Tafsir of Surah Ya-Sin - Verse 42

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.

No wonder if the Qur'an is alluding to the aeroplane!

But, it is obvious that the Qur'an has not specifically named a camel or some other particular mode of conveyance at this place. This includes every such means of transportation that carries people and their baggage, accompanied or unaccompanied, right up to their desired destination. In our time, the invention of aeroplanes has made it amply clear that aeroplanes are the greatest substantiation of the Qur'anic statement: مِّن مِّثْلِهِ (mim-mithlihi: things similar to it). Then, its similarity with boat or ship is strongly supportive of it, because the way the ship of the sea sails on the surface of the water, and the mass of water does not make it drown, similarly, the airplane sails or flies over the bed of air and it does not throw it down. No wonder if the Qur'an may have left the statement: مِّن مِّثْلِهِ مَا يَرْ‌كَبُونَ (mim-mithlihi ma yarkabun: things similar to it that they ride) ambiguous, so that all modes of conveyance and transportation that continue to be invented right through the last Day of Qiyamah get to be included therein. And Allah knows best.

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.