﴿189﴾ “They ask you about the new moons. Say: They are markers of time for people and for Hajj. Righteousness does not consist in entering houses from the back; rather, righteousness is found in one who fears Allah. Enter houses through their doors, and fear Allah so that you may prosper.”
Allah Most High says (1): “They ask you about the new moons”—the plural of “new moon.” What benefit and wisdom do they hold? Or perhaps they are asking about the new moons themselves. “Say: They are markers of time for people.” That is, by His grace and mercy, Allah Most High arranged them in this manner: the new moon first appears faint at the beginning of the month, then waxes until the middle of the month, after which it begins to wane until the month is complete. This enables people to determine the appointed times of their acts of worship, including fasting, zakat, expiations, and Hajj.
Because Hajj takes place during well-known months and spans a considerable period, He says: “and for Hajj.” The phases of the moon also enable people to determine the due dates of deferred debts, the terms of leases, prescribed waiting periods, the term of pregnancy, and other matters that people need to know. Allah Most High therefore made this a system of reckoning that everyone—young or old, learned or ignorant—can understand. Were reckoning based on the solar year, only a rare few among people would know it.
“Righteousness does not consist in entering houses from the back.” When the Ansār and other Arabs entered the state of ritual consecration, they would not enter houses through their doors, intending this as an act of worship and believing it to be righteousness. Allah informed them that it was not righteousness (2), because Allah Most High had not prescribed it for them. Whoever performs as worship any act that Allah and His Messenger have not prescribed is engaging in a religious innovation. He commanded them to enter houses through their doors because this afforded them ease, and ease is one of the foundational principles of Islamic law.
The verse also indicates that, in every undertaking, a person should take the easy and direct route that has been made a means of reaching the intended goal. Thus, one who enjoins what is right and forbids what is wrong should consider the condition of the person being addressed and employ gentleness and wise handling so that the intended aim, or at least part of it, may be achieved. Both student and teacher should likewise follow the shortest and easiest path by which their objective may be attained. In the same way, whoever undertakes any task, approaches it through its proper doors, and perseveres in it ⦗89⦘ will assuredly achieve the intended goal, with the aid of the Sovereign, the One worthy of worship.
“And fear Allah.” This is the righteousness that Allah has commanded: maintaining fear of Him at all times by obeying His commands and avoiding His prohibitions. This is the means to prosperity, which consists in attaining what is sought and being saved from what is feared. Whoever does not fear Allah Most High has no path to prosperity, while whoever fears Him will attain prosperity and success.