Академия Корана:Encyclopaedia of the Qurʾān/Brother and Brotherhood

Roy P. Mottahedeh, "Brother and Brotherhood" in: Encyclopaedia of the Qurʾān, General Editor: J. D. McAuliffe, Georgetown University, Washington DC.

The term brother (akh) is used in the Qurʾān in several senses: in its strict biological sense; in several partly metaphorical senses, especially to indicate membership in a genealogical group; and, in a more extended metaphorical sense, to indicate membership in a group united by a shared belief. There are verses in the Qurʾān that indicate that the sense of community and mutual respect, concern and aid implied by brotherhood in this extended, metaphorical sense can unite not only Muslims but any humans who do virtuous acts in response to God’s expectations of them (see community and society in the qurʾān; gratitude and ingratitude).

Brother, in its literal sense, a male who shares one or both parents with another sibling, is the object of several verses with legal implications. A brother is within the closer degrees of kinship (q.v.) and therefore both forbidden to marry the daughter of his brother (q 4:23) and allowed to see his sisters dressed less formally than would be proper before men not in close kin relation or considered likely to see them as sexually desirable (q 24:31; compare q 33:55 on the Prophet’s wives; see wives of the prophet; sex and sexuality; social interactions). Since q 4:23 also forbids a «milk sister» to marry a biologically unrelated male suckled by the same mother, specialists in Islamic law have usually included the milk brother as well as the milk sister and milk mother in most of the legal rulings that regulate marriageability and acceptable private association. The brother also has a fixed position in entitlement to inheritance (q.v.; q 4:176 and q 4:11, in which «brothers» (ikhwa) is generally understood to mean both brothers and sisters; see sister). The brother is referred to as the archetype of the walī l-dam, the next of kin with the right to demand retaliation (q.v.) for a deliberately slain kinsman or to settle for blood money (q 2:178; see blood money; murder).

The most important «blood» brothers who figure in the Qurʾān are Cain and Abel, (who are referred to, but not mentioned by name; see cain and abel), the brothers of Joseph (q.v.; see also benjamin), and Moses (q.v.) and Aaron (Hārūn, see aaron). It is interesting that a figure so centrally important as Moses has a brother who is specifically called both a «prophet» (nabī, q 19:53) and a messenger (rasūl, q 20:47; see messenger) of the Lord and who could, like his brother, receive divine inspiration (waḥy, q 10:87; see revelation and inspiration) as well as miraculous signs (āyāt, q 23:45; 20:42; see signs). Moses, whose speech is hard to understand, has asked God to give him Aaron, his brother, as a «helper» (wazīr) from his family (q 20:29-30; 25:35; 28:35). Moreover, both Moses and Aaron are given sulṭān, a word usually understood to mean authority, power and authoritative proof (q 28:35; and 23:45, in which the phrase is sulṭān mubīn, «clear authority»).

The simultaneous appearance of two prophet brothers among one people raised, for later generations, questions about the nature of prophethood (see prophets and prophethood). The Qurʾān seems to contain a two-fold explanation of the need for both prophets: namely, the rebelliousness of the Israelites towards Moses and his resultant need of Aaron’s help, and the assistance Moses needs in circumventing his difficulty in speech. Thus when Moses orders them to enter the Holy Land and they refuse, Moses prays: «My Lord, I control only myself and my brother. Distinguish us (or „distance us“) from such perverse people» (q 5:25). Yet one might argue that God could have given Moses the gifts of speech and authority that would have freed him from the need of a prophet-brother.

A further problem is raised by Aaron's presence when the calf (see calf of gold ) was made to be an object of worship while Moses was absent and receiving the law on Mount Sinai (q.v.), especially as Moses had told Aaron, “Be my deputy among my people, act righteously and do not follow the path of the perverse” (q 7:142). That Moses on his return at least pretends to hold his brother responsible is shown by the words: “He [Moses] took his brother by the head, pulling him toward himself” (q 7:150). Hence Aaron says in explanation: “O son of my mother, the people have humiliated me [or, “thought me to be weak”] and almost killed me. So do not let my enemies gloat over me nor place me among the wrongdoers” (q 7:150). Moses then prays for both himself and his brother: “O Lord, forgive me and my brother and cause us to enter in your mercy” (q 7:151). Alongside all of these problems was the problem of the apparent sin of Moses in killing a man (q 20:40; 26:14; 26:19). These verses offered rich material for the speculation of later Muslim thinkers on the sinlessness, the degree of foreknowledge (or reasons for withholding foreknowledge) and the timing of divinely ordained persuasive miracles that God might grant his prophets (see impeccability and infallibility; miracle).

The commentators by and large avoid this discussion. Al-Ṭabarī (d. 310/923) explains that «From our mercy we gave [Moses] his brother Aaron as a prophet (nabī)» (q 19:53) means: «We supported and helped him [Moses] through his [Aaron’s] prophethood» (Tafsīr, xvi, 95). Al-Ṭabarī (Tafsīr, xvi, 160) also implies that Aaron’s station is in answer to Moses' prayers (which, perhaps, God anticipated) when Moses asks God to give him his brother Aaron as a vizier (wazīr) and says: «Let him share in my mission (amrī)» (q 20:32). Moses is saying, al-Ṭabarī explains, «Make him a prophet just as you made me a prophet». Al-Bayḍāwī (d. ca. 716/1316-7) seems to be explaining Aaron’s inability to stop the worship of the calf — and also, perhaps, to be justifying Aaron as a second prophet — when he says that Aaron was three years older than Moses and was «a mild-tempered and tractable person, better loved by the people of Israel» (Anwār, i, 345). Yet often, even when the verse refers to prophetic traits possessed by both brothers, the commentators remain principally interested in Moses. Thus, in discussing the «miraculous signs» mentioned in q 23:45, Tafsīr al-Jalālayn (450) only refers to the miracles of Moses since Aaron plays such a subordinate role in the narrative of their lives. Nevertheless, as al-Ṭūsī (d. 460/1067) explains (Tibyān, iv, 532), when Moses went up Mount Sinai he was able to order Aaron to be his deputy even though God had sent Aaron as a prophet with a mission (nabī mursal) because Moses had leadership (riyāsa) over Aaron as well as over all of the rest of the religious community (umma) to whom Moses brought revelation. Interestingly, the sulṭān given to Moses and Aaron is understood by several commentators to mean ḥujja, «argument (for a case)» (e.g. Ṭabarī, Tafsīr, xx, 76; see proof). Al-Bayḍāwī (d. ca. 716/1316-7) interprets sulṭān mubīn (q 23:45), in which mubīn would ordinarily be understood to mean «manifestly clear», as «a manifestly clear argument, compelling to the one who opposes it» and says that it may mean such miraculous signs as Moses' staff which turned into a snake (Anwār, ad loc.). Incidentally, the use of terms such as sulṭān and wazīr, later to become political terms frequently used in the Islamic world, caused the verses on Moses and Aaron to be examined in the light of this use (see authority). The example of Aaron as an «infallible» aide sent to help Moses was of importance to some Shīʿīs in understanding the role of ʿAlī (see ʿalī b. abī ṭālib) and other imāms (see shīʿism and the qurʾān; imām).

Very common in the Qurʾān is the largely metaphorical use of «brother» to mean members of a tribe or people (see tribes and clans) especially (though not exclusively) in connection with three of the so-called «Arabian» prophets sent by God to their people. Hūd (q.v.) is the «brother» of the ʿĀd (q.v.; q 7:65; 11:50; 26:124; 46:21), Ṣāliḥ (q.v.) is the brother of the Thamūd (q.v.; q 7:73; 11:61; 26:142; 27:45) and Shuʿayb (q.v.) is the brother of Midian (q.v.; q 7:85; 11:84; 29:36). Similarly, Noah (q.v.) is the brother of the «people» or «tribe» (qawm) of Noah (q 26:105-6). Lot (q.v.) is the brother of the qawm of Lot (q 26:160-1); and, correspondingly, «the brothers (ikhwān) of Lot» (meaning the people of Lot) are listed among those peoples who rejected messengers sent by God (q 50:13). Al-Rāghib al-Iṣfahānī (d. early 5th/11th cent.; Mufradāt, 68, under the heading « akh») says that brother is used in these verses to convey that the compassion that such a messenger has for his people is just as that which a brother has for his brother. In a parallel usage the kin of Mary (q.v.) address her as «sister of Aaron» (q 19:28).

There are a few verses that bridge or partially indicate the transference of «brother» from its literal or partly metaphorical use (as when it means kinsman) to its full metaphorical sense. A striking example of the use of the emotional closeness implied by brotherhood is the simile which warns the believers to avoid suspicion, spying and speaking ill of each other, for: «Would one of you like to eat the flesh of his dead brother? For you would have a horror of such things» (q 49:12). The believers are told if they «become mixed» with orphans (q.v.), «they become your brothers (ikhwānukum)» (q 2:220). Tafsīr al-Jalālayn (46) echoes many commentaries in saying that «brothers» here means «brothers in religion»; but, like many other commentaries, it implies that such acceptance means acceptance in a quasi-familial relationship, «For it is customary for a brother to mingle his expenses with his brothers, so you should act in this way [with such orphans]». Similarly, it is said of adoptive children that they should keep the names of their fathers «but if you do not know their fathers, then they are your brothers (ikhwānukum) in religion (dīn) and your friends/clients/protegés (mawālī)» (q 33:5; see clients and clientage).

While several verses attest that biological kinship, including brotherhood, is less important than spiritual kinship, the verse following the discussion of adoption shows that for legal purposes real brotherhood is still the measure relevant to inheritance and kindred matters: «Blood relatives are closer to each other in God’s book than to the believers and the emigrants. If (nevertheless) you act with goodness toward those affiliated with you (awliyāʾikum), that is set down in the Book (q.v.)» (q 33:6). This verse is said by virtually all the commentators to confirm the abrogation of the muʾākhāt, the adoption of each other as brothers by the Meccan Emigrants (muhājirūn) and certain members of the Helpers (anṣār), the sincere believers among the Medinans, at the time that the Prophet settled in Medina (see emigrants and helpers).

Nevertheless, in the larger scheme of things, the ties created by religion are more meaningful in the eyes of God and should be a more significant source of motivation. If your kin and your wealth are dearer to you than the Prophet, God and the struggle in his path (see path or way [of god]), «then lie in wait until God brings his command to pass» (q 9:24). «Those who believe in God and the last day (see last judgment) will not show love to those who oppose God and his Prophet whether they be fathers or sons or brothers or members of their clan (ʿashīra)» (q 58:22). This sūra belongs to the Medinan period and may refer to the attempts by the Prophet to make the sincere converts among the Medinans place their loyalty to Islam above their feelings of kinship to their relatives who were not real converts, the «hypocrites» (see hypocrites and hypocrisy).

Several verses affirm the brotherhood of the believers (see belief and unbelief). The Qurʾān reminds Muslims that before accepting Islam they were enemies, «then he unified your hearts so that through his bounty you became brothers (ikhwān)» (q 3:103). The believers must take care to preserve this condition for they «are but brothers (ikhwa); therefore, make peace between (any) two of your brothers» (q 49:10). Correspondingly, those who share in some form of sinful behavior can be considered members of a «brotherhood» so that «those who squander money [or are prodigal] are the brothers of the devils (shayāṭīn, see devil)» (q 17:27). Al-Ṭabarī (Tafsīr, xv, 74) adds: «In this way the Arabs (q.v.) speak of anyone who adheres to a habit of a people and follows their tradition: [he is] their brother».

Other verses show that the brotherhood of the believers entails a feeling of mutual affection and interdependence regardless of gender. Thus q 3:195 reads: «And their Lord answers them, ‘I do not/will not cause the action of anyone of you to be lost, whether male or female; you depend on/belong to/proceed from each other (baʿḍukum min baʿḍin).’» Similarly q 9:71 reads: «The believers, male and female, are friends/guardians of each other (baʿḍuhum awliyāʾ baʿḍin)». Indeed, q 59:9, which refers to the Emigrants from Mecca and the Helpers in Medina but may be generalized to indicate the degree to which all true believers prefer the interests of other believers to their own, reads: «They do not find envy in their hearts for that which has been given [to the emigrants] but prefer them to themselves even if there be poverty amongst themselves. Whoever guards himself from the avarice (q.v.) of his own soul, those are the truly fortunate». (See also the next verse, q 59:10 and compare q 64:16).

According to some modernists all humans are believers by nature, and only by willful commitment to evil leave that state. Some verses might be seen to support this view. There are those who associate others with God (mushrikūn, see idolatry and idolaters); «but» — adds a verse which need not be read as exclusively designating Muslims — «if they repent and establish worship (q.v.) and pay the alms-tax (zakāt, see almsgiving), they are your brothers (ikhwān) in religion» (q 9:11). And in a verse which seems from its context to be addressed to the righteous (al-muttaqīn), they are promised that in heaven (q.v.): «We shall root out whatever [remains] of hatred in their hearts; [they shall be] as brothers (ikhwān) on raised couches, face to face» (q 15:47). If this verse is addressed to the righteous, both Muslim and non-Muslim, it conceives of brotherhood as their universal reward and ideal condition in the future life.

Elaboration of the concept of brotherhood as a heightened form of religious identification became prominent in medieval Islam. Literary examples of this would include the writings of the Brotherhood of Purity (Ikhwān al-Ṣafāʾ) and of Ibn Abī l-Dunyā (d. 281/894), whose ideas on «brotherhood» in God are often quoted by al-Ghazālī (d. 505/1111) in book 15 of his Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn. Historical formulations, especially those associated with Ṣūfism, are a prominent feature of religious life in virtually every Islamic century (see ṣūfism and the qurʾān).

Bibliography

• Bayḍāwī, Anwār
• al-Ghazālī, Abū Ḥāmid Muḥammad, Iḥyāʾ ʿulūm al-dīn, 4 vols., Būlāq 1289/1872, ii, 138-97
• Ibn Abī l-Dunyā, Kitāb al-Ikhwān, ed. M. Ṭawliba, Cairo 1988 (rev. by M. ʿAr Khalaf)
• Jalālayn
• al-Rāghib al-Iṣfahānī, Mufradāt, Beirut 1412/1992
• Ṭabarī, Tafsīr
• Ṭūsī, Tibyān