is the same as the way. Their opponents replied:

Na’y (“separation”) is broader in meaning than buʿd (“distance”), for na’y encompasses separation over distances both short and long; it is thus akin to parting. Buʿd, however, is used only when the distance separating things is great. Allah, Most High, says:

“They prevent others from it and keep away from it.”

They are censured for their avoidance and withdrawal, whether they were near or far. Not all of them were distant—especially according to those who say that this verse was revealed concerning Abū Tālib. Al-Nābighah said:

“And the trench was like a basin dug in hard, virgin ground.”

The word nu’y here means a trench dug around a tent so that water drains into it rather than entering the tent. That is, the trench had become like a basin: it lay alongside the tent, not far from it.