Surah al-'Imran had his status enormously raised among us.' (Ibid)

Worth noticing is the fact that these noble Companions whose

mother-tongue was Arabic, who had the highest degree of expertise in poetry and letters and who would have no difficulty in having very long qasidah poems perfectly committed to their memories with the least of effort, why would they need, just to memorize the Qur'an and understand its meanings, as long a time as eight years, and that too, for mastering one Surah? The only reason for this was that proficiency in the Arabic language was not enough to have a learning of the noble Qur'an and areas of knowledge bearing on it. In order to do that, it was also necessary to seek the benefit of the teaching and the company of the Holy Prophet [SAWS] . Now this is so obvious that the noble Companions inspite of having an expertise in the Arabic language and notwithstanding their being direct witnesses to the revelation, still needed the process of going through formal education at the feet of the

blessed master in order to become the 'alims of the Qur'an, how then, after all these hundreds of years following the revelation of the Qur'an, just by cultivating an elementary familiarity with Arabic, or by simply looking at translations, can anyone claim to having become a commentator of the Qur'an? What a monsterous audacity and what a tragic joke with knowledge and religion! 

The warning of the Prophet [sallallahu alaihiwasallam]:

People who opt for such audacity should remember well that the Holy Prophet [SAWS] has warned:

“Whoever says anything about the Qur'an without knowledge, then he should make his abode in Hell.” (Abu Daw'ud, as in al-Itqan, 2/179)

And he has also said:

“Whoever talks about the Qur'an on the basis of his opinion, and even if says something true in it, still he made a mistake.”

(Abu Daw'ud, Nasa'i)