Al-Ahzab · Madani · ayah 32 of 73

Al-Ahzab 33:32

يَـٰنِسَآءَ ٱلنَّبِىِّ لَسْتُنَّ كَأَحَدٍ مِّنَ ٱلنِّسَآءِ ۚ إِنِ ٱتَّقَيْتُنَّ فَلَا تَخْضَعْنَ بِٱلْقَوْلِ فَيَطْمَعَ ٱلَّذِى فِى قَلْبِهِۦ مَرَضٌ وَقُلْنَ قَوْلًا مَّعْرُوفًا

“O wives of the Prophet, you are not like anyone among women. If you fear Allāh, then do not be soft in speech [to men],[1195] lest he in whose heart is disease should covet, but speak with appropriate speech.”

Saheeh International

Essence

Their rank rested on mindfulness of Allah, so their speech was to carry it: never yielding in tone, always clear and good.

A reflection

Not like anyone else, if

The ayah opens with a sentence of extraordinary honour. 'You are not like any other women.' Then comes a small word that changes everything: in, if.

One commentary reads the honour broadly. Search through the women of the world, group by group, and you will find no group equal to them in virtue and precedence. Another explains what 'not like anyone' means. When you know only that someone is a person, you say 'I saw someone'. When you know what marks them out, you name them. These women were marked out: mothers of the believers, wives of the best of messengers.

But where does the 'if' belong? The same commentary gives two readings, and a translator's note records both. In one, the 'if' looks back. You are not like other women, if you are mindful of Allah. In the other, it looks forward. If you are mindful of Allah, then do not soften your speech. The first reading makes their very distinction depend on taqwa. The most honoured, as another ayah says, is the most mindful (49:13).

That is a leadership principle stated at the highest level. Position is real, but it is not self-sustaining. It is held up by conduct, every day.

Picture a young man whose family name is on the main building of his college. It is carved over the entrance he walks through each morning. Then exam week comes. He sits in the same hall, with the same paper, under the same clock as everyone else. His name got him through the door. It cannot get him through the paper.

If you hold any distinction, a title, a family reputation, a role others look up to, hear the 'if' in it. You are not like others, if. The rest of the sentence is yours to write.

The full entry has 5 more reflections, questions to sit with, and "Live it today" - with the words, the roots and the tafsir alongside. Free, no account, works offline.