Tafsir of Surah Ya-Sin - Verse 41

Among the Signs of Allah is that He carried Them in the laden Ship

Allah tells us: another sign for them of His might and power is that He has subjugated the sea to carry ships, including -- most significantly -- the ship of Nuh , peace be upon him, in which Allah saved him and the believers, apart from whom none of the descendants of Adam were left on the face of the earth. Allah says:

وَءَايَةٌ لَّهُمْ أَنَّا حَمَلْنَا ذُرِّيَّتَهُمْ

(And an Ayah for them is that We bore their offspring) means, their forefathers,

فِى الْفُلْكِ الْمَشْحُونِ

(in the laden ship.) means, in the ship which was filled with luggage and animals, in which Allah commanded him to put two of every kind. Ibn `Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, said, "Laden means filled." This was also the view of Sa`id bin Jubayr, Ash-Sha`bi, Qatadah and As-Suddi. Ad-Dahhak, Qatadah and Ibn Zayd said, "This was the ship of Nuh peace be upon him."

وَخَلَقْنَا لَهُمْ مِّن مِّثْلِهِ مَا يَرْكَبُونَ

(And We have created for them of the like thereunto, on which they ride.) Al-`Awfi said, narrating from Ibn `Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, "This means the camel, for it is the ship of the land on which they carry goods and on which they ride. " Ibn Jarir recorded that Ibn `Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, said, "Do you know what the Ayah:

وَخَلَقْنَا لَهُمْ مِّن مِّثْلِهِ مَا يَرْكَبُونَ

(And We have created for them of the like thereunto, on which they ride.) refers to" We said, "No." He said, "This refers to the ships which were made after the ship of Nuh, peace be upon him, which was similar to it." This was also the view of Abu Malik, Ad-Dahhak, Qatadah, Abu Salih and As-Suddi, that the Ayah

وَخَلَقْنَا لَهُمْ مِّن مِّثْلِهِ مَا يَرْكَبُونَ

(And We have created for them of the like thereunto, on which they ride.) refers to ships.

وَإِن نَّشَأْ نُغْرِقْهُمْ

(And if We will, We shall drown them,) means, those who are on board the ships.

فَلاَ صَرِيخَ لَهُمْ

(and there will be no shout for them) means, there will be no one to save them from their predicament.

وَلاَ هُمْ يُنقَذُونَ

(nor will they be saved. ) means, from what has befallen them.

إِلاَّ رَحْمَةً مِّنَّا

(Unless it be a mercy from Us,) means, `but by Our mercy We make it easy for you to travel on land and sea, and We keep you safe until an appointed time.' Allah says:

وَمَتَاعاً إِلَى حِينٍ

(and as an enjoyment for a while.) meaning, until a time that is known to Allah, may He be glorified and exalted.

In verse 41 and 42, it was said: وَآيَةٌ لَّهُمْ أَنَّا حَمَلْنَا ذُرِّ‌يَّتَهُمْ فِي الْفُلْكِ الْمَشْحُونِ وَخَلَقْنَا لَهُم مِّن مِّثْلِهِ مَا يَرْ‌كَبُونَ (And a sign for them is that We boarded their children at the loaded ship, and created for them things similar to it on which they ride.). Mentioned earlier to these verses were manifestations of Divine power and wisdom in what was created on the earth and in the heavens in that order. In the present verses, Divine power over the sea and its adjuncts has been mentioned. It was said that Allah Ta’ ala has made heavily laden boats and ships capable of sailing on the surface of the waters and reach distant places without getting drowned in route. Then, it was said in the verse that "We boarded their children at the loaded ship" - although, those who embarked the Ark were these very people. Perhaps, children were mentioned for the reason that one's children and family place a great burden of responsibility on parents, particularly when unable to move around. Thus, the sense of the verse is to emphasize that it is not only they who were riding the boat, but there also were young children and aged men and women and their belongings with them. The boat carried both, people and their things. In the verse following immediately (42), it was said: خَلَقْنَا لَهُم مِّن مِّثْلِهِ مَا يَرْ‌كَبُونَ (and created for them things similar to it on which they ride.- 36:42). It means that human beings have not only been provided with boats and ships that serve as rides for themselves and carry their things, but Allah has also created other rides like the boat. From this, people of Arabia have taken it to mean the ride of camels as habitually familiar to them, particularly so, because the camel is a carrier of things. It takes heavy loads across countries, therefore, the Arab called camels: The Boat of the Land.

God has created vast possibilities in this world, so that man may travel by land, sea and air. All these forms of travel are possible due to the grace of God and if man consciously reflected, he would prostrate himself before God and never develop an attitude of arrogance.