To clearly understand the meaning behind the verses of the Qur'an, exegetes do not merely interpret them literally. They analyze the reasons behind the revelation of the verses or examine their historical context, considering the interconnected meanings of the verses, the hadith, and the opinions of scholars with expertise in the field. In this case, the asbabun nuzul or reasons for the revelation of Surah Al-Baqarah Verses 177 and 272 will be reviewed from several relevant interpretations, primarily those referenced by Buya Hamka.

۞لَّيۡسَ ٱلۡبِرَّ أَن تُوَلُّواْ وُجُوهَكُمۡ قِبَلَ ٱلۡمَشۡرِقِ وَٱلۡمَغۡرِبِ وَلَٰكِنَّ ٱلۡبِرَّ مَنۡ ءَامَنَ بِٱللَّهِ وَٱلۡيَوۡمِ ٱلۡأٓخِرِ وَٱلۡمَلَٰٓئِكَةِ وَٱلۡكِتَٰبِ وَٱلنَّبِيِّ‍ۧنَ وَءَاتَى ٱلۡمَالَ عَلَىٰ حُبِّهِۦ ذَوِي ٱلۡقُرۡبَىٰ وَٱلۡيَتَٰمَىٰ وَٱلۡمَسَٰكِينَ وَٱبۡنَ ٱلسَّبِيلِ وَٱلسَّآئِلِينَ وَفِي ٱلرِّقَابِ وَأَقَامَ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ وَءَاتَى ٱلزَّكَوٰةَ وَٱلۡمُوفُونَ بِعَهۡدِهِمۡ إِذَا عَٰهَدُواْۖ وَٱلصَّٰبِرِينَ فِي ٱلۡبَأۡسَآءِ وَٱلضَّرَّآءِ وَحِينَ ٱلۡبَأۡسِۗ أُوْلَٰٓئِكَ ٱلَّذِينَ صَدَقُواْۖ وَأُوْلَٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلۡمُتَّقُونَ

177. Righteousness is not that you turn your faces toward the east or the west, but [true] righteousness is [in] one who believes in Allah, the Last Day, the angels, the Book, and the prophets and gives wealth, in spite of love for it, to relatives, orphans, the needy, the traveler, those who ask [for help], and for freeing slaves; [and who] establishes prayer and gives zakah; [those who] fulfill their promise when they promise; and [those who] are patient in poverty and hardship and during battle. Those are the ones who have been true, and it is those who are the righteous.

This verse explains the praiseworthy morals taught by Islam to its followers in a dogmatic-applicative manner. In the Al-Munir interpretation, Wahbah Zuhaili explains the asbabun nuzul (reasons for revelation) of this verse. Namely, Abdurrazzaq narrated from Qatadah, who said: The Jews used to pray facing west, while the Christians faced east. Then this verse was revealed: "It is not righteousness that you turn your faces toward the east and the west."n' Ath-Thabari and Ibnul Mundzir narrated from Qatadah, who said: It was narrated to us that a man asked the Prophet (peace be upon him) about virtue, so Allah revealed this verse: "It is not righteousness that you turn your faces toward the east or the west." Then he called the man and recited it to him. And in the past, before the establishment of obligatory acts of worship, if someone testified that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is His servant and messenger, then died in that state, there was hope that in the hereafter he would receive goodness. Then Allah revealed the verse: "It is not righteousness that you turn your faces toward the east and the west." The Jews used to face west and the Christians east [25].

When viewed critically, the Asbabun Nuzul emphasizes that true virtue does not lie in the direction of the qibla or outward rituals alone, but in the substance of faith and righteous deeds. Furthermore, the author assumes that this verse was revealed to show the glorification of Islam as a comprehensive teaching. This is because Islam does not only exemplify symbolism, but also the substance of religion. However, Quraish Shihab is more moderate in saying that this verse does not favor one religion alone, but all religions [26]. Then, the essence of religion is actually in the heart in the form of faith. So, the verse above also touches on social aspects as examples of faith, namely righteous deeds that educate the soul, correct social relationships, and become the foundation of love, friendship, unity, and mutual assistance or solidarity sosial. The verse clearly states "giving away beloved wealth to relatives, orphans, the poor, travelers, beggars, and (freeing) slaves" [27].

Meanwhile, Imam Ahmad bin Muhammad al-Shawi assumes that there are two views regarding the asbabun nuzul of this verse. First, he says that this verse was revealed to refute the assumptions of the Christians who believed that virtue was to face the direction of the rising sun, and the Jews who believed that virtue was to face Bait al-Maqdis. Second, it states that the verse was revealed to refute the notion that in the middle of Islam, they were only commanded to believe and pray [28]. Buya Hamka also commented on this verse as the embodiment of faith as a process of submission to Allah SWT. Hamka elaborated further on "social faith," which refers to the meaning of giving wealth to the poor and so on. He analogizes the Asbabun nuzul with contemporary humanitarian issues, such as in Sudan, where even though many people live in poverty, they still maintain their dignity because of their strong faith. In contrast to modern times, Hamka says that faith is being compromised by materialism, so that the poor become unbelievers. Women become prostitutes and men live as bridge dwellers who are negligent of the teachings of Islam [29].

For Hamka, this is a form of faith that is implemented through social relations. In line with Aristotle's term zoon politicon, which explains that humans cannot live in isolation and have the need and instinct to live together in a society [30]. However, this social form cannot be separated from culture. If culture continues to evolve and become more modern, then the social aspect will also do the same. Therefore, Hamka compares the teachings of Islamic socialism with the concept of modern socialism theory initiated by Karl Marx [31]. For Islam, before creating a just society and individuals, it is necessary to instill social awareness through faith in Allah and His creation. This means that Hamka prioritizes the spiritual aspect [3]. This spiritual dimension serves as a catalyst that produces behavioral manifestations in the form of altruism and philanthropy. Thus, faith is not only understood as an abstract theological construct, but as a foundation that produces practical implications in social interactions. Meanwhile, zakat, alms, infaq, and other humanitarian distributions, or what is known as Islamic philanthropy, have their own comprehensive concepts based on spiritualism [32].

Meanwhile, Hamka's concept of Karl Marx's socialism is as follows:

Socialism does not recognize the existence of God. Therefore, it also does not recognize the existence of the human soul or spirit. For them, the individual or the private person does not exist. What exists is society, the social. High or low morals are not the issue; the issue is that all the needs of every person should be regulated by society. Society is the holder of power, or the government of the state. Individuals will be happy in their lives if the important means of production are controlled by the state [29].

It can be said that the role of the state is quite central to creating Marxist-style socialism. The operationalization of the Marxist socialist system centers on the principle of collective determinism, in which all individual needs and aspirations are subordinated to the authority of society as manifested in state institutions [33]. The state, in its capacity as a collective representation, monopolizes distributive and regulatory functions over all aspects of citizens' lives [34]. The theory of welfare in this paradigm is based on the assumption that the optimization of individuals' existential conditions can be achieved through the nationalization of strategic means of production. Thus, state control over the production sector is seen as a fundamental mechanism for realizing collective welfare, which will automatically result in individual satisfaction as a derivative of social satisfaction [35].

۞لَّيۡسَ عَلَيۡكَ هُدَىٰهُمۡ وَلَٰكِنَّ ٱللَّهَ يَهۡدِي مَن يَشَآءُۗ وَمَا تُنفِقُواْ مِنۡ خَيۡرٖ فَلِأَنفُسِكُمۡۚ وَمَا تُنفِقُونَ إِلَّا ٱبۡتِغَآءَ وَجۡهِ ٱللَّهِۚ وَمَا تُنفِقُواْ مِنۡ خَيۡرٖ يُوَفَّ إِلَيۡكُمۡ وَأَنتُمۡ لَا تُظۡلَمُونَ

272. Not upon you, [O Muhammad], is [responsibility for] their guidance, but Allah guides whom He wills. And whatever good you [believers] spend is for yourselves, and you do not spend except seeking the countenance of Allah. And whatever you spend of good - it will be fully repaid to you, and you will not be wronged.

In this verse, the majority of exegetes provide consistent explanations regarding its cause of revelation. Nasa'i, al-Hakim, al-Bazzar, ath-Thabrani, and others from Ibn Abbas r.a., said, "Muslims did not want to give alms to their polytheistic relatives (then their polytheistic relatives asked them for alms, so they were given permission to give alms to their relatives)," and this verse was revealed. Various exegetes understand this verse as one of the concepts of infaq in Islam. According to Al-Maraghi, the essence of giving infaq is not to obtain social status or recognition from the beneficiaries, but solely to attain the pleasure of Allah SWT [36]. In this context, there is no differentiation between one poor individual and another, as long as they meet the criteria as legitimate mustahik. The orientation of giving alms should be directed at efforts to get closer to Allah through the elimination of the basic needs of the beneficiaries. Therefore, a person's religious beliefs or affiliations should not be a determining factor that hinders their access to social assistance. This concept emphasizes the universality of humanitarian principles in Islamic philanthropy, where economic needs are the main parameter in the distribution of infaq, not the religious identity of the recipients [37].

Meanwhile, Buya Hamka revealed that based on accounts quoted from Ibn Abi Hatim and other narrators through Ibn Abbas, there were indications that initially there was a restrictive understanding in the practice of giving alms, which limited the beneficiaries to fellow Muslims only. However, the revelation of this verse served as a correction to that understanding. Another account from Ibn Jarir through Ibn Abbas also reveals the social dilemma faced by the Ansar, who had non-Muslim relatives and family members but were hesitant to provide assistance due to religious differences, even though these relatives showed potential to convert to Islam. In addition, it can be said that the distribution of zakat, alms, and zakat al-fitr is not exclusively limited to the Muslim community. The scope of recipients includes non-Muslim individuals who show a tendency to embrace Islam, as well as Ahlul Kitab who are good neighbors but are in poor economic conditions. This principle reflects the universal essence of Islamic teachings that prioritize humanity in philanthropic practices [3].

Concern for others in terms of humanity does not take social classification into account. Hamka described the existence of socio-economic inequality in Indonesia, between the rich or bourgeoisie, who are capitalist in nature, and the lower classes or proletariat. He refers to Karl Marx as a catalyst for change, a thinker who identified and criticized the injustices of the early capitalist system, which ultimately drove the evolution of capitalism towards a more equitable form that took into account the welfare of workers. Although he does not explicitly praise Marx, Hamka acknowledges that his criticism and teachings have contributed to the improvement of socio-economic conditions in modern capitalist countries. Thus, indirectly, Hamka underlines the role of Karl Marx and his thinking as a form of criticism of the social classification system.

The study of the representation of an object in the linguistic paradigm has been carried out by Buya Hamka by describing Karl Marx as an influential figure. At least several points of Marx's representation can be observed in the interpretation of al-azhar. First, Hamka made the text of the Qur'an central to maintaining social balance at that time. For him, the Qur'an was the main solution in dealing with various issues. Not only that, Hamka also viewed reality as a text that must be juxtaposed with religious texts in a dialogical manner, so that the linguistic aspects in the text of the Qur'an provide constructive vibrancy. Second, Hamka paid attention to the universality of social and humanitarian issues with a broad understanding. He then integrated this into the verses of the Qur'an with a phenomenological perspective and chose meanings that did not reduce the meaning of the Qur'an. Thus, the social dynamics at that time had relevance to the rise of Karl Marx's socialist teachings. Third, Hamka saw Marxist philosophy not as something contrary to Islam, but as a way to perfect the understanding (interpretation) of Islamic teachings. Hamka's contribution, which brought a new perspective, can also be correlated with the attitude of Indonesian society, which lives in plurality and tends to be socialist. These three points explicitly reveal that Hamka's reading of Karl Marx's social and teachings at that time was massive. Therefore, Hamka often maintained his theological aspects with his understanding of the Qur'an.

The study of the representation of Karl Marx in Buya Hamka's Tafsir Al-Azhar shows a complex interdisciplinary approach between Quranic interpretations, Islamic theology and modern social discourse. Hamka did not merely place the Qur'an as a normative source in facing the socio-political challenges of his time, but also made it a hermeneutic framework of [38] that was capable of dialoguing with radical thoughts such as Marxism. The representation of Karl Marx in this interpretation is not entirely antagonistic, but rather approached with epistemological caution, where social reality is read as a text that must be interpreted alongside religious texts. This shows that Hamka did not reject the idea of socialism outright, but rather placed it within the framework of Qur'anic values that were cultural and more transcendental in nature [39]. In the 1940s, many Muslim intellectuals were looking for ways to respond to modernity and new ideologies. Hamka seemed to take a synthetic approach, in which he tried to integrate progressive elements of Marxism (especially related to social justice and liberation) with Islamic values [40]. This step not only reflects Hamka's methodological sophistication in reading the context, but also makes an important contribution to the development of inclusive and progressive scriptural studies [41]. In the context of Indonesia's pluralistic society with socialist tendencies, Hamka's approach is relevant as an interpretive model that avoids ideological dichotomies, instead prioritizing the balanced integration of divine values and historical realities.

Then, the discourse surrounding representation theory will receive wider attention regardless of the object of research. Because representation always goes hand in hand with life, and for Hall, representation will always be attached to language and culture [42]. Meanwhile, when applied to the interpretation of Al-Baqarah verses 177 and 272 in the Al-Azhar interpretation, Karl Marx has several representations based on Stuart Hall's theory of representation [43]. First, at the reflective representation level, Hall emphasizes the presence of new meanings to interpret existing objects. Marxism is often portrayed in mainstream media as a dangerous or utopian ideology, with negative associations with communism and totalitarianism. Meanwhile, Islamic economics is often represented as an exotic alternative or solution to the crisis, but often with the stereotype that Islam is anti-economic modernity. This representation reflects the ideological bias of the media, which is dominated by a liberal capitalist perspective. Second, at the level of intentional representation, the political bias of the old order, which tended to be anti-communist, influenced Hamka's interpretation and positioned Marx as its figurehead. Media controlled by big capital tends to construct Marxism as a threat to freedom and prosperity, while Islamic media constructs Islamic economics as the perfect solution to all economic problems. In other words, Hamka legitimizes Islamic teachings that have already regulated social justice holistically, rather than the teachings of Karl Marx. Third, at the level of constructionist representation, Hamka compares Marxist teachings with the Islamic justice system. In this case, Hamka's interpretation shows the results of social and cultural construction in the anti-communist era. Thus, he affirms justice according to Islam, which is representative in Indonesia.

In addition, Al-Baqarah 177 and 272 offer an economic vision that transcends the capitalism-socialism dichotomy by integrating spiritual, moral, and material dimensions into a holistic framework. Unlike Marx, who emphasized class struggle as the engine of transformation, Islam emphasizes individual moral transformation that impacts social transformation. Also different from capitalism, which prioritizes accumulation, Islam prioritizes spiritually-based redistribution with the motivation of seeking Allah's pleasure. Meanwhile, in the Indonesian context, the implementation of Islamic economic values still faces representational and structural challenges that require the deconstruction of dominant discourse and the development of constructive alternatives. Globally, the crisis of contemporary capitalism has opened up space for the exploration of more equitable and sustainable alternatives [44]. The challenge ahead is to transform normative ideals into real and effective economic practices in the face of global complexity, while maintaining the authenticity of the spiritual values that are the transformative power of Islam. Meanwhile, social inequality in Indonesia, with a Gini ratio of 0.38 in 2023, shows that the issue of wealth distribution remains crucial [45]. From the perspective of Al-Baqarah 177 and 272, this inequality should be addressed through voluntary spiritual-based redistribution mechanisms such as zakat and infaq. It has been proven that zakat can support poverty and income gap data in Indonesia in 2007-2019 [46].

Furthermore, data on the development of the Islamic economy in Indonesia shows a positive trend, with Islamic banking growing at 15% per year and the development of sukuk (Islamic bonds) as a means of financing development. The potential of ZISWAF (Zakat, Infaq, Shadaqah, Wakaf), which reached IDR 23 trillion in 2023, shows the enormous potential for redistribution based on Islamic values of [47]. However, the implementation of Islamic economics still faces challenges because it is often trapped in institutional formalism without substantive value transformation. Criticism of the dominant representation in the Indonesian context points to the hegemony of capitalist discourse that prioritizes economic growth over equity. Consumerism is promoted as an indicator of progress [48], while value-based economic alternatives such as Islamic economics are often marginalized or reduced to merely the banking sector. Islamic social values such as ta'awun (mutual cooperation) and takaful (mutual responsibility) are under-explored as a basis for more fundamental economic transformation. Therefore, the concepts of socialism and Islamic economics framed within Islamic philanthropy have relevance in the context of poverty issues in Indonesia. This paradigm does not legitimize or glorify Islamic teachings as central to any matter, because in practice, social theories born from the thinking of Karl Marx are also often used as a methodological basis and are combined with each other.

Therefore, this study shows that interdisciplinary sciences can be collaborated to respond to the challenges of the times. For example, interpretations of the Qur'an, which have become the basis for understanding how to live life, can go hand in hand with other social theories in a harmonious combination. In addition, there are many other aspects that need to be explored by other researchers, such as methodology, hermeneutic reasoning, and Karl Marx's position, which has not yet appeared in modern interpretations. This is because an interpretation is born to respond to the social conditions of its respective era. This study can be said to be limited and micro, because it only revolves around one interpretation, namely the Al-Azhar Buya Hamka interpretation. This rationalization does not rule out the possibility that interpretations contemporary with the Al-Azhar interpretation will mention Marx as a different object, or a similar one, or even a more complex one. Although in other Islamic studies, the author assumes that Karl Marx's position will continue to be relevant when examining aspects of humanity, poverty, society, and materialistic hegemony. The exploration of this study is very broad when viewed from various aspects. Therefore, the author's proposal is considered inspiring enough to continue a more comprehensive study.