سورة : AtTakwir

The human being does not have an independent will, his will is subject to Allah’s (swt) will. The servant does not will unless Allah (swt) wills him to have a will. That is why Allah’s description as –Lord of the worlds- came after it. If a person to contemplate his life, he will find that he has a free will in some matters and does not in others; that which are out of his control, such as breathing, day and night times…, Hence, the free will does exist when there are alternations that the mind comprehends.

So, the human being is not absolutely free, nor absolutely restricted. Meaning, the absolute power is for Allah (swt), not for the human beings. Allah (swt) is the One Who restricts the human’s will in regards of the out-of-control and the non-subjected to accountability issues. The assignment is the choosing of matters that are in the range of: Do and do not do, such as prayer, alms giving, Hajj and fasting …. When the matter is not in the restriction range, then I have a free will to do it or not to do.

Allah (swt) clarifies that the will is two wills, if He (swt) wills, he would have made you incapable of choosing anything or He (swt) would have made you like the angels, who do not disobey Allah’s (swt) commands and do whatever they are commanded, but, Allah (swt) made you suitable to do and not to do. This is from the deep will of Allah (swt), hence, you did not move out of His will. So, let no one say: “I chose despite the will of Allah (swt)”, because you can never do anything albeit Allah’s (swt) will. So let no one say: Allah (swt) willed me not to be a believer, this is unacceptable words since Allah (swt) has willed to give you a free will to take decisions in regard what is subjected to accountability, which are do and do not do, this is lawful and this is forbidden, this is permissible and that is not, this is straight and that is wrong. Thus, the religion is manners, values, righteousness, as the Prophet (saws) explained when he was asked about virtue and sin:

((Virtue is noble behaviour, and sin is what rankles in your heart and you do not like people to know about it.”[1]

Accordingly, man’s behaviours are reflected through his accepting and applying of Allah’s commands.

This is the cornerstone of faith, when choosing between the alternatives; to choose between belief in Allah (swt) and disbelief. This is the Trust of choosing, the religion is the most important Trust. Allah (swt) says:

   ﴾إِنَّا عَرَضْنَا الْأَمَانَةَ عَلَى السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ وَالْجِبَالِ فَأَبَيْنَ أَن يَحْمِلْنَهَا وَأَشْفَقْنَ مِنْهَا وَحَمَلَهَا الْإِنسَانُ ۖ إِنَّهُ كَانَ ظَلُومًا جَهُولً ﴿

(Indeed, we offered the Trust to the heavens and the earth and the mountains, and they declined to bear it and feared it; but man [undertook to] bear it. Indeed, he was unjust and ignorant.)
(A-Ahzab: 72)

This Trust is the assignment Trust, choosing Trust. The mind is the one which decides, so let no one says that: Islam has spread by force. It could not be spread by force because the cornerstone of accountability is the mind. Hence, Islam had spread by excellent pattern, not by the force. The excellent pattern is the symbol that the mind, logic, thought and knowledge accept him. At the beginning of the Arabic and Islamic civilization, the power was with Muslims, so if anyone to say that they spread Islam by force , we say to him: Force has gone and Islam remains, if what you say was true, then Islam would have ended with the power that spread it, but, Islam entered the hearts and minds of people by people’s will.

[1] Sahih Muslim, The Book of virtues, Good manners and Joining of the ties of Relationship, hadith No. 2553

No one will benefit from this reminder unless to be a seeker for straightness, the religion is but the straightness.

Abi Ali As-Surry said: “I saw the Prophet (saws), so I said to him: O’ Messenger of Allah, it is narrated that you said: “I have gone gray” He (saws) said: “Yes”. I said: What has made you gone gray? Is it the stories of the Prophets and the nations’ destruction? He (saws) said: “No, but Allah’s saying: (So remain on a right course as you have been commanded”[1] (Hud: 112)

Thus, straightness is to bear the consequences of following the reminder. That is why the Holy Qur’an unified that course and made straightness the path and the aim. However, people’s preparation for that and accepting it has a special will. About this Allah (swt) says in this verse: (For whoever wills among you to take a right course. (28)).

It is not by force rather by choice. It is a method presented to hearts and minds, if it meets purity and willingness, then, it enters the heart, and the mind is convinced with it, otherwise, it does not.

[1] Shuab Al-Iman, chapter of Surah Hud, hadith No. 2439

إِنْ هُوَ (It is): The Holy Qur’an. It is a reminder for all mankind.

 ذِكْرٌ (a reminder): Points out to the instinct of faith of upon which Allah (swt) has created all people; because the reminder means there is something you used to have but you forgot it so that someone came to remind you of it. That is because, originally, all humans received Allah’s (swt) method through Adam (pbuh).

After Allah (swt) has affirmed the source of revelation, He (swt) showed them the recommendations that save them and limited the paths of suspicion, saying: There is no way except Allah’s (swt) method; your Creator and Lord, and there is no way to reach this method except by believing in Muhammad (saws) who received it by Jibril (pbuh), so do not try to change it, where are you heading? Here Allah (swt) blocked all the paths leading to purposes of those who tried to raise doubts about the revelation.

The answer to this verse is only by one: No path except this one. Allah (swt) does not decide this matter using the order method, rather, by using the affirmative interrogative method so that the answer is a claim against them.

Allah (swt) disclaimed this suspicion from Jibril (pbuh); because some people were saying that before the Prophet’s (saws) mission, the devils were used to sit therein in heavens for hearing, then telling news to their sponsors from human devils.

بِضَنِينٍ (a withholder): The Arabic word has another reading: بِظَنِينٍ :

بِظَنِينٍ : As long as Muhammad (saws) is your companion, so you know him and know his honesty and integrity. And as long as the character of insanity is disclaimed from him, then he is not to be accused, consequently, the matter of revelation is not a suspicion nor a soul-talk, as some people slandered him.

بِضَنِينٍ : He is not stingy with teaching what Allah (swt) has taught him, and he is not suspected of hiding any of Allah’s (swt) method that Allah (swt) commanded him to announce.

This verse indicates the true meeting between the Prophet (saws) and the angel Jibril (pbuh). He (saws) saw him in reality, although Jibril (pbuh) is unseen and the nature of humans is incapable of seeing him. But Allah (swt) made the Prophet (saws) see Jibril (pbuh) so that he knows that he is in front of another power with an independent being and shape, once in the trip of Israa and Mi’raj at the Sidrat Al-Muntaha, and another time on the earth at the first revelation. Allah (swt) says:

  ﴾ وَلَقَدْ رَآهُ نَزْلَةً أُخْرَىٰ % عِندَ سِدْرَةِ الْمُنتَهَ ﴿

(And he certainly saw him in another descent % At the Lote Tree of the Utmost Boundary-) (An-Najm: 12-13)

Thus, Allah (swt) willed to show Jibril (pbuh) to the Prophet (saws) with his real image to prove to him (saws) that the revelation is not an illusion, or a self-talk, neither thoughts of obsessions.

Companionship indicates familiarity and nearness, so we do not need to identify it.

Here Allah (swt) is talking about the significant one of the angels, that is Jibril (phuh), who came to the chosen one of people, who is the Prophet (saws).

Being described by (secure in position) denies all characteristics of defects, so is there any trustworthiness more than this!

He has a high rank and estimate at Allah (swt). This is according to Allah’s (swt) measures not ours.

The noble messenger is the angel Jibril (pbuh). Being noble indicates that he loves the duties he was charged with, otherwise, he could not have tolerated the burden.

The Holy Qur’an is Allah’s (swt) words, but its revelation event passed through many stages, from the highest source Who is Allah (swt) to the keeper of revelation that is Jibril (pbuh), then to the Prophet Muhammad (saws). So that, there are three stages for the revelation of Holy Qur’an. Here the speech is related to Jibril (pbuh), who revealed the Holy Qur’an to the Prophet (saws).

(Breaths) means come with shine and light.

As if the night conceals the breaths so the morning comes and brings them back and refreshes them. This is a true phenomenon; there are a lot of carbon monoxide gas at night and a lot of Oxygen in the air during the day, this is a result of photosynthesis in plants.

Verify, when Islam came there was darkness of ignorance, the dawn came with the light of Islam and its guidance that filled the hearts through the Prophet’s (saws) mission, hence, with his method, humanity breaths the dawn.

عَسْعَسَ (closes in): The Arabic word has two opposite meanings. It means comes and goes with its darkness slowly slowly.

The similar Arabic word عَسْ means to walk in darkness unguided, as if someone put out his hand to feel things because he does not see.

They are the stars that come out at night, they run from place to another, so that you see them but suddenly disappear, while in fact they still there.

الْكُنَّسِ (run and disappear): This Arabic word is derived from الكنَّاش which is the house of a dear or wild bull, built in the bark of a tree to shade him from the sun heat.

The scholars said that (I do not swear) means (I swear). The proof of this is the answer that will come later: ([That] indeed, the Qur’an is a word [conveyed by] a noble messenger)

Hence, the meaning is: I do not need to swear and if I were to swear I would swear by the retreating running stars that travel in the sky, which sometimes run and sometimes disappear.

This is the answer of the previous twelve conditional statements.

When all the previous things happen, each soul will know what it has done whether good or bad.

The sky is stripped away, same as a sheep when it is slaughtered and its skin is removed of it.

People’s records of their deeds since their birth till their death, will be made public to all people on that Day.