Interpretation of Fortress 91 (The Sun)
After the Almighty reminded us of the heavens and the earth, to appreciate His favor toward us, He reminded us of ourselves. He says:
Verse no. 7
7. “Behold the spirit and how He formed it to perfection;”
To acquaint you with the spirit, we say:
Humans are composed of three elements: a spirit, a soul and a body.
In Arabic, the word “spirit” means a thing which has magnificent value and rank, which lead to people competing for it.
Accordingly, the spirit is the most valuable element of our composition.
In some detail we say:
The spirit is the feeling identity of humanity and is settled in the chest. Its rays spread to all the other parts of the body through the nerves. This spirit, confined in the body, recognizes the things that surround it through the senses. It sees with the eye, hears with the ear, smells with the nose, feels and touches with the skin and tastes flavors with the tongue, which is also used to express thoughts and ideas.
Here are some examples: if one stands at the seashore, watching the sea he will undoubtedly make this person revere and glorify the scene before them. This submission and glorification is sensed by the “spirit”.
If we see someone dear to us whose hand is bleeding because it is badly wounded, we will feel sorry because of this situation and will sympathise with them. This pain and grief we feel are those of the “spirit”.
If we hear that one of our dear relatives has returned safely from a long journey, we feel pleased and happy.
This pleasure and happiness are related to the “spirit”.
Thus, the spirit is the essential element of humanity. It glorifies and submits, grieves and becomes annoyed, delighted and rejoiced, feels contented and angry, and it tastes, enjoys and suffers.
It is the center of existence.
The “spirit” is what is addressed in the Qur’an, and is charged to follow the straight path. It is the element which feels pain during treatment in order to be cured, or which enjoys staying in Paradise, wishing never to be removed from.
The body consists of flesh, nerves, bones and blood. It is the garment of the spirit and its vessel.
As for the soul, whose ray comes from God into the body, it is the moving power that sends life into the body, so that the body can fulfill the demands of the spirit.
That is but a little of what we understand by the word “spirit”.
“And how He formed it to perfection!”: This statement refers to the perfect situation upon which the spirit has been created.
The words “how He formed” draw our attention to that Grand Might and Wise Hand which set such preparation in place for the spirit, and created this body for it upon such perfect form and wonderful composition.
The eye see, the ear hears, the tongue tastes and speaks, and the nose smells: all of these appendages help the spirit to recognize the things around it.
The stomach digests food, and the liver secretes bile, stores the proteins and sugar, and then releases them in appropriate amounts as necessary.
The kidney filters the blood, the heart regulates its circulation, and the lungs control respiration. The red blood cells are like workers: they take up the noxious gases from the body and throw them into the lungs, and then return carrying oxygen, which is a necessary gas for combustion and for life.
The white blood cells are stationed in their positions like soldiers garrisoned in castles. They fight microbes and excrete poisons to kill them, in addition to carrying out other functions.
If you begin to think of the body in this way, you will perceive an amazing constitution and a marvelous creation.
We mention this only briefly, for to explain it would take a long time. Each of these organs would need long pages dedicated to explaining and detailing its components and functions in full.
I wonder who has connected these members with one another! Who has made them all work without pause, so as to ensure subsistence for humanity?
Who has made you, human, in such circumstances, and who has furnished you with such a consummate appearance?
Who has given the spirit the senses by which it recognizes the things that surround it?
Who has supplied the spirit with its faculties of thinking, remembering, imagining and understanding?
Who has endowed it with the mind by which it can distinguish between vice and virtue, and between what is useful and what is harmful?
Who has instilled instincts in it, and given it natural responses of fear, happiness, joy, sadness, satisfaction and anger?
Who has given it feelings of pleasure and pain?
Who has brought the spirit from nonexistence into existence and made it the noblest and the highest of creatures, even though it started out as nothing worth mentioning?
Is it not fitting for you, human, to study and contemplate all of this, so that you may recognize the Wise Hand which made you and the Great Power which created you and brought you into this state of existence?
Having reminded us of the signs which we see in this universe, and having acquainted us with our spirits, the Almighty tells us that He did not create us in vain; nor did He leave us knowing nothing: rather, He has shown us the way that leads to happiness and success, and has informed us of what will lead to our benefit and righteousness. He says:
Verse no. 8
1. “And inspired it with knowledge of its immorality and its piety.”
“Inspiration” is acquainting the spirit with something through God. You say, “Allah inspired me with the way” or “He inspired me with the answer.”
”Immorality” refers to the acts that produce evil and bring out damage and corruption.
“Piety” in Arabic is ‘taqwa’ which is derived from the verb ‘ittaqa’, meaning, to avoid, or to evade. This word is used when one is carrying out an action that makes them avoid harm that would otherwise have been caused by something, keeping them safe from its damage. For example, if the rays of the sun became very hot and we held up an umbrella or parasol to protect ourselves from this heat, we would call such an action ‘taqwa’. Also, if we wanted to come down from the roof and we went down a ladder, we would call such act ‘taqwa’, for we would have protected ourselves from the damage that would have befallen us if we had thrown ourselves directly down to the ground. ‘Taqwa’ is also used in a metaphorical sense in the context of a person leading their spirit to become illuminated by God’s Light, which then will allow it to witness the evil hidden behind disobedience. This will help such a person to avoid falling into wrongful actions by helping their spirit to view the goodness that is hidden behind obedience and good deeds. Such a person will become careful not to neglect carrying out righteous actions. According to this meaning, the word ‘taqwa’ in Arabic translates into “piety” in English. Accordingly we say: When Allah the Almighty created the human spirit, He granted it yearning and taste. Through this, God completed His Grace and perfected His Favor and Charity towards humanity.
Without yearning, people would not taste any delight, know any gift or find any pleasure in this life. Without yearning, a person would be made of stone.
This yearning can be obtained in one of two ways: a harmful and damaging way, that brings misery upon its follower and corruption upon the whole of human society, or a useful and advantageous way, which draws happiness and pleasure on its follower and utility and goodness upon society.
For further explanation, we give an example:
Suppose that a man sees a fruitful cactus tree and he feels that he has an appetite for one of its fruits and his spirit inclines towards it. In order to fulfill his desire, he has to choose one of two options:
Firstly, he can get the fruit in the right way – that is, to pick it using the leather gloves that are designed for that purpose, and then to wash it, pare it and put it into his mouth. By using this way, he will be delighted with this fruit and will enjoy its taste. In addition, the way in which he obtains and eats it will be totally removed from any feelings of pain or any damage.
His second option is to stretch out his hand like an unthinking child and pluck the fruit without using a glove, and then to put it into his mouth without peeling it. In this case, his enjoyment will be mixed with pain, as his momentary pleasure will be followed by the continuous prickle of the spines of the fruit, hurting his fingers, hands, and lips. He is certain to suffer his share of pain due to his hastiness and imprudence, as punishment for his nonobservance of the right way when fulfilling his desire.
So it is with money:
People gain money either by following a straight path – for example, by engaging in a high profession and practicing it honestly and faithfully, until it brings them money – or by following mean and devious ways, such as embezzlement, stealing, cheating, or deceit. All of the latter entail harm for him and corruption for all society.
This applies also to the yearning for women or for men, for the aspiration to prestige and authority, for the taste for food and drink, and many other desires. All of these can be obtained in one of two ways. One is useful and wholesome, and the other is harmful and deadly.
However, when Allah created the spirits, He did not leave them helpless or ignorant of the way that would lead to what is good and pleasurable for them. He colored them with the stain of righteousness and virtue and gave them a perfect nature.
Through this, they can recognize truth and virtue and know the straight path which leads them safely to their desires, helping them to avoid any harm or misery along the way. They are able to perceive the evil way that leads to wantonness and vice.
That is what we can understand from the Verse: “And inspired it with knowledge of its immorality and its piety.”
In fact, all humanity has the ability to discern the truth from the untruth, and to distinguish between virtue and vice. There is nobody who does not have that inner moral court through which they can judge the actions carried out by them and by others. According to the goodness or the evil that they notice in particular actions, they add them either to the group of virtuous deeds or to the group of evil and mean ones.
The noble Hadith denotes: “The licit is plain, and the illicit is plain.” [9]
In another Hadith, the Prophet (cpth) says: “And consult your heart, even if the tempted one gave you a legal opinion several times.” [10]
Another Hadith reads: “What is wrong is what arises in your chest and which you do not like people to know.” [11]
Thus, this lofty disposition with which Allah has obliged humanity is what gives them the ability to distinguish between good and evil, truth and untruth, and vice and virtue; therefore they can judge their conduct in every deed at the first blush.
For example, you can see that the dishonest salesperson has a palpitating heart as they sell their wares. They hide their dishonesty from people for fear that they may discover it. On the contrary, you see that an honest counselor has a peaceful heart and is free from any worry. This is because the former is aware of their deviation from the right path – or you could say, their immorality – while the latter is aware of their high conduct – that is to say, their piety and avoidance of anything which would cause harm and damage to people.
After the Almighty has revealed some Verses to us at the beginning of this Fortress, indicating His magnificence and great Favor, and having demonstrated to us that He has acquainted the spirit with what causes it to stray from the straight path and what leads it to piety and what is good, He sent us the following Verse in order to inform us that the attainment of goodness can be achieved only by cleansing the spirit and purification. He says:
Verse no. 9
9. “Successful are these who purify it.”
“To succeed” in Arabic is ‘aflaha’ which means ‘to cultivate’; that is to say, to attain something good having sought it, and to achieve happiness having rendered good deeds in its pursuit. For example, you can say that the commander succeeded in repelling the enemy, the workers succeeded in removing the rock, or the farmer succeeded in his farming, and such like.
“To purify” means to cleanse the spirit of evil and defects.
Purifying the spirit is accomplished only by the right communication; that is, through the spirit’s link with God and its nearness to Him.
If a person turns their spirit towards their Provider, the Godly Light will flow into it, penetrating every one with its atoms.
Through this Light, wickedness will be wiped out and abject desires will disappear; thus the spirit becomes without vice and obedient to God. At that time, humanity will seek only high things and incline only to virtue.
If a person directs their spirit towards Allah from their earliest years, they will ensure that it is protected and sinless, and that no malice or evil will ever be produced therein. They will then achieve pure growth, unmixed with illness or disobedience.
On the other hand, if humanity forgets their Provider and turns away from Him, then it returns to Him in repentance and draws near to Him, their spirits will regain their purity and reacquire their good disposition. God says: “Say: ‘My Provider has enjoined justice. Make your directions straight (towards Him) whenever you prostrate and call on Him with true devotion. As He first created you, you shall return’.”
The Holy Qur’an,
Fortress 7, Al-A’raf (The Heights), Verse 29
To use an example, in such a case the spirit is like a room that you have built and have made windows and doors for, so as to let the light of the sun’s rays enter. As long as you expose the room to this light, it will remain pure of putrefaction and clean of germs. However, if you deprive it of light and the rays of the sun, microbes and rot will grow therein. If you then re-expose it to the sun, it will become pure and clean once again.
Similarly, as long as a person continues to enter into the Presence of their Provider, they will remain pure and inerrant. The more they enter into their Provider’s Presence, the more pure and chaste they will be.
Thus, the Almighty did not create one person good and another evil, but granted all people the same good disposition, but nearness to or distance from God is what creates the distinction between them. The more a person is close to God, the more pure they are, and the more pious a person is, the more immaculate they are.
It is thus clear that anyone who purifies the spirit will succeed. That is to say, they will gain happiness, and all of their acts will bring them more blessings. They will only perform noble and virtuous deeds, and all of their actions will be useful. They will be lucky all throughout their lifetime.
Verse no. 10
10. “And unsuccessful are those who corrupt it!”
To be “unsuccessful” means disappointment and failure in achieving the desired aim.
The word “corrupt” has the opposite meaning to the word ‘purifies’.
Malice will be generated in the spirit of anyone who shuns Allah. It will whisper evil and vice to them. If they draw far from God and corrupt themselves – that is, if they immerse their spirit in vice and allow it to commit bad actions – failure and loss of all that is good will be the consequence.
Such people think that deceit creates benefits for them, but the fact is that it makes people dislike them and leads them to losing out. They think that adultery makes them feel happy, although it results in nothing but infectious diseases and shameful outcomes, and furthermore, is followed by poverty and need.
Thus you see that anyone who plunges their spirit into vice – without purifying it by drawing near to God – passes from one distress to another and from one misfortune to another. Misery will be their share in this world, and they will suffer an even greater torment in the other abode.
People who are near to God enjoy perfect happiness, whilst the opposers suffer from grief and wretchedness.
Self-Activity:
- Memorize Fortress Al-Shams very well with your teacher in your school and cooperate with your friends and family at home trying to memorize it very well and to understand its great interpretation.
Questions and Exercises:
1-God Says: {Behold the spirit and how He formed it to perfection} what is the meaning of: {to perfection} and why do The Almighty God call it (The spirit)?
2-Explain and distinguish between the spirit and the soul?
3- Mention some practical examples to explain the meaning of “piety: Al-Taqwa”?
4-When the Almighty God created the human spirit, He the Almighty put in it the yearning and tasting ability which are out of God’s favor and blessings on us, that is because without the spirit's desire and yearning, human would not taste and experience any delight or pleasure and would not find any enjoyment in this life, then human would be like a stone. So, how can (this humanity's spirit) act and what is the way it must follow in order not to disobey God within practising its desires?