9:97

Salaam all,

9:97

الأَعْرَابُ أَشَدُّ كُفْرًا وَنِفَاقًا وَأَجْدَرُ أَلاَّ يَعْلَمُواْ حُدُودَ مَا أَنزَلَ اللّهُ عَلَى رَسُولِهِ وَاللّهُ عَلِيمٌ حَكِيمٌ
AlaAArabu ashaddu kufran wanifaqan waajdaru alla yaAAlamoo hudooda ma anzala Allahu AAala rasoolihi waAllahu AAaleemun hakeemun

The Aya says:
The nomadic Arabs are more extreme in rejection including implicitly and more fitting to be ignorant the boundaries of what Allah had sent down to His messenger. And Allah is knowing, wise.

My personal note:
The Aya talks about the nomadic Arabs that lived in the outskirts of Medina. The Aya gives a general but not absolute picture about them. One particular feature is ignorance of the intricacies of what was sent down. This ignorance can be due to not receiving the whole picture and it also could be due to solely depending on their knowledge of the language but not paying attention to the wisdom being imparted on them by the prophet upon him be peace.

Historically, there was a group called Khawarej and that group caused lots of damage because of dependence on the text alone with the accessing the wisdom of the Prophet or the companions who knew contexts and therefore were able to apply the book more appropriately and more softly.

Translation of the transliterated words:
AlaAArabu: the nomadic Arabs
Note: the root is r-jB and it is the name of the Arabs and they are defined as the people whose mother tongue is Arabic or who lived and assimilated in the Arab lands. ALaAARAB are the nomadic arabs.

ashaddu: more tight/ more firm/ more severe/ more extreme
Note: The root is SH-D-D and it means tightening the rope for the action and tight for the description. Conceptually, The “tight” can also extend the meaning to hard and strong and so forth. ASHADDU means more tight/ more well done and so on.

Kufran: in rejection/ denial
Note: The root is K-F-R and it means cover or bury in the ground, as in put the seed in the ground and cover it. This is then used conceptually for many purposes as in discarding and rejecting as well as burying. KUFR is rejection or denial and so on.

Wanifaqan: including hidden/ including implicitly/ and hypocrisy
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 is often translated as an addition (and), but inclusion probably covers the meaning a little better. NIFAQAN is derived from the root N-F-Qaf. To explain it I use another derivative NAFAQ which means Tunnel. The tunnel is connection underground from one place to another. Therefore the essence of the word Tunnel is to “let Good/Useful things go to others under cover”. NIFAQAN means hypocrisy or hidden agenda.

Waajdaru: and more deserving/ more fitting
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 is often translated as an addition (and), but inclusion probably covers the meaning a little better. AJDARU is derived from the root J-D-R and it means in concrete a wall rising from the ground. It is also used for the plant when it starts showing it’s fruit and for lesions rising from the skin like smallpox. Conceptually, it can take the fortified place or argument because of the protection of the wall and so on. AJDARU here is more deserving and more fulfilling the definition.
Alla: that not
yaAAlamoo: they know/ they know for fact
Note: the root is Ain-L-M and it means knowing or knowledge. YaAALAMOON is the third person plural present or future tense of a verb that is derived from the root. This verb means They arrive knowing literally and that means they know.

Hudooda: the boundaries of/ the set limits of
Note: the root is Ha-D-D and it means limit and boundaries. HUDOODA are the set limits of/ the boundaries of. In a sense, what should not be breached.
Ma: what
Anzala: He brought down/ He sent down
Note: the root is N-Z-L and it carries the meaning of arrival to stay and descent. One concrete meaning is the descent of the person from his or her horse or camel as they arrive at the place where they plan to stay. ANZALNA is an action that is completed. It means: the action of making the object (MA=what) arrive or making it descend happened by the subject (third person singular).

Allahu: Allah
AAala: upon
Rasoolihi: His messenger
Note: RASOOLIHI is derived from the root R-S-L and it means to envoy someone or a group of people or animals. The concrete word is RASL and it means a group of people or animals that were sent by their owners or senders. RUSULUN means messengers of and is the plural of RASOOL who is the one that is sent and is used to mean the messenger because he was sent by the sender to the receiver. RASOOLI means messenger of or the envoy of. HI means him and it points to Allah.

waAllahu: And Allah
AAaleemun : knowledgeable/ knowing
Note: the root is Ain-L-M and it means knowing/knowledge or knowledge of facts. AAaLEEM is the one that is very knowledgeable

hakeemun: wise/ well steering
Note: the root Ha-K-M and it means the steer that steers the animal. This word is used for ruling and judging as well as other meanings that contain steering as part of the concept. HAKEEM means wise or the steering. The steering means the entity that steers in the best way

Salaam all and have a great day

Hussein