سْمِ

Placed before every chapter except ch.9; also in 27:31. See also 96:2.

Important Words:

ب (in) occurring here in combination with اسم is a particle used to convey a number of meanings, the one more applicable here being that of 'with'. The compound word بسم therefore would mean 'with the name of.' According to the Arab usage, the words iqra’ or aqra’u or naqra’u or ishra’ or ashra‘u or nashra‘u would be taken to be understood before بسم اللّٰه. The expression بسم اللّٰه would thus mean 'begin with the name of Allah' or 'recite with the name of Allah,' or 'I or we begin with the name of Allah.' or 'I or we recite with the name of Allah.' In the translation the words بسم اللّٰه have been rendered as "in the name of Allah", which is a more familiar form (Lane).

اسم (name), which is derived either from وسم (a mark) or سمو (height), means a name or attribute (Aqrab). Here it is used in both senses; for, firstly, it refers to 'Allah' which is the personal name of God; and, secondly, it refers to Ar-Rahman (Gracious) and Ar-Rahim (Merciful) which are His attributive names.

اللّٰه (Allah) is the name of the Supreme Being, Who is the sole possessor of all perfect attributes and is free from all defects. In the Arabic language, the word Allah is never used for any other thing or being. No other language has a distinctive name for the Supreme Being. The names found in other languages are all attributive or descriptive and are often used in the plural, but the word "Allah" is never used in the plural number. It is a simple substantive, not derived. It is never used as a qualifying word. Hence, in the absence of a parallel word in the English language, the original name "Allah" has been retained throughout the translation.

This view is corroborated by eminent authorities of the Arabic language. Lane says: "اللّٰه (Allah) according to the most correct of the opinions respecting it is a proper name, applied to the Being, Who exists necessarily by Himself, comprising all the attributes of perfection, the ال (al) being in-separable from it" (Arabic-English Lexicon). For a fuller discussion of the word 'Allah,' the reader is referred to Tafsir-e-Kabir by Hadrat Mirza Bashir-ud-Din Mahmud Ahmad, Head of the Ahmadiyya Community.

الرحمن (Gracious) and الرحیم (Merciful) are both derived from the same root رحم meaning, he showed mercy; he was kind and good; he forgave. The word رحمة combines the idea of رقة i.e. 'tenderness' and احسان i.e. 'goodness' (Mufradat). الرحمن is in the measure of فعلان and الرحیم in the measure of فعیل. According to the rules of the Arabic language, the larger the number of letters added to the root word, the more extensive or more intensive does the meaning become (Kashshaf). The measure of فعلان thus conveys the idea of fullness and extensiveness, while the measure of فعیل denotes the idea of repetition and giving liberal reward to those who deserve it (Muhit). Thus the word الرحمن would denote "mercy comprehending the entire universe," whereas the word الرحیم would denote "a mercy limited in its scope but shown repeatedly".

In view of the above, الرحمان is One Who shows mercy gratuitously and extensively to all creation without regard to effort or work, and الرحیم is One Who shows mercy in response to, and as a result of, the actions of man but shows it liberally and repeatedly. The former is applicable only to God, while the latter is applied to man also. The former extends not only to the believers and unbelievers but to the whole creation; the latter applies mostly to the believers. The Holy Prophet is reported to have said: الرحمان رحمان الدنیا و الرحیم رحیم الآخرة i.e. the attribute الرحمن generally pertains to this life, while the attribute الرحیم generally pertains to the life to come (Muhit), meaning that as this world is mostly the world of actions and the next a world where actions will be particularly rewarded, God’s attribute of الرحمن provides man with material for his works in this life, whereas His attribute of الرحیم brings about results in the life to come.

The abundance of everything which we enjoy in this life, which is indeed all a favour of God, is provided for us before we do anything to deserve it or even before we are born, while the blessings in store for us in the life to come will be given to us as a reward of our actions. This shows that الرحمن is the Bestower of gifts which precede our birth, while الرحیم is the giver of blessings which follow our deeds as their reward.

Commentary:

(i) The verse بسم اللّٰه الرحمن الرحیم is the first verse of every chapter of the Quran, except the chapter Bara’ah, which, however, is not an indepen-dent chapter but a continuation of the chapter Anfal. There is a saying reported by Ibn ‘Abbas to the effect that whenever any new chapter was revealed, Bismillah was the first verse to be revealed, and without Bismillah the Holy Prophet did not know that a new chapter had begun (Dawud). This hadith goes to prove that (1) the verse Bismillah is part of the Quran and not something supernumerary and (2) that the chapter Bara’at is not an independent chapter. It also refutes the belief expressed by some that Bismillah is a part only of Al-Fatihah and not of all the Quranic chapters. Such views are further refuted by the hadith in which the Holy Prophet is reported to have said, definitely, that the verse Bismillah is a part of all the Quranic chapters (Bukhari & Qutni).

(ii) The Holy Prophet attached great importance to the verse Bismillah. He is reported to have said that any important work which is done without reciting Bismillah is apt to prove devoid of God’s blessings. Thus, it is a general practice among Muslims to commence every work with a recital of this prayer.

(iii) The place of this verse in the beginning of every chapter has the following significance:

1. The Quran is a treasure of divine knowledge to which access cannot be had without the special favour of God. In 56:80 God says regarding the Quran: None shall touch it except those who are purified, meaning that except the favoured ones who have been purified by the hand of God, none shall grasp the deeper meaning of the Quran. Thus Bismillah has been placed at the beginning of each chapter to remind the reader that in order to have access to and benefit from the treasures of divine knowledge contained in the Quran, he should not only approach it with pure motives but also constantly invoke the help of God and try to lead a righteous life.

2. In the Old Testament (Deut. 18:18,19) we read: "I will raise them (the Israelites) up a prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee (Moses), and I will put my words in his mouth, and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him. And it shall come to pass, that whosoever will not hearken unto my words which he shall speak in my name, I will require it of him." As the Holy Prophet of Islam was raised in the likeness of Moses (Quran, 73:16), so in fulfilment of the above prophecy God so ordained that each time a new Surah was revealed, it was begun by the words: In the name of Allah. This meant that every chapter of the Quran, i.e. every new proclamation made by God through the Holy Prophet, should commence with this verse so that on the one hand the prophecy made by Moses might be fulfilled and on the other, there might be a constant repetition of the warning to the Jews and Christians that if they hearkened not to the words of the new Prophet, they would be answerable to God.

3. In the Old Testament, we also read: "But the prophet, which shall presume to speak a word in my name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or that shall speak in the name of other gods, even that prophet shall die" (Deut. 18:20). The verse Bismillah (in the name of God) has, therefore, been placed at the beginning of every chapter of the Quran so that the fact might be brought home to the Jews and Christians in particular and to other peoples in general that the success which attended the career of the Holy Prophet was a positive proof of the fact that all that he spoke was spoken by the command of God; for if it had been otherwise, he would surely have met with early destruction. The verse Bismillah is thus a standing challenge to the Jews and Christians, and every time it is repeated at the head of a chapter it serves as an argument for the truth of the Holy Prophet. This result could not have been attained if the verse had been put only in the beginning of the Quran.

4. The verse Bismillah placed before every chapter of the Quran also serves another important purpose. It is a key to the meaning of each individual chapter. This is so because all questions affecting moral and spiritual matters are related in one way or another with these fundamental divine attributes: Rahmaniyyat (grace) and Rahimiyyat (mercy). Thus each chapter is, in fact, a detailed exposition of some aspect of the divine attributes mentioned in the verse.

(iv) Some Christian writers have raised the objection that the formula of Bismillah has been borrowed from earlier Scriptures, insinuating that it cannot therefore be of Divine origin. Wherry, in his commentary has expressed the opinion that it has been borrowed from the Zend-Avesta where it has the form: بنام ایزد بخشائنده وبخشائش گر i.e. With the name of God, Forgiving, Kind. A similar objection has been raised by Sale. Rodwell, however, has expressed the opinion that the Quran borrowed the formula from the Jews, among whom it was in vogue and from whom its use was borrowed by pre-Islamic Arabs. Both these criticisms are wrong and beside the point; for firstly it has never been claimed by the Muslims that the formula in this or similar form was not known before the revelation of the Quran; secondly it is wrong to argue that the formula could not be of Divine origin even if it was sometimes used by the pre-Islamic peoples in an identical or similar form before its revelation in the Quran. As a matter of fact, the Quran itself states that Solomon used the phrase in his letter to the Queen of Sheba (27:31). What Muslims claim—and this claim has never been refuted—is that the Quran was the first Scripture to use the formula in the way it did [see (iii) above]. It is also wrong to say that the formula was in common vogue among pre-Islamic Arabs, for it is well known that Arabs had an aversion to the use of the name Ar-Rahman for God. Again, if such formulae for the praise of God were known before, it only goes to corroborate the truth of the Quranic teaching that there has not been a people to whom a Teacher has not been sent (35:25), and that the Quran is a repository of all permanent truths contained in the previous Books (98:4). It adds much more, of course, and, whatever it adopts, it improves its form or use or both.

(v) It has been asked why the word اسم (name) has been used before the word اللّٰه (Allah) in the verse Bismillah. This may be explained in a number of ways:

1. In the Arabic language the particle ب is used not only to signify connection or invoke help, but also in swearing. So if the word اسم had been dropped, the phrase باللّٰه (billah) might have meant "I swear by Allah." The introduction of اسم (name) removes this ambiguity.

2. God being the source of all goodness, even the invoking of His names proves a blessing. Says the Quran (55:79): Blessed be the name of thy Lord, the Owner of Majesty and Honour. The Holy Prophet sometimes healed people by invoking the various names of God. Therefore, the word اسم (name) has been added in order to remind the Faithful that to remember the names of God is to merit a blessing.

3. The use of the word "name" further indicates that God is hidden and can be known only through His names, i.e. attributes. By reciting Bismillah, a believer seeks the help of God through His attributes of Ar-Rahman and Ar-Rahim.

4. Again, the inner meanings of the Quran are a guarded treasure and nobody can have access to them, except under proper authority. The person who begins a recitation with the formula, In the name of Allah, says, as it were, to the guardian angels of this spiritual treasure, "I am approaching it in the name of Allah, so open to me the treasures of the inner meanings of the Quran." To the one who approaches the Quran in such a spirit, the treasures will indeed be opened. The verse, None shall touch it except those who are purified (56:80), likewise, shows that only the pure in spirit can find access to the deep secrets of the Quran.

5. Another reason for introducing the word "name" in Bismillah is to draw attention to the prophecy of Moses (Deut. 18:18-20) to which reference has already been made.

1:1.

Commentary:

See note under 1:1.

3:27.

Important Words:

طالوت (Talut) is the attributive name of an Israelite king who lived about two hundred years before David and about the same number of years after Moses. Most commentators regard Talut to be a name of Hebrew origin and consider him to be synonymous with Saul (1. Sam. ch. 9). As Hebrew is only an offshoot of Arabic, the word Talut appears to be derived from the Arabic root طال i.e. he became tall or high___a description coinciding with the one given in the verse under comment viz. one increased abundantly in knowledge and body. It is, however, not right to identify Talut with Saul. The description of the Quran fits more with Gideon (Judg. chs. 6-8) than with Saul. Gideon lived in about 1250 B.C. and the Bible calls him a "mighty man of valour" (Judg. 6:12) which is the same as Talut.

Commentary:

There has been a difference of opinion as to the identity of the person to whom the name Talut has been applied. According to a number of Muslim commentators, Talut stands for Saul, and the passage refers to the reign of Saul. Christian writers have, however, taken exception to this view. According to them the incidents related in this passage refer to two different periods which are separated from each other by the long interval of 200 years; and these critics refer to this passage as an instance of historical anachronism, found in the Quran. The passage does indeed refer to two different periods, but if Christian critics had carefully thought over their own history, they would have seen that there is no confusion of dates in the passage in question and that the Quran has here referred to both these periods. Its object in doing so is to show how the unification of the different tribes of Israel began in the time of Gideon (i.e. Talut) two hundred years before David, and was finally consummated in the time of David.

In order to determine the identity of Talut, let us glance over the main incidents related in verse 247 to 252. These are as follows: 1. The people of the period to which Talut belongs had been driven forth from their homes and their children (2:247). 2. One who was not originally a king was appointed as such (2:248). 3. God helped the followers of this king, giving them the Talut as a token of His sovereignty (2:249). 4. The people were tried by means of water (2:250). 5. There existed a great disparity in numbers between these people and the enemy, and the trial reduced their number still further (ibid). 6. In spite of the small number of his followers, this king overcame the enemy (2:252).

Now some of these details do indeed apply to Saul, but there are others which do not. The key words which afford a clue to the identity of Talut are, Hast thou not heard of the chiefs of the children of Israel after Moses. The words "after Moses" indicate that the incident belongs to an early period when the Jews as a nation had just begun to take a definite shape in history. For two hundred years after Moses, the Israelites were divided into different tribes and had no king and no fighting force. In 1256 B.C., owing to their iniquity, God delivered them into the hands of the Midianites who plundered and ravaged them for seven long years, and they were compelled to take refuge in caves (Judg. 6:1, 2). This is why they are represented in the Quran as saying, we have been driven forth from our homes. The Midianites attacked them and carried away their sheep and oxen and asses, and destroyed their crops and pillaged them as far as Gaza (Judg. 6:4-6). The Israelites then cried to their Lord, and God raised among them a Prophet; and an angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon, appointed him king and promised him divine help. Then Gideon said to God, "Oh my Lord, wherewith shall I save Israel? Behold, my family is poor in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father’s house" (Judg. 6:15). This tallies with the description given in the Quran which represents the chiefs among the Israelites as saying with regard to the new king, How can he have sovereignty over us while we are better entitled to sovereignty than he and he is not given abundance of wealth (2:248). What makes the identification of Talut with Gideon still more certain is the fact that it was in the time of Gideon and not Saul that the Israelites were tried by means of water and the description of the trial as given in the Bible (Judg. 7:4-7) is the same as that of the Quran.

From Judg. 7:6, 7 we learn that after the aforesaid trial, there remained with Gideon only 300 men. It is interesting to note that a Companion of the Holy Prophet is reported to have said, "We were 313 men in the Battle of Badr, and this number corresponds to the number of men who followed Talut" (Tirmidhi, ch. on Siyar). Thus this tradition also lends support to the conclusion that Talut was no other than Gideon.

What further confirms the identity of Talut with Gideon is that the Hebrew word Gideon is identical in meaning with the Arabic word Talut. The former is derived from a root which in Hebrew means "to fell" (Enc. Bib.) or "to hew" (Jew. Enc.). Thus, Gideon means "one who cuts down his adversary and fells him to the ground" and the Bible itself speaks of Gideon as a "mighty man of valour" (Judg. 6:12), and we have already noted that in Arabic Tala means one who is tall and towers above others (see Important Words above).

The clause, how can he have sovereignty over us while we are better entitled to sovereignty than he, and he is not given abundance of wealth, indicates that the people raised two objections against Talut or Gideon: (1) that he did not belong to a highly placed family and was therefore not entitled to kingship, and (2) that he did not possess the requisite wealth for exercising influence. Both of these are plausible objections that are usually made by ordinary people of the world; but a chosen people guided by the will of the Just and Wise God must think otherwise. With them the real title to sovereignty is neither family status nor wealth but the personal qualities of a man; hence the clause, surely Allah has chosen him above you and has increased him abundantly in knowledge and body. The superiority of a man in physical and mental faculties coupled with knowledge and prowess must remain the basis for all title to rulership. And in the case of Talut the title had the additional strength of coinciding with the choice of God Who is the best and, in fact, the only true Judge of all titles.

See 1:1.

See note under 1:1.

1:1.

Important Words:

See under 1:1.

See 1:1.

See 1:1.

Commentary:

See 1:1.

See 1:1.

Commentary:

See under 1:1.

See 1:1.

Commentary:

See under 1:1.

See 1:1.

Commentary:

See 1:1.