Surah 27. An-Naml

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Verses [Section]: 1-14[1], 15-31 [2], 32-44 [3], 45-58 [4], 59-66 [5], 67-82 [6], 83-93 [7]

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Quran Text of Verse 59-66قُلِSayالْحَمْدُAll praise (be)لِلّٰهِto Allahوَ سَلٰمٌand peace (be)عَلٰیuponعِبَادِهِHis slavesالَّذِیْنَthose whomاصْطَفٰی ؕHe has chosenآٰللّٰهُIs Allahخَیْرٌbetterاَمَّاor whatیُشْرِكُوْنَؕthey associate (with Him) اَمَّنْOr Whoخَلَقَhas createdالسَّمٰوٰتِthe heavensوَ الْاَرْضَand the earthوَ اَنْزَلَand sent downلَكُمْfor youمِّنَfromالسَّمَآءِthe skyمَآءً ۚwaterفَاَنْۢبَتْنَاAnd We caused to growبِهٖtherebyحَدَآىِٕقَgardensذَاتَof beauty (and delight)بَهْجَةٍ ۚof beauty (and delight)مَاnotكَانَit isلَكُمْfor youاَنْthatتُنْۢبِتُوْاyou cause to growشَجَرَهَا ؕtheir treesءَاِلٰهٌIs there any godمَّعَwithاللّٰهِ ؕAllahبَلْNayهُمْtheyقَوْمٌ(are) a peopleیَّعْدِلُوْنَؕwho ascribe equals اَمَّنْOr Whoجَعَلَmadeالْاَرْضَthe earthقَرَارًاa firm abodeوَّ جَعَلَand madeخِلٰلَهَاۤ(in) its midstاَنْهٰرًاriversوَّ جَعَلَand madeلَهَاfor itرَوَاسِیَfirm mountainsوَ جَعَلَand madeبَیْنَbetweenالْبَحْرَیْنِthe two seasحَاجِزًا ؕa barrierءَاِلٰهٌIs there any godمَّعَwithاللّٰهِ ؕAllahبَلْNayاَكْثَرُهُمْmost of themلَا(do) notیَعْلَمُوْنَؕknow اَمَّنْOr Whoیُّجِیْبُrespondsالْمُضْطَرَّ(to) the distressed oneاِذَاwhenدَعَاهُhe calls Himوَ یَكْشِفُand He removesالسُّوْٓءَthe evilوَ یَجْعَلُكُمْand makes youخُلَفَآءَinheritorsالْاَرْضِ ؕ(of) the earthءَاِلٰهٌIs there any godمَّعَwithاللّٰهِ ؕAllahقَلِیْلًاLittleمَّا(is) whatتَذَكَّرُوْنَؕyou remember اَمَّنْOr Whoیَّهْدِیْكُمْguides youفِیْinظُلُمٰتِ(the) darkness[es]الْبَرِّ(of) the landوَ الْبَحْرِand the seaوَ مَنْand Whoیُّرْسِلُsendsالرِّیٰحَthe windsبُشْرًۢا(as) glad tidingsبَیْنَbeforeیَدَیْbeforeرَحْمَتِهٖ ؕHis MercyءَاِلٰهٌIs there any godمَّعَwithاللّٰهِ ؕAllahتَعٰلَیHigh isاللّٰهُAllahعَمَّاabove whatیُشْرِكُوْنَؕthey associate (with Him) 27. An-Naml Page 383اَمَّنْOr Whoیَّبْدَؤُاoriginatesالْخَلْقَthe creationثُمَّthenیُعِیْدُهٗrepeats itوَ مَنْand Whoیَّرْزُقُكُمْprovides youمِّنَfromالسَّمَآءِthe heavensوَ الْاَرْضِ ؕand the earthءَاِلٰهٌIs there any godمَّعَwithاللّٰهِ ؕAllahقُلْSayهَاتُوْاBring forthبُرْهَانَكُمْyour proofاِنْifكُنْتُمْyou areصٰدِقِیْنَ truthful قُلْSayلَّاNo (one)یَعْلَمُknowsمَنْwhoeverفِی(is) inالسَّمٰوٰتِthe heavensوَ الْاَرْضِand the earthالْغَیْبَ(of) the unseenاِلَّاexceptاللّٰهُ ؕAllahوَ مَاand notیَشْعُرُوْنَthey perceiveاَیَّانَwhenیُبْعَثُوْنَ they will be resurrected بَلِNayادّٰرَكَis arrestedعِلْمُهُمْtheir knowledgeفِیofالْاٰخِرَةِ ۫the HereafterبَلْNayهُمْtheyفِیْ(are) inشَكٍّdoubtمِّنْهَا ۫ؗabout itبَلْNayهُمْtheyمِّنْهَاabout itعَمُوْنَ۠(are) blind

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Translation of Verse 59-66

(27:59) Say, (O Muhammad):⁷¹ "All praise be to Allah, and peace be on those of His servants whom He has chosen." (Ask them): "Who is better: Allah or the false gods that they associate with Him as His partners?⁷²

(27:60) Who is it that has created the heavens and the earth and sent down for you water from the sky and then We caused to grow therewith orchards full of beauty whose trees you could never grow. Is there any god associated with Allah (in these tasks)?"⁷³ Nay, they are a people who are veering away from the Right Path.

(27:61) Who is it Who has made the earth a place of resort,⁷⁴ and has caused rivers to flow in its midst, and has placed upon it firm mountains, and has placed a barrier between two masses of water?⁷⁵ Is there any god associated with Allah (in these tasks)? Nay; but most of them do not know.

(27:62) Who is it Who heeds the prayers of the distressed when he calls out to Him and Who removes his affliction?⁷⁶ And who is it Who makes you vicegerents of the earth?⁷⁷ Is there any god associated with Allah (in this task)? How little do you reflect!

(27:63) Who is it Who guides you through the darkness on land and sea?⁷⁸ And Who sends winds as heralds of good tidings ahead of His Mercy?⁷⁹ Is there any god associated with Allah (in this task)? Exalted be Allah above whatever they associate with Him in His Divinity!

(27:64) Who is it Who creates in the first instance and then repeats it?⁸⁰ Who is it Who provides you with sustenance from the heavens and the earth?⁸¹ Is there any god associated with Allah (in these tasks)? Say: "Bring forth your evidence, if you are truthful."⁸²

(27:65) Say: "None in the heavens or on the earth⁸³ has knowledge of the Unseen save Allah. They do not know when they will be raised to life."⁸⁴

(27:66) Nay, but they have lost their knowledge of the Hereafter. They are steeped in doubt and uncertainty about it: rather they are blind to it.⁸⁵

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Commentary

71. The second discourse of this surah starts with this verse as its prologue. It tells Muslims how to begin their speech. This is why truly Islamic-minded people always start their speech with God’s praise and by sending peace and greetings to His noble servants. It is sad that in our days some of us have begun to consider starting speeches with the mention of God’s Name as an act of religious bigotry. Many contemporary Muslims have no idea as to what is the right manner of starting their speech or if they know, they are shy about it.

72. This seems to be a very strange question to ask: who is better — Allah or the gods that they associate with Him as His partners? For quite obviously there can be no goodness in false gods. Even the polytheists knew that. But the question is posed here so as to warn people against the mistake they were committing. It 1s also quite clear that no one does anything in which he does not find some kind of benefit. If the polytheists worshipped deities other than the One True God, and if they asked those deities to fulfil their needs and made offerings to them, then they must be convinced that they were doing something good, otherwise all this would be a meaningless activity. Hence why they are confronted with this question in no uncertain terms: “Who is better: Allah or the gods that they associate with Him as His partners?” The polytheists did not have the courage to face the question in this manner, for even the most hardened among them would not say that his deities were better than God. And if they accepted that God was better, the very foundation of their religion would be undermined and it would be unreasonable for them, thereafter, to say, that they preferred that which was inferior to that which was superior.

By posing this question the Qur'an immediately disarms its opponents. In what follows, a series of miraculous and extraordinary elements in God’s creation are mentioned, in succession, each accompanied by the question: “Is there any God associated with Allah in these tasks?” (verses 60 ff). If the answer is “no”, then how could they worship anyone other than Him? According to various traditions, whenever the Prophet (peace be on him) recited this vers2, he instantly added the following words in response: “Nay, Allah is Better, Everlasting, and Most Exalted and Most Honorable.” (Cited by Alusi in the course of his comments on this verse in Ruh al-Ma‘ani = Ed.)

73. None of the polytheists could reply that any of the acts mentioned were of any other than God’s, or that anyone had a share in them. Elsewhere, the Qur’an says the following about the Makkan unbelievers and the polytheists of Arabia:

If you ask them Who has created the heavens and the earth, they will say: The All-Mighty, All-Knowing has created them (al-Zukhruf 43:9).

If you ask them who has created them, they will say, “Allah” (al-Zukhruf 43:87). If you ask them who sends down rain from the sky and revives the dead earth, they will say “Allah” (al- ‘Ankabut 29:63).

Ask them: “Who provides you with sustenance out of the heavens and the earth? Who holds mastery over your hearing and sight? Who brings forth the living from the dead and the dead from the living? Who governs all affairs of the universe?” They will surely say: “Allah” (Yunus 10:31). .

Not only Arab polytheists, but polytheists everywhere have usually believed and continue to believe that it is God Alone Who created the Universe and it is He Who oversees the system on which it operates. Hence, none could answer the question posed by the Qur’an as to who was the Creator and Overseer of the Universe by saying, even if it be for the sake of argument, that it was any other than God. For if anyone would have said so, his fellow tribesmen would have categorically refuted his assertion and stated clearly that that was not what they believed.

This and the following questions not only refute the polytheists’ worldview, but also that of the atheists. For example, let us reflect on the question asked here: “Who it is that has… sent down for you water from the sky and then We caused to grow therewith orchards full of beauty ...” (verse 60). Now, as we know, the growth of vegetation is dependent upon a large number of topographical factors, as also that water be available at the right levels, and that its properties be in accordance with the needs of the animal and plant kingdoms. All these make sense only if there is an extremely Wise and All-Knowing Creator. The water cycle and the patterns of rainfall in different parts of the world, the balance among various universal constants, the inner properties of various entities such as the earth, air, water and the temperature of various things — all of this could not be there without the planning of a Wise and All-Knowing Creator. Nature in its multi-faceted forms could not be merely the outcome of an accident. Could something which has been repeating itself for hundreds and thousands, and millions and billions of years be simply an accident? Only a very closed-minded person, blinded by prejudice, can claim that it is all the result of an accident. It would be impossible for any rational and truth-loving person to accept such a senseless claim.

74. The fact that the earth supports such a vast variety of living creatures is not a simple matter. If one ponders over it, human intellect is overawed by the complexity of the whole chain of factors and reaches the conclusion that it is impossible to have such a system unless there be an All-Wise and All-Mighty Being.

The earth is not stationary but revolves in an orbit, where it moves so smoothly that nothing is disturbed. It revolves around the sun with perfect regularity, creating day and night. If it were to face the sun at a particular angle all the time, it would be impossible for life to exist because one part would be extremely cold, the other extremely hot, both rendering it impossible for life to exist. To take another case, there is a thick ozone layer up to five hundred miles around the earth which keeps it safe from falling meteoroids; without this protective layer, the twenty million odd meteoroids which dart towards the earth daily at about thirty miles per second would have played such havoc with life that nothing would have survived: trees, animals, human beings, all would have perished.

The same layer helps maintain a constant temperature, lifts water from the oceans and acts as a conduit for an extraordinary water cycle system around the world.

The same layer of air provides necessary gases for the sustenance of human, animal and vegetational life; without it, life of any kind would be impossible.

Let us consider another case: just under the surface of the earth, there are vast amounts of minerals and chemicals which are required for various forms of vegetation, as also for the survival of animals and human beings. Wherever these minerals and chemicals are not present, life becomes impossible. Then there is a huge amount of water present on the earth in the form of oceans, rivers, springs and underground reservoirs. Another huge reservoir of water has been placed on the mountains in frozen form and, according to a well-determined system, it melts in consonance with our multifarious requirements for water with absolute precision.

But for this precision and but for this elaborate planning, life would be impossible.

Moreover, to keep all these things contained and in check, a gravitational force maintains a perfect balance between air, water, the atmospheric pressure and other constants. Without this, only a small part of the earth would be inhabitable. Further, the earth is located at a certain distance from the sun; even a slight variation in this distance would make it too hot or too cold for human life to exist.

These are merely some of the things which allow and sustain life on this - planet. Anyone with even a modicum of intelligence and ability to reflect would simply refuse to believe that all of this has come to exist by itself without a Creator. In like manner, no sensible person can believe that any angel, god, goddess, jinn, Prophet or saint has any share in the creation and sustenance of this wonderful, complex and marvelous plan of creation.

75. Reservoirs of sweet and saline water are present on this earth but do not mix with each other even when the underground channels carry them in the same area. Even in the oceans, there are springs of sweet water which flow in such manner that sea-faring passengers can obtain drinking water from them. (For details see Towards Understanding the Qur’an, al-Furqan 25, n. 68 above.)

76. The polytheists of Arabia acknowledged that only God could avert disasters and calamities. The Qur’an draws their attention to the fact that whenever there is a calamity, they call upon God but when the calamity is removed, they start to associate others with Him. (For details see Towards Understanding the Qur’an, Vol. Il, al-An‘am, 6: nn. 29-41, pp. 231-40; Vol. IV, Yunus 10:21-2; n. 31, p. 28; al-Nahl 16: n. 46, p. 337; and Vol. V, Bani Isra’il 17; n. 84, p. 60.)

This is not limited to the polytheists of Arabia; it is common to all polytheists, so much so that even the atheists of Russia, who have been waging a war against God, were forced to invoke God when they were surrounded by German forces during the Second World War.

77. This has two meanings: (i) that God raises one generation after another and one nation after another; and (ii) that God grants some people the power and authority to rule over the earth.

78. God has made it possible for people to find their way even in the darkness of night with the help of stars. This is, indeed, one of the multifarious means made available to man by the All-Wise God to guide him in his journeys on land and on the oceans. He has set guideposts which help him move about and determine the direction of his destination. During the daylight, it is the sun and its movement which guides man and at night it is the stars which help him fix his direction. In Surah al-Nahl, all of these have been counted as God’s favors: and He has set other landmarks in the earth. And by the stars too do people find their way” (16: 16).

79. “Mercy” here means rain which is foretold by the wind.

80. This simple statement has such implications that when one reflects on it, one finds proof after proof of God’s existence and of His Oneness. Look at the act of creation itself: Man, despite his knowledge, has not been able to discover how and from where life originated. The only scientific certainty that we have so far is that the mere arrangement of inanimate matter does not produce life.

True, atheists believe that life originated as a result of the accidental combination in right proportions of the elements required to produce life. This, however, is no more than a hypothesis which in scientific and rational terms, is untenable.

For were we to apply the Law of Probability to this situation, we would find that the probability of the emergence of life by itself is no more than zero. All efforts to produce “life” in laboratories have failed and what could be produced so far is merely the re-arrangement of DNA which is present in living cells, which is the essence of life, not life itself. Life is still a miracle which cannot be explained except by attributing it to the Command, Will and Plan of the Creator.

Further, life is present in numerous forms and shapes. Scientists have so far discovered one million species of animals and two hundred thousand species of plants on earth. These numerous forms of life have maintained their special characteristics and identities from time immemorial. This could not have been possible without the Design of the One True God. No Darwin can explain this.

Until now, we have not found any proof for the existence of a species which represents the transitional stage of evolution between two forms of life and which can be said to be struggling to transform itself into another species. There is no such example in the whole treasury of fossils that we have, nor in the existing species of animals. From time to time, what we hear about the “discovery of the missing link” always proves to be a chimera. So, we have nothing that can Justify denying the fact that God Alone has designed, shaped and formed these numerous forms of life.

So much for the beginning of creation. Now, let us reflect on the act of reproduction. The Creator has established an astonishing mechanism which propagates animals and plants. Each one of the millions of reproductive cells produce exactly the same kind of species. It has never happened that one kind of genetic make-up has produced a different kind of species. Modern genetics have amassed an extraordinary amount of data. Each and every plant contains within itself a mechanism to replicate its genes and to propagate its own kind. This reproductive mechanism is present in just one cell of a plant, one hardly visible even with the help of powerful microscopes. This tiny mechanism puts the plant on the regenerative path which enables it to produce itself. This is why a grain of wheat always produces wheat and under no circumstances, has a grain of wheat ever produced a grain of barley. The same is true for humans and animals.

This reproductive activity exists on a gigantic scale all over the world. If we look at the tiny cells within which lie the whole reproductive mechanism with its complete genetic code, with its complete map of the characteristics and features of that species, and if we reflect on the means and mechanisms of reproduction, and on the complexity of the emergence of these mechanisms, then we cannot possibly entertain, even for a moment, the idea that it could be the result of mere chance. Clearly, this could only be the handiwork of the All-Wise Creator, thanks to Whom not only does this mechanism exist, but has sustained itself over the course of time in millions of species. All this requires a Wise and Powerful Creator not only for its creation but also for its continuation and propagation. It is dependent upon an Ever-Living and Ever-Present Creator Who is constantly watching and guiding this whole mechanism.

These facts undermine the bases of both denying the existence of God and of believing in a multiplicity of gods. Only a fool can imagine that an angel, a saint, a Prophet, or a jinn could have contributed to God’s work. And no rational being can claim that this complex mechanism of creation and reproduction started by itself, without any Creator.

81. The question of providence and sustenance is also not simple. There are millions of animal and plant species on this earth and billions of members of each of these species, each with its own peculiar food requirements. The Creator has set up a mechanism for providing food to every one of these millions of species in such a manner that it is within the reach of them all. Additionally, there are countless forces working to maintain these mechanisms. If heat, light, air and water do not function in harmony with various elements on the earth, not even an atom of food would grow.

Who can imagine that this intelligent and complex mechanism could have come into operation without there being a One who regulates and controls; who can claim that any jinn, angel or saint had a share in its creation?

82. They were asked to produce proof that any other being has a share in _ this creation. If they failed to do so, then they should at least explain how it stands to reason that when God created all these things that people worship aught beside Him.

83. In the previous verse, the Oneness of God was argued for on the bases of creation, sustenance and design. Now, another of God’s Attributes, His Knowledge, is being mentioned in order to emphasize that even in this respect, none can be associated with God. God has no partner. All creatures in the heavens and the earth: — angels, jinn, Prophets, saints, or other human beings — all have only limited knowledge. One thing or another is hidden from each of them. It is only God Who knows everything; it is only He from Whom nothing is hidden; itis only He Who knows the past, the present, and the future.

The word ghayb means hidden, covered, concealed. (Ibn Manzur, Lisan al- ‘Arab, q.v. GH YB — Ed.) As a term, it means al] that is unknown and is not accessible to man by the means of knowledge available to him. There are numerous things in the world which, as we are aware, are known to some individuals but not to others. But there are also a number of things which have never been known to the human species as a whole, and which will never be known in the future. The same is true for the jinn and angels and certain other species of beings. There are things which one species knows and the other does not; and there are things which are known to none of them. All these are various forms of ghayb and they are all known only to God; nothing is hidden from Him, instead to Him, all is apparent.

The interrogative mode employed in the above verses to build an argument from creation, design and sustenance, has not been employed here. The reason being that God’s Attributes mentioned above were’ apparent to everyone, to believers as well as to unbelievers and polytheists. All recognized that the tasks mentioned here were the handiwork of God Alone. Hence why the argument expressed there was in the form of a question. If they accepted that these were the work of God and that no one has any share with Him in it, then how can they set-up partners with God in worship? But the Attribute of Knowledge did not possess any visual manifestation to which attention could be drawn; His Attribute could only be grasped by means of reflection. Therefore, instead of posing a question, a declaration is made here and it is left to the reflecting mind to decide whether there could be any other who shares with God in the Knowledge of the Unseen. Can there be any other who knows all that was, all that is, and that will be? If not — and the answer surely is in the negative — then is it possible that those deities that have no knowledge of the innumerable conditions and states through which people pass, be in a position to fulfil the requirements of all those people or answer their prayers-and supplications? Divinity and knowledge of the Unseen have enjoyed an intimate relationship from the very beginning, this with the result that man has associated knowledge in its totality with his deities. Anyone whom man has ever perceived to have anything to do with Godhead, has inevitably been considered to have full knowledge of everything. Man seems to be so conditioned to this that he thinks that only He Who knows everything has the power to answer supplications and prayers, and only He can make or mar their destinies. Only He Who knows fully everyone and everything can provide help. Hence why man considers that anyone with Divine Attributes has complete knowledge of the Unseen; in other words, because his intellect is convinced that knowledge and authority, go hand in hand.

Now if it is true that the Creator, Designer and Sustainer of the Universe is none other than God —~ as the previous verses show — then it follows that the Knower of the Unseen is none other than the One True God. Who in his right mind can think that any angel, jinn, Prophet, saint, or any created being for that matter, would know how many species of animals there are on, under and above the earth, in the oceans and in the air? Who can claim to have knowledge of the countless galaxies and stars in the heavens and what kind of creatures exist on each of these? Who can know where each and every member of these species is at a given time and what its needs are? But all of this is bound to be known to’God for He is the One Who has created them all and He is the One Who takes care of their needs and provides for their sustenance. How can anyone else — given his limitations — encompass all this? After all, what has anyone to do with this whole question of creation and sustenance so as to be able to know these things? Knowledge is also not something which can be divided into smaller units.

For example, it is not possible for a human being to know the Unseen, say, about all the human beings living on the earth. This is indivisible in the same manner as God’s Attributes of Creativity, Providence, and Self-Subsistence are indivisible. After all, how can it be possible for any human being to know all the conditions and states of all human beings — from their conception to their last breath — and these too of all those who have been created until now and who will be created until the Day of Resurrection? How can any human being know all that? Is he the creator of these countless people? Did he fashion them in the wombs of their mothers? Did he arrange that they be born as living beings rather than as the dead? Has he determined the fate-of anyone of these millions? Is he the one who decides about their life and death, their health and sickness, their prosperity and adversity, their rise and fall? And since when has he assumed this role? Did he assume it before or after he was born? And is it possible that this responsibility is merely limited to human beings? He ‘Who is administering the whole Universe and the affairs of all human beings, He Alone can be responsible for their life and death, their prosperity and adversity, and for the making and marring of their-fates.

Hence, one of the basic articles of faith in Islam is the belief that God Alone is the Knower of the Unseen. He Alone decides how much of His Knowledge He wants to impart to each individual and which of the Unseen He makes available to one particular individual but none else. But knowledge of the Unseen has not been given to any human being in its totality; it is only God Who is the Knower of the Unseen.

He has the keys to the realm that lies beyond the reach of human perception; none knows them but He (al-An‘am 6:59).

Allah is He Who has the knowledge of the Hour, and it is He Who sends down rain; it is He Who knows what is in the wombs [of the mothers} and no living being knows what will he earn tomorrow nor in which place will his death overtake him (Luqman 31:34).

He knows what lies before men and what is hidden from them, whereas they cannot attain to anything of His knowledge save what He wills them to attain (al-Baqarah 2:255).

The Qur'an not only categorically denies the possibility of possession of knowledge of the Unseen by created beings, but also specifically states that the Prophets, including the Prophet Muhammad (peace be on him), are not the “Knowers of the Unseen”. In other words, they were only given that, much knowledge of the Unseen which was necessary for their Prophetic mission. See Sarah al-An‘am 6:50; al-A ‘raf 7:187; al-Tawbah 9:101; Hid 11:31; al-Ahzab 33:63; al-Ahqaf 46:9, al-Tahrim 66:3 and al-Jinn 72: 26-8. These verses are quite categorical and leave no doubt in this regard.

' All these Qur’anic statements corroborate and elucidate the verse in question.

They leave no doubt that to consider anyone to be a partner of God in ‘His Knowledge of the Unseen is an un-Islamic doctrine. Bukhari, Muslim, Tirmidhi, Nasa’i, Ahmad ibn Hanbal, Tabari and Ibn Abi Hatim report, through sellable narrators, on the authority of ‘A’ishah that the Prophet (peace be on him) said: “Whoever claimed that the Prophet (peace be on him) knows what is going to happen tomorrow, accuses God of lying for He has said: ‘Say: None in the Heavens and on the earth has knowledge of the Unseen save Allah’” (al-Naml 27:65). (A number of traditions with slight variations have been reported. See for instance, Muslim, ‘K. al-iman’, ‘Bab Ma‘na Qawl Allah ‘azza wa jalla: “wa laqad Ra’ahu Nazlatan Ukhra”; Tirmidhi, ‘K. Tafsir al-Qur’an’. ‘Bab wa min Surah al-An ‘am’.

— Ed.) Likewise, Ibn al-Mundhir reports from ‘Ikrimah, the renowned pupil of ‘Abd Allah ibn ‘Abbas, that once a man asked the Prophet (peace be on him): “O Muhammad, when will the Day of Resurrection be? Our land is suffering from famine, when will rain fall? My wife is pregnant; will she give birth to a boy or a girl? I know what I have earned today, but what will I earn tomorrow? I know where I was born, but where will I die?” The Prophet (peace be on him) recited to him the following verse: “Surely with Allah lies the knowledge of the Hour [of Resurrection] and He it is Who sends down rain; He it is Who knows what is in the wombs [of the mothers] and no living being knows what he will earn tomorrow nor in which place will his death overtake him” (Luqman 31:34). (See Ibn Kathir, Tafsir, comments on Luqman 31:34 — Ed.) The famous tradition of Gabriel, in both Bukhari and Muslim, also corroborates this. According to this tradition, Gabriel came to the Prophet (peace: ‘be on him) in the form of a man and asked, among other questions, the following: “When will be the Day of Resurrection?” The Prophet (peace be on him) replied: ““The one questioned knows no better than the questioner. This is among those five things about which no one knows except God.” Then the Prophet (peace be on him) recited this same verse. (See Bukhari, ‘Kitab al-Iman’, ‘Bab Su’ al Jibril al-Nabi ‘an al-Iman wa al-Islam wa al-Ihsan’; Nasa’i, ‘K. al-Iman wa al-Islam wa al-Ihsan’. See also Anmad ibn Hanbal, Musnad, Vol. 2, p. 426. Ahmad has reported the hadith of Jibril with a slight variation of words. See also Muslim, ‘K. al-Iman’, ‘Bab Bayan al-Iman wa al- Islam wa al- Ihsan ... wa Ighlaz al-Qawl fi Haqqih’ - Ed.)

84. Others, who are supposed to have knowledge of the Unseen and who are considered to be God's partners in His Divinity, know nothing about their own future; they do not even know when the Day of Resurrection will be and when, they will be raised up.

85. After alerting people to their mistaken notions of Godhead, it is now being stated that those who associated others with God in His Divinity did not succumb to their erroneous beliefs after due reflection, and after considering the arguments relevant to the question. Rather, their beliefs were gained by their not giving serious thought to these issues. They were impervious to the Next Life, skeptical about it, or blind to it, and this resulted in irresponsible attitudes towards their own lives, about the Universe, and about those issues which truly confront human existence. They are oblivious to the question of Ultimate Reality and whether or not their own philosophy of life conforms with it. They believe that ultimately all — atheists, polytheists, believers and sceptics — will die and crumble to dust and that this will be the end of things.

This discussion of the Hereafter has emerged from the following words of the previous verse: “‘... they do not know when they will be raised to life”. There it was stated that none, not even their deities — the angels, jinn, Prophets and saints — know anything about the time of Resurrection. Now, the following statements are being made about the polytheists and unbelievers. (i) That they did not know whether Resurrection would take place at all; (ii) that their lack of awareness did not arise from the fact that they were uninformed about it; they were indeed informed about it but refused to believe in it, and (iii) that they had never reflected over the arguments which had been put forward about the Hereafter; rather they turned a blind eye to them.