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

Tafsir of Surah Al-Insan

Some scholars said: It is entirely Makki. Al-Naqqash and Al-Thalabi narrated from Mujahid and Qatadah that it is Madani. Al-Hasan and Ikrimah said: There is a Makki verse in it, which is His saying, the Exalted: ﴿And do not obey from them a sinner or a disbeliever﴾ [Al-Insan: 24]. The rest is Madani. It was revealed regarding the act of Ali ibn Abi Talib, may Allah be pleased with him, in feeding a poor person one night, then an orphan one night, and then a captive on a third night, consecutively. It is also said that it was revealed regarding the act of Ibn Al-Dahdah, may Allah be pleased with him, and Allah, the Exalted, knows best.

His saying, the Exalted:

﴿Has there come upon man a period of time when he was not a thing mentioned﴾ ﴿Indeed, We created man from a mixed drop to test him; and We made him hearing and seeing﴾ ﴿Indeed, We guided him to the path, whether grateful or ungrateful﴾ ﴿Indeed, We have prepared for the disbelievers chains and shackles and a blaze﴾ ﴿Indeed, the righteous will drink from a cup whose mixture is of Kafur﴾ ﴿A spring from which the servants of Allah will drink; they will cause it to gush forth﴾

The word "

, " in the speech of the Arabs can come with the meaning of "

:" as Sibawayh mentioned. However, it does not lack a confirmation. Its common use is for pure questioning, and confirmation sometimes. Ibn Abbas said: Here it means "

," and "

:" refers to Adam, peace be upon him. The "

," is the duration he remained as clay before the soul was blown into him. This means that he was a thing and was not mentioned in the world, and in a state of pure non-existence before he was anything or mentioned. Most of the interpreters said: "

:" is a confirmation, and "

," is the name of the genus, meaning: if every person reflects upon himself, he will know that there was a significant period of time in which he was not a thing mentioned, meaning he was not existent. The existent can be called a thing, so he is mentioned in this way. The "

:" here refers to an unlimited duration of time that applies to both little and much. However, it is necessary to specify the time in oaths. So, whoever swears that he will not speak to his brother for a time, some scholars said that the time is a year, while others said it is six months. The strong opinion in this is that "

," is the name of the genus, and that the verse is made as a lesson for everyone among the people to know that the Creator is capable of bringing him back.

His saying, the Exalted: ﴿Indeed, We created man﴾, here refers to the name of the genus without dispute, for Adam, peace be upon him, was not created from a drop. "

:" means mixtures, and its singular is "

," with the opening of the mim and sheen, as said by Ibn Al-Sikkit and others. It is said that "

:" is like "

," and "

:" is like "

," and "

:" is like "

," and "

:" is like "

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And there was a difference regarding the intended meaning of "the mixture." It was said: it is the mingling of the man's water with the woman's water. Al-Tabari narrated a hadith, -and it is also in some compilations- "Indeed, the bones of the son of Adam and a portion from the man's water, and his flesh and fat from the woman's water." And it was said: it is the mixing of the matter of the fetus in its transition from the sperm to the clinging substance to the chewed lump and so forth. So it is a mixed matter. And it was said: it is the mixing of blood, phlegm, black bile, and yellow bile in it. And "We will test him" means: we will examine him by bringing him into existence and being in this world. It is a state from the pronoun in "We created," as if He said: testing him by that.

And His saying, the Exalted, "So We made him" is a conjunction of a sentence of blessings upon a sentence of blessings. Some grammarians said: the meaning is that "We will test him, so We made him hearing and seeing." Then the wording was arranged in a delayed, intertwined manner as if He said: "We test him, and for that reason We made him." And the test -according to this interpretation- is by hearing and seeing, not by bringing into existence, and "We will test him" is not a state.

And His saying, the Exalted, "Indeed, We have guided him to the way" may imply the general way for both the believer and the disbeliever. This is through the creation of the senses, the bestowal of innate disposition, and the establishment of the craft that indicates the Creator. And "We guided him" -in this sense- means: We directed him, just as a person is guided to the path and shown it. It may also imply the name of the genus, meaning: He guided the believer to his faith and the disbeliever to his disbelief. So "We guided him" -in this sense- is as if it means: We merely showed him, and guidance in this verse does not mean creating guidance and faith. And His saying, the Exalted, "Either grateful or ungrateful" are two states, and "Either" divides them. Abu Amr al-Dani said: (p-487) and Abu al-Aj' read: "Either grateful or ungrateful," and Abu al-Aj' is Kuthayr ibn Abdullah al-Silmi, a Syrian, who was appointed to Basra by Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik.

And "We have prepared" means: We have made ready for him. Nafi', al-Kisai, and Abu Bakr from Asim read: "chains" in the accusative. This is according to what al-Akhfash narrated from the language of those who decline everything that is not declined except for 'af'al,' and it is the language of the poets. Then it became prevalent until it was used in their speech. And he justified it with a reason, which is that when this type of plural gathers for the likeness of singulars, it was declined. And that is from the likeness of singulars found in their saying: "companions and female companions," and in the saying of the poet:

........... the eyes are dazzled

with the 'ya' indicating the plural of "dazzled." And this treatment in "chains" and "glasses" was confirmed in the mushaf of Ibn (p-488) Mas'ud and the mushaf of Ubayy ibn Ka'b and the mushaf of Medina and Mecca and Kufa and Basra. And Ibn Kathir, Abu Amr, and Hamzah read: "chains" without declension in stopping and connecting, and this is the reading of Talhah and Amr ibn Ubayd. And Abu Amr and Hamzah -in what was narrated from them- read: "chains" in connection and "chains" with an 'alif' without tanween in stopping, and it was narrated by Hisham from Ibn Amir; because the Arabs say: "I saw Amr," they stop with an 'alif.' Also, stopping with the 'alif' "chains" follows the script of the mushaf.

'The righteous' is the plural of 'bar', like 'witness' and 'witnesses'. Al-Hasan said: They are those who do not harm even the smallest creature and do not accept evil. 'The cup' is that which contains wine or something similar that is drunk with. Ibn Kaysan said: 'Cup' is only said for that which contains wine or something similar. 'A female traveler' is only said if there is a woman on it. 'A table spread' is only said if there is food on it, otherwise it is 'a tray'. 'The mixture' is that with which wines and similar things are mixed. It is also a mixture for it because they mixed in a mixture. Some people said: The mixture is the essence of camphor. Qatadah said: A people are mixed with camphor and sealed with musk. Al-Farra said: It is said that in Paradise there is a spring called camphor. Some of the interpreters said: What is meant is camphor in taste and fragrance, as you say when you praise food: This food is musk. And His saying, 'a spring' is said to be a substitute for His saying, 'camphor'. It is also said that it is an object of His saying, 'they drink', meaning they drink the water of this spring from a fragrant cup like camphor. It is also said that 'a spring' is in the accusative for praise or by implying 'I mean'. And His saying, 'they drink with it' is like saying 'they drink it'; thus the 'with' is extra. Al-Hudhali said: They drank with the water of the sea, meaning: They drank the water of the sea. Ibn Abi Abla read: 'The servants of Allah drink it.' And 'the servants of Allah' here is a specification for the believing, comfortable ones, because all creation are His servants. 'And they cause it to gush forth' means: they split it with a piece of cane or something similar wherever they wish, so it flows for each one of them. Thus has the report come. Al-Thaalabi said: It is said that there is a spring in the house of the Prophet, blessings and peace be upon him, that gushes forth to the houses of the prophets, peace be upon them, and the houses of the believers. And this is a good saying.