33:33 Consonant Outline

[Amira]

Salam,

The part of verse 33:33 rendered as "remain in your homes" transliterates to "wa qarna fi buyutikinna," but early copies of the Quran had only consonant outlines without any diacritical marks. So if you drop the fatha and replace it with a kasra, it could read "wa QIRNA fi buyutikinna."

I've read somewhere that "qarna" has a different meaning than "qirna;" both come from root Q-R-R (to remain fixed, settle peacefully) but "qirna" would be better rendered as to "behave with dignity." Do qarna and qirna have different meanings? Both terms could fit based on the consonant outline. And apparently the command form of "qarna" should actually be "aqrarna," which is a different spelling than the Quran uses. So would "qirna," with a kasra, fit better here?

If the word is indeed qarna, what would it signify, other than remaining peacefully in one place? (I've seen the Aggressive Mistranslations article, I just want to know what it would signify for the Prophet's wives.)

Also, the next clause reads "and do not make a dazzling display like they did in the Times of Ignorance." From what I can tell, "dazzling display"--tabarruj--refers to excessive extravagance, provocative displays of adornment, things like that. Is there any other mention of tabarruj in a similar context, and is there any other place where tabarruj-like customs of pre-Islamic Arabs are mentioned?

[Amira]

Oh wait--I found something.

It would make sense to render this as "wa qirna," behave with dignity in your homes, when juxtaposed with the prohibition on tabarruj. In another verse, men are commanded to address the prophet's wives from behind a barrier. So this could be a command to the women to behave dignified while in their homes, and not to engage in tabarruj in front of unrelated men, hence the command for a barrier...as opposed to "don't leave your home." Does the distinction make sense?

33:33 doesn't say "don't go OUT and engage in tabarruj," it just says "don't engage in tabarruj." This could be a ban on excessive displays of finery while IN the house, in front of visiting men, who are told to approach from behind a veil. Hence "behave with dignity IN your homes."