(p-122) "Or" He likened them in hearing the Qur'an, which contains the ambiguous, the warning, and the promise, as "like a rainstorm." That is, the companions of the rainstorm, meaning a great rain. Al-Harali said: It is a raining cloud that pours down. Then he followed it up to confirm that the intended meaning is the truth of His saying: "From the sky." It is as Al-Harali said, what is above the head. This is its origin, and the intended meaning here is known. The Qur'an has likened this to the continuity of its revelation, its elevation, and its reviving of hearts, just as the rainstorm revives the earth. Then he informed about its condition by saying: "In it are darknesses." That is, due to the density of the clouds and their darkness. "And thunder," meaning a terrifying sound that frightens upon hearing it. "And lightning," meaning a dazzling light due to its brightness and speed, as Al-Harali said. The darknesses are a metaphor for what they do not understand, and the thunder is what calls out to them with disgrace and threats. The lightning is what hints to them its meaning and enters into them a notion of its desirability. (p-123) And when the parable of the Qur'an was completed, He began to inform about the condition of those who are represented and those who are represented by it, truly and metaphorically, saying: "They put their fingers" that is, some of them, and if they could, they would stuff all of them due to their intense fear, "in their ears from the thunderclaps." That is, because of its power, for its horror nearly deafens. Al-Harali said: It is the plural of thunderclap, which is the sound that kills its hearer or nearly does so. Then he explained this by saying: "Fearing death, and Allah" that is, while the situation is that He encompasses everything with power and knowledge. "Encompassing the disbelievers," so their fear does not avail them against His decree. He revealed the place of the concealment for their turning away from the Qur'an and their covering of its lights.