The Holy Quran with Five Volume Commentary (Vol 2) — Page 309
PT. 6 AL-MA'IDAH CH. 5 حُرِّمَتْ عَلَيْكُمُ الْمَيْتَةُ وَالدَّمُ وَلَحْمُ Forbidden to you is the flesh. 4 of an animal which dies of وَمَا أُهِلَّ لِغَيْرِ اللهِ بِه itself, and blood and the flesh of وَالْمُنْخَنِقَةُ وَالْمَوْقُوذَةُ وَالْمُتَرَدِّيَةُ swine; and that on which is invoked the name of one other وَالنَّطِيحَةُ وَمَا أَكَلَ السَّبُعُ إِلَّا مَا ذَكَّيْتُمُ than Allah; and that which has وَمَا ذُبِحَ عَلَى النُّصْبِ وَأَنْ تَسْتَقْسِمُوا been strangled; and that which has been beaten to death; and بِالْأَزْلَامِ ذَلِكُمْ فِسْقُ الْيَوْمَ يَبِسَ that been killed by a falls and that which has been gored to الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا مِنْ دِينِكُمْ فَلَا تَخْشَوْهُمْ death; and that of which a wild وَاخْشَوْنِ الْيَوْمَ أَكْمَلْتُ لَكُمْ دِينَكُمْ وَاَتْمَمْتُ عَلَيْكُمْ نِعْمَتِي وَرَضِيتُ slaughtered; and that which has لَكُمُ الْإِسْلَامَ دِينًا فَمَنِ اضْطَرَّ في idols. And مَخْمَصَةٍ غَيْرَ مُتَجَانِفِ لِإِثْمِ فَإِنَّ اللهَ bforbidden is also this that you غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمُ animal has eaten, except that which you have properly been slaughtered at an altar as an offering to seek to know your lot by the divining arrows. That is an act "2:174; 6:146. 5:91. such clear injunctions to its followers as are contained in the above words, be expected to command them to take up arms against innocent and unoffending people and to kill them wherever they are found on the sole ground that they do not profess Islam? The verse clearly forbids Muslims to fight their enemies in the four Sacred Months even when a state of war exists. The Holy Prophet himself was the first to carry out this injunction. He would not fight the idolatrous Meccans when, at Hudaibiyyah, they refused to allow 749 him and his 1,400 followers to perform (Lesser Pilgrimage) for which he had undertaken such a long and arduous journey. He went back to Medina after signing a treaty, the terms of which at that time appeared to be very humiliating, in spite of the fact that his followers were prepared to fight. The Holy Prophet, however, paid no heed to the outraged feelings of his followers and did what righteousness and piety demanded. But when non-Muslims are the first to attack Muslims during a Sacred Month, the latter are allowed to defend themselves (2:195, 218).