Chapter 5 - Al-Ma'idah
***Please note... The information in the parentheses immediately following the verse number indicates the file or article to which they refer. Verses will continue to be added as the documents are introduced.
5:2(3)(18) “Therefore, o people of peace and faith, do not violate the statutes of Allah (شَعَائِرَ اللَّـهِ ) nor the binding conditions of agreements (الشَّهْرَ الْحَرَامَ ), nor neglect the precious values of a beautiful conduct (الْهَدْيَ ), nor avoid other responsibilities conferred upon you (الْقَلَائِدَ ), nor overlook the safeguarding of those responsible for running the respectable centre of divine leadership (آمِّينَ الْبَيْتَ الْحَرَامَ ) who are seeking blessings from of their Sustainer and His approval. But when you come out of the imposed restrictions (حَلَلْتُمْ), do strive for stabilizing your power and control (فَاصْطَادُو ). And even in this case, do not let the enmity of a people for having obstructed you from complying with the inviolable divine commandments (الْمَسْجِدِ الْحَرَامِ ) lead you to transgression (تَعْتَدُوا ). And keep in mind to cooperate always in righteousness and piety, but do not cooperate in sin and aggression. And remain fearfully attached with Allah; indeed, Allah is severe in monitoring.”
5:2(Hajj) “O people of peace and faith, do not make yourself free from the pursuit of attributes/characteristics prescribed by God (Sha’a’ir-allah - شَعَائِرَ اللَّـهِ), nor get absolved from observance of restrictive/prohibitive conditions (Ash-shahr al-Haraam - الشَّهْرَ الْحَرَامَ) imposed upon you by your covenants; nor ignore the beautiful values and ethics of conduct; nor avoid other responsibilities you are answerable thereof; nor forget about those holding responsibilities in the respected Centre of divine Guidance (al-Bayit al-Haraam - الْبَيْتَ الْحَرَامَ) who only seek their Lord’s favor and approval. However, when you get free from the restrictions of a covenant, then get busy in maintaining your superiority and domination. Still, in that case too, the enmity of a community who had impaired the enforcement of inviolable commandments (al-Masjid al-Haraam - الْمَسْجِدِ الْحَرَامِ) may not compel you to cross the limits. Keep always in mind that you should offer your cooperation only in the path of virtue and good conduct, not in pursuit of vice and excessive acts. Act piously on divine teachings. It goes without saying that God is severe in retribution.”
05:3 (Please check also here identical verses 2/173 and 6/145. The next translation applies to the beginning parts of these Verses too. A repetition is avoided for fear of making the writing lengthy).
5:3(3) “Prohibited for you is to become dead by losing your intellect (al-Mayitatah); or smear your account with human blood; or to get close to the ill-natured, cunning ones; or to embrace an ideology by which a name of other than Allah is raised (أُهِلَّ لِغَيْرِ اللَّـهِ بِهِ ) . And also declared unlawful for you is to crush an individual or group by silencing their voice (al-Munkhaniqah); or kill them through mental and physical torture (al-Mauqoodah); or throw someone into oblivion by depriving his acquired high status (al-mutaraddiyah); or to push someone to ill-fate and bad luck (an-nateehah); and to create a state of affairs where all human values have been devoured by terror and brutality (wa maa akalas subu’u) except the few ones which you might have saved and cultivated (maa zakkayitum); or to sacrifice someone’s career/life on the pretext of a self-designed goal or standard (wa maa zubiha ‘alan nusubi); or to create rift among people by adopting faulty policies (tastaqsimoo bil-azlaam). ِIt must be borne in mind that all the above policy steps fall under the crimes of misconduct and corruption (fisq). It is these values of your discipline that have made the deniers of truth disappointed and remorseful. Hence you need now to give up your fear of them and keep my glory always in view. At this juncture of the passing time I have completed for you your permanent way of conduct and, by that, have fully blessed you with ease and comforts; and the peace and security of humanity has been appointed as your destination. Keeping vigilant about the above guideline, whosoever among you may find himself in a fix (فِي مَخْمَصَةٍ), while having no intentions towards evil (غَيْرَ مُتَجَانِفٍ لِّإِثْمٍ ), God would bless him with his protection and mercy.”
5:4(3) “They would ask you as to what has been made lawful to them. Tell them, "Lawful for you are all the acts of virtue and goodness (الطَّيِّبَاتُ). And when you are educating (tu’allimoona-hunna) the tied up and injured batches of prisoners (al-jawaareh al-mukallabeen) from what God has endowed you with (mimma ‘allama-kum-ullaah), take care to grasp those things that they hold against you and implicate you with (mimma amsakna ‘alayikum). Then deliberate upon it in the light of divine attributes (wa adhkaru ismal-laaha ‘alayihi) with the aim of reforming your conduct. And be afraid of God’s accountability. Indeed, He is swift in account.”
5:5(3) “From the present time onwards, all the acts of virtue and goodness (Tayyibaat) are declared lawful for you. Moreover, the acquisition/learning (Ta’aam) of all the praiseworthy attributes/values found among the People of the Book has been made lawful to you, and similarly, your values have been made lawful to them. And also is lawful to you relationship with the morally solid and secured communities (al-Mohsinaat) from amongst the people of peace and faith (mo’minaat); and with those communities belonging to the people given the Book before you, provided you pay their dues and rights fully and systematically and they remain solid and secured (Mohsineena), without resorting to bloodshed or dishonesty (ghayira Musafiheena), nor should indulge in secret conspiracies (laa muttakhizi akhdaan). It must be born in mind by all that whoever denies the faith, his good work has become worthless, and he, in the Hereafter, will land among the losers”.
05:6(3) Dear Readers, by a lucky chance the next Verse that comes under our scrutiny in this theme of Haraam and Halaal is the one proclaimed collectively by every grand scholar of Islam to be teaching the ritual of Ablution!!!
Imagine! Virtually, what we are talking about in our thesis from the very beginning up to this point - and even after this Verse - displays no link, relation, coherence, consistence or coexistence by any degree with an “Ablution”! And imagine also the Lord of the Universe, the Supreme Consciousness behind the unimaginable work of creation, turning into a nursery teacher for ‘small kids’, instructing them how to wash their hands, face and feet!
Instead of the word-to-word commonplace traditionist translations you must have noticed everywhere, kindly now have a perusal of the following befitting translation carried out on the basis of metaphoric and idiomatic style of Quran’s classical Arabic. Fully integrated with the former text and consistent with the upcoming narrative, this Verse too imparts the rules of conduct as continued from the previous lines. Here it goes...
5:6(3) “O people of faith and peace, when you embark upon (Qum-tum) the pursuit and enforcement of divine commandments (ilas-Salaat), then purify (ughsiloo) your vision and thoughts (Wujuha-kum) and your powers/capabilities (ayidiya-kum) from all errors and negative influences until they become the closest source of support and assistance (al-Maraafiq) in your mission. At the same time, carefully check and assess the qualities/competence (amsahu) of your ranks and chieftains (bi raoosikum wa arjulikum) and upgrade them to the status of excellence (ilal-ka’bayin). In case you have been a stranger (junuban) on this ideological front, then start the process of purifying your mind from negative influences (fa at-tahharoo). And if you suffer from infirmities of faith and belief (mardhaa), or still are in the middle of your learning process (‘alaa safarin), or if one of you has come up from a very low intellectual level (min al-Ghaait), or a particular conscious weakness has touched/influenced you (laamas-tum an-Nisaa) and you have not known a revelation/guidance solving this problem, all you need is to keep your targets and aspirations very high and noble. And in the light thereof, you need to assess and analyze your thoughts and capabilities once again. It is so because God doesn’t want to burden you unduly, but He intends to purify you and finalize His favours upon you so that your efforts may produce required results.”
05:7(3) (This Verse is taken into account with the sole purpose of proving the consistency and concordance with the continuing theme under discussion, namely the adherence with signed protocols, agreements, contracts or covenants as well as the values of character. Thus the interpolation of the subject of Ablution here is fully exposed. )
5:7(3) “And remember the favour of Allah upon you and His covenant with which He has bound you when you said, "We have heard and we have obeyed"; and remain cautiously attached with Allah. Indeed, Allah knows the state of your inner self.”
5:95-97(Hajj) “O People of Peace, do not humiliate (تَقْتُلُوا ) the prisoners (الصَّيْدَ ) when you are already forbidden (حُرُمٌ ۚ ) to do that. Still if one of you intentionally commits that crime, his punishment is at par with what he has deprived the prisoner of the comforts and facilities of life (مَا قَتَلَ مِنَ النَّعَمِ ). Judgement for this sentence will be passed by two jurists among you. This is a decree based on a principle (هَدْيًا ) embodying a lofty status (بَالِغَ الْكَعْبَةِ). OR, his punishment may be to make provisions for some helpless people. In case of his inability to do so, its substitute is a strict training course in the discipline of abstention from all prohibited actions so that he may experience the bitter taste of his deviation. Allah has already condoned what has passed in the past. But, whosoever would indulge in the recurrence of those practices, Allah would take a revenge. It must be kept in mind that He is all pervasive and possesses the power of revenge.
You are allowed to keep such a prisoner who is a man of some consequence (affluent/famous/prominent)( صَيْدُ الْبَحْر ), whose resources my provide help in your manoeuvring. And you are prohibited to keep a pious, righteous, virtuous man a prisoner (صَيْدُ الْبَرِّ ) so long as you are directed likewise. Hence, be cautious in respect of Allah’s commands in this respect, because you have to eventually appear before him. Allah has bestowed a high status (الْكَعْبَةَ ) to His respected Ideological Centre (الْبَيْتَ الْحَرَامَ ) which awards solidarity to the conduct of human life, be it with regard to the situation of a binding protocol, or with the pursuit of invaluable ethics and morals of a beautiful character, or with carrying out in the best way the miscellaneous responsibilities (وَالْقَلَائِدَ ) incumbent upon you. The above serves to emphasize upon you that you must be aware that Allah knows all about heavens and earth and that Allah keeps informed of everything.”