4:98

Salaam all,

This is 4:98
إِلاَّ الْمُسْتَضْعَفِينَ مِنَ الرِّجَالِ وَالنِّسَاء وَالْوِلْدَانِ لاَ يَسْتَطِيعُونَ حِيلَةً وَلاَ يَهْتَدُونَ سَبِيلاً
Illa almustadAAafeena mina alrrijali waalnnisai waalwildani la yastateeAAoona heelatan wala yahtadoona sabeelan

The Aya says:
if not the weak amongst the men, women and children. They are incapable of making change including not guide themselves to a path.

My personal note:
This Aya continues the theme of the previous Aya. It points to how God defines the term “weak” which will be acceptable as an excuse for not doing the necessary change or the necessary move from the place of inability to worship God to another where the person has the ability. It defines “weakness” as inability to make change in the situation depending on the sources that a person has and including the inability to guide oneself out of that situation.

It is important to point out that “making change” does not have to happen through fighting. In fact, Muslims living under non Muslim rule are forbidden to fight, just the prophet (pbuh) was in Mecca. However, they were still instructed and still are instructed to make change in their situations through non violent means.

Why is non violence the order in this kind of situation? Because violence nearly always causes more harm than good in this situation and the aim of God’s book is making life better.

Translation of the transliterated words:
Illa: if not/ except
almustadAAafeena: the weak/ the exploited for weakness
Note: ALMUSTADAAaFEENA is derived from the root Dhad-Ain-F and it means in concrete, when the thing is folded upon itself, therefore giving two potential meanings for the derivatives, one is weakness, since the weak gets folded and the other is multiplication since the fold one object becomes two which is the context of this sentence. ALMUSTADAAaFEENA are the one who are weak or taken by others as weak or the ones whose weakness was exploited by others or all.
Mina: from/ of/ amongst
Alrrijali: the men
Note: ALRIJAL is derived from the root is R-J-L and it means legs. The word also means men depending on the situation. One possible link could be because when men and women are in the caravan and the ability to ride is limited, then the men will be on their legs, while the women will be riding the camels or so forth. ALRIJAL means in this context: the men.
Waalnnisai: and the women
Note: WA is a letter that links what is before with what is after. This link is through inclusion, either one is included in the other or they are all included in the bigger sentence or bigger picture. WA often corresponds with “and/ addition” but the more encompassing meaning is in inclusion one in another or all in a bigger picture or sentence. ALNNISAI is derived from two potential roots that may be related to it. The first N-S-Y and it is the one used for women. This same root is used for the sciatic nerve as a concrete word and for forgetting. The relation between the different meanings is only in an indirect manner. Another root is N-S-Hamza and it means putting things behind in time or space of delaying things. Concrete words are the women that have a delay in the menses because of possibility of pregnancy.
Waalwildani: and the children
Note: WA is a letter that links what is before with what is after. This link is through inclusion, either one is included in the other or they are all included in the bigger sentence or bigger picture. WA often corresponds with “and/ addition” but the more encompassing meaning is in inclusion one in another or all in a bigger picture or sentence. ALWILDANI is derived from the root W-L-D and it means conceiving or giving birth. It also means child or the product of birth or conception. ALWILDAN are the children or the offspring.
La: not
yastateeAAoona: they are capable/
Note: the root is TTa-W-Ain and it means willing compliance as a concept. This can be extended to obeying and so forth. YASTATeeAAooNA is an action that is being completed or will be completed. It means: the action of seeking and achieving obeying or willing compliance of the object (HEELATAN= make change/ maneuverability) is happening or will be happening by the subject (third person plural). In here, it points to the ability to do things and general capabilities.
Heelatan: maneuverability/ make change.
Note: the root is H-W-L and it means going in circles or cycles or moving with curvature which means also: going in circles. This word means many things as they derive from that origin. One of the derivatives that is used is year because it is a complete cycle. Another concept is change, since things change from one form to another with the passage of cycles and time. HEELATAN is the ability to change an entity or situation from one form to another for one reason or another. In this context, it covers maneuverability or ability to make change.
Wala: and not/ including not
Yahtadoona: they are guide themselves
Note: The root is H-D-Y and it means gift in all it’s forms and it carries the meaning of guidance since guidance is a gift. YAHTADOONA is an action that is being completed or will be completed. It means: the action of guiding is happening or will be happening by the subject (third person plural) to itself of for itself.
Sabeelan: a path
Note: the root is S-B-L and it means and it means flowing water from the falling rain from the sky to the flowing water in the river and so forth. This is the concrete and the other uses are related as in path, which allows the flow, to soft flowing hair and so forth. SABEELAN is the flowing water or the path of. It takes the meaning of path or even the trip on the path.


Salaam all and have a great day.

Hussein