Tafsir of Ibraheem 14:34

(And He gave you from all that you asked of Him): meaning, He gave you a portion of all that you asked for, according to what His will—which is subordinate to wisdom and interest—requires. "From all" (min kull) is the second object of "gave" (ata), and the "from" (min) is partitive (tab’idiyyah). Some of the perfect ones said: "All" (kull) is for multiplication and exaltation, not for encompassing and generalization, as in His saying: "(And We opened for them the gates of everything)." It was objected against interpreting "from" (min) as partitive—rather than as the beginning of an extent—that it leads to stripping the word "all" of any added benefit, because "that" (ma) is an explicit text for generalization; rather, it suggests giving a part of every individual [item] related to the question, which has no basis.

It was rebutted that, even after conceding that "that" (ma) is a text for generalization here, there are two generalities: the generality of individuals and the generality of categories—meaning every single category—and both are intended here. Thus, the meaning is: He gave you from all the individuals of every category you asked for, because the intrinsic need is for the type and the category, not for the individual specifically. They interpreted "what you asked of Him" as that which is in the nature of things to be asked for due to people's need for it, whether or not it was actually asked for; thus, it does not negate the giving of that which is not needed, which might cross the mind. They made the need for a thing a "question" for it through the language of the state (lisan al-hal), and this is a form of analogy (tamthil). The way of this question is like the way of the answer in the opinion regarding His saying: "(Am I not your Lord? They said: Yes)."

It was also said: The origin is "And He gave you from all that you asked of Him and what you did not ask of Him," but the second was omitted due to the indication provided by what remained of the first. "That" (ma) can be a relative pronoun (mawsulah), and the object pronoun in "you asked of Him" (sa'altumuhu) refers back to it; the estimation being: "from all that which you asked of Him." Abu Hayyan forbade the possibility that the pronoun refers to Him (the Exalted), with the referent back to the relative pronoun being omitted, arguing that if it were estimated as attached, it would necessitate the attachment of two pronouns of identical rank without differentiation, which is not permissible. If it were estimated as detached, as the rule in such matters requires, it would necessitate the omission of an attached referent, and they have established that this is not permissible.

Some argued for the permissibility of both estimations, claiming that the prohibition of attaching two pronouns of identical rank applies only when both are mentioned together. If one is mentioned and the other is omitted, there is no prohibition, since the attachment is then a matter of pure consideration, and the cause of the prohibition does not apply to it. Likewise, the prohibition of omitting the detached pronoun applies when the detachment is for a rhetorical purpose, such as restriction in your saying: "Came the one whom his father I struck," for with omission, that purpose is lost. But if it is for a linguistic purpose, such as preventing the gathering of equals, there is no prohibition since there is no purpose being lost. It is also possible that it is descriptive (mawsufah), with the discussion on the pronoun as previously mentioned, or that it is an infinitive (masdariyyah), with the pronoun referring to God (the Exalted), and the infinitive meaning the passive: i.e., "that which is asked of you [from Him]."

Ibn Abbas, al-Dahhak, al-Hasan, Muhammad bin Ali, Ja'far bin Muhammad, Amr bin Qa'id, Qatadah, Salam, Ya'qub, and Nafi'—in one narration—read "from all" (min kullin) with tanwin, meaning: "And He gave you from everything that you needed and asked for through the language of the state." On this reading, it is permissible for "that" (ma) to be negative, and the second object to be "from all," as in His saying: "(And you have been given from everything)." The negative clause is in the position of a state (hal), meaning: He gave you from everything without your asking. This is an announcement from Him (the Exalted) of the completeness of His favor upon them through blessings they did not ask for. This is narrated from al-Dahhak. It is clear that the first view is the correct one, as the reading on this [latter] face contradicts the first reading, and the principle is for the two readings to correspond, even if the [former] implies the giving of what they asked for by way of priority.

(And if you count the blessings of God): meaning, what He has blessed you with, which is what is apparent. Al-Wahidi said: "Blessing" (ni’mah) here is a noun placed in the stead of the infinitive (masdar); it is said: "He blessed (an’ama) with a blessing (in’aman) and a blessing (ni’matan)," just as one says: "He spent (anfaqa) with an expenditure (infaqan) and an expenditure (nafaqatan)." So, the blessing is in the sense of the act of blessing (in’am), which is why it is not pluralized. The reliance is on what we have indicated: that it is a generic noun in the sense of "that which is blessed with," and the intention behind it is the plural; it is as if it were said: "And if you count the blessings (ni’am) of God, (you will not be able to compute them)." Some have established that the singular provides for encompassing (istighraq) through the genitive construction (idafah). What has been said—that the encompassing is not derived from the genitive construction but from the specific conditional and the response to the condition—is subject to consideration, because the mentioned judgment necessitates the validity of intending it from the noun; otherwise, they would be contradictory. The meaning of "you will not be able to compute them" is that you will not be able to enumerate them, even summarily, for they are infinite. The origin of "computing" (ihsa') is counting with pebbles, for the Arabs relied upon them in counting, just as we rely on fingers. Hence, al-A'sha said: "And I am not the one among them with the most pebbles; indeed, glory belongs to the one who is more numerous."

Then it was used for absolute counting. Some scholars said: Its origin is that when a calculator reaches a certain rank of numbers, he places a pebble to preserve it. Thus, there is an indication of not reaching a rank worthy of being counted, let alone reaching its end, which is of great beauty. However, al-Raghib and others preferred the first [view], interpreting "computing" as "limiting" (hasr), so that the condition and the response do not contradict each other if counting is proven in the first and denied in the second. If "that you count" (an ta’uddu) is interpreted as "that you wish to count," the question is also dismissed. The first is more appropriate. Some scholars said: The meaning is that if you were to commence counting the individuals of even one of His blessings, you would not be able to count them.

"If" (in) is used because counting is definitively impossible, given the assumption that it might be within capacity. It is said: The speech is more eloquent on the first view because it points to the fact that it is impossible to count the details of even a single blessing. But you know that the apparent [meaning] is the first. The Imam mentioned two examples to clarify that the blessings of God (the Exalted) cannot be computed or exhausted. He said: First, physicians have stated that nerves are of two types: cerebral and spinal, and the cerebral are seven. They have exhausted themselves in knowing the effects arising from each one of them. There is no doubt that each one divides into many branches, and each one of those branches also divides into branches finer than a hair, and each one of them reaches the organs. If one of them were to be corrupted in quality, position, or otherwise, the interests of the structure would be corrupted. Each of them, despite their multiplicity, has specific functions. Just as you consider this in nervous fragments, consider the same in arteries, veins, and each of the simple and complex organs according to quantity, position, action, and reaction, until you see the divisions of this chapter as a sea without a shore. If you consider this in the human body, consider it in the soul and spirit, for the wonders of the world of spirits are greater than the wonders of the world of bodies. If you consider the conditions of the world of spheres, stars, the layers of the elements, and the wonders of the land, sea, plants, minerals, and animals, it will become clear to you that if the intellects of all creatures were combined into a single intellect, and a human were to contemplate through it the wisdom of God (the Exalted) in the smallest of things, he would not perceive of it except for a little.

Second, if you take a morsel of bread to put it into your mouth, look at what precedes it and what follows it. As for the first: know that it cannot be completed unless this world in its entirety is standing in the most correct manner, for wheat is essential, and it does not grow except with the help of the seasons, the composition of temperaments, and the appearance of rains and winds; none of this occurs except by the rotation of the spheres and the connection of some stars with others in specific ways. Then, after the wheat is formed, one must have the tools of grinding and the like, which are not obtained except upon the creation of iron in the wombs of mountains. Then contemplate how it was formed in specific shapes. Then, when those tools are obtained, look at how the gathering of elements is necessary until it can be cooked. As for the second: contemplate the composition of the animal body, how He (the Exalted) created it so that it could benefit from that morsel, how the animal is harmed by eating, and in which organs those harms occur. You cannot know the little except by knowing the science of anatomy and medicine in the most complete manner. How can intellects perceive all that? Thus, the validity of this conditional statement has been shown by a dazzling proof.

Our master Abu al-Sa'ud (may his secret be sanctified) said after some words: If you seek to attain the reality of truth and stand upon what is great and subtle of the mystery, know that man, by the requirement of his contingent reality, is isolated from the merit of existence and what follows it of appropriate perfections and elegant faculties, such that if the connection between him and divine providence were to be severed, he would have no stability, nor would his abode be tranquil, except in the depth of non-existence and ruin, and the abysses of destruction and annihilation. But there flows upon him from the Holy Presence (He whose status is exalted and sanctified), in every passing time and every moment that expires, types of effusion related to his essence, existence, and all other spiritual, psychological, and physical attributes, which the range of expression cannot encompass and which none knows except the Subtle, the Aware. Its clarification is that just as he does not merit existence initially, he does not merit it by way of persistence; rather, that is from the Presence of the First Originator (mighty is His status and majestic). Just as it is inconceivable for him to exist initially unless all modes of his original non-existence are removed from him, it is not inconceivable for him to persist in existence after he has been realized by his cause unless all modes of his emergent non-existence are blocked from him, for continuity and duration are characteristics of necessary existence.

You are aware that the existential matters upon which his existence depends—which are its causes and conditions—must be finite because what enters into existence must be finite. However, the non-existential matters that have a role in his existence are not like that, for there is no impossibility in one thing having infinite inhibitors. The impossibility lies only in their entry into existence, while the removal of those infinite inhibitors—I mean their persistence in non-existence despite the possibility of their existence in every moment of his existence—is indeed infinite, not by claim. The same state applies to the existences of his causes and conditions, near and far, initially and in persistence, and likewise in his perfections that follow his existence. It appears from this that he has left the Imam behind in the investigation of this station, and that if he had heard this, he would have taken it as a guide in his mention and would have counted his emulation of it as one of the blessings. Close to this is what is said in clarifying the infinity of blessings: existence is a blessing, and so is all that follows it of perfections, and that is dependent upon His existence (the Exalted) in the infinite imagined times, and the realization of what existence depends upon is a blessing, so His (subhanahu) realization in every moment of those moments is a blessing; thus, the blessings are infinite. You can say in clarifying this: there is no human except that God (the Exalted) has warded off from him calamities that the range of limitation cannot encompass, for the calamities that fall under the scope of possibility are infinite, and there is no doubt that warding off every calamity is a blessing, so the blessings are infinite. Among what clarifies the infinity of possible calamities is that the people of the Fire, dwelling therein forever, have their torment constantly increasing, as His saying guides to: "(So taste; for We will never increase you except in torment)." More than one has mentioned regarding this that whenever they cry for help from one type of torment, they are aided with one that is worse, so every rank of it is finite in intensity, even if its ranks are infinite in terms of number and duration. Upon this, the blessings of God upon the afflicted are also uncountable. In a narration by Ibn Abi al-Dunya and al-Bayhaqi from Ibn Mas'ud, he said: "God (the Exalted) has a favor upon the people of the Fire; if He willed, He would punish them with something harsher than the Fire, and He would have done so." Then, the apparent [meaning] is that the intended meaning of "blessing" is its linguistic meaning, i.e., the agreeable thing, not the legal meaning, i.e., the agreeable thing whose outcome is praiseworthy, as the generality of the address does not apply to it. It is not far-fetched to apply the term "blessing" in that sense to things like removing inhibitors and the realization of causes and conditions as previously mentioned. The apparent [meaning] of what preceded requires that blessings in their essence are not limited, while the verse is apparent in that the human cannot limit them by counting. There is a difference between the two matters, so contemplate. In short, the servant has nothing but incapacity regarding standing upon the limit of His blessings (the Exalted and Almighty), and likewise incapacity regarding giving thanks for that. How excellent is what Abu al-Darda' (may God be pleased with him) said: "Whoever does not recognize the blessing of God (the Exalted) upon him except in his food and drink, his knowledge has diminished and his punishment is present."

Al-Bayhaqi in al-Shu'ab and others narrated from Sulayman al-Taymi that he said: "God (the Exalted) blessed the servants according to His capacity (the Exalted), and He charged them with gratitude according to their capacity." From Talq bin Habib, he said: "The right of God (the Exalted) is too heavy for the servants to fulfill, and the blessings of God (the Exalted) are too many for the servants to compute, but they become repentant in the morning and repentant in the evening." The best of His blessings (majestic is His status) upon His servants, according to what is narrated from Sufyan bin 'Uyaynah, is that He taught them that there is no god but God. Ibn Abi al-Dunya and others narrated from Abu Ayyub al-Qurashi, the freedman of the Banu Hashim, that David (peace be upon him) said: "My Lord, inform me what is the least of Your blessings upon me." God revealed to him: "O David, breathe." So he breathed, and He (blessed and exalted) said: "This is the least of My blessings upon you." It is famously stated that the first of the blessings intended is the delight of existence, and that it is the mine of all perfection, just as non-existence is the mine of all deficiency. This is indicated by the fact that it is a blessing that can hardly be measured against any other in the view of many people, that a person among them would ransom himself with the kingdom of the world if it were in his hand, and he knew that ransoming was possible when pain afflicted him and non-existence was realized.

It is strange that Abu Ali al-Shibli al-Baghdadi—and it is said, Ibn Sina—did not count the existence of man as a blessing upon him, for he said in verses: "A time that scatters lives as the branch scatters leaves / And a world that, whenever a fetus is placed, nourishes it with its calamities like nurses... We are punished in appearance though we were not born / And the young animal is slaughtered in the mother's womb / And we await calamities and misfortunes / And after all, we wait for a threat / And we exit unwillingly as we entered / The exit of the lizard, he drove it out of the burrow / So what gratitude is there for an existence for which the non-existent have no choice? / It would have been a blessing had we been offered a choice before being / So this is a disease that has no cure / And this fracture has no mending." To the end of what he said. By my life, he has belittled the blessing of God upon him and wronged it. (Indeed, man is most unjust), he wrongs the blessing by neglecting its gratitude entirely or by placing it in an inappropriate place, or he wrongs himself by exposing it to deprivation through the abandonment of gratitude, (most ungrateful), severe in disbelief and denial. It is said: "Unjust" in hardship, complaining and panicking; "ungrateful" in blessing, gathering and withholding. The first is more appropriate to what precedes it. The definite article "al" in "man" is for the genus, and the manifestation of the judgment of injustice and its brother is some of those found among its individuals. This includes those who exchanged the blessing of God for disbelief. It is apparent that the sentence is a declarative commencement that occurred as an answer to a potential question, as if it were said: Why did they not observe its right, or why did some deny it? It is said that it is a justification for the infinity of blessings, and that is why it came with the two intensive forms. This is as you see. As for the [verse in] al-Nahl ("And if you count the blessings of God, you will not be able to compute them; indeed, God is Forgiving, Merciful"), Abu Hayyan differentiated between the two endings by saying that here, because it preceded with His saying (the Exalted): "(Have you not seen those who exchanged the blessing of God for disbelief?)" and after it "(And they made for God rivals)," so this was a text regarding the abominable things they committed of injustice and disbelief, it was appropriate to end by blaming the one from whom this occurred, so the verse was concluded with His saying (the Exalted): "(Indeed, man is most unjust, most ungrateful)." As for in al-Nahl, when He mentioned a number of favors and elaborated upon them, and said (majestic is He): "(Is one who creates like one who does not create?)"—meaning the one who brought about these previously mentioned blessings is not like the one who is unable to create—He mentioned His favors (the Exalted) of being characterized by forgiveness and mercy to incite a return to Him (the Exalted), and that He (majestic and exalted) is characterized by these two attributes just as He is characterized by creation. In that, there is an enticement for one who believes in Him (the Exalted) and has transferred from the worship of the created to the worship of the Creator (blessed and exalted) that He will forgive his previous slips and have mercy on him. Also, because when He mentioned that He (the Exalted) is the One who favors man with blessings, He mentioned what occurred from the Bestower and from the genus of the blessed, so there occurred from the Bestower what suits the state of His giving, which is forgiveness and mercy, for without them, He would not have blessed him; and there occurred from the genus of the blessed what suits the state of the blessing upon him, which coincides with it in general, namely injustice and disbelief. It is as if it were said: If injustice occurs from man, God (the Exalted) is Forgiving; or if disbelief occurs, God is Merciful, due to His knowledge of man's incapacity and limitation. What al-Sakhawi reported from Abd al-Rahman bin Zayd bin Aslam that this verse is abrogated by the verse in al-Nahl is not to be paid attention to. End of his words.

There is a discussion regarding this. It is said: He (the Exalted) only concluded the verse of al-Nahl with what He concluded it with due to the elaboration there in mentioning blessings, along with the prior invitation to gratitude explicitly, so that was a locus of suspicion of negligence regarding it. Elaboration in listing blessings is suited by mentioning what relates to that from them, which is forgiveness and mercy, so contemplate. God (the Exalted) is most knowing of the secrets of His Book.

(Alif Lam Ra. A Book We have revealed to you to bring mankind out of darkness into the light): There are possibilities among them. It is said: From the darkness of multiplicity to the light of unity, or from the darkness of the attributes of origin to the light of innate nature (fitrah), or from the darkness of the veils of actions and attributes to the light of the Essence, and this is what is intended by their saying: The pure light, free from the admixture of matter and time. Ja'far said: From the darkness of disbelief to the light of faith, from the darkness of innovation to the light of the Sunnah, and from the darkness of the souls to the light of the hearts. Abu Bakr bin Tahir said: From the darkness of conjecture to the light of truth. Others were said. (By the permission of their Lord): by His facilitation, by the gift of preparedness, and by preparing the causes for the exit into action, (to the path of the Exalted), who vanquishes the darkness with light, (the Praiseworthy), in the perfection of His essence, or by what He gifts to His prepared servants of virtues and sciences, or of remaining existence, or similar to that. (And woe to the disbelievers), the veiled, (from a severe punishment), and it is the punishment of deprivation, (who prefer the worldly life), the sensory and formal, (over the Hereafter), the intellectual and spiritual, (and avert), the seekers, (from the way of God), His path that leads to Him (the Exalted), (and seek it to be crooked), a deviation, despite its straightness. (And We did not send any messenger except in the language of his people to clarify for them): meaning, with speech that suits their state, their preparedness, and the measure of their intellects; otherwise, they would not understand, and clarification would not occur. From Umar (may God be pleased with him): "Speak to people according to what they understand; do you want God (the Exalted) and His Messenger (may God bless him and grant him peace) to be belied?" In the secrets of interpretation, every prophet and truthful one has a terminology in the speech of knowledge and a path of love, which he addresses those he knows among the people of conduct. Based on this, it is not appropriate for the Sufi to address the commoners with the terminology of the Sufis because they do not know it, and addressing them with it is like addressing the Arab in a foreign language or the foreigner in Arabic. The source of the deviation of many people looking into the books of the community is their ignorance of their terminologies. It is not appropriate for the ignorant of that to look into them, because they take him by the hand to clear disbelief; rather, they cause him to fall into a pit of disbelief—the disbelief of Abu Jahl is faith in comparison to it. From here issued the sultanic order, as the Sharia is cared for, forbidding the study of the books of the Great Shaykh (may his secret be sanctified) and those who have entered into his path. (So God lets go astray whom He wills), his straying, due to the disappearance of his preparedness through dark states and their firmness, and false beliefs and their stability, (and He guides whom He wills), His guidance, from among those who remained upon their preparedness or in whom those states and beliefs have not become firm. (And We certainly sent Moses with Our signs, "Bring out your people from darkness into the light and remind them of the days of God"): these are the days of His connection (the Exalted), when He revealed to His servants the veils of Lordship in a sacred presence and brought them close to His presence and favored them with the deliciousness of His address: "Rain to them and their sweetness, their goodness and their splendor, days when longing did not enter between the branch and its bark." How beautiful is what was said: "There were nights for us in Iraq, we stole them from the uncertainty of time / We made them a history for the nights and a title for joy and hopes." He ordered him (peace be upon him) to remind them of that so their longing would be stirred and their passion would take them toward the Beloved. It has been said: "Remind, for reminding causes longing, and the possessor of passion yearns / And whoever is attached to love, it befalls him." It is permissible that what is intended by the days of God (the Exalted) are the days of His manifestation (majestic is His majesty) with the attribute of Majesty, and reminding them of that so they would fear and comply. (Indeed in that are signs for every patient, grateful one): meaning, for every believer with the unseen faith. Patience and gratitude, according to what is said, are two stations for the traveler before arrival. (And when your Lord proclaimed: If you are grateful, I will surely increase you). Al-Jawzjani said: Meaning, if you are grateful for the favor, I will increase you in knowledge; if you are grateful for knowledge, I will increase you in connection; if you are grateful for connection, I will increase you in closeness; and if you are grateful for closeness, I will increase you in intimacy. All of that is encompassed by what is said: "If you are grateful for a blessing, I will increase you in a blessing better than it." Gratitude has ranks, and the highest of its ranks is the acknowledgement of incapacity toward it. In some traditions, David (peace be upon him) said: "O Lord, how can I thank You while gratitude is from Your favors?" God revealed to him: "Now you have thanked Me, O David." Hamdun said: "Gratitude for the blessing is to see yourself as a parasite in it."

(Their messengers said, "Is there doubt about God?"): meaning, that He (the Exalted) is beyond doubt, because He is the Manifest in the horizons and in the souls. (Creator of the heavens and the earth), their Finder and their Manifestor from the hiding of non-existence. (He invites you to forgive you of your sins), to veil with His light (the Exalted) the darkness of the veils of your attributes, so you will not doubt Him at the clarity of certainty, (and delays you to a specified term), to an end that your preparedness requires of happiness. (They said, "You are not but men like us"): that prevented them from following the messengers (peace be upon them). (Their messengers said to them, "We are not but men like you, but God favors whom He wills of His servants"): they conceded to them the participation in the genus and made the cause for their specialization with prophethood what God (the Exalted) has favored them with, which qualifies them for that. Often, deniers say regarding the masters of the shaykhs like what these disbelievers said regarding their messengers, and the answer is like this answer. (And it was not for us to bring you any evidence except by permission of God): an answer to their saying: "(Then bring us clear evidence)." Something similar is said to the deniers who ask the saint for a miracle out of stubbornness and defiance. (And upon God let the believers rely): because faith requires reliance, which is the sinking under the occurrences. Some interpreted it as casting the heart into Lordship and the body into servitude. So the reliant one does not want except what God wants. From here it is said that the perfect one does not love to show miracles. There is detail on the issue among them. (And they will appear before God all together): some mentioned that the appearance is multiple: an appearance at the minor resurrection with the death of the body, an appearance at the middle resurrection with the voluntary death, which is the exit from the veil of the attributes of the soul to the expanse of the heart, and an appearance at the major resurrection, which is the exit from the veil of selfhood to the space of true unity. And the occurrence of the debate between the weak and the arrogant, pointed to by His saying (the Exalted): "(And the weak will say to those who were arrogant)..." etc., is by the existence of the Guided One (Mahdi) standing with the truth, the differentiator between the people of Paradise and the Fire at the judgment of the divine command with the salvation of the happy and the ruin of the wretched. They interpreted the devil as the illusion, and they sometimes interpret it in some places as the soul that incites to evil. The speech attributed to it in the verse is upon the appearance of the authority of truth. Some carried the devil here to the devil known to the people of the Sharia and mentioned that His saying: "(So do not blame me, but blame yourselves)" is evidence of his persistence in polytheism, as he saw the other in the middle, and there is nothing but God (the Exalted). To this, the speech of al-Wasiti points where he said: "Whoever blames himself has associated partners [with God]." This is contradicted by the saying of Muhammad bin Hamid: "The soul is the locus of every blame, so whoever does not blame himself constantly and is pleased with it in any state of affairs has destroyed it." This is rejected by what is authentically reported in the Sacred Hadith: "O My servants, it is only your deeds I compute for you; so whoever finds good, let him praise God, and whoever finds other than that, let him not blame anyone but himself." So contemplate. (And those who believed and did righteous deeds will be admitted to gardens beneath which rivers flow, abiding eternally therein by the permission of their Lord. Their greeting therein will be, "Peace."): He did not mention who greets them. They mentioned that among them are those whom their Lord greets, and they are the people of purity and closeness; among them are those whom the angels greet, and they are the people of obedience and ranks. How sweet is the greeting of the Beloved upon His lover and how delightful it is to his heart: "They indicated by greeting, so we became generous with souls flowing from the tear ducts, and the name is tears."

(Have you not considered how God presents an example, [making] a good word like a good tree, its root is firmly fixed and its branch [high] in the sky? It produces its fruit all the time by permission of its Lord): an indication, as it is said, to the word of unity which the Truth has planted in the land of the gardens of souls. He (the Exalted) made its root there firm by facilitation, its branch in the sky of closeness, its irrigation from the streams of providence, its trunk knowledge, its branches love, its leaves longing, and its guardian protection. It produces its fruit in all breaths from the subtleties of servitude and the recognition of the lights of Lordship. Some said: The good word is the good soul, its root is firm with tranquility and the firmness of belief with evidence, and its branch is in the sky of the spirit, producing its fruit from the fruits of knowledge, wisdom, and realities at every time by His facilitation (the Exalted). (And the example of a bad word is like a bad tree, uprooted from the surface of the earth, not having any stability): an indication to the word of disbelief or the bad soul. Ja'far al-Sadiq (may God be pleased with him) said: The bad tree is desires, its land is the souls, its water is hope, its leaves are laziness, its fruits are sins, and its end is the Fire. (God keeps firm those who believe with the firm word in the worldly life and in the Hereafter). Al-Sadiq (may God be pleased with him) said: He keeps them firm in the worldly life upon faith and in the Hereafter upon the truthfulness of the answer to the All-Merciful. Some made the firm word His (the Exalted) word and His eternal judgment; meaning, He keeps them firm upon what contains their reverence and honor in the two abodes, as He decreed that in pre-eternity, and His decree (the Exalted) is firm, which does not change or alter. (And God lets go astray the wrongdoers), in the two lives, due to the poorness of their preparedness, (who exchanged the blessing of God), from the original guidance and the innate light, (for disbelief), veiling and straying, (and settled their people), those who followed them and emulated them in that, (in the home of ruin), ruin and deprivation, (and made for God rivals), from the goods of the worldly life and its delights which they love like the love of God (the Exalted), (to let go astray from His way), everyone who looked at that and turned toward it. (God is the One who created the heavens), meaning the heavens of the souls, (and the earth), meaning the earth of the bodies, (and sent down from the sky), meaning the sky of the world of holiness, (water), and it is the water of knowledge, (so He produced thereby), from the earth of the soul, (from the fruits), and they are the fruits of wisdom and virtues, (as provision for you), in the piety of the heart through them. (And He subjected for you the ships), meaning the ships of the intellects, (to sail through the sea), meaning the sea of His bounties and the secrets of His creatures which indicate His greatness (the Exalted). (And He subjected for you the rivers), meaning the rivers of knowledge that lead you to that great sea. (And He subjected for you the sun), the sun of the spirit, (and the moon), the moon of the heart, (continually rotating), in traveling by unveiling and witnessing. (And He subjected for you the night), the night of the darkness of the attributes of the soul, (and the day), the day of the light of the spirit, for seeking provision, the Hereafter, rest, and illumination. (And He gave you from all that you asked of Him), by the language of preparedness, for the one who asks by that is not denied. (And if you count the blessing of God), the previous and the subsequent, (you will not be able to compute them), due to their infinity. (Indeed, man is most unjust), he diminishes the right of God (the Exalted) or the right of himself by invalidating the preparedness, or he places the light of preparedness in the darkness of nature and the matter of persistence in the locus of annihilation, (most ungrateful), for those blessings which cannot be computed, due to his heedlessness of the One who blessed him with them. It is said: Man is most unjust to himself, as he thinks his gratitude matches the blessings of God (the Exalted), most ungrateful, veiled from seeing the favor upon him in the beginning and the end. We ask God (the Exalted) to facilitate for us what He loves and is pleased with, and to honor us with guidance and providence.