Surah Al-Fath Ayat 4 (48:4 Quran) With Tafsir

Ala-Maududi

(48:4) He it is Who bestowed inner peace on the hearts of the believers^[6] so that they may grow yet more firm in their faith.^[7] To Allah belong the legions of the heavens and the earth; Allah is All-Knowing, Most Wise.^[8]

6. Sakinat in Arabic is calmness and tranquility and peace of mind. Here Allah calls its being sent into the hearts of the believers an important factor in the victory that Islam and the Muslims achieved at Hudaibiyah. From a study of the conditions of the time, one comes to know what kind of a Sakinat it was that was sent down into the hearts of the Muslims during that period and how it became a source of victory. If at the time when the Prophet (peace be upon him) expressed his intention to go for Umrah to Makkah, the Muslims had become terror-stricken and started behaving like the hypocrites as if they were going into the very jaws of death, or if at the time when they heard the news on the way that the disbelieving Quraish were coming out in great strength to fight them, they had been alarmed as to how they would face the enemy un-armed, and thus become panic-stricken, obviously no benefits would have resulted from Hudaibiyah at all. Then, if at the time when at Hudaibiyah the disbelievers had stopped the Muslims from going any further, and when they had tried to provoke them by launching against them repeated sudden attacks, and when the rumor of Uthman’s martyrdom had spread, and when Abu Jandal had appeared on the scene as the very image of oppression and persecution, the Muslims had actually become provoked and broken the discipline that the Prophet (peace be upon him) had instilled in them, the result would have been disastrous. Above all, if at the time when the Prophet (peace be upon him) was going to conclude the treaty on the conditions which were unacceptable to the entire party of the Muslims, the Muslims had happened to disobey him, the great victory of Hudaibiyah would have turned into a humiliating defeat. Thus, it was all because of Allah’s bounty that on all these critical moments the Muslims were blessed with full peace of mind with regard to the leadership and guidance of the Prophet (peace be upon him), the truth of Islam and the truthfulness of their mission. This is why they decided with a cool mind that they would face and accept whatever hardships they would encounter in the way of Allah. That is why they remained safe from fear, confusion, provocation and despair; that is why perfect discipline continues to prevail in the camp; and that is why, in spite of being deeply grieved at the conditions of peace, they submitted to the decision taken by the Prophet (peace be upon him). This was the sakinat that Allah had sent down into the hearts of the Muslims, and it was all because of this that the dangerous step of undertaking a journey for performing Umrah became the prelude to a unique victory.

7. That is, one faith they already had before they set out on this expedition; they attained the additional faith when they remained steadfast on the way of sincerity, piety and obedience in every trial that they faced in connection with the expedition. This verse is one of those verses which show that faith is not a static state which is incapable of growth, but it develops as well as decays and deteriorates. After embracing Islam till death the believer at every step in his life continues to be confronted with such tests and trials in which he has to take a decision whether in following the divine religion he is prepared to sacrifice his life, his wealth, his sentiments, desires, time, comforts and interests or not. If at the time of every such trial, he adopts the way of sacrifice, his faith progresses and develops, and if he turns away, his faith decays and deteriorates till a time may also come when the initial state of the faith with which he had entered Islam is even endangered to be lost and destroyed. For further explanation. see (Surah Al-Anfal, ayat 2) note 2 and (Surah Al-Ahzab, ayat 22) note 38.

8. It means this: Allah has such hosts by which He can destroy and exterminate the disbelievers completely whenever He wills, but He has deliberately and by wisdom only placed this responsibility on the believers that they should enter a conflict with the disbelievers and struggle to make the religion of Allah prevail and prosper in the world. In this way alone does a door to the enhancement of their ranks and successes in the Hereafter open as is being indicated in the following verse.

Ibn-Kathir

4. He it is Who sent down As-Sakinah into the hearts of the believers, that they may grow more in faith along with their faith. And to Allah belong the armies of the heavens and the earth, and Allah is Ever All-Knower, All-Wise. 5. That He may admit the believing men and the believing women to Gardens under which rivers flow to abide therein forever, and He may expiate from them their sins; and that is with Allah supreme success, 6. And that He may punish the hypocrites men and women, and also the idolators men and women, who think evil thoughts about Allah, for them is a disgraceful torment. And the anger of Allah is upon them, and He has cursed them and prepared Hell for them and worst indeed is that destination. 7. And to Allah belong the armies of the heavens and the earth. And Allah is Ever All-Powerful, All-Wise.

Allah the Exalted said,

(He it is Who sent down As-Sakinah), meaning, tranquility. Qatadah commented, “Grace into the hearts of the believers”, that is, the Companions, may Allah be pleased with them, on the Day of Al-Hudaybiyyah. The companions were they, who accepted the call of Allah and His Messenger and obeyed the decisions of Allah and His Messenger . When their hearts felt content with acceptance and were at peace, Allah increased their faith, joining it to the faith they already had. Al-Bukhari, and other Imams, relied on this Ayah as proof that faith increases and decreases in the hearts. Allah the Exalted said next that had He willed, He would have inflicted defeat on the disbelievers, Allah says;

(And to Allah belong the armies of the heavens and the earth) and had He willed to send only one angel to them, that angel would have brought destruction to all what they had. However, Allah the Exalted willed Jihad and fighting to be established for, and by, the believers for great wisdom, clear reasons and unequivocal evidences that He had in all this. This is why Allah the Great said next,

(and Allah is Ever All-Knower, All-Wise.) Allah the Exalted and Most Honored said,

(That He may admit the believing men and the believing women to Gardens under which rivers flow to abide therein forever,) We mentioned the Hadith that Anas narrated in which the Companions said, “Congratulations, O Allah’s Messenger! This good news is for you, so what good news do we have” Allah the Exalted sent down this Ayah,

(That He may admit the believing men and the believing women to Gardens under which rivers flow to abide therein forever,) meaning they will remain in Paradise forever,

(and He may expiate from them their sins;) Allah will not punish them for their errors and mistakes. Rather, He will forgive, absolve and pardon them and cover the errors, grant mercy and appreciate,

(and that is with Allah supreme success.) Allah the Exalted said in a similar Ayah,

(And whoever is removed away from the Fire and admitted to Paradise, he indeed is successful.) (3:185) Allah said,

(And that He may punish the hypocrites, men and women, and also the idolators, men and women, who think evil thoughts about Allah,) who question the wisdom in Allah’s decisions and think that the Messenger and his Companions, may Allah be pleased with them, might be killed and exterminated. This is why Allah the Exalted said,

(for them is a disgraceful torment. And the anger of Allah is upon them, and He has cursed them) He has cast them away from His mercy,

(and prepared Hell for them — and worst indeed is that destination.) Allah the Exalted and Most Honored asserted His ability to take revenge from the enemies of Islam and all disbelievers and hypocrites,

(And to Allah belong the armies of the heavens and the earth. And Allah is Ever All-Powerful, All-Wise.)