The Table (Al-Ma’idah)

Commentary

(a) The common form of bribe (suht) is that which is taken directly as such. For example, there were ancient religious scholars who used to give false decrees and opinions after taking bribes. However, there is another form of corruption in which there is no direct give-and-take transaction but it is the biggest and worst out of all the various forms of corruption. This is the distorting of the provisions of religion by opportunists to suit popular tastes so that they may have honour and glory conferred upon them by an admiring public, and receive contributions and offerings from all and sundry. Presenting religion in its pure form is always at the cost of unpopularity with the public. On the contrary, a version of religion which without materially disrupting people’s lives, confers the advantages of religion, is very popular and attracts large crowds. The purveyors of a ‘religion’ which does not oblige potential followers to give up or modify their world-oriented lives, and guarantees admission to paradise with the help of some trivial formalities, very soon become the favourites of the public. The same is true of those who present a ‘religion’ which gives sanctity to national and communal interests and all the accompanying frenzy of material activities; which gives a man the opportunity, under the banner of religion, to engage himself in glory-seeking activities. (a) The ancient Jewish leaders had become a centre of attraction for the people by dispensing this type of religion. They presented to the people the religion of their choice and the people responded with everything from monetary co-operation to the conferment of honours and glory. Given these circumstances, the raising of the voice of true religion by the Prophet Muhammad seemed intolerable to them, as this amounted to the demolition of the structure of their vested interests. They were so displeased with the Prophet that they were in no way interested in hearing anything good about him. On the contrary, if they heard any bad news about him, they took immense interest in it and spread it with their own additions. The condition of those who fall victim to such evil is that even if they are inclined to take a religious decision on any matter, they do so in the hopes that the outcome will be in line with their own desires. If not, they disassociate themselves from it, in spite of knowing full well that the real decision makers are God and His Prophet. They forget that their rejection of the matter in hand amounts to a denial of Faith and Islam itself.