لَا تَقُمْ فِيهِ أَبَدًا لَمَسْجِدٌ أُسِّسَ عَلَى التَّقْوَى مِنْ أَوَّلِ يَوْمٍ أَحَقُّ أَنْ تَقُومَ فِيهِ فِيهِ رِجَالٌ يُحِبُّونَ أَنْ يَتَطَهَّرُوا وَاللَّهُ يُحِبُّ الْمُطَّهِّرِينَ ﴿۱۰۸﴾ أَفَمَنْ أَسَّسَ بُنْيَانَهُ عَلَى تَقْوَى مِنَ اللَّهِ وَرِضْوَانٍ خَيْرٌ أَمْ مَنْ أَسَّسَ بُنْيَانَهُ عَلَى شَفَا جُرُفٍ هَارٍ فَانْهَارَ بِهِ فِي نَارِ جَهَنَّمَ وَاللَّهُ لَا يَهْدِي الْقَوْمَ الظَّالِمِينَ ﴿۱۰۹﴾ لَا يَزَالُ بُنْيَانُهُمُ الَّذِي بَنَوْا رِيبَةً فِي قُلُوبِهِمْ إِلَّا أَنْ تَقَطَّعَ قُلُوبُهُمْ وَاللَّهُ عَلِيمٌ حَكِيمٌ ﴿۱۱۰﴾

﴾108﴿ Laa taqum feehi abadaa; lamasjidun ussisa 'alat taqwaa min awwali yawmin ahaqqu 'an taqooma feeh; feehi rijaaluny yuhibbona 'any yata tah haroo; wallaahu yuhibbul muttah hireen
﴾109﴿ Afaman assasa bunyaanahoo 'alaa taqwaa minal laahi wa ridwaanin khairun am man assasa bunyaanahoo 'alaa shafaa jurufin haarin fanhaara bihee fee Naari Jahannam; wallaahu laa yahdil qawmaz zaalimeen
﴾110﴿ Laa yazaalu bunyaanu humul lazee banaw reebatan fee quloobihim illaaa an taqatta'a quloobuhum; wal laahu 'Aleemun Hakeem

﴾108﴿ Do not stand in this mosque ever (for prayer). Indeed, the mosque whose foundation was laid on the belief of sincerity from the beginning of the day It is proper that you stand in that mosque (for prayer). There are men who love to be pure, and Allah loves such pure people
﴾109﴿ Is it better the one who builds his house on the fear of Allah and His pleasure, Or the person who laid the foundation of his settlement on the bank of a river, under which the flood has gradually emptied and is about to collapse So let him fall with him into the fire of Hell, and Allah Almighty does not grant the wrongdoers any success in good
﴾110﴿ May the building they built always be a cause of regret in their hearts (after its demolition) Until their hearts are torn to pieces. And Allah, the Exalted, is Knowing, the Possessor of Great Wisdom

[108] This verse contains the divine ruling regarding Masjid Ḍirār—that praying in it is forbidden. Instead, Allah praises a different mosque built upon righteousness.
(لَمَسْجِدٌ أُسِّسَ عَلَى التَّقْوَى) There is a difference of opinion among scholars about which mosque is meant here: Some say it refers to Masjid Qubā’. Others say it refers to Masjid al-Nabawī. The preferred view is that it refers to Masjid Qubā’, but the ruling is general—any mosque founded on taqwā (God-consciousness) shares this merit.
(مِنْ أَوَّلِ يَوْمٍ) This refers to the first day of the Prophet’s Hijrah to Madinah, when Masjid Qubā’ was established.
‘Umar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb (رضي الله عنه) derived from this phrase the basis for the Islamic calendar (Hijrī year), starting from the Hijrah.
(رِجَالٌ يُحِبُّونَ أَنْ يَتَطَهَّرُوا) This praises the Companions who frequented this mosque.
(يَتَطَهَّرُوا) – refers to both inner and outer purification: Inner purity: avoiding shirk and sins. Outer purity includes: Proper istinjā’ (cleansing after using the restroom), Performing wudū’ quickly after breaking it, Praying two rak‘ahs after wudū’, Ghusl (ritual bath) soon after major impurity (janābah). These meanings are supported by various authentic narrations.
[109] This verse presents a contrast between the two types of mosques—one built on righteousness, the other on hypocrisy. It also serves as a warning to the builders of Masjid Ḍirār.
This verse functions as a justification (‘illah) for the previous verse that praised the mosque founded on taqwā.
(تَقْوَى مِنَ اللَّهِ وَرِضْوَانٍ) Taqwā is the material cause—the actual righteous basis on which the mosque was built. Riḍwān (seeking Allah’s pleasure) is the final goal—the ultimate purpose behind the act.
This implies that the foundation of Masjid Qubā’ (or any righteous mosque) is both firm and meaningful.
(عَلَى شَفَا جُرُفٍ هَارٍ) This is a metaphor used to describe the weak and unstable foundation of Masjid Ḍirār.
Shafā means edge or brink, Juruf refers to the edge of a ditch or riverbank where the soil has been hollowed out underneath by water—so it looks solid but is dangerously weak. Hār means about to collapse. So, building a mosque on hypocrisy is like constructing a building on the edge of a crumbling cliff—doomed to fall.
(لَا يَهْدِي) Here, Allah says He does not guide—meaning He does not grant success, correction, or salvation—to those who are oppressors and act with corrupt intentions, such as the hypocrites who built Masjid Ḍirār.
[110] When the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) gave the command to demolish Masjid Ḍirār, and the noble Companions carried it out, the hypocrites were deeply grieved—but they were unable to resist or protest. This verse hints at that reaction.
(بُنْيَانُهُمُ) – This verbal noun (maṣdar) is used here in the sense of muf‘ūl (object), referring to the demolition of their structure (hadem bunyānihim).
So the phrase refers to “the tearing down of their building.”
Alternatively, it can be interpreted as the building itself, with no omitted word. In that case, (رِيبَةً) would mean that their construction itself increased their hypocrisy—meaning building the mosque out of evil intent added to their spiritual disease.
So (رِيبَةً) can mean: Grief and anger, which they felt upon seeing the mosque destroyed. Or it can mean hypocrisy (nifāq), which grew in their hearts due to their evil intentions.
(إِلَّا أَنْ تَقَطَّعَ قُلُوبُهُمْ) The word (إِلَّا) here is interpreted as “until” (i.e., ilā an), not as an exception. The phrase means: “Their hearts will remain filled with doubt or grief until their hearts are torn apart.”
This could refer to:
1. Death – dying in a state of grief and hypocrisy.
2. Or, according to another interpretation, it means true, sincere repentance, i.e., their hearts must be completely purified before they can be redeemed.