Commentary

Salah is the best defense against enemy hostility

Previous verses have mentioned the hostility of the enemies of Islam, the plans they made to hurt and harass the Holy Prophet ﷺ and what was to be done in response. By giving the Holy Prophet ﷺ the command to establish Salah in the verses cited above, it is being suggested that it is the best remedy against the mischief made and pain caused by enemies. This is similar to what has been said more clearly in a verse of Surah al-Hijr: وَلَقَدْ نَعْلَمُ أَنَّكَ يَضِيقُ صَدْرُ‌كَ بِمَا يَقُولُونَ فَسَبِّحْ بِحَمْدِ رَ‌بِّكَ وَكُن مِّنَ السَّاجِدِينَ. It means: "And indeed We know that your heart feels distressed for what they say. So, proclaim the purity and glory of your Lord, and be among those who prostrate." (Qurtubi)

This verse declares devotion to the remembrance of Allah (dhikr) through His praises (hamd) and His glorification (tasbih) and Salah (prayer) as the panacea of pains inflicted by enemies. Dhikr and Salah are special safety shields against their aggressive designs. Then, it is also not far out to believe that staying safe against the pain inflicted by enemies depends on the help and support of Allah Ta` ala. So, the best medium of acquiring this help is Salah as stated in the Holy Qur'an: اسْتَعِينُوا بِالصَّبْرِ‌ وَالصَّلَاةِ (Seek help through patience and prayer - 2:153).

The injunction of five prayers

The majority of leading Tafsir authorities has declared this verse to be a comprehensive injunction for all five daily prayers. The reason is that the word: دُلُوک (duluk) is essentially used in the sense of 'decline' and the decline of the Sun begins at the time of meridian - though, it could also be applied to the sunset. But, at this place, the majority of Sahabah and Tabi'in have taken the word: دُلُوک (duluk) to mean the post-meridian decline of the Sun. (as explained in details by al-Qurtubi, al-Mazhari and Ibn Kathir).

The word: غَسَقِ (ghasaq) in the next phrase: إِلَىٰ غَسَقِ اللَّيْلِ means the darkness of the night when it is complete. Imam Malik has reported this very Tafsir of 'ghasaq' from Sayyidna Ibn ` Abbas ؓ .

Thus, within the statement: لِدُلُوكِ الشَّمْسِ إِلَىٰ غَسَقِ اللَّيْلِ (between the decline of the Sun and the darkness of the night), four prayers stand covered. These are Zuhr, ` Asr, Maghrib and ` Isha'. And also identified there is the time when two of these prayers begin, that is, the time of Zuhr begins from the decline (zawal) of the Sun and the time of ` Isha' from: غَسَقِ اللَّيْلِ (ghasaq al-layl) that is, at the time when the darkness of night is complete. Therefore, the great Imam, Abu Hanifah (رح) has ruled that the time of ` Isha' begins from the time when, after the red glow, the white glow of the evening also disappears. Everyone knows that, close to the sunset, a red glow appears on the western horizon and, soon after this redness, there spreads a sort of whiteness on it. Then, this whiteness too disappears. It is obvious that the darkness of the night will be complete only when the whiteness of the horizon also goes away. Therefore, these words support the view of Imam Abu Hanifah (رح) . Other Imams have ruled that the time of ` Isha' begins after the disappearance of the red glow on the evening horizon and that this is the Tafsir of 'ghasaq al-layl' (the darkness of night).

In the next phrase: وَقُرْ‌آنَ الْفَجْرِ‌ (wa Qur’ an al-fajr: translated as 'and the recital at dawn' ), the word: 'Qur’ an' denotes Salah at this place be-cause the Qur'an is an integral part of Salah. Most Tafsir authorities - Ibn Kathir, al-Qurtubi, Mazhari and others - have adopted this very meaning. Therefore, the sense of the verse is that the words: لِدُلُوكِ الشَّمْسِ إِلَىٰ غَسَقِ اللَّيْلِ (between the decline of the Sun and the darkness of the night) carried a description of four prayers. Identified now is the fifth prayer, that of Fajr. It has been described separately which is an indicator of the particular importance and merit of this Salah.

The word 'mashhud' in the expression: كَانَ مَشْهُودًا (kana mashhuda) has been derived from shahadah that means to be present.' This is a time when, according to clear statements in authentic Ahadith, both groups of angels, those of the night and those of the day, present themselves for Salah. Therefore, it has been called 'mashhud' (hence, translated as 'well-attended' ). The injunction of five prayers has appeared in this verse briefly. It has been explained fully by the Holy Prophet ﷺ through his word and deed - and unless one acts in accordance with this explanation, no one can perform Salah. I just do not know how those who claim to understand the Qur'an without Hadith and the statements of the Rasul of Allah go about making their Salah? Similarly, in this verse, the recital of the Qur’ an within the Salah has also been mentioned briefly. As for its details, it stands proved from the word and deed of the Holy Prophet ﷺ that the recitation in the Fajr prayer should be long - to the measure of strength and ability, less than that in Zuhr and Jumu'ah, average in ` Asr and ` Isha' and very brief in Maghrib. As for the mention of a long recitation in Maghrib and very brief in Fajr in some reports, it stands practically abandoned. Imam al-Qurtubi carries the riwayah of Sahih Muslim in which the recitation of long Surahs like Surah al-A` raf and Mursalat in the Salah of Maghrib, or the recitation of only the Mu'awwadhatain (the last two Surahs) as sufficient in the Salah of Fajr have been reported. He, then, comments: فمتروک بالعمل ولانکارہ علی معاذ التطویل و بامرہ الایٔمۃ بالتخفیف . It means that these incidentals of long recitation in Maghrib and brief in Fajr stand abandoned in the light of the constant practice of the Holy Prophet ﷺ as well as his verbal sayings. (Qurtubi)