Understanding the Quran (Summarized commentary of Surah Nas [114])

Bismillahi-Rahman-Roheem.

All Praises are for Allah; we adore Him and seek His help and forgiveness. We have Faith and Trust in Him. We seek Allah’s refuge against evil tendencies of our Soul and our bad deeds.

He whom Allah guides no one can lead him astray. And he whom Allah lets go astray there is none to guide him. I bear witness that there is no deity except Allah, the One and without any Partner; and I also bear witness that Muhammad (SAW) is His servant and Messenger. Allah had sent him with Truth, to give good tidings and to warn before the Doomsday.


Whosoever obeys Allah and His Messenger will be successful and well guided. And whosoever disobeys either of them has gone astray. Such a person harms none save himself; he does no harm to Allah. The best Word is the Book of Allah. And the best Guidance is that given by Muhammad (SAW). Good things are the firm (original) ones, and Bad things are those introduced later on. And everything introduced later (in religion) is innovation, and every innovation is in Hell Fire.

After that, I seek Allah’s refuge against Shaitan the outcast and I start in the name of Allah, the entirely Merciful, the especially Merciful.

This early Makkan Surah is a pendant to the last, and concludes the Holy Quran with an appeal to us to trust in Allah, rather than man, as our sure shield and protection. It warns us specially against the secret whispers of evil within our own hearts.

Insidious Evil lies in wait for man, and loves to whisper and withdraws. Thus testing his will. But man can make Allah his sure shield; for Allah does care for him and cherishes him: Allah is the heavenly King Who gives him laws; and Allah is the Goal to which he will return and be judged. Let man but place himself in Allah's hands, and never can Evil touch him in his Essential and inner life.

This chapter came as a result of the bewitchment of noble Prophet Muhammad (SAW) and thereafter about six came the revelation. In the Book of Medicine of his Sahih, Al-Bukhari recorded that A'ishah said, "The Messenger of Allah was bewitched until he thought that he had relations with his wives, but he had not had relations with them.''

Sufyan said, "This is the worst form of magic when it reaches this stage.'' So the Prophet said,

O A'ishah! Do you know that Allah has answered me concerning that which I asked Him.

Two men came to me and one of them sat by my head while the other sat by my feet. The one who was sitting by my head said to the other one, `What is wrong with this man?'

The other replied, `He is bewitched.'
The first one said, `Who bewitched him'
The other replied, `Labid bin A`sam. He is a man from the tribe of Banu Zurayq who is an ally of the Jews, and a hypocrite.'
The first one asked, `With what (did he bewitch him)'
The other replied, `With a comb and hair from the comb.'
The first one asked, `Where (is the comb)'
The other answered, `In the dried bark of a male date palm under a rock in a well called Dharwan.'

A'ishah said, "So he went to the well to remove it (the comb with the hair).
Then he said, this is the well that I saw. It was as if its water had henna soaked in it and its palm trees were like the heads of devils.
So he removed it (of the well).

Then I (A'ishah) said, `Will you not make this public?'

He replied, "Allah has cured me and I hate to spread (the news of) wickedness to any of the people.'' After the above event, then comes the revelation Surah Nas, It is also confirmed in the Sahih that he (the Prophet) said, "There is not a single one of you except that his companion (a devil) has been assigned to him."

They (the Companions) said, "What about you, O Messenger of Allah!''

He replied, Yes.

However, Allah has helped me against him and he has accepted Islam. Thus, he only commands me to do good.

It is also confirmed in the Two Sahihs from Anas, who reported the story of Safiyyah when she came to visit the Prophet while he was performing Itikaf that he went out with her during the night to walk her back to her house. So, two men from the Ansar met him (on the way). When they saw the Prophet, they began walking swiftly. So, the Messenger of Allah said,

Slow down! This is Safiyyah bint Huyay! They said, "Glory be to Allah, O Messenger of Allah!'' He said, “Verily, Shaytan runs in the Son of Adam like the running of the blood. And verily, I feared that he might cast something into your hearts – or he said -- evil.”

The previous chapter Surah Falaq pointed to the necessity of seeking Allah's protection against external factors which might affect an individual. Here the need of protection from internal factors, mankind being viewed as a whole, is pointed out. For this reason the threefold relation in which man stands to Allah is mentioned, as explained.

Man's relation to Allah may be viewed in three aspects:

1. Allah is his Lord, Maker, and Cherisher; Allah sustains him and cares for him; He provides him with all the means for his growth and development, and for his protection against evil;
2. Allah is his king or ruler; more than any earthly king, Allah has authority to guide man's conduct, and lead him to ways which will make for his welfare; and He has given him laws; and
3. Allah is He to Whom mankind must return, to give an account of all their deeds in this life (2:156)-, Allah will be the Judge-, He is the goal of the Hereafter, and the only Being entitled to man's worship at any time. From all these aspects man could and should seek Allah's protection against evil.
Evil insinuates itself in all sorts of insidious ways from within so as to sap man's will, which was given to man by Allah. This power of evil may be Satan, or evil men or the evil inclinations within man's own will: for there are "evil ones among men and Jinns, inspiring each other with flowery discourses by way of deception" (6: 112). They secretly whisper evil and then withdraw, to make their net the more subtle and alluring.

Finally:

This last clause amplifies the description of the sources from which the whisper of evil may emanate: they may be men whom you may see or invisible spirits of evil working within.

So long as we put ourselves in Allah's protection, and trust in Allah, evil cannot really touch us in our essential and inner life.

“Indeed, Allah orders justice and good conduct and giving to relatives and forbids immorality and bad conduct and oppression. He admonishes you that perhaps you will be reminded". (6:90). May Allah bless us to serve him in all aspects of our lives.

Oh Allah forgives all our dead love ones, our parents living and dead. Oh Allah preserve our teachers those that dead and those that are living make them a great guide for us to Aljannah and not a distractor. Oh Allah me and the Muslim Ummah. Amin

Alahumma infa`ni bima `allamtani wa `allamni ma yanfa`uni! (OH ALLAH! Make useful for me what You taught me and teach me knowledge that will be useful to me!)

Allahu Mustahan