Surah Al-Isra 17:72
ﲡ ﲢ ﲣ ﲤ ﲥ ﲦ ﲧ ﲨ ﲩ ﲪ ﲫ
And whoever is blind in this [life] will be blind in the Hereafter and more astray in way.
Tafsir of Al-Isra 17:72
Tafsir
Ruh al-Ma'ani
Verse range: 17:72
- (And whoever is) from among the aforementioned invited ones (in this) world—in which He bestowed upon them the honor and superiority that He did—(blind), not guided to the path of his salvation through contemplation of what his Lord, the Exalted in His Majesty, has bestowed upon him, nor by fulfilling His rights, nor by thanking Him (Glorified be His Majestic Status) as is His due through faith and action, (then he in the Hereafter)—which is expressed as "the day We shall call"—(is blind), also not guided to that which would save him, nor will he attain anything that would benefit him. For the first blindness necessitates the second, and in both places, it is a metaphor derived from the affliction of physical blindness.
- It has been suggested that the second "blind" (a'ma) is an elative noun (af'al tafdil) derived from "blindness of insight" ('ama al-basira), which is one of the internal defects from which it is not permissible to form an elative noun, such as "stupid" (ahmaq) or "foolish" (ablah). Based on this, Abu Amr’s imāla (inclination of the vowel) of the first and his tafkhīm (full-sounding) of the second are explained. It is shown that the alif in the first is at the end of the word, as you can see, and imāla is appropriate at word endings. In the second instance, assuming it is an elative noun, it is as if it were in the middle of the word, because the mentioned af'al followed by lam or mudaf (genitive construct) is not used without the preposition min (from) for the one being compared against, whether expressed or implied. With it, it is treated as a single word, and imāla is neither appropriate nor common in it as it is in word-final positions. Abu Ali has stated this in al-Hujja, so the imāla in "closer than that" (adna min dhalika) and "the disbelievers" (wa al-kafirīn) is not an objection. Hamzah, al-Kisa'i, and Abu Bakr perform imāla on the word al-a'ma in both places, and there is no need to say that they do not view it as an elative noun or that the imāla in what they consider as such is for the sake of rhyme (mushākala).
- Some researchers said: Since the intention was to differentiate the two meanings of "blind" in the two places, the words were differentiated by imāla and tafkhīm. The second was given tafkhīm because that which indicates an increase in meaning is more deserving of tafkhīm, while the imāla is not as appropriate in the second as it is in the first. It should not be thought that he forbids imāla, rather he merely says that tafkhīm is more appropriate.
- Some have said: If "blind" refers to both physical sight and insight in reality, there is no problem. If it is used literally for the first and metaphorically for the second, there is a problem, unless it is said that it was annexed to that which it was originally meant for. Others have forbidden this because the cause—the confounding of description—exists therein. Reflect on this. This interpretation is reinforced by His saying: (and even more astray in the way) than he was in the world, due to the loss of potential and the impossibility of making up for what has passed. This is precisely the one who is given his book in his left hand, as indicated by the state of the group preceding him. Perhaps the shift to this title is to signify the necessitating cause, as in His saying: (As for him who was among the deniers) after His saying: (As for him who was among the people of the right hand), and to hint at the cause of the state of the first group. This belongs to the category of ihtibāk (where elements are omitted and implied), as the consequence is mentioned in one side and the cause in the other, and each refers to the other by what is mentioned, relying on the testimony of the intellect. Ibn al-Munir makes it a counterpart to the first category, in the sense that whoever is given his book in his right hand is the one who perceives it and reads it, while whoever was blind in the world—not perceiving himself nor looking into his destination—is likewise in the Hereafter, not perceiving his book, but rather blind to it, or even more blind than he was in the world, according to the two interpretations; though this is contrary to the apparent meaning.
- It also suggests that whoever was blind in the world regarding the path to his salvation will not read his book in the Hereafter, which is contrary to what is explicitly stated in verses and hadith. Yes, there is a difference between the two readings. Perhaps the verse implies a difference even if it does not establish the comparison as mentioned. This is what it is. From Abu Muslim, it is narrated that the second "blind" means blind in the eye, not metaphorically; meaning whoever was blind in the heart in the world will be blind in the eye in the Hereafter—that is, he will be resurrected as such as a punishment for his error in the world. This is like His saying: (And We shall gather him on the Day of Resurrection blind). He interpreted (So your sight today is sharp) as referring to knowledge and awareness. Also from him is the permission to interpret "blindness" as an expression of the excessive grief that befalls him, as if it were said: whoever was astray in the world will be severely grieved in the Hereafter, for one who sees nothing but what pains him and a blind person are the same. This is like saying: "so-and-so is hot-eyed." And it is what it is.
- It was said that this is a reference to the blessings mentioned before, meaning: whoever was blind—not perceiving these blessings—having witnessed them, is in the state of the Hereafter, which he has not seen, even more blind and more astray in the way. This is supported by what al-Firyabi and Ibn Abi Hatim narrated from Ikrimah, who said: A group from Yemen came to Ibn Abbas, and a man among them asked: "What do you say about His saying: And whoever is blind in this [world] is in the Hereafter blind?" Ibn Abbas replied: "You have not grasped the question. Read what comes before it: It is He who drives the ships for you in the sea... until he reached: And We have preferred them over many of those We created with a [definite] preference." Then he said: "Whoever was blind to these blessings which he saw and witnessed is, regarding the matter of the Hereafter—which he has not seen or witnessed—even more blind and more astray in the way." In another narration, which Ibn Abi Hatim and Abu al-Shaykh extracted in al-'Azama through al-Dahhak, he said regarding the verse: "Allah says: whoever was blind in the world to what he saw of the power of Him who created the heaven, the earth, the mountains, the seas, people, beasts, and the like, is, regarding what has been described to him of the Hereafter, blind and more astray in the way." He means, "Is there any greater proof?" Abu al-Shaykh narrated something similar from Qatadah. It is not hidden that both interpretations are very far-fetched, even if the second is less so than the first. I do not think the Scholar said that. And Allah the Exalted knows best.