Salaam and welcome to another episode of our weekly series titled “Path towards Enlightenment” which is an endeavour to make you and us familiar with an easy and fluent explanation of God’s Final Scripture to all mankind, the holy Qur’an that was revealed to the Last and Greatest of all Messengers, Prophet Mohammad (blessings of God upon him and his progeny).

As you know, currently we are explaining “Surah Rahman, which is considered the crown of the Holy Qur’an since it opens with the word “Ar-Rahman” or the “All-Beneficent”, thus proclaiming one of the most beautiful attributes of the Almighty Creator. This Surah highlights the All-Merciful Lord’s wonders of creation, describes the end of the material world, and paints an evocative picture of the delights of Paradise. Hell is briefly contrasted in Ayah 43 with the joys that await the righteous. The refrain فبای آلاء ربکما تکذبان     which means “So which of your Lord’s bounties will you both (mankind and jinn) deny?” runs throughout the Surah.

We continue from where we left you last week and here are Ayahs 26, 27, 28, 29, and 30 of the said Surah:

“Everyone on it (that is, the earth) is ephemeral;

“Yet lasting is the Essence of your Lord, Majestic and Munificent.

“So which of your Lord’s bounties will you both deny?

“Everyone in the heavens and the earth entreats Him; every moment He is in a state of glory.

“So which of your Lord’s bounties will you both deny?”

If you might recall, in our explanation of the previous Ayahs of this Surah last Friday we said mankind and jinn are both creatures of this planet, but formed out of different material substances – the former from earth and water, and the latter from fire and wind. Thus both are accountable for their beliefs and deeds in view of the gifts of the intellect, speech, and freewill given to them in order to determine reward or punishment. We also referred to the wondrous description of the sky, the celestial bodies, and the nature of the earth, including the seasonal cycle, the differing duration of days and nights, and the varying degrees of heat and cold throughout the year, as well as bodies of sweet and salty waters – all of which enable life to flourish on Planet Earth. This orderly functioning of the universe is based on a precise plan determined by the Almighty Creator, Who has granted us the power of the brain and the physical strength, which among other things enable us to build huge ships and other fascinating means of travel and transportation – on land, sea, and in the air.  

The Ayahs that we recited to you now are a reference to the ephemeral or transient nature of the mortal world despite its wondrous blessings, and only the Divine Essence of the One and Only Creator of the universe, is Eternal. Thus, we ought to seize the opportunity to do good in order to earn durable rewards in afterlife, rather than lead a life of sin, disbelief, indulgence in material things, and immersion in passing pleasures – all of which entail unending misery and horrible punishment.

In other words, this transience, including our short life, ought to make us strive for opening a window of perpetual bliss, or a tunnel and path leading to the immortal abode of everlastingness. Ayah 27 mentions the Arabic word “wajh” which literally denotes face or countenance, but since it is applied here to God Almighty, Who is far glorious to have any form, shape, or place, it means His Pure Essence, which is Majestic and Munificent.

Ayah 29 refers to both the verbal or non-verbal expressions of human beings and all other creatures, who always beseech God in their own particular ways for mercy, forgiveness, and removal of disappointment, desperation, neglect, vanity, and etc. He the Almighty creates something anew every moment in the vast universe, according to His Wisdom and the perfect order of things. So how can we deny the bounties and blessings of our All-Merciful Lord!

From these Ayahs we learn the following points:

1. Death and destruction awaits all, and every created thing is perishable, so we should always strive for good deeds, instead of disobeying the Creator.
2. Only the Almighty Creator is Immortal and we should rely on Him alone.
3. The entire creation manifests Divine Majesty and Munificence and functions in the most orderly manner.

Let us now listen to Ayahs 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, and 36 of Surah Rahmān:

“We shall soon attend to your records, o you notable two (species of creatures)!

“So which of your Lord’s bounties will you both deny?

“O company of jinn and humans! If you can pass through the zones of the heavens and the earth, then do pass through, but you will not pass through except by an authority (from Allah).

“So which of your Lord’s bounties will you both deny?

“There will be unleashed upon you a flash of fire and a smoke; then you will not be able to help one another.

“So which of your Lord’s bounties will you both deny?”

Ayah 31 says attention shall be paid to the records of all blessings for the human beings and the jinn, who are being called here “thaqalaan” or two weighty entities, since they possess intellect, speech, free choice, and distinction, and are superior to all other creatures. Thus, these two species are warned against denial of Divine bounties.

Ayah 33 poses a challenge to the bid of the jinn and the human beings to penetrate the heights of the heavens and the depths of the earth, saying you will not succeed despite your attempts, unless God grants you the power and permission to do so.

In continuation, Ayah 35 means to warn the jinn and mankind that if any attempt is made in this regard, without cognizance of the Laws of Allah governing the universe, the consequence is failure, disaster and destruction, even if you help each other when confronted with terrible flashes of fire and dense suffocating smoke, from which there is no escape. So do not deny the bounties of the Lord Most High.

These Ayahs teach us that:

1. The powers of the intellect, speech, and freewill given by God Almighty, require responsibility and accountability for all actions; hence all blessings are recorded and the Lord Most High is aware of even the minutest thing.
2. The power of the brain and the strength of the body, coupled with science and technology, should not make mankind and jinn think of conquering outer space and the inner depths of the earth, unless God grants permission.
3. Neither mankind nor the jinn have any immunity against fire, which if unleashed upon them by the angels will destroy them.

Now we invite you to listen to Ayahs 37, 38, 39, and 40 of the same Surah:

“When the sky is split open and turns crimson like tanned leather.

“So which of your Lord’s bounties will you both deny?

“On that Day no question shall be asked of mankind or jinn as to their sins.

“So which of your Lord’s bounties will you both deny?”

These Ayahs refer to the prelude to the Day of Resurrection, saying: the present system governing the earth and the sky shall collapse. Horrendous events will take place as celestial bodies and whole galaxies will veer from their orbits, turning into a flood of molten substances, beyond our imagination, before emergence of a new order of existence. Human beings and jinn will be resurrected and pass through different stations, depending upon their deeds. At some stations they will not be questioned about their sins, since they will have no power to speak, and every part of their body will testify in the Divine Court to the misuse of the respective organs. Thus, as the record of every individual is quite clear and speaks of itself, nothing can be denied.

These Ayahs teach us the following points:

1. The system on the Day of Resurrection will emerge after great upheavals.
2. Committing of sins is tantamount to denial of God’s bounties.
3. The jinn, like mankind, are prone to commit sins, and the record of their deeds will be crystal clear, even if they are not questioned at certain stations.

In conclusion of this week’s episode of Path towards of Enlightenment, here are Ayahs 41, 42, 43, 44, and 45 of Surah Rahmān:

“The guilty will be recognized by their mark;

“So they will be seized by the forelocks and the feet.

“So which your Lord’s bounties will you both deny?

“This is the hell which the guilty would deny!

“They will circuit between it and boiling hot water.

“So which of your Lord’s bounties will you both deny?”

On the Day of Judgement, the faces of the guilty will reflect their deeds. Those who had committed all kinds of sins and disobeyed Divine Command by all their beings, from their hair to their feet, shall be seized by their hair and feet to be cast into Hellfire, since they died in the state of disbelief or did not repent of their sins. In contrast to the smiling and brilliant faces of the virtuous reflecting their faith and good deeds, the faces of disbelievers and unrepentant sinners shall be dark, ugly, and sullen, reflecting their faithlessness and evil deeds.

Ayah 42, which is a warning to mankind and the jinn, repeats the rhetorical question: “So which of your Lord’s bounties will you both deny?”

Ayahs 43 and 44 depict the terrible fate of the people of hell. The disbelievers and unrepentant sinners will be told by the angels that this is Hell of which the Prophets had warned you but you denied and belied it out of arrogance, vanity, enmity, and ignorance. Those cast into hell will move between the blazing fire and boiling water.

Ayah 45 is again a serious warning against denial of Divine bounties that leads to hell:

From these Ayahs we learn that:

1. Those who deny the Day of Resurrection, as well as paradise and hell, will be thrown in a humiliating manner into the eternal inferno.
2. Committing of sins and denial of the Day of Resurrection are two sides of the same coin, that is, one sets the ground for the other.

RM/AS/SS