Tafsir of Surah Al-Waqi'ah - Verse 46

Those on the Left and Their Recompense

After Allah mentioned the condition of those on the right hand, He then mentioned the condition of those on the left hand,

وَأَصْحَـبُ الشِّمَالِ مَآ أَصْحَـبُ الشِّمَالِ

(And those on the left How will be those on the left) meaning, `What is the condition of those on the left,' then explains His statement, by saying,

فِى سَمُومٍ

(in Samum,) means, a fierce hot wind,

وَحَمِيمٍ

(and Hamim.) i.e., boiling water,

وَظِلٍّ مِّن يَحْمُومٍ

(And a shadow from Yahmum,) the shadow of smoke, according to Ibn `Abbas, Mujahid, `Ikrimah, Abu Salih, Qatadah, As-Suddi and others. In a similar statement, Allah said,

انطَلِقُواْ إِلَى مَا كُنتُمْ بِهِ تُكَذِّبُونَ - انطَلِقُواْ إِلَى ظِلٍّ ذِى ثَلَـثِ شُعَبٍ - لاَّ ظَلِيلٍ وَلاَ يُغْنِى مِنَ اللَّهَبِ - إِنَّهَا تَرْمِى بِشَرَرٍ كَالْقَصْرِ - كَأَنَّهُ جِمَـلَةٌ صُفْرٌ وَيْلٌ يَوْمَئِذٍ لِّلْمُكَذِّبِينَ

("Depart you to that which you used to deny! Depart you to a shadow in three columns, neither shady nor of any use against the fierce flame of the Fire. " Verily, it throws sparks like fortresses, as if they were yellow camels or bundles of ropes. Woe that Day to the deniers.)(77:29-34). Allah said in this Ayah,

وَظِلٍّ مِّن يَحْمُومٍ

(And a shadow from Yahmum,) meaning, black smoke,

لاَّ بَارِدٍ وَلاَ كَرِيمٍ

(Neither Barid nor Karim,) means, it neither brings soft, cool breeze nor appears clear. Al-Hasan and Qatadah commented on Allah's statement,

وَلاَ كَرِيمٍ

(nor Karim) "Its sight is not pleasant." Ad-Dahhak said, "Every drink that is not fresh, is not Karim (pleasant). Then, Allah the Exalted stated that they deserve this end,

إِنَّهُمْ كَانُواْ قَبْلَ ذَلِكَ مُتْرَفِينَ

(Verily, before that, they indulged in luxury,) meaning, in the life of the world, they were enjoying life's pleasures and satisfying their lusts, all the while ignoring what the Messengers brought to them,

وَكَانُواْ يُصِرُّونَ

(And were persisting), means, they persisted and did not intend to repent,

عَلَى الْحِنثِ الْعَظِيمِ

(in great sin.) in disbelief in Allah and claiming that the idols and rivals were gods besides Allah. It means idolatry, according to Ibn `Abbas. This is also the meaning reported from Mujahid, `Ikrimah, Ad-Dahhak, Qatadah, As-Suddi and others. Allah said,

وَكَانُواْ يِقُولُونَ أَءِذَا مِتْنَا وَكُنَّا تُرَاباً وَعِظَـماً أَءِنَّا لَمَبْعُوثُونَ أَوَ ءَابَآؤُنَا الاٌّوَّلُونَ

(And they used to say: "When we die and become dust and bones, shall we then indeed be resurrected And also our forefathers") They said this while denying and rejecting the idea that resurrection will ever occur. Allah the Exalted said,

قُلْ إِنَّ الاٌّوَّلِينَ وَالاٌّخِرِينَ - لَمَجْمُوعُونَ إِلَى مِيقَـتِ يَوْمٍ مَّعْلُومٍ

(Say: "(Yes) verily, those of old, and those of later times. All will surely be gathered together for appointed meeting of a known Day.") meaning, `Say, O Muhammad, that the earlier and latter generations of the Children of Adam will be gathered for the Day of Resurrection and none of them will be left out. Allah the Exalted said:

إِنَّ فِى ذلِكَ لآيَةً لِّمَنْ خَافَ عَذَابَ الاٌّخِرَةِ ذلِكَ يَوْمٌ مَّجْمُوعٌ لَّهُ النَّاسُ وَذَلِكَ يَوْمٌ مَّشْهُودٌ - وَمَا نُؤَخِّرُهُ إِلاَّ لاًّجَلٍ مَّعْدُودٍ - يَوْمَ يَأْتِ لاَ تَكَلَّمُ نَفْسٌ إِلاَّ بِإِذْنِهِ فَمِنْهُمْ شَقِىٌّ وَسَعِيدٌ

(That is a Day whereon mankind will be gathered together, and that is a Day when all will be present. And We delay it only for a term fixed. On the Day when it comes, no person shall speak except by His leave. Some among them will be wretched and (others) blessed.)(11:103-105) He also said here,

لَمَجْمُوعُونَ إِلَى مِيقَـتِ يَوْمٍ مَّعْلُومٍ

(All will surely be gathered together for appointed meeting of a known Day.) because that time is precisely designated and will not come late, early, nor increase or decrease. Allah said,

ثُمَّ إِنَّكُمْ أَيُّهَا الضَّآلُّونَ الْمُكَذِّبُونَ - لاّكِلُونَ مِن شَجَرٍ مِّن زَقُّومٍ - فَمَالِـُونَ مِنْهَا الْبُطُونَ

(Then verily, --- you the erring-ones, the deniers! You verily, will eat of the trees of Zaqqum. Then you will fill your bellies therewith.) indicating that they will be seized and made to eat from the Zaqqum tree until their stomachs become full,

فَشَـرِبُونَ عَلَيْهِ مِنَ الْحَمِيمِ - فَشَـرِبُونَ شُرْبَ الْهِيمِ

(And drink the Hamim on top of it. And you will drink (that) like Al-Him!) Hamim is boiling water, while Al-Him means thirsty camels, according to Ibn `Abbas, Mujahid, Sa`id bin Jubayr and `Ikrimah. As-Suddi said "Al-Him is a disease that strikes camels, causing them to feel thirst, and they drink until they die." Therefore, he said, the people of Hell, will never quench their thirst from drinking Hamim. Allah, the Exalted, said,

هَـذَا نُزُلُهُمْ يَوْمَ الدِّينِ

(That will be their entertainment on the Day of Recompense!) `this, what We have described, is their entertainment with their Lord on the Day of their Reckoning.' Allah the Exalted said in the case of the believers,

إِنَّ الَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ وَعَمِلُواْ الصَّـلِحَاتِ كَانَتْ لَهُمْ جَنَّـتُ الْفِرْدَوْسِ نُزُلاً

(Verily, those who believe and do righteous good deeds, shall have the Gardens of Al-Firdaws (Paradise) for their entertainment.)(18:107), i.e., hospitality and honor.

ثُلَّةٌ مِّنَ الْأَوَّلِينَ وَثُلَّةٌ مِّنَ الْآخِرِ‌ينَ (many from the earlier generations, and many from the later ones....56:39-40) In connection with sabiqun, (the Foremost) two views of the commentators were quoted earlier as to the identity of 'the earlier' and the 'later' generations. If 'the earlier' refers to the generations from 'Adam (علیہ السلام) to the period just prior to the advent of the Holy Prophet ﷺ and 'the later generations' refers to the 'Ummah of the Holy Prophet ﷺ till the Day of Judgment, as some of the commentators have opined, then the verses would mean: 'the People of the Right' will constitute a 'large party' of believers and the righteous from all the previous communities combined together, while there will be a 'large party' from the Ummah of the Holy Prophet ﷺ alone. In this case, it is a great honor for the Ummah of the Holy Prophet ﷺ that, despite the short period they lived in this world, they could be compared to all the previous communities who were headed by hundreds of thousands of Prophets (علیہم السلام) . Besides, the words 'many from the later generations' has the scope of being larger in number than the 'many from the earlier generations'.

If we go by the second view of the commentators, who say that both 'earlier' and 'later' generations are from the ummah of the Holy Prophet ﷺ ، then even the later generations of this ummah will not be totally deprived of 'the Foremost', though their number in later generations will be less. As for the People of the Right, their number will be large in both 'earlier' and 'later' generations. This fact is proved by a Hadith reported by Bukhari and Muslim from Sayyidna Mu` awiyah ؓ in which the Holy Prophet ﷺ has said, 'A group of my 'Ummah will always remain on the truth and dominant, unharmed by those who fail to support them and those who defy them, until the Last Hour begins.'.

The birth of a human being from the womb of his mother, the growing of crops from the earth, the falling of rain, the availability of fire from fuel—all these things come directly from God. They should be treated as gifts of God and not as the results of human effort. Man should be grateful to God for all the blessings He has showered upon him.