Dought & Clear, - Do the words of Allah, “And full-breasted maidens of equal age (wa kawaa‘ib atraaban)”describe the breasts of al-hoor al-‘iyn?.

I have a question which has been bothering me alittle bit on my view
of islam, regarding surah 78 verse 32-33. In english translation it
says: (31) Gardens enclosed and vineyards, (32) And full-breasted''
maidens of equal age.
What does this verse mean exactly?
Does it litterally mean that people in paradise will be given women
with good looking breast?
Doesnt feel good reading it in a relgious script.
I dont see why it has to be said anyway,it already says in the
quranthat men will get married with good looking wives . Whats the
point of pointing outthe look of the womens breast in paradise?
Praise be to Allah.
First of all, we thank you for getting in touch withour website and we
hope that you will find ituseful and beneficial.
To answer your question, we would say that any critic of any text,
whether it is a sacred text or a work of human literature, must pay
attention in his criticism to the environment in which the text
originally appeared, in terms of time, place, people and
circumstances. When thecritic wants to develop a precise understanding
of a particular expression, he also has to closely examine the roots
of that phrase in the language in which it originally appeared, the
various ways in which it is used, and the meaningand general context
for which it is used.
The fair-minded researcher is the one who always assumes that
translation is not able to transmit the meaning as intended, and the
translation is not going to be able to choose the right vocabulary
that conveys all the shades of meaning carried in the original words,
on the basis of the environmentin which the original words were used.
If he does not bear this in mind, he will not be ableto reach the
proper understanding and correct conclusion.
Based on that, we say to you that with regard to the literal
translation of the word kawaa'ib, it is the plural of the word kaa'ib,
which refers to a female with developing breasts, as it says in Majmal
al-Lughah, 1/787
Ibn Faaris (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
Ka'b comes from a soundroot that is indicative of a thing beginning to
develop and emerge. From the same root comes the word ka'b, which
refers to the ankle, which is the bone on the two sides of the lower
leg where it meetsthe foot; and the word Ka'bah which refers to the
House of Allah, may He be exalted; it is so called because of its
prominence and its square shape. A woman is described as kaa'ib when
her breasts begin to develop. End quote from Maqaayees al-Lughah,
5/186. See also al-Qaamoos al-Muheet, p. 131; Lisaan al-'Arab, 1/719.
This is the literal meaning of the word in terms of linguistic roots.
But it is very inappropriate to limit one's examination to theliteral,
dictionary meaning of the roots of a word in any language; rather it
is also essential to pay attention to the context in which the
speakers of that language themselves usea word. Do you not see that
the Arabs use the word al-haa'id (lit. menstruating) in ways other
than its literal meaning? Rather they may use this word to refer to an
adult woman who has reached the age when she begins to menstruate;
they do not mean that she has got her monthly period at that moment in
time. Forexample, it is proven from 'Aa'ishah (may Allah be pleased
with her) that the Prophet (blessings and peace of Allah be upon him)
said: "Allah does not accept the prayer of any haa'id without a head
cover." Narrated by Abu Dawood, 641. It is well known in Islamic
teachings that it is not valid for a woman to offer the prayer at the
time of her menses; rather it is forbidden for her to do that,
accordingto scholarly consensus, until her period ends and she
purifies herself after that.
The one who understands this word according to its literal, dictionary
meaning will encounter this erroneous contradiction.But the one who
understands it as it is used by the Arabs, referring to an adult woman
who has reached the age when she begins to menstruate, even if she is
not actually menstruating at the moment, will understand the hadeeth
properly and will understand the way in which the Arabs use the word.
We may say something similar about describing a woman as kaa'ib in
Arabic; it is not intended as an erotic, physical description of any
part of the woman's body, as much as it is intended as a description
of the girl in terms of the emergence of the signs of femininity in
her, as an indication of her young age and youthfulness, so that men
would be attracted to her. At this age the signs of femininity beginto
appear in the girl. Thepoint of using this word is not to describe the
size of the breasts or to note their form or shape; rather the purpose
is to highlight the woman's youthfulness.
Ibn al-Jawzi (may Allah have mercy on him) said:
The woman is a tiflah (little girl) when she is small, waleedah when
she begins to walk, then a kaa'ib when her breasts begin to appear,
then a naahid when they increase in size, then ma'sar when she reaches
the age of puberty, then khawd when she reaches the age of a young
woman.
End quote from Akhbaar an-Nisa', p. 228.
It says in Sharh Ma'aani Shi'r al-Mutanabbi by Ibn al-Ifleeli (vol. 1,
2/270): A young man is called shaabb and a young woman is called
kaa'ib. End quote.
Imam az-Zajjaaj – who isone of the leading scholars of the Arabic
language – says:
The phrase "wa kawaa'ib atraaban (translated above as: And
full-breasted maidens of equal age)" means that they are all of the
same age, which is the pinnacle of youth and beauty.
End quote from Ma'aani al-Qur'an wa I'raabihi, 4/338
Look at how the scholars(may Allah have mercy on them) explain this
description, kaa'ib, as referring to one of the stages in a girl's
life; it is not intended as an erotic description of her body, even
though that may be the literal meaning.
This is exactly the same as the way in which the Arabs use the word
haa'id to refer to reaching the age of physical maturity; they do not
mean that the woman is actually menstruating.
There is further clear evidence in the fact that the Arabs use this
word in both poetry and prosein the context of describing a woman's
chastity and honourable nature, not in the context of an erotic
description aimed at provoking desire. When the Arab poet describes a
girl as kaa'ib, he is not referring to her breasts or their size or
roundness; rather it is a description of any younggirl, and this word
is used in pure and refinedtypes of love poetry that are far removed
from any sexual connotations.
ath-Tha'labi said in al-Kashf wa'l-Bayaan (10/118):
Hence al-Maawardi (mayAllah have mercy on him) said in his commentary
on the word kawaa'ib in this verse: It refers to maidens or virgins.
This was stated by ad-Dahhaak.
End quote from an-Nukat wa'l-'Uyoon, 6/188.
This report from ad-Dahhaak was narrated by Ibn al-Mundhir; ad-Durr
al-Manthoor, 8/398
If you study the Holy Qur'an, you will always find metaphors using
words that eloquently convey subtle meanings, such as the verse in
which Allah describes the marital relationship (interpretation of the
meaning):
"They are your garmentsand ye are their garments"
[al-Baqarah 2:187].
Other examples:
"And among His Signs is this, that He created for you wives from among
yourselves, that you mayfind repose in them, andHe has put between you
affection and mercy. Verily, in that are indeedsigns for a people who
reflect"
[ar-Room 30:21]
"…or you have been in contact with women…"
[an-Nisa' 4:43].
If you were to translate these phrases literally, the meaning would
not be understood, because the literal translation of the words libaas
(garments), sakan (repose) and lamas (touch, contact) does notconvey
what is meant. Rather the context of theverses indicates that what is
meant here is a metaphor that refers to the reality of marital
life,but from a spiritual point of view. But if you translate these
words into English in the sense of sexual intercourse, that may lead
to thinking that the Holy Qur'an speaks a great deal about physical
desires and uses words that directly refer to that, when that is not
the case.
We are establishing this so that you will understand the importance of
the critic paying attention to Arabic usage of the word according to
its context, and the importance of paying attention to the gap thata
literal translation may cause between the real meaning and the literal
meaning of the word.
After studying a number of translations of the meanings of the Holy
Qur'an into English it becomes clear that the translators differed in
the ways in which they rendered the meaning of this verse, "wa
kawaa'ib atraaban"; they fall into two categories.
The first group gave the literal meaning of the word without paying
attention to the usage ofthis word in the context of referring to age.
So the translation appearedin the following wording which caused
confusion to the questioner:
"And young full-breasted(mature) maidens of equal age."
It was translated in this manner by Dr. Taqiy ad-Deen al-Hilaali and
Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan, in the Translation of the Meanings of the
Noble Qur'an, printed by the King Fahd Complex for the Printing of the
Holy Qur'an (p. 811). This is a link to their official site:
http://www.qurancomplex.org/Quran/Targama/Targama.asp?l=arb&t=eng&nSora=78&nAya=31
It was translated in a similar manner by both Laleh Baktiar and Ibrahim Walk.
This is an imprecise translation, not only because it does not pay
attention to what we have discussed above of the intended meaning
ofthe word kawaa'ib, but also because it does not pay attention to the
dictionary meaning either. "Full-breasted" inEnglish is indicative of
the size of a woman's breasts and describes them as being large and
full, when in fact the literal, dictionary meaning of the word kaa'ib
is the one whose breasts are beginning todevelop or have begun to
appear, as quoted above from Arabic dictionaries. This means that they
have begun to appear and take on the feminine form, not that they have
become completely developed as is implied by the word "full".
Arthur J Arberry translated it as follows:
"and maidens with swelling breasts, like of age."
Sarwar translated it in a similar manner:
"maidens with pears-shaped breasts who are of equal age"
Another translation says:
"and voluptuous womenof equal age".
All of these are translations a focus on the physical shape of
thebreasts. Describing the breasts is being pear-shaped or voluptuous
or swelling are phrases that are imprecise and do not reflect the
intended meaning of the Arabic phrases.
The second group paid attention to what we have mentioned above and
translated the meaning of the word kawaa'ib according to the context
in accordance with the intended meaning, and not the unintended
literal meaning. We will quote these translations here, with the names
of the translators, and we call upon translators to correct their
translations.
The best of them in our opinion is the translation of Maulana Muhammad Ali:
And youthful (companions), equals in age"
The other correct translations are as follows:
Marmaduke Pickthall: "And maidens for companions"
Abdullah Yusuf Ali: "Companions of equal age"
Muhammad Taqi Uthmani: "And buxom maidens of matching age".
You can see most of these translations on thewebsite of the Royal Aal
al-Bait Institute for Islamic Thought at the following link:
http://www.altafsir.com/ViewTranslations.asp?Display=yes&SoraNo=78&Ayah=33&toAyah=33&Language=2&LanguageID=2&TranslationBook=3
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