Mesmerizing recitation of the chapter with English translation in txt.: https://surahquran.com/sorah-english-55.html
بِسْمِ اللّٰهِ الرَّحْمٰنِ الرَّحِيْمِ
اَلرَّحۡمٰنُ ۙ﴿۱﴾ عَلَّمَ الۡقُرۡاٰنَ ؕ﴿۲﴾ خَلَقَ الۡاِنۡسَانَ ۙ﴿۳﴾ عَلَّمَہُ الۡبَیَانَ ﴿۴﴾ اَلشَّمۡسُ وَ الۡقَمَرُ بِحُسۡبَانٍ ﴿۪۵﴾ وَّ النَّجۡمُ وَ الشَّجَرُ یَسۡجُدٰنِ ﴿۶﴾ وَ السَّمَآءَ رَفَعَہَا وَ وَضَعَ الۡمِیۡزَانَ ۙ﴿۷﴾ اَلَّا تَطۡغَوۡا فِی الۡمِیۡزَانِ ﴿۸﴾ وَ اَقِیۡمُوا الۡوَزۡنَ بِالۡقِسۡطِ وَ لَا تُخۡسِرُوا الۡمِیۡزَانَ ﴿۹﴾ وَ الۡاَرۡضَ وَضَعَہَا لِلۡاَنَامِ ﴿ۙ۱۰﴾ فِیۡہَا فَاکِہَۃٌ ۪ۙ وَّ النَّخۡلُ ذَاتُ الۡاَکۡمَامِ ﴿ۖ۱۱﴾ وَ الۡحَبُّ ذُو الۡعَصۡفِ وَ الرَّیۡحَانُ ﴿ۚ۱۲﴾ فَبِاَیِّ اٰلَآءِ رَبِّکُمَا تُکَذِّبٰنِ ﴿۱۳﴾ خَلَقَ الۡاِنۡسَانَ مِنۡ صَلۡصَالٍ کَالۡفَخَّارِ ﴿ۙ۱۴﴾ وَ خَلَقَ الۡجَآنَّ مِنۡ مَّارِجٍ مِّنۡ نَّارٍ ﴿ۚ۱۵﴾ فَبِاَیِّ اٰلَآءِ رَبِّکُمَا تُکَذِّبٰنِ ﴿۱۶﴾ رَبُّ الۡمَشۡرِقَیۡنِ وَ رَبُّ الۡمَغۡرِبَیۡنِ ﴿ۚ۱۷﴾ فَبِاَیِّ اٰلَآءِ رَبِّکُمَا تُکَذِّبٰنِ ﴿۱۸﴾ مَرَجَ الۡبَحۡرَیۡنِ یَلۡتَقِیٰنِ ﴿ۙ۱۹﴾ بَیۡنَہُمَا بَرۡزَخٌ لَّا یَبۡغِیٰنِ ﴿ۚ۲۰﴾ فَبِاَیِّ اٰلَآءِ رَبِّکُمَا تُکَذِّبٰنِ ﴿۲۱﴾ یَخۡرُجُ مِنۡہُمَا اللُّؤۡلُؤُ وَ الۡمَرۡجَانُ ﴿ۚ۲۲﴾ فَبِاَیِّ اٰلَآءِ رَبِّکُمَا تُکَذِّبٰنِ ﴿۲۳﴾ وَ لَہُ الۡجَوَارِ الۡمُنۡشَئٰتُ فِی الۡبَحۡرِ کَالۡاَعۡلَامِ ﴿ۚ۲۴﴾ فَبِاَیِّ اٰلَآءِ رَبِّکُمَا تُکَذِّبٰنِ ﴿٪۲۵﴾
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
The Most Gracious taught this Quran (1). He created man (2) and taught him speech (3).
The sun and the moon follow a precise calculation (4), and the stars and trees all bow in prostration (5, 6). He raised the sky and set up the balance (7), so that you may not transgress the balance — weigh with justice and do not fall short in the scale (8).
He laid the earth for all creatures (9, 10). In it are fruits and date palms with sheathed clusters (11), and grain with husks and fragrant plants. So which of the favors of your Lord will you both deny (12, 13)?
He created man from dry clay like pottery (14), and created the jinn from a smokeless flame of fire (15). So which of the favors of your Lord will you deny?
The Lord of the two Easts and the Lord of the two Wests (17) — so which of the powers of your Lord will you deny (18)?
He released the two seas to meet (19), yet between them is a barrier they do not cross. So which of the wonders of your Lord will you deny?
From them come pearls and coral (20, 21). So which of the blessings of your Lord will you deny (22)?
And to Him belong the ships sailing through the sea like mountains (23). So which of the favors of your Lord will you deny (24)?
کُلُّ مَنۡ عَلَیۡہَا فَانٍ ﴿ۚۖ۲۶﴾ وَّ یَبۡقٰی وَجۡہُ رَبِّکَ ذُو الۡجَلٰلِ وَ الۡاِکۡرَامِ ﴿ۚ۲۷﴾ فَبِاَیِّ اٰلَآءِ رَبِّکُمَا تُکَذِّبٰنِ ﴿۲۸﴾ یَسۡـَٔلُہٗ مَنۡ فِی السَّمٰوٰتِ وَ الۡاَرۡضِ ؕ کُلَّ یَوۡمٍ ہُوَ فِیۡ شَاۡنٍ ﴿ۚ۲۹﴾ فَبِاَیِّ اٰلَآءِ رَبِّکُمَا تُکَذِّبٰنِ ﴿۳۰﴾ سَنَفۡرُغُ لَکُمۡ اَیُّہَ الثَّقَلٰنِ ﴿ۚ۳۱﴾ فَبِاَیِّ اٰلَآءِ رَبِّکُمَا تُکَذِّبٰنِ ﴿۳۲﴾ یٰمَعۡشَرَ الۡجِنِّ وَ الۡاِنۡسِ اِنِ اسۡتَطَعۡتُمۡ اَنۡ تَنۡفُذُوۡا مِنۡ اَقۡطَارِ السَّمٰوٰتِ وَ الۡاَرۡضِ فَانۡفُذُوۡا ؕ لَا تَنۡفُذُوۡنَ اِلَّا بِسُلۡطٰنٍ ﴿ۚ۳۳﴾ فَبِاَیِّ اٰلَآءِ رَبِّکُمَا تُکَذِّبٰنِ ﴿۳۴﴾ یُرۡسَلُ عَلَیۡکُمَا شُوَاظٌ مِّنۡ نَّارٍ ۬ۙ وَّ نُحَاسٌ فَلَا تَنۡتَصِرٰنِ ﴿ۚ۳۵﴾ فَبِاَیِّ اٰلَآءِ رَبِّکُمَا تُکَذِّبٰنِ ﴿۳۶﴾ فَاِذَا انۡشَقَّتِ السَّمَآءُ فَکَانَتۡ وَرۡدَۃً کَالدِّہَانِ ﴿ۚ۳۷﴾ فَبِاَیِّ اٰلَآءِ رَبِّکُمَا تُکَذِّبٰنِ ﴿۳۸﴾ فَیَوۡمَئِذٍ لَّا یُسۡـَٔلُ عَنۡ ذَنۡۢبِہٖۤ اِنۡسٌ وَّ لَا جَآنٌّ ﴿ۚ۳۹﴾ فَبِاَیِّ اٰلَآءِ رَبِّکُمَا تُکَذِّبٰنِ ﴿۴۰﴾ یُعۡرَفُ الۡمُجۡرِمُوۡنَ بِسِیۡمٰہُمۡ فَیُؤۡخَذُ بِالنَّوَاصِیۡ وَ الۡاَقۡدَامِ ﴿ۚ۴۱﴾ فَبِاَیِّ اٰلَآءِ رَبِّکُمَا تُکَذِّبٰنِ ﴿۴۲﴾ ہٰذِہٖ جَہَنَّمُ الَّتِیۡ یُکَذِّبُ بِہَا الۡمُجۡرِمُوۡنَ ﴿ۘ۴۳﴾ یَطُوۡفُوۡنَ بَیۡنَہَا وَ بَیۡنَ حَمِیۡمٍ اٰنٍ ﴿ۚ۴۴﴾ فَبِاَیِّ اٰلَآءِ رَبِّکُمَا تُکَذِّبٰنِ ﴿٪۴۵﴾
Everything on this earth will perish (25), and only the Face of your Lord — full of Majesty and Honor — will remain. So which of the glories of your Lord will you deny (26)?
All those in the heavens and earth ask of Him. Every day He is in a new state of glory (27). So which of the praiseworthy attributes of your Lord will you deny (28)?
O you who are a burden upon the earth (29), We shall soon turn Our full attention to reckon with you (30). So which of the favors of your Lord will you deny (31)?
O company of jinn and mankind, if you are able to pass beyond the regions of the heavens and the earth, then pass — but you cannot without authority (32). So which of the powers of your Lord will you deny?
Upon you will be sent a flame of fire and smoke (33), and you will not be able to defend yourselves. So which of the powers of your Lord will you deny?
And when the sky is torn apart and turns red like a hide (34) — so which of the powers of your Lord will you deny (35)?
On that Day, neither man nor jinn will be asked about their sins (36) — their guilt will be known from their faces. The sinners will be seized by their forelocks and feet (37). So which of the powers of your Lord will you deny?
It will be said: “This is the Hell that the sinners used to deny.” They will circle between it and boiling water (38). So which of the powers of your Lord will you deny (39)?
وَ لِمَنۡ خَافَ مَقَامَ رَبِّہٖ جَنَّتٰنِ ﴿ۚ۴۶﴾ فَبِاَیِّ اٰلَآءِ رَبِّکُمَا تُکَذِّبٰنِ ﴿ۙ۴۷﴾ ذَوَاتَاۤ اَفۡنَانٍ ﴿ۚ۴۸﴾ فَبِاَیِّ اٰلَآءِ رَبِّکُمَا تُکَذِّبٰنِ ﴿۴۹﴾ فِیۡہِمَا عَیۡنٰنِ تَجۡرِیٰنِ ﴿ۚ۵۰﴾ فَبِاَیِّ اٰلَآءِ رَبِّکُمَا تُکَذِّبٰنِ ﴿۵۱﴾ فِیۡہِمَا مِنۡ کُلِّ فَاکِہَۃٍ زَوۡجٰنِ ﴿ۚ۵۲﴾ فَبِاَیِّ اٰلَآءِ رَبِّکُمَا تُکَذِّبٰنِ ﴿۵۳﴾ مُتَّکِـِٕیۡنَ عَلٰی فُرُشٍۭ بَطَآئِنُہَا مِنۡ اِسۡتَبۡرَقٍ ؕ وَ جَنَا الۡجَنَّتَیۡنِ دَانٍ ﴿ۚ۵۴﴾ فَبِاَیِّ اٰلَآءِ رَبِّکُمَا تُکَذِّبٰنِ ﴿۵۵﴾ فِیۡہِنَّ قٰصِرٰتُ الطَّرۡفِ ۙ لَمۡ یَطۡمِثۡہُنَّ اِنۡسٌ قَبۡلَہُمۡ وَ لَا جَآنٌّ ﴿ۚ۵۶﴾ فَبِاَیِّ اٰلَآءِ رَبِّکُمَا تُکَذِّبٰنِ ﴿ۚ۵۷﴾ کَاَنَّہُنَّ الۡیَاقُوۡتُ وَ الۡمَرۡجَانُ ﴿ۚ۵۸﴾ فَبِاَیِّ اٰلَآءِ رَبِّکُمَا تُکَذِّبٰنِ ﴿۵۹﴾ ہَلۡ جَزَآءُ الۡاِحۡسَانِ اِلَّا الۡاِحۡسَانُ ﴿ۚ۶۰﴾ فَبِاَیِّ اٰلَآءِ رَبِّکُمَا تُکَذِّبٰنِ ﴿۶۱﴾ وَ مِنۡ دُوۡنِہِمَا جَنَّتٰنِ ﴿ۚ۶۲﴾ فَبِاَیِّ اٰلَآءِ رَبِّکُمَا تُکَذِّبٰنِ ﴿ۙ۶۳﴾ مُدۡہَآ مَّتٰنِ ﴿ۚ۶۴﴾ فَبِاَیِّ اٰلَآءِ رَبِّکُمَا تُکَذِّبٰنِ ﴿ۚ۶۵﴾ فِیۡہِمَا عَیۡنٰنِ نَضَّاخَتٰنِ ﴿ۚ۶۶﴾ فَبِاَیِّ اٰلَآءِ رَبِّکُمَا تُکَذِّبٰنِ ﴿۶۷﴾ فِیۡہِمَا فَاکِہَۃٌ وَّ نَخۡلٌ وَّ رُمَّانٌ ﴿ۚ۶۸﴾ فَبِاَیِّ اٰلَآءِ رَبِّکُمَا تُکَذِّبٰنِ ﴿ۚ۶۹﴾ فِیۡہِنَّ خَیۡرٰتٌ حِسَانٌ ﴿ۚ۷۰﴾ فَبِاَیِّ اٰلَآءِ رَبِّکُمَا تُکَذِّبٰنِ ﴿ۚ۷۱﴾ حُوۡرٌ مَّقۡصُوۡرٰتٌ فِی الۡخِیَامِ ﴿ۚ۷۲﴾ فَبِاَیِّ اٰلَآءِ رَبِّکُمَا تُکَذِّبٰنِ ﴿ۚ۷۳﴾ لَمۡ یَطۡمِثۡہُنَّ اِنۡسٌ قَبۡلَہُمۡ وَ لَا جَآنٌّ ﴿ۚ۷۴﴾ فَبِاَیِّ اٰلَآءِ رَبِّکُمَا تُکَذِّبٰنِ ﴿ۚ۷۵﴾ مُتَّکِـِٕیۡنَ عَلٰی رَفۡرَفٍ خُضۡرٍ وَّ عَبۡقَرِیٍّ حِسَانٍ ﴿ۚ۷۶﴾ فَبِاَیِّ اٰلَآءِ رَبِّکُمَا تُکَذِّبٰنِ ﴿۷۷﴾ تَبٰرَکَ اسۡمُ رَبِّکَ ذِی الۡجَلٰلِ وَ الۡاِکۡرَامِ ﴿٪۷۸﴾
But for those who feared standing before their Lord, there will be two gardens (40, 41). So which of the blessings of your Lord will you deny (42)?
Full of spreading branches. So which of the blessings of your Lord will you deny?
In both gardens, two springs will flow. So which of the blessings of your Lord will you deny?
In both, every fruit will be in pairs (43). So which of the blessings of your Lord will you deny?
The people of Paradise will recline on couches lined with rich brocade (44), and the fruits of the gardens will hang low within reach. So which of the blessings of your Lord will you deny?
In them will be women of modest gaze (45), whom no man or jinn has touched before (46). So which of the blessings of your Lord will you deny?
As beautiful as rubies and coral. So which of the blessings of your Lord will you deny?
Is the reward of good anything but good (47)? So which of the praiseworthy attributes of your Lord will you deny (48)?
And beside those two gardens, there will be two more gardens (49). So which of the blessings of your Lord will you deny?
Dark green with lush foliage (50). So which of the blessings of your Lord will you deny?
In both, two springs gushing forth. So which of the blessings of your Lord will you deny?
In them, abundant fruits, date palms, and pomegranates. So which of the blessings of your Lord will you deny?
In them will be good and beautiful companions. So which of the blessings of your Lord will you deny?
Houris (maidens) sheltered in pavilions (51). So which of the blessings of your Lord will you deny?
Whom no man or jinn has touched before. So which of the blessings of your Lord will you deny?
The people of Paradise will recline on green cushions and beautiful fine carpets (52). So which of the blessings of your Lord will you deny?
Blessed be the name of your Lord, full of Majesty and Honor.
TRANSLATION OF FOOTNOTES
Footnote No. 1 — Surah Ar-Rahman
This means that the teachings of this Quran are not the self-composed work of any human being; rather, its Teacher is Allah Himself, the Most Gracious (Ar-Rahman). At this point, there was no need to state explicitly to whom Allah gave the Quran’s teachings, because people were already hearing it from the lips of Muhammad ﷺ. The context made it self-evident that these teachings were given to him.
The first purpose of beginning with this statement is to make clear that the Prophet ﷺ is not its author — it is Allah who has given this teaching. But beyond that, there is a second purpose, which is hinted at by the word Ar-Rahman (the Most Gracious). If the intent were only to say that this teaching comes from Allah and is not self-composed by the Prophet, there would have been no need to use an attributive name instead of Allah’s primary name. And if an attributive name had to be used, any of the Divine names could have served that purpose. But instead of saying “Allah taught,” or “the Creator taught,” or “the Sustainer taught,” it was said: “The Most Gracious taught this Quran” — which naturally conveys that the revelation of the Quran for the guidance of mankind is entirely an act of Allah’s mercy. Because He is infinitely kind to His creation, He did not leave you to wander in darkness. His mercy necessitated that He send this Quran to grant you the knowledge upon which your righteousness in this world and your salvation in the Hereafter depend.
Footnote No. 2 — Surah Ar-Rahman
In other words, since Allah is the Creator of mankind, and it is the Creator’s responsibility to guide His creation and show it the path by which it may fulfil its purpose of existence, the revelation of the Quran’s teachings from Allah is not merely a requirement of His being Ar-Rahman — it is equally a natural and necessary requirement of His being the Creator. If the Creator does not guide His creation, who else will? And if the Creator Himself does not guide, who else could? And what greater flaw could there be in a Creator than to bring something into existence and then not teach it how to fulfil its purpose?
Therefore, it is not at all surprising that Allah has arranged for the education of mankind. What would have been truly surprising is if He had not done so. Everything He has created in this universe, He has not merely brought into existence and left to itself — He has given it the most fitting form to play its role in the natural order, and has taught it how to perform that role. Every single cell and hair in the human body itself is born already knowing the function it must carry out in the human organism. How then could man alone be left without the guidance and teaching of his Creator?
This subject is explained in various ways at different places in the Quran. In Surah Al-Layl (verse 12), it is said: “Indeed, upon Us is guidance.” In Surah An-Nahl (verse 9): “Upon Allah is the responsibility to show the straight path, and some paths are crooked.” In Surah Ta-Ha (verses 47–50), when Pharaoh heard the message of prophethood from Moses and asked in astonishment who this Lord was who sent messengers to him, Moses replied: “Our Lord is He who gave every thing its distinctive form and then guided it” — meaning He taught it the way by which it could perform its part in the system of existence. This is the very argument that satisfies an unbiased mind that the sending of prophets and scriptures from Allah for human guidance is entirely in accordance with the demands of nature.
Footnote No. 3 — Surah Ar-Rahman
The original word used here is bayān. It carries two meanings: first, the expression of what is within one’s mind — that is, the ability to speak and convey one’s thoughts and intentions. Second, it means the clarification of distinctions — which, in this context, refers to the ability to distinguish between good and evil, right and wrong.
Taking both meanings into account, this short phrase completes the argument made above. The faculty of speech is the distinguishing characteristic that sets man apart from animals and other earthly creatures. But speech alone cannot function in isolation — it necessarily reflects that man is a conscious and volitional being. This is a form of guidance that is suited to a conscious and free being, not to creatures that are neither.
Similarly, another of man’s most important distinguishing features is that Allah has placed within him a moral sense — by virtue of which he instinctively distinguishes between good and evil, right and wrong, justice and injustice, the appropriate and the inappropriate. This inner sense and feeling never fully leaves him, even in the depths of misguidance and ignorance.
Both of these distinguishing characteristics necessarily require that the mode of education for man’s conscious and volitional life be different from the instinctive mode by which a fish is taught to swim, a bird to fly, and within the human body itself, the eyelid to blink, the eye to see, the ear to hear, and the stomach to digest. In his own conscious life, man recognises only such means as teachers, books, schools, preaching, instruction, writing, speech, discussion, and reasoning as valid means of education — and he does not consider instinctive, inborn knowledge sufficient.
Why then should it seem strange that to fulfil His responsibility of guiding mankind, the Creator chose the prophet and the scripture as His means of teaching? The nature of the creation determines the nature of its education. This is entirely rational. For a being taught bayān (speech and moral distinction), the Quran is the only fitting means of guidance — not the kind of guidance suited to creatures who have not been given speech.
Footnote No. 4 — Surah Ar-Rahman
This means that a powerful law and an unalterable discipline governs these magnificent celestial bodies. Man is able to calculate time, days, dates, seasons, and climates precisely because the pattern of the sun’s rising and setting and its passage through various positions never changes.
The vast abundance of life on Earth exists precisely because the sun and moon have been placed at a precisely calculated distance from the Earth, and any variation in that distance follows a specific, measured order. Were their distance from the Earth to increase or decrease without such precise calculation, no life here would be possible.
Similarly, such a perfect balance has been established between the movements of the moon around the Earth and in relation to the sun, that the moon has become a universal calendar — reliably announcing the lunar date to the entire world every night with complete regularity.
Footnote No. 5 — Surah Ar-Rahman
The original word used here is an-najm, whose well-known and primary meaning is “star.” However, in the Arabic language, this word is also used for plants and creeping vegetation that have no trunk — such as vegetables, melons, watermelons, and the like.
Commentators differ on which meaning is intended here. Ibn Abbas, Sa’id ibn Jubayr, As-Suddi, and Sufyan Ath-Thawri take it to mean stemless plants, because the word ash-shajar (trees) follows immediately after, and this meaning fits more naturally alongside it.
On the other hand, Mujahid, Qatada, and Hasan al-Basri maintain that najm here too refers to the stars of the sky, not earthly plants — because this is the word’s most commonly understood meaning, it is the first thing that comes to mind upon hearing it, and mentioning stars after the sun and moon is entirely natural.
Although the majority of commentators and translators have preferred the first meaning — and it cannot be called incorrect — in our view, the position of Hafiz Ibn Kathir is more sound: that both linguistically and contextually, the second meaning (stars) appears more preferable.
In another passage of the Quran, the prostration of nujūm (stars) and shajar (trees) is also mentioned, and there the word nujūm cannot possibly be taken to mean anything other than stars. The verse reads: “Do you not see that to Allah prostrate whoever is in the heavens and whoever is on the earth, and the sun, and the moon, and the stars, and the mountains, and the trees, and the moving creatures, and many of the people…” (Al-Hajj: 18). Here nujūm is mentioned alongside the sun and moon, while shajar is mentioned with mountains and animals — and all are said to prostrate before Allah.
Footnote No. 6 — Surah Ar-Rahman
That is, the stars of the sky and the trees of the earth are all obedient to Allah’s command and bound by His law — they cannot deviate from the order prescribed for them by even a hair’s breadth.
The purpose of what is stated in these two verses is to make clear that the entire system of the universe is the creation of Allah and is running in submission to Him. From the earth to the heavens, nothing is independent or self-governing, no other deity’s authority runs in this world, no one has any share in God’s sovereignty, and nothing is worthy of being worshipped. All are servants and slaves — the sole Master is the One Almighty Lord. Therefore, monotheism (Tawhid) is the truth, which is precisely what this Quran teaches. Whoever abandons it and falls into polytheism or disbelief is, in reality, in conflict with the entire order of the universe.
Footnote No. 7 — Surah Ar-Rahman
Nearly all commentators have understood mīzān (the scale/balance) here to mean justice, explaining that Allah has established this entire universal system upon the foundation of justice and balance. The countless stars and planets revolving in space, the tremendous forces at work in this universe, and the innumerable creatures and things found in this world — had a perfect balance and equilibrium not been established among all of them, this workshop of existence could not have functioned for even a single moment.
Consider even just the creatures that have existed on this earth for hundreds of millions of years — in the air, water, and land. Their continued existence is only possible because a complete balance and equilibrium is maintained in the conditions that sustain their lives. Were even the slightest imbalance to occur in those conditions, not a trace of life would remain here.
Footnote No. 8 — Surah Ar-Rahman
That is, since you live in a balanced universe whose entire system has been built upon justice, you too must uphold justice. Within the sphere of authority given to you, if you act unjustly — if you deprive those whose rights have been entrusted to you — it will amount to rebellion against the very nature of the universe. The nature of this cosmos does not tolerate injustice, unfairness, or the violation of rights. Here, setting aside major injustices, even a person who cheats with the scale and takes away so much as a single tolah (a small unit of weight) of what belongs to the buyer has disrupted the balance of the universe.
This is the second important part of the Quran’s teaching, conveyed in these three verses. The first teaching is Tawhid (monotheism), and the second is ’adl (justice). In a few brief sentences, people are thus informed of what the Quran — sent by the Most Gracious Lord for the guidance of mankind — has come to teach.
Footnote No. 9 — Surah Ar-Rahman
From here up to verse 25, Allah mentions the blessings, favors, and wonders of His power from which both mankind and jinn benefit — and which, by their very natural and moral demand, require that these beings, despite having the freedom to choose belief or disbelief, should willingly and gladly, of their own accord, choose the path of servitude and obedience to their Lord.
Footnote No. 10 — Surah Ar-Rahman
The original words are that the earth was wada’a (laid out, prepared, arranged) for al-anām. The word wada’a means to compose, to make, to prepare, to place, to establish. And anām in the Arabic language is used to refer to creation (khalq), encompassing human beings and all other living creatures.
Ibn Abbas says: “Every thing that has a spirit is included in anām.” Mujahid explains it as meaning all creatures (khalā’iq). Qatada, Ibn Zayd, and Sha’bi say that all living beings are anām. Hasan al-Basri says that both humans and jinn are included in its meaning. All scholars of the Arabic language have stated these meanings.
This makes clear that those who derive from this verse a directive that the earth must be made the property of the state are saying something entirely baseless. It is a clumsy attempt to force alien ideologies into the Quran — something that neither the words of the verse nor its context support. Anām does not refer only to human society; the other creatures of the earth are also included. And the meaning of Allah having laid out the earth for anām is not that it should be everyone’s joint property. Nor does the context suggest that the purpose of this passage is to state any economic principle.
The actual intent here is to convey that Allah made and prepared this earth in such a way that it became fit for various kinds of living creatures to inhabit and sustain their lives upon. It did not become this way on its own — it was made so by the Creator. In His wisdom He placed it in such a position and created such conditions within it that made it possible for living species to dwell here.
(For further explanation, see Tafheem-ul-Quran, Vol. 3: An-Naml, footnotes 72–74; Vol. 4: Ya-Sin, footnotes 29–32; Al-Mu’min, footnotes 90–91; Ha-Mim As-Sajdah, footnotes 11–13; Az-Zukhruf, footnotes 6–10; Al-Jathiyah, footnote 7.)
Footnote No. 11 — Surah Ar-Rahman
That is, grain for human beings and fodder for animals.
Footnote No. 12 — Surah Ar-Rahman
The original word used here is ālā’, which is repeated many times in the verses that follow. We have rendered its meaning in different words at different places according to context. It is therefore important to understand at the outset just how vast this word’s meaning is and what range of concepts it encompasses.
Linguists and commentators have generally explained ālā’ to mean “blessings” (ni’mat), and all translators have rendered it as such. This meaning is also reported from Ibn Abbas, Qatada, and Hasan al-Basri. The strongest evidence for the correctness of this meaning is that the Prophet ﷺ himself narrated that upon hearing this verse, the jinn would repeatedly respond: “Lā bishai’in min ni’amika Rabbana nukadhdhibu” — “We deny none of Your blessings, our Lord.” We therefore do not agree with the view of some modern researchers who claim that ālā’ is not used in the meaning of blessings at all.
The second meaning of this word is power and wonders of power or manifestations of power. Ibn Jarir al-Tabari has quoted Ibn Zayd as saying that “fa bi ayyi ālā’i Rabbikuma” means “bi ayyi qudratillāh” — “by which power of Allah.” Ibn Jarir himself has also taken ālā’ to mean power in his commentary on verses 37–38. Imam Razi likewise writes in his commentary on verses 14–16: “These verses are not for the description of blessings but for the description of power.” And on verses 22–23 he states: “This is a description of the wonders of Allah’s power, not of His blessings.”
The third meaning of the word is virtues, praiseworthy attributes, and excellences and merits. This meaning has not been explicitly stated by scholars of language or commentary, but the word is used abundantly in this sense in classical Arabic poetry. The poet Nabigha says:
“They are kings and sons of kings — they hold superiority over people in their virtues and blessings.”
Muhalhal, in the elegy for his brother Kulayb, says:
“Resolve and determination were among his natural qualities — O people, I cannot enumerate all his virtues.”
Fudala ibn Zayd al-Ma’dani, while describing the faults of a stranger, makes the point that even a stranger’s good deeds are viewed poorly, and adds:
“Yet the excellences of the wealthy miser are praised.”
Ajda’ al-Hamdani, praising his horse Kumayt, says:
“I am pleased with Kumayt’s fine qualities. If someone wishes to sell a horse, let him sell — our horse is not for sale.”
A poet in the Hamasa collection, whose name Abu Tammam did not mention, laments the passing of Walid ibn Adham’s era of authority:
“Whenever someone recounts the virtues of a departed soul, may God not let Walid ibn Adham be forgotten on such an occasion. He did not become elated when good fortune came his way, nor did he boast when he bestowed favor upon others.”
Tarafa, praising a man, says:
“He is perfect, combining all the noble qualities of youth — noble, a chief of chiefs, generous of spirit.”
Keeping these examples and instances in view, we have taken the word ālā’ in its broad sense, and at each place have chosen the meaning that seems most fitting to the context. However, in some instances, a single occurrence of ālā’ can carry several meanings simultaneously, and the constraints of translation have compelled us to choose just one meaning at a time — because no single word in Urdu is comprehensive enough to convey all these meanings at once.
For example, in this verse, after mentioning the creation of the earth and the excellent provisions made in it for all creatures, it is asked: which ālā’ of your Lord will you deny? Here ālā’ does not carry only the meaning of “blessings” — it simultaneously conveys the meanings of wonders of Allah’s power and His praiseworthy attributes. It is a wonder of His power that He fashioned this globe of earth in such a remarkable way that countless species of living creatures inhabit it and all manner of fruits and grains grow within it. And it is a reflection of His praiseworthy attributes that along with creating these creatures, He also arranged for their nourishment and sustenance here — and an arrangement of such a sublime order that their food is not merely nutritious but is attended with countless considerations of taste, pleasure, and the natural disposition of the senses.
As just one example of the artistry of Allah’s craftsmanship, attention is drawn to how the fruit of the date palm is produced wrapped within its sheaths. Keeping this one example in mind, consider the extraordinary artistry displayed in the packaging of bananas, pomegranates, oranges, coconuts, and other fruits — and observe how the various grains, lentils, and cereals that we cook and eat without a second thought are each produced packed into fine ears and husks and wrapped in delicate skins.
Footnote No. 13 — Surah Ar-Rahman
By “denying” is meant the various attitudes that people adopt toward Allah’s blessings, the wonders of His power, and His praiseworthy attributes. For example:
Some people do not accept at all that Allah is the Creator of all these things. They believe that everything is merely the result of an accidental agitation of matter, or a chance occurrence in which no wisdom or craftsmanship plays any part. This is open and outright denial.
Other people do accept that Allah is the Creator of these things, but alongside this they associate others as partners in His divinity, express gratitude to others for His blessings, and after eating His provision sing the praises of others. This is another form of denial. When a person acknowledges that you have done him a certain favor, and then in your very presence begins to thank someone who has in reality done him no such favor, you yourself would say that he has committed the worst form of ingratitude — because his conduct is clear proof that he regards not you but that other person as his benefactor.
Then there are those who accept Allah alone as the Creator of all things and the Giver of all blessings, but do not accept that they ought to obey the commands of their Creator and Sustainer and follow His guidance. This is yet another form of ingratitude and denial of blessing — because a person who does this, despite acknowledging the blessing, denies the right of the One who gave it.
And there are still others who neither verbally deny the blessing nor reject the right of the One who bestowed it, yet in practice there is no meaningful difference between their lives and the life of one who openly rejects and denies. This is not denial in words, but denial in deeds.
Footnote No. 14 — Surah Ar-Rahman
The successive stages of human creation as described in the Quran, when gathered from various passages and arranged in order, are as follows:
1. Turāb — dust or dry earth
2. Tīn — clay, made by mixing earth with water
3. Tīn lāzib — sticky clay, that is, clay which has become adhesive after being left for a long period of time
4. Hama’ masnūn — clay that has developed a foul smell
5. Salsāl min hama’ masnūn kāl-fakhkhār — that rotten clay which, after drying, becomes like fired pottery or a potsherd
6. Bashar — the human being fashioned from this final form of clay, into whom Allah breathed His special spirit, before whom the angels were commanded to prostrate, and from whose kind his mate was created
7. Thumma ja’ala nasalahu min sulālatin min mā’in mahīn — then His progeny was continued from an extract of a humble fluid, referred to in other passages as nutfah (a drop of sperm)
For these stages, the following Quranic verses may be consulted in sequence:
“His likeness is as Adam, whom He created from dust” (Āl ‘Imrān: 59). “He began the creation of man from clay” (As-Sajdah: 7). “We created them from sticky clay” (As-Sāffāt: 11). The fourth and fifth stages have been mentioned in the verse under commentary. The stages that follow are described in these verses: “I am going to create a human being from clay. When I have fashioned him and breathed into him of My spirit, fall down in prostration before him” (Sād: 71–72). “He created you from a single soul, and from it created its mate, and from the two spread abroad many men and women” (An-Nisā’: 1). “Then He made his progeny from an extract of a humble fluid” (As-Sajdah: 8). “We created you from dust, then from a drop of fluid” (Al-Hajj: 5).
Footnote No. 15 — Surah Ar-Rahman
The original words are min mārijin min nār. By nār here is meant a particular kind of fire — not the fire produced by burning wood or coal. Māarij means a pure flame that contains no smoke. The meaning of this statement is that just as the first human being was created from clay, and then passing through various stages of creation his earthly substance took the form of a living human being of flesh and blood, and thereafter his progeny continued through a drop of fluid — similarly, the first jinn was created from a pure flame of fire, and from his descendants the race of jinn came into existence. The position of this first jinn in relation to the jinn is the same as that of Adam (peace be upon him) in relation to mankind.
After becoming a living human being, neither Adam nor the humans born from his progeny retained any resemblance to the clay from which they were originally created. Although our bodies are still entirely composed of elements of the earth, those elements have taken the form of flesh, blood, and skin — and after the infusion of life, the human being became something altogether different from mere dust. The same is true of the jinn. Their existence is essentially a fiery existence, but just as we are not merely a lump of earth, they too are not merely a tongue of flame.
Two things are established by this verse. First, the jinn are not disembodied spirits — they are physical beings of a particular kind. However, since they are composed of purely fiery elements, they are invisible to human beings who are made of earthly elements. This is what is indicated in the verse: “Indeed, he and his tribe see you from where you cannot see them” (Al-A’raf: 27). Similarly, the jinn’s swiftness of movement, their ease in taking on different forms, and their ability to penetrate places imperceptibly where things made of earthly elements cannot penetrate — or if they do, their penetration becomes perceptible — all of this is possible and understandable precisely because they are essentially a fiery creation.
Second, the jinn are not merely a different kind of human being — their very substance of creation is entirely different from that of humans, animals, plants, and minerals. This clearly refutes the view of those who regard the jinn as simply a variety of human beings. Such people interpret the creation of man from clay and jinn from fire as merely describing a difference in temperament between two types of people — that some humans are gentle and humble in nature while others are fiery and rebellious, and it is more appropriate to call the latter devils than human beings. But this is not an interpretation of the Quran — it is a distortion of it.
In footnote No. 14 above, we have shown in detail how clearly the Quran itself explains what it means by the creation of man from clay. Having read all those details, could any reasonable person conclude that their entire purpose is merely to praise the humble temperament of good human beings? And how could it occur to any sound-minded person that creating man from dried, rotten clay and creating the jinn from a pure flame of fire refers to nothing more than a difference in the moral characteristics of two temperamentally different groups within the single human species?
(For further explanation, see Tafheem-ul-Quran, Vol. 5, commentary on Surah Adh-Dhariyat, footnote 53.)
Footnote No. 16 — Surah Ar-Rahman
Here, given the context, the meaning of ālā’ as “wonders of power” is most fitting — though the aspect of blessing is also present. Bringing into existence such astonishing creatures as human beings from clay, and jinn from a flame of fire, is as much a remarkable wonder of God’s power as it is a great blessing for both these creatures — that Allah not only granted them existence but fashioned each with such a constitution and endowed each with such faculties and capacities that they became capable of performing great works in this world.
Although we do not have much information about the jinn, the human being is before us as a clear example. If man had been given a human brain but the body of a fish, a bird, or a monkey, could he have made any use of that brain’s capabilities with such a body? Is it not then one of Allah’s greatest blessings that along with the powers He bestowed upon the human mind, He also granted the most suitable body to put those powers to use?
Consider on one side these hands, these feet, these eyes, these ears, this tongue, and this upright stature — and on the other side this reason and consciousness, this thought and reflection, this power of invention and power of reasoning, and these capacities for craftsmanship and skill. Place these two alongside each other and you will sense that the Creator has established a supreme harmony between them — without which the existence of man in this world would have been rendered meaningless.
This very fact also points to Allah’s praiseworthy attributes. Without knowledge, wisdom, mercy, and a creative power of the highest order, how could beings of such excellence as man and jinn ever have come into existence? How could chance occurrences and blind, deaf laws of nature working automatically ever produce these miracles of creation?
Footnote No. 17 — Surah Ar-Rahman
By the two Easts and the two Wests is meant either the points of sunrise and sunset on the shortest day of winter and the longest day of summer, or the Easts and Wests of the two hemispheres of the earth.
On the shortest day of winter, the sun rises and sets at a very narrow angle, whereas on the longest day of summer it rises and sets at the widest angle. Between these two extremes, its point of rising and setting changes every single day — for which another passage of the Quran uses the words “Lord of the Easts and the Wests” (Al-Ma’arij: 40). Similarly, at the very moment the sun rises over one hemisphere of the earth, it is simultaneously setting over the other — which is another way in which the earth has two Easts and two Wests.
Calling Allah the Lord of both these Easts and both these Wests carries several meanings. First, it is by His command that this system of the sun’s rising and setting, and its continuous variation throughout the year, is maintained. Second, He alone is the Owner and Sovereign of both the earth and the sun — for if they each had separate lords, how could this orderly system of sunrise and sunset on earth ever have been established, let alone maintained permanently? Third, He alone is the Master and Sustainer of both these Easts and both these Wests — the creatures living between them belong to Him, He is the One who nourishes and sustains them, and it is for this very sustenance that He has established this wise and purposeful system of the sun’s rising and setting upon the earth.
Footnote No. 18 — Surah Ar-Rahman
Here too, although given the context the meaning of ālā’ as “power” seems most prominent, the aspects of “blessing” and “praiseworthy attributes” are equally present within it.
It is a great blessing that Allah established this pattern of the sun’s rising and setting — because it is by virtue of this that the changes of seasons and cycles occur with regularity, upon which countless benefits for human beings, animals, and plants all depend. Likewise, it is none other than Allah’s mercy, sustaining care (rububiyyah), and wisdom that, having created living creatures upon the earth, He made these arrangements through His power with full regard for their needs.
Footnote No. 19 — Surah Ar-Rahman
For explanation, see Tafheem-ul-Quran, Vol. 3, Surah Al-Furqan, footnote 68.
Footnote No. 20 — Surah Ar-Rahman
The original word used here is marjān. Ibn Abbas, Ibn Zayd, and Ad-Dahhak (may Allah have mercy on them) hold that it refers to small pearls. And Abdullah ibn Mas’ud (may Allah be pleased with him) states that this word is used in Arabic to mean coral.
Footnote No. 21 — Surah Ar-Rahman
The original words are yakhruju minhumā — “they come out from both of them.” Critics raise the objection that pearls and coral are found only in salt water, so how can it be said that these things come from both fresh and salt water?
The answer is that in the seas, both fresh and salt water come together — so whether one says that these things emerge from the combination of both, or that they come from both waters, the meaning remains the same. And it would not be surprising if further research were to establish that these things are produced in the sea precisely at those spots where freshwater springs well up from the seabed, and that the coming together of both types of water plays some role in their formation and growth.
In Bahrain, where pearls have been harvested since the most ancient of times, it has already been established that freshwater springs do exist at the bottom of the gulf.
Footnote No. 22 — Surah Ar-Rahman
Here too, although the aspect of power is most prominent in ālā’, the aspects of blessing and praiseworthy attributes are by no means hidden. It is Allah’s blessing that these precious things are brought forth from the sea, and it is a reflection of His sustaining care (rububiyyah) that for the creature whom He had endowed with a sense of beauty and a love of adornment, He created all manner of beautiful things in His world to satisfy that sense and longing.
Footnote No. 23 — Surah Ar-Rahman
That is, they exist by His power. It is He who granted man the ability to build ships to cross the seas. It is He who produced upon the earth the materials from which ships can be constructed. And it is He who bound water to those laws by virtue of which it became possible for ships as massive as mountains to sail across the surface of raging seas.
Footnote No. 24 — Surah Ar-Rahman
Here the aspect of blessing and favor is most prominent in ālā’, though from the explanation given above it becomes clear that the aspects of power and praiseworthy attributes are equally present within it.
Footnote No. 25 — Surah Ar-Rahman
From here up to verse 30, both jinn and mankind are made aware of two important realities.
The first is that neither are you yourselves immortal, nor is the provision and comfort you enjoy in this world everlasting. Immortal and everlasting is only the Being of that Most High and Exalted God to whose greatness this entire universe bears witness, and by whose grace these blessings have been granted to you. If anyone among you falls into the arrogance of thinking there is none like him, it is nothing but his own smallness of character. If some fool beats the drums of greatness within his little circle of authority, or sets himself up as the god of a handful of people who happen to fall into his grip — how long can such a facade stand? In the vastness of the universe, where the earth does not even amount to a pea in size, whatever lordship and grandeur one acquires in some corner of it for ten, twenty, or fifty, sixty years — and then becomes a thing of the past — what kind of lordship and greatness is that for anyone to be puffed up about?
The second important reality to which both these creatures are being alerted is this: the other beings besides Allah whom you take as objects of worship, removers of difficulties, and fulfillers of needs — whether they be angels, prophets, saints, the moon, the sun, or any other kind of creature — not one of them can fulfil any of your needs. Those poor beings are themselves dependent upon Allah for their own needs and necessities. Their own hands are stretched out before Him. If they cannot resolve their own difficulties by their own power, how will they resolve yours? Everything that occurs in this boundless universe from the earth to the heavens happens solely by the command of one God. No one has any share in the running of affairs that would allow them to influence the fate of any person in any matter.
Footnote No. 26 — Surah Ar-Rahman
Here the context itself makes clear that the word ālā’ is used in the meaning of excellences and perfections (kamālāt). Whoever among mortal creatures falls into the delusion of greatness, and struts and swaggers thinking his false lordship to be everlasting — even if not with his tongue, he most certainly denies the majesty and glory of the Lord of all worlds through his actions. His very arrogance is in itself a denial of Allah’s supreme greatness. Whatever claim he makes with his tongue to any excellence or perfection, or whatever he harbors within himself as a sense of his own superiority, is a rejection of the true station and rank of the One who alone possesses all perfection.
Footnote No. 27 — Surah Ar-Rahman
That is, at every moment an endless series of His workings is in operation throughout this workshop of the universe. He causes some to die and keeps others alive. He raises some up and brings others low. He grants health to some and afflicts others with illness. He saves one who is drowning and causes another who swims to sink. He provides sustenance to countless creatures in countless ways. He brings into existence limitless things with ever new forms, shapes, and qualities. His world never remains in the same state. Every moment its conditions change, and its Creator arranges it each time in a new form unlike all that came before it.
Footnote No. 28 — Surah Ar-Rahman
Here the meaning of ālā’ as attributes (awsāf) seems most fitting. Every person who commits any form of polytheism (shirk) is in reality denying one or another of Allah’s attributes.
When someone says “such-and-such saint cured my illness,” it essentially means that Allah is not the Healer (Shāfī) — rather, that saint is the healer. When someone says “through the favor of such-and-such holy man I found employment,” it is in reality saying that Allah is not the Provider (Rāziq) — rather, that holy man is the provider. When someone says “my wish was fulfilled through such-and-such shrine,” it is effectively saying that it is not Allah’s command that runs in this world but that of the shrine.
In short, every polytheistic belief and every polytheistic statement, when ultimately analyzed, leads to nothing but a denial of the divine attributes. The very meaning of shirk is that a person attributes to others the qualities of being All-Hearing, All-Seeing, Knower of the Unseen, free Agent, All-Powerful and All-Controlling, and the other attributes of divinity — and thereby denies that Allah alone is the possessor of all these attributes.
Footnote No. 29 — Surah Ar-Rahman
The original word used here is thaqalān, whose root is thiql. Thiql means weight or burden, and thaql refers to a load that is carried upon a mount. The literal translation of thaqalān would be “two laden burdens.” This word is used here for both jinn and mankind because both are laden upon the earth.
Since the address throughout the preceding verses has been directed at those humans and jinn who have turned away from obedience and servitude to their Lord — and the same audience continues to be addressed up to verse 45 — they are here addressed with the words ayyuha al-thaqalān. It is as though the Creator is saying to these two unworthy groups of His creation: “O you who have become a burden upon My earth — I am about to turn My full attention to calling you to account.“
Footnote No. 30 — Surah Ar-Rahman
This does not mean that Allah is so preoccupied at present that He has no time to call these disobedient ones to account. Rather, its actual meaning is that Allah has set a specific schedule, according to which He will first continue for a determined period to bring forth generation after generation of humans and jinn in this world and give them the opportunity to work in this arena of trial. Then at a particular appointed moment, this entire process of trial will be brought to an abrupt end, and all the jinn and humans alive at that time will be destroyed simultaneously. Then yet another appointed hour is fixed with Him for calling both mankind and jinn to account — when all of them, from the first to the last, will be brought back to life and gathered together at once.
In light of this schedule, it is being said: we are presently carrying out the work of the first phase, the time for the second phase has not yet arrived — let alone the work of the third phase beginning now. But do not think you will escape — the time is fast approaching when We shall be free to call you to account.
This “not being free” does not mean that Allah is so occupied with one task that He cannot find time for another. Rather, it is like a person who has drawn up a timetable for different tasks, and says of a task whose time has not yet come: “I am not free for that at present.“
Footnote No. 31 — Surah Ar-Rahman
Here ālā’ can also be taken in the meaning of “powers.” Keeping the flow of the discourse in view, both meanings appear fitting, each from a different angle.
If the first meaning is taken, the intent would be: today you are ungrateful for Our blessings and continue in various forms of ingratitude — through disbelief, polytheism, atheism, immorality, and disobedience — but when the time of reckoning comes, We shall see which of Our blessings you try to attribute to mere chance, or to the fruit of your own ability, or to the favor of some deity or holy personage.
If the second meaning is taken, the intent would be: today you mock the Resurrection, the gathering, the reckoning, and Heaven and Hell, and in your own estimation you are under the mistaken belief that such things are simply impossible. But when We round you up for reckoning and everything you are denying today is placed before you, then We shall see which of Our powers you deny.
Footnote No. 32 — Surah Ar-Rahman
By “the heavens and the earth” is meant the universe — or in other words, God’s dominion. The meaning of the verse is that it is not within your power to escape Allah’s grasp. When the time comes for the reckoning of which you are being forewarned, wherever you may be, you will be seized and brought forth regardless. To escape it, you would have to flee beyond the bounds of Allah’s dominion — and that is not within your capability. If you harbor such arrogance in your hearts, then put your strength to the test and see.
Footnote No. 33 — Surah Ar-Rahman
The original words used here are shuwāz and nuhās. Shuwāz refers to a pure flame that has no smoke accompanying it, and nuhās refers to pure smoke that has no flame in it. Both of these will be unleashed upon humans and jinn one after the other, at the moment when they attempt to flee and escape from Allah’s reckoning.
Footnote No. 34 — Surah Ar-Rahman
This refers to the Day of Resurrection. By the splitting of the sky is meant the breaking apart of the celestial order, the scattering of the heavenly bodies, and the complete disruption of the system of the upper realm. And the statement that the sky will turn red like red leather means that at the time of this tremendous upheaval, whoever looks up from the earth toward the sky will feel as though the entire upper world is engulfed in fire.
Footnote No. 35 — Surah Ar-Rahman
That is, today you declare the Resurrection to be impossible — which means that in your view Allah is not capable of bringing it about. But when it does come to pass and you see with your own eyes everything you are being warned about, at that point which of Allah’s powers will you deny?
Footnote No. 36 — Surah Ar-Rahman
The explanation of this is provided by the very next statement: “the sinners will be recognized by their faces.” The meaning is that in that great assembly where all of the first and last generations will be gathered together, there will be no need to go around asking who the criminals are. Nor will there be any need to inquire of any human being or jinn whether they are guilty or not. The fallen faces of the criminals, their terror-stricken eyes, their agitated expressions, and the sweat pouring from them will themselves be sufficient to reveal the secret that they are guilty.
If a crowd containing both innocent people and criminals is surrounded by police, the calm on the faces of the innocent and the agitation on the faces of the guilty reveals at a glance who among them is a criminal and who is innocent. In this world, this principle sometimes fails because people have no trust that the police will be impartial — indeed, all too often it is the honorable people rather than the criminals who are more troubled at the hands of the police. It is therefore possible in this world that decent people, upon being surrounded by such police, may become even more frightened than the criminals.
But in the Hereafter, where every righteous person will have complete confidence in Allah’s justice, this terror will fall only upon those whose own consciences are aware of their guilt — those who, upon arriving at the plain of resurrection, will instantly realize that the doom they had considered impossible or doubtful, and in reliance upon which they continued committing crimes in the world, has now finally come upon them.
Footnote No. 37 — Surah Ar-Rahman
In the Quran’s view, the true root of all crime and sin is that a person who is benefiting from his Lord’s blessings comes to believe one of the following: that these blessings have not been given by anyone but have come to him on their own; or that they are not a gift from God but the fruit of his own ability or good fortune; or that while they are indeed God’s gift, God has no claim upon His servant in return; or that God Himself has not bestowed these favors upon him but that some other being has caused them to be granted. It is precisely these false notions that lead a person to become independent of God and free from obedience and servitude to Him — causing him to do in the world what God has forbidden and to leave undone what He has commanded.
In this light, every crime and every sin is, by its very nature, a denial of Allah’s blessings — regardless of whether a person verbally denies or acknowledges them. However, a person who has no genuine intention of denial — in whose heart’s depths true acknowledgment exists — if he occasionally falls into some error due to human weakness, he seeks forgiveness and strives to avoid it. This saves him from being counted among the deniers.
All other criminals, apart from such a person, are in reality deniers of Allah’s blessings and rejectors of His favors. This is why it is said: when you are seized as criminals, We shall then see which of Our favors you deny.
This same point is made in Surah At-Takathur in these words: “On that Day you will surely be questioned about the blessings” — that is, you will be asked: were these blessings given to you by Us or not? And having received them, what attitude did you adopt toward your Benefactor? And how did you make use of His blessings?
Footnote No. 38 — Surah Ar-Rahman
That is, in Hell they will repeatedly be in a wretched state from thirst. They will rush toward the springs of water, but there they will find only boiling water whose drinking will quench no thirst. In this way their ages will pass away in going back and forth between Hell and these springs.
Footnote No. 39 — Surah Ar-Rahman
That is, will you even at that point be able to deny that God can bring about the Resurrection, that He can grant you another life after death, that He can call you to account, and that He can create this very Hell in which you are today receiving your punishment?
Footnote No. 40 — Surah Ar-Rahman
That is, one who has lived his life in this world in fear of God — who always carried the awareness that he has not been left in this world like an unrestrained camel free to roam wherever it pleases, but that one day he must stand before his Lord and give account of his deeds. Whoever holds this belief will inevitably guard himself against servitude to the desires of the self. He will not blindly set out on every path that presents itself. He will distinguish between truth and falsehood, injustice and justice, the pure and the impure, the lawful and the unlawful. And he will not knowingly turn away from obedience to God’s commands. This is the fundamental cause that is being described in what follows.
Footnote No. 41 — Surah Ar-Rahman
The original meaning of jannah is a garden. In the Quran, sometimes the entire realm in which the righteous will be placed is called jannah — as though the whole of it is one vast garden. And elsewhere it is said that for them there will be gardens beneath which rivers flow, meaning that within this great garden there will be countless individual gardens.
Here it is stated with specificity that every righteous person will be given two gardens within this great Paradise, reserved exclusively for him — in which will be his own palaces, in which he will reside in royal splendor together with his companions and attendants, and in which all the provisions that are mentioned in what follows will be made available to him.
Footnote No. 42 — Surah Ar-Rahman
From here to the end, the word ālā’ is used both in the meaning of “blessings” and “powers,” and there is also an aspect of “praiseworthy attributes” within it.
If the first meaning is taken, the purpose of repeating this phrase throughout this passage would be: deny as much as you wish — the God-fearing will most certainly receive these blessings from their Lord.
If the second meaning is taken, the intent would be: in your view it is impossible for Allah to create Paradise and bestow these blessings within it upon His righteous servants — let it be so in your opinion. Allah most certainly possesses the power to do this and He will indeed do it.
According to the third meaning, the intent is: you consider Allah to be devoid of any distinction between good and evil. In your view, He has created this vast world, yet whether someone in it commits injustice or acts justly, works for truth or for falsehood, spreads evil or good — He has no concern for any of it. He is neither one who punishes the oppressor nor one who gives relief to the oppressed. He neither appreciates good nor is averse to evil. Furthermore, in your view He is also incapable — He can create the heavens and the earth, yet He is unable to create Hell for the punishment of the unjust and Paradise to reward those who follow the truth. Deny His praiseworthy attributes today as much as you wish. But when tomorrow He casts the oppressors into Hell and grants the followers of truth these blessings in Paradise — will you be able to deny those attributes of His even then?
Footnote No. 43 — Surah Ar-Rahman
One meaning of this could be that the fruits of both gardens will each have their own unique splendor. When he enters one garden, its branches will be laden with fruits of one magnificent kind. When he enters the other garden, its fruits will have a character entirely different from the first.
A second meaning could be that in each of these gardens there will be two kinds of fruit — one kind that will be familiar, which he had known in the world too, however far superior they may be in taste to the fruits of this world; and another kind that will be rare and unlike anything that had ever entered his thoughts or imagination in the world.
Footnote No. 44 — Surah Ar-Rahman
That is, when even their linings will be of such magnificence, one can imagine what the outer fabric must be like.
Footnote No. 45 — Surah Ar-Rahman
This is the true virtue of a woman — that she not be brazen and shameless but that her gaze carry modesty within it. This is why, when Allah mentions women among the blessings of Paradise, He praises not their physical beauty first but rather their modesty and chastity.
Beautiful women can be found gathered in mixed clubs and film studios too, and in beauty contests the most beautiful women are handpicked one after another — yet only a person of corrupt taste and low character could take interest in such women. That kind of beauty which openly invites every impure gaze and stands ready to adorn every embrace cannot appeal to any person of noble character.
Footnote No. 46 — Surah Ar-Rahman
The meaning of this is that in the life of this world, whether a woman died as a virgin or had been someone’s wife, whether she departed this world young or in old age — when all these righteous women enter Paradise in the Hereafter, they will be made young and virgin. And whichever woman is made the companion of a righteous man in Paradise will not have been touched by anyone before her husband there.
This verse also establishes that just as righteous humans will enter Paradise, so too will righteous jinn — and just as there will be human women for human men, there will be jinn women for jinn men. Each will have a mate of their own kind for companionship. It will not be the case that they are paired with a creature of a different nature with whom they could not be naturally comfortable.
The words of the verse — “whom no human or jinn has touched before them” — do not mean that the women there will only be human and that none of them will have been touched by any human or jinn before their husbands. Rather, the actual meaning is that there will be women of both kinds — jinn and human — all of them modest and untouched. No jinn woman will have been touched by any jinn man before her husband in Paradise, and no human woman will have been touched by any human man before her husband in Paradise.
Footnote No. 47 — Surah Ar-Rahman
That is, how could it be possible in the Hereafter that those who spent their entire lives placing restraints upon themselves for the sake of Allah — who kept away from the forbidden and contented themselves with the lawful, who fulfilled their obligations, who acknowledged the truth as truth and gave every rightful person their due, and who bore all manner of hardship and difficulty in standing up for good against evil — that Allah should let all these sacrifices go to waste and never reward them for any of it?
Footnote No. 48 — Surah Ar-Rahman
It is evident that whoever denies Paradise and its reward is in reality denying many of Allah’s praiseworthy attributes. Even if such a person believes in God, he holds a very poor opinion of Him. In his view, God is a reckless and incompetent ruler in whose kingdom of darkness doing good is like throwing it into a river. Either he considers God to be blind and deaf — completely unaware of who in His dominion is sacrificing their life, wealth, self, and efforts for His pleasure. Or in his view God is indifferent and ungrateful, with no sense of distinction between good and evil. Or in his deficient understanding, God is helpless and powerless — however much He may value goodness, rewarding it is simply beyond His capability.
This is why it is said: when in the Hereafter the reward of good is given for good before your very eyes, will you even then be able to deny the praiseworthy attributes of your Lord?
Footnote No. 49 — Surah Ar-Rahman
The original words are min dūnihimā jannatān. The word dūn in the Arabic language is used in three different meanings. First, being lower in comparison to something higher. Second, being inferior in comparison to something more excellent and noble. Third, being other than or in addition to something.
On account of this difference in meaning, one possibility in these words is that every person of Paradise will be given these two additional gardens besides the first two mentioned above. A second possibility is that these two gardens will be lower in position or rank compared to the first two — meaning either the first two gardens will be situated at a higher elevation and these will be below them, or the first two will be of a very superior grade and these will be of a comparatively lesser grade.
If the first possibility is adopted, the meaning is that these two additional gardens are also for the same people of Paradise mentioned above. If the second possibility is adopted, the meaning would be that the first two gardens are for the muqarrabīn (those drawn near to Allah), and these two gardens are for the ashāb al-yamīn (the Companions of the Right Hand).
What lends strength to this second possibility is that in Surah Al-Waqi’ah, two categories of righteous people are described — first the sābiqīn, who are also called muqarrabīn, and second the ashāb al-yamīn, who are also referred to as ashāb al-maimanah. The attributes of the two gardens for each of these groups are described separately.
Furthermore, this second possibility is also strengthened by a hadith narrated by Abu Bakr, the son of Abu Musa al-Ash’ari, from his father, in which he states that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: two gardens are for the sābiqīn or muqarrabīn, in which every vessel and every article of adornment will be of gold; and two gardens are for the tābi’īn or ashāb al-yamīn, in which everything will be of silver. (Fath al-Bari, Kitab al-Tafsir, commentary on Surah Ar-Rahman)
Footnote No. 50 — Surah Ar-Rahman
To describe these gardens, the word mud-hāmmatān is used. Mud-hāmmah refers to such dense, lush greenery that it has taken on a deep, dark hue due to its extreme abundance and vitality.
Footnote No. 51 — Surah Ar-Rahman
For an explanation of hūr, see Tafheem-ul-Quran, Vol. 4, commentary on Surah As-Saffat, footnotes 28–29, and commentary on Surah Ad-Dukhan, footnote 42.
By “pavilions” is most likely meant tents of the kind erected in pleasure gardens for nobles and chiefs. It is probable that the wives of the people of Paradise will reside with them in their palaces, while throughout their gardens pavilions will be set up in various places where the hūrīn will provide for their enjoyment and pleasure.
The basis for this understanding is that righteous and beautiful wives have already been mentioned just before this. The separate mention of the hūrīn afterward means that these will be a different category of women from those wives.
This interpretation is further strengthened by a hadith narrated from Umm Salamah (may Allah be pleased with her). She says: “I asked the Messenger of Allah ﷺ: O Messenger of Allah, which are better — the women of this world or the hūrīn? He replied: the women of this world have superiority over the hūrīn just as the outer fabric has superiority over the lining. I asked: on what basis? He said: because those women have prayed, fasted, and performed acts of worship.” (Al-Tabarani)
This makes clear that the wives of the people of Paradise will be those women who believed in this world and departed it while performing righteous deeds. They will enter Paradise as a result of their own faith and good deeds and will themselves be deserving of Paradise’s blessings. They will, according to their own wish and preference, either become the wives of their former husbands if those husbands are also among the people of Paradise, or Allah will grant them as a blessing to the people of Paradise — just as He grants other blessings of Paradise — giving them the form of young and beautiful women, so that the people of Paradise may have companions of their own kind, since a person cannot feel naturally comfortable with a companion of a different nature.
As for the hūrīn, it is most probable that they will be those innocent girls who died in childhood before reaching maturity, and whose parents did not merit Paradise such that they could be kept there with them as their offspring.
Footnote No. 52 — Surah Ar-Rahman
The original word used here is ’abqarī. In the legends of pre-Islamic Arabia, ’Abqar was the name of the capital of the jinn — what we in Urdu call paristān (the land of fairies). In relation to this, Arabs used the word ’abqarī for anything of extraordinary refinement and rarity, as though it were something from that magical realm which the ordinary things of this world could not match. Indeed, in their common usage, even a person of exceptional abilities and remarkable accomplishments was called ’abqarī. The English word genius carries the same meaning and is itself derived from genii, which is the equivalent of jinn. This is why the word ’abqarī is used here to convey to the Arabs a sense of the extraordinary refinement and excellence of the furnishings and provisions of Paradise.
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