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164. " indeed allah conferred a favour upon the believers when he raised up
among them a messenger of their own selves to recite his verses unto
them and purify them and to teach them the book and the wisdom;
although earlier they had surely been in manifest error."
commentary:
the arabic term /minnah/ is derived from the root /manna/ with the
sense of a stone by which things may be weighed. thus, every weighty and
valuable bounty is called /minnah/. but showing some slight bounties as
some heavy and magnificant ones, is disagreeable. therefore, donating a
great bounty is good, but representing an ordinary bounty in a great shape
is reprobated.
explanations:
1. the appointment of prophets to prophecy is the greatest heavenly
gift and the greatest bounty of allah.
" indeed allah conferred a favour..."
2. prophets were chosen from among people themselves.
"... when he raised up among them a messenger from among themselves..."
(see also the following complementary explanation, no. 1)
3. purification is prior to teaching. (purification and instruction
have been at the top of the training programs of prophets).
4. the mission of prophets envelops all human kind, yet only the
believers are gratitude unto this bounty and enjoy of the light of guidance.
" indeed allah conferred a favour upon the believers ..."
5. self-improvement and rectitude should be performed under the
light of the prophets' school of thought and the verses of allah.
"... to recite his verses unto them and to purify them ..."
the austerities and monasticisms whose origin is not verses of allah
and whose teachers are not divine prophets, themselves are deviation.
6. in order to recognize the bounty of appointment of prophets
better, we should refer to the history concerning before their times.
"... althoug before this they had surely been in manifest error."
7. in corruptive dark and very gloomy environments it is possible to
work, too.
8. in the manner of prophets, spiritual training and teaching both
are accompanied with wisdom.
"... and to purify them and to teach them the book and the wisdom;..."
complementary explanations:
1. the appointment of prophets from among people has some
favours in itself: a) people know the background of such a prophet and
trust in him. b) people are pioneers in excecuting the commands of
allah. c) prophets are acquainted with the pains of people and they
sympathetically have a share in their joys and sorrows. d) prophets are
always available for people.
2. there is a popular proverb in the arabic language which says:
things are known by their opposites.
as it is understood from the statements of hadĪrat ali (a.s.) in
nahjul-balaqah, in the age of ignorance, people had neither a sound
culture nor a good hygiene.
1
when hadĪrat ja`far tayyar, hadrat ali's brother, was in abyssinia,
he illustrated the situation of the age of ignorance for najashi as such:
"
we were worshipping idols (but now we are worshippers of allah). at that
time, we consumed corpses; we were of corruptives; we used to break off
connections with our kindred, we had ill treatments with our neighbours, the
strong members of us often devoured the rights of the weak. "
1
nahjul balaqah, sermon 26
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