Surat al-Kawthar
Encyclopedia
Sūrat al-Kawthar ("Abundance") is the 108th
sura of the Qur'an
, and the shortest. There are several differing opinions as to the circumstances under which it was revealed. According to Ibn Ishaq
, it was revealed in Makka, some time before the Isra and Miraj.
بِسۡمِ اللّٰہِ الرَّحۡمٰنِ الرَّحِیۡمِ
(O Prophet,) surely We have given to you Al-Kauthar (a puddle in Paradise). [1] So, offer Salah (prayer) to your Lord, and sacrifice. [2] Surely it is your enemy whose traces are cut off. [3]
English Translation by Mohammed Marmaduke Pickthall:
Lo! We have given thee Abundance. [1] So pray unto they Lord, and sacrifice. [2] Lo! It is thy insulter (and not thou) who is without posterity. [3]
English Translation by Yusuf Ali:
To thee have We granted the Fount (of Abundance). [1] Therefore to thy Lord turn in Prayer and Sacrifice. [2] For he who hateth thee, he will be cut off (from Future Hope). [3]
2. Fa-salli li-Rabbika wanhar
3. Inna shaani-aka huwal abtar
Translation:
1. Indeed, We have granted you, [O Muhammad], al-Kawthar.
2. So pray to your Lord and sacrifice to Him Alone [i.e. by way of slaughter of animal livestock].
3. Indeed, your enemy will always be in destitute (cut-off).
Tradition has it that al-Kawthar (from a root meaning "the river in paradise"), a word that occurs only once
in the Qur'an, is the name of a river in Paradise
. On Yaum al-Qiyamah
(the Day of Judgement) all of those who truly believe in Allah
will be led to al-Kawthar where they will drink only once, and will never hunger or thirst again.
of Kawthar:
Kawthar - (faww'al - through hyperbolisation /mubalaghah /maximization).
Hyperbolise/Mubalaghah مبالغة :
[to empower a word to its maximum in its meaning (i.e. muscle it up)] - say something in an extremely powerful way, with no exaggerations attached.
al Kawthar - katheer / kathra (to have plenty) - incredible loads of amounts, lots and lots and lots and lots.. of it.
Katheer كث ير has a Y [letter Ya] in it.
KaWthar كوثر has a W [letter Waw] in it.
In Balaghah/Arabic Rhetoric - the Waw و is stronger than the Ya ي .
The 3 Steps:
1 - Kathra كثر means 'Alot'
2 - Katheer كثير emphasises - a lot more abundance than kathra.
3 - KaWthar كوثر = even more than Katheer - ABUNDANCE of A LOT.
This is used to describe khayr al katheer (Abundance of Good).
Al-Qurtubi
:
The Arabs used to describe anything in a lot of; quality, quantity, and it is very valuable that you have to guard it = al Kawthar.
I.e. al Jawhar min al Jahr (the Gem from the gems), al Nawfal min al Nafl etc.
When you say Katheer - it can refer to a lot of good or bad things.
KaWthar however, can only refer to good things. (kawthar is mutakhassas - specific, to good only.)
Everything Allah
has given him is incredibly good, and it is in Abundance.
AL kawthar ال كوثر - the Abundance.
kawtharaN كوثرن[with taNween] - MANY different good things.
Because of the AL (the) - it refers to one thing.
Some have therefore argued that AL kawthar only refers to the Water in Paradise and Judgment Day, because it is only 1 AL kawthar. (based on the reports/athar which mention it).
However, when you refer to something with an adjective
[i.e. saying 'You have been given a lot'] - without mentioning the Noun
[i.e. without mentioning what you have been given a lot of'], then it can refer to many things, even if AL is mentioned next to it.
So Allah mentioned Al Kawthar (the Abundant Good). Abundant Good of what? It is not mentioned - so it is possible that it refers to many different types of good.
Plenty, Alot, kawthar, without a noun (object) opens possibilities for a lot of good in lots of different forms.
Narrations in regard to the Meaning of al Kawthar;
Can be found in;
Tafsir ibn Kathir
Ma'arif al Qur'an
Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj
, Abu Dawud and An-Nasa'i, all recorded from Anas ibn Malik
that he said, "While we were with the Messenger of Allah in the Masjid, he dozed off into a slumber. Then he lifted his head smiling. We said, `O Messenger of Allah! What has caused you to laugh' He said,
«لَقَدْ أُنْزِلَتْ عَلَيَّ آنِفًا سُورَة»
(Verily, a Surah was just revealed to me.) Then he recited,
[إِنَّآ أَعْطَيْنَـكَ الْكَوْثَرَ - فَصَلِّ لِرَبِّكَ وَانْحَرْ - إِنَّ شَانِئَكَ هُوَ الاٌّبْتَرُ ]
(Verily, We have granted you Al-Kawthar. Therefore turn in prayer to your Lord and sacrifice. For he who hates you, he will be cut off.) Then he said,
«أَتَدْرُونَ مَا الْكَوْثَرُ؟»
(Do you all know what is Al-Kawthar) We said, `Allah and His Messenger know best.' He said,
«فَإِنَّهُ نَهَرٌ وَعَدَنِيهِ رَبِّي عَزَّ وَجَلَّ،عَلَيْهِ خَيْرٌ كَثِيرٌ، هُوَ حَوْضٌ تَرِدُ عَلَيْهِ أُمَّتِي يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ، آنِيَتُهُ عَدَدُ النُّجُومِ فِي السَّمَاءِ، فَيُخْتَلَجُ الْعَبْدُ مِنْهُمْ فَأَقُولُ: رَبِّ إِنَّهُ مِنْ أُمَّتِي، فَيَقُولُ: إِنَّكَ لَا تَدْرِي مَا أَحْدَثَ بَعْدَك»
(Verily, it is a river
that my Lord, the Mighty and Majestic, has promised me and it has abundant goodness. It is a pond where my Ummah will be brought to on the Day of Judgement. Its containers are as numerous as the stars in the sky
. Then a servant of Allah from among them will be (prevented from it) and I will say: "O Lord! Verily, he is from my Ummah (followers). Then He (Allah) will say: "Verily, you do not know what he introduced (or innovated) after you.) This is the wording of Muslim. Ahmad recorded this Hadith from Muhammad bin Fudayl, who reported from Al-Mukhtar bin Fulful, who reported it from Anas bin Malik. Imam Ahmad also recorded from Anas that the Messenger of Allah said,
«دَخَلْتُ الْجَنَّةَ فَإِذَا أَنَا بِنَهْرٍ حَافَتَاهُ خِيَامُ اللُّؤْلُؤِ، فَضَرَبْتُ بِيَدِي إِلَى مَا يَجْرِي فِيهِ الْمَاءُ، فَإِذَا مِسْكٌ أَذْفَرُ، قُلْتُ: مَاهَذَا يَا جِبْرِيلُ؟ قَالَ: هَذَا الْكَوْثَرُ الَّذِي أَعْطَاكَهُ اللهُ عَزَّ وَجَل»
(I entered Paradise
and I came to a river whose banks had tents made of pearls. So I thrust my hand into its flowing water and found that it was the strongest (smell) of musk
. So I asked, "O Jibril! What is this He replied, "This is Al-Kawthar which Allah, the Mighty and Majestic has given you.) Muhammad al-Bukhari
recorded this in his Sahih, and so did Muslim, on the authority of Anas bin Malik. In their version Anas said, "When the Prophet was taken up to the heaven
, he said,
«أَتَيْتُ عَلَى نَهْرٍ حَافَتَاهُ قِبَابُ اللُّؤْلُؤِ الْمُجَوَّفِ فَقُلْتُ: مَا هَذَا يَا جِبْرِيلُ؟ قَالَ: هَذَا الْكَوْثَر»
(I came to a river whose banks had domes of hollowed pearl. I said: "O Jibril! What is this He replied: "This is Al-Kawthar.) This is the wording of Al-Bukhari. Ahmad recorded from Anas that a man said, "O Messenger of Allah! What is Al-Kawthar He replied,
«هُوَ نَهْرٌ فِي الْجَنَّةِ أَعْطَانِيهِ رَبِّي، لَهُوَ أَشَدُّ بَيَاضًا مِنَ اللَّبَنِ، وَأَحْلَى مِنَ الْعَسَلِ، فِيهِ طُيُورٌ أَعْنَاقُهَا كَأَعْنَاقِ الْجُزُر»
(It is a river in Paradise which my Lord has given me. It is whiter than milk and sweeter than honey. There are birds in it whose necks are (long) like carrots.) `Umar
said, "O Messenger of Allah! Verily, they (the birds) will be beautiful. The Prophet replied,
«آكِلُهَا أَنْعَمُ مِنْهَا يَا عُمَر»
(The one who eats them (i.e., the people of Paradise) will be more beautiful than them, O `Umar.) Al-Bukhari recorded from Sa'id ibn Jubayr
that `Abd Allah ibn `Abbas
said about Al-Kawthar, "It is the good which Allah gave to him (the Prophet). Abu Bishr said, "I said to Sa`id bin Jubayr, `Verily, people are claiming that it is a river in Paradise. Sa`id replied, `The river which is in Paradise is part of the goodness which Allah gave him. Al-Bukhari also recorded from Sa`id bin Jubayr that Ibn `Abbas said, "Al-Kawthar is the abundant goodness. This explanation includes the river and other things as well. Because the word Al-Kawthar comes from the word Kathrah (abundance) and it (Al-Kawthar) linguistically means an abundance of goodness. So from this goodness is the river (in Paradise). Imam
Ahmad ibn Hanbal
recorded from `Abd Allah ibn `Umar
that the Messenger of Allah said,
«الْكَوْثَرُ نَهْرٌ فِي الْجَنَّةِ حَافَتَاهُ مِنْ ذَهَبٍ، وَالْمَاءُ يَجْرِي عَلَى اللُّؤْلُؤِ، وَمَاؤُهُ أَشَدُّ بَيَاضًا مِنَ اللَّبَنِ، وَأَحْلَى مِنَ الْعَسَل»
(Al-Kawthar is a river in Paradise whose banks are of gold
and it runs over pearls. Its water is whiter than milk
and sweeter than honey
.) This Hadith was recorded in this manner by Tirmidhi, Ibn Majah, Ibn Abi Hatim and Ibn Jarir. At-Tirmidhi said, "Hasan Sahih.
From Tafseer ibn Katheer - Surah Kawthar; http://tafsir.com/default.asp?sid=108&tid=59319
al Qurtubi comments in Jami' al Ahkam:
Even the narrations of standing at the (mawqif) pond
(called kawthar) are many, just as the amount of narrations suggesting al Kawthar is the river in Paradise
.
So al Kawthar could refer to both the pond outside Paradise on Judgment Day, and the river in Paradise.
It is possible that this river was called Kawthar because of the huge numbers of the followers from the Ummah
(nation) of Prophet Muhammad (O Allah make us of them) who will drink from it.
O Allah make us from them, ameen.
Or maybe because of the benefits and because of plenty (katheer) of water is flowing from it.
Ibn Abbas and Sa'eed ibn Jubair; It is the great good which Allah has granted exclusively to His Messenger.
Sa'eed bin Jubair was narrating this to Abu Bishr, so Abu Bishr asked; But the people assume this is a river in Paradise?
Sa'eed: bin Jubair The river Allah gave his Messenger in Paradise, is also part of the good abundance (kawthar) Allah has given him.
The Abundant Good which Allah gave to His Messenger includes:
Mentioned by ash-Shawkani and al Aloosi:
1 -وَإِنَّكَ لَعَلَىٰ خُلُقٍ عَظِيمٍ - surely you (O Muhammad) are upon a great moral character. (Surat al-Qalam
68:4)
The Muslims should be proud of their Messenger, that whatever he did - he did in the best way. We should not feel apologetic.
2 -Nubuwwah
and Risala
(Prophethood and Messengership) - carrying the final Book and Words of Allah to mankind up till the Day of Judgment.
3 - وَمَا أَرْسَلْنَاكَ إِلَّا رَحْمَةً لِّلْعَالَمِينَ - and We did not send you as a Messenger, except as a mercy to all the worlds. (Al-Anbiya
21:107)
108 (number)
108 is the natural number following 107 and preceding 109.- In mathematics :One hundred [and] eight is an abundant number and a semiperfect number...
sura of the Qur'an
Qur'an
The Quran , also transliterated Qur'an, Koran, Alcoran, Qur’ān, Coran, Kuran, and al-Qur’ān, is the central religious text of Islam, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God . It is regarded widely as the finest piece of literature in the Arabic language...
, and the shortest. There are several differing opinions as to the circumstances under which it was revealed. According to Ibn Ishaq
Ibn Ishaq
Muḥammad ibn Isḥaq ibn Yasār ibn Khiyār was an Arab Muslim historian and hagiographer...
, it was revealed in Makka, some time before the Isra and Miraj.
Arabic Verses
بِسۡمِ اللّٰہِ الرَّحۡمٰنِ الرَّحِیۡمِ
- اِنَّاۤ اَعۡطَیۡنٰکَ الۡکَوۡثَرَ
- فَصَلِّ لِرَبِّکَ وَ انۡحَرۡ
- اِنَّ شَانِئَکَ ہُوَ الۡاَبۡتَرُ
English translation of Arabic Verses
English Translation by Muhammad Shameem, Mohammad Wali Raazi and Muhammad Taqi Usmani:(O Prophet,) surely We have given to you Al-Kauthar (a puddle in Paradise). [1] So, offer Salah (prayer) to your Lord, and sacrifice. [2] Surely it is your enemy whose traces are cut off. [3]
English Translation by Mohammed Marmaduke Pickthall:
Lo! We have given thee Abundance. [1] So pray unto they Lord, and sacrifice. [2] Lo! It is thy insulter (and not thou) who is without posterity. [3]
English Translation by Yusuf Ali:
To thee have We granted the Fount (of Abundance). [1] Therefore to thy Lord turn in Prayer and Sacrifice. [2] For he who hateth thee, he will be cut off (from Future Hope). [3]
Transliteration and Detailed Explanation of Verses
1. Inna a'taynaka al-kawthar2. Fa-salli li-Rabbika wanhar
3. Inna shaani-aka huwal abtar
Translation:
1. Indeed, We have granted you, [O Muhammad], al-Kawthar.
2. So pray to your Lord and sacrifice to Him Alone [i.e. by way of slaughter of animal livestock].
3. Indeed, your enemy will always be in destitute (cut-off).
Tradition has it that al-Kawthar (from a root meaning "the river in paradise"), a word that occurs only once
Hapax legomenon
A hapax legomenon is a word which occurs only once within a context, either in the written record of an entire language, in the works of an author, or just in a single text. The term is sometimes used incorrectly to describe a word that occurs in just one of an author's works, even though it...
in the Qur'an, is the name of a river in Paradise
Paradise
Paradise is a place in which existence is positive, harmonious and timeless. It is conceptually a counter-image of the miseries of human civilization, and in paradise there is only peace, prosperity, and happiness. Paradise is a place of contentment, but it is not necessarily a land of luxury and...
. On Yaum al-Qiyamah
Qiyamah
In Islam, Yawm al-Qiyāmah or Yawm ad-Din is believed to be God's final assessment of humanity as it exists. The sequence of events is the annihilation of all creatures allowable, resurrection of the body, and the judgment of all sentient creatures.The exact time when these events are to occur...
(the Day of Judgement) all of those who truly believe in Allah
Allah
Allah is a word for God used in the context of Islam. In Arabic, the word means simply "God". It is used primarily by Muslims and Bahá'ís, and often, albeit not exclusively, used by Arabic-speaking Eastern Catholic Christians, Maltese Roman Catholics, Eastern Orthodox Christians, Mizrahi Jews and...
will be led to al-Kawthar where they will drink only once, and will never hunger or thirst again.
Commentary
Linguistic DefinitionDefinition
A definition is a passage that explains the meaning of a term , or a type of thing. The term to be defined is the definiendum. A term may have many different senses or meanings...
of Kawthar:
Kawthar - (faww'al - through hyperbolisation /mubalaghah /maximization).
Hyperbolise/Mubalaghah مبالغة :
[to empower a word to its maximum in its meaning (i.e. muscle it up)] - say something in an extremely powerful way, with no exaggerations attached.
al Kawthar - katheer / kathra (to have plenty) - incredible loads of amounts, lots and lots and lots and lots.. of it.
Katheer كث ير has a Y [letter Ya] in it.
KaWthar كوثر has a W [letter Waw] in it.
In Balaghah/Arabic Rhetoric - the Waw و is stronger than the Ya ي .
The 3 Steps:
1 - Kathra كثر means 'Alot'
2 - Katheer كثير emphasises - a lot more abundance than kathra.
3 - KaWthar كوثر = even more than Katheer - ABUNDANCE of A LOT.
This is used to describe khayr al katheer (Abundance of Good).
Al-Qurtubi
Al-Qurtubi
Imam Abu 'Abdullah Al-Qurtubi or Abu 'Abdullah Muhammad ibn Ahmad ibn Abu Bakr al-Ansari al-Qurtubi was a famous mufassir, muhaddith and faqih scholar from Cordoba of maliki origin. He is most famous for his commentary of the Quran, Tafsir al-Qurtubi....
:
The Arabs used to describe anything in a lot of; quality, quantity, and it is very valuable that you have to guard it = al Kawthar.
I.e. al Jawhar min al Jahr (the Gem from the gems), al Nawfal min al Nafl etc.
When you say Katheer - it can refer to a lot of good or bad things.
KaWthar however, can only refer to good things. (kawthar is mutakhassas - specific, to good only.)
Everything Allah
Allah
Allah is a word for God used in the context of Islam. In Arabic, the word means simply "God". It is used primarily by Muslims and Bahá'ís, and often, albeit not exclusively, used by Arabic-speaking Eastern Catholic Christians, Maltese Roman Catholics, Eastern Orthodox Christians, Mizrahi Jews and...
has given him is incredibly good, and it is in Abundance.
AL kawthar ال كوثر - the Abundance.
kawtharaN كوثرن[with taNween] - MANY different good things.
Because of the AL (the) - it refers to one thing.
Some have therefore argued that AL kawthar only refers to the Water in Paradise and Judgment Day, because it is only 1 AL kawthar. (based on the reports/athar which mention it).
However, when you refer to something with an adjective
Adjective
In grammar, an adjective is a 'describing' word; the main syntactic role of which is to qualify a noun or noun phrase, giving more information about the object signified....
[i.e. saying 'You have been given a lot'] - without mentioning the Noun
Noun
In linguistics, a noun is a member of a large, open lexical category whose members can occur as the main word in the subject of a clause, the object of a verb, or the object of a preposition .Lexical categories are defined in terms of how their members combine with other kinds of...
[i.e. without mentioning what you have been given a lot of'], then it can refer to many things, even if AL is mentioned next to it.
So Allah mentioned Al Kawthar (the Abundant Good). Abundant Good of what? It is not mentioned - so it is possible that it refers to many different types of good.
Plenty, Alot, kawthar, without a noun (object) opens possibilities for a lot of good in lots of different forms.
Narrations in regard to the Meaning of al Kawthar;
Can be found in;
Tafsir ibn Kathir
Tafsir ibn Kathir
Tafsir al-Qur'an al-Azim, popularly Tafsir ibn Kathir , is a classic Sunni Islam tafsir by Ibn Kathir....
Ma'arif al Qur'an
Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj
Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj
Abul Husayn Muslim ibn al-Hajjaj ibn Muslim ibn Warat al-Qushayri al-Nisaburi was the author of the second authentic sahih collection of hadith in Sunni Islam, Sahih Muslim.-Biography:...
, Abu Dawud and An-Nasa'i, all recorded from Anas ibn Malik
Anas ibn Malik
Anas bin Malik ibn Nadar al-Khazraji Al-Ansari was a well-known sahabi of the Islamic prophet Muhammad.He was an Ansar of the Banu Khazraj . He is not to be confused with Malik ibn Anas. Anas ibn Malik, the last of the Companions of the Prophet died at al-Basrah in 93 AH aged 103.-Muhammad's...
that he said, "While we were with the Messenger of Allah in the Masjid, he dozed off into a slumber. Then he lifted his head smiling. We said, `O Messenger of Allah! What has caused you to laugh' He said,
«لَقَدْ أُنْزِلَتْ عَلَيَّ آنِفًا سُورَة»
(Verily, a Surah was just revealed to me.) Then he recited,
[إِنَّآ أَعْطَيْنَـكَ الْكَوْثَرَ - فَصَلِّ لِرَبِّكَ وَانْحَرْ - إِنَّ شَانِئَكَ هُوَ الاٌّبْتَرُ ]
(Verily, We have granted you Al-Kawthar. Therefore turn in prayer to your Lord and sacrifice. For he who hates you, he will be cut off.) Then he said,
«أَتَدْرُونَ مَا الْكَوْثَرُ؟»
(Do you all know what is Al-Kawthar) We said, `Allah and His Messenger know best.' He said,
«فَإِنَّهُ نَهَرٌ وَعَدَنِيهِ رَبِّي عَزَّ وَجَلَّ،عَلَيْهِ خَيْرٌ كَثِيرٌ، هُوَ حَوْضٌ تَرِدُ عَلَيْهِ أُمَّتِي يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ، آنِيَتُهُ عَدَدُ النُّجُومِ فِي السَّمَاءِ، فَيُخْتَلَجُ الْعَبْدُ مِنْهُمْ فَأَقُولُ: رَبِّ إِنَّهُ مِنْ أُمَّتِي، فَيَقُولُ: إِنَّكَ لَا تَدْرِي مَا أَحْدَثَ بَعْدَك»
(Verily, it is a river
River
A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...
that my Lord, the Mighty and Majestic, has promised me and it has abundant goodness. It is a pond where my Ummah will be brought to on the Day of Judgement. Its containers are as numerous as the stars in the sky
Sky
The sky is the part of the atmosphere or outer space visible from the surface of any astronomical object. It is difficult to define precisely for several reasons. During daylight, the sky of Earth has the appearance of a pale blue surface because the air scatters the sunlight. The sky is sometimes...
. Then a servant of Allah from among them will be (prevented from it) and I will say: "O Lord! Verily, he is from my Ummah (followers). Then He (Allah) will say: "Verily, you do not know what he introduced (or innovated) after you.) This is the wording of Muslim. Ahmad recorded this Hadith from Muhammad bin Fudayl, who reported from Al-Mukhtar bin Fulful, who reported it from Anas bin Malik. Imam Ahmad also recorded from Anas that the Messenger of Allah said,
«دَخَلْتُ الْجَنَّةَ فَإِذَا أَنَا بِنَهْرٍ حَافَتَاهُ خِيَامُ اللُّؤْلُؤِ، فَضَرَبْتُ بِيَدِي إِلَى مَا يَجْرِي فِيهِ الْمَاءُ، فَإِذَا مِسْكٌ أَذْفَرُ، قُلْتُ: مَاهَذَا يَا جِبْرِيلُ؟ قَالَ: هَذَا الْكَوْثَرُ الَّذِي أَعْطَاكَهُ اللهُ عَزَّ وَجَل»
(I entered Paradise
Paradise
Paradise is a place in which existence is positive, harmonious and timeless. It is conceptually a counter-image of the miseries of human civilization, and in paradise there is only peace, prosperity, and happiness. Paradise is a place of contentment, but it is not necessarily a land of luxury and...
and I came to a river whose banks had tents made of pearls. So I thrust my hand into its flowing water and found that it was the strongest (smell) of musk
Musk
Musk is a class of aromatic substances commonly used as base notes in perfumery. They include glandular secretions from animals such as the musk deer, numerous plants emitting similar fragrances, and artificial substances with similar odors. Musk was a name originally given to a substance with a...
. So I asked, "O Jibril! What is this He replied, "This is Al-Kawthar which Allah, the Mighty and Majestic has given you.) Muhammad al-Bukhari
Muhammad al-Bukhari
Muhammad Ibn Ismail Ibn Ibrahim Ibn al-Mughirah Ibn Bardizbah al-Bukhari , popularly known as Bukhari or Imam Bukhari, , was a Sunni Islamic scholar of Persia...
recorded this in his Sahih, and so did Muslim, on the authority of Anas bin Malik. In their version Anas said, "When the Prophet was taken up to the heaven
Heaven
Heaven, the Heavens or Seven Heavens, is a common religious cosmological or metaphysical term for the physical or transcendent place from which heavenly beings originate, are enthroned or inhabit...
, he said,
«أَتَيْتُ عَلَى نَهْرٍ حَافَتَاهُ قِبَابُ اللُّؤْلُؤِ الْمُجَوَّفِ فَقُلْتُ: مَا هَذَا يَا جِبْرِيلُ؟ قَالَ: هَذَا الْكَوْثَر»
(I came to a river whose banks had domes of hollowed pearl. I said: "O Jibril! What is this He replied: "This is Al-Kawthar.) This is the wording of Al-Bukhari. Ahmad recorded from Anas that a man said, "O Messenger of Allah! What is Al-Kawthar He replied,
«هُوَ نَهْرٌ فِي الْجَنَّةِ أَعْطَانِيهِ رَبِّي، لَهُوَ أَشَدُّ بَيَاضًا مِنَ اللَّبَنِ، وَأَحْلَى مِنَ الْعَسَلِ، فِيهِ طُيُورٌ أَعْنَاقُهَا كَأَعْنَاقِ الْجُزُر»
(It is a river in Paradise which my Lord has given me. It is whiter than milk and sweeter than honey. There are birds in it whose necks are (long) like carrots.) `Umar
Umar
`Umar ibn al-Khattāb c. 2 November , was a leading companion and adviser to the Islamic prophet Muhammad who later became the second Muslim Caliph after Muhammad's death....
said, "O Messenger of Allah! Verily, they (the birds) will be beautiful. The Prophet replied,
«آكِلُهَا أَنْعَمُ مِنْهَا يَا عُمَر»
(The one who eats them (i.e., the people of Paradise) will be more beautiful than them, O `Umar.) Al-Bukhari recorded from Sa'id ibn Jubayr
Sa'id ibn Jubayr
Sa'id bin Jubayr , also known as Abū Muhammad, was originally from Kufa, in modern-day Iraq. He was regarded as one of the leading members of the Tabi‘in and was counted by Sheikh al-Tusi as one of the companions of the fourth Imam, Ali ibn Husayn...
that `Abd Allah ibn `Abbas
`Abd Allah ibn `Abbas
Abd Allah ibn Abbas was a paternal cousin of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. He is revered by Muslims for his knowledge and was an expert in Tafsir , as well as an authority on the Islamic Sunnah.-Family:...
said about Al-Kawthar, "It is the good which Allah gave to him (the Prophet). Abu Bishr said, "I said to Sa`id bin Jubayr, `Verily, people are claiming that it is a river in Paradise. Sa`id replied, `The river which is in Paradise is part of the goodness which Allah gave him. Al-Bukhari also recorded from Sa`id bin Jubayr that Ibn `Abbas said, "Al-Kawthar is the abundant goodness. This explanation includes the river and other things as well. Because the word Al-Kawthar comes from the word Kathrah (abundance) and it (Al-Kawthar) linguistically means an abundance of goodness. So from this goodness is the river (in Paradise). Imam
Imam
An imam is an Islamic leadership position, often the worship leader of a mosque and the Muslim community. Similar to spiritual leaders, the imam is the one who leads Islamic worship services. More often, the community turns to the mosque imam if they have a religious question...
Ahmad ibn Hanbal
Ahmad ibn Hanbal
Ahmad bin Muhammad bin Hanbal Abu `Abd Allah al-Shaybani was an important Muslim scholar and theologian. He is considered the founder of the Hanbali school of fiqh...
recorded from `Abd Allah ibn `Umar
`Abd Allah ibn `Umar
Abdullah ibn Umar was the son of the second Caliph Umar ibn Khattab. He was a prominent authority in hadith and law, and was known for his neutrality toward factions engaged in the first civil war within the Muslim community ....
that the Messenger of Allah said,
«الْكَوْثَرُ نَهْرٌ فِي الْجَنَّةِ حَافَتَاهُ مِنْ ذَهَبٍ، وَالْمَاءُ يَجْرِي عَلَى اللُّؤْلُؤِ، وَمَاؤُهُ أَشَدُّ بَيَاضًا مِنَ اللَّبَنِ، وَأَحْلَى مِنَ الْعَسَل»
(Al-Kawthar is a river in Paradise whose banks are of gold
Gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
and it runs over pearls. Its water is whiter than milk
Milk
Milk is a white liquid produced by the mammary glands of mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals before they are able to digest other types of food. Early-lactation milk contains colostrum, which carries the mother's antibodies to the baby and can reduce the risk of many...
and sweeter than honey
Honey
Honey is a sweet food made by bees using nectar from flowers. The variety produced by honey bees is the one most commonly referred to and is the type of honey collected by beekeepers and consumed by humans...
.) This Hadith was recorded in this manner by Tirmidhi, Ibn Majah, Ibn Abi Hatim and Ibn Jarir. At-Tirmidhi said, "Hasan Sahih.
From Tafseer ibn Katheer - Surah Kawthar; http://tafsir.com/default.asp?sid=108&tid=59319
al Qurtubi comments in Jami' al Ahkam:
Even the narrations of standing at the (mawqif) pond
Pond
A pond is a body of standing water, either natural or man-made, that is usually smaller than a lake. A wide variety of man-made bodies of water are classified as ponds, including water gardens, water features and koi ponds; all designed for aesthetic ornamentation as landscape or architectural...
(called kawthar) are many, just as the amount of narrations suggesting al Kawthar is the river in Paradise
Paradise
Paradise is a place in which existence is positive, harmonious and timeless. It is conceptually a counter-image of the miseries of human civilization, and in paradise there is only peace, prosperity, and happiness. Paradise is a place of contentment, but it is not necessarily a land of luxury and...
.
So al Kawthar could refer to both the pond outside Paradise on Judgment Day, and the river in Paradise.
It is possible that this river was called Kawthar because of the huge numbers of the followers from the Ummah
Ummah
Ummah is an Arabic word meaning "community" or "nation." It is commonly used to mean either the collective nation of states, or the whole Arab world...
(nation) of Prophet Muhammad (O Allah make us of them) who will drink from it.
O Allah make us from them, ameen.
Or maybe because of the benefits and because of plenty (katheer) of water is flowing from it.
Ibn Abbas and Sa'eed ibn Jubair; It is the great good which Allah has granted exclusively to His Messenger.
Sa'eed bin Jubair was narrating this to Abu Bishr, so Abu Bishr asked; But the people assume this is a river in Paradise?
Sa'eed: bin Jubair The river Allah gave his Messenger in Paradise, is also part of the good abundance (kawthar) Allah has given him.
The Abundant Good which Allah gave to His Messenger includes:
Mentioned by ash-Shawkani and al Aloosi:
1 -وَإِنَّكَ لَعَلَىٰ خُلُقٍ عَظِيمٍ - surely you (O Muhammad) are upon a great moral character. (Surat al-Qalam
Surat al-Qalam
Sūrat al-Qalam is the 68th sura of the Qur'an with 52 ayat.-Summary:The Surat describes Allah's justice and the Judgment Day. It also predicts the coming of an age when people will not want to read the Quran, regarding it as a myth from ancient times. - External links :* at Sacred Texts...
68:4)
The Muslims should be proud of their Messenger, that whatever he did - he did in the best way. We should not feel apologetic.
2 -Nubuwwah
Nubuwwah
In Islam, Nubuwwah means "Prophethood" and denotes that God has appointed perfect Prophets and Messengers to teach mankind Gods religion. Nubuwwah is among the five Shi'a Roots of Religion....
and Risala
Risala
Risāla means "message" in Arabic. It is also an Islamic term that has a broader meaning.- Islamic term :The Message is sometimes a way to refer to Islam. In the Islamic context, ar-Risāla means scriptures revealed from God through a Messenger to the people...
(Prophethood and Messengership) - carrying the final Book and Words of Allah to mankind up till the Day of Judgment.
3 - وَمَا أَرْسَلْنَاكَ إِلَّا رَحْمَةً لِّلْعَالَمِينَ - and We did not send you as a Messenger, except as a mercy to all the worlds. (Al-Anbiya
Al-Anbiya
Sura Al-Anbiya is the 21st sura of the Qur'an with 112 ayat. It is a Meccan sura. Its principal subject matter is prophets of the past, who also preached the same faith as Muhammad...
21:107)