'In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful'

'Tafsir of Surah Al-Adiyat'

It is Makki according to a group of scholars, and Al-Mahdawi said about Anas ibn Malik: it is Madani.

His saying, exalted is He:

﴿And the racing horses, panting﴾ ﴿And those that produce sparks﴾ ﴿And those that charge at dawn﴾ ﴿And raise dust with it﴾ ﴿And penetrate into the gathering﴾ ﴿Indeed, mankind is ungrateful to his Lord﴾ ﴿And indeed, he is a witness over that﴾ ﴿And indeed, he is ardent in the love of good﴾ ﴿Does he not know when what is in the graves is turned up﴾ ﴿And what is in the breasts is obtained﴾ ﴿Indeed, their Lord, on that Day, is All-Aware of them."

People have differed regarding the meaning of 'the racing horses'. Ibn Abbas, Qatadah, Mujahid, and Ikrimah said: it refers to horses because they race with the riders and pant with their sounds. Some of them said: the reason for it is that 'the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, sent horses to Banu Kinana on a raid, and its matter was delayed for him until some of the hypocrites spread rumors, so the verse was revealed' indicating that his horses, blessings and peace be upon him, did all that is mentioned in the verses. Others said: the oath is by the horses in general because they race, panting, both ancient and modern, and they are the conquerors of lands and destroyers of kingdoms, and in their forelocks is goodness until the Day of Resurrection. Ali ibn Abi Talib, may Allah be pleased with him, and Ibn Mas'ud, Ibrahim, and Ubaid ibn Umair said: the racing horses in this verse are camels because they pant in their racing. Ali said: and the oath is by the camels that race from Arafat and from Muzdalifah when the pilgrim departs, and by the camels of the Battle of Badr, for there were no more than two horses in the battle, the horse of Al-Miqdad and the horse of Al-Zubair.

'Adbah' is a loud sound during intense racing, not the neighing, barking, or yapping, but it is an unusual sound of the animal that pants. It has been reported from Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with them both, that nothing pants from the animals except horses and dogs, and this, in my view, is not correct from Ibn Abbas. (p-673) This is because camels do pant, and lions, from the snakes, owls, echoes, rabbits, foxes, and horses, all of these have been used by the Arabs to describe 'adbah'. Abu Hanifah recited in the description of a bow:

'An affectionate one from a scent or a gathering, it pants in the hand like the panting of a fox.'

And it appears in the verse that the oath is by the horses or by the camels or by both.

His saying, exalted is He: "So the ones who create sparks," Ali ibn Abi Talib and Ibn Mas'ud, may Allah be pleased with them, said: It refers to the camels, because when they run, they strike the stones with their hooves, causing sparks to fly from them, and that is the spark. Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, said: It refers to the horses, because of their hooves on the stones, and that is well known. Ikrimah said: The ones who create sparks refer to the tongues, and this is metaphorical, meaning that they, by their statements, create arguments and reveal them. Mujahid said: The ones who create sparks refers to the cunning of men. Qatadah said: The ones who create sparks are the horses that ignite war, and this is also a clear metaphor. Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, and a group of scholars said: The speech is general and includes every one who appears with his spark of fire, and this is common among nations throughout time. It is a great benefit from Allah, exalted is He, and He has alluded to it in His saying, glorified and exalted is He: "Have you seen the fire that you ignite?" [Al-Waqi'a: 71], and its meaning is: You reveal it by the spark. 'Adi ibn Zayd said:

So we sparked our fire and ignited above a germ of the earth a fire.

His saying, exalted is He: "So they spread in the morning," Ali ibn Abi Talib and Ibn Mas'ud, may Allah be pleased with them, said: It refers to the camels from Muzdalifah to Mina, or at Badr. The Arabs say: "I raid" when they attack in war, and similar. Ibn Abbas and many others said: It refers to the horses, and the term is from the raid in the path of Allah and otherwise from the movement of nations. The custom of raids is that they occur in the morning because they travel the night of the raid.

And "the dust": is the bright dust that is stirred up. Abu Haywah read: "So they stirred up" with a heavy thaa. The pronoun in "by it" is clear that it refers to the morning mentioned, and it is possible that it refers to the place and location that the meaning requires, even if it has not been explicitly mentioned. There are many examples of this, and the famous "stirring up of the dust" is for the horses, and from it is the saying of the poet:

They emerge from the gaps of the dust, bleeding, ∗∗∗ as if their ears are the tips of pens.

Ali ibn Abi Talib, may Allah be pleased with him, said: Here it refers to the camels stirring up the dust with their hooves.

And His saying, exalted is He: "So they were in the midst of a gathering," Ali ibn Abi Talib, may Allah be pleased with him, and Ibn Mas'ud, may Allah be pleased with him, said: It refers to the camels, and "gathering" is Muzdalifah. Ibn Abbas and a group said: It refers to the horses, and the intended gathering is of the people who are being attacked. Ali, Ibn Mas'ud, and Qatadah read: "So they spread" with a heavy seen. Bishr ibn Abi Khazim said:

So they spread their gathering and a brow escaped ∗∗∗ beneath the dust in the dark dust.

And Al-Tabari mentioned from Zayd ibn Aslam that he disliked interpreting these terms and said: It is an oath by which Allah, exalted is He, swore, and the majority of scholars and the community interpret it as we have mentioned.

The oath is based on His saying, the Most High: "Indeed, man is ungrateful to his Lord." It has been narrated from the Messenger of Allah, blessings and peace be upon him, that he said: "Do you know what the ungrateful (kanud) is?" They said: No, O Messenger of Allah. He said: "The ungrateful is the one who eats alone, prevents his sustenance, and strikes his servant." It may also be that among the believers there is the one who is ungrateful for the blessings. Thus, the meaning of the verse is: Indeed, man is ungrateful for the blessings of his Lord. And "a land that is ungrateful (kanud)" does not produce anything. Al-Hasan ibn Abi al-Hasan said: The ungrateful is the one who blames his Lord, glorified and exalted is He, who counts the bad deeds and forgets the good deeds. The ungrateful is the disobedient in the language of Kindah. It is said that horses are called ungrateful (kanud). Abu Zubayd said:

If you tempt me, I do not feel good about you Except that I hope for a time that is ungrateful (kanud).

Al-Fudayl said: The ungrateful is the one who a single bad deed makes him forget many good deeds. And Allah treats him as if he is in a contract of compensation.

And His saying, the Most High: "And indeed, he is a witness to that" allows for the pronoun to return to Allah, the Most High, as Qatadah said, meaning: And his Lord is a witness against him. The essence of this report necessitates the witness to that. It may also return to man, meaning: His actions, words, and state known from these morals bear witness against him. So he is a witness against himself in that. This is the saying of Al-Hasan and Mujahid.

The pronoun in His saying, the Most High: "And indeed, he is severe in the love of good" returns to man alone, and the meaning is: For the love of good, he is severe, meaning: stingy with wealth, controlling it. From this is the saying of the poet:

I see death taking the noble and lining up The wealth of the extravagant and the severe.

And "good" refers to wealth according to what is known in the Book of Allah, the Most High. Ibn Abbas said: Good, wherever it occurs in the Quran, refers to wealth. It is possible that here he means worldly good, such as wealth, health, and status with kings and the like; because the disbelievers and the ignorant do not know anything other than that. As for the one who loves the good of the Hereafter, he is praised and it is hoped for him success.

And His saying, the Most High: "Does he not know" is a pause on the outcome and the end, meaning: Does he not know his outcome and end so that he prepares for it? And "the scattering of what is in the graves" refers to the uncovering of what is concealed and the searching for it. It is an expression of resurrection. In the Mus'haf of Ibn Mas'ud, it says: "the searching of what is in the graves," and in the reading of Ubayy: "and the graves have scattered." And "the obtaining of what is in the breasts" refers to distinguishing it and revealing it so that the recompense may fall upon him from faith, disbelief, and intention. This is explained by the saying of the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him: "They will be resurrected according to their intentions." And Yahya ibn Ya'mur and Nasr ibn Asim read with the opening of the ha and the sad. Then the truthful report continues with certainty that Allah, the Most High, is All-Aware of them on that day, and He is always All-Aware, but He specified that day because it is the day of recompense, to which the souls aspire. And in this is a clear warning.

The tafsir of "the runners" is complete, and all praise is due to Allah, Lord of the worlds.