Translation
God had helped you in many battles and conflicts. But during the battle of Hunain, while you were overconfident with greater numbers, it afforded you nothing and the land with all its vastness felt constrained to you and you turned back in retreat. It is God who eased your anxiety, send calm to the Prophet and the faithful around him, descended hosts (spiritual forces—angels) that you could not see and finally routed the people who deny the graces of God, an outcome that is inevitable for such deniers. God will continue to turn His mercy to whom He wills since God is Forgiving, Merciful! 426
O People of Faith, those who are polytheists are declared unseemly to be able to approach the sanctity of the Sacred Mosque [Kabah] after this year. If you feel that your source of income will decline, then know that God will enrich you out of His grace, if He wills. God is Aware and He is Wise! 427
You should continue to struggle against those who do not believe in God and the Last Day, who practices things that God and His Messenger had guided against, and who do not follow the True Faith, though they have been gifted the books of guidance before—until they agree to pay Jizyah (a tax for protection) willingly and once they are humbled (by your struggle and quest for justice). 428
Interpretation
426 This verse is in contrast to the affair during the battle of Badr, where the Prophet and his followers were fewer in numbers and faced an army three times their size. They did not lose heart then, and God aided them with rain, tranquility, and hosts who could not be seen and made them feel secure by showing the adversary as smaller in number in their vision than they actually were. Here the situation is somewhat reversed where, after the conquest of Makkah, the Prophet and his followers now numbered roughly the same as the adversaries from the area of Taif, whose inhabitants and their allies wanted to reverse the conquest of Makkah by the Muslims. There was general exuberance among the Muslims, especially those who were new Muslims, that the tide of war had forever turned in their favor because of their numerical parity with those who still disbelieved in the Prophet and God’s message. The advance army composed of new Muslims from Makkah faced stiff opposition from the enemy and had to retreat and get confined in a narrow valley near Taif until the prophet rallied his followers and led the assault himself. Throughout the Qur’an there is a constant reminder that success belongs to those who are not only faithful but also adhere to the principles of truth and justice with humility and patience, and not succumb to pride, revenge, or evil for material gains at the expense of spiritual growth.
427 The notion of physical and spiritual cleanliness is central to Islamic worship and spirituality such as being able to offer prayers (salah) only with ablution (wudu—physical purity) and in a state of mind that is sound and communicative with God and the human spirit. This verse is declared to be definitive in terms of restricting access to Kabah for those who lack faith in God and practice polytheism (Mushrikun). Some Muslims consider this to include anyone who is not a Muslim and applies such restrictions to any and all Mosques. This is an extreme and minority view. Religious pluralism, especially with respect to Jews and Christian in particular and people who believe in God in general, is an accepted norm in Islam and in the context of our world today, it is an accepted custom to allow others to visit Mosques as well as for Muslims to visit other places of worship and to show deference to all place of worship where God’s name is taken. Perhaps it is also time to rethink whether the restriction to visit Kabah be lifted for other people of faith, especially for Jews and Christian who ascribe to Abraham’s monotheism in theory, if not in practice at times, as long as they are mindful of the rituals of Umrah and sanctity of the place.
428 The notion of a tax to be levied against people of other faith has ceased to exist as a practical matter after the Ottoman Empire and the emergence of democratic forms of governance in which all citizens, irrespective of religious affiliation, participate. Its levy at the onset was to reduce aggression and to serve as a reminder that treaties for peaceful coexistence, if not accepted as a normal course of a civil society (nonexistent at the time), have a price attached to them and are required to pay for the burden of defense against outsiders and law enforcement by the governing body or entity. This was not meant in any way to constrain the living and liberty of people paying such taxes, as was amply demonstrated by the Prophet and early Muslim leaders (notably the four Khalifahs), even though it was abused at times by few Muslim rulers who were unjust to their own people, let alone the people of other faith.
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REFLECTION
The uncompromising posture with respect to lack of faith and those who practice idolatry, polytheism, and other forms of superstitious rituals is a reflection of the strict monotheism that is the underlying principle of Islamic belief and Islam’s commitment to truth and justice in our lives and in our societies. Islam also calls for special relationships among Jews, Christians, and Muslims given the common foundation of Abrahamic faith in monotheism and the unified guidance for human freedom, seeking truth and establishing justice in society that drove Moses, Jesus, and Mohammad and their followers even to this day, despite occasional and perhaps persistent failures—something we all as people of faith need to reflect upon and realign our priorities.
ACTION
The Qur’an repeats itself on many occasions on this notion of personal responsibility and accountability, to exert ourselves against all forms of aggression and human injustice, and to restore human freedom and dignity as our proof to God that we are worthy of His creation and our special relationship with God and His creations.
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Key Arabic Term
123. zunudh (9:26; hosts, forces or spirits invisible to humans)
124. najas (9:28; unclean)
125. jizyah (9:29; debt, indemnity)