Tafsir of Surah Ash-Shura - Verse 29

Among the Signs of Allah is the Creation of the Heavens and the Earth

وَمِنْ ءَايَـتِهِ

(And among His Ayat) the signs which point to His great might and power,

خَلْقُ السَّمَـوَتِ وَالاٌّرْضِ وَمَا بَثَّ فِيهِمَا

(is the creation of the heavens and the earth, and whatever moving creatures He has dispersed in them both.) means, whatever He has created in them, i.e., in the heavens and the earth.

مِن دَآبَّةٍ

(and whatever moving creatures) this includes the angels, men, Jinn and all the animals with their different shapes, colors, languages, natures, kinds and types. He has distributed them throughout the various regions of the heavens and earth.

وَهُوَ

(And He) means, yet despite all that,

عَلَى جَمْعِهِمْ إِذَا يَشَآءُ قَدِيرٌ

(is Able to assemble them whenever He wills.) means, on the Day of Resurrection, He will gather the first and the last of them, and bring all His creatures together in one place where they will all hear the voice of the caller and all of them will be seen clearly; then He will judge between them with justice and truth.

The Cause of Misfortune is Sin

وَمَآ أَصَـبَكُمْ مِّن مُّصِيبَةٍ فَبِمَا كَسَبَتْ أَيْدِيكُمْ

(And whatever of misfortune befalls you, it is because of what your hands have earned.) means, `whatever disasters happen to you, O mankind, are because of sins that you have committed in the past.'

وَيَعْفُواْ عَن كَثِيرٍ

(And He pardons much.) means, of sins; `He does not punish you for them, rather He forgives you.'

وَلَوْ يُؤَاخِذُ اللَّهُ النَّاسَ بِمَا كَسَبُواْ مَا تَرَكَ عَلَى ظَهْرِهَا مِن دَآبَّةٍ

(And if Allah were to punish men for that which they earned, He would not leave a moving creature on the surface of the earth) (35:45). According to a Sahih Hadith:

«وَالَّذِي نَفْسِي بِيَدِهِ مَا يُصِيبُ الْمُؤْمِنَ مِنْ نَصَبٍ وَلَا وَصَبٍ وَلَا هَمَ وَلَا حَزَنٍ إِلَّا كَفَّرَ اللهُ عَنْهُ بِهَا مِنْ خَطَايَاهُ، حَتْى الشَّوْكَةِ يُشَاكُهَا»

(By the One in Whose Hand is my soul, no believer is stricken with fatigue, exhaustion, worry or grief, but Allah will forgive him for some of his sins thereby -- even a thorn which pricks him.) Imam Ahmad recorded that Mu`awiyah bin Abi Sufyan, may Allah be pleased with him, said, "I heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ say:

«مَا مِنْ شَيْءٍ يُصِيبُ الْمُؤْمِنَ فِي جَسَدِهِ يُؤْذِيهِ إِلَّا كَفَّرَ اللهُ تَعَالَى عَنْهُ بِهِ مِنْ سَيِّئَاتِه»

(No physical harm befalls a believer, but Allah will expiate for some of his sins because of it.)" Imam Ahmad also recorded that `A'ishah, may Allah be pleased with her, said, "The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:

«إِذَا كَثُرَتْ ذُنُوبُ الْعَبْدِ وَلَمْ يَكُنْ لَهُ مَا يُكَفِّرُهَا، ابْتَلَاهُ اللهُ تَعَالَى بِالْحَزَنِ لِيُكَفِّرَهَا»

(If a person commits many sins and has nothing that will expiate for them, Allah will test him with some grief that will expiate for them.)"

وَمَا بَثَّ فِيهِمَا مِن (and the creatures He has spread in them - 29). The original lexical meaning of دَابَّةٍ ` dabbah' (used in the text and translated as ` creatures' ) is anything which moves about of its own will; later on this word began to be used for animals. This verse states that Allah Almighty has created many creatures which move about on the earth as well as in the sky. The creatures which move about on the earth are all too visible; the ones which move about in the sky could well be the angels as well, and it is quite possible that there may be some animals in the sky so far unknown to man.

Briefly, in view of the system of the universe, Allah Almighty has not provided every one with wealth and goods in abundance, rather He has distributed them in accordance with the dictates of wisdom. But the good things of universe which are of general benefit have been provided to everyone. Rain, clouds, earth, sky and the creatures therein have all been created for the benefit of human beings, and they all demonstrate the Oneness of Allah. If after all this, anyone suffers any hardship, he should consider it to be due to his own deeds, and he should do a little heart searching, instead of complaining against Allah Ta’ ala.

We observe that when a farmer scatters seeds, he also has the power to reap the harvest therefrom. This observation is indicative of the fact that God too can marshall all His dispersed creations and gather them in His Court where the future of humanity will be collectively decided. For the Creator for whom it was possible to create and spread His creations far and wide, why should it be impossible to collect and re-assemble them after death?