النص المفهرس

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Surah Al-An'am : 6 : 161 - 165
Say, "My prayer, my offering, my life and my death are
for Allah, the Lord of all the worlds. [162] For Him there
is no partner. And this I have been commanded, and I
am the first one to submit." [163]
Say, "Should I seek a lord other than Allah when He is
the Lord of everything? And nobody does anything but
to his own account, and no bearer of burden shall bear
the burden of another, then to your Lord is your re-
turn. Then He will tell you about what you were disput-
ing in. [164]
And it is He who made you the viceregents of the earth
and raised some of you in ranks over others, so that He
may test you in what He has given you. Surely, your
Lord is swift in punishing and - surely He is Most-
Forgiving, Very-Merciful. [165]
Commentary
These are the last five verses of Surah Al-An'am. It will be recalled
from previous verses how people had altered the true religion through
a process of excess and deficiency, making many more out of it, and
had themselves split into factions and groups. In contrast, the first
three of the present verses present an authentic profile of the true re-
ligion describing its fundamental principles, and some important sub-
sidiaries and details. The first two verses carry the principle while the
third mentions their subsidiaries - and in both, the address is to the
Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم where he has been asked to convey the mes-
sage to these people.
In the first verse it has been said : قُلُ إِتَّنِيُ هَدْنِيُ رَبِّنٌ إِلَى صِرَاطٍ مُسْتَقِيم (As for
me, my Lord has guided me to a straight path). The hint given here is
that he has not taken this path prompted like them by their own ideas
or under the weight of ancestral customs. Instead of that, this is a way
to which he has been directed by his Lord. Then, by using the word: )
(Rabb, the essential nurturer, benefactor and carer under all condi-
tions, unfortunately not expressed through any equivalent in English),
it was indicated that it is the very dictate of His beneficence that He
guides to the right path. Those who look for guidance will have guid-
ance from Him.
دِيْنًا قِيَمًّا قِلَّةَ إِبُرْهِيْمَ حَنِيْفَامِ وَمَا كَانَ مِنْ الْمُشْرِكِيْنَ: In the second verse (162), it was said

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Surah Al-An'am : 6 : 161 - 165
(the straight religion, the faith of Ibrahim, the upright; and he was not
of those who associate partners with Allah). Here, the word: 45 (qiyam)
is a verbal noun in the sense of: " (qiyam) meaning what stands es-
tablished on strong and secure foundation. In other words, this relig-
ion is fortified. It stands on God-sent basics. This is no compedium of
someone's personal ideas. Then, it is not some strange new religion ei-
ther lending itself to doubting eyebrows. This has been the religion of
all past prophets, may peace be upon them all. That the name of Sayy-
idna Ibrahim WILL has been particularly mentioned here is because
all religions in the world admit his greatness and religious patriarchy.
Among the groups of the time, the Jews, the Christians and the disbe-
lievers of Arabia - no matter how different from each other they may
be - they were still unanimous in paying homage to the great spiritual
station of Sayyidna Ibrahim WJI Je. And this spiritual station of lead-
ership has been given to him by Allah Ta'ala as a special reward: 21
Que det (I am going to make you an Imam for the people - 2:124).
Then, every sect from them tried to prove that they were staunch
adherents of the religion of Ibrahim JI ale and were part of his Com-
munity. To remove their misgiving, it was said that Ibrahim Sullade
had the distinction of always abstaining from bowing before anyone
other than Allah and he had a distaste for all kinds of Shirk which led
people to associate partners in His pristine Divinity. This conduct was
the greatest achievement of his life. In sharp contrast to him, here you
are all soaked in Shirk. Everyone took someone as partners with Allah
- the Jews did that with Sayyidna 'Uzayr at Il (+), the Christians with
Sayyidna 'Isa WJI ale and the disbelievers of Arabia were so liberal
that they took thousands of rocks to be partners in the Divinity of Al-
lah. In this state of affairs, no one had the right to claim that they
were adhering to the ideal of the spiritual community of Sayyidna Ib-
rahim عليه السلام - except Muslims. They shun Shirk and Kufr.
قُلُ إِنَّ صَلَاتِيُ وَنُسُكِىٌ وَمَحُيَاىَ وَتَمَاتِىٌ لِلّه رَبّ : In the third verse (163), it was said
geldi (Say, "My prayer, my offering, my life and my death are all for Al-
lah, the Lord of all the worlds). The word: aus (nusuk) in this verse
means sacrifice. Everything one does in Hajj is also called: Nusuk. So,
the rites of Hajj are known as Manasik, the plural of Nusuk. Then, this
word is also used for 'Ibadah or worship of Allah in the absolute sense.

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Surah Al-An'am : 6 : 161 - 165
Therefore, Nasik is used in the sense of 'Abid (one who worships Allah).
At this place, any of the meanings given above can be applied. Tafsirs
to that effect have been reported from commentators among the Şaha-
bah and Tabi'in. But, 'Ibadah or offering of acts of worship devoted to
Allah, taken in the absolute sense, appears to be the more appropriate
meaning at this place. In that case, the meaning of the verse would be:
'My prayer, my offerings in 'Ibadah, my life and my death are all for
Allah, the Lord of all the worlds.'
Out of the subsidiaries of deeds, the first to be mentioned here was
Salah because that is the moving spirit of all good deeds and is, of
course, the pillar of the religion. Mentioned briefly after that were all
deeds and acts of worship. Then, rising to a wider level, everything
done or faced in a lifetime was pointed to. The last to be mentioned
was death. After having identified all these, it was admitted that they
are only for Allah who is the Lord of all the worlds and who has no as-
sociate or partner in His Divinity. And this is the outcome of perfect
faith and perfect sincerity. This leads one to think, care and keep in
sight, in all states of life and in everything one does, that: 'my Rabb,
and the Rabb of the whole wide world is One Rabb. I am His servant. I
am in His sight - all the time. Let not my heart, my mind, my eyes, my
ears, my tongue, and hands, and feet, nor my pen or step, move in any
direction against His pleasure.' This is a simple meditation
(Muraqabah) of the highest order, something which, if one trains him-
self to keep present in one's heart and mind, then, there is no doubt
that he or she will become a human being in the real sense. Things
like sin and disobedience and crimes will be scared to come anywhere
even close to a person that strong.
In Tafsir Ad-Durr Al-Manthur, under the commentary on this
verse, it has been reported that the well-known Şahabi, Sayyidna Abu
Musa Al-Ash'ari ate Algo, used to say: "I honestly wish that every Mus-
lim would keep reciting this verse time and again, almost making it
the constant formula of his or her life."
In this verse, the statement - that the prayers and the rest of acts
of worship are for Allah - very obviously means that these should be
free from any Shirk or hypocricy or any other worldly interest. As for
life and death being for Allah, it could also mean : 'When my very life

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Surah Al-An'am : 6 : 161 - 165
and death are in His control, then, what I do in my physical and spiri-
tual life (a'mal and 'ibadat), has to be for Him alone.' And it could also
mean: 'Whatever deeds are tied with life are for Allah alone - such as,
Salah, Şawm, rights and duties involved in dealings with people etc.
Then, deeds which relate to death - such as, a will (wasiyyah) and the
concept of an ideal life one longs for - then, they too are for Allah, the
Lord of all the worlds, and subordinate to what He has commanded.'
After that it was said: ◌َوَبِذَلِكَ أُمِرُتُ وَأَنَا أَوَّلُ الْمُعْلِمِيْن (And this I have been
commanded and I am the first one to submit). It means that 'in this
Ummah, I am the first Muslim' - because the first Muslim (one who
submits) in every Ummah is the Nabiyy (prophet) or Rasul (Messenger)
himself to whom the Shari'ah (religious code of guidance) is revealed
through Wahy (revelation).
There could be a hint in the expression 'first Muslim,' towards the
saying that the first to be created was the blessed Nur (light) of the
Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم, after which the heavens and the earth and
the rest of creation came into existence - as it appears in a Hadith with
the words : ◌ُاوَُّ مَا خَلَقَ اللهُ تَعَالى نُؤُرِى (Ruh al-Ma'ani).
One's Burden of Sin Cannot Be Borne By Another
The disbelievers of Makkah, with Walid ibn Mughirah among
them, used to say to the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم and to the Muslims
in general that they should return to their faith and they will bear the
burden of all their sins. This has been answered in the fourth verse
(164). It was said :كُلُ اَغَيْرَ اللهِ أَبُغِى رَبًّا وَّهُوَ رَبُّ كُلِّ شَيْء Here, the address is to the
Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم. He is being asked to tell them: 'Do you
want me that I too, like yourself, seek and find some other Rabb, other
than Allah, when He is the Lord of everything ?. This is error and
straying which you should not expect me to accept. As for your saying
that you will bear the burden of our sins, this is absurd in itself. A sin
committed by a person will be written in that person's record of deeds,
and it will be he or she who will deserve its punishment. How can that
sin be transferred to your account just by your saying so? And if the
idea is that the sins will go in our account and in our Book of Deeds,
but the punishment to be given against these will be borne by you,
then, that idea is not valid either.' The next sentence in the verse re-
jects it. It was said: وَلاَ تَزِرُ وَازِرَةٌ قِذْرَ أُخْرى that is, (on the day of Qiyamah) no

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Surah Al-An'am : 6 : 161 - 165
bearer of burden (of sin) shall bear the burden of another).
As for the disbelievers, this verse does answer their absurd saying
in its own way. But, it also tells Muslims at large about the rule that
they too should not take the matters of Qiyamah on the analogy of
their ways in the mortal world where one person commits a crime and
succeeds in putting it on someone else - specially when the other per-
son is willing to accept it. But, in the great Court of Allah, there is no
room for it. There, the other person can never be caught for the sin
committed by someone else. It is based on the authority of this verse
that the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said that the child born out of wed-
lock will not be affected by the sin of his or her parents. (This Hadith
has been reported by Hakim from Sayyidah 'A'ishah Que Algo, based on
sound authority)
When Sayyidna 'Abdullah ibn Umar رضى الله عنه saw someone crying
at the Janazah of a deceased person, he said that the crying of the liv-
ing causes punishment to the deceased. Ibn Abi Mulaykah says that,
when he reported this saying to Sayyidah 'A'ishah Que Al _»), she said:
You are reporting the saying of a person who never lies, nor can there
be any doubt in his integrity. But, there are occasions when one does
not hear right. In this matter, the decisive verdict of the Qur'an is suf-
ficient for you :وَلاَ تَزِرُ وَازِرَةٌ وِزْرَ أُخرى , that is, the sin of one person cannot be
applied to another. So, how can the crying of a living person cause
punishment to descend on a dead person just for no reason? (Ad-Durr Al-
Manthur)
At the conclusion of the verse, it was said that, finally they have to
go to their Lord after all where they will find out the ultimate verdict
on all their differences - which means that they would be better off
keeping their verbal confrontation in check and devoting more to the
end of things.
In the fifth (164) verse, Surah Al-An'am reaches its end at a compre-
hensive note of advice. It brings the past history of peoples and their
times into focus and invites attention to a projection towards the fu-
ture by saying : ◌ٍوَهُوَالَّذِىُ جَعَلَكُمْ خَلْتِفَ الْأَرْضِ وَرَفَعَ بَعْضَكُمُ فَوْقَ بَعْضٍ دَرَجُت (And it is He who
made you viceregents of the earth and raised some of you in ranks
over some others). Here, the word: JA (khala'if) is the plural form of
khalifah which means viceregent or deputy. The sense of the verse is:

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Surah Al-An'am : 6 : 161 - 165
It is Allah Ta'ala who has let you inhabit places occupied by peoples
before you. There is no home, no land which you call your private prop-
erty today, and believe to be so, which was not, only yesterday, under
the ownership of other human beings like you. Allah Ta'ala has, by re-
moving them, made you sit in their place. Then, worth keeping in
mind all the time is the fact of life that everyone among you too is not
alike. One is poor, the other is rich. One is low, the other is high. And
equally obvious is the fact that, had being rich or being low been with-
in one's control, who would have chosen to remain poor and low? This
distance among steps and this difference in ranks is knocking at your
doors to tell you that this power, control and choice is in the hands of
some other Being who can make anyone poor, if He so wills; make any-
one rich, if He so wills; give honour to whom He wills and let whoever
He wills be low.
Towards the end of the verse, it was said:ُلِيَبْلُوَكُمُ فِى مَا اسْكُم (so that He
may test you in what He has given you). It means: By making you take
the place of others, and by making you owners of their wealth and
property, and then, by keeping you at different steps in terms of hon-
our and wealth, the very aim is to make you open your eyes to this
framework of trial which seeks to determine your reaction to this phe-
nomena that blessings which once belonged to past peoples have now
been entrusted in your hands. To be seen is what it would be - that of
gratitude and obedience, or that of ingratitude and disobedience?
At the conclusion of the fifth and the last (165) verse, the end of
إِنَّ رَبَّكَ سَرِمِعُ الْعِقَابِ وَإِنَّهَ لَغَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ :both these stances was made clear by saying
(Surely, your Lord is swift in punishing - and surely He is Most-
Forgiving, Very-Merciful). In other words, it means: Your Lord is going
to send His punishment on the disobedient soon - and for the obedient,
He is Forgiving and Merciful.
Surah Al-An'am began with Hamd (the praise of Allah) and con-
cluded on Maghfirah (the seeking of forgiveness from Allah). May Al-
lah Ta'ala bless all of us with the Taufiq (ability bestowed by Allah) of
Hamd, and honour us with Maghfirah from Him.
It appears in Hadith that the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said: Surah
Al-An'am, the whole of it, was revealed at one time. Such was the ma-
jesty of its revelation that seventy thousand angels followed behind it

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Surah Al-An'am : 6 : 161 - 165
reciting Tasbih (glorifying Allah). Therefore, Sayyidna Faruq al-A'zam
said: Surah Al-An'am is one of the highly merited Surahs of the Holy
Qur'an.
In some narrations, it has been reported from Sayyidna 'Ali Ji ,
Ate that Allah Ta'ala would become the healer of the sick person over
whom this Surah is recited.
وَأَخِرْ دَعُوَانًا آَنِ الْحَمْدُ لِلْهِ رَبِّ الْعُلَمِيْنَ
The Commentary on
Surah Al-An'am
ends here

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Surah Al-A'raf : 7 : 1 - 7
Surah Al-A'raf
[The Heights]
[Suratul-A'raf was revealed in Makkah and it has 206 Verses and 20 Sections]
Verses 1 - 7
بِسُمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمِنِ الرَّحِيمِ
اَلْقَصَِّ ﴿١) كِتُبُ أُنْزِلَ إِلَيُكَ فَلاَ يَكُنُ فِىٌ صَدُرِكَ حَرَجٌ مِّنُهُ
لُِنْذِرَ بِهِ وَذِكْرَى لِلْمُؤْمِنِيْنَ ﴿٢﴾ ◌ِتَّبِعُوا مَا أُنْزِلَ إِلَيْكُمْ مِّنْ
◌َّبِّكُمْ وَلَا تَتَّبِعُوا مِنْ دُوْنِمٌ أَوْلِيَاءَ، قَلِيلًا مَا تَذَكَّرُونَ ﴿٢﴾
وَكُمُّ ◌ِنُ قَرْيَةٍ أَهْلَكُنْهَا فَجَاءَهَا بَأْسُنَا بَيَاتًا أَوْهُمْ قَاتِلُونَ
﴿٤﴾ فَمَا كَانَ دَعُهُمْ إِذْجَاءَهُمْ بَأُسْنَا إِلَّ أَنُ قَالُاْ إِنَّا كُنَّاً
ظْلِمِينَ ﴿٥﴾ فَلَنَسْتَلَنَّ الَّذِيْنَ أُرُسِلَ إِلَيْهِمْ وَلَنَسْتَنَّ الْمُسَلِيْنَ
فَلَنَقُّصَّنَّ عَلَيْهِمْ بِعِلْمٍ وَمَا كُنَّا نَانِبِيْنَ ﴿٧﴾
With the name of Allah, the All-Merciful, the Very-Merciful
Alif, Lam, Mim, Sad. [1] (This is) A Book sent down to you
- so, let there be no constraint on your heart because of
it - that you may warn through it, and (it is) an advice
for the believers. [2]
Follow what has been sent down to you from your
Lord, and do not follow any friends other than Him.
Little you are receptive to advice! [3]
How many a town We have destroyed, and Our punish-
ment came upon them at night or while they were hav-
ing midday nap. [4] So, their cry, when Our punishment
came upon them, was not but that they said, "we were
wrongdoers indeed." [5]

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Surah Al-A'raf : 7 : 1 - 7
So, We shall ask those to whom the messengers were
sent and We shall ask the messengers. [6] Then We shall
tell them the whole story, with knowledge, and We
were never absent. [7]
Commentary
An overview of the Surah shows that most of the subjects it deals
with are related to Ma'ad (Return to the Hereafter) and Risalah
(Prophethood). The former appear from the beginning of the Surah
upto approximately the end of the sixth section. Then, from the eighth
to the twenty first section, there is a detailed description of past
prophets, events about their communities, their reward and punish-
ment and the punishment which overtook them.
In the statement: فَلَا يَكُنُ فِى صَدُرِكَ حَرَج appearing in the first verse, the
address is to the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم and he has been told: This
Qur'an is the Book of Allah sent down to you. This should not cause
any constraint on your heart. The word: &s (haraj) translated here as
'constraint' means that 'you should have no anguish or apprehension
in conveying the Qur'an and its injunctions lest people belie it and
hurt you.' (As reported from Abu Al-'Aliyah - Mazhari)
The hint given here is that Allah who has sent down this Book on
you has also made arrangements that you shall remain protected and
that takes care of any anguish on your part. Some commentators have
said that 'haraj' or 'constraint on the heart' refers to the constraint ex-
perienced by the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم who, because of his affec-
tionate concern for people, felt pain when they would not believe de-
spite having heard the Qur'an and its injunctions. To offset this
constraint, the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم has been told that the duty
with which he has been obligated is simply to make the call and con-
vey the message. Once this is done, it is not his responsibility to see
who becomes a Muslim and who does not. Therefore, there was no rea-
son for him to be anxious.
The statement : ◌َفَلَنَسْتَلَنَّ الَّذِينَ أُرُسِلَ إِلَيْهِمْ وَلَنَسْتَلَنَّ المُسَلِيْن in verse 6 refers to the
day of Qiyamah when people will be asked by Allah how did they re-
ceive the messengers and Books sent to them by Him - and the mes-
sengers will be asked if they did convey to their communities the mes-
sage and injunctions Allah had sent them with. (Narrated by Baihaqi from

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Surah Al-A'raf : 7 : 8 - 10
Sayyidna Ibn 'Abbas رضى الله عنه - Mazhari)
It appears in Şahin Muslim on the authority of a narration from
Sayyidna Jabir رضى الله عنه that the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم asked peo-
ple during the address of his Last Hajj: When, on the day of Qiyamah,
you will be asked about me - whether or not I have conveyed the mes-
sage of Allah to you - what will you, then, say in reply? (300 33 (3). All
Şahabah present there said: We will say that you have conveyed the
message of Allah to us and you have fulfilled the trust of Allah at its
best and you have wished and done what was most beneficial for the
اللَّهُمَ اشُهُدٌ : said صلى الله عليه وسلم community. Hearing this, the Holy Prophet
(O Allah, You be witness).
According to a narration in the Musnad of Ahmad, the Holy Proph-
et صلى الله عليه وسلم is reported to have said: On the day of Qiyamah, Allah
Ta'ala will ask me if I have conveyed His message to His servants and
I shall say in response: Yes, I have. Therefore, all of you should make
sure that those who are present do convey my message to those ab-
sent. (Mazharī)
'Those absent' refers to people who were present during that time
but were not present at that particular occasion - as well as genera-
tions which would come later on. To convey to them the message of the
Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم means that people of every time should con-
tinue the chain of conveying this message to the generations coming
next, so that all children of Adam to be born right through the day of
Qiyamah will have received this message.
Verses 8 - 10
وَالْوَزْنُ يَوْمَئِذٍ الْحَقٌّ، فَمَنْ تَقُلَتُ مَوَازِينُهُ فَأُولَئِكَ هُمُ الْمُفْلِحُونَ
﴿٨﴾ وَمَنُ خَقَّتُ مَوَازِيُنُهُ فَأُولَئِكَ الَّذِيْنَ خَسِرُاَ اَنْفُسَهُمَ بِمَا
كَانُوا بِايْتِنَا يَظْلِمُونَ ﴿٩﴾ وَلَقَدُ مَكَّتُكُمُ فِى الْأَرْضِ وَجَعَلْنَا
لَكُمُ فِيْهَا مَعَانِشَ، قَلِيْلَا تَمَّا تَشْكُرُونَ ﴿١٠)
And the Weighing on that day is definite. So, those
whose scales are heavy, they are the successful. [8] And
those whose scales are light, they are those who have

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Surah Al-A'raf : 7 : 8 - 10
brought loss to themselves, as they used to be unjust to
Our verses. [9]
And We gave you a place on earth, and made for you
therein the means of living. Little you are grateful. [10]
Commentary
In the first verse, it was said: 3 0- 33; (And the Weighing on
that day is definite). It means that the weighing of good and bad deeds
on the day of Judgement is due and true. There is no room for doubt in
it. Here, the hint given is that let no one be deceived by the idea that
things which usually get to be weighed or measured are things having
some weight or heaviness. Human deeds, good or bad, have no body or
mass which could be weighed. How, then, would deeds be weighed?
First of all, the reason is that the authority of Allah is absolute. He is
powerful over everything. Why then, would it be necessary that some-
thing we cannot weigh could not be weighed by Allah Almighty as
well? Then, other than that, we have before us, in our time, countless
new instruments which claim to weigh or measure anything in the
world. They no more need the traditional balance or scales or rod or
tip. Modern instruments can weigh what nobody ever thought could be
weighed, air, electric current, heat, cold, and so many other things. A
meter is all you need. Now, if Allah Almighty, the Maker of makers, in
His perfect power, could weigh or measure human deeds - with or
without a device - what is there in it which would make it to be some-
thing far out to believe? Leaving this aside for a moment, the Creator
of the Universe does have the power to transform our deeds at some
time into a material presence, even give it some shape or form
(interesting that people would believe something like this happening
in a Speilberg movie, yet squirm at the religious view of things as
would come to pass). There are many Ahadith from the Holy Prophet
which confirm that human deeds will appear in particular صلى الله عليه وسلم
shapes and forms during Barzakh (the post-death ~ pre-resurrection
state) and Mahshar (Resurrection). Good deeds of a person will, in
forms beautified, become the companions of the grave - and evil deeds
would crawl all over in the form of snakes and scorpions. A Hadith
says that a person who has not paid the Zakah due against his wealth,
that wealth will reach his grave in the shape of a poisonous snake to
bite him and say: I am your wealth, I am your treasure.

541
Surah Al-A'raf : 7 : 8 - 10
It is said in a Sahih Hadith that Al-Baqarah and 'Al-'Imran, the two
Surahs of the Holy Qur'an will come on the plains of Resurrection in
the form of two dense clouds and cast their shade over those who used
to recite these Surahs.
Similarly, there are countless narrations from Hadith, all authentic
and reported reliably, which indicate that once these good and bad
deeds of ours pass away from this mortal world, they will transform
into particular shapes and forms and be there on the plains of Resur-
rection in a material presence.
There are even verses of the Qur'an which confirm it. It is said:
Kol PUB's, that is, 'what people had done in the world, they would
find that present there - 18:49.' In a verse of Surah Az-Zalzalah, it is
said : ◌ًمَنْ يَّعْمَلُ مِثْقَالَ ذَرَّةٍ خَيْرًا ثَّرَهُ وَمَنُ يَّعْمَلُ مِثْقَالَ ذَرَّةٍ شَّا مَرَة, that is, 'whoever does good
even the weight of a particle shall see it on the day of Qiyamah, and
whoever does evil even the weight of a particle shall see that too in
Qiyamah.' Things as described here obviously lend to the possibility
that human deeds will come in some nuclear form of existence. This is
something which needs no further enterpretations as what is crucial is
the compensation of deeds which will exist and be perceptible.
Under these circumstances, weighing deeds does not remain some-
thing difficult or far out. But, human beings are what they are. Given
their limited framework of reasoning, they take everything on the
analogy of their own present state of being and this is the criterion
they have to judge things around them. So used to it they are that they
just cannot act otherwise. It is this state of being of theirs which the
Qur'an has put in words which appear in Surah Ar-Rum: 35 Lau, Biz
It means that 'these people know an obvious. الْحَيَوْةِ الدُّنْيَا وَهُمْ عَنِ الْآخِرَةِ هُمْ غُفِلُونَ
aspect of mortal life (and that too, not the whole of it) and about the
Hereafter they are totally heedless - 30:7.' In their onslaught on the ob-
vious and the peceptible, they will shake the earth and the space to
find out the unfound, but the great field of the reality of things the un-
folding of which has to take place in the 'Akhirah is something they
are totally unaware of.
Therefore, in this verse, special care has been taken while saying:
Butyl, (And the Weighing on that day is definite) so that man, all
infatuated with the obvious, may not be able to deny the weighing of

542
Surah Al-A'raf : 7 : 8 - 10
deeds in the Hereafter - which stands proved from the Holy Qur'an
and is the collective belief of the Muslim Ummah.
That there will be the weighing of deeds on the day of Qiyamah is a
subject dealt with in many verses of the Holy Qur'an from various an-
gles, and in Hadith, its details abound.
The Weighing of Deeds : A Doubt and its Answer
Out of the details on the weighing of deeds appearing in the Aha-
dith of the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم, the first to ponder about is the
oft-narrated statement that, on the day of Resurrection, the heaviest
in weight shall be the Kalimah: in'sfeet sjay's (There is no god but
Allah, Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah). The scalepan which
holds this Kalimah shall outweigh the rest.
Tirmidhi, Ibn Majah, Ibn Hibban, Baihaqi and Hakim have report-
ed from Sayyidna 'Abdullah ibn 'Umar ue Algo, that the Holy Prophet
-said: A man of my Ummah will be brought before the en صلى الله عليه وسلم
tire creation on the plain of Resurrection. Then, ninety nine of his
Books of Deeds will be brought in. Each scroll of his Book of Deeds will
be as long as far he could see - and all these Books of Deeds shall be
full of sins and evils. This person will be asked if everything written in
these Books of Deeds was correct, or had the angels done any injustice
to him, or had they written anything there which was not as it hap-
pened. He will admit: O my Lord, whatever is written there is correct.
But, in his heart, he will be nervous while worrying about how would
he find his deliverance from this situation. That will be the time Allah
Ta'ala will say: Today, there is no injustice for anyone. Against all your
sins, We have a testimonial of your being good, with Us, written
where, is your Kalimah : أَشْهَدُ أَنْ لَّ إِلهَ إِلَّ اللّهُ وَأَشْهَدْ أَنَّ مُحَمَّدًا عَبْدُهُ وَرَسُوْلُه (I testify that
there is no god but Allah and I testify that Muhammad & is His ser-
vant and His Messenger). That person will say: O my Lord, what
weight this little note will carry against such a big black Book of
Deeds? Then, it would be said: No injustice will be done to you. Then,
all those Books of Deeds full of sins will be placed in one scalepan and
in the other, this note with the Kalimah of 'Iman on it. The scalepan
with the Kalimah on it shall weigh heavier and the scalepan with all
those sins on it shall turn to be lighter. After having related this event,
the Holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said: Nothing can weigh more than the

543
Surah Al-A'raf : 7 : 8 - 10
name of Allah. (Mazhari)
According to a narration from Sayyidna Ibn 'Umar a Jdu+, in
Musnad al-Bazzar and Mustadrak Hakim, the Holy Prophet le ill
, said: At the time of his death, Nuh JILL assembled his sons
around him and said: I order you to abide by the Kalimah: JI yIJI y (La
Ilaha Illallah) because, should the heavens and the earth be placed in
one pan of the scale and the Kalimah: La Ilaha Illallah in the other,
the pan containing the Kalimah shall invariably remain heavier. Oth-
er narrations on the same subject have been reported from Sayyidna
Abu Sa'id al-Khudrī, Sayyidna Ibn 'Abbas and Sayyidna Abu-ad-Darda'
Le Ul , supported by reliable transmitting authorities and are spread
over in various Hadith collections. (Mazhari)
According to these narrations, a believing Muslim who recites the
Kalimah shall always find the scale heavier in his favour, no matter
how many sins he carries on him. But, many other verses of the
Qur'an and narrations of Hadith prove that the good and bad deeds of
a Muslim shall be weighed. For some, the scalepan with good deeds
will be heavier, for some others, that of sins. The one whose scalepan
with good deeds is heavier will have his salvation while the one whose
scalepan with sins and evils is heavier will have his punishment. For
example, in Surah Al-Anbiya' it is said:
وَنَضَعُ الْمُوَازِيْنَ الْقِسْطَ لِيَوْمِ الْقِيْمَةِ فَلاَ تُظُلَمُ نَفُعَّ شَيْئًا ◌َإِنُ كَانَ مِثْقَالَ حَبَّةٍ
◌ِّنْ خَرْدَلٍ أَتَيْنَا بِهَا وَكَفِى بِنَا حُسِبِيْنَ ،
And We shall set up Scales of Justice on the day of Judge-
ment. Then, not the least injustice will be done to anyone.
And if there be (good or bad) the weight of a mustard seed, We
shall bring it (to account on the scale for deeds) and We are
sufficient to take account - 21:47.
And in Surah Al-Qari'ah, it is said:
فَمَّا مَنْ تَقُلَتُ مَوَازِينُهُ فَهُوَ فِىْ عِيْشَةٍ رَّاضِيَةٍ وَآَمَّا مَنْ خَقَّتْ مَوَازِينُهُ فَأُمُّهُ
هَاِيَةٌ
19
Whoever has his scale of good deeds heavy will be in life bliss-
ful and whoever has his scale of good deeds lighter, his place
will be Hell -101:6-9.

544
Surah Al-A'raf : 7 : 8 - 10
Explaining these verses, Sayyidna 'Abdullah ibn 'Abbase Sle,
said: The believer whose good deeds on the scale are heavier will go to
Jannah with his deeds - and the one whose evil deeds on the scale are
heavier will be sent to Jahannam with his deeds. (Reported by Al-Baihaqi
in Shu'ab al-'Īman - Mazhari)
Based on a narration from Sayyidna Abu Hurairah &e All za,, it has
been reported in Abu Dawud: If a shortage is found in the Fara'id of a
servant, Allah Ta'ala will ask if that servant has some Nawafil to his
credit. If they are there, the shortage of the obligatory will be compen-
sated by the voluntary. (Mazhari)
The outcome of all these verses and Hadith narrations is that the
scale will some times be heavier in favour of a believer and lighter at
some others. Therefore, scholars of Tafsir say that this shows that
weighing in Mahshar (Resurrection) will be twice. First to be weighed
will be belief and disbelief through which distinction will be made be-
tween a believer and a disbeliever. In this weighing whoever has even
just the declaration of faith (Kalimah) in the Book of Deeds, his or her
scale will become heavier and he or she will be separated from the
group of disbelievers. Then, there will be a second weighing of good
and bad deeds. In this, the good deeds of one believer will be heavy on
the scale while the other will find the scale heavy with evil deeds - and
everyone will have his or her punishment or reward in accordance
with that. Thus, the subject as dealt with in all these verses and nar-
rations of Hadith becomes synchronized. (Bayan al-Qur'an)
How Would Deeds Be Weighed?
According to a Hadith narrated by Sayyidna Abu Hurairah & M ;
which appears in Al-Bukhari and Muslim, the Holy Prophet le dit Lo
du, said: On the day of Qiyamah, there will come some heavy people
whose weight, in the sight of Allah, will not be worth the weight of
even a mosquito - and, in support, he recited the verse of the Qur'an: su
3 4 pa' that is, on the day of Qiyamah, We will not give them
any weight - 18:105 (Mazhari).
And featuring the virtues (manaqib) of Sayyidna 'Abdullah ibn
صلى الله عليه there is a Hadith in which the Holy Prophet ,رضى الله عنه Masud
du, is reported to have said: His legs look so thin but, by Him in whose
hands lies my life, on the balance of justice for the day of Qiyamah,

545
Surah Al-A'raf : 7 : 8 - 10
their weight shall be more than the weight of the mountain of Uhud.
Then, there is the Hadith of Sayyidna Abu Hurairah as in _», with
which Imam al-Bukhari has concluded his book, the Sahih. In it, it is
said that there are two words very light when said but very heavy
when weighed on the Scale of Deeds, and with Allah, they are dear,
and they are: s Jin suze (Subhanallahi wa bi-hamdihi : Pure is Allah
and Praised is He) ◌ِسُبْحَانَ اللهِ العَظِيم (Subhanallahil-'Azim : Pure is Allah the
Great).
As narrated by Sayyidna 'Abdullah ibn 'Umar s All _»,, the Holy
Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم used to say that saying : ◌ِسُبْحَانَ الله (Subhan Allah)
fills half of the pan on the scale of deeds while saying: Jugar
(Alhamdulillah) fills the other half.
Abu Dawud, Tirmidhi and Ibn Hibban report with sound authority
صلى الله عليه that the Holy Prophet رضى الله عنه'from Sayyidna Abu-d-Darda
, said: No deed will be heavier than good morals on the scale of
deeds.
And to Sayyidna Abu Dharr al-Ghifari as Ul .,, the Holy Prophet
said: I tell you about two things doing which is not hard صلى الله عليه وسلم
for anyone - but, on the scale of deeds, they shall be the heaviest -(1)
good morals, and (2) usually observing silence, that is, not talking un-
less necessary.
In his Kitab al-Zuhd, Imam Ahmad has reported from Sayyidna
Hazim e Al », that angel, Jibra'il al-Amin came to the Holy Prophet
while someone there was weeping in fear of Allah. Angel صلى الله عليه وسلم
Jibra'il said: All human deeds will be weighed, but human tears flow-
ing from the fear of Allah and 'Akhirah is a deed which would not be
weighed. Rather, one such tear would put off the wildest fire of Jahan-
nam. (Mazharī)
A Hadith says about a person present on the plain of Resurrection.
When he will look at his Book of Deeds, he will notice very few good
deeds there. He will be nervous. All of a sudden, something will rise
like a cloud and fall right into the scalepan of his good deeds. He will
be told that this was in return for his teaching of the faith which
multiplied onwards when people acted in accordance with it, and there
was a share kept aside for him with each single follower of his

546
Surah Al-A'raf : 7 : 8 - 10
teaching. (Mazharī, from Sayyidna Ibn al-Mubarak)
Tabaranī reports from Sayyidna Ibn 'Abbas as All _», that the Holy
Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said: A person who goes to the graveyard with
the Janazah, two karats will be placed on his scale of deeds. Other
narrations say that the weight of this karat will be equal to the
mountain of Uhud.
He has also reported from Sayyidna Jabir as Ul +, that the Holy
Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said: One's first deed to be placed on the scale of
deeds will be the good deed of spending on one's family and taking care
of their needs.
Imam al-Dhahabi has reported from Sayyidna 'Imran ibn Husayn
-said: On the day of Qiya صلى الله عليه وسلم that the Holy Prophet عليه السلام
mah, when the ink used by the 'Ulama to write about the religion and
its rules will be weighed against the blood of shuhada' (martyrs), the
weight of the ink used by 'Ulama will turn out to be more than the
weight of the blood of martyrs.
There are many more Ahadith relating to the weighing of deeds as
in Qiyamah. Some of them have been mentioned here as they shed
light on the merit and worth of particular deeds.
The mode of weighing deeds as mentioned in these narrations of
Hadith seems to be different. Some indicate that the doers of deeds
will be the ones weighed and it will be they who would be heavy or
light according to their deeds. Some others show that their Books of
Deeds will be weighed. Still others prove that deeds themselves would
become personified and they will be measured. Tafsir authority, Ibn
Kathir, after having reported all these narrations, has said that it is
possible that the weighing is repeated several times in different ways
and, it is obvious, the full reality of these matters is known to Allah
Ta'ala alone - and for doing what one does in real life, it is, for all prac-
tical purposes, not necessary to know this reality. Quite sufficient for
us is to know that our deeds shall be weighed. If our deeds turn out to
be lighter on the scale of deeds, we shall deserve punishment. Then, it
is an entirely different matter that Allah Ta'ala, in His grace, by Him-
self, or by the intercession of a Nabiyy or Waliyy, forgives us our sins
and we stand delivered from punishment.

547
Surah Al-A'raf : 7 : 11 - 18
As for the likelihood that some people will have their salvation on
the sole virtue of their having said and believed in the Kalimah of
'Iman (La Illaha Illallah) and all sins accruing to them will be forgiven
because of that - as narrated in some of these narrations - that belongs
to the exception mentioned above and which is beyond the general reg-
ulation and is a special manifestation of the grace and mercy of Allah
Ta'ala.
In the two verses the Tafsir of which you have just read through,
sinners were warned against the disgrace on the plain of Resurrection
and the Divine punishment that would come in its wake. Then comes
the third verse which mentions the blessings of Allah Ta'ala and pur-
suades people to accept truth and act accordingly by suggesting that
Allah has bestowed on them full ownership and control on the earth
and has opened thousands of avenues of comfort for them. It is as if
the Master of the Universe has made this whole earth and what it con-
tains a giant warehouse of human needs and comforts, a most compre-
hensive inventory of that inside it. Now, what is left for human beings
to do is to learn to go in there, take out what they need and use it how
they will. Science and technology are essentially no more than a
trained method of taking out things created by the Master of the Uni-
verse and stored in this warehouse, properly and nicely, and use it
soundly and beneficially. One who is short on sense and manners and
does not know how to take things out from this warehouse, or does not
understand how to use what he has taken out, he remains deprived of
their benefits. An intelligent person benefits from both.
In short, Allah Ta'ala has placed all that human beings need on
and in this earth which demands that they should be grateful to Him
all the time under all conditions. But, human beings are prone to
heedlessness. They would not take much time to forget the favours of
their Creator and Master - only to return to the same world of things.
So, at the end of the verse, it is in a mode of complaint that it was said:
giải ú Sự (Little you are receptive to advice).
Verses 11- 18
وَلَقَدْ خَلَقْتُكُمْ ثُمَّ صََرْنُكُمْ ثُمَّ قُلْنَا لِلْمَلَئِكَةِ اسْجُدُوا لِأَدَمَنْ

548
Surah Al-A'raf : 7 : 11 - 18
فَسَجَدُوا إِلَّ إِبْلِيْسَ+ لَمْ يَكُنُ مِنَ السُّجِدِينَ ﴿١١﴾ قَالَ
مَا مَنَعَكَ أَلَّ تَسْجُدَ إِذْ أَمَرْتُكَ ، قَالَ أَنَا خَيْرٌ مِنْهُ خَلَقْتَنِىٌ مِنْ
تَّارٍ وَخَلَقْتَهُ مِنْ طِيْنٍ ﴿١٢﴾ قَالَ فَاهُبِطُ مِنْهَا فَمَا يَكُونُ لَكَ
أَنْ تَتَكَبََّ فِيُهَا فَاخْرُج ◌ِنَّكَ مِنَ الصُّغِرِينَ ﴿١٣﴾ قَالَ أَنْظِرُفِّ
إِلَى يَوْمٍ يُبْعَثُونَ ﴿١٤﴾ قَالَ إِنَّكَ مِنَ الْظَرِينَ ﴿١٥﴾ قَالَ فَبِمَاً
أَغْوَبُتَنِىْ لَاَ فْعُدَنَّ لَهُمُ صِرَاطَكَّ الْمُسْتَقِيْمَ ﴿١٦) ثُمَّ لَأْتِبَنَّهُمْ
◌ِنْ بَيْنِ آَيْدِيْهِمْ وَمِنُ خَلْفِهِمْ وَعَنْ آَيْمَانِهِمْ وَعَنُ شَمَائِلِهِمْ﴾
وَلَا تَجِدُ أَكْثَرَهُمُ شُكِرِيْنَ ﴿١٧﴾ قَالَ اخْرُجُ مِنْهَا مَذُّ ◌ُمَّا
مَّدُورًّا لَمَنُ تَبِعَكَ مِنْهُمْ لَ مُلَأَنَّ جَهَنَّمَ مِنْكُمُ اَجْمَعِيْنَ ﴿١٨)
And We created you, then fashioned you, then We said
to the angels, "Prostrate before 'Adam." So, they all
prostrated, except Iblis. He did not join the prostrate.
[11] Allah said, "What stopped you from prostrating
when I ordered you?" He said, "I am better than him.
You have created me of fire, and created him of clay."
[12] He said, "Then, go down from here, it is not for you
to be arrogant here. So, go. You are of the low." [13]
He said, "Then give me respite until a day when all will
be resurrected." [14] He (Allah) said, "Respite is given to
you." [15] He said, "Then as You have made me go
astray, I swear that I will sit for them (in ambush) on
Your straight path. [16] Then I will come upon them
from in front of them and from behind them and from
their right and from their left. And you will not find
most of them grateful. [17]
He (Allah) said, "Get out of here, condemned, rejected.
Indeed, those of them who follow you, I will fill Hell
with you all together. [18]
Commentary
The event relating to Sayyidna 'Adam WJI Le and the Shaytan has
appeared earlier in Section four of Surah Al-Baqarah (Ma'ariful-
Qur'an, English Translation, volume I, page 170, under verse 34). Some

549
Surah Al-A'raf : 7 : 11 - 18
aspects of the subject have been covered in comments given there. An-
swers to some others are being given here.
How Long was the Respite given to Iblis?
It was exactly at the time Iblis was under the wrath of Allah, he
made a prayer, a strange prayer indeed. He asked for a lease of life un-
til the day of Resurrection. The words in which Allah Ta'ala answered
the prayer, as they appear in this verse, are no more than: amiga!
(Respite is given to you). From these words, given the nature of the
question and the answer, it can be understood that this respite was
given until the Resurrection as asked by him. But, what is not stated
in this verse clearly is whether the giving of respite mentioned here is
until the Resurrection as asked by Iblis, or is for some other duration.
But, in another verse, the words: إلى يَوْمِ الْوَقُتِ المُعْلُوم (Till the day of the ap-
pointed time - 15:38) appear at this place which, on the surface, seem to
suggest that the respite till the day of Qiyamah as asked by Iblis was
not given. Instead, given to him was a respite till a particular time
which is preserved in Divine knowledge. The outcome is that the
prayer of Iblis was answered - though not completely. He was given
respite till a particular time and not till the day of Resurrection or
Qiyamah.
Reported in Tafsir Ibn Jarir is a narration from Suddiy which sup-
ports this view. The exact words of the report are:
فلم ينظره الى يوم البعث ولكن انظره الى يوم الوقت المعلوم وهو يوم ينفخ
فى الصور النفخة الأولى فصعق من فى السموت ومن فى الأرض فمات،
Allah Ta'ala did not give respite to Iblis till the day of Resur-
rection, instead, He has given him respite till a day the time
of which is appointed and that is the day when the Horn will
be blown the first time and whoever there is in the heavens or
the earth shall be stunned, and dead.
In summation, we can say that the Shaytan had actually asked for
a respite in his prayer till the time when the second Horn will be
blown and all the dead will be resurrected. This is what is called: s.
cuJi (Yowm al-Ba'th). If this prayer was answered as asked, it would
have meant that Iblis was to be alive as based on his prayer while the
facts on the ground would have been different: That would be a time