Surah An-Nazi'at 79:1-26 - Quran Translation Commentary

1. In the first five Verses the things, which have been used here for taking oath, have not been mentioned clearly, only their attributes have been mentioned. Nor is any Hadith of the Prophet (P.b.u.h.) available explaining what these things actually are. There are a number of explanations. Some have stated that by these things are meant angels, others have taken them for stars, and some others horses. Some commentators are of the opinion that they are clouds. A popular explanation which has generally been adopted by many commentators is that these things are angels. We think what is meant here is “the winds” for the following reasons:

First, wherever this kind of oath is used in the Quran, its purpose is to draw some evidence in support of an argument. Here the purpose is to proffer an argument in favour of the belief of reviving man, whi ch can best be done by using the image of a thing which can be felt by our senses and not a thing which cannot be perceived or felt as angels cannot be perceived.

Secondly, the attributes described here are more likely to be found in the winds than in the angels or the stars.

Thirdly, in Arabic “Nazae’e” denotes a special kind of winds(see Lissanul. Arab-word Naza’a) Nazi’at is a word which is very similar to It. In the Quran the word “Tanzi’u” has been used for the wind. “The wind was uprooting men as If they were uprooted date-palms.”

Fourthly, in the Quran the oath of the wind is also used at other places in support of the argument of the Doomsday and the Day of Resurrection (See Surah Zariat and Surah Mursalat). In this Surah (Naziat) also, the topic of discussion is the Doomsday, and therefore, using winds as a medium of oath seems quite proper.

Fifthly, here the attributes used are in feminine gender, and the winds in Arabic are spoken of in feminine gender.

2. “Assaabihat” (gliding gently) is the attribute of the horses. Here the winds are shown as horses on account of the their fast running, as if the clouds are riding on the shoulders of the winds and speeding towards their destination.

3. In these verses are described the nature and the activities of the winds, which organize the system of rainfall. It is the winds that bring the clouds from thousands of miles, and if in any region when the clouds gather, the winds blow as if they are gliding, gently, and the whole atmosphere becomes very pleasant.

When these winds blow, carrying a weight of millions of liters of water on their shoulders it appears as if they are horses that have been sent on a campaign, and as some horses overtake other horses, so also some winds overtake other winds. This kind of activity of the winds has been called “Sabeqat”. The system of rainfall on this earth comes into operation as a result of the blowing of the winds, that is why they have been termed as “Al-mudabbirati Amra” (arranging to accomplish a task), as in Surah Mursalat they have been termed as “Fal- Muqassimati Amra” (perform a task of distributing rain). In citing evidence of these winds, the idea is to show that the revival of man on the Day of Resurrection and the requital of his deeds are sure and certain phenomena. The nature of the argument is that this system of winds presents an undeniable sign of Allah’s Might, Wisdom and His Greatness and invites us to reflect on them seriously. When the rain-laden winds blow, they provide enough material, by their various activities and nature, for the unthinking man to sit up and take notice, for example the act of dragging the clouds, which is also accompanied by thunder and lighting making the atmosphere pleasant, when the winds glide gently. Similarly when the different groups of winds blow in the atmosphere, then their overtaking one another in obedience of Allah’s command becomes evident. As regards accomplishing the task, these winds shower the blessings in the form of rain in some regions, while in others the clouds pass off without unloading their cargo of life-giving water. In some places the winds cause havoc in the form of storm, uprooting the trees and the houses, and in other places they blow pleasantly. Sometimes they take the form of hot, dry simoom and sometimes they appear as gentle, soft and cool morning breeze, Naseem. While blowing, these winds touch the hearts of men of thinking who are prepared to accept the reality unhesitatingly and induce them to believe that the Creator of this world has the mightiest power and it is He who is ruling the universe, with His great Wisdom. The inevitable result of this thinking is the realisation of the, fact that there is some purpose behind the creation of this world and that man must get due reward or punishment for what he does in this life. As if this system of the winds presents an evidence of the inevitability of facing the consequences of one’s deeds and it makes one accept not only the possibility of the revival of man on the Resurrection Day but also consider it necessary. In short in the activities and the nature of the winds one can discern the signs of the Law of Consequences. Another aspect of the evidence is that one can easily agree that the Being who can cause the rain-laden winds to revive the dead earth can also cause such “winds” to blow as would revive the dead bodies of men. As the winds scatter the vapours from the oceans in the skies and then collect these scattered clouds of vapours and make them send down rains, in the same manner the scattered parts of dead men’s bodies can be collected and they can be given life again. And when the happening in future of such an event has been declared by Allah, then where is the room for doubt? In fact, refusal to believe in the Doomsday is synonymous with refusal to believe in the Might and Wisdom of Allah.

4. After the First Shock, the present system of the world will be destroyed and all people will die. On the Second Shock, all the dead persons will come out of the earth. At that time the world’s structure will have been changed; it will be established with a new system.

5. From the shock and fright of the occurrence of the Doomsday and the fear of giving an account of what one did in this world, the hearts would be palpitating. However this would be the condition of the transgressors and infidels. The believers and the righteous people will have no trouble.

6. That is: Whether we will be revived after death.

7. This was the doubt of the rejecters of the belief in the Doomsday, that when there will be no physical existence of man then how it will be possible to revive him, and when his second existence or revival is not possible, there is no question of the reward and punishment in the next world. This doubt of theirs could have been easily cleared, had they studied the systematic order of this universe with an unprejudiced mind, for which study the Quran is inviting them. Such a study would have given them a correct understanding about the Creator of the universe and then they would have felt that every thing from the earth to the heaven and from the winds to the rainfall is confirming what the Quran has stated.

8. In this way they were making fun of the next world that if they were really revived after death as prophesied by this Prophet then they will be in great loss, because they were denying it and had not made any preparations for it.

9. That is: Allah will not have to make any special preparations for resurrecting men in the Next World. Merely a command from Him will be sufficient. And this command will be in the form of a loud warning which will be relayed to the entire world at one and the same time.

10. That is: Man will again be revived with the same flesh and bones on this earth. In other words, man will not take the form of any animal or any other creature but on the Resurrection Day he will come out of his grave in his earlier form.

11. This is an evidence from history that Allah inflicts punishment on rejecters of prophets, transgressors and rebels in this world also, a clear example of which is the Pharaoh and his army who were destroyed by drowning. In this event can be seen a slight reflection of the Law of Consequences which will operate on the Day of Reckoning.

12. “Tuwa” is the name of the valley which is at the foot of the Mountain Sina. It has been called holy because Allah had shown, His Light here and Prophet Moosa was favoured with the grant of prophethood, in this valley.

13. Firaun (Pharaoh) is the title of the ancient Egyptian kings. The Pharaoh, who dealt with Prophet Moosa, was ruling Egypt in the year circa 1400 B.C. The transgression committed by him was that instead of acknowledging himself to be a slave of Allah he considered himself independent, and claimed to be the Lord, Most High. All his rule and administration was based on rebellion against Allah. He had adopted a very tyrannical attitude towards his fellow-beings and was causing untold miseries to the then Muslim Nation, i.e. the Bani Israel.

14. Being purified means to accept Islam which purifies man from the filth of polytheism and infidelity and adorns him with faith and good conduct.

15. On the fear of Allah depends the purification of beliefs and conduct. A man can attain fear of Allah only when he gets correct knowledge about Allah. ‘Guiding to the Lord’ points to this knowledge of Allah, which is the basis of all purification.

16. “Great Sign” means the miracle of converting the staff into a snake, which was given to Moosa. This was a clear Indication that Moosa was sent by Allah as His Messenger.

17. So that people might not respond to Moosa’s call and embrace his religion.

18. The kings of the ancient times were not content with only ruling over their subjects but were also forcing them to worship them (kings), so that they may be doubly secure and rule them with all the splendour of godhood. In support of their holiness, they used to claim relationship with the stars, gods and goddesses, and claimed their re-incarnation. The Pharaoh also used to get himself worshipped by his subjects and in this sense he claimed himself to be the Lord, Most High. At that time in Egypt idolatry was rampant. The Pharaoh did not prohibit worshipping of other idols by any royal decree. It is thus clear that his claim of godhood was mainly against the call of Moosa for worshipping only Allah. His negation of other gods was only with a view to harassing Prophet Moosa. It would not be correct to take the claim of his godhood to mean that he also claimed to be the creator of the universe, because such a claim can be made only by a fool.

It will also not be correct to interpret it as to mean that he was calling himself Lord Most High and God in a political sense. If his claim were politically motivated, then he would not have told his people:

“I am afraid that Moosa may change your religion”(Al-Mumin,26) because the claimant of the political, lordship or godhood is not concerned, with the religious conversion of his subjects. Similarly, Pharaoh would not have told Hazrat Moosa: “Have you come for the purpose of turning us away from our ancestral religion?” (Yunus:78).

19. That is: People who have some fear of Allah can get a lesson from this event. The lesson is that this world is not a haphazard or meaningless affair, but that Allah is ruling over it with the Law of justice. A tyrant king like Pharaoh also receives Just punishment from Allah. Therefore, the apparent freedom that the rebels get in this world should not lead us to the conclusion that man is not to account for his style of conduct before Allah and that there is nothing like the Law of Consequences.