3:28

Salaam all

This is 3:28
لاَّ يَتَّخِذِ الْمُؤْمِنُونَ الْكَافِرِينَ أَوْلِيَاء مِن دُوْنِ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَمَن يَفْعَلْ ذَلِكَ فَلَيْسَ مِنَ اللّهِ فِي شَيْءٍ إِلاَّ أَن تَتَّقُواْ مِنْهُمْ تُقَاةً وَيُحَذِّرُكُمُ اللّهُ نَفْسَهُ وَإِلَى اللّهِ الْمَصِيرُ
La yattakhithi almuminoona alkafireena awliyaa min dooni almumineena waman yafAAal thalika falaysa mina Allahi fee shayin illa an tattaqoo minhum tuqatan wayuhaththirukumu Allahu nafsahu waila Allahi almaseeru

The Aya says:
The ones who made themselves safe (in God) will not take the rejecters (as) guardians short of the ones who make themselves safe (in God). And whoever does that is not of Allah in any entity, except that you make yourselves conscious of them, consciousness. And Allah makes you aware of his own Self’s danger. And to Allah is the ending.

My personal note:
This Aya is important and enters in the polemics between Muslims and non Muslims. It centers on the use of the word Awliya which is often translated as friends. Awliya gives the meaning of people who are a combination or directors and guarantors. That is why I used the word guardians for the meaning. So Awliya can be understood as friends, but within that context which gives authority to direct a person in one or another direction and guarantee as well.
So, when God is asking the Mumins= believers or the ones who are safe in God not to take the rejecters as Awliya. He is, in essence, asking us to be independent from their direction, guarantee and guardianship. The Aya asks us to grant the guardianship only to those who are also safe in God. The Aya continues that it is ok to be conscious of the rejecters. Therefore consciousness (in whatever angle of meaning of this word) is fine, but guardianship and direction is not.

Another issue is the statement “And Allah makes you aware of His own Self’s danger”. This statement is a clear reminder to anyone never to take God for granted. It would be unwise to see this statement and say God is scary and dangerous while ignoring the Ayat that mention God’s love and Mercy. However, it is also unwise to see the Ayat that mention the Love and Mercy of God and forget this one as well. The big message is being aware of all. One ends up with the balance of the Love for God, the trust in His endless mercy, and the awareness of His danger if ignored or rejected.

Translation of the transliterated words:
La: not
Yattakhithi: they make themselves take/ they take
Note: the root is Hamza-KH-TH and it means taking. YATTAKHITHU is an action that is being completed or will be completed. It means: the action of making oneself take is done by the subject (third person plural pointing to ALMUMINOONA= the ones who made themselves safe in God) to the object (ALKAFIREENA= the rejectors).
Almuminoona: the ones who made themselves safe (in God)
Note: the root Hamza-M-N and it means safety. ALMUMINOONA means the ones who made themselves safe.
Alkafireena: the rejecting ones/ the rejecters
Note: the root is K-F-R and it means covering. One of the concrete meanings of the word is the burying of the seed in the ground to plant it. This word also takes the meaning of rejecting or refusing something, since the person that rejects something will bury it in the ground. ALKAFIREENA are the rejecting ones or the rejecters.
Awliyaa: guardians/ directors and protectors at the same time.
Note: the root is W-L-Y and it means direction and protection at the same time. AWLIYAA are the ones that provide to others direction and protection. The closest meaning would guardians, since the guardians provide protection and direction. In the meaning is also friendship, and authority and so forth.
Min: from
Dooni: short of
Note: The root is D-W-N and it means short of someone or something. It can also mean lower than at times depending on the plane of thought of the sentence.
Almumineena: the ones who made themselves safe (in God)
Note: the root Hamza-M-N and it means safety. ALMUMINEENA means the ones who made themselves safe.
Waman: and whoever
yafAAal: does
Note: the root is f-ain-l and it means doing. Yafaaal is an action that is being completed or will be completed that is derived from the root. it means: the action of doing is happening or will be happening by the subject (third person singular).
Thalika: that
Falaysa: therefore not
Mina: of/ from
Allahi: Allah
Fee: in
Shayin: entity/ thing
Note: the root is SH-Y-Hamza and it means entity. SHAYIN means entity and it does point mainly to entities that stand alone.
Illa: except
An: that
Tattaqoo: you make yourselves conscious/ you make yourselves guarded
Note: the root is W-Qaf-Y and it means guarding or protection. Since the best way to guard is through consciousness, then I chose the meaning of consciousness since it encompasses the concept. TATTAQOO is an action that is being completed or will be completed and that is derived from the text. It means: the action of making oneself conscious is happening or will be happening by the subject (second person plural) to or for the object (who is the same as the subject). This then means: you make yourselves conscious.
Minhum: of them/ from them
Tuqatan: consciousness/ guarding
Note: the root is W-Qaf-Y and it means guarding or protection. Since the best way to guard is through consciousness, then I chose the meaning of consciousness since it encompasses the concept. TUQATAN is a noun that describes the action of consciousness or guarding.
Wayuhaththirukumu: And He makes you aware of danger of
Note: WA means and. YUHATHTHIRUKUMU is derived from the root Ha-TH-R and it means fear or consciousness of danger. YUHATHTHIRU is an action that is being completed or will be completed. It means: the action of making the object (KUMU= plural you) aware of danger is happening or will be happening by the subject (third person singular pointing to Allah and coming up).
Allahu: Allah
Nafsahu: Himself
Note: NAFS means a self. It is a derivative of the root N-F-S and it means to breath. NAFSA is a noun that is derived from this root and it means SELF of. HU means him. This word is another object of the action YUHATHTHIRKUMU and makes the statement means: and Allah makes you conscious of danger of Himself or of His danger.
Waila: and to
Allahi: Allah
Almaseeru: The ending/ the time and place of ending.
Note: The root is Sad-Y-R and it means in concrete where the water ends. It is used to mean the end of a transformation or the ending of any process. ALMASEERU is the place or time of ending or both. It can also mean the ending.

Salaam all and have a great day


Hussein