'In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful'

Tafsir of Surah Quraysh

And it is Meccan without disagreement.

His saying, glorified and exalted is He:

﴿For the familiarity of Quraysh﴾ ﴿Their familiarity with the winter and summer journey﴾ ﴿So let them worship the Lord of this House﴾ ﴿Who fed them from hunger and made them safe from fear﴾

Ibn Kathir, Nafi', Abu Amr, Hafs from Asim, Hamzah, and Al-Kisai read: "For the familiarity of Quraysh, their familiarity" on "Ifaal" and the second hamzah is a ya. Ibn Amir read: "For the familiarity" on "Faal" "their familiarity," on Ifaal with a ya in the second. Abu Bakr from Asim read with two hamzahs in both, the second being silent. Abu Ali said: The verification of Asim of these two hamzahs has no basis. Abu Ja'far read "their familiarity" with a silent lam.

And "Quraysh": the descendants of Al-Nadr ibn Kinana, and Al-Taqarrush: earning a living. The Arabs say: "A man became familiar with the matter and another made him familiar with it." So Allah, glorified and exalted is He, made Quraysh familiar, meaning: He made them accustomed to two journeys in the year, one in winter and another in summer. It is also said: "familiar" meaning "made familiar." Abu Zayd recited:

؎ From the familiar sands, the red of the free woman, the rays of the dawn in her neck become clear.

So familiarity and 'ilaf' are the source of "familiarized," and 'ilaf' is the source of "made familiar." Some people said: The two journeys were to Sham for trade, and it was said for profits. From this is the saying of the poet:

؎ Two journeys he ordained for himself and for others, the journey of winter and the summer journey.

Ibn Abbas said: The winter journey was to Yemen, and the summer journey was to Busrā from the land of Sham. Abu Salih said: They were both to Sham. Ibn Abbas also said: They would travel in summer to Ta'if where there is water and shade, and they would travel in winter to Makkah for trade and other purposes. So these are the winter and summer journeys. Al-Khalil ibn Ahmad said: The meaning of the verse is: Because Allah, glorified and exalted is He, acted with Quraysh in this and enabled them to be familiar with this blessing so that they may worship the Lord of this House.

Qadi Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said:

And the mention of "the House" here is established due to its prior protection in the preceding surah.

Al-Akhfash and others said: His saying, exalted is He, "For the accustomed security of Quraysh" is related to His saying, glorified and exalted is He: "So He made them like eaten straw" [Al-Fil: 5]. That is: so that He may do these beautiful deeds with Quraysh. Some of the interpreters said: The meaning of the verse is: marvel at the accustomed security of Quraysh in these journeys and their turning away from the worship of Allah. Then He commanded them, exalted is He, to worship afterward, and informed them that Allah is the One who fed them and granted them security, not their journeys. The meaning is: let them worship the One who fed them by the supplication of Ibrahim, peace be upon him, when he said: "And provide for them from the fruits" [Ibrahim: 37], and granted them security by his supplication when he said: "My Lord, make this city secure" [Ibrahim: 35], and do not engage in journeys, for they are a pursuit of earning and worldly gain. Al-Naqqash said: They had four journeys, and this statement is rejected. And Ikrimah said: The meaning of the verse is: just as they were accustomed to these two journeys for their worldly affairs, let them worship the Lord of this House for their Hereafter. And Qatadah said: The two journeys were mentioned because they were safe from people during their travels, while people would raid one another, and no tribe of the Arabs could travel safely as Quraysh does. The meaning is: let them worship the One who favored them with this condition, for He fed them and granted them security.

And His saying, exalted is He, "From hunger" means that the people of Makkah reside in a valley that is not fertile, exposed to hunger and drought, were it not for the mercy of Allah, exalted is He, and that He made it, by the supplication of Ibrahim, peace be upon him, bring forth the fruits of everything. And His saying, exalted is He, "And from fear" means that He made them, for the sanctity of the House, preferred among the Arabs, so they are secure while people are afraid. Were it not for the favor of Allah, exalted is He, in that, they would have been in the midst of fears. Ibn Abbas and Al-Dahhak said: "He made them secure from fear" means from leprosy, so you do not see a leper in Makkah.

The interpretation of [Surah Quraysh] is complete, and all praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds.