Ala-Maududi
(7:95) Then We changed adversity into ease until they throve and said: ‘Our forefathers had also
seen both adversity and prosperity.’ So We suddenly seized them without their even perceiving
it.[77]
77. After narrating individually the stories of how various nations responded to the Message of
their Prophets, the Qur’an now spells out the general rule which has been operative throughout
the ages. First, before the appearance of a Prophet in any nation, conditions that would conduce
to the acceptance of his Message were created. This was usually done by subjecting the nations
concerned to a variety of afflictions and punishments. They were made to suffer miseries such as
famine, epidemics, colossal losses in trade and business, defeat in war. Such events usually
have a healthy impact on people. They lead to a softening in their hearts. They generate
humility and modesty. They enable people to shake off their pride and shatter their reliance on
wealth and power and induce thern to trust the One Who is all-powerful and fully controls their
destiny. Above all, such events incline people to heed the words of warning and to turn to God
in humility.
But if the people continue to refrain from embracing the truth they are subjected to another
kind of test – that of affluence. This last test signals the beginning of their destruction.
Rolling in abundant wealth and luxury, people are inclined to forget the hard times they have
experienced. Their foolish leaders also inculcate in their minds an altogether preposterous
concept of history. They explain the rise and fall of nations and the alternation of prosperity
and adversity among human beings by reference to blind natural forces, and in total disregard of
moral values. Hence if a nation is seized by an affliction or scourge, such people see no reason
why it should be explained in terms of moral failure. They are rather inclined to consider that
a person’s readiness to heed moral admonition or to turn humbly towards God, is a sign of
psychological infirmity.
This foolish mentality has been portrayed all too well by the Prophet (peace be on him): ‘A
believer continually faces adversity until he comes out of it purified of his sins. As for the
hypocrite, his likeness in adversity is that of a donkey who does not know why his master had
tied him and why he later released him.’ (Cited by Ibn Kathir in his comments on the verse –
Ed.) Hence, when a people become so hard of heart that they neither turn to God in suffering,
nor thank Him for His bounties in prosperity, they are liable to be destroyed at any moment.
It should be noted that the above rule which was applied to the nations of the previous
Prophets, was also applied in the time of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be on him). When this
surah was revealed the Quraysh displayed exactly the same characteristics and attitudes as those
nations which had earlier been destroyed. According to a tradition narrated by both ‘Abd Allah
b. Mas’ud and Abd Allah b. ‘Abbas, as the Quraysh grew in defiance to the Prophet’s call, he
prayed to God that he might be assisted by inflicting famine on the Quraysh, as in the days of
the Prophet Joseph. Accordingly, God subjected the Quraysh to such a severe famine that they
took to subsisting on carcasses, the skins of animals, bones, and wool. Unnerved by this the
Quraysh, led by Abu Sufyan, implored the Prophet (peace be on him) to pray to God on their
behalf. But when the Prophets prayer helped to improve the situation somewhat, the Quraysh
reverted to their arrogant and ignorant way’s. (Bukhari, Kitab al-Taharah, Bab idha istashfa’a
al-Mushrikun bi al-Muslim’ – Ed.) The wicked ones among them tried to dissuade from God those
who had derived some lesson from the famine. They argued that famines take place in course of
operation of natural laws, that they are merely a recurrent physical phenomenon. They emphasized
that the occurrence of famine should not mislead people into believing in Muhammad (peace be on
him). It was during this time that the surah under discussion was revealed. The above verses
were thus quite relevant and it is against this backdrop that one appreciates their full
significance. (For details see (Yunus 10: 21), (al-Nahl 16: 112), (al-Muminun 23: 75-6); and
(al-Dukhan 44: 9-16.)
