I intend to being below some intricate detail found within this ayah to bring about certain benefits, the main ones being;
- Firstly the importance of the Arabic language, as without it one truly cannot appreciate the vastness of the Allah’s speech
- In an age where religiosity is generally lost, we are reminded to first and foremost seek solutions within the Quran and the Sunnah to any affair in our life
وَمِنْ آيَاتِهِ أَنْ خَلَقَ لَكُمْ مِنْ أَنْفُسِكُمْ أَزْوَاجًا لِتَسْكُنُوا إِلَيْهَا وَجَعَلَ بَيْنَكُمْ مَوَدَّةً وَرَحْمَةً ۚ إِنَّ فِي ذَٰلِكَ لَآيَاتٍ لِقَوْمٍ يَتَفَكَّرُونَ
And among His Signs is this, that He created for you wives from among yourselves, that you may find repose in them, and He has put between you affection and mercy. Verily, in that are indeed signs for a people who reflect. [30:21]
وَمِنْ آيَاتِهِ
And among His Signs
The مِنْ which has been used is the type of مِنْ (from) to indicate proportionality, i.e. There are many signs of Allah and these just some of His signs عزوجل
Generally in the Quran there are two types of Ayah آية
آية كونية (Ayah koaniyah) i.e. Universal Ayah; an example being the following verse;
إِنَّ فِي خَلْقِ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ وَاخْتِلَافِ اللَّيْلِ وَالنَّهَارِ لَآيَاتٍ لِأُولِي الْأَلْبَابِ
Verily! In the creation of the heavens and the earth, and in the alternation of night and day, there are indeed signs for men of understanding. [3:190]
Then there are the آية شريعة (Ayah Shariyah) i.e. the legislative Ayah; an example being the following verse;
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا كُتِبَ عَلَيْكُمُ الصِّيَامُ كَمَا كُتِبَ عَلَى الَّذِينَ مِنْ قَبْلِكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَتَّقُونَ
O you who believe! Observing As-Saum (the fasting) is prescribed for you as it was prescribed for those before you, that you may become Al-Muttaqun (the pious) [2:183]
…أَنْ خَلَقَ لَكُمْ مِنْ أَنْفُسِكُمْ أَزْوَاجًا….
He created for you wives from among yourselves
Abdullah Ibn Abbas رضي الله عنه when giving the Tafsir of the main verse [30:21] mentioned that, Allah created Adam from clay تراب turab and he created Huwwa from Adam. So Adam and his descendants will have their aspirations, motives and drives placed in that which Adam was originally created from i.e, the earth and Huwwa her drive and motive was placed in Adam.
If we go to the gatherings today, generally the men usually talk about business, their job, how much they made etc. And the women, generally, in their gatherings mainly talk about their husbands. If the woman does not understand what the man loves and desires and she does not talk to him about such things. And the husband does not realise that the wife is into him and he doesn’t learn to show interest in her and affection towards her then it causes issues.
..لِتَسْكُنُوا إِلَيْهَا…
that you may find repose in them,
The scholars mention this ayah has been given a reasoning. So the reason why a man is with a woman and a woman is with a man is to find tranquility between themselves. And the مفهوم المخالفة (mafhoom al mukalifa) i.e. the opposite understanding is that if a person is not married then he is in a situation of unrest and will lack general tranquility.
وَجَعَلَ بَيْنَكُمْ مَوَدَّةً وَرَحْمَةً
He has put between you affection and mercy.
So He also tells us how to gain this tranquility between the spouses. It is interesting to note here that جعل Ja’ala and خلاق Khalaqa are both synonyms.
So, why did He عزوجل use Khalaqa at the beginning and Ja’ala at the end?
Ibn Qayim رحمه الله (d.751 AH) and scholars other then him mention is that Khalaqa is something that takes place instantaneously, at one time, all at once دفعة واحدة (dufatin wahida). i.e. Allah created huwwa from Adam one time كن فيكون (kun fa ya koon) however the issue of of muwadah and rahmah is something which takes time. So ja’ala is used when something is created gradually and slowly. So is this muwadah and rahmah is the solution.
So when the man sees his wife he finds warmth and comfort in her and vice versa.
مَوَدَّةً mawaddah in the ayah is to fulfill the desires of both parties. A husband needs in his relationship to fulfill his desires.
So this is true in that a man needs to find answer for his desires in the woman. And he also needs to realise that a woman left her parents house where she already had shelter and food, so he also needs to fulfill her desires of intimacy.
وَرَحْمَةً wa rahmah in the ayah, relates to affection and compassion, meaning the relationship is not just intimacy or sexual desires rather it is based on kindness and affection towards on another , however mawaddah and rahmah, Allah chose to mention them together, because separately each of these a person can find in other then in a halal relationship. A man can fulfill his sexual desires with a prostitute however he will not get affection and compassion. A man can get affection and compassion from his mother, his aunt etc however he can only get both mawaddah and rahmah only from his wife. However mawaddah was put before rahmah, because desires being fulfilled leads to the mercy and affection.
ذَٰلِكَ لَآيَاتٍ لِقَوْمٍ يَتَفَكَّرُونَ
Verily, in that are indeed signs for a people who reflect..
So ayaat is mentioned here at the end of the verse i.e the plural however it was the singular which was mentioned initially. Because initially at the start of the relationship it is only a sign, however when you go into the relationship and remain in it, work on it, for long you will see more signs. However those signs are not for everyone, rather only for those that are analysing, thinking and pondering about the ayaat.
الشاطبي Imam Al Shatibi – رحمه الله (d.790 A.H) in his الموافقات في اصول الشريعة kitab al muafiqaat mentioned “I pondered in the legislative reason and حكمة hikmah i.e. wisdom behind marriage and found the biggest of those being children.”
And from the verses are..
…هُنَّ لِبَاسٌ لَكُمْ وَأَنْتُمْ لِبَاسٌ لَهُنَّ…
They are Libas [i.e. body cover, or screen, or Sakan, (i.e. you enjoy the pleasure of living with her – as in Verse 7:189) Tafsir At-Tabari], for you and you are the same for them. [2:187]
Clothing, gives your beauty , protects you from the cold and heat, it protects your عورة awra (intimate parts)
You present this marriage to your family as an honour.
Your wife she protects you from your desires and vice versa.
The wife keeps the secrets of the husband and does not talk to others about it.
In conclusion, it is impossible for the creator and the legislation to go against each other. There is no way out of a problem for the creation, except by learning and adhering to that which has been legislated for them. So when one thinks that there isn’t a solution legislated in the Quran and Sunnah for any problem they may encounter past or present then they are wrong, as it is only their knowledge or level of understanding which is lacking and deficient.
Pearls of knowledge 