Dear Br. Sheikh Assalamo Alaikum

May Allah keep you happy and safe, and increase your knowledge, Amen!

You have asked for English or Urdu tafseer of Surah 111.

You may refer to Abdullah Yusuf Ali's Meaning of Qur'an for English tafseer or Maulana Maudoodi's Tafheemul Qur'an for Urdu tafseer. However, here, I am writing a short explanation of this surah for your use.

EXPLANATION:

Prophet Muhammad (S) had invited all his relatives to a dinner, where he asked them to believe in one God and him as His Prophet. His uncle Abdul Uzza(title Abu Lahab) was also present. After hearing the call of the Prophet (S) to Islam he cursed him to die and perish (in Arabic, he said tabban lihaza). It means

your hand may break because of it or you may perish.

Allah (s) revealed this surah in reply to this curse. Here Allah says: May the hands of Abi Lahab (meaning father of fire. His face was beautifully red like fire) break! or May he burn like a fire! Then He declared that he did perish- i.e. a prediction or a decision of God. And it thus happened just after the

battle of Badr. He died a very bad death because of an abominal disease. No body, even his sons, wanted to touch his dead body. His wealth and his deeds, which he used to torture the Prophet (S) and was proud of, did not help him a bit. Allah says the man of fire and his wife will be thrown in the fire. His wife Umme Jamil used to carry woods full of thorn and lay them in the path of the Prophet (S) and on his door to create trouble for him. Another meaning is that she used to back-bite him and spread bad words and curse to him. Allah says that there will be a tightly knit rope of wood or steel around her beautiful neck, which she always used to adorn with a necklace to show her wealth, instead of the necklace to punish her.

Hope this will satisfy your need. Wassalam

 

Dr. Syed Hasanuddin Ahmad