Verse 33:32 of the Quran reads, in Arabic, as follows:

Ya nisaa alnnabiyyi lastunna kaahadin mina alnnisa-i ini ittaqaytunna fala takhdaAAna bialqawli fayatmaAAa allathee fee qalbihi maradun waqulna qawlan maAAroofan.

Allama Abdullah Yusuf Ali’s translation of the verse into English reads:

O Consorts of the Prophet! Ye are not like any of the (other) women: if ye do fear (Allah), be not too complacent of speech, lest one in whose heart is a disease should be moved with desire: but speak ye a speech (that is) just.

Yusuf Ali translated the Arabic words [Ya nisaa alnnabiyyi] into [O Consorts of the Prophet!], instead of [O the wives of the Prophet], as is the case with many other translators of the Quran. The question is why he used the word [Consorts] in his translation; what this word means and what he intended to say through this word?

To find answers to the questions, let us consider the following scenarios:

1. This is a Medinese verse and it came to the Prophet of Islam, when he was about to become the absolute ruler of the city.
2. It was mostly the monarchs and rich people who owned and maintained harems for their sexual gratification.
3. About the time this verse came into the mouth or mind of Muhammad, he possessed a number of women in his harem.

After taking all the above points into consideration, Yusuf Ali came to the conclusion that Allah addressed the above verse to the would-be queens of Muhammad, for the word [consorts] denotes [wives or spouses of a monarch]. He also considered the fact that though Allah had never asked or authorized Muhammad to establish a state, he nonetheless established the first Muslim state in Medina and ruled it as its monarch until his death. He must as well have been influenced by the Islamic song [Shah-e-Medina, Yathrib kay waali, sara jahaan hai tera sawali... i.e. O the Monarch of Medina, the protector of Yathrib (Medina), the whole world is a beggar before you....

Other translators of the Quran failed to grasp the implications Ali was aware of, hence their inability to correctly interrupt Allah’s revelation to its recipient Muhammad. He correctly identified Muhammad as the Monarch (of Medina) and for this candidness of his I thank him from the bottom of my heart.

How about the rest of the Muslims? Are they ready to eulogize Allama Yusuf Ali for correctly interpreting the verse and telling them the truth?