Surah 2. Al-Baqarah - The Cow

Hence, fight them only until there is no more harassment, and Deen may be adopted for the sake of God alone. And if they desist, then let there be no hostility except against those who replace peace with aggression.

[No compulsion or coercion in religion 2:256. Lillah = For God’s sake alone. Zulm = Displace something from its rightful place = Replace good with evil = Oppression = Relegation of the Truth = Exploitation = Violation of human rights = Doing wrong to oneself or others]

You may fight during the Months of Peace and Security if you are attacked, for, a violation of sanctity will activate the Law of Just retribution. So, the one who attacks you should expect retaliation in like manner. Be mindful of God, and know that God is with those who live upright.

[Temporary cessation of hostilities provides a cooling off period and it can avert war. There should be at least four months upon which mankind should agree as peacetime. History and Tafseers (expositions of the Qur’an) report the four Months of Peacetime as the first, the seventh, the eleventh and the twelfth month of the Lunar Calendar. However, the Qur’an being the Ultimate Authority specifies them differently. The four Months of Security at the time in Arabia were consecutive, beginning with ZilHajjah, the 12th Lunar Month. Mankind may agree upon any four consecutive months in the changing times. 9:5, 9:36]

(Defense of the Divine Order calls for sacrifice of wealth and person.) Hence, keep open your resources in the Cause of God, and let not your own hands throw you into destruction. Be beneficent! Indeed, God loves the doers of good. [You might throw yourselves into destruction by withholding contributions to this noble Cause]

(Peace cannot defend itself. Mankind have to guard it.) Therefore, observe the Hajj and ‘Umrah Convention for God. If you are stranded, send in gifts that the congregation would utilize. Do not consider that by doing so you have relieved yourself of duty. Be with them at heart until the gifts have reached their destination. If someone is sick or has other compelling burdens denying him sending any contribution, then Abstinence for a few days at convenience, or an act of charity or fulfilling someone’s need shall be in order. If a person is present at the Convention but cannot afford to contribute, he should exercise Abstinence for a total number of ten days, three days there and seven days after coming home. This is for him whose folk do not live in the vicinity of the Convention. Be mindful of God, remembering the noble objective. And know that God (His Law) is Strict in grasping.

[Hajj is the annual Convention in a specified time while ‘Umrah is a visit to the Masjid of Makkah any time during the year. Both have a sublime objective as the Qur’an explains, although Muslims have reduced them into mere rituals similar to the Days of Ignorance. There is no mention of kissing the blackstone in Ka’bah, any “holiness” about the Zam Zam water, or that of throwing rocks at the three pillars signifying Satan. See footnote to Surah 105. The Noble Objective of the Pilgrimage is to arrange regular and intermittent international conferences in Makkah. Delegates from all over the world would get together there and devise ways to make the world a better place to live. Halqirras = Relief of burden = Idiom for relief. ‘Imams’ Jurjani, Hasan Basari, Shehristani]

The Convention shall take place in the months appointed for it and made well known to all. Whoever participates in the Convention shall refrain from sexual intimacy, slipping out of discipline and argumentation throughout Hajj. And whatever you accomplish for the good of mankind, God will acknowledge it. So make ample provision, yet the best provision is your good conduct. Be mindful of Me, O You of understanding!

[Sexual intimacy, breach of discipline and argumentation would hamper mutual consultation in a focused, amicable environment. Ample provision is meant to avoid asking for help, but rather being able to help others. The Central Authority, any time in the Divinely ordained four Months of Peacetime should decide upon and announce the exact dates of Hajj. The current practice of “performing” the ritualistic pilgrimage only in Zilhajjah, the 12th lunar month, finds no Authority in the Qur’an. 2:194, 9:16]

(The Hajj Convention is not an assembly of monks.) There is no blame on you if you seek the Bounty of your Lord by trading. Returning in groups from where you got introduced to one another (Arafat), let your experience be a conscious and everlasting monument to peace in your lives. Take God’s messages to heart, and remember Him in the way He has directed you. And, certainly, before this you were wandering to and fro.

(When the Convention is over) let the Congregation return to their hometowns without much delay. (Implement what you have learned and) seek from God security and protection for mankind through this Program. Indeed, God is the Provider of protection, Absolver of imperfections, Ever Merciful.

When you have completed your duties, then, remain conscious of God with a stronger commitment than you used to display for your ancestors and their ways. Among the people is he who says, “Our Lord! Give unto us in this world.” But he, who looks only for instant gains disregarding the long term, has no portion in the Hereafter.

And of them is he who says, “Our Lord! Give unto us in this world what is good, and in the Hereafter what is good, and guard us from the doom of Fire.”

[He does not forsake the Hereafter for this world, and this life for the Hereafter. 28:77]

It is they for whom is a decent portion: what they have themselves earned. And God is Swift in reckoning. [Actions get their imprints stamped upon the human ’self’ in this very life]