Everyone Is Required to Reflect upon the Qur’an According to Their Knowledge and Ability

كل إنسان يطالب بتدبر القرآن حسب معرفته وطاقته

Everyone Is Required to Reflect upon the Qur’an According to Their Knowledge and Ability

Translated by: Reza Ervani bin Asmanu

This article, “Everyone Is Required to Reflect upon the Qur’an According to Their Knowledge and Ability,” is included in the Islamic Questions and Answers Category

السؤال

Question:

هل تدبر القرآن ملزم به العلماء في التفسير واللغة وغير ذلك، أم على العالم وغيره من عامة الناس؟ وماذا يفعل من يجيد القراءة ولا يجيد التفسير، ولا يجيد قواعد اللغة العربية؟ هل هو ملزم بالتدبر؟ علماً أنه أقرب إلى الخطأ منه إلى الصواب.

Is tadabbur of the Qur’an required only of scholars of tafsir, Arabic language, and related sciences, or is it also required of ordinary people? What should someone do if he can recite the Qur’an but does not know how to interpret it and does not understand the rules of the Arabic language? Is he still required to practice tadabbur even though he may be more likely to fall into error than arrive at the correct understanding?

الإجابــة

Answer:

الحمد لله، والصلاة والسلام على رسول الله، وعلى آله وصحبه، أما بعد:

All praise is due to Allah, and may peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah, his family, and his Companions. To proceed:

فإن الله عز وجل قد أمر بتدبر القرآن في أكثر من موضع، فقال جل من قائل:

Allah, Mighty and Majestic, has commanded reflection upon the Qur’an in more than one place. Among His statements is:

أَفَلا يَتَدَبَّرُونَ الْقُرْآنَ وَلَوْ كَانَ مِنْ عِنْدِ غَيْرِ اللَّهِ لَوَجَدُوا فِيهِ اخْتِلافاً كَثِيراً [النساء:٨٢].

“Do they not then reflect upon the Qur’an? Had it been from other than Allah, they would surely have found within it much contradiction.” (Surah an-Nisa’, verse 82)

وقال تعالى:

And He Most High says:

كِتَابٌ أَنْزَلْنَاهُ إِلَيْكَ مُبَارَكٌ لِيَدَّبَّرُوا آيَاتِهِ وَلِيَتَذَكَّرَ أُوْلُو الْأَلْبَابِ [ص:٢٩].

“This is a blessed Book which We have revealed to you so that they may reflect upon its verses and so that people of understanding may take heed.” (Surah Sad, verse 29).

واللام التي في قوله تعالى: (لِيَدَّبَّرُوا آيَاتِهِ) تدل على أن القرآن ما نزل لمجرد تلاوة حروفه فقط، وإنما نزل من أجل التدبر في معانيه، والتفكر في مضمونها لأخذ العبر من قصصه، وللاستفادة من مواعظه، وامتثال أمره، والكف عن نهيه،

The letter lam in the statement of Allah Most High, “liyaddabbaru ayatihi” — “so that they may reflect upon its verses” — indicates that the Qur’an was not revealed merely for its letters to be recited. Rather, it was revealed so that its meanings would be reflected upon, its contents contemplated, lessons taken from its stories, benefit derived from its admonitions, its commands obeyed, and its prohibitions avoided.

وهذا الأمر أعني: الأمر بالتدبر: موجه إلى الجميع حسب مواهبهم الملكية وقدراتهم المعرفية، فمن عنده معرفة بمعاني القرآن ولغة العرب، فهو مأمور بالتدبر والنظر في القرآن للحصول على الفائدة الكاملة منه، ومن كان دون ذلك، فهو مأمور حسب طاقته وقدرته المعرفية،

This command — namely, the command to practice tadabbur — is directed to everyone according to their individual capacities and level of knowledge. Whoever possesses knowledge of the meanings of the Qur’an and the Arabic language is commanded to reflect upon and examine the Qur’an in order to attain its fullest benefit. Whoever has less knowledge than that is still commanded to reflect upon it according to his ability and level of understanding.

ومن كان يجيد القراءة فقط، فعليه أن يتعلم من لغة القرآن ما يمكنه من الاستفادة من معانيه، فإن لم يستطع، فإن الله تعالى لا يكلف نفساً إلا وسعها.

As for someone who is only proficient in recitation, he should learn as much of the language of the Qur’an as will enable him to benefit from its meanings. If he is truly unable to do so, then Allah Most High does not burden a soul beyond its capacity.

هذا مع التنبيه إلى أنه لا يجوز الإقدام على تفسير القرآن، إلا بعد التأكد من صحة التفسير، لما أخرجه الترمذي والنسائي وأبو داود عن ابن عباس رضي الله عنهما عن النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم أنه قال:

At the same time, it should be emphasized that one must not venture into interpreting the Qur’an without first ensuring the correctness of that interpretation. At-Tirmidhi, an-Nasa’i, and Abu Dawud narrated from Ibn ‘Abbas, may Allah be pleased with them both, that the Prophet ﷺ said:

من قال في القرآن برأيه، أو بما لا يعلم، فليتبوأ مقعده من النار.

“Whoever speaks about the Qur’an according to his own opinion or about that which he does not know, let him take his seat in the Fire.” (Narrated by at-Tirmidhi)

والله أعلم.

And Allah knows best.

Source: IslamWeb