Is the Knowledge of the Revelational Circumstances (Asbab al-Nuzul) Authentic?

Answered by Shaykh Anas Al-Musa

Question

Is the knowledge of the revelational circumstances (Asbab al-Nuzul) authentic? And how can we verify the authenticity of these stories?

Answer

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

All praise is due to Allah, Lord of all worlds, and peace and blessings be upon the Messenger sent as a mercy to the worlds, our Master and Prophet, Muhammad, and his Family and Companions.

Revelational Circumstances (Asbab al-Nuzul)

The meaning of the revelational circumstances refers to the incident or event during which the verse or verses were revealed, speaking about it or clarifying its ruling at the time of its occurrence.

Our definition states: “At the time of its occurrence,” meaning the circumstances under which the Quran was revealed discussing that reason. However, the Quran’s recounting of past events, such as the stories of ‘Ad and Thamud and the building of the House… does not fall under the revelational circumstances of the verses because these are narratives about those nations and events, and the Quran was not revealed because of them, rather these are verses that were revealed initially without a specific cause, like the coming of the Abyssinians to demolish the House, for example, is not a reason for the revelation of Sura Fil.

Example and Caution

Among the examples of the revelational circumstances are:

Once, the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give him peace) became sick and could not offer his night prayer (Tahajjud) for two or three nights. Then a lady (the wife of Abu Lahab) came and said, “O Muhammad! I think that your Satan has forsaken you, for I have not seen him with you for two or three nights!” On that Allah revealed: ‘By the morning sunlight and the night when it falls still! Your Lord (O Prophet) has not abandoned you, nor has He become hateful (of you).’ [Quran, 93:1-3].” [Bukhari]

Imam Wahidi stated in the introduction of his book, “Asbab al-Nuzul”:

“It is not permissible to speak about the revelational circumstances of the scripture except by narration and hearing from those who witnessed the revelation and understood the reasons, who sought their knowledge diligently and studied it thoroughly. The law warns with the punishment of fire those who err in this knowledge due to ignorance.” [Wahidi, Asbab al-Nuzul]

Wahidi clarifies that the reason for revelation is a factual event addressed by the verse, which cannot be known through opinion or jurisprudence but only through narration. Determining whether a reason is established depends on the authenticity of the narration, as assessed by the science of Hadith. A narration meeting the criteria of acceptance is considered valid evidence; otherwise, it is not.

Thus, the way to verify the authenticity of the stories related to the reasons for revelation is by referring to the statements of Hadith scholars. Therefore, it is necessary to subject the narrations related to the reasons for revelation to the same scrutiny as Hadith narrations regarding their authenticity, continuity, disconnection, and other aspects; thus, not everything stated in the reasons for revelation is accepted, but rather, some are accepted, some are weak, and some are rejected.

The righteous predecessors were strict in researching the revelational circumstances, to the extent that Imam Muhammad Ibn Sirin said: “I asked ‘Ubayda about a verse from the Quran, and he said: ‘Fear Allah and speak precisely. Those who knew why Allah revealed the Quran are gone.’” [Wahidi, Asbab al-Nuzul; Ibn Hajar, al-‘Aja’ib fi Bayan Asbab al-Nuzul; Suyuti, Lubab al-Nuqul; Wadi‘i, al-Sahih al-Musnad min Asbab al-Nuzul]

Notes Related to Understanding the Revelational Circumstances

• The narrations concerning the reasons for revelation reported from the Companions, which meet the criteria of acceptance as outlined by the scholars of Hadith, are accepted because a Companion’s statement on a matter where there is no room for personal reasoning is treated as if it were raised to the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace). It is highly unlikely that a Companion would state something from his own without it being through hearing, transmission, or direct observation.
• It was customary for the Companions and the Followers to say, “This verse was revealed regarding such-and-such,” or “about a man who does such-and-such,” to clarify the subject matter of the verse, and that the verse contains this ruling, not that this was the cause of its revelation…; it falls under deriving the ruling from the verse, not transferring what occurred. For example, Allah (Most High) says: “Spend in the cause of Allah and do not let your own hands throw you into destruction (by withholding).” [Quran, 2:195] Hudhayfa, after mentioning the verse, said: “It was revealed regarding spending.” [Bukhari] Hudhayfa’s words mean that the verse implies the ruling on spending, or that the subject of the verse is spending, not that spending was the reason for its revelation. [Zakhashi, al-Burhan; Suyuti, al-Itqan; Zurqani, Manahil al-‘Irfan; ‘Itr, ‘Ulum al-Quran]

• Not all of the Quran was revealed for specific reasons; some parts of the Quran were revealed due to reasons, and others were revealed without any specific cause.
• The reasons for revelation can be multiple, while the revelation itself is one; this occurs when several events happen in close times, and the verse is revealed for all of them.
• This is the case in multiple places in the Quran, and the main reliance is on the authenticity of the narrations.

If the narrations are authentic for several reasons, and there is nothing to indicate their separation; this is evidence that all are reasons for the revelation of the verse or verses; and the fact that the verse existed with the Messenger of Allah (Allah bless him and give him peace) at the first revelation does not prevent it from being revealed a second time; the first revelation addressed the first event and informed the Prophet (Allah bless him and give him peace) of the general ruling included in the verse for similar instances, and the second revelation was to make known that the new event was intended by that verse definitively, as every verse revealed for a reason is definitive in its intent.

[Muqatil Ibn Sulayman, Tafsir Muqatil Ibn Sulayman; Suyuti, al-Itqan; Zurqani, Manahil al-‘Irfan; ‘Itr, ‘Ulum al-Quran; al-Muqadimat al-Asasiyya fi ‘Ulum al-Quran]

An example of multiple reasons for revelation is the revelation of the verses of accusation, when Hilal bin Umayya accused his wife with Sharik Ibn Sahma, and when ‘Uwaymir al-‘Ajlani accused his wife with another man. In both stories, it is clear that the verses were revealed because of them. [Bukhari]

Benefits of Knowing the Revelational Circumstances

• Understanding the aspect in which the meaning of the verse stands and removing any complications that may arise in explaining its meaning. This means that knowing the reason for revelation is fundamental in interpreting the verse and thus guides the interpreters in comprehending the meanings of the Quran. Ibn Daqiq al-‘Id said, “Explaining the revelational circumstances is a strong approach to understanding the meanings of the Quran.” Wahidi stated, “It is impossible to know the interpretation of a verse and its intended path without knowing its story.” [Wahidi, Asbab al-Nuzul]
• Grasping the wisdom of legislation, understanding the objectives of the Sacred Law, and how the Sacred Law rulings were appropriately tailored to reality, in tune with events, and fulfilling the needs of those obliged by the law. Anyone who reads the reasons for the gradual revelation of the verses prohibiting alcohol will realize the necessity of prohibiting alcohol. [Zakhashi, al-Burhan; Suyuti, al-Itqan; ‘Itr, ‘Ulum al-Quran]

Recommendations

Lastly, I advise you—who is keen to know the revelational circumstances—to refer to books written on this subject, including “Asbab al-Nuzul” by Abu al-Husayn Ali Ibn Ahmad al-Nisaburi, known as Wahidi, and “Lubab al-Nuqul fi Asbab al-Nuzul” by Imam Suyuti. Note that not everything in these books is absolutely accepted, even though they specialize in the science of revelational circumstances.

Allah’s blessings be upon our Master and Prophet, Muhammad, and his Family and Companions.

And Allah knows best.