2 Preface فَسيحوا فِي الأَرضِ أَربَعَةَ أَشهُرٍ وَاعلَموا أَنَّكُم غَيرُ مُعجِزِي اللَّهِ ۙ وَأَنَّ اللَّهَ مُخزِي الكافِرينَYusuf AliGo ye, then, for four months,1 backwards and forwards, (as ye will), throughout the land, but know ye that ye cannot frustrate God (by your falsehood) but that God will cover with shame those who reject Him.Four Months. Some Commentators understand by this the four forbidden months in which warfare by ancient Arabian custom was unlawful, viz., Rajab, Dhu al Qa'dah, Dhu al Hijjah, and Muharram: See 2:194 n. But it is better to take the signification of the four months immediately following the Declaration. Assuming that the Sūra was promulgated early in Shawwal (see Introduction), the four months would be Shawwal. Dhu al 'Qa'dah, Dhu al Hijjah, and Muharram, of which the last three would also be the customary Prohibited Months.