03 August 2013

an explanatory note on verse 42:38 of Quran

There are many verses of Quran,the interpretation/explanation of which have'nt met a consensus by the Muslim clerics so far.
one such verse is 42:38,the translation of which goes something like this:
And those who have responded to their lord and established prayer and whose affair is [determined by] consultation among themselves, and from what We have provided them, they spend.
the disagreement reagrding this verse is that the consultation mentioned here is for religious affairs and authorities,private affairs or something else?

Many clerics have gone in favour of the view that this is regarding religious authorities and affairs as well as affairs of govt.
But the question rises here that if it was in favour of religious authority and affairs,what was the need of sending a Prophet to people of Arab?

In fact ,the philosophy behind sending a Prophet is that He is the only religious authority which is to be followed by the people.
there are some examples in the history where Prophet Salla'l la ho alaye hi wa aalihi wasallam sought advice from his companions but those were'nt regarding the fundamentals of religion.
For example ,at the event of Battle of Uhad,he sought advice that whether to defend Madina by going out of Madina or staying in?Similarly,at the Battle of Ahzab/trench he sought pieces of advice from his companions about the effective defence of Madina.

Another question arises here:
there were at least three hundred companions of Prophet S.A.W.A.w even at the time of Badr.according to the popular Sunni belief,all of them were pious,observed prayers and spent from their sustenance.Did Prophet S.A.W.A.W consult all of them at all occasions?No,surely not.

So keeping in view the above discussion,it seems to me that the correct view on the consultation mentioned in 42:38 is that it is meant for private affairs chiefly.Because those who are alike i.e pious ones,can better understand the sentiments,needs and worries of each other and can give a better advice.

1000 pious people can't change the religious commandments revealed 1400 years ago in the name of modernization of Islam.


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