Commentary
Linkage between Sections [ 1] and [ 2]
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا لَا تُلْهِكُمْ أَمْوَالُكُمْ وَلَا أَوْلَادُكُمْ عَن ذِكْرِ اللَّـهِ
O those who believe, your riches and your children must not divert you from the remembrance of Allah. (63:9)
The preceding section dealt with the hypocrites, their false oaths and their conspiracies. In sum, their nefarious activities were based on their excessive love for the worldly gains. They outwardly claimed to be Muslims, and might share the spoils of war with them. One of the consequences of this mentality was their design to stop spending on the Emigrant Companions. Now, this second section addresses the sincere and faithful believers, and warns them against being intoxicated with the love of this world, as the hypocrites foolishly did. There are two major objects in this world that divert a person from the remembrance of Allah: [ 1] wealth; [ 2] children. Therefore, these two things have been named in particular. Otherwise, it refers to all the means of enjoyments in the world. The import of the verse is that love of wealth and children to some extend is not bad. Being engaged with them to a certain degree is not only permissible but also obligatory. But there is a dividing line between permissible and impermissible love that must always be borne in mind. This criterion is that this love must not deviate one from Allah’ s remembrance. The word dhikr (remembrance) in this context has been variously interpreted by different commentators. Some say it refers to the five daily prayers, while others say it refers to Zakah or Hajj. Some refer it to the Qur’ an. Hasan Basri (رح) expresses the view that the word dhikr here refers to all forms of obedience and worship. This is the most comprehensive interpretation. [ Qurtubi ]
In short, we are permitted to be involved in the material wealth up to the degree that it does not divert us from Allah’ s obedience. If one becomes engrossed in the material wealth or become absorbed in the forbidden or abominable things, which divert him from our duties and obligations towards Allah, the sentence أُولَـٰئِكَ هُمُ الْخَاسِرُونَ “…they are the losers” will apply, because he has sold the great and eternal reward of the Hereafter for the petty and perishable enjoyment of this world. What loss could be greater than this!