3. إِنَّ شَانِئَكَ هُوَ ٱلۡأَبۡتَرُ
Inna shaani’aka huwal abtar
Indeed, your enemy is the one cut off.
The Enemy of the Prophet (peace be upon him) is Cut Off
Verse [ 108:3] إِنَّ شَانِئَكَ هُوَ الْأَبْتَرُ (Surely, it is your enemy whose traces are cut off.) The word shani’ as used in the original is derived from sha’n and means ‘one who hates, traducer, insulter’. This verse was revealed in connection with the unbelievers who used to taunt the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) and referred to him as ‘abtar’. Most narratives identify the traducer as ` As Ibn Wa’il, others identify him as ‘Uqbah and yet others identify him as Ka’b Ibn Ashraf. Allah granted the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) the Kauthar, that is, abundant goodness which includes a multitude of children. How wonderful are the works of Allah! There is no scarcity of lineal children of the holy Prophet (peace be upon him) . Furthermore, a Prophet (peace be upon him) is the spiritual father of his entire Ummah which comprises his spiritual children. The Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) is the spiritual father of his entire Ummah till the end of time and as such will have the largest number of spiritual children compared to the Ummahs of the previous Prophets (علیہم السلام) . In this way, the enemy has been rebutted, on the one hand, and, on the other hand, their argument has been rebuffed that it is not the Prophet (peace be upon him) ، but his enemies are, ‘abtar’ or cut off.
Note
Imagine how Allah has raised the name of the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) and exalted his reputation in every nook and corner of the world since the inception of his prophet-hood till today, and it will continue to be so until the end of time. His blessed name is recited along with Allah’s name five times a day from the minarets. In the Hereafter, he will be granted the (Al-Maqam Al-Mahmud) Praised Station where he will make the Grand Intercession on behalf of the entire progeny of ‘Adam (علیہ السلام) . On the contrary, ask the world history: Where are the children of ` As Ibn Wa’il? Where are the children of Ka’b Ibn Ashraf? where are the children of ‘Uqbah, and what happened to their families? Their very own names have been lost to the world. No one cares to remember them. They have become unknown who thought that soon the Holy Prophet (peace be upon him) will become unknown. They have left this world and the strings of their lineage have been cut off. Their names have been preserved in Islamic traditions only for purposes of interpretation of relevant verses. فَاعْتَبِرُوا يَا أُولِي الْأَبْصَارِ “So, 0 People of insight, take note !” [ 59:2].