Surah Kafiroon

"Say Oh Disbelievers."
The Kuffar had insulted the Messenger SAW by saying, 'Batara
Muhammadun' (Muhammad is cut off in lineage). Allah SWT gave the Messenger SAW permission to respond to them directly by saying, 'Oh Kafiroon' (Oh Disbelievers). The insult they hurled at Him was Atbar and the word they hurled back at them is Kafir.
- Their insult had no reality, because it just isn't true. It's in fact the opposite - his mention will be made until the Day of Judgement. In reality, the Messenger SAW is the opposite of Atbar. On the other hand, the insult stated by Allah fits them perfectly.
- When they criticised the Prophet SAW it had no basis because the Prophet SAW is the most perfect of characters. However Allah SWT's criticism uses an attribute that's tied to an action. So it's not a bad word for them but actually represents a a crime that which they are guilty of.


"I do not worship that which you worship."
The word 'Abd is a combination of worship and slavery. The Kuffars refused to worship Allah and to be His Slaves. To refuse to pray Salaat is refusing to worship but refusing to obey parents, give charity to the poor, assist the orphans are all examples of refusing to be slaves. The Arabs worshipped idols and were slaves of their Nafs (ego). They would not care whether their actions went against the Law of Allah, they would still do them. In this Ayah, Prophet SAW is refuting both of these, He says, "I do not (and will not) worship that which you worship." And also I will not be enslaved to my Nafs. Worship such as Salaat is time-constricted whereas being the slave of Allah is a full time job! Our problem is that sometimes we worship Allah but we don't act like His slave. A true 'Abd is both.

Ibaadah
اِطَاعَتْ Obedience to Allah SWT. You may obey the creation as long as it does not go against the orders of Allah SWT. If you have to choose between Allah and the Creation, you must choose Allah and He is our Master.
حُبٌ اَلله Love for Allah which overrides our love for anything else. Those who believe are intense in their love for Allah. We love others too but they all come under of Allah. We are to love the Messenger SAW after Allah.
تَوَكُلْ Trust in Allah an integral part of our beliefs. What Allah's plan is, is the best for me and there is wisdom behind His plans  even though it may not seem so at the moment. A lot of times we may think 'Why me?' but we must realise that having full trust is imperative to our faith.
اِخْلاص Sincerity, this is where a person renders their acts of worship solely for Allah's pleasure. Do not mix your intentions, do things for Allah only; not for the pleasure of people. We should never worship to show off to others because that makes our deeds useless and no reward is gained. Sometimes we do something good for another person and they don't even show gratitude and we can get annoyed, but we should always remember that Allah has watched you do that good deed and your reward is with Him. We should not look for appreciation from others.
Being a slave of Allah means that no contract is drawn and there is no discussion about it. Allah SWT has mentioned in the Quran,

"Oh you who have believed, Enter into Islam completely (and perfectly) and do not follow in the footsteps of Shaytaan, Indeed he is your open enemy." [2:208]

As slaves of Allah, there is no contract or discussion, we must obey what Allah has ordered us and in return we will gain His Pleasure and a pleasant life in the Hereafter. This is what makes you a slave of Allah; that you obey Allah's commands without asking questions. But the Kuffar used to say that they do Allah's Ibaadah but didn't want to accept His conditions. These conditions have come from Allah to Rasul SAW and we must accept them as Allah, as Allah has said and Prophet SAW has shown, without any alterations.

The Kuffar at the time, outnumbered the Believers and also had political power and social status. So they felt that they had position and strength and that the Messenger SAW lacked in this. They felt that this allowed them to pressurise the Messenger SAW and so offered Him a compromise; we will accept your religion for a year and you accept our religion for a year. Or we will give you some wealth and you leave us alone. The Kuffar came with two compromises and this is why this Ayah is mentioned twice.

"For you is your religion and for me is my religion"
This Ayah is probably one of the most misunderstood Ayah's of all time. It is often mistranslated and with this brings confusion. The word لَكُمْ implies exclusivity, what is actually being said is, "Your religion, your way of life is only for you. It is and will never be for me. And similarly for وَ لِىَ دِينِ my religion is only for me when it comes to you. In other words, there is never going to be any exchange, that time has passed. It is a very finalising Ayah in the sense that after a decade of Da'wah, the Messenger SAW is saying that your Deen must go in order for Me to complete My mission. And what is that? 

To purify the religion of Ibrahim AS by reclaiming the House of Allah for the purpose it was built for. And that can't be done with the idols there. In order for the Deen of Allah to be complete, their Deen has to go!

NOTE: Credits for the above goes to the Bayyinah student who transcribed the lecture notes for the Tafseer of this Surah by Ustaadh Nouman Ali Khan. The link for the lecture and notes can be found below: http://www.nakcollection.com/surah-kafirun.html 

May Allah increase the 'Ilm of all the students who study there and bless their Ustaadhs abundantly for their efforts. Ameen.