Surah An-Najm, Ayah 62

A Warning and Exhortation, the Order to prostrate and to be humble

Allah said,

هَـذَا نَذِيرٌ

(This is a warner) in reference to Muhammad ﷺ ,

مِّنَ النُّذُرِ الاٍّوْلَى

(from the warners of old.) means, just like the warners of old, he was sent as a Messenger as they were sent as Messengers. Allah the Exalted said,

قُلْ مَا كُنتُ بِدْعاً مِّنَ الرُّسُلِ

(Say: "I am not a new thing among the Messengers.")(46:9) Allah said;

أَزِفَتِ الاٌّزِفَةُ

(The Azifah draws near.) that which is near, the Day of Resurrection, has drawn nearer,

لَيْسَ لَهَا مِن دُونِ اللَّهِ كَاشِفَةٌ

(None besides Allah can avert it.) no one besides Allah can prevent it from coming, nor does anyone know when it will come, except Him. The warner is eager to convey his knowledge of the imminence of a calamity, so that it does not befall those to whom he is a warner. As He said;

فَاسْجُدُوا لِلَّـهِ وَاعْبُدُوا۩ ﴿62﴾ (Now, fall down in prostration and worship [ Allah ]... 53:62). It means that preceding verses have a lesson for everyone who considers them seriously that he should worship Allah and bow down before him in humbleness.

It is recorded in Bukhari on the authority of Sayyidna Ibn ` Abbas ؓ that when the Holy Prophet ﷺ recited this verse he prostrated, and all those around him also prostrated along with him-Muslims, pagans, Jinns and mankind. Another report from ` Abdullah Ibn Masud ؓ ، as recorded in Bukhari and Muslim, narrates that when the Holy Prophet ﷺ finished reciting the Surah before a mixed gathering of Muslims and disbelievers, and, along with his followers, he prostrated himself on the ground, the disbelievers too prostrated, except one old Quraishi man who took a handful of soil and, having applied it on his forehead said, 'This is enough for me.' ` Abdullah Ibn Masud ؓ said that he saw this man later on killed as a disbeliever. Following the example of the Holy Prophet ﷺ ، the Muslims were expected to prostrate. As far as the idolaters are concerned, having been profoundly impressed with the solemnity of the occasion and being overawed by the august recitation of the Qur'anic words, as well as by the Divine Majesty and Glory, might also have fallen in prostration. However, since this prostration was performed in the state of disbelief, it did not carry any reward, but it did leave a deep impression on them; and as a result of this impact, they all later on embraced the Islamic faith, except one person who died in the state of kufr, because he arrogantly refrained from performing the sajdah.

Sahihain record a report from Sayyidna Zaid Ibn Thabit ؓ to the effect that he recited the entire Surah An-Najm in the presence of the Holy Prophet ﷺ ، but he [ the Holy Prophet ﷺ ] did not perform the sajdah. It does not necessarily follow from this that the sajdah is not obligatory or compulsory. It is possible that at that particular moment, he did not have his ablution or there must have been some other legitimate reason for not performing the sajdah. In such situations, it is not obligatory to perform the sajdah forthwith. It can be delayed until the reason has ceased. And Allah, the Pure and Exalted, knows best!

Surah An-Najm, through the help and grace of Allah, the Pure, the exalted, ended on Friday night 1st Rabi`-uth-Thani 1391, in one week. Allah willing, this chapter will be followed by Surah Al-Qamar. Allah grants success!

Al-hamdulillah

The Commentary on

Surah An-Najm

Ends here

The history of the prophets as related in the Quran shows that the denial of Truth and its fatal result are as close to each other as two fingers of the same hand. If a man has the ability to comprehend, as soon as he indulges in denial of the Truth and becomes arrogant, he will sense that God’s wrath is about to descend on him; he will consequently give up the way of arrogance and adopt the way of obedience. But man is so intoxicated that he is unable to see things which are right in front of him.