Quran Garden

Session 428

Chapter 3

Verse 97

A continuation

In it are clear signs – the standing place of Abraham.  Whoever enters it is safe.  Pilgrimage to the House is a duty owed to God by all people who can afford a way to it.  And whoever rejects, God is independent of all creation.  (Chapter 3: Verse 97)

When you enter the Sacred House of God in Mecca, you immediately shed all attachment to the world and become preoccupied with the worship of the Lord.  The moment you see the Ka'aba, you forget about your children, money, and work.  It is a magnificent feeling of tranquillity that can rarely be experienced anywhere else.  Just ask anyone who was blessed with a Hajj or Umra trip.  May Allah grant it to every Muslim.  That is the meaning behind the phrase, "Whoever enters it is safe." 

Here we must understand that there is a difference between the phrase "Whoever enters it is safe" being an informative one or a religious duty.  In other words, is Allah informing us of a universal fact that whoever enters His Sacred House is safe, or is He requiring us to make it a safe sanctuary?  History tells us that "Whoever enters it is safe" is not an informative statement but a religious duty.   

For example, in 1979, a group of armed Saudi men led by Juhayman Al-Otaybi took over the Haram for almost two weeks to protest government policies.  They made the sacred grounds unsafe for pilgrims, and they had to be evacuated by force.  Some people questioned: how God said, "Whoever enters it is safe," while guns and tear gas were used?  Some went as far as claiming that such events invalidate the verse or the entire Quran.  We answer that there is a difference between God stating a fact on the one hand and issuing a command on the other.  Let's clarify with an example.  God says regarding marriage:

Corrupt women are for corrupt men, and corrupt men for corrupt women, just as good, pure women are for good, pure men, and good, pure men for good, pure women.  The latter are innocent of all that evil tongues may attribute to them.  For them, there is forgiveness and an honorable, generous provision.  (24:26)

Here we ask, is Allah stating a fact?  Or is this a command?  The reality of life teaches us that many good women and married vile men and vice-versa.  You probably have an example in your own family.  How do we then explain the verse?  We answer that God did not state a universal fact; instead, He teaches us how to establish good marriages.  If we want to have prosperous and peaceful relationships, we should pair good men with good women and vile men with vile women. 

Likewise, the phrase "Whoever enters it is safe" is a command from God that is subject to obedience and disobedience on our part.  Allah commands us, "O believers, you should do whatever you can to assure that whoever enters the Sacred House is safe." It is up to us to obey or not.  For example, you may say to your son, "Our family has always welcomed guests with open arms, and whoever knocks on our door should feel welcomed and honored." Your statement is an order to your son to be hospitable, but does it mean that your son will follow?  Not necessarily.  If he wants to be a good son, he will.  But, if he is busy playing video games, he may not even answer the door when a guest knocks. 

The verse continues with, "Pilgrimage to the House is a duty owed to God by all people who can afford a way to it." When you hear the phrase, "John owes money to Miriam," you understand that Miriam has the benefit while John carries the liability.  In other words, if you Based on this explanation, the phrase "Pilgrimage to the House is a duty owed to God by all people who can afford a way to it" means that people have the burden of Hajj, while God stands to benefit.  However, matters are very different when it comes to the Almighty.  God does not benefit from anything that you and I do.  The Hajj pilgrimage does not help God; we alone will enjoy all its rewards.  In short, Allah assigns you both the obligation and the reward. 

Our Creator is well aware that some duties are difficult.  For example, Hajj requires planning, money, time, and physical effort.  When you find a religious commandment burdensome, here is my advice: try to remember the reward.  When you recall the immense benefits of Hajj, the obligation becomes easy.  Obedience is difficult for the person who does not see the end result; likewise, sin is easy for those who do not remember the punishment. 

Let's take the example of a man who is chasing after a beautiful woman.  The only thing on his mind is lust, so he plays all kinds of tricks to get the woman in bed and satisfy his desire.  Meanwhile, he gives no thought whatsoever to the punishment of adultery.  To such a man, I say, "Before you have illicit relations with this woman, take a match and light it.  Now hold it against the palm of your hand and let it burn for just five seconds.  Do you have any desire left after that?  Of course not." Sin brings you immediate short-lived pleasure, then burdens you with severe long-lived punishment.  If you recall or experience the punishment, even for a few seconds, you will never commit the sin.    

This brings us back to the verse.  God says, "Pilgrimage to the House is a duty owed to God by all people who can afford a way to it." The phrase "a way to it" is translated from the Arabic origin سبيل (Sabeel), which is the road leading to the destination.  When you set out for Hajj, you have some planning to do: you must arrange for travel, food, and accommodations.  If you are traveling by land, you have to find a route free of danger.  Still, that is not enough!  How about your family and children?  You have to ensure they are taken care of while you are away.  Thus, Allah addressed all these concerns with the phrase, "all people who can afford a way to it."

In almost all verses of the Quran where God assigns religious obligations, He starts the verse with "O you who believe."  However, when Allah obligated Hajj, He did not only address the Muslims; instead, He says, "Pilgrimage to the House is a duty owed to God by all people." In fact, when the Jewish and Christian delegations came to our beloved Muhammad to argue about their relation to Abraham, he invited them to perform the Hajj pilgrimage.  If Hajj were only for Muslims, the Prophet would not have asked the followers of other faiths to perform it. 

All people of all backgrounds have an open invitation to visit the House of their Lord and worship the One God.  The matter is far more serious for Muslims who have the means but do not undertake the journey.  Imam Ali, may God be pleased with him, narrated that the Messenger of God, peace be upon him, said, "He who has enough food and a good ride to reach Mecca, yet does not perform Hajj, it does not matter if he dies as a Jew or a Christian, for God said, 'Pilgrimage to the House is a duty owed to God by all people who can afford a way to it.'" 

The most alarming phrase in this verse is, "And whoever rejects, God is independent of all creation." The word "reject" is translated from the Arabic origin كَفَرَ (Kafara), which is usually reserved for the disbelievers.  So we must ask: if you have the means to perform Hajj but choose not to, does that make you a disbeliever?  Here the scholars took a pause.  First, we explain that the Kufr (disbelief) falls under one of two categories.  First is the rejection of God, and second is the rejection of His blessings.  For example, God says:

God presents the example of a town that was secure and at ease, with provisions coming to it abundantly from all places.  Then it became ungrateful for God's blessings, so God afflicted it with the garment of famine and fear for what its people had done.  (16:112)

We must be careful in distinguishing between rejecting God on the one hand and denying His blessings on the other.  In our example we ask, does the person oppose the mandate of Hajj?  Or do they believe in it but do not implement it? 

If you ask any Muslims, "Do you believe that Hajj is a duty?" he or she will respond with "Yes, of course." However, some believers are keen to fulfill God's command, while others procrastinate.  Such lazy believers fall under the category of the disobedient, not the disbelievers.

Here I would like to take a moment to warn you against rejecting God's commands.  For example, if you do not pray, do not say, "I do not pray because there is no benefit to prayers." Likewise, if you take a usurious loan, do not say that the prohibition of usury is unfair or incompatible with modern life.  Because, when you say such statements -in essence turning your back to God's teachings- you will become a disbeliever and lose all access to God's mercy.

Instead, if you cannot bring yourself to implement God's teachings, then say, "My Lord, the obligation of prayers or the prohibition of usury is the truth, but I cannot bring myself to do these duties because my faith is weak.  My Lord, please shower me with mercy and help me come back to Your path in this life and the next."  If you sincerely mean these words, you will only be considered disobedient, not a disbeliever, and you will have access to God's mercy.  So, be very mindful when distinguishing between sinning while accepting God's orders on the one hand and rejecting God's commands altogether on the other.