'In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful' His saying, the Exalted and Majestic: "Say, 'Shall I inform you of better than that? For those who fear [Allah] are gardens in the presence of their Lord, beneath which rivers flow, abiding therein eternally, and purified spouses, and [the pleasure] of Allah. And Allah is Seeing of the servants.'" In this verse, there is consolation regarding the world and strengthening for the souls of those who abandon it. He, the Exalted, mentioned the state of the world and how the adornment of its desires has settled. Then the news of better than that came, shaking the souls and gathering them to hear this surprising news, which is beneficial for those who understand. And 'I inform' means 'I tell'. A group of people went to the opinion that the speech which the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, was commanded to say is completed in His saying, the Exalted: 'in the presence of their Lord.' And 'gardens' in this context is elevated by the implied beginning, its estimation being: 'those are gardens'; while others went to the opinion that the speech is completed in His saying: 'than that of you' and that His saying 'for those who' is a preceding news, and 'gardens' is raised by the beginning. And according to the first interpretation, it is permissible for 'gardens' to be in the genitive case as an alternative to 'better', and this is not permissible according to the second interpretation. Both interpretations are possible. And His saying: 'beneath which' means 'beneath its trees', and its elevation is from the chambers and the like. 'And abiding' is in the accusative case as an adverbial phrase. And His saying: 'and spouses' is an addition to the gardens, and it is the plural of 'spouse', which is a woman of a man, and it may be said 'wife', but it has not come in the Qur'an. And 'purified' means from what is known in this world of impurities, doubts, and everything that tarnishes in creation and character. It is possible that the spouses refer to types and likenesses. And 'the pleasure' is a source from 'pleasure'. In the hadith about the Prophet, peace be upon him: "When the people of Paradise settle therein and each one of them receives what no eye has seen, nor ear has heard, nor has it occurred to the heart of a human; Allah will say to them: 'Do you want me to give you something better than this?' They will say: 'O our Lord, and what is better than this?' Allah, the Exalted, will say: 'I bestow upon you My pleasure, and I will never be angry with you again.'" This is the context of the hadith, and it may come with different wording, but the meaning is close to one another. And in His saying, the Exalted: "And Allah is Seeing of the servants" is a promise and a warning.