:salam2:
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Source:
Qasas Al Qur’an
Translation by Yusuf Ali
Tafseer by Ibn-Katheer
***Introduction and Summanry of Surah Al Fil or The Elephant:
**The early Meccan Surah refers to an event that happened in the year of the birth of our Holy Prophet 
, say about 570 A.D. Yemen was then under the rule of the Abyssinians (Christian), who had driven out the Jewish Himyar rulers. Abraha Ashram was the Abyssinian governor or viceroy. Intoxicated with power and fired by religious fanaticism, he led a big expedition against Mecca, intending to destroy the Ka’aba. He had an elephant or elephants in his train. But his sacrilegious intention were defeated by a miracle. No defence was offered by the custodian of the Ka’ba as the arym was too strong for them, but it was believed that a shower of stones, thrown by flocks of birds, destroyed the invading army almost to a man. The stones produces sores and pustules on the skin, which spread like a pestilence.
Owners of the Elephant
Allah the almighty says: "Have You (O Muhammad not seen how your Lord dealt with the owners of the Elephant? The Elephant army which came from Yemen under the command of Abraha Al-Ashram intending to destroy the Ka’ba at Makkah]. Did He not make their plot go astray? And He sent against them birds, in flocks. Striking them with stones of sijjil (baked clay). And He made them like (an empty field on stalks) of which the corn has been eaten up by cattle).
At-Tabari said: The first one to tame elephants was Ifridun Ibn Athqiyan who killed Ad-Dahhaq. He was the first to use saddle for horses. But, the first one to tame and ride on horses was Tahmuris, the third king on earth. It is also said that Ismail Ibn Ibrahim a.s. was the first to ride horses. It is probably that he was the first one to ride on them from among the Arabs, and Allah knows the best.
It is said: Though the elephant is so huge, he fears from cats. Thereupon, some worloards, during their fight against the Indians, brought some cats to the battlefield the matter that forced the elephants to bolt.
Ibn Ishaq said: the governor or viceroy, Abraha Al-Ashram built a huge and very lofty church, and wrote to the king of Abyssinia, Negus that “I hae built you a church that is unprecedented, and I am intending to divert pilgrimage from Mecca to Abyssinia”.
Al-Suhaili said: Abraha Al-Ashram subjugated the Yemenites to build that mean church and forced them to taste several sorts of humiliation. He used to cut off the hand of the one who comes late for labor till the sun rises. He took many valuable things from the palace of Bilqis to add thereto. He took marbles, precious stones, and valuable luggage. Moreover, he erected gold and silver crosses, built ebony and ivory pulpits, and raised the church’s stature and expanded its width. Afterwards, when Abraha was killed, whosever tried to take anything out of its body or ornaments, the Jinn were reluctant and hesitant to do him harm. For, it was built above the burial of two idols called Ku’aib and his wife, the height of which was abut sixty cubits. So, the Yemenites left it untouched till the era of Al-Saffah, the first Abbaside Caliph. He, Al-Saffah, sent a group of pious scholars of wil firm who totally demolished it, and it was destroyed then till the present day.
Ibn Ishaq said: When the Arabs heard of the letter of Abraha sent to Negus, a man from Kinanah got angry. He sent out till he reached the church where he urinated on its walls (as a sign of showing anger and mockery). No body noticed him, and upon that the returned home safely. The news reached Abraha who asked about the doer. He was answered: this wad done by on of those Arabs who perform pilgrimage to the Ka’ba at Mecca when he heard of your declared intention that you would divert pilgrimage from their sacred house to your (recently-built) church. He (the Arab) got angry and come to excrete therein declaring it to be unqulified (to the event). Upon hearing this, Abraha burst with rage and took oath that he would demolish the Ka’ba. Then, he ordered the Abyssinians (Christians) to get prepared for war. He led a big expedition against Mecca accompanying an elephant or elephants in his train. The Arabs heard of the news and they were terrified, but they decided to fight him when the news was affirmed that he intended to destroy the Sacred house. A man from among the noblemen of Yemen called Dhu Nafar set out for him accompanied with his own clan and those who answered his call to fight against Abraha. The two parties met, Dhu Nafar and his followers were defeated and he himself was taken as a prisoner of war. H was then brought before Abraha who was abou to kill him, but Dhu Nafar said: “O king! Don’t kill me, I m,ay be of any use to you.” Abraha did nto kill him and he kept him tied up in custody. Then Abraha went on intending what he set out for. He arrived at the land of Khath’am where he encountered with Nufail Ibn Habib Al-Khath’ami who was leading his two ribes -Shahran and Nahis along with his followers from the Arabs. Nufail was defeated and taken as prisoner of war to be brough before Abraha. Abraha intended to kill him, but Nufail said: "O king! Don’t kill me. I may guide you to the destination you desire. Here you are! My pledge of allegiance. Abraha set him free and took him as a guide. When they passed by Taif, there came to him Mas’ud Ib Mutab Ibn Malik Ibn Kab Ibn Amr Ibn Sad Ibn Auf Ibn Thaqif along with his followers who said: "O king! we are nothing but your slaves, we listen and obey, no hostility is ever there between you and us, and our House is not that which you want i.e. At Lat you only want the House in Mecca. Hence, we send with you someone who leads you thereto.
to be continued.
I edited. 