Interpretation of the - Surat Al-Fajr (89)- Lesson (1)- Verses [1-4]: Importance of Contemplation in the Signs of

Praise be to Allah, the Lord of Creations, and Peace and blessings be upon our prophet , the faithful and the honest. Oh, Allah, w e know nothing but w hat You teach us. You are the All- Know er, the Wise. Oh Allah, teach us w hat is good for us, and benefit us from w hat You taught us, and increase our know ledge. Show us the righteous things as righteous and help us to do them, and show us the bad things as bad and help us to keep aw ay from them. O Allah our Lord, lead us out from the depths of darkness and illusion, unto the lights of erudition and know ledge, and from the muddy shallow s of lusts unto the heavens of Your Vicinity.

Some explanations of ayaat 1-4 of surat Al-Fajr:

Dear brothers, the w e are going to examine today is al-Fajr. Allah Most High says: In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

“By the Daw n; By the ten Nights, And by the Even and the Odd.And by the Night w hen it departs. Is there (not) in this a mighty oath for a man open to reason?”

(Al-Fajr, 89:1-5)

Commentators vary as to the interpretation of the above ayaat. Some of them say: the daw n is something w ell-know n; the ten nights are the first ten days of Dhul-Hijja; some others say that they are those of the month of Muharram. As for "the Even and the Odd" –that those are the tw o forms of the salah: the salah of four raka'h is "the even", and the salah of uneven number of raka'h is "the odd". As for "the night w hen it departs" –it means "disappears". These are some of the interpretations of these ayaat. How ever, some of the commentators give a specific meaning to these ayaat, w hich turns them into one-subject matter. If one, for example, says to you: "a w atch, a hand, a face, a crow n", and you analyze every w ord individually, you w ill perceive that each of them is unrelated to the others. But w hen you consider other meanings of these w ords, you w ill say: the w atch w ith its hands, its face and w inding-crow n. The explanations of some interpreters of the ayaat in question aim at the coherence of the subject Allah Most High is telling you about.

“By the Daw n; By the ten Nights,”

What is, then, the relationship betw een the Daw n and the ten Nights, and the Even and the Odd, and the Night w hen it departs? The first and the last ayaat are clearly about the Universe, but those in betw een them are unrelated to it. The daw n is something everybody is familiar w ith. Where, then, does its greatness lie? It lies in the night. If you hire a boat to take you to an island by night, you w ill certainly feel gloom or fear. Go to a forest at night! You cannot deny that you w ill feel desolate. Then the daw n breaks and you see everything clearly; you then feel comfortable.

The meanings of al- fajr: It carries many meanings. The strict or narrow ed meaning of this ayah is that the earth is a sphere w hich revolves around itself at a thousand and six hundred kilometers per hour. This revolution around itself takes place simultaneously w ith its revolution around the sun; the part of the earth's surface w hich comes to face the sun receives its rays, and those disperse darkness. If the earth didn't revolve around itself, the daw n w ouldn't exist; and if the shape of the earth w eren't spherical, the daw n w ouldn't break gradually. If the earth w ere cubic, the sun w ould rise abruptly, and it can be easily imagined how harmful the sudden sunrise and sunset w ould be. The expression "by the Daw n" means that the earth is spherical; and also that it revolves around itself; and it also means "the sun". If the earth revolved and the sun did not exist, its revolution w ould be useless, and so w ould be the day w ithout the night.

“And from among His Signs are the Night and the Day, and the Sun and the Moon.”

(, 41: from ayah 37)

“And a Sign for them is the Night. We w ithdraw therefrom the Day,”

(Ya-Sin, 36: from ayah 37)

The Day and the Night are, then, tw o Signs, and so is the Sun. Were it not for the night, you w ouldn't know about it. You know the value and the w armth of the sun w hen you feel its rays at sunrise. Also, the cold makes you appreciate its importance and that of the gentle and gradual stream of sunlight caused by the globular shape of the earth. When our Lord the Great and Almighty says "by the Daw n", this means that it is a remarkable Sign, w orthy of all attention. Have w e ever thought about it? Have w e ever sat after the salah of fajr to think about it? When Allah sw ears in this ayah by the Daw n, He w ants to draw our attention to some of His Signs.

Allah has created everything according to adequate measure:

"By the ten Nights,”

Everybody know s that the earth has an object attached to it, a kind of satellite –the moon, the complete revolution of w hich around the earth lasts one month, and its tw elve revolutions form the lunar year, w ith the months of Rajab, Sha'ban, Ramadan, etc. On comparing these lunar months w ith the solar ones, w e find that there is a considerable difference betw een the tw o. The solar year is longer than the lunar year by ten days. To give more details –the moon revolves around the earth to form the lunar year, and the earth revolves around the sun to form the solar year, and the difference betw een the tw o is ten nights. As all of you know , Ramadan comes ten days earlier every year.

“And they stayed in their Cave three hundred (solar) years, adding nine (lunar years).”

(al-Kahf, 18:25)

As regards the above ayah, some commentators say that w hen you calculate the difference betw een the three hundred years, the lunar and the solar ones, you w ill find that it is exactly 9 years. Who created this difference betw een the revolution of the moon and the revolution of the earth around the sun? Indeed, it is exquisitely planned; everything functions according to precise measurement.

Man comes to know Allah by means of reflection: “Verily, We have created all things according to qadar (proportion and measure).”

(al-Qamar, 54:49)

Some have interpreted this ayah in terms of the hearing, the sight, the smell and other senses; the distance betw een the earth and the sun, and the earth and the moon, and the distance betw een the sun and the other planets; all of them, having been designed w ith perfect precision and unparalleled w isdom. There is yet another interpretation w hich affirms the coherence of these ayaat w hich makes them into a harmonious one-subject matter. By the Daw n: the system w hich includes the sun, the earth, the moon, the spherical shape, the revolutions, w arm sunrays, etc. By the ten Nights: think about this marvelous system that Allah Most High made on a tw ofold patterns –lunar and solar year; and made the ten-night difference betw een the tw o, exactly as mentioned in this surah. The Even: in pairs –the earth and the moon are an even (number), w hile the sun is an odd number; hence, the connection betw een the Even and the Odd, and the ten Nights and the Daw n is indeed accurate. Can man get to know Allah w ithout reflecting on these ayaat? Man acquires know ledge of things by means of his senses. You can see things by the agency of your eyes and you can hear the sounds they make by the agency of your ears, and you can feel them by the agency of your hands. But how can you get to know Allah the Exalted and Glorious? Only by the agency of reflection. Allah Most High has created this miraculous Universe and, furthermore, the precise faculty of reflection. If man duly uses this ability, he w ill come to know Allah, and w hen one know s Allah, one know s everything.

"O Son of Adam! If you look for Me, you find Me; and w hen you find Me, you find everything; and w hen you miss Me, you miss everything, and I should be more beloved by you than everything else."

Is it so difficult to infer from the various kinds of the Universe Signs mentioned by Allah that w e should reflect on them seriously? Certainly, these are the themes for contemplation, and if you w ant to know Allah, there are His Signs.

When Man reflects on Allah's Creation, he comes to know Him:

Imagine somebody asks you: Didn't you w ant a set of furniture for your bedroom? You say that you did, and this person takes you to tw o carpenters, one of w hom is black and the other w hite, asking you to choose one for placing your order. How ever, you w ant to find out about their craftsmanship first. Therefore, you w ill ask each of them to show you a sample of their art, something they had made, to check the precision of manufacture, the harmony of colors, durability, keeping in mind your standards for the order. Will you evaluate the carpenter on the basis of his appearance? No, you w ill do so on the basis of his craftsmanship. Allah the Exalted and Glorious cannot be felt by senses, but you can feel and come to know Him by means of reflection on His Creation.

“And on the earth are Signs for those of assured faith.”

(Adh-Dhariyat, 51:20)

Signs… w herever you look you find a Sign; millions in your daily life; in your ow n household you find thousands of them. Your son is a Sign, the cup of w ater is a Sign, the food and fruits that you eat are Signs, the w armth is a Sign, the bed that you sleep on is a Sign. Who created its w ool? The cotton that your pillow is filled w ith is also a Sign, and the cement and the iron your house is made from are Signs, too:

“And We sent down Iron, in w hich is great might, as w ell as many benefits for mankind,” (al-Hadid, 57:from ayah 25)

The cutlery and crockery are Signs, natural gas is a Sign, your son and daughter and their characters are Signs, and so is your w ife:

“And among His Signs is this, that He created for you w ives from among yourselves, that you may dw ell in tranquility w ith them, and He has put between you affection and mercy.”

(ar-Rum, 30:21)

The Night and the Day –two of the Signs of Allah’s Greatness:

Why w aste the Signs of Allah as if there w ere useless?! If you do so, you w ill never realize their real value and, consequently, you w ill never realize the Greatness of their Creator. On the other hand, if you think about them seriously, you w ill see Allah Most High through them, and thus be successful in your life. Our Lord is Great and Almighty, and it goes w ithout saying that nothing has been done by Him haphazardly. Unsurprisingly, most suw ar in the final part of the Qur'an, revealed in Mekka, w here the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, started his Call to , contain abundant references to Allah's Signs. The Daw n is a Sign in its ow n right; even animals w ake up w hen the sun rises, returning to their shelters and dens w hen it sets. Its shine increases gradually, and in the same w ay takes place the coming of the night, and this is a great Sign of Allah's:

“By the Daw n; By the ten Nights, And by the Even and the Odd. And by the Night w hen it departs. Is there (not) in this a mighty oath for a man open to reason?”

(Al-Fajr, 89:1-5)

The night departs due to earth's revolution around itself. Look how our Lord the Great and Almighty summed up these ayaat in the first one, the Daw n, and in last one, the Night w hen it departs. This means that the daw n breaks out from here and the darkness of the night gathers from there, at daw n time.

Qur'anic ayaat on the Universe are countless:

When you look to the east you see the shine, and w hen you look to the w est you see the darkness. This Sign is reversed in the evening: you see the shine in the w est, and the darkness in the east –the night comes. Both the Day and the Night are among the Signs of Allah. So are the Sun and the Moon. The globular shape of the earth is a Sign; the w eather that you enjoy is also a Sign. Then, w here are you going?! And w hat distracts you from reflecting on Allah's Signs?

“Then in w hat exposition after Allah and His Signs w ill they believe?”

(Al-Jathiyah, 45: from ayah 6)

“And also in your ow n selves (there are Signs). Will you not then see?”

(Adh-Dhariyat, 51:21)

“And on the earth are Signs for those of assured faith.” (adh-Dhariyat, 51:20)

“And He has subjected to you, as from Him, all that is in the heavens and on earth.”

(Al-Jathiyah, 45; from ayah 13)

The Qur'anic ayaat on the Universe are uncountable.

Hijr is another name for reasoning

Furthermore, Allah Most High says:

"Is there (not) in this a mighty oath for a man open to reason (hijr)?"

(Al-Fajr, 89:5)

Some commentators say that hijr is another name for reason. Why w ould reason be called hijr? Because it prevents, yahjar, the man from committing mistakes. Put a piece of meat in front of a hungry cat, w hat w ill it do? It w ill jump at it and eat it. Science says that in the w orld of animals there exist only stimuli and responses. As regards human beings, how ever, w e talk of reasoning and response. You might be hungry and the meat might be before you but you do not eat it because it isn't yours. And you might be at your friend's but you cannot eat because you haven't been invited, the fact w hich prevents you from eating. And w hat prevents you from taking w hat doesn't belong to you? It is your reason. And w hat forbids you to look at a w oman that you aren't allow ed to look at? It is your reason. And w hat prohibits you from taking illicit money? It is your reason. And w hat prevents you from treating your w ife kindly w hile you forget your mother's rights? It is the reason. Thus, our Lord called the faculty of reasoning hijr is because it prevents man from making mistakes; from tyranny, depravity, corruption and w rongdoing. Hence:

“Is there (not) in this a mighty oath for a man open to reason”

(Al-Fajr, 89:5)

Allah Most High calls it, thus, hijr; and He also calls it lubb.

“Verily, in this is a Reminder for men of understanding (ul'ul al-bab).”

(Az-Zumar, 39; part of ayah 21)

He also called it aql.

Someone asked the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace: "O Messenger of Allah, shall I hobble (aql) it (a she-camel) or trust in Allah? He said: Hobble it and (then) put your trust in Allah." "Blessed be Allah Who distributed reason at random between His servants. Verily, you may find two men who are equal as regards offering salah, fasting and doing good, but differ as regards their faculty of reasoning as much as an atom differs from Mount Uhud."

(Agreed upon)

The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said:

"The essence of man is his reason." Allah has honoured Man with the faculty of reasoning:

It occurs to me that an animal doesn't fear except w hen it sees the danger. With its low level of mental and psychological life, it doesn't avoid danger until it sees it. On the other hand, Allah the Great and Almighty has honored man w ith reasoning, through w hich he can perceive danger before it happens. So w hen man misuses this faculty and doesn't reflect on the Universe, and is faced w ith danger at the moment of death, he w ill realize then that he is of the people of Hell. We say to him: Where w as your reason? Your reflection? Intelligence lies in reaching the thing before it reaches you. Therefore, Allah Most High says:

“Verily, the Hour is coming; I have almost kept it hidden, for every soul to receive its rew ard by the measure of its endeavour.”

(Taha, 20:15)

"I have almost kept it hidden"… Till man and his reason appear. If a building one happens to be passing collapses all of a sudden, one can escape the danger or not; but if one sees a road sign w arning of a dangerous slope or turn, for example, and fails to heed it, one w ill not be considered sane or thoughtful:

“Verily, the Hour is coming; I have almost kept it hidden, for every soul to receive its rew ard by the measure of its endeavour.”

(Taha, 20:15)

The real danger is the danger of the Hereafter, w hich is invisible. All the people are, relatively and generally, equal; both believers and disbelievers. The believer has a home and a job, he eats and drinks, and so does the usurer; he w ho fails to be obedient to Allah lives as the believer does; he w ho transgresses and violates the rights of others lives as the believer does. The danger is invisible, but Allah Most High has honored man w ith the faculty of reasoning, and he must see the dangers before their time comes, and he must understand that this Universe w as created by Allah, Who is One and Only, and it is impossible that He should let people avoid Reckoning.

“Did you think that We had created you in jest, and that you w ould not be brought back to Us?Therefore Exalted be Allah, the True King, the Reality; there is no god but He, the Lord of the Throne of Honour!”

(Al-Mu'minun, 23:115-116)

Life without the Hereafter would be meaningless:

Imagine a university –w ith impressive tow ering buildings, beautiful gardens, huge amphitheaters, labs supplied w ith modern devices, managed by resolute administration. It has accurate records and archives, a library overflow ing w ith volumes, books and other publications, recreation areas, and campuses. What it lacks is exams. Were it not for exams, a university w ould be something absurd because the exam is w hat actually evaluates its students, divides them into those w ho w orked hard and w ho didn't; it is the examination that demonstrates their qualifications and skills. Similarly, the w orldly life w ithout the Hereafter w ould be meaningless and imperfect, and w hen w e talk of perfection w e do not mean that all the students should be successful. No, the perfection of a university lies in the fact that the results are concurrent w ith w hat precedes them. Lazy and negligent students w ill not pass their exams and succeed. Who w ill succeed is the hard-w orking and diligent student, and success itself has many grades: excellent, very good, good, and acceptable. The magnificence of a university or academic system is that the results of the exams correspond w ith students' effort –not all of them can be successful, but as long as accurate standards are applied, reckoning and evaluation are adequate. The w eak and the pow erful, the poor and the rich, the ill and the healthy, those w ho have numerous opportunities and those w ho have none, couples w ho have children and those w ho are childless cohabit on this earth and in this life. If this life w ere everything w e had, w e could say that Creation w as imperfect as no blame can be attached to those w e have been deprived of some blessing; and thus orldly life w ithout the Hereafter w ould be meaningless. On the Doomsday, the rich man w ill be asked about his w ealth. How did he earn it? How did he spend it? Similarly, the poor w ill be questioned as to w hether they w ere patient and endured for Allah's sake; as to w hether poverty drove them to seeking ill-gotten gain or helped them to remain virtuous. The pow erful w ill be questioned as to w hat they did for the poor w ho w ere their responsibility. And the w eak person w ill be asked: Did you help others? On that Day, everybody w ill undergo questioning, and w hen its results are compared w ith w hat w ent before, a perfect match w ill be perceived. Hence, this life does not make sense except w ith the belief in the Last Day. If a big sum of money w ere offered to a person for betraying his principles and he w ould say "Allah forbid! I fear Allah the Lord of all the Worlds", w ouldn't he be considered stupid, in case there w ere no Afterlife, on account of his being virtuous but poor? But given that there is the Last Day, this person w ill be rew arded w ith the eternal happiness for this precious virtue. We say: This is justice. On that Day, it w ill be said to him, and to everybody like him:

“Eat and drink in full satisfaction for that w hich you have sent on before you in days past!”

(Al-Haqqah, 69:24)

Allah links the belief in Him with the belief in the Last Day:

“Then he that w ill be given his Record in his right hand w ill say: "Here! "Read my Record! Surely, I did believe that my Account w ould reach me (one Day)! And he w ill be in a life of Bliss. In a Garden on high, The fruits whereof (w ill hang) low and near. Eat and drink w ith full satisfaction for that w hich you have sent on before you in days past!”

(Al-Haqqah, 69:19-24)

“As to the Righteous, they w ill be in the midst of Gardens and Springs, Taking joy in the things which their Lord gives them, because, before then, they have done good deeds. They w ere in the habit of sleeping but little by night, And in the hours of early daw n they (w ere found) praying for Forgiveness; And in their w ealth there is a due share for the beggar and the deprived. And on the earth are Signs for those of assured faith. And also in your ow n selves. Will you not see?”

(Adh-Dhariyat, 51:15-21)

If you read the Qur'an attentively, you w ill find that in most ayaat Allah Most High links the belief in Him to the belief in the Last Day. It is so because the belief in Allah only is not enough.

The Hereafter is the everlasting Abode: There is a Creator of this Universe –w hy poverty; w hy w eakness; w hy crushing crises, w hen Allah is the Rich One?

“And to Allah belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth.”

(Al-Ma'idah, 5:from ayah 18)

“And to Allah belong the treasures of the heavens and the earth,”

(Al-Munafiqun, 63: from ayah 7)

Why scarcity of rain? Why paucity of the agricultural production? Why cankers, so destructive to plants? These are the trials of this fleeting life, life of painstaking and hard w ork, life of earning one's living, life of being tested; and the Hereafter is the Abode that remains forever. Imam Ash-Shibli said that he had read four hundred thousand ahadith, then took just one hadith in w hich he saw all the know ledge, first and last, useful for mankind. The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, says in the follow ing hadith:

"Work for (the sake of) the w orldly life by the measure of (the length of) your sojourn in it; and work for the Hereafter by the measure (of the length) of your abiding in it; and w ork for Allah's sake by the measure of your necessity of Him; and fear the Hellfire by the measure of your capacity to tolerate it."

All of us shall die, Death is lying in w ait for us; every day there are tw o or three funerals. Won't I be like those deceased? And know that the Angel of Death has passed us (going) to other (people). Look at the obituaries in the streets… today I have heard of three funerals… We must be cautious … Death has passed the others on its w ay to us… The real triumph is to appear, on that Day, w ith a shining face and pure heart, having earned one's money in a licit w ay, having obeyed Allah…

“Eat and drink w ith full satisfaction for that w hich you have sent on before you in days past!”

(Al-Haqqah, 69:19-24)

None disobeys Allah but he who neglects reflection:

Get used to thinking about Death five minutes every day. This is not pessimism. The average man thinks that it is, but the believer realizes that Death is lying in w ait for him, and w hen Death is taken into consideration, man w ill act rightly and w ork for w hat comes afterw ards; and the w eak is he w ho has indulged in his desires then expected to be saved by Allah.

“Is there (not) in this a mighty oath for a man open to reason?”

(Al-Fajr, 89:5)

Shouldn't these Signs be sufficient for reasonable people? O reasonable people, w here is your reason? The reason is w hat bars man from disobedience to Allah, no one disobeys Allah but a fool. Thus:

“Is there (not) in this a mighty oath for a man open to reason?”

(Al-Fajr, 89:5)

What, indeed, is the value of somebody w ho doesn't care about these Signs? A man talked about Allah to a foreigner w ho said that he believed in Him. He w as then asked w hether he believed in the Hereafter. He said: "I don't believe in it." He, then, ended the conversation saying, summarizing it a little: "These subjects do not concern us and should not trouble us. What concerns us is a big house, big car, high income…" Allah Most High says:

“They are only like cattle. Nay, they are even farther astray from the Path. “

(Al-Furqan, 25: from ayah 44)

“They are as blocks of wood propped up.”

(Al-Munafiqun, 63: from verse 4)

“The likeness of those who were entrusted w ith the (obligation of the) Torah (Taw rah), but w ho subsequently failed in those (obligations) is as the likeness of a donkey w hich carries huge burdens of books (but understands nothing from them).”

(Al-Jumu'ah, 62: from ayah 5)

The attitude of worldly people:

When man turns aw ay and refuses to think about the Signs of Allah, he does not care about Him. But talk to them about the life of this w orld and you w ill find that everybody is paying attention; talk w ith them about the exchange rate, business, houses, heaters, central heating and everything related to luxury and the pleasures of life, you find they are all ears. By contrast, w hen you talk to them about the Hereafter, they yaw n and apologize. For this reason, Allah Most High says:

“Say: Shall We tell you the greatest losers in respect of (their) deeds? Those whose efforts have been w asted in this life w hile they thought that they were acquiring good by their deeds.”

(Al-Kahf, 18:103-104)

“By the Time. Verily, man is in loss. Except those w ho believe and do righteous good deeds, and (join together) in the mutual enjoining of Truth, and of Patience and Constancy.”

(Al-'Asr, 103:1-3)

The pharaonic civilization:

When man does not reflect on Allah's Signs, and says: "I am not interested in them, w hat concerns me is food and drink, good income, my marriage, a comfortable home, prosperous trade, successful projects and a beautiful summer house", w e say to him:

“Saw you not how your Lord dealt w ith the 'Ad (people) Of the (city) of Iram, w ith lofty pillars, The like of w hich w ere not created in the land? And (with) the Thamud (people), who hew ed out rocks in the valley? And (w ith) Fir'aun (Pharaoh), lord of Stakes? All these transgressed beyond bounds in the land. And heaped therein mischief (on mischief). Therefore your Lord poured on them a scourge of diverse chastisement. Verily, your Lord is Ever Watchful.”

(Al-Fajr, 89:6-14)

Fir'aun –w ho is meant here is the Pharaoh of Musa (Moses), w ho had the stakes. The majority of commentators say that those w ere the pyramids. Think about their structure –something almost unimaginable: tremendous height, huge stones… I w as told that there is an opening in the pyramid w all, made according to a w onderful geometric -architectural design. The sunrays enter this opening on just one day in the w hole year, w hich is the day on w hich the deceased buried there w as born or died. Indeed, the most exquisite geometry and architectural design! So far, nobody know s how their dead w ere mummified. Wheat stored in the pyramids for more than seven thousand years has been sow ed and it yielded a plant. There are graves and mummified bodies in the pyramids. A couple of years ago, or more, I read that the Pharaoh of Musa w as taken to Paris to be "treated", isn't he mummified? Some rottenness affected him; he w as treated and returned to Egypt, an ancient person w ho lived thousands of years ago. Our Lord says:

“Saw you not how your Lord dealt w ith the 'Ad (people)?”

Those w ere the first 'Ad, w hose name w as Iram. It w as a mighty and pow erful tribe that lived in the region betw een Hadramout (now in Yemen) and the Empty Quarter Desert (in Saudi Arabia), w ho used to put up their tents on pillars. It dominated the w hole region.

Allah describes the power of the 'Ad, their might and hegemony:

“Saw you not how your Lord dealt w ith the 'Ad (people) Of the (city) of Iram, w ith lofty pillars,

The like of w hich w ere not created in the land?”When they gave up reflection on these Signs, neglected the Last Day, and indulged in their lusts and pleasures, blindness took possession of their hearts. Then they transgressed, depraved and corrupted, w hereupon they deserved destruction, and, consequently, Allah's Sign came about. Allah Most High describes their strength, dominance, might and hegemony in these w ords:

“The like of w hich w ere not created in the land?”

In every age, there is a dominant country, exceptionally advanced. You sometimes hear about a country w hich has atomic w eapons; and another country possesses the neutron bomb, w hich kills people only not causing much damage to man-made objects such as buildings, roads, gardens, factories, etc. It is intended for the destruction of human life only, the most sophisticated medium of mass destruction that the ruinous human brain has produced. Some other countries possess chemical w eapons, w hich, if used on the battlefield, cause hallucinations or phobias, as w ell as other dangerous psychic disorders; and some have bacteriological w eapons of mass destruction, etc. Our Lord the Great and Almighty says:

“Until w hen the earth is clad in its adornments and is beautified, and its people think that they have all the pow ers of disposal over it, Our Command reaches it by night or by day and We make it like a clean –mow n harvest, as if it had not flourished yesterday ! Thus We do explain the ayaat in detail for the people w ho reflect.”

(, 10: from ayah 24) The ayaat which follow are specific and general:

Now adays, every pow erful "team" in the dominant countries think that the fate of the w orld is in their hand. For this reason, a direct line has been set up betw een Washington and Moscow , called "the red line", lest a misunderstanding occurs and they might destroy each other, thinking that the fate or the end of the w orld is in their hands. “Until w hen the earth is clad in its adornments and is beautified, and its people think that they have all the pow ers of disposal over it, Our Command reaches it.” Our Command, not theirs, reaches it by night or by day. The earth is globular and this inevitable total destruction w ill happen by night and by day. Our Lord says:

“Saw you not how your Lord dealt w ith the 'Ad (people) Of the (city) of Iram, w ith lofty pillars, The like of w hich w ere not created in the land?”

(Al-Fajr, 89:6-8)

This ayah mentions specifically the 'Ad, but its general meaning refers to any other pow erful state claiming that it is the strongest pow er on earth and thus nobody can confront it.

“And (with) the Thamud (people), who hew ed out rocks in the valley?”

There is a palace inside the Al- Berta' Mountain (in Jordan), w hich I saw w ith my ow n eyes. The king's hall w as thirty meters by thirty meters by thirty meters –a huge perfect cube; at the entrance you can see the pillars w ith their capitals and ornaments. No stone had been used in the construction of those buildings; they w ere w holly and entirely carved in the rock. It actually seems a thing beyond humans abilities… you can see their houses, baths, meeting places, amphitheaters and other public facilities.

“And (with) the Thamud (people), who hew ed out rocks in the valley? And (w ith) Fir'aun (Pharaoh), lord of Stakes?”

The relationship between tyranny and transgression:

But w hy did Allah Most High call the 'Ad and the Thamud by their names w hile he didn't call the people of Egypt by this name, mentioning Fir'aun (Pharaoh)? Some interpreters inferred that they "dissolved" in the personality of Fir'aun as if one w as nothing in his presence. Allah Most High says:

“Thus did he (Fir'aun) make fools of his people, and they obeyed him; truly w ere they a people rebellious (against Allah).”

(Az-Zukhruf, 43:54)

Hence, Allah did not give them a name but He, in a w ay, gave them the nickname of Fir'aun, but the Thamud and the 'Ad are another case.

“Saw you not how your Lord dealt w ith the 'Ad (people) Of the (city) of Iram, w ith lofty pillars, The like of w hich w ere not created in the land? And (with) the Thamud (people), who hew ed out rocks in the valley? And (w ith) Fir'aun (Pharaoh), lord of Stakes? All these transgressed beyond bounds in the land. And heaped therein mischief (on mischief). Therefore your Lord poured on them a scourge of diverse chastisement. Verily, your Lord is Ever Watchful.”

(Al-Fajr, 89:6-14)

There is a connection betw een transgression and exceeding the bounds or limits. Sometimes the husband transgresses against his w ife; he has rights and so does she; and w hen he transgresses her rights, he corrupts and demoralizes her and damages himself by doing so. He inevitably corrupts her and he corrupts himself by his transgression.

“All these transgressed beyond bounds in the land.”

If you offend against the rights of the buyer by raising the price of the good or by giving him a bad one, this is transgression. Its meaning is very w ide, but it can be summarized as exceeding the limits; you should grant everybody their rights; if you don't, then you transgress and offend against him.

The relationship between tyranny and corruption:

Transgression in this ayah means exceeding the limits, and has many significations. It can be taken on the level of the family –exceeding the limits in dealing w ith children is transgression. Also, abusing an employee is transgression –you are the boss and you exceed the limits; and there may be transgression in treating the neighbor, the buyer… in any kind of social intercourse. Every transgression is conducive to corruption and bad relationship. Transgression breeds corruption –the corruption of relationships… tyranny. So, corruption is a general term here…

“That Home of the Hereafter We shall give to those who intend not high-handedness or mischief on earth; and the End is (best) for the Righteous.”

(Al-Qasas, 28:-83)

You certainly make somebody hate his house w hen you criticize it: "It's such a small house, how can you live here?" Thus, you corrupt his "relation" w ith his house; and if you mention a beautiful w oman w ho has more beauty than his w ife, you corrupt his relation w ith his w ife; and w hen you make him interested in the w orldly life, you corrupt his relationship w ith his Lord; and w hen you tempt him into w rongdoing, you corrupt his relationship w ith his Afterlife. All the relations may get corrupted and most likely the relation betw een man and his reason gets corrupted w hen man misuses or disuses it, or uses it only to satisfy his lusts and desires. And the relation betw een man and his Lord gets corrupted w hen man fails to obey Him, w hen he cheats people, w rongs them, offends against them; and maybe the relations w ithin the w hole society get corrupted w hen they are based on lie and fraud. Therefore, there is a link betw een transgression and corruption.

“All these transgressed beyond bounds in the land. And heaped therein mischief (on mischief). Therefore your Lord poured on them a scourge of diverse chastisement. Verily, your Lord is Ever Watchful.”

(Al-Fajr, 89:6-14)

"Poured" indicates the magnitude or abundance of painful torment, an immense amount of painful torment. “Therefore your Lord poured on them a scourge of diverse chastisement.”

Man's action and inactivity are under the Divine Watch:

“ Verily, your Lord is Ever Watchful.”

(Al-Fajr, 89:14)

This is to say that all your movements and repose; thoughts, intentions, ambitions; w hat you show and w hat you w ithhold; all your secrets; all of this is w atched by Allah Most High. At any time you are under the Divine Watch, under close observation. When one feels that he is w atched, he cannot sleep as he usually does. So how about the Divine Watch of He Who know s all secrets, and even w hat is still more hidden than them? Say w hatever you w ant, He know s your intentions and secrets, your purpose for this invitation, for that meeting or appointment, picnic or journey; He know s every single thing about you. Therefore, a w ife w ho know s this ayah cannot w rong her husband, nor can her husband w rong her w hen he know s w hat "Verily, your Lord is Ever Watchful" means. And if the employer, w ho know s that his employee necessarily needs to w ork, that this employee w orks w ith him out of pure necessity, exploits this need to reduce his w ages and increase his w orking hours, he should know that "Verily, your Lord is Ever Watchful". Also w hen you know that the buyer needs some product, and you raise its price and hide its defect, you had better remember that "Verily, your Lord is Ever Watchful" … By Allah, this ayah is more than sufficient. By Allah, apart from Whom there is no other god, if w e deal properly w ith this ayah, all our relations w ill be w ell-conducted –at w ork, at home, in the neighbourhood, and everyw here else, since Allah Most High know s w ho is doing w rong. I say frequently to the spouses "Verily, your Lord is Ever Watchful" … If you w rong her and transgress her rights, and if she is neglectful and transgresses your rights, remember "Verily, your Lord is Ever Watchful" …

“Truly strong is the Grip of your Lord.”

(al-Buruj, 85:12)

Anyone should tremble on reading this ayah, and he w ho doesn't is a fool.

The highest rank before Allah is that of fear (of Him):

Who fears Allah most is ranked highest by Him …

“ Verily, your Lord is Ever Watchful.”

Perhaps you control yourself more w hen you know that there is a recorder at the meeting, and you entreat your friend to erase your w ords, and he doesn't, not even as a joke. The presence of the recorder makes you control yourself; and this control still increases w hen you know that you are videoed. This is the self-discipline that should exist w ith regard to the continuous Divine Watch, in private and in public. For this reason, the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said:

"As for he w ho has no piety that prevents him from disobedience to Allah w hen he is alone, Allah w ill not care in the least for his deeds."

Do you offer your salah as sincerely in your house as you do if you are behind the imam at the mosque? “Verily, your Lord is Ever Watchful.”

Do you hide your faults at home and show people your virtues?

“Verily, your Lord is Ever Watchful.”

When this ayah, therefore, is put into practice, one w ill definitely control one's behavior, as much privately as publicly and as much publicly as privately. There w ill be no dualism or duplicity; one's intentions w ill be identical to one's w ords. Therefore:

“The Day w hereon neither wealth nor sons w ill avail, But only he (w ill prosper) who brings to Allah a sound heart.”

(Ash-Shu'ara, 26:88-89)

Faith is "sound", clean, free from all that is forbidden.

This is w hat w e learn from these ayaat, w hen w e reflect on it adequately.

“By the Daw n; By the ten Nights, And by the Even and the Odd. And by the Night w hen it departs.”

(Al-Fajr, 89:1-4)

And he w ho comes to know Allah Most High through them, then behaves righteously, follow s His Orders and does good w ill be happy forever. And he w ho turns aw ay from these ayaat, doesn't care about them and indulges in his desires:

“Saw you not how your Lord dealt w ith the 'Ad (people) Of the (city) of Iram, w ith lofty pillars, The like of w hich w ere not created in the land?”

(Al-Fajr, 89:6-8)

There is a very strong link here. If the Qur'an is read superficially, no connection w ill be found betw een this part and the other…

“By the Daw n; By the ten Nights, And by the Even and the Odd. And by the Night w hen it departs. Saw you not how your Lord dealt w ith the 'Ad (people)?”

(Al-Fajr, 89:1-5)

There is a sudden shift here from the Universe Signs to a story, that is to say, if man doesn't reflect on these ayaat, and doesn't care about them, and isn't upright follow ing Allah's Orders and doesn't do good deeds, his fate w ill be like the fate of the 'Ad, the Thamud and Fir'aun, the fate w hich is certain. And if he reflects on them, he w ill certainly save himself from this gloom fate. Translation : Saud Abdurrazaq Auditing : Najat Rozko