meaning of munkar

Having dealt with ziHar, Allah then proceeded to call it a munkar and a zuwra. Munkar is what we will be able to work on here, zuwra should be next after that.

Munkara mminal qawl, though translated as ‘objectionable statement’, is more closer in meaning to ‘particularly hurtful thing to say’ than mere ‘objectionable’ as we will see when we dive deep into what it means.

The root alphabets of the word are nun, kef and ra. The mim before it is a conjunctive pronoun which give the nakara a character of continuity that persists in the person ziHar is being done to.

11 forms of nakr occurred a total of 37 times in the Quran, and it means to be discerning, cunning, denial, disown, to be ignorant of something, to fail to recognize. We find this expression particularly rich when we take a look at Q27 V41 wherein Sulaimon told the Jinns to ‘disguise (nakir) for her her throne…’. So there is a sense of alteration, for something to not be easily recognizable. And that is particularly crucial when one realizes that munkar is actually used as an opposite to ma’ruf.

As in Q3 V110 where Allah said ‘…tamuruna bil ma’rufi wa tanHawna a’nil munkar…’ which is colloquially translated as ‘enjoin what is right and forbid what is wrong’. Ma’ruf’s mim is also a conjunctive pronoun, and so the root alphabets are ain, ra, and fa. Without going deep into a’rf, I will relate one instance to show how it is a perfect opposite to nakr, since, as we’ve seen, it means for something to be disguised, or altered in a way that the discerning mind should not be able to recognize.

Prophet Yusuf, in Q12 V58 when his brothers went to him for their supplies unbeknownst to them that he is Yusuf that they threw down a well years ago, Allah said, ‘and the brothers of Joseph came [seeking food], and they entered upon him; and he recognized (a’rafa) them, but he was to them unknown (nkir)’.

So we see both words being used as opposites again in the story of Yusuf, a’raf and nkir. Though ma’ruf means ‘good’, so does a handful of words in the Arabic literature, part of which includes hasan, khayr and the list goes on. But classically, a good act is said to be ma’ruf if the said good act is done based on one’s ‘recognition’ that the receiver likes the act done. In other words, giving someone a gift is good, but giving them a gift that you know, recognize, based on prior knowledge, that they particularly like, that would be ma’ruf.

Before going into munkar, it will be amiss of me not to mention that in Q4 V19 and other verses on the subject of marriage and divorce like Q65 V4 and V6; Q2 V228, V229, V231, V232, and V233; Allah commanded that husbands must do ma’ruf to their wives within their marriage, and even when they are in the waiting period and about to be divorced. Ma’ruf here and there, sprinkled enough for everyone to see, albeit a difficult thing to do at that time – in the case of someone awaiting divorce – it may that it is in doing this ‘particularly good thing’ that your spouse likes that your heart and her heart will soften towards each other and you two decide to stay married. As Allah said in Q41 V34 that ‘…repel evil by that which is better; and thereupon the one whom between you and him is enmity [will become] as though he was a devoted friend.’

That written, I digress, now let’s use the knowledge of what we know now to understand what is meant when Allah called ziHar a munkar. Did you see what I did there? ‘Using the knowledge of what we know’, recognize? A’rf? #PunRich 

Anyway, this means that it is not just an objectionable thing to say, it is to say something that you know that they won’t like. Custom made for them to be hurtful. So the flavor that munkar adds to the despicable nature of the act is that it is one that the husband knows will hurt the woman. And as Q3 V110 says, we should ‘forbid munkar’, we shouldn’t be doing munkar, whether to one’s spouse – whom we’ve been enjoined to do ma’ruf to – or to anyone.

Though not every objectionable thing one says will qualify as munkar, every munkar will be objectionable. And though not all munkar will qualify as ziHar, all ziHar will qualify as munkar. In the Q4 V19 that I quoted above, Allah said ‘…and live with them with ma’ruf…’.

May Allah make it easy for spouses to live with one another with ma’ruf. Amin. And may Allah make it easy for spouses to stay away from munkar. Amin.

Now, let’s look into zuwr.