ARTICLE NO. 3 A

INTERCESSION ON THE DAY OF JUDGEMENT

Intercession in my view is one of the most difficult and complex subjects to deal with in view of the fact that there appears to be varying explanations, interpretations and opinions on this subject. I have therefore tried to research this subject as thoroughly as I possibly could and would like to share with you my findings in the light of the teachings of the holy Quran as have been explained by various Quranic scholars and as I understand them. Please note that I am not writing this to please or displease anybody or any section of the society but am only submitting to you, for your kind consideration and information, my analysis of the subject with the earnest hope that you will read it with an open mind without any pre-conceived ideas and favor me with your constructive comments.

To begin with let me explain “INTERCESSION” and the “DAY OF JUDGEMENT” some terms that we commonly use.

INTERCESSION: The dictionary speaks of intercession as “The act of interceding, mediation, pleading or prayer on behalf of another”. In the context of present discussion “Intercession on the Day of judgment” is interceding with God on the Day of Judgement for the forgiveness of sins (salvation) of others for whom intercession is made.

“DAY OF JUDGEMENT”: It is the Day of requital or recompense (compensation) or

reward whether of good or evil action. ين means, “ He who is the مـالك يوم الدdispenser of Justice on the Day of Requital”.

As a way of background, let me quote from the Quran what intercession meant to various people during and before the time of the Prophet s.a.w., in spite of the fact, that Allah Taala had sent numerous messengers to these people even before the arrival of the Prophet s.a.w. for guidance.

The people of Hazrat Nuh a.w.s. used to say (Sura Nuh N0. 71, Ayat No. 23):

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MEANING: And they said (to each other), Abandon not your gods: neither Wadd, nor Suwa, nor Yaguth nor Ya ooq nor Nasr.

--(wadd represented man or manly power; suwa represented woman or beauty; yaguth represented lion or bull or brute strength; yaooq represented horse or swiftness and nasr represented eagle, or vulture or falcon or sharp sight).

Hazrat Hud a.w.s. preached to his people (Sura Al-Ar’aaf No. 7, Ayat 65):

قون وإل عاد أخاهم هودا قال يا ق وم اعبدوا الله ره أفال ت ت ن إل ه غي ما لكم م

MEANING: To the ‘Aad people (We sent) Hud a.w.s., one of their own brethren. He

said: O my people worship Allah; you have no other god but Him. Will ye not fear

Allah? The people of Hud a.w.s. gave the following reply to him when he asked them not to worship any one besides Allah Taala (Sura vii Al-A’raaf, Ayah 70):

MEANING: They said, you come to us and want us to worship Allah alone, and

give up the beliefs of our fathers? Bring us that you threaten us with if you are telling the truth.

It is note-worthy that they said, “you want us to worship Allah alone”, implying

that they did believe in Allah s.w.t. as supreme, although, they did not want to

give up their other objects of worship whom they believed will intercede for them

before Allah Taala. In this regard ayah 29:61 (i.e. surah 29 ayah 61) states:

ر الشمس والقمر ماوات والرض وسخ ن خلق الس ولئن سألتهم م

فأنى يؤفكون (16:92) ليقولن للا

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MEANING: 29:61 (Y. Ali) If indeed you ask them “who has created the heavens and the

earth and subjected the sun and the moon (to His Law), they will certainly reply, Allah".

How are they then deluded away (from the truth)?

An interesting demonstration of this was provided by the son of one of the

greatest enemies of Islam, Ikrimah Ibn Abi Jahl, who along with others was leaving

Saudi Arabia in a boat because he did not want to embrace Islam. Along the way,

a typhoon hit the boat and every body started calling on Allah Taala to save them.

Nobody called on any of their so called other gods i.e. wadd, sowa etc. This

perplexed Ikrimah and made him realize that this was exactly what Mohammad

s.a.w. had been preaching. He returned and converted to Islam and became a

great soldier of Islam.

The question, however, remains: why did they attach so much importance to these other objects of worship besides Allah Taala?

Quran answers it as follows (Sura 39 Al-Zumur, Ayat 3):

MEANING: Is it not to Allah Taala that sincere (Khalis / pure) devotion is due? But those who take protectors other than Allah, they say: “We only serve them in order that they may bring us nearer to Allah. Truly God will judge between them in that wherein they differ.

In another instance, Quran says (Sura X, Yunus Ayat 18):

هم وال ينفعهم ويقولون ما ال يضر هـؤالء ويعبدون من دون للاه

ماوات وال في بما ال يعلم في الس قل أتنبئون للاه شفعاؤنا عند للاه

ا يشركون الرض سبحانه وتعالى عم

MEANING: They serve, besides Allah Taala, things that hurt them not nor profit them and they say, “These are our intercessors before Allah”. Say to them

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O’Prophet s.a.w. “Do you indeed inform Allah of something He knows not in the heavens or on earth”.

EXPLANATION: Allah Taala, the All-Knowing, All-Hearing says, “I am the Creator of the heavens and the earth and everything in it and if there was something called “intercession” in this universe then how come “I, the Creator of each and everything don’t even know about it”. Is it possible that Allah Taala would not know whether He has created something or not? All of us can answer this question easily.

These people believed that no matter what sins or evil deeds they committed, their intercessors will intercede on their behalf before Allah Taala and ensure that they are saved from hellfire. These intercessors were selected by people themselves and not chosen under any guidance from Allah Taala.

Here is how Allah Taala responds to these people to nullify their entire thinking. Following three ayahs from Sura Al-Baqarah concerning “intercession” (shaf’aat) are reproduced in the order they appear in the Sura.

Ayah 48:

واتقوا يوما ال تجزي نفس عن نفس شيئا وال يقبل منها شفاعة

وال يؤخذ منها عدل وال هم ينصرون

MEANING: 2:48 (Y. Ali) Then guard yourselves against a day when one soul shall not avail

another nor shall intercession be accepted for her, nor shall compensation be taken from

her, nor shall anyone be helped (from outside).

Ayah 123:

وال يقبل منها عدل وال واتقوا يوما ال تجزي نفس عن نفس شيئا

تنفعها شفاعة وال هم ينصرون

MEANING: 2:123 (Y. Ali) Then guard yourselves against a day when one soul shall not

avail another, nor shall compensation be accepted from her, nor shall intercession profit

her, nor shall anyone be helped (from outside).

NOTE: Please note that the difference between the above two Ayahs 48 and 123 is that the

words intercession and compensation are interchanged. Otherwise there is no difference.

AYAH 254:

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ن قبل أن يأتي يوم ال بيع يا أيها الذين ا رزقناكم م آمنوا أنفقوا مم

فيه وال خلة وال شفاعة والكافرون هم الظالمون

MEANING: (2:254). O’ ye who believe! Spend out of (the bounties) We have provided for

you, before the Day comes when no bargaining (Will avail), nor friendship nor intercession.

Those who reject Faith they are the wrong-doers.

Dr. Israr Ahmad, A highly respected Quranic Scholar, has translated this ayah a bit differently but adequately supported by Quranic references especially the meaning of:

والكافرون هم الظالمون

He translates it as: “O Ye who believe! Spend out of (the bounties) We have provided for you, before the day comes when no bargaining (will avail), nor friendship nor intercession (shaf’aat). And those who deny / reject these commandments of Allah are kafir (by definition, by not obeying Allah Taala’s commandments) and they are the ones who are zalim (mushrik)”

EXPLANATION: Who are kafir here? Kafir are those who, in this case, refuse to obey the commands of Allah given in this ayah and instead, believe that somebody’s friendship or intercession will get them salvation. Zalim in various places in the Quran has been defined as Mushrik e.g. in ayah 31:13 and ayah 6:82 which are as follows:

Ayah 31:13

رك إن الش وإذ قال لقمان البنه وهو يعظه يا بني ال تشرك بالل

32:23) لظلم عظيم

MEANING: And when Luqman said to his son and he was advising him, O’ son do not associate any partners with Allah (i.e. do not do any shirk). Indeed shirk is great Zulm.

NOTE: Please note shirk is “great zulm” here.

Ayah 6:82

الذين آمنوا ولم يلبسوا إيمانهم بظلم أولـئك لهم المن وهم

هتدون م

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MEANING: Those who believe and do not obscure (mix) their iman with zulm (wrong-doing) their’s is safety and they are rightly guided.

EXPLANATION: When Sahaba heard this ayah they were alarmed and said to the Prophet s.a.w. that how was it possible that none of us will commit any wrongs? Prophet s.a.w. clarified that here zulm means shirk.

After three categorical denials in the above ayahs 48, 123 & 254 saying “No

intercession, No intercession, no intercession”, ayah 255 of Sura Al- Baqarah (Ayah tul

kursi) is revealed in which an exception is made by Allah Taala. Relevant portion of ayah

255 is reproduced below:

ال إلـه إال هو الحي القيوم ال تأخذه سنة وال نوم له ما في للاه

ماوات وما في الرض من ذا الذي يشفع عنده إال بإذنه يعلم الس

بين أيديهم وما خلفهم ما

Addressing mankind Allah Taala says:

MEANING: 2:255 (Y. Ali). Allah, there is no god but He, The Living, the Self-subsisting,

Eternal. No slumber can seize Him nor sleep. His are all things in the heavens and on earth.

Who is there that can intercede in His presence except as He permits? He knows

what is in front of them and that which is behind them.

NOTE: For more ayahs on “except as He permits” additional references will come later

under the heading “INTERCESSI0N AS PER THE QURAN AND AS PERMITTED BY ALLAH

TAALA”.

In simple words, it says that all powers and authority in the entire universe is His.

So who gave anyone else the authority on the Day of Judgment to appoint

intercessors and who gave any intercessors the authority to intercede before

Allah Taala unless Allah Taala Himself alone authorizes somebody to pray to Him

or intercede (do shaf’aat) for somebody else. Here Allah Taala makes one

exception and that is: “yes He will permit intercession but only that person will

intercede before Him whom He will allow and nobody else”.

Here Allah Taala could allow the Prophet s.a.w., or anybody else to intercede whomever He wishes and who meets His pre-conditions (these pre-conditions will come later). The wordings of this ayah are worth repeating:

من ذا الذي يشفع عنده إال بإذنه

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MEANING: Who dares to intercede (do shafa’at) before Allah s.w.t. except whom He permits?......Allah Taala here is asking mankind a question?

The answer to the first part of the question i.e. “who dares to intercede…” in the above ayah is “No One”. There is no exception given in this ayah. The answer to the second part “except by His permission” means “To whom does He permit to intercede is entirely His authority”.

As stated above, please consider that it’s not that the Mush-re-keen-e- Mecca did not believe in Allah Taala. They did, but in addition they believed that their gods or goddesses had the power to intercede for them before Allah Taala and save them. Allah Taala’s and the Prophet’s answer to this was a categorical “No” i.e. nobody has any share in the power and authority of Allah Taala. This is Tauheed and this was the only ISSUE between the mushr-e-keen-e- Mecca and Allah Taala and the Prophet s.a.w. for which the Prophet s.a.w. and his companions had to suffer so much and sacrifice and fight for. Otherwise what was all the fuss and fighting for?

In the case of Allah Taala who is All-Knowing i.e. He has full knowledge of every action of every individual, how can any intercessor unaware of all the facts about individuals (especially the hidden facts and people’s inner intentions) can dare to intercede and inform Allah Taala that he knows of certain things about individuals that Allah Taala does not know. Is that possible? The answer is obviously “No”.

In spite of this, it is not that intercession has not been tried before Allah Taala even by some of His highly respected Prophets during their lives but their intercession was rejected. Let me illustrate this by some examples from the Holy Quran itself.

1. Please recall the case of Hazrat Nuh a.w.s. at the time of the great floods when he was in the ark and his own son was drowning before him. He interceded and prayed to God to save his son. Not only that his intercession was rejected but he was scolded for lack of knowledge about his own son. Allah Taala had to inform him that He alone had the full knowledge of his son and not Hazrat Nuh a.w.s. who then had to beg God’s forgiveness for interceding.

2. Please recall the case of Hazrat Ibrahim a.w.s. whom Allah Taala calls Khalil Ullah (a friend of Allah Taala), one of the most favored Prophets of God.

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Hazrat Ibrahim a.w.s. interceded on behalf of his own father. His intercession was also rejected.

3. Quran is witness to the fact that Prophet Mohammad s.a.w. was a very kind, sympathetic and an extremely concerned man. He had great concern for his fellow beings. As the following verses show he even prayed / interceded before Allah Taala for forgiveness of Munaf-i-keen Mecca but was rejected as demonstrated below in Sura Tauba IX, Ayat 80.

ة فلن است غفر لهم أو ال تستغفر لهم إن تستغفر لهم سبعين مر

ال يهدي القوم ورسوله وللاه لهم ذلك بأنهم كفروا بالله يغفر للاه

الفاسقين

MEANING: O’ Prophet s.a.w. whether you ask for their forgiveness or not, even if you ask seventy times for their forgiveness, God will not forgive them because they have rejected God and His Apostle and God guides not those who are perversely rebellious.

4. Furthermore, the Prophet s.a.w. had prayed (interceded) for his own uncle Abu Talib who was his great supporter, helper and guardian to simply recite kalima but his prayer was not accepted.

The above responses from Allah Taala also address the contention of those who may think that irrespective of their own actions, the Prophet s.a.w. will have the power to intercede on their behalf and get them through.

Here a well known Hadith of the Prophet s.a.w. may be quoted:

Narrated Abu Huraira: When Allah revealed the Verse: "Warn your nearest kinsmen," Allah's

Apostle got up and said, "O people of Quraish (or said similar words)! Save yourselves

(from the Hellfire) as I cannot save you from Allah's Punishment; O Bani Abd Manaf! I

cannot save you from Allah's Punishment, O Safiya, the Aunt of Allah's Apostle! I

cannot save you from Allah's Punishment; O Fatima bint Muhammad! Ask me anything

from my wealth, but I cannot save you from Allah's Punishment." (Sahih Al-Bukhari,

Volume 4, Book 51, Number 16)

SOME IMPORTANT ADDITIONAL AYAHS CONCERNING INTERCESSION

Some additional Quranic ayahs concerning Allah Taala’s ahkamat (commandments) regarding intercession are given below. I am requesting your

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special attention and consideration of these ayahs please. We should note that the Prophet s.a.w. is being cautioned here:

1. Ayah 4: 105 states:

وال إنا أنزلنا إليك الكتاب بالحق لتحكم بين الناس بما أراك للاه

5:2:4) تكن للخآئنين خصيما

MEANING:- 4:105 (Y. Ali) We have sent down to thee the Book in truth (The Quran), that

thou might judge between men, as guided by Allah. So be not (used) as an advocate by

those who betray their trust (Kha-e-Neen means dishonest, treacherous, deceitful).

Here in this world some of us do so many wrong things and then console ourselves by saying that the Prophet s.a.w. will intercede for us and save us. As may be seen from the above ayah we may in fact be falsely consoling and comforting ourselves. The above and the rest of the Quranic ayahs quoted below up to 4:115 relate to an actual case (see Explanatory Note after ayah 4:115 below) where Prophet s.a.w. was requested to intervene and give a decision between a Muslim and a Jew when the Muslim was a Kha-en (dishonest) and the Jew honest yet the Muslim and his tribesmen all wanted a decision in favor of him just because he was a Muslim even though dishonest. The Prophet s.a.w. is refrained from making such decisions and asked to make decisions in the light of the Holy Quran.

2. Ayah 4:107 states:

ال يحب من كان وال تجادل عن الذين يختانون أنفسهم إن للاه

انا أثيما خو

MEANING:-4:107 (Picktall) And plead not on behalf of (people) who deceive themselves.

Lo! Allah loveth not one who is treacherous and sinful.

3. Ayah 4:108 states:

وهو معهم إذ يبيتون يستخفون من الناس وال يستخفون من للاه

بما يعملون محيطا ما ال يرضى من القول وكان للاه

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MEANING:4:108 (Y. Ali) They may hide (Their crimes) from men (in this world), but they

cannot hide (Them) from Allah, seeing that He is in their midst when they plot by night, in

words that He cannot approve: And Allah Doth compass round all that they do.

4. Ayah 4:109 states:

عنهم هاأنتم هـؤالء جادلتم عنهم في الح نيا فمن يجادل للاه ياة الد

يوم القيامة أم من يكون عليهم وكيل

MEANING: 4:109 (Asad) O’ Prophet s.a.w. and muslims, you might well argue in their

behalf (dishonest people) in the life of this world: but who will argue in their behalf with God

on the Day of Resurrection or who will be their defender (pleader)?

It means that if based on lies and dishonesty you can get a favorable decision from the

Prophet s.a.w. because he does not have the knowledge of what you hide then be on guard

as who will get a favorable decision from Allah Taala on the day of judgment

because Allah Taala is All Knowing and He has full knowledge of everything that you hide?

Here Allah Taala is asking a question (underlined in the above para)? The answer is simple!

Allah Taala is All-Knowing and All-Hearing, therefore, nobody can get a decision from Allah

Taala based on lies and dishonesty.

5. Ayah 4:111 states:

عل يما حكيماومن يكسب إثما فإنما يكسبه على نفسه وكان للاه MEANING: And if any one earns sin, he earns it against His own soul, for Allah is full

of knowledge and wisdom.

6. Ayah 4:112 states:

ومن يكسب خطيئة أو إثما ثم يرم به بريئا فقد احتمل بهتانا

بيناوإثما م

MEANING: 4:112 (Picktall) And whoso committeth a delinquency or crime, then throweth

(the blame) thereof upon the innocent, hath burdened himself with falsehood and a flagrant

crime.

7. Ayah 4:113 states:

عليك ورحم نهم أن يضلوك ولوال فضل للاه ته لهمت طآئفة م

ونك من شيء وأنزل للاه وما يضلون إال أنفسهم وما يضر

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عليك الكتاب والحكمة وعلمك ما لم تكن تعلم وكان فضل للاه

عليك عظيما

MEANING: 4:113 (Picktall) But for the grace of Allah upon thee (O’ Muhammad), and His

mercy, a party of them had resolved to mislead thee but they will mislead only themselves

and they will hurt thee not at all. Allah revealeth unto thee the Scripture and wisdom, and

teacheth thee that which thou knewest not. The grace of Allah toward thee hath been

infinite.

8. Ayah 4:115 states:

سول من بعد ما تبين له الهدى ويتبع غير ومن يشاقق الر

له جهنم وساءت مصيراسبيل المؤمنين نوله ما تولى ونص MEANING: 4:115 (Y. Ali) If anyone contends with the Messenger even after guidance has been plainly conveyed to him, and follows a path other than that becoming to men of Faith, We shall leave him in the path he has chosen, and land him in Hell, what an evil refuge?

Explanatory Note # 140 by Maududi of above verses 4:105 to 4:115 is reproduced below. Here some very important issues concerning an event that occurred at that time when supposedly muslims tried to interfere with justice and almost made the Prophet s.a.w. give a wrong decision have been discussed. These people have been strictly warned by Allah Taala and the Prophet s.a.w. is advised to make decisions by the Book (i.e. The Quran).

‘There was in the Bani Zafar clan of the Ansar, a man known as Ta'mah or Bashir bin-Ubairiq.

He stole the armor of another Ansari and hid it in the house of a Jew. When an investigation

started into the theft, the owner of the armor placed the matter before the Holy Prophet and told

him that he suspected Ta'mah of the theft. But the accused and his relatives and many other

people of the Bani Zafar clan conspired and laid the guilt at the door of the Jew, who asserted

that he was innocent of the thing. But Ta'mah's people went on pleading his case vehemently.

They argued: "The statement of the Jew who is an enemy of the Truth and who disbelieves in

Allah and His Messenger cannot be trusted; whereas we are Muslims, and, therefore, should be

trusted." The Holy Prophet was naturally influenced by the seeming correctness of the argument

and was about to acquit Ta'mah and give a warning to the plaintiff for bringing a false charge

against a Muslim and decide the case against the Jew, when this Revelation came and disclosed

the reality of the matter.

It is true that even if the Holy Prophet s.a.w. had, as a judge, decided the case in the light of the

evidence produced before him, he would not have incurred any blame, for judges have to give

their decision according to the evidence that is presented before them and sometimes people do

succeed in getting wrong judgments in their favor by misrepresentation. But the matter had

another side: if the Holy Prophet s.a.w. had decided the case against the Jew at that time, when a

bitter conflict was raging between Islam and kufr, the enemies of Islam would have got a strong

moral weapon against him, nay, against the Islamic Community and the Islamic Mission. They

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would have carried on a bitter propaganda against Islam, saying, "There is no justice among the

Muslims; they practice prejudices and partisanship in spite of the fact that they preach against

them as has been shown by this decision against the Jew". That is why Allah directly intervened

in the case to save them from this danger.

In this passage (verses 105 - 115) on the one hand, those Muslims who tried to shield the guilty,

one of their own clan, have been strongly rebuked for their partisanship, and, on the other, the

Muslims in general have been taught that they should not allow partisanship to stand in the way

of JUSTICE. It is sheer dishonesty that one should plead the cause of one's own party man, even

though he may be in the wrong, and oppose the man of the opposite party, even though he may

be right.

Moreover, such a one might delude himself that he has got "the right" on his side by his cunning

devices, but in reality the "real right" remains the `right' in the record of Allah” (which Allah

Taala will confront him with on the day of judgment).

10. To those who call upon inhabitants of the graves or angels or spirits or Prophets or anyone else in the entire universe besides Allah Taala as intercessors or protectors, Quran responds in the following manner of a scene from the Day of Judgment (Sura Al-An’aam vi, Ayat 94):

لناكم ولقد جئتمونا فر ا خو ة وتركتم م ل مر ادى كما خلقناكم أو

وراء ظهوركم وما نرى معكم شفعاءكم الذين زعمتم أنهم

ا كنتم تزعمون فيكم شركاء لقد تقطع بينكم وضل عنكم م

MEANING: And behold! You come to us bare and alone as We created you for the first time (means as you were first created in the form of a Rooh in Aalum-e-Arwah when you had no fathers, mothers, brothers, sisters, spouses i.e. nobody but all alone); you have left behind you all (the favors) which We bestowed upon you and We see not with you your intercessors whom you thought to be partners in your affairs. Now all relations between you and your intercessors have been cut off and your fancies have left you in the lurch.

11. Sura Aa’raaf VII, ayat 53 ---another scene from the Day of Judgment when people will say:

فهل لنا من شفعاء فيشفعوا لنا أو نرد فنعمل غير الذي كنا

:7) نعملون

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MEANING: Have we no intercessors now to intercede on our behalf? Or could we be sent back (on earth) so we should behave differently from our behavior in the past.

12. In Sura Al-an’aam VI, Ayat 51, the Prophet himself is asked to warn people:

ن دونه وأنذر به الذين يخافون أن يحشروا إلى ربهم ل يس لهم م

9:42) ولي وال شفيع لعلهم يتقون

MEANING: O’ Prophet, give this warning to those in whose hearts is the fear of Allah that they will be brought (to judgement) before their Lord; where except for Him they will have no protector nor intercessor, that they may guard (against evil).

13. Sura Al-Zumur 39, Ayah 43-44 states:

Ayah 43:

شفعاء قل أولو كانوا ال يملكون شيئا أم اتخذوا من دون للا

وال يعقلون

MEANING: What? Do they take for intercessors others besides God? Say to them O’ Prophet, “Even if they (the intercessors) have no power whatsoever and no intelligence”. Ayah 44:

ماوات والرض ثم إليه فاعة جميعا له ملك الس الش قل لل

ترجعون MEANING: Say O’ Prophet: To God belongs exclusively (the right to grant intercession). To Him belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth. In the end, it is to Him that you shall be brought back.

14. Ayat 52 Surah 18 states:

ائي الذين زعمتم فدعوهم فلم يستجيبوا لهم ويوم يقول نادوا شرك

وبقا وجعلنا بينهم م

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MEANING: (Asad) Hence, [bear in mind] the Day on which He will say, "Call [now] unto those

beings whom you imagined to have a share in My divinity!"-- whereupon they will invoke

them, but those [beings] will not respond to them: for We shall have placed between them

an unbridgeable gulf.

END OF ARTICLE NO. 3A

CONTINUED TO ARTICLE NO. 3B