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77: Al-Mursalat - المرسلات
Introduction
This Surah belongs to the early Makkan period, somewhere near to Surah 75 (Al Qiyamah). The theme is somewhat similar. It denounces the horrors of the Hereafter, for those who rejected Truth. The refrain, "Ah woe, that day, to the Rejecters of Truth!" which occurs ten times in its fifty verses, or, on an average once in every five verses, indicates the leitmotif.
77:1
[ Original ]
وَالْمُرْسَلَاتِ عُرْفًا
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
By the (Winds) Sent Forth one after another (to man's profit);
Tafseer Commentary
5863 This Surah begins with an appeal to five things, as pointing to the substantive statement in verse 7, that the Day of Justice and Judgement is bound to come, and we must prepare for it. It is difficult to translate, but easy to understand, if we remember that a triple thread of allegory runs through this passage (verses 1-7). The five things or phases, which will be presently considered in detail, refer to (a) Winds in the physical world, (b) Angels in the spiritual world, and (c) Prophets in the human world, connecting it with the spiritual world.
5864 Understanding the reference to Winds, we can see that they are powerful factors in the government of the physical world. (1) They come gently as harbingers of the blessings of rain and fertility ( 15:22,30:48 ); but (2) they can come as violent tornadoes, uprooting and destroying (51:41-42); (3) they can scatter seeds far and wide, and (4) they can separate chaff from grain, or clear the air from epidemics; and (5) they literally carry sound, and therefore Messages, and metaphorically they are instrumental in making Allah's Revelation accessible to hearers, whether by way of justification or repentance for the Penitent, or warning for unrepentant Sinners. All these things point to the power and goodness of Allah, and we are asked to believe that His promise of Mercy and Justice in the Hereafter is indeed true. Cf. this passage with51:1-6 (Al Dhariyat) with which it has many affinities.
77:2
[ Original ]
فَالْعَاصِفَاتِ عَصْفًا
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
Which then blow violently in tempestuous Gusts,
Tafseer Commentary
5865 If we understand the reference to be, not to Winds, but to Angels, they are agencies in the spiritual world, which carry out similar functions, changing and revolutionising the face of the world. (1) They come softly, on beneficent errands of Mercy; (2) they are charged with the mission of punishment and destruction for sin as in the case of the two angels who came to Lut (15:57-66); (3) they distribute Allah's Mercies as the Winds distribute good seeds; (4) they sort out the good from the evil among men; and (5) they are the agency through which Allah's Messages and Revelations are conveyed to the Prophets (see No. 5 in the last note).
77:3
[ Original ]
وَالنَّاشِرَاتِ نَشْرًا
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
And scatter (things) far and wide;
77:4
[ Original ]
فَالْفَارِقَاتِ فَرْقًا
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
Then separate them, one from another,
77:5
[ Original ]
فَالْمُلْقِيَاتِ ذِكْرًا
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
Then spread abroad a Message,
Tafseer Commentary
5866 If we understand the reference to Prophets or Messengers of Allah, or the verses of Revelation which would be particularly appropriate for verses 5-6, we also get a satisfactory solution of the Allegory. (1) The Prophets have followed one another in a series: the verses of the Qur'an came, one after another as needed; in both cases it was for man's spiritual profit; (2) they caused great disturbance in a spiritually decadent world; they pulled down evil institutions root and branch, and substituted new ones; (3) they proclaimed their truths far and wide, without fear and without favour; (4) through them were sorted out men of Faith and rebels against Allah's Law; and (5) they gave a Message, through which just men were justified through repentance, and evil men were warned of their sins. Some Commentators take one or other of these allegories, and some apply one allegory to a few of these verses, and another to another few. In my opinion the Allegory is wide enough to comprehend all the meanings which I have sketched. I wish a translation could do justice to those marvellously terse sentences in the original.
77:6
[ Original ]
عُذْرًا أَوْ نُذْرًا
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
Whether of Justification or of Warning;-
77:7
[ Original ]
إِنَّمَا تُوعَدُونَ لَوَاقِعٌ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
Assuredly, what ye are promised must come to pass.
77:8
[ Original ]
فَإِذَا النُّجُومُ طُمِسَتْ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
Then when the stars become dim;
Tafseer Commentary
5867 The lustre of the stars will become dim; in fact they will disappear: cf. 81:2, and 82:2. The heaven's canopy will be torn asunder: cf. 82:1, and 73:18. The mountains will be uprooted and fly about like dust: cf. 69:14, 81:3, etc. All the old landmarks of the physical world as we know them will be swept away. (R).
77:9
[ Original ]
وَإِذَا السَّمَاءُ فُرِجَتْ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
When the heaven is cleft asunder;
77:10
[ Original ]
وَإِذَا الْجِبَالُ نُسِفَتْ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
When the mountains are scattered (to the winds) as dust;
77:11
[ Original ]
وَإِذَا الرُّسُلُ أُقِّتَتْ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
And when the messengers are (all) appointed a time (to collect);-
Tafseer Commentary
5868 The Resurrection will be established. In the world which will then have passed away, inspired Prophets had been sent in succession at different times to all nations. Now they will be gathered together in one place before the Judgement Seat to bear witness as to the righteous or the evil ones within their respective spheres of work. Cf. 39:69.
77:12
[ Original ]
لِأَيِّ يَوْمٍ أُجِّلَتْ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
For what Day are these (portents) deferred?
77:13
[ Original ]
لِيَوْمِ الْفَصْلِ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
For the Day of Sorting out.
Tafseer Commentary
5869 Cf. 37:21 and n. 4047; also 44:40, and n. 4718- That will be the Day of Judgement or Day of Decision. Good will then be completely separated from Evil. And the men who rejected Truth and flourished on Falsehood will find that in the world of Realities they will be absolutely nowhere. Hence the refrain of this Surah, "Ah woe, that Day, to the Rejecters of Truth!". It sounds like a dirge on Sin.
77:14
[ Original ]
وَمَا أَدْرَاكَ مَا يَوْمُ الْفَصْلِ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
And what will explain to thee what is the Day of Sorting out?
77:15
[ Original ]
وَيْلٌ يَوْمَئِذٍ لِلْمُكَذِّبِينَ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
Ah woe, that Day, to the Rejecters of Truth!
77:16
[ Original ]
أَلَمْ نُهْلِكِ الْأَوَّلِينَ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
Did We not destroy the men of old (for their evil)?
Tafseer Commentary
5870 Allah's Law is always the same. Sin or corruption prepares its own destruction. It was so with the generation of Noah. In Arab tradition it was so with the 'Ad and the Thamud. In our own day we see relics of prehistoric civilisations, in Egypt , Mesopotamia, the Indus Valley , and the Aegean : these were men of wonderful skill and resource, but they went under. If our generations, which pride themselves on their science and skill, desert Allah's Law, they will be certain to meet the same fate.
77:17
[ Original ]
ثُمَّ نُتْبِعُهُمُ الْآخِرِينَ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
So shall We make later (generations) follow them.
77:18
[ Original ]
كَذَٰلِكَ نَفْعَلُ بِالْمُجْرِمِينَ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
Thus do We deal with men of sin.
77:19
[ Original ]
وَيْلٌ يَوْمَئِذٍ لِلْمُكَذِّبِينَ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
Ah woe, that Day, to the Rejecters of Truth!
77:20
[ Original ]
أَلَمْ نَخْلُقْكُمْ مِنْ مَاءٍ مَهِينٍ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
Have We not created you from a fluid (held) despicable?-
Tafseer Commentary
5871 Cf. 32:8, n. 3638. Man is ashamed of the process of physical creation, by which he comes into being. Yet he is arrogant in life and neglectful of the Future.
77:21
[ Original ]
فَجَعَلْنَاهُ فِي قَرَارٍ مَكِينٍ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
The which We placed in a place of rest, firmly fixed,
Tafseer Commentary
5872 See n. 2873 to 23:13. The silent growth in the mother's womb, and the protection and sustenance which the growing life receives from the life of the mother, are themselves wonders of creation.
77:22
[ Original ]
إِلَىٰ قَدَرٍ مَعْلُومٍ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
For a period (of gestation), determined (according to need)?
Tafseer Commentary
5873 The period roughly of nine months and ten days is subject to many adjustments. In fact throughout our prenatal as well as postnatal life there are wonderful and nicely-balanced adjustments of which we are ourselves unconscious. Should we not turn in love and gratitude to Allah our Creator?
77:23
[ Original ]
فَقَدَرْنَا فَنِعْمَ الْقَادِرُونَ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
For We do determine (according to need); for We are the best to determine (things).
Tafseer Commentary
5874 Perhaps th e life in the womb, in relation to the life after birth, is an allegory for our probationary life on earth in relation to the eternal Life to come. Perhaps, also, our state when we are buried in the tomb suggests an allegory to the life in the womb, in relation to the life in the Hereafter.
77:24
[ Original ]
وَيْلٌ يَوْمَئِذٍ لِلْمُكَذِّبِينَ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
Ah woe, that Day! to the Rejecters of Truth!
77:25
[ Original ]
أَلَمْ نَجْعَلِ الْأَرْضَ كِفَاتًا
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
Have We not made the earth (as a place) to draw together.
77:26
[ Original ]
أَحْيَاءً وَأَمْوَاتًا
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
The living and the dead,
Tafseer Commentary
5875 What a wonderful parable! The earth is a place where death and life, decay and growth and decay, green grass, stubble, and fuel, corruption and purification jostle together-one often leading to the other. The drama which we see with our own eyes in this world should enable us to appreciate the wonders in the spiritual world where the despised and rejected receive the highest honour. Lazarus rests in Abraham's bosom, and the Pharaoh is led in chains for his arrogance and his sin.
77:27
[ Original ]
وَجَعَلْنَا فِيهَا رَوَاسِيَ شَامِخَاتٍ وَأَسْقَيْنَاكُمْ مَاءً فُرَاتًا
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
And made therein mountains standing firm, lofty (in stature); and provided for you water sweet (and wholesome)?
Tafseer Commentary
5876 See n. 2038 to 16:15. The solid mountains are frequently referred to: cf. 13:3. The parable here is that the mountains are hard, solid rock, and yet they act as sponges to collect, store up, and filter sweet and wholesome water, which on account of their altitude they are able to distribute by gravity to the lower, dry land by means of rivers or springs. Anyone who has seen the parched Makkan valleys and the delicious springs in the mountains around, or the Zubaydah Canal , which is the main source of Makkah's water supply, will appreciate the aptness of the metaphor, but it applies to any country, though not to so striking a degree. If the wisdom and power of Allah can do such things before your eyes, how can you reject His teaching of a still more wonderful future Life?
77:28
[ Original ]
وَيْلٌ يَوْمَئِذٍ لِلْمُكَذِّبِينَ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
Ah woe, that Day, to the Rejecters of Truth!
77:29
[ Original ]
انْطَلِقُوا إِلَىٰ مَا كُنْتُمْ بِهِ تُكَذِّبُونَ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
(It will be said:) "Depart ye to that which ye used to reject as false!
77:30
[ Original ]
انْطَلِقُوا إِلَىٰ ظِلٍّ ذِي ثَلَاثِ شُعَبٍ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
"Depart ye to a Shadow (of smoke ascending) in three columns,
Tafseer Commentary
5877 The Sinners, instead of reposing in cool shades, will only see the blazing Fire. The only shadow they will see will be that of Smoke, ascending in three columns, right, left, and above, i.e., completely enveloping them. But it will give no comfort or coolness. On the contrary, it will contain huge sparks. (R).
77:31
[ Original ]
لَا ظَلِيلٍ وَلَا يُغْنِي مِنَ اللَّهَبِ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
"(Which yields) no shade of coolness, and is of no use against the fierce Blaze.
77:32
[ Original ]
إِنَّهَا تَرْمِي بِشَرَرٍ كَالْقَصْرِ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
"Indeed it throws about sparks (huge) as Forts,
Tafseer Commentary
5878 Qasr: Fort, big building, palace. An alternative reading is Qasar, plural of Qasrat (run), meaning bundles of wood used for fuel: Ibn 'Abbas reported by Bukhari. I almost prefer this latter reading.
77:33
[ Original ]
كَأَنَّهُ جِمَالَتٌ صُفْرٌ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
"As if there were (a string of) yellow camels (marching swiftly)."
Tafseer Commentary
5879 The yellow sparks flying swiftly one after another suggest a string of camels marching swiftly, such as the Arabs of Najd and central Arabia are so proud of. There is a double allegory. It refers not only to the colour and the rapid succession of sparks, but to the vanity of worldly pride, as much as to say: "your fine yellow camels in which you took such pride in the world are but sparks that fly away and even sting you in the Hereafter!" Smoke with sparks may also assume fantastic shapes like long-necked camels.
77:34
[ Original ]
وَيْلٌ يَوْمَئِذٍ لِلْمُكَذِّبِينَ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
Ah woe, that Day, to the Rejecters of Truth!
77:35
[ Original ]
هَٰذَا يَوْمُ لَا يَنْطِقُونَ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
That will be a Day when they shall not be able to speak.
Tafseer Commentary
5880 They will be dumbfounded; i.e., (when read with the next verse), they will not be in a position to put forward any valid defence or plea. Facts will speak too plainly against them. They might perversely try to deny false worship: 6:23; but their own tongues and limbs will bear witness against them: 24:24. Nor does the fighting out or settling of doctrinal disputes in the Hereafter (39:31) amount to putting forward pleas in defence.
77:36
[ Original ]
وَلَا يُؤْذَنُ لَهُمْ فَيَعْتَذِرُونَ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
Nor will it be open to them to put forth pleas.
77:37
[ Original ]
وَيْلٌ يَوْمَئِذٍ لِلْمُكَذِّبِينَ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
Ah woe, that Day, to the Rejecters of Truth!
77:38
[ Original ]
هَٰذَا يَوْمُ الْفَصْلِ ۖ جَمَعْنَاكُمْ وَالْأَوَّلِينَ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
That will be a Day of Sorting out! We shall gather you together and those before (you)!
Tafseer Commentary
5881 We may suppose this as spoken primarily to the Quraysh who were plotting against the Prophet. You may use all your wisdom and that of your ancestors, but you will not be able to defeat Allah or His Plan. See next verse.
77:39
[ Original ]
فَإِنْ كَانَ لَكُمْ كَيْدٌ فَكِيدُونِ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
Now, if ye have a trick (or plot), use it against Me!
Tafseer Commentary
5882 The plots against the Prophet were plots against Allah's Truth, and therefore against Allah. Can anyone hope to profit by such plots? Can anyone defeat Allah's Plan and Purpose? Let them try. They will only ruin themselves, as the Pagan leaders did. There can only be pity for such men. What will be their state in the Hereafter? "Ah woe, that Day, to the Rejecters of Allah's Truth!"
77:40
[ Original ]
وَيْلٌ يَوْمَئِذٍ لِلْمُكَذِّبِينَ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
Ah woe, that Day, to the Rejecters of Truth!
77:41
[ Original ]
إِنَّ الْمُتَّقِينَ فِي ظِلَالٍ وَعُيُونٍ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
As to the Righteous, they shall be amidst (cool) shades and springs (of water).
Tafseer Commentary
5883 This is in contrast to the triple shade of smoke and sin for the sinners, which neither gives them coolness nor protects them from the Blazing Fire. The Shade, i.e., Covering, of Allah's Good Pleasure, will be the greatest Boon of all, and the Spring of Allah's Love will be inexhaustible. (R).
77:42
[ Original ]
وَفَوَاكِهَ مِمَّا يَشْتَهُونَ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
And (they shall have) fruits,- all they desire.
77:43
[ Original ]
كُلُوا وَاشْرَبُوا هَنِيئًا بِمَا كُنْتُمْ تَعْمَلُونَ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
"Eat ye and drink ye to your heart's content: for that ye worked (Righteousness).
Tafseer Commentary
5885 The fruits of righteousness are contentment in this life and the supreme Bliss in the next.
77:44
[ Original ]
إِنَّا كَذَٰلِكَ نَجْزِي الْمُحْسِنِينَ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
Thus do We certainly reward the Doers of Good.
77:45
[ Original ]
وَيْلٌ يَوْمَئِذٍ لِلْمُكَذِّبِينَ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
Ah woe, that Day, to the Rejecters of Truth!
77:46
[ Original ]
كُلُوا وَتَمَتَّعُوا قَلِيلًا إِنَّكُمْ مُجْرِمُونَ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
(O ye unjust!) Eat ye and enjoy yourselves (but) a little while, for that ye are Sinners.
Tafseer Commentary
5886 "Eat" is symbolical of having the good things of life in this world. It may be that they are only given for a trial. Because their minds and wishes run to wrong things, the opportunities for wrong are multiplied, as the impetus for good or for evil increases progressively. They are to believe and repent. But if they do not, they are to be pitied, even for the good things of this life, for they will come to an evil End in the Hereafter.
77:47
[ Original ]
وَيْلٌ يَوْمَئِذٍ لِلْمُكَذِّبِينَ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
Ah woe, that Day, to the Rejecters of Truth!
77:48
[ Original ]
وَإِذَا قِيلَ لَهُمُ ارْكَعُوا لَا يَرْكَعُونَ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
And when it is said to them, "Prostrate yourselves!" they do not so.
Tafseer Commentary
5887 Prostration is a symbol of humility and a desire to get nearer to Allah by Prayer and a good life. Those who refuse to adopt this Path are to be pitied: how will they fare at Judgement?
77:49
[ Original ]
وَيْلٌ يَوْمَئِذٍ لِلْمُكَذِّبِينَ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
Ah woe, that Day, to the Rejecters of Truth!
77:50
[ Original ]
فَبِأَيِّ حَدِيثٍ بَعْدَهُ يُؤْمِنُونَ
[ Abdullah Yusuf Ali ]
Then what Message, after that, will they believe in?
Tafseer Commentary
5888 That may refer to verse 48: they were given plain and clear Guidance, and they refused to accept it: after that what kind of Message will they accept? The Guidance referred to is obviously that of Islam or the Qur'an.
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