Interpretation of Fortress 89 (The Coming Appearance)
Dear student:
We have seen that Surah Al-Fajer starts with the universal signs in the first Verses of it in order to acquaint us with our Creator and to enable us to know the consequences of the ancient nations who didn’t contemplate and think about these signs, it also clarifies the reasons behind the human shunning his Creator and avoiding to know Him, however, he only throughout that knowledge can get out of his brute carnal rank and attain the humane rank before the coming of the Day of Judgment. God says:
Verses no. 21-24
21. “No! For when the earth is gathered together entirely and finally,”
22. “And your Provider comes, and the angels in row upon row;”
23. “And Hell, on that Day, is brought near: on that Day human will remember, but what will remembrance avail him then?”
24. “They will say, ‘Ah, would that I had put forward (goodness) for my life (that was to come)!”
“No” indicates deterrence. It is used to rebuke the addressee and to discourage them from their error.
It addresses us: “You, human! Beware of this kind of wrongful conduct and repent from your deviation. You have not been created to be like animals, caring only about your own advantage and wishing to appropriate everything that people have.”
These are not the manners of a humanist one.
We have been brought into this existence in order to perform good actions and to gain eternal life by helping our brothers and sisters in humanity. Through doing so, we will associate with people of Paradise in the next world. However, if you do not listen to your Provider’s Recommendation and His Command; if you do not follow the way He set in place and revealed for you through the tongue of His Envoy; if you do not believe and trust in all of this: in this case, there is no doubt that you will have regrets, even if these regrets avail you nothing. You will perceive the great loss you have drawn upon yourself when you stand before your Provider to be called to account on that Day. God says: “No! For when the earth is gathered together entirely and finally, * And your Provider comes, and the angels in row upon row, * And Hell, on that Day, is brought near: on that Day human will remember, but what will remembrance avail him then?? * They will say, ‘Ah, would that I had put forward (goodness) for my life (that was to come)!”
The Verse “...when the earth is gathered together entirely and finally,”, tells us that after the earth is rocked in its last convulsions and after it is unrolled and its weights are brought out – that is, after people emerge from it and its function ends – it will be gathered entirely and finally. That is to say, its parts will be piled over one another completely, so the earth will never again return to its worldly form.
The Almighty mentioned what will happen after that, saying: “And your Provider comes”. The ‘coming’ mentioned in this Verse is not linked to any time or place, for the Almighty is Far above both time and place. This word means that He (glory to Him) is a Witness to you and to each deed that you are now carrying out. When the Day comes, your Provider will bring your acts before your eyes and show you the fruit of your labors in this world.
In another respect, this means that He will bring you what you need, and whatever treatment is necessary for you.
He will come “, and the angels in row upon row”: this statement indicates that the angels will be in groups, and each group will have its own function and duty.
When your Provider brings your actions before your eyes, and then brings the cure to fit your defects and diseases, the angels will stand in lines, with each line being assigned a certain aspect of your treatment.
“And Hell, on that day, is brought near”: Hell is the abode of therapy in the life to come.
The statement “Hell … is brought near” suggests that on that Day, the evildoers will find themselves in a state that compels them to enter Hellfire for treatment. On that Day, their state will be like the state of a sick person who has seen the hospital and realized what their situation is.
The words: “on that Day human will remember, but what will remembrance avail him then?”
Mean that when a person senses the bad situation they have arrived at, and realizes their eternal loss and shame, the Fire will appear to them. At that moment, they will remember what the noble Prophet (cpth) told them about this Fire. They will remember Al’lah’s Recommendations and the clear signs He had sent to them. However, their memory will avail them nothing on that Day, for by then such a miserable person will have lost their life and will have already wasted their precious opportunity, spending it in vain. What great sorrow they will live in when they realize that the period when they could have gained everlasting happiness has passed! Therefore, on that Day their memory will be useless.
“They will say, ‘Ah, would that I had put forward (goodness) for my life (that was to come)!”: at this time, they will feel great regret and their heart will break with sorrow. They will see that the only real life is the life of the other world, but alas! They will have lost their opportunity, and will have done nothing to allow themselves to enjoy it.
Verse no. 25
25. “However, on that Day their torture will not be inflicted upon them by anyone (other than themselves);”
That is, none will torture them. They themselves have incurred whatever takes place. The pain and the shame they will live in, along with their evil deeds which will be standing before their eyes, will cause them unbearable and insufferable agony in the depths of their spirit. Therefore they will rush to the Fire to throw themselves into it, wishing the pain of its torturous burning to help them forget their spiritual pains.
I say, the situation of this person on this Day is like the example of a child whose father warned it against touching a sharp blade. The child did not follow his father’s guidance and did what he had cautioned it against. The child tried to sharpen his pencil with a sharp blade, thinking that it would be better than the pencil sharpener which its father had advised it to use.
Unawares, the child mistakes the pencil for his finger, thus cutting it. The child will then begin to cry and to call on its father for help, appealing to him to bandage the wound and relieve the pain.
I wonder: has anyone caused this child the suffering which befell it at that moment? Of course not!
Nobody caused that agony but the child, who has drawn the pain to itself. Sterilizing the wound and dressing it will also cause pain for the child, but this is only done for the purpose of healing.
This example makes the truth clearer in our minds, even though the truth is far deeper than this. Anyone who disobeys Allah and His Envoy strays far indeed, and incurs a great loss.
The Almighty described the state of such miserable failure in some detail. He says:
Verse no. 26
26. “Nor will any bind his bonds upon them.”
That is, on that Day none will confine that poor unfortunate people to the Fire; they themselves will remain therein voluntarily.
They will put up with the pain of burning and oblige themselves to bear their torment in order to forget their suffering.
Having described the state of the disobedient on Doomsday and their situation in the Fire, the Almighty wanted to remind humanity of the necessity of repentance and returning to Him, and urge us to seize the opportunity that we now have, so that we may save ourselves from the bad end we may face. He says:
Verse no. 27-28
27. “Oh, spirit in rest and satisfaction!”
28. “Return to your Provider well-pleased and well-pleasing.”
To understand the meaning of “Oh, spirit in rest and satisfaction”, we say:
If anybody observes the people of the current time, they can be seen to be engaged wholly in their worldly affairs, relying very much on this life. They build deluxe buildings and towering palaces, amass much wealth, and establish large factories. However, none of them thinks of death, although it is very close to them and in no time it will awaken them by knocking at their door.
This Verse is telling us: “Oh spirit, delighted with this worldly life and its charms, and immersed in desires and pleasures! Do you not know that after this life you will meet a weighty day, when neither money nor children will help you? Your abode after this world will be either in Paradise or in Hell, so put aside your slackness and turn away from your negligence so that you may return to your Provider, well-pleased and well-pleasing.”
To “return to your Provider” is to return to the Guidance of your Provider, Who sustains you with life and watches over your upbringing.
If people apply the Guidance of their Provider, which invites them to look into themselves and contemplate the formation of their limbs and to think of the universe and its creatures, then their spirit will sense the greatness of its Creator and Former, and this appreciation and understanding will inspire it to be straight upon His Orders.
It will avoid carrying out evil actions and become charitable to all creatures, and thus it will be pleased with its own works.
Besides this, it will be sure of Al’lah’s Satisfaction with it, and so it will enter into His Presence. That is what the words “well-pleased and well-pleasing” are referring to.
Verse no. 29
29. “Enter into My servants,”
If the spirit was to adopt this path and draw near to its Provider, having full assurance of His Satisfaction with it, it would be colored with a stain of perfection and would acquire noble merits. Therefore this spirit would love people of perfection, and particularly those who guided it to Allah. Such a spirit would love him or her truly for the perfection it sensed in them, and this love would increase until it entered into their spirit and became coupled with it, in a bond of love and reverence.
Through the entry of this spirit into the spirit of its leader, it would consequently attain a bond with the spirit of the Prophet (cpth).
That is what we understand from the Verse, “Enter into My servants”.
Verse no. 30
30. “And enter My Paradise.”
When a spirit lives in such a state and attains this link, this link will lead it to be close to Allah, the Almighty. Thereby it will become immersed in a garden of bliss. This bliss will continue to overwhelm it until the life to come, when it will enter the eternal Heaven. It will then relish that felicity forever.
Referring to God’s Revelation thus rectifies the conduct of the spirit and makes it well-pleased and well-pleasing.
Carrying out good actions leads to closeness to Allah, and a bond with the people of perfection. In turn, this creates a link with God’s Prophet (cpth). This connection with God’s Prophet will then lead the spirit to enter into Al’lah’s Presence.
Anyone who enters into God’s Presence has achieved happiness and bliss, which are indeed the purpose behind Al’lah’s creation.
God says: “Whoever does good does it for his own spirit and whoever does evil does it against his own spirit. Your Provider is never unjust to His servants.”
The Holy Qur’an,
Fortress 41, Fussilat (Explained), Verse 46
Praise is to Al'lah, the Provider of all worlds.
Self-Activity:
Memorize Surah Al-Fajer fully, practise to recite it by heart with persistence to contemplate its sublime meanings, That is because the Holy Qur’an was sent down to us by the Almighty God in order to think about and to acquaint yourself with its supreme meanings, avoid His prohibitions and submit to His orders, then as a result you will live in happiness forever.
Questions and Exercises:
1- What will the opposing human remember when he realizes his eternal loss and shame, and sees the Fire? Will his memories avail him?
2- What is the meaning of the Verse: “Nor will any bind his bonds upon them.”?
3- The Almighty God says: “Oh, spirit in rest and satisfaction, Return to your Provider well-pleased and well-pleasing.” What is that satisfaction which has filled the spirit? And what is the meaning of the word 'Return'?
4- What result can you get from This Holy fortress (Surah Al-Fajer)?