Introduction of Chapter # 7 (Al A'araf)

بِسْمِ ٱللَّٰهِ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ, (bi-smi llāhi r-raḥmāni r-raḥīm) "In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful" "Assalamualaikum/Hello and welcome! It's a pleasure to have you join us on this platform. Feel free to explore and engage with our community." Feel free to join the cafe and our Instagram page for notifications and updates; Hilokal; https://hilokal.page.link/eUxfM Instagram; https://instagram.com/ideologyovlife?igshid=NjIwNzIyMDk2Mg== Chapter 7, Introduction Surah Al A'araf, Shan e Nuzool Recitation. Translation. Tafseer.

Difficult Vocabularies from INTRODUCTION (Chapter # 7 Al A'araf) 1- Torment. (Noun) (Great mental suffering and unhappiness, or great physical pain.) 2- Intercessor. (Noun) (A person who intervenes on behalf of another, especially by prayer..) 3- Depicting. (Verb) (To represent or show something in a picture or story.) 4- Tangible. (Adjective) (Real and not imaginary; able to be shown, touched, or experienced.) 5- Obdurate. (Adjective) (Extremely determined to act in a particular way and not to change despite what anyone else says.) 6- Antagonistic. (Adjective) (Actively opposing or showing unfriendliness towards something or someone.) 7- Ignominy. (Noun) (Public embarrassment.) 8- Propagation. (Noun) (The act of producing a new plant from a parent plant.) 9- Provocations. (Noun) (An action or statement that is intended to make someone angry.) 10- Depict. (Verb) (To represent or show something in a picture or story.) 11- Perdition. (Noun) (A state of punishment that goes on for ever, believed in some religions to be suffered by evil people after death.)

Chapter No. 7 – Surah Al A’raf (The Heights) Lesson: The Covenant Between ALLAH & Mankind Introduction This sûrah takes its name from the heights mentioned in verse 46. Like many other Meccan sûrahs, it recounts the stories of earlier prophets who were denied by their own people and how the deniers were eventually destroyed. As mentioned in the previous sûrah (6:10-11), these stories are meant to reassure the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم and warn his people of Allāh's torment. The story of Satan's arrogance and Adam's temptation and fall are detailed, along with lessons for the believers to beware of Satan's whispers. Details about Paradise and Hell (verses 36-53) here are unmatched by any previous sûrah. The powerlessness of idols is further emphasized. Full obedience to Allāh and His prophets is stressed in this sûrah and the next.

Period of Revelation A study of its contents clearly shows that the period of its revelation is about the same as that of Al-An'am, i. e., the last year of the Holy Prophet's life at Makkah, but it cannot be asserted with certainty which of these two was sent down earlier. Anyhow the manner of its admonition clearly indicates that it belongs to the same period. As both have the same historical background the reader should keep in view the preface to Al-An'am.

Occasion of Revelation Surah Al-A'raf (Chapter 7) was revealed to address various moral, spiritual, and social issues that the early Muslim community in Mecca was facing. The surah mainly focuses on the stories of past prophets and the consequences faced by those who rejected divine guidance. Its purpose was to strengthen the faith of the believers, warn the disbelievers, and remind them of the outcomes of earlier communities that disobeyed God's commands. While there isn't a single specific occasion for its revelation, Surah Al-A'raf is part of the Qur'anic revelations aimed at urging the people of Mecca to reflect on past events and to heed the message of Islam.

Occasion of Revelation; Ubayy ibn-Kab narrated from Prophet Muhammad(PBUH) who said: “Whoever recites Surah Al-Araf, Allah will set a curtain between him and the Satan and, on the Day of Judgment Adam(AS) will be his intercessor.” Particular emphasis given to the prophethood of Muhammad and people have been admonished to accept the Message and also warned of the consequences of rejecting this Divine revelation by narrating to them the stories of Adam and Devil, Previous Prophets and their people and by also depicting the hereafter and situation of righteous and wrongdoers in Paradise and Hell respectively. The later portion of Surah also addressing the People of the Book mainly because they will soon be getting this message directly as Prophet’s migration to Madina was approaching, and there were many tribes of Jews and Christians living in the outskirts of Al Madina(Yathrib).

Topics & Discussion The principal subject of this surah is "invitation to the Divine Message sent down to Muhammad" (Allah's peace be upon him), which is couched in a warning. This is because the Messenger had spent a long time in admonishing the people of Makkah without any tangible effect on them. Nay, they had turned a deaf ear to his message and become so obdurate and antagonistic that, in accordance with the Divine Design, the Messenger was going to be commanded to leave them and turn to other people,. That is why they are being admonished to accept the Message but, at the same time, they are being warned in strong terms of the consequences that followed the wrong attitude of the former people towards their Messengers. (Now that the Holy Prophet was going to" migrate from Makkah the concluding portion of the address has been directed towards the people of the Book with whom he was going to come into contact. This meant that the time of migration was coming near and the "invitation" was going to be extended to mankind in general, and was not to be confined to his own people in particular as before.

Topics & Discussion; During the course of the address to the Jews, the consequences of their hypocritical conduct towards Prophet Hood have also been pointed out clearly, for they professed to believe in Prophet Moses but in practice opposed his teachings, disobeyed him and worshiped falsehood and consequently were afflicted with ignominy and disgrace. At the end of the Surah, some instructions have been given to the Holy Prophet and his followers for carrying out the work of the propagation of Islam with wisdom. The most important of these is that they should show patience and exercise restraint in answer to the provocations of their opponents. Above all, they have been advised that under stress of the excitement of feeling, they should not take any wrung step that might harm their cause.

Topics and their Interconnection From Verses 1 - 10 In this passage, the people have been invited to follow the Message sent down to them through Muhammad (Allah's peace be upon him) and warned of the consequences of its rejection. From Verses 11 - 25 The story of Adam has been related with a view to warning his descendants against the evil devices of Satan who is ever ready to mislead them as he did in the case of Adam and Eve. From Verses 26 - 53 This passage contains some Divine instructions, and contrasts these with Satan's instructions, and depicts a graphic picture of the results and the consequences of the two. From Verses 54 - 58 As the Message has been sent down by Allah (Who is the Creator of the heavens and the earth and everything in them), it should be followed, for it is like the rain He sends down to give life to the dead earth.

Topics and their Interconnection From Verses 59 - 171 Events from the lives of some well-known Prophets - Noah, Hud, Salih, Lot, Shu`aib, Moses (Allah's peace be upon them all) -- have been related to show the consequences of the rejection of the Message, and the addressees of Prophet Muhammad (Allah's peace be upon him) have been admonished to accept and follow the Message in order to escape perdition. From Verses 172 - 174 As the Covenant with the Israelites was mentioned at the end of the preceding passage, the whole mankind has been reminded very appropriately of the Covenant that was made at the time of the appointment of Adam as the Vicegerent of Allah so that all of his descendants should remember it and accept and follow the Message that was delivered by the Holy Prophet.

Topics and their Interconnection From Verses 175 - 179 The example of the one who had the knowledge of the Message but discarded it, has been cited as a warning to those who were treating the Message as false; they have been exhorted to use their faculties to recognize the Message; otherwise Hell would be there abode. From Verses 180 - 198 In this concluding portion of the Surah, some deviations of those who do not use their faculties properly to understand the Message have been dealt with and they have been admonished, reproved and warned of the serious consequences of their antagonistic attitude towards the Message of the Holy Prophet. From Verses 199 - 206 In conclusion, instructions have been given to the Holy Prophet, and through him to his followers, about the attitude they should adopt towards those who reject the Message and deviate from it.

Conclusion Surah A’raf is a chapter in the Quran that continues to provides instructions to Muhammad and his followers on how to spread Islam wisely. The instructions include:  Patience and restraint: To respond to their opponents' provocations with patience and restraint.  Caution: To be cautious and avoid taking any steps that could harm their cause. The main topic of Surah Al-A'raf is to invite people to follow the message sent to them through Muhammad, and to warn them of the consequences of rejecting it. T H E E N D

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