056- AL-WAQI’AH
THE EVENT
IN THE NAME OF GOD, THE COMPASSIONATE, THE MERCIFUL
# When the Event befalls, # none shall deny its befalling, # abasing, exalting. # When the earth is shaken violently, # and the mountains are pulverized to powder, # such that they become scattered dust, z and you shall be of three kinds: # the companions of the right; what of the companions of the right? # And the companions of the left; what of the companions of the left? # And the foremost shall be the foremost. # They are the ones brought nigh, # in Gardens of bliss— # many from those of old, # and few from those of later times— # upon embroidered couches, # reclining upon them, facing one another. # Immortal youths wait upon them # with goblets, ewers, and a cup from a flowing spring, # wherefrom they suffer neither headache nor stupefaction, # with fruits as they choose, # and the meat of birds as they desire, # and [there shall be] wide-eyed maidens, # the likeness of concealed pearls, # as a recompense for that which they used to do. # They hear no idle talk therein, nor incitement to sin, # save that “Peace! Peace!” is uttered. # And the companions of the right; what of the companions of the right? # Among thornless lote trees, # clustered plantains, # and extended shade, # gushing water, Ò and abundant fruit, # neither out of reach, nor forbidden, # and [upon] raised beds. # Truly We brought them into being as a [new] creation, # then made for them virgins, # amorous peers, # for the companions of the right— # many from those of old, # and many from those of later times. # And the companions of the left; what of the companions of the left? # Amidst scorching wind and boiling liquid, # and the shadow of black smoke, # neither cool nor refreshing. # Truly before that they lived in luxury, # would persist in great sin, # and would say, “What! When we are dead and have become dust and bones, are we to be resurrected? # What! And our fathers of old?” I Say, “Truly those of old and those of later times # are gathered for the tryst of a day appointed.” # Then indeed you —O you straying deniers— # shall eat from a tree of Zaqqūm, # and fill your bellies therewith. # Then you shall drink from boiling liquid, # drinking as do parched camels. # This shall be their welcome on the Day of Judgment. # We created you. Would that you affirm it. # Have you considered that which you emit? # Is it you who created it or are We the creators? # We have decreed death among you, and none outstrips Us # in replacing [you with] your likenesses and bringing you into being again in what you know not. # You have indeed known the first genesis. Why, then, do you not reflect? # Have you considered what you reap? # Is it you who sow it or are We the sowers? # Had We willed, We would have turned it to chaff, such that you would remain bitterly jesting, # [saying] “Truly we have suffered loss. # Nay! We are deprived.” # Have you considered the water that you drink? # Is it you who sent it down from the clouds, or is it We Who send down? # If We had willed, We would have made it bitter; will you not, then, give thanks? # Have you considered the fire that you kindle? # Is it you who brought into being the tree thereof, or is it We Who bring into being? # We made it a reminder and an enjoyment for the desert dwellers. # So glorify the Name of thy Lord, the Magnificent! # I swear by the places where the stars descend! # And truly it is a magnificent oath, if you but knew. # Truly it is a Noble Quran # in a Book concealed. # None touch it, save those made pure, # a revelation from the Lord of the worlds. # Do you then scorn this discourse, # and make the denial thereof your provision? # Why, then, when it reaches the throat, # while you are looking on # —and We are nearer to him than you, though you see not— # why, then, if you are unconstrained, # do you not return it, if you are truthful? # So if one be among those brought nigh, # then comfort, bounty, and a Garden of bliss. # And if one be among the companions of the right, ґ then peace unto thee from the companions of the right. # But if one be among the deniers who are astray, # then a welcome of boiling liquid, # and burning in Hellfire. # Verily, this is the truth of certainty; # so glorify the Name of thy Lord, the Magnificent!
Commentary
#When the Event befalls,
# none shall deny its befalling,
1–2 When v. 1 is read with a full stop at the end, when (idhā) is taken to introduce something too terrifying to be mentioned directly. If it is read continuously with v. 2, it is considered an adverbial clause: “When the Event befalls, no denial is there of its befalling.” The first verse may also be read as a reference to the previous sūrah, meaning that all of the blessings promised to the companions of the right and to the foremost will be granted to them when the Event befalls. In each reading, the Event refers to the eschatological event of the end of the world leading to the Day of Judgment. The Event (al-wāqiʿah), deriving from the verb “to fall” (waqaʿa), which can also mean “to happen” or “to occur,” expresses a sense of inevitability, as if to say, “When what must happen happens” (Aj). It will be so overwhelming that none of those who denied it in this life will be able to deny it any longer (Q). These verses can also be seen as an allusion to individual transformation through sudden or profound spiritual realization.
***
# abasing, exalting.
3 The event of the Hour of Judgment abases some, lowering them into the depths of the Fire, and exalts others, raising them to the ranks of Heaven. Some take this verse as an allusion to the destruction of the natural order, when the stars and mountains will fall (e.g., 77:8–10; Aj, Ṭ). From another perspective, the Truth abases those who realize it by leveling everything within the soul that may have been opposed to the Truth, and thus exalts the ones it abases by preparing them to receive the Truth. As Ibn ʿAjībah expresses it, “The supreme Truth exists in the soul like butter in milk: only when the milk is churned does the butter appear.”
***
# When the earth is shaken violently,
4 Cf. 99:1; 73:14.
***
# and the mountains are pulverized to powder,
# such that they become scattered dust,
5–6 That mountains will be destroyed at the end of the world is mentioned in several verses, as in 69:14, where they are ground up in a single grinding, and in 70:9 and 101:5, where they are likened to carded wool (see also 18:47; 52:10; 73:14; 81:3). The destruction of mountains symbolizes the destruction of all that seems firm and everlasting, as in 27:88: And thou seest the mountains that thou dost suppose are solid pass away like clouds—the work of God, Who perfects all things. Here scattered dust translates habāʾ, which literally means “floating specks of dust that can only be seen when struck by light” (Aj, Q, Ṭ); the image of scattered dust is similar to that of heaps of shifting sand in 73:14.
***
# and you shall be of three kinds:
7 Almost all commentators take these three divisions to indicate the three categories into which human beings will be divided on the Day of Resurrection.
***
# the companions of the right; what of the companions of the right?
# And the companions of the left; what of the companions of the left?
8–9 In Arabic, as in numerous other cultural-linguistic systems, the right is associated with righteousness and blessedness. The companions of the right are those who will be seated to the right of God’s Throne, who will receive the record of their deeds in their right hand (see 17:71; 69:19; 84:7), and who are described as having light spreading before them and on their right (57:12). They are believed to comprise the majority of the residents of the Garden (IK). The companions of the left are those who will receive the record of their deeds in their left hand (see 69:25). What of (mā) in both verses could also be taken to indicate amazement, thus meaning, “How wondrous are the companions of the right” and “How wretched are the companions of the left” (Z). In one account of the Prophet Muhammad’s Ascension through the heavens (see 17:1c; 53:1–17c), he is reported to have said, “We went over the nearest heaven, and there we saw a man sitting with some people on his right and some on his left. When he looked toward his right, he laughed, and when he looked toward his left, he wept. Then he said, ‘Welcome! O pious Prophet and pious son.’ I asked Gabriel, ‘Who is he?’ He replied, ‘He is Adam, and the people on his right and left are the souls of his offspring. Those on his right are the people of Paradise, and those on his left are the people of Hell. When he looks toward his right, he laughs, and when he looks toward his left, he weeps.’”
***
# And the foremost shall be the foremost.
10 The foremost translates al-sābiqūn, which derives from the verb sabaqa, meaning “to go first, to go ahead, to outstrip” or “to win a race.” The syntax of this verse, in which the same word is the subject and the complement, is used to express something that is great and known to all (Aj, Z). The commentaries vary in identifying the foremost. Many identify them with the spiritual elite of the community, who understand the inner meaning of the religion and walk toward God in this life. Most commentators consider the foremost to be the prophets (IK, JJ). Some include the saints, the truthful (ṣiddīqūn), and the martyrs with them, since they too “outstrip” all others in faith (Ṭū), while others believe the prophets to be beyond the foremost (Aj). Other interpretations include: the first to accept Islam (Aj, IK, Ṭ); the first members of the religious community (ummah; IK, Ṭ); the sincere (mukhliṣ), who are foremost in responding to the call of God and spare nothing in seeking God’s Contentment (Z); the first to come to the mosque, and the first to set out in the way of God (IK, Ṭ); those who are foremost in attaining virtue (Aj); and the residents of the highest parts of Heaven (see 83:18; IK). According to some, the foremost will not be subject to the Reckoning before God on the Day of Judgment, going straight to Paradise, while the companions of the left and the companions of the right will stand before God for judgment (R).
***
# They are the ones brought nigh,
# in Gardens of bliss—
# many from those of old,
# and few from those of later times—
11–14 These verses could mean that the foremost are “brought nigh in Gardens of bliss” (Ṭ), brought nigh to the Divine Throne (Z), or brought nigh unto God Himself (Aj, JJ). Ibn ʿAjībah notes that the ones brought nigh were greater in earlier times with regard to quantity, not quality. Those toward the end of time are considered by some to be of a higher degree, because they have awakened in a time of heedlessness and exerted themselves in a time of lassitude. Thus because they achieve spiritual awakening without many of the supports available to previous generations, God grants them a rank given to no others (Aj). Regarding the spiritual devolution of human beings over time, the Prophet said to his Companions, “You live at a time when whoever omits one-tenth of what he has been commanded [to do] shall be ruined. But there will come a time when whoever fulfills one-tenth of what he has been commanded [to do] shall be saved.” Some maintain that those of old means earlier religious communities and those of later times means the Muslim community (IK, JJ, Ṭ). Others interpret them as references to earlier and later generations of Muslims (Z), in accordance with a famous ḥadīth, “The best generation is mine, then those who follow them, then those who follow them” (Aj, IK). The foremost among those of later times are seen as those mentioned in another ḥadīth: “A group among my community ceases not to follow the truth (ẓāhirīn ʿalā al-ḥaqq) until the Hour is come, unharmed by those who fail to support them and those who oppose them” (IK). Regarding the conditions of later times that cause others not to support the foremost, a ḥadīth states that at this time, “rapacity reigns, passions are obeyed, the world is given priority, and each person admires his own opinion.” From this perspective, these verses point to an ever greater spiritual devolution of human beings rather than progress over time.
***
# upon embroidered couches,
# reclining upon them, facing one another.
15–16 Several verses indicate that the people of Paradise recline upon couches, meaning that they are content and at peace (see 18:31c; 55:54c). Embroidered is here interpreted to mean that the cushions are encrusted with gold or pearls and rubies (Q, Sh). Some also view the couches as thrones, indicating that those reclining upon them have attained a high rank (see also 18:31; 36:56; 52:20; 76:13; 83:23, 35). Facing one another (cf. 15:47; 37:44; 44:53) implies that none shall need to sit behind another since all will be equally exalted.
***
# Immortal youths wait upon them
17 According to the Islamic tradition, those who died before they were of the age to be held accountable for their sins or rewarded for their good deeds serve the believers in Paradise. According to a saying attributed to the Prophet’s Companion Salmān al-Fārsī, “The servants of heaven are the children of the idolaters” (Aj, Q, Sh). In contrast, in a statement attributed to ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib, they are said to be the children of Muslims (Q, Sh).
***
# with goblets, ewers, and a cup from a flowing spring,
# wherefrom they suffer neither headache nor stupefaction,
18–19 The mention of drinking vessels is used as a metonym for the drink itself. Ewers translates abārīq, which is said to derive from the verb baraqa, meaning, “to shine, glitter, sparkle,” and is thus taken to indicate vessels that glitter and sparkle from their purity (Q, Sh). From a flowing spring (cf. 37:45) indicates that the liquid is pure and the source never runs dry. Though wine is forbidden to Muslims in this life (see 4:43; 5:90), they are said to enjoy a wine in the Hereafter that bears none of the negative side effects of the wine of this world (cf. 83:25–28). Nor stupefaction (cf. 37:47) translates lā yunzafūn, which can also be read as describing the springs, in which case it is read lā yunzifūn, an expression said of a well that does not dry up, thus indicating that this wine will never cease to flow (Q). For more on the wine of Paradise, see 47:15, which speaks of Paradise containing rivers of wine delicious for those who imbibe. Of this wine, the poet ʿUmar ibn al-Fāriḍ (d. 1235) writes in his Wine Ode: “It refines the character of those who drink it: / The irresolute it guides to the path of resolve, / The miser’s hand it makes generous, / And when anger strikes it instills / Forbearance in one with no clemency.”
***
# with fruits as they choose,
# and the meat of birds as they desire,
20–21 Cf. 52:22; 77:42. Several other verses also refer to the fruits of Paradise that will be at the disposal of the believers (e.g., 37:42; 38:61; 43:73); see 36:57c. The birds of Paradise are described in several aḥādīth as multicolored birds with extraordinary necks and wings; yet when people expressed wonder at their beauty, the Prophet is reported to have said, “Those who eat them are more blessed than are they” (Q, Sy). Elsewhere it is said that the inhabitants of Paradise shall have whatsoever they will (16:31; 25:16; 39:34; 42:22; 50:35).
***
# and [there shall be] wide-eyed maidens,
# the likeness of concealed pearls,
# as a recompense for that which they used to do.
22–24 For the meaning of wide-eyed maidens, see 44:54c. Here it may be read as the subject of the sentence along with immortal youths (v. 17), meaning that both serve the foremost. Or it may be read as another of those blessings that the foremost receive in Paradise. The likening of wide-eyed maidens to concealed pearls indicates both their exquisite beauty and that they remain untouched, as in 55:56 and 55:74. Regarding all such allusions to the blessings of Paradise, there is a famous ḥadīth qudsī: “God says, ‘I have prepared for My righteous servants what no eye has seen and no ear has heard and what has not occurred to the heart of any human being; so recite if you will, No soul knows what comfort is kept hidden for it [32:17].’”
***
# They hear no idle talk therein, nor incitement to sin,
# save that “Peace! Peace!” is uttered.
25–26 Cf. 14:23; 19:62; 52:23; 78:35; 88:11. Nor incitement to sin (see also 52:23) translates taʾthīm, which can also indicate that there is no lying or any form of sinful speech. These verses can be taken to mean that the inhabitants of the Garden will hear only the greeting “Peace be upon you” (Sh), with which Muslims greet one another in this world, that they will hear only peaceful speech, or that they will hear the words “Peace, Peace” (Aj), as the discourse of the people of the Garden is said to be remembrance of God and wisdom (Aj). Peace (salām) as employed here comprises spiritual soundness, freedom from all evils and defects, and inner contentment.
***
# And the companions of the right; what of the companions of the right?
27 As translated, what of the companions of the right? expresses wonder at their state (Aj). Others interpret it as an expression of God’s Grace, meaning, “How fortunate are the companions of the right” (IK).
***
# Among thornless lote trees,
28 Whereas the lote trees of this world have thorns and few fruits, those of Paradise are said to have no thorns and many fruits (IK). Arabian lote trees are believed to be mentioned as a tree of Heaven because of their large leaves under which one can find shade (Iṣ), and can thus be understood as a reference to shade as part of the contentment one finds in Paradise. Thornless translates makhḍūd, which could also mean “fruit-laden,” implying that they almost touch the ground.
***
# clustered plantains,
29 Clustered (manḍūd) indicates fruit that covers a tree from top to bottom (JJ) and is so dense that the trunk of the tree is no longer visible (Aj). Though most interpret the trees bearing the clusters as plantains, which are called ṭalḥ in Yemen (JJ), others believe what is meant is a large thorny shrub that used to grow in the Ḥijāz (IK).
***
# and extended shade,
30 According to a ḥadīth, the Prophet said, “In the Garden there is a tree in whose shade a rider would travel for a hundred years without the shade being broken. That is the extended shade” (Q, R, Ṭ). Shade translates ẓill, which also denotes “covering” or “shelter,” and can be used figuratively to imply “protection” (Iṣ). Ẓill is also taken by some to indicate “a state of ease, pleasure, and plenty,” thus “happiness.” This verse and other references to “shade” can thus be seen as allusions to the eternal security and felicity attained in Paradise.
***
# gushing water,
31 Gushing translates makhdūd, which indicates water that is not confined to channels (IK, R, Ṭ, Z), and is interpreted to mean that water flows to those in Paradise wherever and however they wish without any effort on their part (Aj, Z). While there is wine for the foremost and boiling liquid for the companions of the left, the companions of the right enjoy pure water.
***
# and abundant fruit,
# neither out of reach, nor forbidden,
32–33 That this fruit is not out of reach is consistent with the descriptions of low-hanging clusters (69:23, cf. 76:14) and the fruits near at hand (55:54) mentioned in other verses. It could also be translated “not cut off,” meaning that there is no season in which this fruit is not available (IK, R, Z).
***
# and [upon] raised beds.
34 Raised beds translates furush, which can also be used in classical Arabic as an allusion to women (Iṣ). Thus several commentators relate this verse to 36:55–56: Truly the inhabitants of the Garden on that Day will be busy rejoicing, they and their spouses reclining upon couches in the shade (Aj, Z). This interpretation is supported by the use of the feminine plural pronoun hunna in the following verse, so that this verse could be read “spouses made high,” in which case it is related to the mention of the wide-eyed maidens in v. 22; 44:54; 52:20; 56:22.
***
# Truly We brought them into being as a [new] creation,
35 As a [new] creation could also be translated “in an immediate manner.” This verse implies that the maidens of Heaven are always fresh and untouched.
***
# then made for them virgins,
# amorous peers,
36–37 According to a ḥadīth, the Prophet was asked about those referred to in vv. 35–37 by his wife Umm Salamah. He responded, “They are those who in this world were rendered gray, bleary-eyed, and blind. After their old age God will make them [youthful] peers” (Āl, IK, Q, Ṭ). Amorous implies intimacy and love, while peers implies both that they are of the same age, which is said to be thirty-three years (Aj, Q), and that they are spiritually compatible.
***
# for the companions of the right—
# many from those of old,
# and many from those of later times.
38–40 Although vv. 35–37 can be read as a description of the wide-eyed maidens (v. 22) when v. 34 is read as an allusion to them, others see the wideeyed maidens as bestowed upon the foremost, and the amorous peers as bestowed upon the companions of the right (Q). Whereas the foremost who are brought nigh are few in later generations, the companions of the right will continue to be plentiful as time goes on. *** A And the companions of the left; what of the companions of the left? 41 Just as this form of expression indicates wonder at the state of the companions of the right in v. 27, here it indicates wonder at the ignominy of the companions of the left.
***
# Amidst scorching wind and boiling liquid,
42 Scorching wind translates samūm, which indicates a wind that penetrates the pores (masām) of one’s body (Aj, Q, Z). Boiling liquid translates ḥamīm, which can mean both intense heat and severe cold, both of which are said to afflict the denizens of Hell (see 78:24–25).
***
# and the shadow of black smoke,
# neither cool nor refreshing.
43–44 In contrast to the extended shade (v. 30) that provides unending security and peace for the inhabitants of Paradise, the shade of Hell has no positive attributes (Z); the comforting image of shade is replaced with the ominous image of the shadow of black smoke, which obscures true vision and indicates impure, even choking air. Like the passions and distractions of this world, such shadows are ephemeral, appearing to grant shade, but only obscuring true vision and understanding by cutting off one’s supply of the air of intellectual and spiritual clarity until they blow away. Such ephemeral shade can even harm the one who seeks shelter in it, as in 77:29–32: Away to that which you used to deny! Away to a threefold shadow that provides no shade, nor avails against the flame. Indeed, it throws up sparks like massive tree trunks.
***
# Truly before that they lived in luxury,
45 That they lived in luxury indicates that the companions of the left had no inkling of the judgment to which they would be subjected. It translates mutrafīn, which can also indicate pursuing pleasures without any moral considerations.
***
# would persist in great sin,
46 That the companions of the left would persist in great sin alludes to the fact that God’s Forgiveness was open to them, had they desisted and repented. Great sin can mean sin in general or the one great sin, namely, polytheism (Aj, IK), which is considered the only unforgiveable sin, as in 4:48 and 4:116: Truly God forgives not that any partner be ascribed unto Him, but He forgives what is less than that for whomsoever He will. In the present verse, sin translates ḥinth, a word that alludes to the phrase ḥanitha fī yamīnihi, meaning, “He broke the oath that he had taken with his right hand” (Q, Sh, Z), and could thus be seen as an allusion to breaking the covenant with God (see 7:172c). When a youth reaches the age of puberty it is said that he or she has reached the age of ḥinth, meaning the age at which a person can now break the original covenant made with God before the creation of the world and must now adopt the observance of a revealed religion in order to properly maintain the covenant.
***
# and would say, “What! When we are dead and have become dust and bones, are we to be resurrected?
# What! And our fathers of old?”
47–48 These verses express a common objection to the Quranic teaching regarding bodily resurrection (cf. 17:49, 98; 23:82–83; 36:78; 37:16–17, 53; 50:3; 79:11). *** I Say, “Truly those of old and those of later times P are gathered for the tryst of a day appointed.” 49–50 All human beings from the beginning of creation until the end of time will be gathered together on the Day of Judgment; see the essay “Death, Dying, and the Afterlife in the Quran.”
***
# Then indeed you—O you straying deniers—
# shall eat from a tree of Zaqqūm,
# and fill your bellies therewith.
51–53 Just as the inhabitants of Paradise have fruits that befit their station, so too the inhabitants of Hell are provided with “nourishment” befitting their station. The tree of Zaqqūm is best described in 44:43–46: Truly the tree of Zaqqūm is the food of the sinner, like molten lead boiling in their bellies, like the boiling of boiling liquid (also see commentary on 37:62–63; 44:43–46). That their stomachs are full implies that they continue eating even when full, because their rapacious natures can never be satiated.
***
# Then you shall drink from boiling liquid,
# drinking as do parched camels.
54–55 For boiling liquid (ḥamīm), see 56:42c. Parched camels translates al-hīm, which relates to rabid camels (hiyām); the disease gives them an unquenchable thirst (Aj, IK, Z). Al-hīm is also interpreted to mean smooth earth covered with sand, indicating that they drink sand or a sandy beverage that increases thirst rather than quenching it (Q, Z).
***
# This shall be their welcome on the Day of Judgment.
56 Welcome translates nuzul, which literally means food prepared to honor “one who is arriving” (nāzil). There is a sense of irony here, as if to say that they have received the meal they sought, similar to the irony in 3:21: Give them glad tidings of a painful punishment (Q); and 4:138: Give glad tidings to the hypocrites that for them awaits a painful punishment.
***
# We created you. Would that you affirm it.
57 Would that you af irm it could also mean, “Even if you do not affirm [it].” Here the deniers are being asked to affirm either that God created them, that they will be resurrected (Q, Z), or both.
***
# Have you considered that which you emit?
# Is it you who created it or are We the creators?
58–59 That which you emit is taken by most as a reference either to sperm alone (Ṭ, Z), as in 53:46, from a drop when emitted (Z), or to both sperm and ovum, as in some interpretations of 86:6–7. For v. 59, see also 52:35.
***
# We have decreed death among you, and none outstrips Us
60 We have decreed death among you indicates that God takes people at various times, through various infirmities, and for varied reasons that they cannot discern (Aj, Qu) and that no one is able to avoid or delay the moment of death that God has ordained. For a similar verse, see 70:41.
***
# in replacing [you with] your likenesses and bringing you into being again in what you know not.
# You have indeed known the first genesis. Why, then, do you not reflect?
61–62 These verses are taken to mean that if one recognizes that it is God Who creates and fashions human beings in the first genesis, meaning the first time, one will recognize that God has the ability to resurrect them (Q). Some also take it to indicate that God can resurrect human beings as monkeys or pigs or any form He chooses (Aj, Q). Why, then, do you not reflect? could also be rendered as an expression of amazement, “Yet you do not reflect!” (Q), or of regret, “Would that you had reflected.”
***
# Have you considered what you reap?
# Is it you who sow it or are We the sowers?
# Had We willed, We would have turned it to chaff, such that you would remain bitterly jesting,
# [saying] “Truly we have suffered loss.
# Nay! We are deprived.”
63–67 This pericope is similar to 18:42, which says of a disbeliever who had lost his crop: So he began to wring his hands on account of what he had spent on it, while it lay in waste upon its trellises, saying, “Would that I had not ascribed anyone as partner unto my Lord!” It is reported that the Prophet said, “Let none of you say, ‘We caused [something] to grow,’ but rather, ‘We sowed it’” (Aj, Āl, IK, Q). There is also an implication, as in the next pericope, that human beings fail to be thankful for the provisions God gives them, focusing more upon what does not come to fruition than upon what God provides them, as is also implied in v. 82. Bitterly jesting translates tafakkahūn, and here indicates both amazement and regret (Q). Deprived translates maḥrūm, which indicates someone who has been cut off from receiving provision (Aj).
***
# Have you considered the water that you drink?
# Is it you who sent it down from the clouds, or is it We Who send down?
# If We had willed, We would have made it bitter; will you not, then, give thanks?
68–70 Other verses allude to God’s power to remove water at any time (e.g., 18:41; 67:30), and in several verses, water . . . sent down is used as an allusion to blessings from God (e.g., 35:27; 39:21; 41:39); in others, the manner in which God brings forth life through water is cited as a sign for those who believe (e.g., 2:164; 6:99; 7:57; 80:25–30); and 21:30 states, And We made every living thing from water (see also 24:45; 25:54). Ingratitude for water thus implies ingratitude for all God’s Blessings and for the gift of life itself.
***
# Have you considered the fire that you kindle?
# Is it you who brought into being the tree thereof, or is it We Who bring into being?
# We made it a reminder and an enjoyment for the desert dwellers.
71–73 Fire is a reminder insofar as it reminds one of the Resurrection or the Fire in Hell (Aj, Bḍ, Ṭ), regarding which the Prophet said, “This fire of yours that human beings kindle contains but a seventieth of the heat in Hell” (Ṭ). Desert dwellers translates muqwīn, which can also refer to all travelers (Q, Sh, Ṭ) and is taken by some as a reference to everyone who benefits from the use of fire (Q, Sh, Ṭ).
***
# So glorify the Name of thy Lord, the Magnificent!
74 This is one of many verses in which human beings are enjoined to glorify God. It can also mean, “Glorify by the Name of thy Lord,” thus indicating a command to invoke the Name of God. The term for “glorification,” tasbīḥ, indicates declaring something transcendent beyond all else. In this context it indicates that, although God is responsible for all of the things mentioned in vv. 58–73, He is completely beyond them, both insofar as He performs many other tasks and insofar as none of their perceived deficiencies can be attributed to Him. The Magnificent can be taken to modify either Name or Lord (Bḍ). This verse can also be seen as a command to glorify God, since God’s Glory is beyond what anyone else can say of it (Aj).
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# I swear by the places where the stars descend!
75 I swear translates fa-lā uqsimu. In this context, the particle lā in fa-lā could imply emphasis or negation. Most interpret it to function as the former, but some see it as a particle of negation, in which case it would be translated, “Nay, I swear” (Q, Sh, Ṭ). The verse would then mean, “I denounce what you say, [and] I swear . . .” The places where the stars descend most likely refers to the time, place, or manner in which celestial bodies set or to the stations of the stars referred to in 85:1 and 25:61 (R, Ṭ). It can also be taken as a reference to the fading of the stars on the Day of Judgment (see 81:2; R, Ṭ). When taken as a reference to the setting of the stars, it is seen as an allusion to the times of night that are thought to be best for supererogatory devotions (Aj; see 76:26; commentary on 73:1–2, 20). Stars translates nujūm, which could also mean “portions or progressive installments.” It could thus be rendered, “I swear by the descending of the progressive installments [of the Quran],” an interpretation attributed to some early commentators who see this verse as a reference to the gradual revelation of the Quran, three, four, and five verses at a time, over a period of twenty-three years (610–32; IK, Q, Ṭ); see 17:106c; 25:32c. The places where the stars descend can also be seen as an allusion to the hearts of God’s servants, angels, messengers, and the righteous among the believers into which the stars or the progressive installments of the Quran descend (R).
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# And truly it is a magnificent oath, if you but knew.
76 This verse is read by some with a full grammatical stop after oath, in which case if you but knew is read as a conditional phrase with an implied response, such as, “If you but knew, you would affirm” (Aj, R), or “If you but knew, you would act on what that knowledge entails” (Aj), or “If you but knew, you would strive to attain certainty” (R).
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# Truly it is a Noble Quran
77 It can be seen as a reference to everything that has been mentioned thus far in this sūrah or to the whole of the Quran (R). In this instance, Quran may be read according to its linguistic meaning, “Truly it is a noble recitation.” Noble translates karīm, which indicates the joining together of all praiseworthy attributes (R, Sh). What is noble (karīm) is said to be of pure origin and manifest bounty (R).
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# in a Book concealed.
78 In this context, Book is taken by most to mean the Preserved Tablet (85:22; Aj, Q, R, Sh, Ṭ), which is said to contain all of the books of revelation. That it is both noble and concealed indicates that the Quran is preserved from the influence of anyone but God and thus that it is not, as the Prophet’s detractors alleged, the whisperings of jinn or fables of those of old (6:25; 8:31; 16:24; 23:83; 25:5; 27:68; 46:17; 68:15; 83:13; R).
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# None touch it, save those made pure,
79 It may be read as referring to a Noble Quran (v. 77), or a Book concealed (v. 78) and thus to the Preserved Tablet (Aj, Q, R, Ṭ). Others take it as a reference to the physical book containing the written Arabic Quran (muṣḥaf; Aj, Q, Ṭ). Based upon this latter interpretation, many interpret this verse to mean that no one may touch the physical Quran unless they are in a state of ritual purity, though there is extensive debate regarding this issue. If taken as a reference to the Book concealed, then those made pure can be taken as a reference to the angels (Aj, Q, Ṭ) or to the angels and prophets. In this vein, some relate this verse to 80:13–14, which speaks of pages honored, exalted and purified (Q, Ṭ). It can also be understood to mean that no one will actually understand the allusions of the verses that they are reciting, save one whose heart has been purified (Aj). As al-Ghazzālī writes in The Revival of the Religious Sciences, “Just as the external side of the leather of a Quranic codex and its pages are protected against the external skin of a person who touches it except when he is pure, so also its internal meaning is veiled, by the authority of its greatness and might, from the internal aspect of the reader’s mind, except when it is pure from all defilement and is illuminated by the light of glorification and reverence. Just as every hand is not fit to touch the leather of the codex, so too every tongue is not fit to recite its letters, nor every mind fit to understand its meanings” (K. al-Qirāʾah).
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# a revelation from the Lord of the worlds.
80 This verse is repeated in 69:43. Both instances can be taken as direct responses to those who said that the Quran was fables of those of old (6:25; 8:31; 16:24; 23:83; 25:5; 27:68; 68:15; 83:13), poetry, or mere whisperings from Satan and jinn. In this vein, it is related to 26:210–11: And the satans did not descend with it, nor is it fitting for them, nor are they able.
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# Do you then scorn this discourse,
81 Scorn translates mudhinūn, which implies both demeaning and denying or “those who take something lightly” (Aj). It can also indicate those who appear tractable and compliant in order to hide their disbelief (Q). The verbal form dahana is thus translated “compromise” when it is said of the disbelievers in 68:9: They wish that thou might compromise and that they might compromise. In this sūrah, mudhinūn can also be understood to indicate those who take religion lightly and are thus willing to deny the revelation secretly, while pretending to believe in it publicly.
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# and make the denial thereof your provision?
82 This verse is interpreted to mean, “Do you deny that your provision is from God, when in fact you should thank God for your provision?” (Aj, Q). It is reported that some read this verse with “thanks” (shukr) in the place of provision (IK, Q, Sh, Ṭ, Z), though this is probably a case where an interpretation was recorded as a noncanonical reading. According to a ḥadīth, one morning after a downpour, the Prophet said, “God has said, ‘Some of My servants arose as believers in Me and some as disbelievers. He who has said, “We have had a rainfall by the grace (faḍl) and Mercy of God,” is a believer in Me and a disbeliever in the stars; and he who has said, “We have had a rainfall by the rising of such and such [a star],” is a disbeliever in Me and a believer in the stars’” (IK, Q). Some say that it was in relation to this event that this verse was revealed (Sh, Ṭ).
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# Why, then, when it reaches the throat,
83 It is a reference to the soul when it reaches the throat at the moment of death, as in 75:26–28: Nay! But when it reaches the collarbones, and it is said, “Who will [make him] ascend?” And he knows for certain that it is the parting.
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# while you are looking on
84 This verse refers to those who are looking on as another dies, yet have no ability to make the soul stay in the body (IK, Ṭ). Vv. 83–85 point to the unique perspective that death imparts both to the dying and to those witnessing the death of another. Suddenly one realizes that the connection to this world is ephemeral and that God is ever near. Upon witnessing death, one is thus reminded that truly we are God’s, and unto Him we return (2:156).
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# —and We are nearer to him than you, though you see not—
85 God is nearer to human beings at all times than they are to themselves, and He has power over them at every moment, despite their illusions to the contrary, as in 50:16: We are nearer to him than his jugular vein. The manner in which God exercises this power at the moment of death is most clearly expressed in 6:61–62: And He is Dominant over His servants. He sends guardians over you, till, when death comes unto one of you, Our messengers take him, and they neglect not their duty. Then they are returned unto God, their true Master. Surely judgment belongs to Him, and He is the swiftest of reckoners.
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# why, then, if you are unconstrained,
# do you not return it, if you are truthful?
86–87 This verse asks, “If you do not owe your life to God and are yourself responsible for it, why do you not control the moment of death when the soul will be returned whence it came?” or “Why are you unable to return the soul to the body after it has reached the throat?” (Aj, IK, Q). Unconstrained translates ghayr madīnīn, which could also mean “if you are not indebted,” indicating, “If you truly own your own soul and do not owe the debt of your soul to God, then you should be able to control whence it came and whither it will go.”
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# So if one be among those brought nigh,
88–94 This last section returns to the categories of human beings discussed in the first half of the sūrah. Each reference is in the singular, as if referring to the soul of the dying person mentioned in vv. 83–87, but nonetheless entails a general discussion of what confronts all souls at the moment of death. These verses are read by some as a discussion of the intermediate realm said to be experienced by all souls after the smaller resurrection, when they reside in the grave before the final resurrection of all human beings for the Day of Judgment (Aj); regarding this intermediary realm, known as the barzakh, and the relationship between the two resurrections, see the essay “Death, Dying, and the Afterlife in the Quran.”
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# then comfort, bounty, and a Garden of bliss.
88–89 Those brought nigh will be relieved of the cares of this world (Aj, Q, Sh, Ṭ). Comfort is interpreted as an allusion to being in God’s Mercy (raḥmah), a cooling breeze (nasīm; Aj, Q), or the direct vision of God’s Face, while bounty alludes to hearing God’s Word (Q). Bounty translates rayḥān, which is also the name for sweet basil. Rayḥān is also rendered fragrant herbs in 55:12, where it refers to the blessings of this world rather than the bounties of the next. As employed here, some say it refers to the basil of this earth (Th), while others say it refers to the scent of Paradise, a perfume that fills the souls of those brought nigh (Aj, IK). Several commentators quote a saying attributed to Abū alʿĀliyah (d. 90/708), a Quran teacher among the second generation of Muslims: “None among those brought nigh departs this world until they have been given some of the rayḥān of the Garden; so he smells it, and is then taken” (Aj, IK, Th). Rayḥān is also understood as an allusion to and symbol of the provisions in Heaven or to Heaven itself (Aj, Th). Others say comfort means being saved from the Fire, and bounty means entering the Everlasting Abode (Th). Still others say comfort refers to the grave and bounty refers to the Garden (Th).
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# And if one be among the companions of the right,
# then peace unto thee from the companions of the right.
90–91 These verses can be understood to mean that, after souls are questioned by the angels (see the essay “Death, Dying, and the Afterlife in the Quran”), one who is among the companions of the right will be greeted with salutations of peace from the companions of the right (Aj) or salutations from the angels (IK), as in 41:30–31: Truly those who say, “Our Lord is God,” then stand firm, the angels will descend upon them, [saying], “Fear not, nor grieve, and rejoice in the Garden that you have been promised. We are your protectors in the life of this world and in the Hereafter; therein you shall have whatsoever your souls desire, and therein you shall have whatsoever you call for” (IK). In this vein, these verses are also interpreted as an indication that they are promised safety from any and all harm (Q). The shift to the second-person singular, thee, is interpreted by some to mean that the companions of the right give salutations of peace to the Prophet, saying, “Peace unto thee, O Muhammad” (Aj, Q, Th). Alternately, it can be understood as an address to the individual who hears or reads this verse.
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# But if one be among the deniers who are astray,
# then a welcome of boiling liquid,
# and burning in Hellfire.
92–94 Welcome translates nuzul; see 56:56c. V. 93 is similar to 37:67: Then on top of it they will have a brew of a boiling liquid; for the broader implications of boiling liquid (ḥamīm), see 56:42c. As with vv. 88–91, some see these verses as referring to the intermediary realm, though others cite them as proof that disbelievers may be cast into the Fire at the moment of death (Aj). They can also be understood as describing both their punishment in the intermediate realm after the lesser resurrection yet before the greater resurrection and their punishment in Hell after the greater resurrection; for the distinction between these two resurrections, see the essay “Death, Dying, and the Afterlife in the Quran.”
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# Verily, this is the truth of certainty;
95 This is read as a reference to what has been mentioned in the immediately preceding verses regarding states of souls in the intermediate realm (R, Ṭ) or to all that has been mentioned in this sūrah (Aj, Q, Sh). The truth of certainty is understood by most to indicate “the truth of what is certain” (Q, R, Sh, Ṭ). It is reported that regarding this verse Qatādah (d. 117/726), one of the foremost commentators from the third generation of Muslim scholars, said, “God does not leave anyone until He has informed him of this Quran; as for the believer, he is made certain of it in this world, and that benefits him on the Day of Resurrection. As for the disbeliever, he is made certain of it on the Day of Resurrection when certainty of it will not benefit him” (Q, Ṭ). According to this interpretation, this verse could be taken as a reference to the entire Quran (R). The truth of certainty is considered by many to be a reference to the highest level of certainty, above the knowledge of certainty (102:5) and the eye of certainty (102:7); see 102:5c. In discussing these levels, some liken the knowledge of certainty to hearing of or being informed of a fire, the eye of certainty to seeing the fire, and the truth of certainty to being consumed by the fire; see 27:7c.
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# so glorify the Name of thy Lord, the Magnificent!
96 So, which translates the particle fāʾ, can be understood to indicate either the order of actions or that the truth that this sūrah contains requires the affirmation of God’s Greatness and Transcendence (Aj).
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