Ṭāhā

وَهَلْ أَتَاكَ حَدِيثُ مُوسَي

إِذْ رَأَي نَاراً فَقَالَ لاَِهْلِهِ امْكُثُوْا إِنّـِي ءَانَسْتُ نَاراً لَّعَلّـِي ءَاتِيكُم مّـِنْهَا بِقَبَسٍ أَوْ أَجِدُ عَلَي النَّارِ هُدًي

فَلَمَّآ أَتَاهَا نُودِيَ يَامُوسَي

إِنّـِي أَنَاْ رَبُّكَ فَاخْلَعْ نَعْلَيْكَ إِنَّكَ بِالْوَادِ الْمُقَدَّسِ طُوًي

9. “And has the story of Moses reached you?”
10. “When he saw a fire, then he said to his family: ‘Wait (a little)! Verily I perceive a fire; perhaps I can bring you a brand from it, or may find some guidance at the fire’.”
11. “Then when he came to the fire, he was called: ‘O Moses!”
12. “Verily I am your Lord! Therefore take off your shoes! Verily you are in the holy valley of Tuwa’.”

The Arabic term /qabas/ means: a piece of fire apart from another. Somewhere in the current Surah, a few points of the story of Moses (as) have been stated in details. Among them are the followings:

1. The choice of Moses (as) for Messengership.

2. The invitation of Moses (as) from Pharaoh to accepting the Truth.

3. Moses’ coming out from Egypt and Pharaoh’s being drowned.

4. Calf worshipping of the Children of Israel.

Moses (as), accompanied with his pregnant wife, went on a trip, and they lost their way in the desert. In the rainy, dark and cold desert, they needed a fire for both its heat and light to find the way. Then suddenly a fire was seen from the distance. In order to get the fire to comfort his family, Moses (as) went toward the fire, where there came a voice by which Allah elected Moses (as) as an apostle.¹³ Yes, in order to save himself and his family, Moses (as) went toward the fire, but Allah opened the path of saving others to him. Moses was seeking for the road on the ground, while Allah showed him the spiritual way and the path of happiness. He was looking for his personal way, where Allah endowed him the way of guidance of the community.

In relation to this matter, the Qur’an, addressing the holy Prophet (S), says:

By hearing that enlivening sound, addressing him:

Moses (as) got very excited and an indescribable pleaure encompassed him thoroughly. He was commissioned to take off his shoes, because he had entered into a holy land: a land wherein the light of Allah was seen, the Message of Allah was heard, and he was to accept the responsibility of Apostleship. He ought to step on this land with utmost humility and modesty. That was why he should take off his shoes.

Explanations

1. The appellation of Moses has been mentioned in 20 suras of the Qur’an for 136 times. The story of Moses is the longest stories of the Qur’an, because around nine hundred verses of the Qur’an concern to it.

2. The term /rabb/ (the Lord), which is one of ‘the Most Beautiful Names’ of Allah, has occurred more than 970 times in the Qur’an, and in His first manifestation to Moses (as), Allah introduced Himself by this Name, saying:

And, since Moses’ prophethood began with the word of Allah,¹⁴ he was entitled /kalimullah/ (the Interlocutor of Allah).

3. The phrase /wad-il-muqaddas/ (the holy valley) is used fore a place far from defect and vice; and the word /tuwa/ means something or somewhere which is blessed.

4. An Islamic tradition denotes that the purpose of ‘taking the shoes’ is detaching the heart from two anxieties: one of his anxieties was about the situation of his wife in that cold desert; and his second anxiety was about the evil of Pharaoh.¹⁵

Some commentators also believe that this holy Qur’anic phrase points to the wife and child, or to the love of the world and Hereafter. The phrase under discussion has also occurred in the present Turah with the same form of meaning.