The Meaning of Daraba: Difference between revisions

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The Meaning of Daraba (view source)

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==Modern Claims==
==Modern Claims==


An argument has been presented on some (progressive) Islamic websites and by some (progressive) Muslims and apologists which claim to have "modern" translations of the [[Qur'an]] .<ref>Such as [http://free-minds.org Free-Minds.org] and [http://progressive-muslims.org Progressive-Muslims.org]</ref>  
An argument has been presented on some (progressive) Islamic websites and by some (progressive) Muslims and apologists which claim to have "modern" translations of the [[Qur'an]]<ref>Such as [http://free-minds.org Free-Minds.org] and [http://progressive-muslims.org Progressive-Muslims.org]</ref>, which claims that the Arabic verb "ضرب" "daraba" means something other than to "strike" "beat" or "hit." Alternatives offered include "separate from them" or somewhat nonsensically for a native English speaker  "strike them out." The people making these claims are generally seeking to "reform" [[Islam]], but this translation flies in the face of over a thousand years of understanding of the Arabic language, by Muslims and non-Muslims alike. These apologetic arguments are clearly directed people of a westernized/liberal background with little to no knowledge of Arabic, as any Muslim who has an adequate command of the [[Arabic]] language or any non-Muslim Arab, or any non-Arabic speaking Muslim familiar with the [[hadith]] and [[tafsir]] text [[Wife Beating in Islamic Law#Islamic_Scriptures_and_Wife-Beating|related to this issue]], will find the claim being presented to be ridiculous and primae facia untenable. Despite this, the obviously incorrect translation of this verb can be found in prominent cases such as that of Laleh Bakhtiar, an American Muslim apologist. She went so far as to incorporat this incorrect translation into her translation of the Qur'an, a translation which the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) refused to sell in their bookstore for its innaccuracy.
 
There is no argument made here against progressive thinking, this is something that should be encouraged. The objection and the need to respond lay in the fact that, rarely, are these arguments used in an attempt to "reform" [[Islam]]. It is only logical to conclude that you cannot reform something if you deny there was ever a problem with it to begin with.
 
These apologetic arguments are clearly directed at non-Muslims who are ignorant of Islam, as any Muslim who has an adequate command of the [[Arabic]] language or is familiar with the [[hadith]] and [[tafsir]] text [[Wife Beating in Islamic Law#Islamic_Scriptures_and_Wife-Beating|related to this issue]], will find the claim being presented to be ridiculous.  
 
An example of this can be found in the case of Laleh Bakhtiar, an American Muslim apologist. She too has incorporated this error into her "translation" of the Qur'an, a translation which the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA) refused to sell in their bookstore.
 
==Apologetic Claim==
 
The following verse (4:34) does not mean "to beat them," but rather to "separate from them" or to "strike them out."
 
==Agreed-Upon Translations==
==Agreed-Upon Translations==
As we can see below, almost all Qur'anic translators have translated the term as "beat them".
Almost all Qur'anic professional translators in English have translated the term as "beat them".


'''Yusuf Ali:'''
'''Yusuf Ali:'''
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==Qur'anic Meanings==
==Qur'anic Meanings==


Apologists attempt to back up their claim that ''darb'' does not mean "to beat them" (i.e. their wives) in verse 4:34 by providing us with several other verses in the Qur'an which contain the word ''darb'', being used to describe an action other than "to beat" or "to strike" (which are both very similar in Arabic):
The partisans of this argument attempt to back up their claim that ''daraba'' does not mean "to beat them" (i.e. their wives) in verse 4:34 by providing several other verses in the Qur'an which contain the word ''daraba'', being used to describe an action other than "to beat" or "to strike":


#To travel, to get out: See {{Quran|3|156}}; {{Quran|4|101}}; {{Quran|38|44}}; {{Quran|73|20}}; {{Quran|2|273}}
#To travel, to get out: See {{Quran|3|156}}; {{Quran|4|101}}; {{Quran|38|44}}; {{Quran|73|20}}; {{Quran|2|273}}
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#To explain: See {{Quran|13|17}}
#To explain: See {{Quran|13|17}}


Evidently, they have searched through the Qur'an for any verses which contain a derivative of the verb ''darb'' and then have compared their meanings, concluding that there are ten different meanings for the verb ''darb'' and something other than "to beat" can be applied to verse 4:34. Each of these differing usages of the verb ''darb'' will be thoroughly analyzed through the verses supporting them.
Evidently, they have searched through the Qur'an for any verses which contain a derivative of the verb ''daraba'' and then have compared their meanings, concluding that there are ten different meanings for the verb ''daraba'' and something other than "to beat" can be applied to verse 4:34. Each of these differing usages of the verb ''daraba'' are thoroughly analyzed below along with the verses in which they appear.


Once you have studied all those verses, you will find that they do not effect the interpretation of verse 4:34 whatsoever, and that the verb ''darb'' was indeed correctly understood and translated as "beat".
Once you have studied all those verses, you will find that they do not effect the interpretation of verse 4:34 whatsoever, and that the verb ''daraba'' was indeed correctly understood and translated as "beat".


In fact, all the other verses presented which contain ''darb'' are actually using the term figuratively. For example, "hit the sky" is a figurative expression; nothing can literally "hit" or "crash" with layers of gases, it is meant to be understood as "fly high through" the sky. These apologists will claim that this is a "different meaning" for the word "hit." So when someone says "I'll hit you," in actuality they meant "I'll fly high through you."  
In fact, all the other verses presented which contain ''darb'' are actually using the term figuratively. For example, "hit the sky" is a figurative expression; nothing can literally "hit" or "crash" with layers of gases, it is meant to be understood as "fly high through" the sky. These apologists will claim that this is a "different meaning" for the word "hit." So when someone says "I'll hit you," in actuality they meant "I'll fly high through you."  
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==Comparison with English Usages==
==Comparison with English Usages==


First of all, there is a very important concept that needs to be understood: The meaning of many verbs differ according to the ''objects'' they are applied to. Using the word "hit" in English as an example, which also means ''darb'', we will do exactly as the apologists have done, and will extract ten different meanings from the verb "hit."
A comparison with English is useful: The meaning of many verbs differ according to the ''objects'' they are applied to and the ''prepositions'' with which they are used. Using the word "hit" in English as an example, which also means ''daraba'', a number of derivitive and metaphorical meanings of  "hit" may be arrived at, similar to ''daraba''.  


===Ten Meanings for "Hit"===
===Ten Meanings for "Hit"===


The ten meanings are as follows (note that the nouns in the brackets are the objects to be hit):
The ten of these metaphorical/derived meanings are as follows (note that the nouns in the brackets are the objects to be hit):


#Go through (''Road'')
#Go through (''Road'')
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#Win (''Jackpot'')
#Win (''Jackpot'')


===Interpretations:===
===Examples:===


#When someone "hits the road," it means he "departed" or "went through the road." It surely doesn't mean he got a hammer and hit the road. Does "hit the woman" mean "go through the woman"?
#When someone "hits the road," it means he "departed" or "went through the road." It surely doesn't mean he got a hammer and hit the road. Does "hit the woman" mean "go through the woman"?
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#When someone says they "hit the jackpot" it actually means they "won the jackpot." Does "hit the woman" mean "win the woman"?
#When someone says they "hit the jackpot" it actually means they "won the jackpot." Does "hit the woman" mean "win the woman"?


As you can clearly see, each of those sentences require a different interpretation of the word "hit", which is applied accordingly to the object used in combination with it. With all these supposedly "different meanings" of the word "hit" in mind, what is your understanding of the sentence "I will hit my woman?"
As can clearly be seen, each of those sentences require a different interpretation of the word "hit", which is applied accordingly to the object used in combination with it. Yet ever with all of these "different meanings" of the word "hit" in mind, the sentence "I will hit my woman" remains clear: the meaning is "I shall strike my woman", or in Arabic "سوف أضرب إمرأتي" There is no possible alternative meaning to "I will ''beat'' my woman."' The difference between, for example, "hit the road" and "hit the woman", is the ''object'' to be hit, and not the meaning of "hit" itself; the meanings of the two sentences are different but clear.  
 
It still has no other meaning than "I will ''beat'' my woman."' The difference between, for example, "hit the road" and "hit the woman", is the ''object'' to be hit, and not the meaning of "hit" itself.
 
===Apologist logic===
 
This is the "logic" used by apologists to defend the Qur'an:
 
Maybe a new device, with the name of "Xiner" will be around, and "hitting the Xiner" will mean "powering-on the Xiner."
 
#"Hit the Xiner" means "power-on the Xiner"
#Both statements "hit the woman" and "hit the Xiner" use the word "hit"
#Therefore, "hit the woman" can also mean "power-on the woman" or "energize the woman"
 
The above, clearly demonstrates the irrationality of this reasoning. The meaning of "hit" depends on the object to be hit. The sentence "hit the Xiner" does not, under any circumstance, change or add a new meaning to the word "hit". This is a non-sequitur argument. The repetition of the word "hit" in the two phrases does not make a connection between them, as each one is being used in a different expression, and its meaning is only correctly understood from its own context, and not the other's. Therefore the conclusion reached is irrelevant.
 
The problem here is that they derive the meaning of ''darb'' from a "packaged" expression. The whole expression is what gives it meaning; breaking up an expression and deriving new meanings from its verb is not a logical thing to do. If they see this as logical, then they must agree "I'll hit my woman" in English also has ten different possible interpretations (Go through, Drink, Click, Land....etc). It should be understood that:
 
#When the object named "road" is hit, the whole statement means "go".
#When the object named "Xiner" is hit, the whole statement means "power-on the Xiner".
#When the object named "woman" is hit, the whole statement means "beat the woman".
 
The ten interpretations that have been given for the word hit, are in fact very similar to those which apologists have provided from the Qur'an as "different meanings of the word ''darb''."
 
The only way for "hit" to have multiple meanings in verse 4:34 is if it has been used more than once, against a human being, with different interpretations; for example, when "hit the woman" is found in the Qur'an to mean both "beat her" and to "abandon her," which ''is not'' the case.
 
Taking this into account, verses referring to hitting only parts of a human will not do the job sufficiently, as it can be claimed that when the Qur'an says "hit your feet" it simply means to "start walking"; thus verses mentioning the hitting of "ears" and "necks" will be dismissed. Although most of them do support the meaning "beat", the verses which mention hitting a whole human-being will be our only guide.
 
What has been explained here, can also be applied in Arabic, as even the expression "hit the road" is found in Arabic as "hit in the land", which means to "travel through the land." One of the most frequent Arabic expressions is also to "hit an example," which means to "give an example." So now, with this understanding, we can delve into the real work.


==Commentary==
==Commentary==


Most of the verses containing the ten different meanings which have been given by the apologists are using the verb ''darb'' (hit) not against human beings, but rather "hitting the land," "hitting an example," "hitting the truth"... etc. While in the few verses that ''darb'' was used against a human being, it meant to "beat" or "strike," which confirms our understanding of the use of ''darb'' in verse 4:34.
Most of the verses containing the ten different meanings which have been given by the apologists are using the verb ''daraba'' (hit) not against human beings, but rather "hitting the land," "hitting an example," "hitting the truth"... etc., clearly figurative uses which are derivative of the main meaning "to hit." In the verses in the Qur'an where ''daraba'' was used against a human being, it clearly means to "beat" or "strike," which confirms our understanding of the use of ''daraba'' in verse 4:34.
 
What will be discussed now is how the meaning of ''darb'' is not altered by its different interpretations in the given verses. We will present the transliteration, and word-by-word literal translation of the statement in '''Bold''' in each verse, which is the place where ''darb'' (hit) and its object (i.e. Land) are used; and above each verse you'll find the name of the object being hit. For example, if we encounter a phrase such as "hit an example," we will literally translate it as is, not as "give an example" like the standard Qur'anic translations. Although this translation may sound strange, it will make the object to be hit, easily identifiable for the non-Arabic speakers.
 
We translated all the verses for no other reason than to show that each time "darb" is used and has a different meaning than to "beat," it is not against a human being, but against other material and non-material objects. And each and every time it is used against a human, it had no other meaning than to "beat".
 
Please Note:
 
#The verses which mention hitting '''a whole human body''' will have their title in <font color="darkred">red</font>.
#We will skip the meanings of number 2 [to strike] and number 3 [to beat] that are provided by the Islamic sites, as they already confirm that women are beaten, and they will be discussed at the end, once we are finished with meaning number 10.
#You do not have to go through all of the verses covered. You can simply read the first verse in each of the eleven sections and the ones with a red title. The reason why all of the verses have been refuted, is to make the argument against these "modern translations" complete and comprehensive.


What follows now is a discussion of ''daraba'' in the contexts where it is found in the Qur'an. The original verse in Arabic will be presented, along with word-by-word literal translation of the statement in '''Bold''' in each verse, which is the place where ''daraba'' (hit) and its object (i.e. Land) are used; and above each verse will be found the name of the object being hit. For example, in the example of the phrase "hit an example," its will literally translation will be presented as is, not as "give an example" like the standard Qur'anic translations. Although this translation may sound strange, it will make the object to be hit, easily identifiable for the non-Arabic speakers.


This literal translation of all the verses for will show that each time "''daraba''" is used and has a different meaning than to "beat," it is not against a human being, but against other material and non-material objects. And each and every time it is used against a human, it has no other meaning than to "beat".
===Meaning number 1: To travel, to get out===  
===Meaning number 1: To travel, to get out===  


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