CHAPTER 93: AD-DUHA (THE MORNING HOURS / THE DAYLIGHT)

It was revealed in the Mecca period. It consists of 11 verses. Duha means "forenoon" or "morning brightness." The surah takes its name from the same word in the first verse. (H. T. FEYIZLI 1/595)

When Surah Ad-Duha was revealed, the Noble Messenger (pbuh) felt a great joy and recited the takbir by saying "Allahu Akbar." For this reason, it has become sunnah to recite the takbir after the surahs from Ad-Duha to An-Nas by saying "Allahu Akbar" or "Allahu Akbar, la ilaha illallahu wallahu akbar." (From Hakim, Mustadrak 3/344; O. CELIK, 5/495)

In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

93/1-5 YOUR LORD HAS NOT FORSAKEN YOU NOR IS HE DISPLEASED

Translation

1- 3- By the forenoon [brightness of the morning], and by the night when it covers with darkness and becomes still! [O Messenger!] Your Lord has not forsaken you [as the pagans claimed] nor is He displeased [with you].

4- [O my Prophet!] Surely your future [life] is better for you than the former [the hereafter is better than the world].

5- And surely your Lord will give [His blessings] to you, and you will be well-pleased.

Commentary

(1-3) ‘By the forenoon, and by the night when it covers with darkness and becomes still! (O Messenger!) Your Lord has not forsaken you nor is He displeased.’

This surah was revealed to give consolation to the Messenger of Allah. By swearing by the light of the day and the stillness of the night, it is stated: "Your Lord has not forsaken you nor is He displeased. "The reason for swearing by these two things is that the brightness of the day and the stillness of the night do not mean Allah's displeasure or satisfaction with His servants. The narrowing of the night has nothing to do with displeasure, nor the day with satisfaction. Thus, just as the day and night are based on a wisdom, the interruption of revelation is also based on a wisdom. The interruption of revelation does not mean that Allah is displeased with the Messenger of Allah. (MAWDUDI, 7/149)

According to the narration, at the beginning of the messengership, the arrival of revelation to the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) was interrupted for a short period. Our Prophet (pbuh) was very saddened by this. He felt fear and anxiety that this might be due to a fault originating from himself. The pagans were also making accusations that he had been forsaken by his Lord. (O. CELIK, 5/496)

(4) ‘Surely your future (life) is better for you than the former.’

Allah gave this good news to the Messenger of Allah at such a time when there was not even a small possibility of the Messenger of Allah appearing victorious with a handful of Muslims. The candle of Islam in Mecca seemed as if it would go out at any moment, and winds of fitna were blowing from all sides to destroy Islam. (MAWDUDI, 7/149)

Right at that moment, Allah (cc) said to the Noble Prophet (pbuh): "Do not be distressed, do not grieve. After the initial difficulty, every coming stage will be better. Your power, glory, honor, and value will increase. Your influence and authority will spread." This promise is not limited only to this world. Your rank and degree will also rise in the Hereafter. (MAWDUDI, 7/149)

(5) ‘And surely your Lord will give (His blessings) to you, and you will be well-pleased.’

In the Hereafter, your Lord will give you rewards, the authority of intercession, and other blessings, and you will be well-pleased. (S. HAWWA, 16/249)

As a matter of fact, the Islam preached by our Prophet spread in a short time. It was exalted by conquests in his own century, in the era of the Rightly Guided Caliphs, and in the eras of other Muslim rulers. Islam reached the east, the west, and every part of the earth. In the Hereafter, our Prophet will be in the most beautiful place of Paradise, in the Maqam-i Mahmud. He will be given the right of the supreme intercession (shafa'at-i uzma). This noble verse is one of the most hopeful verses. Because our Prophet, an ocean of mercy who is very fond of his ummah, will not be satisfied until he intercedes for everyone who carries the honor of being a member of his ummah and saves them from Hell. (O. CELIK, 5/497)

93/6-8 DID HE NOT FIND YOU AN ORPHAN AND GIVE YOU SHELTER?

Translation

6- 8- [O my Prophet!] Did He not find you an orphan and give you shelter? [He did.] 7- And did He not find you lost [not knowing what to do] and guide you? [He did.] 8- And did He not find you poor [in knowledge] and make you rich [with knowledge through revelation]?

Commentary

(6) ‘Did He not find you an orphan and give you shelter?’

"Were you not an orphan when your father died? Then He gave you into the protection of your uncle Abu Talib and included you in his family. In fact, he became your guardian and raised you." (From Nasafi; S. HAWWA, 16/250)

(7) ‘And did He not find you lost (not knowing what to do) and guide you?’

"Did He not find you unaware of the signs of Prophethood, the rulings of the Sharia, and things that can only be known by hearing from Allah, and then teach you the religious rulings and the Qur'an? Heaven forbid, it is not permissible to understand from the word 'dāllan' (lost/wondering) that the Messenger of Allah had departed from the truth or fallen into heresy." (From Nasafi; S. HAWWA, 16/250)

"Because from his earliest times until the revelation descended upon him, throughout his entire life, he remained far from worshipping idols and from the filth of immorality and rebellion." (From Nasafi; S. HAWWA, 16/250)

Dāll: As is known, it means lost, confused about which path to take, or a deviant who takes the wrong path. In the verse "Your companion has not strayed, nor has he erred" (Najm 53/2), the Messenger of Allah (pbuh) was never "dāll" in the sense of being deviant in reason or religion. (ELMALILI, 9/280)

He grew up believing in the oneness of Allah, never prostrated to any idol, recognized no god but Allah, his morality was pure, and he committed no evil act. He was known as a trustworthy person in every respect. (ELMALILI, 9/280)

Therefore, the deviation of polytheism and the deviation of acting according to whims and desires were far from his exalted person. Almighty Allah kept him away from such deviations from the very beginning and granted him a sound vision and perspective. (ELMALILI, 9/280)

In other words, while you were unaware and confused as a seeker of the truth before prophethood—where intellects could not find a way to the truths and laws—did your Lord not find you, choose you, and "grant you guidance?" Did He not show you the right way by informing you of what you did not know through the revelation He gave and the book He sent down? (ELMALILI, 9/280)

According to the opinion of Ibn Atiyyah (...) the verse "and found you lost and guided you" means that Almighty Allah found His messenger in a state of not knowing what to do and showed him the way. It means that the mentioned "dalalah" attributed to the Prophet is a lack of knowledge. (M. DEMIRCI, 3/580)

Indeed, Allah Almighty emphasized the same point in the verse: "You did not know what the Book was, nor what faith was" (Shura 42/52). (M. DEMIRCI, 3/580)

(8) ‘And did He not find you poor (in knowledge) and make you rich (with knowledge through revelation)?’

Before Muhammad (pbuh) was given Prophethood, he did not know what religion, faith, and guidance were. Almighty Allah informed him of faith, Islam, and religious truths through revelation. (I. KARAGOZ,8/555)

Hadith: "True richness is not a surplus of wealth; but true richness is the richness of the soul." (From Bukhari; Muslim, Zakat 120; Tirmidhi, Zuhd 40; Ibn Majah, Zuhd 9; I. H. BURSEVI, 23/439)

93/9-11 DO NOT OPPRESS THE ORPHAN! AND DO NOT REPULSE THE BEGGAR

Translation

9- 11- [O my Prophet!] As for the orphan, do not oppress [or look down upon] him! 10- And as for the beggar, do not repulse [or scold] him! 11- And as for the blessing of your Lord: [mention it with gratitude and] proclaim it.

Commentary

(9-11) ‘Do not oppress the orphan!’

"Just as Allah sheltered you when you were an orphan, do not look down on the orphan. Do not scold or belittle him. Instead, do good to him and be kind." (From Ibn Kathir; S. HAWWA, 16/251)

In the Age of Ignorance (Jahiliyyah), the rights of orphans were not observed, their property was taken from them, and they were oppressed. Almighty Allah, through the person of the Prophet, commanded the believers not to oppress orphans and not to usurp their rights. (I. KARAGOZ,8/557)

It is necessary to be compassionate like a merciful father to the orphan, to pat his head, to observe his rights and law, not to scold him, not to say any word that would cause him to be sad or cry, not to upset him, and to meet his needs and protect him. (I. KARAGOZ,8/557)

Hadith: "I and the person who looks after an orphan will be together in Paradise like these two." (Showing his index and middle fingers) (From Muslim; H. DONDUREN, 2/963)

‘And as for the beggar, do not repulse him!’

Do not scold the one who asks or the one who inquires; that is, do not drive them away by scolding, but be gracious; either fulfill the need or refuse with a soft word. (ELMALILI, 9/282)

‘And as for the blessing of your Lord: (mention it with gratitude and) proclaim it.’

It is more appropriate for the purpose of the surah and the flow of the verses to understand this as all the material and spiritual favors that the Messenger of Allah was granted throughout his life. (QUR’AN WAY, 5/640)

‘Proclaim the blessing of Allah’

This means knowing Allah, who gives the blessing, confessing it, announcing it, giving thanks, and praising (mentioning with praise) the Giver of the blessing. (I. KARAGOZ,8/558)

In the 11th verse, through the person of the Prophet, Almighty Allah commands the believers to be grateful for blessings. Gratitude for a blessing is to know the Giver of the blessing, to confess this, and to let people benefit from the kind of blessing received. (I. KARAGOZ,8/558)

Hadith: "To whomsoever a blessing is given and he mentions it, he has given thanks for it. If he conceals it, he has been ungrateful for that blessing." (From Abu Dawud; S. HAWWA, 16/256)