INTRODUCTION TO SURAH AL-KAWTHAR
Surah al-Kawthar was revealed in Mecca and is the 15th surah in the chronological order of revelation. Despite being the shortest surah in the Qur’an, consisting of only three verses, it is rich in meaning. To fully understand Surah al-Kawthar, it’s essential to also comprehend Surahs Ad-Duha and Inshirah. Together, these surahs were revealed to comfort and support our Prophet, especially during times when he faced severe hostility from the polytheists. Surah al-Kawthar, in particular, carries a “personal” message of encouragement, reassuring the Prophet that those who carry out the mission of prophethood will be blessed, that the opposition of enemies will ultimately be ineffective, and that the Prophet should continue his mission with strength, disregarding negativity.
Reason for its descent
The primary purpose of Surah al-Kawthar’s revelation was to support and encourage our Prophet, instilling resilience and preparing him for the challenges of his mission.
As indicated in religious and historical sources, our Prophet began his mission with the revelation of the seven verses of Surah Al-Fatiha and soon faced the mockery, ridicule, and conspiracies of the polytheists. One painful form of hostility he faced was the cruel claim that his lineage would not continue, a taunt meant to undermine his cause. In the Arab culture of that time, as is still practiced by some, lineage was traditionally considered to pass through male offspring, and those without sons were looked down upon. When the Prophet’s sons, Qasim and Abdullah, born to his wife Khadija, passed away, prominent polytheists like As b. Wa’il al-Sahmi, Abu Jahl, Abu Lahab, and Uqba b. Abi Mu’ayt saw an opportunity to demean him further. They assumed that, without sons, the Prophet’s mission would end with his death, and they derisively commented, “Leave him; his lineage is cut off. He has no progeny. Once he dies, his name will be forgotten, and we’ll be rid of him.” This deeply saddened our Prophet.
Through Surah al-Kawthar, Allah both consoled the Prophet by promising him “Kawthar” and condemned those who were trying to humiliate him with accusations of being “cut off” or lacking descendants.
Certain fabricated accounts suggest that Allah sent Gabriel to console the Prophet following the deaths of his sons and that there were specific “wisdoms” behind these deaths. In addition to the questionable hadith known as the “Qudsi Hadith” which claims, “If it were not for you… If it were not for you…” regarding the Prophet’s significance, other explanations regarding the early deaths of his sons include:
“If the sons of such an illustrious prophet had lived, they would not have been entrusted with prophethood because their father was the last prophet, and there would have been a deficiency in their glory.”
“Had our Prophet’s sons lived, they too would have been made prophets and Muhammad would not have become the ‘seal/last of the Prophets’.”
“Had our Prophet’s sons lived, they would have been made ‘Imams’, at least by the companions, and thus ‘Imamate’ and ‘sainthood’ would have become an office of succession.”
In these interpretations, the presumed complications that would have arisen if the Prophet’s sons had survived are highlighted as reasons behind the divine “wisdom” in their early deaths. However, both the fabricators who claim that Gabriel consoled the Prophet and the commentators who believe in these “wisdoms” overlook a simple fact: if it were Allah’s intent to avoid these issues, He could have refrained from granting the Prophet any sons at all, eliminating the need for such explanations.
15 / SURAH AL-KAWTHAR
Meaning of verses
1Surely We have given you abundant blessing. 2Therefore, fulfill Salah [support financially and spiritually; strive to enlighten the community] for your Rabb and endure the difficulties you will encounter! 3Indeed, the one who scorns you is the one who is in vain; whose deeds go for nothing!
Analysis of Verses
Verse 1:
1 Surely We have given you abundant blessing.
Based on the phrase “إنّا, نحن We” in the Qur’an, some people of perverted mentality have argued that Allah does what He says He does by using this phrase together with His guardians, His friends, and thus they have endeavored to attribute the attributes and dispositions that belong only to Allah to the “awliya” of their own invention.
However, the word “إنّا ,نحن We” in the Qur’an means greatness/highness. This form of expression is practiced in many languages. Kings and powerful rulers also refer to themselves as “we” in their historical edicts. A modern form of expression is to refer to the other person as “you”.
Kawthar
The word “كوثر Kawthar” is an Arabic word in the form “فوعل faw’al” and derives from the root “كثرة kesret [multiplicity]”. It means “as much as possible, excessively much”. According to the Arabs, anything of great number, value and importance is “Kawthar”. For example, when a person returns from a trip with gifts for his relatives, the expression “he brought kawthar” is used to indicate the abundance of the gifts he brought. The word “kawthar” is used in Arabic for the abundance of concrete things as well as for the abundance of abstract concepts. An example of this can be seen in a poem by the great poet al-Qumayt:
“وانت كثير يا ابن مروان طيّب Wa ente kesirun ya ibne Marwanane tayyibu! [O son of Marwan, how much and pleasant you are!]
“وكان ابوك ابن فضائل كوثرا Wa kana ebûke ibnu Fedail kawthara [Your father Ibn Fedail was more numerous].[1]
Since it was Allah who gave our Prophet “kawthar”, it can be said that the word “kawthar” in the verse refers to “many, many good and beautiful things” in this world and the Afterlife. However, as to what are the “many, many good and beautiful things” mentioned in the Surah, there are many different opinions on this matter. Some of these opinions in the traditional commentaries are as follows:
“Kawthar”
– is religion of Islam.
– It is knowledge.
– It is good morals.
– The miraculous feature in this surah.
– It is the office of intercession.
– It is the name of a river in Paradise.
– It is a pool in Paradise.
– Prophethood
– The honor of prophethood.
– All the blessings given to our Prophet.
– The virtues of our Prophet.
– The fame of our Prophet.
– The multiplicity of our Prophet’s children.
– The multitude of our Prophet’s ummah.
– The scholars of our Prophet’s ummah.
The opinions on what “kawthar” is are too numerous to be limited to these. The infidelity is not in the multiplicity of these views, but in the content of the hundreds of explanations that have been given for each view. These explanations make our Prophet into a deity who has the characteristics of all the other prophets and who alone can perform the miracles that they all performed.
In our opinion, the “Kawthar” given to our prophet is the blessing mentioned in Surahs Ad-Duha and Inshirah and verse 87 of Surah Hijr:
6-8Did He not find you an orphan and make you have refuge? Did He not find you as a person who was astray from the straight path and guide you to the straight path? Did He not find you in difficulty in supporting family and make you wealthy?
(Ad-Duha/6 – 8)
1-4Did We not open your chest for you? Did We not remove your heavy burden from you? – that your burden broke your back – Did We not raise your reputation high for you?
(Inshirah/1 – 4)
87Surely, We have given you many blessings in abundance and the great Qur’an.
(Hijr/ 87)
Many views have been put forward for the expression “سبعا من المثانى seven of the duplex” in verse 87 of Surah Hijr. This phrase reminds us of seven fundamental changes in our Prophet’s life. These changes were made by Allah for no apparent reason other than our Prophet’s will and effort. What the expression “duplex” makes us think of is the combination of the positive and negative states of the subjects in which these changes occur, that is, the duplex formed by the opposites in the field of existence. If we name and list the changes consisting of these duplexes as “Cons” and “pros” in the life of our Prophet, we see the following table, which sheds light on the expression “seven of the duplexes”:
Cons Pros:
He was an ordinary person He was chosen and made a prophet
He was orphan He was given shelter
He fell in stray He was conveyed to the truth
He was poor He was enriched
He was troubled His chest was opened, he was relieved
His burden was heavy His burden was lightened
His name would be forgotten His name, fame and glory were glorified
I’tâ [To give]
In Arabic, the word “give” is expressed by the words “اعطاء i’tâ” or “ايتاء îtâ”. The word “i’tâ” means to give something permanently, not on trust or temporarily, but by assignment or transfer. This meaning also includes giving as a favor. “ita”, on the other hand, is used in a broader sense (giving by making way, overcoming obstacles, bringing or taking away), which includes “i’ta”. In other words, “itâ” refers both to giving as a gift and favor, and to entrustment and entrustment as a duty. Since the word “i’tâ” is used in Surah al-Kawthar, it is understood that what was given to our Prophet was a divine favor, not given in return for anything, and not entrusted. Likewise, in verse 39 of Surah al-Sad, what was given to Prophet Solomon was of the same nature, as it is expressed by another use of this word, “عطاء Atâ”. In verse 87 of Surah al-Hijr, what is said to have been given to our Prophet is expressed by the word “ita” as it is connected with both grace and prophetic duty.
Verse 2:
2Therefore, fulfill Salah [support financially and spiritually; strive to enlighten the community] for your Rabb and endure the difficulties you will encounter!
“Compliment”, one of the most important arts of Arabic literature, which we have already seen in Surah Al-Fatiha, is immediately noticeable in this verse. In the first verse, the pronoun “إنّا We” is used, and in the second verse, in accordance with this flow, it should be said “لنّا For us”, but it is said “لربّك For your Lord” by returning to the third person singular.
This “compliment” by turning from the pronoun “we” to the noun “Lord” not only increases the effectiveness of the second verse, but also brings to the forefront Allah’s characteristic of being “Lord”, which has always been kept in the foreground since Surah Al-Alaq. This is because every moment of our lives in this world and in the Afterlife is being realized according to Allah’s design as “Lord” and programmer, and people should never forget this.
Detailed information about Salat, the root of the word “صلّ salli” and its derivatives, is given in Surah Al-Alaq.
nahr
Since the word “نحر Nahr” cannot be translated into Turkish with a few words, it has been left as it is and its explanation is given here.
It should be noted that the word “nahr” has been translated as “to sacrifice”, which is its most distant meaning, in classical works without being thoroughly analyzed. This is exactly in line with the rule of “Galat-ı meşhur is preferable to the correct language” (Galat-ı meşhur, famously incorrect word is preferable to the original). However, while the perpetuation of the error may not be a major drawback in the field of literature, the corruption of the basic principles of the religion with a false meaning is too great a drawback to be tolerated.
When used as a noun, the word “nahr” means “chest, neck”, and when used as an infinitive, it means “to touch the hand to the chest, to breast, to stab a camel in the chest with a knife and cut it”.[2] This is the origin of the Turkish word “intihar” (suicide). Since the word appears in the verse with the imperative “وانحر wa-nhar”, it is necessary to examine the three different meanings of the infinitive form of the word.
The first meaning of the word in its infinitive form is the command “touch your hand to your chest”. Imam Shafi’i understood the command “wa-nhar” not as “sacrifice” or “slaughter a camel”, but as “touch your hands to your chest”, and he jurispruded that the hands should touch the chest in the intermediate takbirs during the prayer. Therefore, the Shafi’i follow this jurisprudence when praying.
Shi’ite commentators and jurists, taking into account the relations from Ali and the Ahl al-Bayt, have also understood this command to mean raising the hands to the chest while standing in prayer and raising the hands to the level of the hollow of the throat during the takbir in prayer and have applied it accordingly.
Others have understood the same commandment to mean that the chest should be turned towards the Qiblah in prayer, and that one should never move in any other direction.
As for Abu Hanifa’s understanding of this verse, his works were destroyed by the rulers of the time because they contradicted the discourse of the political power of the time, and therefore his interpretation of the subject has not survived to us.
However, it should not be overlooked that all these claims were put forward in relation to bodily movements during prayer. However, there is no sign, indication, or presumption in the verse that this movement takes place during prayer.
In our view, raising our hands to our chests at the beginning of the takbir in the prayer of supplication or every time we say “Allahu Akbar [Allah is greater than everything]” means that we are simultaneously reinforcing this belief and understanding with our body language. It is a symbolic gesture that means we are throwing everything else behind us except Allah. Since the Surah is addressed to our Prophet, what Allah Almighty wants from our Prophet with this command is that he should “throw behind him, ignore, disregard, put behind him, to let go of the spiteful rumors against him, the ill-treatment, the enmity, the tricks and traps,”
The second meaning of the word when used as an infinitive is “to confront, to come to blows”. This meaning, which is one of the most widely used meanings of the word, was used by Arab poets to express coming to the throat and fighting chest to chest. It is also used in this sense in the idiom “their houses are chest to chest [face to face]”.[3]
The third meaning of the word as an infinitive is “to cut a camel in the chest with a dagger”. Note that this meaning does not include the word “sacrifice”. Based on this meaning, the verse does not mean “sacrifice” or “sacrifice the camel”, but only “slaughter the camel”. In this case, the meaning of the verse would be “They are upsetting you, they are hostile to you, so move your thighs, stand up, walk, strive, oppose shirk and taghut, work hard, strive hard, support, socialize, and slaughter a camel!”. Under the circumstances of that day, it is meaningless that our Prophet was commanded to be a butcher. Because when this Surah was revealed, our Prophet was still struggling to reach out to people, he had not gained enough followers. Things were still at the level of theory/faith. There is no action outside of preaching.
There are 26 accounts about sacrifice in the Qutub al-Sitta [Six Major Hadith Books]. However, most of them are variations of the same account, narrated by different people. In all of these stories, the sacrifice and the information about sacrifice are related to the هدى Hedy sacrifice [the sacrifice that pilgrims slaughter as a gift] that pilgrims are obliged to perform during Hajj, and not to the slaughtering of animals on Eid days. There is no mention in any of the stories or historical documents of any sacrifice in Mecca at the time this Surah was revealed, nor in Medina until Hajj became obligatory. To summarize, neither our Prophet nor the Muslims of that day practiced sacrifice in Mecca when these verses were revealed.
Ragib al-Isfahanī also explains “nahr” as the gift that must be slaughtered in Mina during Hajj in his book Mufredat. However, verse 196 of Surah al-Baqara, verses 2, 95 and 97 of Surah al-Ma’idahh, and verse 25 of Surah al-Fatah, which mention Hedy, had not yet been revealed, because these verses are in the Madinan form. Therefore, at the time of the revelation of Surah al-Kawthar, there was no ruling on Hajj. In spite of this, according to Ragib, “nahr” is nothing other than the gift that is slaughtered during Hajj, and has nothing to do with the slaughter that is practiced today under the name of sacrifice.
Some people link the issue of sacrifice to Prophet Abraham and go into detail about his sacrifice of his son, citing many non-Qur’anic cultures as their sources. However, when we look at verses 83-113 of Surah As-Saffat, we see that these events have nothing to do with sacrifice. Some have also tried to find a source for sacrifice based on the parable of the “two sons of Adam” in verses 27-31 of Surah al-Ma’idah. However, this passage also has nothing to do with animal sacrifice.
In the light of the above explanations, verse 2 of Surah al-Kawthar means: “Since your Lord has given you the kawthar [such an abundant blessing], then work hard for your Lord, strive hard, move your thighs, stand up, walk, strive, oppose shirk and taghut, support, do social welfare, do not think about the rest, do not think about the rest, endure every difficulty that comes your way, be patient!”
Verse 3:
3Indeed, the one who scorns you is the one who is in vain; whose deeds go for nothing!
The word “ابتر Ebter” is derived from the word “بتر beter”. Its first meaning is “to cut off the tail to the root”.[4] A donkey without a tail was called “حمار ابتر hımarun ebteru”. Later on, it came to mean those who did not do good deeds, those who had no offspring, especially those who had no male children. As it is known, a girl child was not considered a son in Eastern culture.
This word has also entered Turkish. When you curse someone, you say “beter ol!”. This means “May it not be your end, may you be miserable!”
From the very beginning, all disbelievers have tried to malign our Prophet with various adjectives and epithets. When we take unbelief as a quality, it is clear that as long as there are infidels in the world, they will continue to malign and discredit our Prophet. However, just as those who attacked our Prophet and thus Islam in those days came up empty-handed, so too will they come up empty-handed in the future. The efforts of those of those days were in vain; their schemes and beliefs were destroyed, and their lineage and descent were wiped off the world stage. We understand from these verses that it will be the same today and tomorrow.
Allah is the one who knows best.
[1] (Lisan al Arab, article “ksr” )
[2] (Lisan al Arab, article “nhr” )
[3] (Lisan al Arab, article “nhr” )
[4] (Lisan al Arab, article “btr” )