Tafseer of The City · Al-Balad · 90:1
I swear by this city, Makkah -
Important: The Arabic source text is always authoritative. This translation is a study aid and has not been verified by scholars — do not use it as a basis for religious proof or for deriving rulings (ahkam). When in doubt, always consult the Arabic text and a qualified scholar.
The statement concerning the interpretation of His word, the Exalted, whose praise is exalted and whose names are sanctified: لا أُقْسِمُ بِهَذَا الْبَلَدِ (1) ("I swear by this city").
The Exalted, whose remembrance is exalted, says: I swear, O Muḥammad, by this sacred city, and that is Mecca. And thus the people of interpretation (ahl al-taʾwīl) have also said it.
* Mention of who said that:
Muḥammad ibn Saʿd related to me, saying: my father related to me, saying: my uncle related to me, saying: my father related to me, on the authority of his father, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, concerning His word: لا أُقْسِمُ بِهَذَا الْبَلَدِ — that is to say: Mecca.
Abū Kurayb related to us, saying: Wakīʿ related to us, on the authority of Sufyān, on the authority of Manṣūr, on the authority of Mujāhid: لا أُقْسِمُ بِهَذَا الْبَلَدِ — he said: Mecca.
Ibn Bashshār related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Raḥmān related to us, saying: Sufyān related to us, on the authority of Manṣūr, on the authority of Mujāhid: لا أُقْسِمُ بِهَذَا الْبَلَدِ — he said: the sacred one (al-ḥarām).
Ibn Ḥumayd related to us, saying: Mihrān related to us, on the authority of Sufyān, on the authority of Manṣūr, on the authority of Mujāhid: لا أُقْسِمُ بِهَذَا الْبَلَدِ — he said: Mecca.
Ibn ʿAbd al-Aʿlā related to us, saying: Muḥammad ibn Thawr related to us, on the authority of Maʿmar, on the authority of Qatāda: لا أُقْسِمُ بِهَذَا الْبَلَدِ — he said: the city is Mecca.
Sawwār ibn ʿAbd Allāh related to us, saying: Yaḥyā ibn Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of ʿAbd al-Malik, on the authority of ʿAṭāʾ, concerning His word: لا أُقْسِمُ بِهَذَا الْبَلَدِ — that is to say: Mecca.
Yūnus related to me, saying: Ibn Wahb informed us, saying: Ibn Zayd said, concerning the word of Allah: لا أُقْسِمُ بِهَذَا الْبَلَدِ — he said: Mecca.
