Tafsir as-Saadi (تيسير الكريم الرحمن في تفسير كلام المنان) — Page 1016

Line-by-line translation · المعاني

سَحَابٌ ظُلُمَاتٌ بَعْضُهَا فَوْقَ بَعْضٍ إِذَا أَخْرَجَ يَدَهُ لَمْ يَكَدْ يَرَاهَا وَمَنْ لَمْ يَجْعَلِ اللَّهُ لَهُ نُورًا فَمَا لَهُ مِنْ نُورٍ.

(from previous page) ⟵ And those who disbelieve - their deeds are like a mirage in a lowland which the thirsty one deems to be water until, when he comes to it, he finds it nothing and finds Allah before Him, and He will pay him in full his due; and Allah is swift in account. Or [their deeds are] like layers of darkness in a vast deep sea, covered by waves, upon which are waves, upon which are clouds - layers of darkness, some above others. When one puts out his hand, he can hardly see it. And for he to whom Allah has not granted light - there is no light for him.

هَذَانِ مَثَلَانِ ضَرَبَهُمَا اللَّهُ لِأَعْمَالِ الْكُفَّارِ فِي بُطْلَانِهَا وَذَهَابِهَا سُدًى وَتَحَسُّرِ عَامِلِيهَا مِنْهَا فَقَالَ: {وَالَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا بِرَبِّهِمْ وَكَذَّبُوا رُسُلَهُ أَعْمَالُهُمْ كَسَرَابٍ بِقِيعَةٍ} أَيْ بِقَاعٍ، لَا شَجَرٌ فِيهِ وَلَا نَبْتٌ.

These are two parables Allah has set forth regarding the deeds of the disbelievers: their invalidity, their futility, and the regret of those who perform them. He says, {Those who disbelieved in their Lord, their deeds are like a mirage in a plain}, meaning a flat expanse devoid of trees or vegetation.

{يَحْسَبُهُ الظَّمْآنُ مَاءً} شَدِيدُ الْعَطَشِ، الَّذِي يَتَوَهَّمُ مَا لَا يَتَوَهَّمُ غَيْرُهُ بِسَبَبِ مَا مَعَهُ مِنَ الْعَطَشِ، وَهَذَا حُسْبَانٌ بَاطِلٌ، فَيَقْصِدُهُ لِيُزِيلَ ظَمَأَهُ، {حَتَّى إِذَا جَاءَهُ لَمْ يَجِدْهُ شَيْئًا} فَنَدِمَ نَدَمًا شَدِيدًا، وَازْدَادَ مَا بِهِ مِنَ الظَّمَأِ بِسَبَبِ انْقِطَاعِ رَجَائِهِ، كَذَلِكَ أَعْمَالُ الْكُفَّارِ بِمَنْزِلَةِ السَّرَابِ تُرَى وَيَظُنُّهَا الْجَاهِلُ الَّذِي لَا يَدْرِي الْأُمُورَ، أَعْمَالًا نَافِعَةً فَيَغُرُّهُ صُورَتُهَا، وَيَخْلُبُهُ خَيَالُهَا وَيَحْسَبُهَا هُوَ أَيْضًا أَعْمَالًا نَافِعَةً لِهَوَاهُ، وَهُوَ أَيْضًا مُحْتَاجٌ إِلَيْهَا بَلْ مُضْطَرٌّ إِلَيْهَا كَاحْتِيَاجِ الظَّمْآنِ لِلْمَاءِ، حَتَّى إِذْ قَدِمَ عَلَى أَعْمَالِهِ يَوْمَ الْجَزَاءِ، وَجَدَهَا ضَائِعَةً، وَلَمْ يَجِدْهَا شَيْئًا، وَالْحَالُ إِنَّهُ لَمْ يَذْهَبْ لَا لَهُ وَلَا عَلَيْهِ بَلْ {وَجَدَ اللَّهَ عِنْدَهُ فَوَفَّاهُ حِسَابَهُ} لَمْ يَخْفَ عَلَيْهِ مِنْ عَمَلِهِ نَقِيرٌ وَلَا قِطْمِيرٌ، وَلَنْ يَعْدَمَ مِنْهُ قَلِيلًا وَلَا كَثِيرًا، وَاللَّهُ سَرِيعُ الْحِسَابِ فَلَا يَسْتَبْطِئُ الْجَاهِلُونَ ذَلِكَ الْوَعْدَ، فَإِنَّهُ لَا بُدَّ مِنْ إِتْيَانِهِ، وَمَثَّلَهَا اللَّهُ بِالسَّرَابِ الَّذِي بِقِيعَةٍ أَيْ: لَا شَجَرٌ فِيهِ وَلَا نَبَاتٌ وَهَذَا مِثَالٌ لِقُلُوبِهِمْ، لَا خَيْرَ فِيهَا وَلَا بِرَّ، فَتَزْكُو فِيهَا الْأَعْمَالُ وَذَلِكَ لِلسَّبَبِ الْمَانِعِ، وَهُوَ الْكُفْرُ.

{The thirsty one thinks it is water}, referring to someone suffering from intense thirst, who imagines what others do not because of his desperate need. This is a false expectation; he heads toward it to quench his thirst, {until when he comes to it, he finds it to be nothing}. He feels profound regret, and his thirst worsens as his hope is cut off. Similarly, the deeds of the disbelievers are like a mirage. An ignorant person who lacks understanding sees them and assumes they are beneficial, deceived by their appearance and beguiled by their illusion. He considers them useful for his desires, feeling a need—or rather, a compulsion—for them, much like the thirsty man needs water. Yet, when he arrives at his deeds on the Day of Recompense, he finds them lost, amounting to nothing. It is not that they simply vanished; rather, {he found Allah with him, and He paid him his account in full}. Nothing of his deeds escaped Him, not a speck or a date-stone skin, and he will not be deprived of any of it, whether little or much. Allah is swift in reckoning, so let not the ignorant think that promise is slow; it must come to pass. Allah likened these deeds to a mirage in a plain—a place with no trees or plants—as a parable for their hearts, which contain no goodness or righteousness for deeds to flourish, all due to the barrier of disbelief.

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Vocabulary · المفردات (42 verbs · 102 nouns)

• أَخْرَجَ — to bring out
• كَادَ — to be on the verge of
• رَأَى — to see
• سَحَابٌ — cloud
• ظُلْمَة — darkness
• بَعْض — part