ٱلْحَجُّ أَشْهُرٌ مَّعْلُومَٰتٌ فَمَن فَرَضَ فِيهِنَّ ٱلْحَجَّ فَلَا رَفَثَ وَلَا فُسُوقَ وَلَا جِدَالَ فِى ٱلْحَجِّ وَمَا تَفْعَلُوا۟ مِنْ خَيْرٍ يَعْلَمْهُ ٱللَّهُ وَتَزَوَّدُوا۟ فَإِنَّ خَيْرَ ٱلزَّادِ ٱلتَّقْوَىٰ وَٱتَّقُونِ يَٰٓأُو۟لِى ٱلْأَلْبَٰبِ
“The pilgrimage is (in) the well-known months, and whoever is minded to perform the pilgrimage therein (let him remember that) there is (to be) no lewdness nor abuse nor angry conversation on the pilgrimage. And whatsoever good ye do Allah knoweth it. So make provision for yourselves (Hereafter); for the best provision is to ward off evil. Therefore keep your duty unto Me, O men of understanding.” — M. M. Pickthall
Taberî9-10. c.✓ Citation verified
Taberî conveys that the expression 'known months' (al-ashur al-maʿlūmāt) mentioned in this verse refers to Shawwāl, Dhū al-Qaʿdah, and Dhū al-Hijjah (in part or in entirety); he explains that 'fisq' means disobedience and 'jidāl' means dispute/quarreling regarding the time and rites of pilgrimage. He makes his preference among different reports based on the view that the dispute that occurred during the pilgrimage time in the pre-Islamic period was eliminated by Allah, and the time and rituals were made singular and unanimous.
وأولى هذه الأقوال في قوله بالصواب، قول من قال: معنى ذلك: قد بطل الجدال في الحج ووقته، واستقام أمره، ووقته على وقت واحد، ومناسك متفقة غير مختلفة، ولا تنازع فيه، ولا مراء
Zemahşerî12. c.✓ Citation verified
According to Zamakhsharī, in this expression the word 'kāffatan' (entirely) is positioned as a circumstantial qualifier (hāl) from either the agent or object in the sentence. Furthermore, it is mentioned that the action indicated in the text is also forbidden in other months.
وإن كان ذلك محرما في سائر الشهور { كآفة } حال من الفاعل أو المفعول
Fahreddin er-Râzî12-13. c.✓ Citation verified
According to this exegete, the original meaning of the word 'rafath' is speaking indecently/crudely; it then became a term for words carrying meanings of exposure related to women, and subsequently became an allusion to intercourse and everything connected to it. Furthermore, it is stated that since the word 'ashur' (months) is used as a plural form (jama taksīr) as an indefinite noun, it refers to at least three months rather than all months, and the months of pilgrimage consist of Shawwāl, Dhū al-Qaʿdah, and a part of Dhū al-Hijjah.
فثبت أن الأصل في الرفث هو قول الفحش ثم جعل ذلك اسما لما يتكلم به عند النساء من معاني الإفضاء ، ثم جعل كناية عن الجماع وعن كل ما يتبعه
Kurtubî13. c.✓ Citation verified
According to Kurtubī, this verse informs that pilgrimage must be performed in specific months, and during pilgrimage one must refrain from rafath (sexual relations/obscene speech), fisq (sins), and jidāl (argumentation/quarreling). The word fisq has been interpreted differently among scholars; Ibn ʿAbbās and the majority explained it as all types of disobedience, Ibn Zayd and Mālik as offerings to idols, Dahhāk as giving nicknames, and Ibn ʿUmar as cursing; however, Kurtubī finds the first view more sound since it encompasses all expressions. Furthermore, he notes that the command to 'provide provisions' refers to preparing sustenance, and the best provision is piety.
والقول الأول أصح لأنه يتناول جميع الأقوال قال صلى الله عليه وسلم : ( من حج فلم يرفث ولم يفسق رجع كيوم ولدته أمه ( ( والحج المبرور ليس له جزاء إلا الجنة ( خرجه مسلم وغيره
İbn Kesîr14. c.✓ Citation verified
According to Ibn Kathīr, the verse commands the preparation of material provisions (zād) for the pilgrimage journey, and from this he draws attention to the fact that what is truly important is acquiring the provisions for the afterlife, which is piety. Furthermore, he mentions that the expression 'specified months' in the verse is a subject of jurisprudential disagreement regarding which months the consecration for pilgrimage is valid, and he conveys through reports from Ibn ʿAbbās that it is the Sunnah that pilgrimage is only performed by entering the state of consecration in the pilgrimage months.
لما أمرهم بالزاد للسفر في الدنيا أرشدهم إلى زاد الآخرة وهو استصحاب التقوى إليها
Beydâvî13. c.✓ Citation verified
According to Bayḍāwī, what is meant by 'ashur' (months) are the pilgrimage months of Shawwāl, Dhū al-Qaʿdah, and part of Dhū al-Hijjah; the number of these months has been determined differently among the schools of jurisprudence (in Shāfiʿī law nine days with the night of slaughter, in Abū Ḥanīfah's school ten days, in Mālik's school the entire Dhū al-Hijjah). Furthermore, the words 'rafath', 'fusūq', and 'jidāl' are explained respectively as intercourse/indecent speech, transgression of the sharīʿah boundaries with sins, and quarreling with servants/companions; the negation of these three things is seen as being for emphasis and prohibition. Finally, it is stated that the best provision is piety, that according to some this verse was revealed regarding the Yemenites who went on pilgrimage without provisions and became a burden to people.
ولا جدال ولا مراء مع الخدم والرفقة. في الحج في أيامه، نفي الثلاثة على قصد النهي للمبالغة وللدلالة على أنها حقيقة بأن لا تكون
Comparison
Common ground
Most exegetes interpret the expression 'known months' (al-ashur al-maʿlūmāt) as Shawwāl, Dhū al-Qaʿdah, and Dhū al-Hijjah (in their entirety or in part), and they accept that pilgrimage is limited to a specific time period. Furthermore, the emphasis that the command to refrain from rafath, fisq, and jidāl during pilgrimage is directed toward spiritual disciplining of the soul, and that the best provision is piety, is a common theme.
Differences
While Taberī and Ibn Kathīr employ a report-focused method, transmitting the views of the companions and successors and making preferences, Zamakhsharī and Fakhr al-Dīn al-Rāzī concentrate much more on linguistic/rhetorical and grammatical analysis. Kurtubī and Bayḍāwī, on the other hand, systematically compare and address jurisprudential disagreements (the different views of the schools regarding the pilgrimage months or the scope of fisq), and Bayḍāwī additionally includes a report about the occasion of revelation. These differences are related to the exegetes' schools (linguistic-rhetorical, jurisprudential, report-hadith focused) and the scholarly tendencies of the periods in which they lived.
Historical context
While the early period exegete Taberī primarily compiled and made preferences among reports, in subsequent periods with Zamakhsharī and al-Rāzī, linguistic and logical analysis came to the fore, and in later exegetes such as Kurtubī and Bayḍāwī, the systematic comparison of jurisprudential school differences became more prominent. This reflects a cumulative process in the exegetical tradition that expanded from report-based interpretation toward linguistic analysis and thence toward jurisprudential synthesis; however, the basic framework of meaning remained largely fixed.
Modern connection
The emphasis in this verse that 'the best provision is piety' can remind us today that when preparing for a journey or an important undertaking, spiritual and moral preparation should not be neglected alongside material preparation. The advice to avoid quarreling and indecent speech during pilgrimage can point to an approach that prioritizes patience and forbearance in social relations. The fact that different exegetes contribute to the same verse in terms of linguistics, reports, and jurisprudence can be thought of as a reminder of the value of a multifaceted and constructive approach in the scholarly tradition.
AI analysis — not a fatwa or ruling, not yet reviewed by a scholar