An-Nur: 58

Ayah

Word by Word

يَٰٓأَيُّهَا

O you who believe

ٱلَّذِينَ

O you who believe

ءَامَنُواْ

O you who believe

لِيَسۡتَـٔۡذِنكُمُ

Let ask your permission

ٱلَّذِينَ

those whom

مَلَكَتۡ

possess

أَيۡمَٰنُكُمۡ

your right hands

وَٱلَّذِينَ

and those who

لَمۡ

(have) not

يَبۡلُغُواْ

reached

ٱلۡحُلُمَ

puberty

مِنكُمۡ

among you

ثَلَٰثَ

(at) three

مَرَّـٰتٖۚ

times

مِّن

before

قَبۡلِ

before

صَلَوٰةِ

(the) prayer

ٱلۡفَجۡرِ

(of) dawn

وَحِينَ

and when

تَضَعُونَ

you put aside

ثِيَابَكُم

your garments

مِّنَ

ٱلظَّهِيرَةِ

noon

وَمِنۢ

and after

بَعۡدِ

and after

صَلَوٰةِ

(the) prayer

ٱلۡعِشَآءِۚ

(of) night

ثَلَٰثُ

(These) three

عَوۡرَٰتٖ

(are) times of privacy

لَّكُمۡۚ

for you

لَيۡسَ

Not

عَلَيۡكُمۡ

on you

وَلَا

and not

عَلَيۡهِمۡ

on them

جُنَاحُۢ

any blame

بَعۡدَهُنَّۚ

after that

طَوَّـٰفُونَ

(as) moving about

عَلَيۡكُم

among you

بَعۡضُكُمۡ

some of you

عَلَىٰ

among

بَعۡضٖۚ

others

كَذَٰلِكَ

Thus

يُبَيِّنُ

Allah makes clear

ٱللَّهُ

Allah makes clear

لَكُمُ

for you

ٱلۡأٓيَٰتِۗ

the Verses

وَٱللَّهُ

and Allah

عَلِيمٌ

(is) All-Knower

حَكِيمٞ

All-Wise

Translation

O ye who believe! let those whom your right hands possess, and the (children) among you who have not come of age ask your permission (before they come to your presence), on three occasions: before morning prayer; the while ye doff your clothes for the noonday heat; and after the late-night prayer: these are your three times of undress: outside those times it is not wrong for you or for them to move about attending to each other: Thus does Allah make clear the Signs to you: for Allah is full of knowledge and wisdom.

Tafsir

The Times when Servants and Young Children should seek Permission to enter

Allah commands the believers:

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ امَنُوا لِيَسۡتَأۡذِنكُمُ الَّذِينَ مَلَكَتۡ أَيۡمَانُكُمۡ وَالَّذِينَ لَمۡ يَبۡلُغُوا الۡحُلُمَ مِنكُمۡ ثَلَاثَ مَرَّاتٍ مِن قَبۡلِ صَلَاةِ الۡفَجۡرِ

O you who believe!

Let your slaves and slave-girls, and those among you who have not come to the age of puberty ask your permission on three occasions:

before the Fajr prayer,

These Ayat include a discussion of how people who are closely related should seek permission to enter upon one another.

What was mentioned earlier in the Surah had to do with how unrelated people should seek permission to enter upon one another.

Allah commanded the believers to ensure that their servants and their children who have not yet reached puberty should seek permission at three times:

the first is before the Fajr prayer, because people are asleep in their beds at that time.

وَحِينَ تَضَعُونَ ثِيَابَكُم مِّنَ الظَّهِيرَةِ

and while you put off your clothes during the afternoon,

means, at the time of rest, because a man may be in a state of undress with his wife at that time.

وَمِن بَعۡدِ صَلَةِ الۡعِشَاء

and after the `Isha' prayer.

because this is the time for sleep.

Servants and children are commanded not to enter upon household members at these times, because it is feared that a man may be in an intimate situation with his wife and so on.

Allah says:

ثَلَثُ عَوۡرَاتٍ لَّكُمۡ لَيۡسَ عَلَيۡكُمۡ وَلَا عَلَيۡهِمۡ جُنَاحٌ بَعۡدَهُنَّ

(These) three (times) are of privacy for you; other than these times there is no sin on you or on them,

If they enter at a time other than these, there is no sin on you if you let them enter, and no sin on them if they see something at a time other than these times.

They have been given permission to enter suddenly, because they are those who go around in the house, i.e., to serve you etc., and as such they may be forgiven for things that others will not be forgiven.

Although this Ayah is quite clear and has not been abrogated, people hardly follow it, and Abdullah bin Abbas denounced the people for that.

Abu Dawud recorded that Ibn Abbas said:

Most of the people do not follow it, the Ayah that speaks about asking permission, but I tell my servant woman to seek permission to enter.

Abu Dawud said:

Ata' also narrated that Ibn Abbas commanded this.

Ath-Thawri narrated that Musa bin Abi A'ishah said,

I asked Ash-Sha`bi (about the Ayah):

لِيَسۡتَأۡذِنكُمُ الَّذِينَ مَلَكَتۡ أَيۡمَانُكُمۡ

(Let your slaves and slave-girls ask your permission).

He said, `It has not been abrogated.'

I said:`But the people do not do that.'

He said, `May Allah help them.'

طَوَّافُونَ عَلَيۡكُم بَعۡضُكُمۡ عَلَى بَعۡضٍ

to move about, attending to each other.

كَذَلِكَ يُبَيِّنُ اللَّهُ لَكُمُ الاۡيَاتِ وَاللَّهُ عَلِيمٌ حَكِيمٌ

Thus Allah makes clear the Ayat to you. And Allah is All-Knowing, All-Wise.

Then Allah says

وَإِذَا بَلَغَ الاۡإَطۡفَالُ مِنكُمُ الۡحُلُمَ فَلۡيَسۡتَأۡذِنُوا كَمَا اسۡتَأۡذَنَ الَّذِينَ مِن قَبۡلِهِمۡ

And when the children among you come to puberty, then let them (also) ask for permission, as those senior to them (in age),

meaning:when the children who used to seek permission at the three times of privacy reach puberty, then they have to seek permission at all times, i.e., with regard to those who are non-relatives, and at times when a man may be in a state of intimacy with his wife, even if it is not one of the three times stated above.

كَذَلِكَ يُبَيِّنُ اللَّهُ لَكُمۡ ايَاتِهِ وَاللَّهُ عَلِيمٌ حَكِيمٌ

Thus Allah makes clear His Ayat for you. And Allah is All-Knowing, All-Wise.

There is no Sin on Elderly Women if They do not wear a Cloak

Allah says

وَالۡقَوَاعِدُ مِنَ النِّسَاء

And the Qawa`id among women.

Sa`id bin Jubayr, Muqatil bin Hayyan, Ad-Dahhak and Qatadah said that;

these are the women who no longer think that they can bear children,

اللَّتِي لَا يَرۡجُونَ نِكَاحًا

who do not hope for marriage,

meaning, they no longer have any desire for marriage,

فَلَيۡسَ عَلَيۡهِنَّ جُنَاحٌ أَن يَضَعۡنَ ثِيَابَهُنَّ غَيۡرَ مُتَبَرِّجَاتٍ بِزِينَةٍ

it is no sin on them if they discard their (outer) clothing in such a way as not to show their adornment.

meaning, they do not have to cover themselves in the same way that other women have to.

Abu Dawud recorded that Ibn Abbas said that;

the Ayah:

وَقُل لِّلۡمُوۡمِنَاتِ يَغۡضُضۡنَ مِنۡ أَبۡصَارِهِنَّ

(And tell the believing women to lower their gaze) (24:31), was abrogated and an exception was made in the case of:

وَالۡقَوَاعِدُ مِنَ النِّسَاء اللَّتِي لَاا يَرۡجُونَ نِكَاحًا

(the past childbearing among women who do not hope for marriage).

فَلَيۡسَ عَلَيۡهِنَّ جُنَاحٌ أَن يَضَعۡنَ ثِيَابَهُنَّ

it is no sin on them if they discard their (outer) clothing,

Ibn Mas`ud said about (outer) clothing,

The Jilbab or Rida'.

A similar view was also narrated from Ibn Abbas, Ibn Umar, Mujahid, Sa`id bin Jubayr, Abu Ash-Sha`tha', Ibrahim An-Nakha`i, Al-Hasan, Qatadah, Az-Zuhri, Al-`Awza`i and others.

غَيۡرَ مُتَبَرِّجَاتٍ بِزِينَةٍ

in such a way as not to show their adornment.

Sa`id bin Jubayr said,

They should not make a wanton display of themselves by removing their outer garment so that their adornment may be seen.

وَأَن يَسۡتَعۡفِفۡنَ خَيۡرٌ لَّهُنَّ

But to refrain is better for them.

means, not removing their outer garment, even though that is permissible for them, is better for them.

وَاللَّهُ سَمِيعٌ عَلِيمٌ

And Allah is All-Hearer, All-Knower.