Overview  (Verses 155 -158)

Diverging Views of Life and Death

As for those of you who turned away on the day when the two hosts met in battle, Satan caused them to slip only in consequence of something that they themselves had done. But now God has pardoned them. Indeed, God is Much forgiving, Forbearing. Believers, be not like those who disbelieve and say of their brethren, when they travel on earth or go forth to war, “Had they stayed with us they would not have died, nor would they have been killed, “so that God places a source of despair in their hearts. It is God alone Who grants life and causes death. God sees all that you do. If you should be slain or die in God’s cause, surely forgiveness by God and His grace are better than all the riches they amass. If you should die or be slain, it is to God that you shall be gathered. (Verses 155-158)

God was certainly aware of what was in the hearts of those who turned away in defeat during the Battle of Uĥud. They weakened in consequence of a sin they had committed. This caused them to be shaken. Satan was able to manoeuvre them into making such a slip: “As for those of you who turned away on the day when the two hosts met  in  battle,  Satan  caused  them  to  slip  only  in  consequence  of  something  that  they themselves had done.” (Verse 155) This may be a reference to the archers who could not resist the temptation of the loot being left behind by the retreating unbelievers. They also entertained the thought that God’s Messenger might not give them a share of the spoils of war. That was the sin they committed, in consequence of which Satan made them slip. This verse, however, describes man after having committed a sin: his confidence  weakens  and  his  tie  with  God  loosens.  He  loses  balance  and  allows himself to fall prey to all sorts of negative thoughts. Thus, Satan whispers in his ear and leads him from one error to another, after he himself has left his safe refuge of content and reassured faith.

Earlier, the sūrah mentioned the case of those believers who fought with prophets in earlier times. The first thing they did before fighting was to pray for forgiveness of their sins, because that prayer brings them back to God and strengthens their ties with Him, removing any doubts and barring the way to Satan’s influence over them. Satan always finds his way through man’s moving away from God’s care and protection.

God tells them that He bestows His grace on them and pardons them and does not allow Satan to take them far away. He reminds them of His attributes and that He is much forgiving, forbearing. He does not excommunicate sinners, nor does He visit them with swift punishment if He knows that deep at heart they look up to Him and want to maintain their bonds with Him.

The sūrah follows this with a statement of God’s determination of life and death. It exposes the false concepts of the unbelievers and warns them against entertaining the same thoughts. It then speaks of values which encourage the believers to be ready and willing to make any sacrifices required of them.

The fact that these verses are included at this point in the sūrah’s account of the events  of  the  battle,  makes  it  clear  that  the  hypocrites  who  withdrew  from  the Muslim army before the battle and the idolaters living in Madinah who continued to maintain ties and relations with the Muslims were the ones who expressed sorrow at the loss of Muslim martyrs at Uĥud. Furthermore, they tried to make use of their deaths,  in  order  to  whip  up  feelings  of  despair  among  their  families  and  to exaggerate the sense of loss which they maintained was the direct result of their going forth to fight. There is no doubt that speaking in these terms when the sense of loss among the Muslims was still acute was bound to increase confusion among the Muslims. Hence, the Qur’ān dispels all confusion and provides the right criteria and the correct concepts and values.

The unbelievers said of those who were killed in the Battle of Uĥud: “Had they stayed with us they would not have died, nor would they have been killed.” (Verse 156) Their statement, however, shows the great gulf between the concepts of those who have faith and those deprived of it and the laws governing human life, whether pleasant or unpleasant. A believer is aware of these laws and God’s will, and he accepts it with reassurance because he knows that he will only get what God has determined for him, and that what happens to him was bound to happen and what he may have missed, he could never have achieved anyway. Therefore, he neither panics in a calamity, nor is he overwhelmed with joy when good fortunes smiles on him. He does not regret not having done so and so in order to avoid something or to ensure another. Any alternatives should be considered before taking action. Once action is taken, after full consideration, and according to one’s best knowledge and within the framework of what God sanctions, the believer accepts any results with satisfaction and  reassurance.  In  other  words, whatever  happens  must  take  place according to God’s will. There was no way it could have been avoided, although it was he himself who provided its causes. There is a perfect equilibrium between action and acceptance of the results, between positiveness and reliance on God. A person who does not have this type of straightforward faith in God will always remain worried and hesitant, and will always say: “If only ...”, “Had it not been for...”, “I wish that ...” and “How sorrowful it is that...”

As God cultivates the Muslim community and points to the lessons they must learn from the Battle of Uĥud and what the Muslims suffered in it, He warns the believers against doing the same thing as the unbelievers. Their sorrow borders on despair every time a relative of theirs dies at work away from home or fighting for God’s cause: “Believers, be not like those who disbelieve and say of their brethren, when they travel on earth or go forth to war, ‘Had they stayed with us, they would not have died, nor would they have been killed.” They say this because they have a false concept of what takes place in the universe and of the power behind it. They only see superficial circumstances and reasons because they have removed themselves from God.

“So that God places a source of despair in their hearts.” They see their brethren travelling abroad in order to earn their living and they die, and they see them going forth to war and they are killed. They feel that in both cases, it was their setting out that had brought about their death or caused them to be killed. They experience a profound sense of sorrow that they did not prevent them from setting forth. They did not appreciate the real reason, namely, that the life span of those who die was over, their deathbeds beckoned them, and that everyone dies by God’s will. Had they realised this, they would not have felt such immense sorrow. They would have accepted what God has determined. “It is God alone Who grants life and causes death.” He grants life and takes it back at the time He has appointed, whether people are at their homes, with their families, or working to earn their living, or fighting for their faith. He rewards people according to what He knows of them: “God sees all that you do.”

Death, whether natural or in battle, does not represent the end. Life on earth is not the best thing God bestows on people. There are other values and nobler considerations: “If you should be slain or die in God’s cause surely forgiveness by God and His grace are better than all the riches they amass. If you shall die or be slain, it is to God that you shall be gathered.” (Verse 157)

Viewed in this light, natural death or being killed fighting for God’s cause, is better than life and superior to all the riches, position and authority people work for. It is superior because it ensures God’s forgiveness and grace, and it is to attain these two objectives that God directs the believers. They are not supposed to work for personal glory or for material values. They are to seek what God has in store for them and to work to ensure that God bestows His grace on them.

They will all be gathered to God, whether they die in their beds at home or fending for themselves away from it, or fighting on the battlefield. That is the destiny of all people. Their death comes at the appointed time and they are gathered to God on  the  Day  of  Resurrection.  They  either  receive  God’s  grace  or  suffer  His punishment. The most stupid of all is the one who deliberately chooses a miserable destiny when he knows that he will inevitably die at the appointed time.

Thus, the true concept of life and death and God’s predestination becomes clear. People are reassured whatever may happen.