Commentary
The remembrance has a status that is not shared by other acts of worship. In this surah, there are indications of that. Therefore, He first called the believers to prayer, which is pure remembrance, then to worship without prayer, such as fasting, pilgrimage, and fighting, and then He broadly encouraged all good deeds. It is said that when the people first embraced Islam, they would prostrate without bowing and bow without prostrating. They were commanded that their prayer should include bowing and prostration. It is said that the meaning of 'And worship your Lord' is to intend by your bowing and prostration the face of Allah. Ibn Abbas said regarding the saying 'And do good deeds': maintaining family ties and good morals, 'so that you may succeed' means do all of this while hoping for success and desiring it, without being certain and do not rely on your deeds. And from Uqbah ibn Amir, may Allah be pleased with him, he said: I said, O Messenger of Allah, in Surah Al-Hajj there are two prostrations? He said: 'Yes, if you do not prostrate them, do not recite them.' [I did not see it in the form of direct speech. However, it was narrated by Abu Dawood, Al-Tirmidhi, Ahmad, Al-Daraqutni, Al-Tabarani, and Al-Hakim. All of them narrated it from Ibn Lahi'ah from Faraj ibn Mahan from Uqbah with the wording 'And whoever does not prostrate them, let him not recite them.' Al-Tirmidhi said: Its chain of narration is not strong.] And from Abdullah ibn Umar, may Allah be pleased with both of them, he preferred Surah Al-Hajj for having two prostrations. With this, Al-Shafi'i, may Allah be pleased with him, argued, seeing two prostrations in Surah Al-Hajj. And Abu Hanifah and his companions, may Allah be pleased with them, see in it only one prostration, because they say: The prostration is coupled with the bowing, which indicates that it is a prostration of prayer and not a prostration of recitation.
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