80- Surat Abasa

42 Verses Meccan (revealed in Mecca)

A'auzu Bellahi mena ash-shytani ar-rajim

I seek refuge in Allah from the accursed Satan

Bismi Ellahi Ar-rhmani Ar-rahim

In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

Abasa wa tawalla (1).

Frowned and turned away.

Ann ja'ahuo ala'ma (2).

Because the blind man came to Him.

Wa ma youdreeka la-allahuo yazzakka (3).

And how do you know, perhaps he might purify.

Aw yazzakkaruo fa tanfa'huo alzzekra (4).

Or be reminded, and then the reminder would benefit him.

Amma mani estaghna (5).

As for he who does not pay attention.

Fa anta lahuo tassadda (6).

To him You pay attention.

Wa ma alayika alla yazzakka (7).

And not upon You, that he does not purify.

Wa amma man ja'aka yas'a (8).

But as for he who came to You striving.

Wa huwa yakhsha (9).

While he fears.

Fa anta anhuo tallahha (10).

To him you are disregarded.

Kalla innaha tazkirah (11).

Nay! indeed, it is a reminder.

Fa man sha'a zakarah (12).

So whoever wills, may mention Him.

Fee ssuhufin mukarramah (13).

In honorable sheets.

Marfu'atin mutahharah (14).

Raised high, purified.

Be-ayidi safarah (15).

In the hands of scribes.

Keramin bararah (16).

Honorable, righteous.

Qutela alinsanuo ma akfarah (17).

Cursed is man, how ungrateful is he.

Men ayyi shay'in khalaqah (18).

From what thing He created him.

Men nutfatin khalaqahuo fa-kaddarah (19).

From a sperm-drop He created him, then destine him.

Thumma alsabila yasarah (20).

Then He made the way easy for him.

Thumma amatahuo fa-aqbarah (21).

Then He made him to die, and assigns for him a grave.

Thumma iza sha'a ansharah (22).

Then when He wills, He will resurrect him.

Kalla lamma yaqdi ma amarah (23).

Nay! he has not accomplished what He commanded him.

Fal-yanzuri alinsanuo ela ta'ameh (24).

So let man look at his food.

Anna ssababna alma'a ssabba (25).

That We pour the water in abundance. 

Thumma shaqqaqna alarda shaqqa (26).

Then We cleave the earth, a cleavage.

Fa anbatna feeha habba (27).

So, We grew up grain in it.

Wa inaban wa qadba (28).

And grapes, and greens.

Wa zaytuonan wa nakhla (29).

And olive, and palm trees.

Wa hadaeqa ghulba (30). 

And a gardens of thick trees.

Wa fakehatan wa abba (31).

And fruits, and green fodder.

Mata'an lakum wa lee-ana'mikum (32).

A provision for you, and your cattle.

Fa iza ja'ati Alssakhah (33).

But when Alssakhah comes.

Yawmma yaferruo almar'uo men akheeh (34).

The day, a man will flee from his brother.

Wa aummehi wa abeeh (35).

And his mother and his father.

Wa ssahebatihi wa baneeh (36).

And his wife, and his children.

Lee-qulli emry-in minhum yawma-izin sha'nuon youghneeh (37).

For every man among them that day a matter occupying him.

Wujuhuon yawma-izin musferah (38).

Faces that day bright.

Dahekatun mustabsherah (39).

Laughing, upbeat.

Wa wujuhuon yawma-izin alayiha ghabbarah (40).

And faces that day upon them dust.

Tarhaquha qattarah (41).

It covered by darkness.

Aulaeka humuo alkafaratuo alfajarah (42).

Those are the disbelievers, the wicked.

Simplified interpretation: 

 Surat Abasa comes as a blame from the Lord of the worlds to His Messenger Muhammad (PBUH) in a specific situation, and it is an order from Allah to His Prophet that people should be equal in conveying the message. Then Allah confirms the fact that man is ungrateful to his creator despite the weakness of his creation and even his inability to create his food, and then Allah describes one of the scenes of the day of resurrection where man will flee from all of his family, just he will be busy about himself, and that day there will be the companions of Paradise, and the companions of Hellfire.

 Allah says in the first ten verses "Frowned and turned away, because the blind man came to Him, and how do you know, perhaps he might purify, or be reminded, and then the reminder would benefit him, as for he who does not pay attention, to him You pay attention, and not upon You, that he does not purify, but as for he who came to You striving, while he fears, to him you are disregarded", where as mentioned in narration of Ayisha "He frowned and turned away, was revealed about Ibn Umm Maktum, the blind man. He came to the Messenger of Allah saying "O Messenger of Allah, guide me", at that time, there was a revered man from the idolaters with the Messenger of Allah , so the Messenger of Allah turned away from him and faced the other man, saying "Do you think that there is something wrong with that I am saying?, He said no, so it was revealed about that".

 Therefore, Allah blames His Messenger for leaving the blind man, and says he might came to purify himself, or be reminded, so the reminder would benefit him, and he came to Him striving, and fears Allah, but Allah's Messenger frowned and turned away, and disregarded him, and in contrast He payed attention to the idolater although he did not care, and He is not responsible if the idolater does not purify himself. 

 Then Allah says in the next six verses (11-16) "Nay! indeed, it is a reminder, so whoever wills, may mention Him, in honorable sheets, raised high, purified, in the hands of scribes, honorable, righteous", that is, this revelation is a reminder from Allah to His Messenger for the equality between people; the poor, and the rich. And Allah mentions whoever He wills in the Holy Quran which is honorable sheets, raised high, purified, and in the hands of the scribes angels who are honorable and righteous. And Our Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) said in narration of Aisha "Such a person as recite the Quran and masters it by heart, will be with the honorable righteous scribes, and such a person exerts himself to learn the Quran by heart, and recite it with great difficulty, will have a double reward".  

 And Then Allah marvels at the idolaters and says in Aya (17) "Cursed is man, how ungrateful is he", how can he be ungrateful to his Creator despite the weakness of his creation, and his destiny is not in his hand where Allah says in the next verses (18-22) "From what thing He created him, from a sperm-drop He created him, then destine him, then He made the way easy for him, then He made him to die, and assigns for him a grave, then when He wills, He will resurrect him" where Allah created man from the extract of a liquid disdained as mentioned in Surat Alsajdah Aya (8), then He made man in the best form, and destine for him his provision and his age, and then He ease for him the way in the worldly life as Allah has stated in Surat Alinsan Aya (3) "Indeed We guided him to the way to be either grateful or ungrateful", and so Allah destined the fate of man, then guided man to the endeavor that corresponds to his destiny, and this issue has been explained at length in Surat Al-lail, then Allah made him to die and to bury in the grave, and He will resurrect him from his grave on the day of resurrection when He wills.  

 Although Allah ease for him the way in the worldly life, he denies the grace of Allah upon him, and denies reckoning and resurrection, and he did not fulfill what Allah commanded him to do as mentioned in Aya (23) "But nay! he has not accomplished what He commanded him". Therefore, Allah commanded him to look at his food, because he is not even able to create it, and it is also an example of Allah's ability to resurrect the dead from their graves, that Allah brings down the water from the sky to revive the earth after its death as He has stated in many verses of the Holy Quran (e.g. Alnahl 65, Fusilat 39, Fatir 9), and this evidence appeared clearly in Surat yaseen Ayat (32-35) when Allah mentioned after the return of man before him the sign of the dead earth that He gave it life, and brought forth grain, gardens, date palms, and grapes from it. And Allah mentioned the example of food after saying in verse (17) "how ungrateful is he" that food also is an evidence if man is grateful or ungrateful to His Lord where Allah commanded the believers in Surat Albaqarah Aya (172) to eat of the good things Allah has provided them, and to be grateful to him, if they worship Him alone. 

 So Allah says in the next verses (24-32) "So let man look at his food, that We pour the water in abundance, then We cleave the earth, a cleavage, so, We grew up grain in it, and olive, and palm trees, and a gardens of thick trees, and fruits, and green fodder, a provision for you, and your cattle", that is, food is one of the great blessings of Allah upon man, where Allah sends down water from the sky so the earth cracks and all fruits, grain, olive, palm trees, thick trees, and green fodder comes out for man and animals at the same time. Likewise, water plays a main role in bringing man back on the day of resurrection as mentioned in Surat Altariq.

 Then Allah says in Aya (33) "But when Alssakhah comes", and Alssakhah is one of the names of the day of resurrection, and He describes that day and the state of man on that day in the next verses (34-36) "The day, a man will flee from his brother, and his mother and his father, and his wife, and his children" where man on that day flees from all of his family for every man among them that day have a matter occupying him as mentioned in Aya (37), and as Allah has stated in Surat Alinfitar Aya (19) "The day when no soul can do anything for another soul, and the command that day is to Allah".

 And on that day there will be the companions of Paradise, and their faces will reflect the bliss they have found with their Lord, it will be as mentioned in verses (38,39) " Faces that day bright, Laughing, upbeat", But on the other hand, there will be the companions of Hellfire who are mentioned in the last three verses (40-42), and they are the disbelievers, the wicked, and their faces that day will reflect the torment and punishment they have found with their Lord where the dust will be upon their faces, and it will be covered by darkness.

 

No one Knows its interpretation except Allah