122 Page Notes

05 Surah Al-Maidah (continued)

Page 122 - Related Hadith/Sunnah

5:83

5:84

5:85

5:86

5:87

5:88

5:89

Translation of the meaning by Sahih International.

Page 122 - Related Hadiths and Sunnah

(Clarification Note: In the standard Uthmani Mushaf layout, page 122 contains Surah Al-Ma'idah verses 83 through 89. The layout seamlessly continues the historical narrative of the Abyssinian Christians before shifting directly into crucial legal rulings regarding oaths and vows.)

1. Surah Al-Ma'idah, Verses 83-85: Tears of Recognition

"And when they hear what has been revealed to the Messenger, you see their eyes overflowing with tears because of what they have recognized of the truth. They say, 'Our Lord, we have believed, so register us among the witnesses.'" (5:83)

The Hadith on the Emotional Reception of Truth

As detailed on the preceding page, these verses describe the delegation sent by Najashi (the Negus), the Christian King of Abyssinia, to Medina. When they met the Prophet ﷺ and heard the recitation of the Quran, they wept as the truth resonated deeply with their prior knowledge of scripture.

The Prophetic Sunnah underscores that weeping upon hearing the Quran is a beautiful sign of a soft heart and profound faith (Iman):

Abdullah ibn Mas'ud narrated: "The Prophet ﷺ said to me, 'Recite the Quran to me.' I said, 'O Messenger of Allah! Shall I recite it to you while it was revealed to you?' He said, 'I love to hear it from someone else.' So I recited Surah An-Nisa until I reached the verse: 'How (will it be) then, when We bring from each nation a witness and We bring you (O Muhammad) as a witness against these people?' (4:41). The Prophet ﷺ then said, 'That is enough for now.' I turned to him and saw tears overflowing from his eyes."

• Source: Sahih al-Bukhari (Book 66, Hadith 5050); Sahih Muslim (Hadith 800).

2. Surah Al-Ma'idah, Verses 87-88: The Ban on Unnatural Asceticism

"O you who have believed, do not prohibit the good things which Allah has made lawful to you and do not transgress. Indeed, Allah does not like transgressors. And eat of what Allah has provided for you [which is] lawful and good..." (5:87-88)

These verses possess a famous and highly specific reason for revelation (Asbab al-Nuzul), where the Prophet ﷺ stepped in to correct companions who were trying to become overly ascetic.

The Reason for Revelation: The Group Who Vowed Extreme Abstinence

A group of companions (including Uthman ibn Maz'un and Ali ibn Abi Talib) met and decided that the best way to guarantee Paradise was to completely discard worldly pleasures. They intended to castrate themselves, fast every single day without a break, abandon delicious food, and never sleep on beds or engage with their wives.

When the Prophet ﷺ heard of this extreme vow, he was deeply displeased and instantly corrected their trajectory, leading to the revelation of verse 87.

Anas ibn Malik narrated: "A group of three men came to the houses of the wives of the Prophet ﷺ asking how he worshipped. When they were informed, they seemed to think it was too little... One of them said, 'I will pray all night long forever.' Another said, 'I will fast continuously and never break it.' The third said, 'I will keep away from women and never marry.'

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ came to them and said: 'Are you the people who said such and such? By Allah, I fear Allah more than you do, and I am more conscious of Him than you are; yet I fast and I break my fast, I pray and I sleep, and I marry women. Whosoever turns away from my Sunnah (my established path) is not of me.'"*

• Source: Sahih al-Bukhari (Book 67, Hadith 5063); Sahih Muslim (Hadith 1401).

3. Surah Al-Ma'idah, Verse 89: The Law of Oaths (Ayman) and Expiation (Kaffarah)

"Allah will not impose blame upon you for what is meaningless in your oaths, but He will impose blame upon you for [breaking] what you intended of oaths. So its expiation is the feeding of ten needy occurrences... or clothing them or freeing a slave. And whoever cannot find [or afford it] - then a fast of three days..." (5:89)

Verse 89 serves as the definitive legislative foundation for Islamic contract law regarding oaths (Yameen). The Sunnah heavily elaborates on how to navigate accidental oaths versus intentional oaths, and what to do if you make a bad vow.

Meaningless Oaths (Laghw al-Yameen)

The verse states that Allah does not hold people accountable for meaningless slips of the tongue. The Sunnah explicitly defines what these look like:

Aisha narrated that the Prophet ﷺ explained Laghw (meaningless) oaths as phrases used commonly in everyday Arab conversation out of pure habit, such as a person saying: "No, by Allah!" or "Yes, by Allah!" without a genuine, deliberate intent in their heart to swear a binding oath.

• Source: Sahih al-Bukhari (Book 83, Hadith 6663); Sunan Abi Dawud (Hadith 3254).

The Sunnah of Breaking a Worse Oath for a Better Choice

If a person intentionally swears to do something, but later realizes that doing the exact opposite is morally better or more beneficial, the Sunnah orders them to break the oath, execute the better deed, and pay the expiation (Kaffarah) detailed in verse 89.

The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: "By Allah, if Allah wills, I do not swear an oath and then see something else better than it, except that I do that which is better and expiate (pay the Kaffarah) for my oath."

• Source: Sahih al-Bukhari (Book 83, Hadith 6623); Sahih Muslim (Hadith 1649).

References

• Al-Bukhari, Muhammad ibn Ismail. Sahih al-Bukhari (Chapters: Kitab al-Ayman wan-Nudhur / Oaths and Vows; Kitab al-Tafsir / Prophetic Commentary).

• Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj. Sahih Muslim (Chapters: Kitab al-Ayman / The Book of Oaths; Kitab al-Nikah / The Book of Marriage).

• An-Nasa'i, Ahmad ibn Shu'ayb. Sunan An-Nasa'i (Book of Oaths and Vows).

• Ibn Kathir, Ismail ibn Umar. Tafsir al-Qur'an al-Azeem (Volume 3, Exegesis of Surah Al-Ma'idah, Verses 83–89).