[Pooya/Ali Commentary 93:3] Allah never forsakes His devoted servants, much less His prophets and messengers. Thus verse 3 contradicts the reported cry of agony of Isa: "My God, why have You forsaken me". (Mark 15: 34 and Matthew 27: 46). In the beginning of the ministry of the Holy Prophet there was a short interval during which he received no revelation. The pagans jeered at him as one forsaken by Allah, and slandered and persecuted him as well as those who believed in him, but his faith in Allah was never shaken and he never thought that Allah was not pleased with him, as the talents of his enemies suggested. He was not in need of any assurance to dispel the feelings of loneliness which might have weighed on his mind as some commentators try to interpret. Nevertheless this verse was revealed to put an end to the mischievous speculations of the enemies of Allah and the Holy Prophet. The Jews of Madina were aware of the prophesy of the advent of the Holy Prophet written in the Tawrat and the Injil, so they advised the pagans of Makka to ask the following questions from him: (i) Who were as-habul kahf? (ii) Who was Dhul Qarnayn? (iii) What is soul? As the Holy Prophet never said anything save that which he was commanded to say by Allah (Najm; 3 to 6), he waited for the revelation to give the answers. The answers were revealed to him after three days. In the meantime the pagans indulged in the mischievous speculations mentioned above. He told them that he would give answers only when he received them through revelation. His dependence and reliance upon Allah's will was unshakeable. All other interpretations are mere conjectures. Though external hindrances used to come in the Holy Prophet's way but he was always confident of the success of his divine mission. Real greatness in this world and the hereafter belongs to him. Material gains were not the source of satisfaction for him. It is the right of intercession on behalf of his followers, granted to him, which pleased him the most. He said at several occasions that it would grieve him much if even one soul fails to obtain the eternal bliss. So as promised all the divine attributes of Allah were received by the thoroughly purified Holy Prophet which he manifested to mankind as the true vicegerent of Allah. In spite of ups and downs he constantly progressed unto infinite perfection as said in verse 8. See commentary of Ta Ha: 114, Bani Israil: 1 and Najm: 1 to 10. Jalal al Din al Suyuti writes in Tafsir Durr al Manthur that the Holy Prophet, as soon as he received this surah, verse 5, went to Fatimah Zahra's house and recited the glad tidings given in verse 5 to her. His happiness knew no bounds when he was given the authority to intercede on behalf of those whom he found suitable for receiving pardon of Allah. Aqa Mahdi Puya says: An unequivocal assurance is given to the Holy Prophet that whatever satisfies him will be given to him. Verses 6 to 8 say that he was always under the constant care and protection of Allah. In all these verses "He found him" is mentioned with the conjunctive particle fa which is used to say that as soon as Allah found him in any condition an action was taken as a consequence without any lapse of time between His finding and the action taken. There cannot be any gap or lapse of time between the creation of Muhammad and the grant of wisdom and guidance to him as well as availability of full satisfaction to his needs from the commencement of his existence in physical as well as in spiritual realms. So verses 2 to 10 of Najm and verses 1 to 4 of Rahman confirm these verses that the Holy Prophet is infallible. Verse 6 refers to the divine protection arranged for the Holy Prophet when his father Abdullah died before he was born and his mother died when he was only six years old. His grandfather Abdul Muttalib died two years later. Thereafter his uncle Abu Talib loved him, protected him and brought him up as his own son. See commentary of Bara-at : 113. Thus the protection given by Allah to the Holy Prophet was through Abu Talib; and so when the pagan Arabs joined hands to oppose the Holy Prophet, in the process of their hostile scheming and plotting they included Abu Talib also. In the most adverse conditions which the Holy Prophet faced in the beginning of his divine mission Abu Talib stood like a "cemented wall" to protect him and while going away from this world gave his son, Ali, to him as the most trustworthy, reliable and unconquerable defender of the faith and the preacher of the faith. The history of Islam is a witness to the singular services Ali rendered to protect the Holy Prophet and his mission. Imam Ali bin Musa ar Rida said that the word yatim, in this verse means lonely or unattended. The character of the Holy Prophet was, even in his childhood and youth, exemplary and exceptional in the most wayward environment of Makka as is borne out by even his worst enemies. He remained aloof from the coarse and licentious practices of the young around him. Living in the midst of the worst idolatry and polytheism of Makka, reserved and meditative, endowed with refinement, truthfulness and utmost honesty, he earned the titles, by common consent, of al amin and as sadiq. He was under the constant guidance and care of Allah. So there is no implication whatever of error or fallibility on his part. The Arabic root dalla (in verse 7) has various shades of meaning. Here it does not mean astray or ignorant but in view of the occasion of revelation it should be translated "lost". While taking the Holy Prophet to his grandfather, his nurse Halimah left him by the roadside and went inside the desert to clean herself. When she came back the child was not there. After receiving the news from Halimah, Abdul Muttalib, with his friends and relatives, conducted a thorough search but the Holy Prophet was not traceable. Halimah, while making her own queries, met an old man in the precinct of Ka-bah and asked him: "Where is Muhammad?" It is said that when the name of the Holy Prophet was pronounced the idols fell on the ground in Ka-bah. In the meantime Abdul Muttalib arrived there with his men and invoked Allah's help to find out the Holy Prophet. A voice announced: "Go to the valley of Tahamah. He is there." Then Warqa bin Nawfil came and told Abdul Muttalib that he saw the boy in the valley of Tahamah. They at once went there and found the Holy Prophet playing with the branches of a tree. The Holy Prophet, whom his grandfather had not seen since his birth, told him: "I am Muhammad" He took him in his arms and embraced him for a long time. This verse refers to the event mentioned above. Verse 7 also implies that the knowledge the Holy Prophet possessed was perfect because he never acquired knowledge from any mortal but was taught by Allah Himself. See commentary of Baqarah: 78; Rahman: 2 to 4 and Najm: 2 to 10. Imam Ali bin Musa ar Rida said: "The Holy Prophet was lost in the ignorance of the people, so Allah brought his light among them in order to guide them to have true knowledge about him." Verses 2 of Najm clearly asserts that he had never gone astray, so the word dalla cannot be translated as wandering or going astray. Some commentators wrongly interpret this verse to say that the wealth of Khadija Kubra made him independent of worldly needs, enabling him to devote his whole life to the service of Allah. Actually independence refers to the "self-sufficiency" which Allah had bestowed on His most beloved prophet.