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Volume 1 · Page 101

Translation · EN

AI translation

explain anything of the Qurʾān except a specific number of verses—were what springs to the imaginations of the ignorant, namely that he used to explain only a few of its verses and a tiny portion of its letters, then the Remembrance would have been revealed to him, peace and blessings of God be upon him, only so that he might leave to the people the clarification of what was sent down to them, not so that he might clarify to them what was sent down to them.

And in Allah's command, majestic be His praise, to His Prophet, peace and blessings of God be upon him, to convey what was revealed to him, and His informing him that what was revealed to him was only revealed so that he might clarify to the people what was revealed to them, and in the establishment of proof that the Prophet, peace and blessings of God be upon him, conveyed and fulfilled what Allah commanded him to convey and fulfill in accordance with how He commanded him, and in the authenticity of the report from ʿAbd Allāh ibn Masʿūd regarding his saying (1): "When a man among us learned ten verses, he would not move past them until he understood their meanings and acted upon them" (2)—there is that which demonstrates the ignorance of whoever thinks or imagines that the meaning of the report we mentioned from ʿĀʾisha from the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of God be upon him, that he used not to explain anything of the Qurʾān except a specific number of verses, is that he did not clarify to his Ummah of its Interpretation except a tiny and small portion of it.

This is alongside what exists in the report narrated from ʿĀʾisha of the defect in its chain of transmission, due to which it is not permissible for anyone who knows authentic and flawed chains of transmission of reports in religion to use it as proof, because its narrator is among those who are not known among the people of reports, namely: Jaʿfar ibn Muḥammad al-Zubayrī.

As for the reports we mentioned from those Successors whom we mentioned regarding their refraining from Interpretation, the act of whoever among them did so was like the act of those among them who refrained from issuing fatwas concerning novel cases and events—despite their acknowledgement that Allah, majestic be His praise, did not take His Prophet to Himself until after completing the religion through him for His servants, and their knowledge that Allah has a ruling in every novel case and event existing by textual evidence or indication. Thus, their refraining from speaking on that was not the refraining of one who denies that Allah has a ruling concerning it existing among His servants, but rather the refraining of one who fears failing in his Ijtihad to attain what Allah has obligated upon the scholars among His servants regarding it.

So likewise, the meaning of the refraining of those among the scholar Predecessors who refrained from speaking on the Interpretation and Tafsir of the Qurʾān was only out of caution lest they fail to fulfill what they were tasked with regarding arriving at the correct statement concerning it, not on the grounds that the Interpretation of that is veiled from the scholars of the Ummah or non-existent among them.

Notes

  • (1) In the printed edition: "He has conveyed and fulfilled..." and "for his statement".
  • (2) The context of his phrasing from the beginning of this paragraph is: "And in the command of Allah, Glorious and Exalted is His praise... and in the establishment of proof..., and in the authenticity of the report... is what informs..."

This translation was produced with AI assistance and is part of an ongoing human-review process. Found a mistake? Use the feedback option in the reader menu. How we translate

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Tafsir at-Tabari: Jami' al-Bayan - Dar al-Tarbiyah wa al-Turath Edition