Tafsir of Ta-Ha 20:124

The generalization is prioritized based on the presence of evidence supporting it, which is His saying (Exalted is He): "And whoever turns away from My remembrance," based on the interpretation of "remembrance" as the Quran, as well as His saying thereafter: "And just like that, Our signs came to you, and you forgot them." The preferred view is generalization, meaning that "remembrance" applies to the Quran and all other divine scriptures, and likewise, "signs" may mean proofs in an absolute sense. "Remembrance" has also been interpreted here as "guidance," because it is the cause of remembering Him (Exalted is He) and worshipping Him (Sublime is He); thus, the effect (remembrance) is mentioned while the cause is intended due to its occurrence in a context of opposition. What is in the report [Hadith] is of the type that specifies the ruling for the most noble of individuals, which is implied by the general sense, out of concern for its status. Furthermore, restricting "he will not go astray" to [our interpretation of] "in the world," and "he will not be miserable" to "in the Hereafter," is what the report necessitates.

Some have permitted the reverse: that he will not go astray from the path to Paradise in the Hereafter, and will not suffer in the matter of livelihood in the world. They placed the first in opposition to "And We will gather him on the Day of Resurrection blind," and the second in opposition to "For indeed, he has a straitened livelihood." They further argued that the state of the Hereafter is mentioned before the state of the world regarding the guided because their focus is on their Hereafter, unlike their opposites, whose vision is confined to their world. It is not hidden that what the reports [Athar] have spoken of is the former, and some mentioned that it is the most immediate [interpretation]. Yes, what was mentioned is not devoid of merit, even if it is said that it involves affectation. The Imam permitted the possibility that both matters refer to the Hereafter, or both to the world, stating that the intended meaning for the latter is: he will not go astray in religion and will not be miserable because of religion, not absolutely; for if one blessed with guidance suffers misery in the world, it is because of the Hereafter, and that does no harm. However, what is relied upon is what you have heard.

The meaning of "turning away from the remembrance" is the lack of following. It is as if it were said: "And whoever does not follow..." "For indeed, he has a straitened (Dank) livelihood," meaning restricted and severe. It is the verbal noun of Dank, as is Danakah; thus, it describes the masculine, feminine, singular, dual, and plural. It has been described here in the feminine form [Danka] based on its root. Al-Hasan read it as "Danka" with a feminine alif, like Kurra, with imalah (inclining the vowel), and this feminine form is based on interpreting it as an adjective. From Ibn Abbas, it is interpreted as "severe in every respect," and he cited the poet’s verse: And the horses have reached us in a narrow (Dank) ravine... its flanks, severe in the vanguard. The most immediate interpretation is that this livelihood is for him in the world, and this has been narrated from Ata and Ibn Jubayr. The reason for the straitened livelihood of the disbeliever who turns away in this world is that he is intensely greedy for the world, reckless in seeking its increase, fearful of its loss, and dominated by stinginess toward it, as he has no goals other than it, unlike the believer who seeks the Hereafter.

It is said that Dank is an obstacle from that in which there is no good, and describing the disbeliever's livelihood as such is because it is a disaster for him and an increase in his punishment on the Day of Resurrection, as indicated by the verses. This is taken from what Ibn Abi Hatim recorded from Ibn Abbas, who said regarding this verse: "It means every wealth I give to a servant of Mine, whether little or much, if he does not fear Me concerning it, then there is no good in it, and that is the Dank in livelihood." It is also said that the meaning of it being Dank is that it is the cause of Dank on the Day of Resurrection, so describing it as Dank is for hyperbole; it is as if it were the Dank itself, just as it is said of a ruler, "Death is between his lips," intending by death that which causes death, such as an order for execution and the like. From Ikrimah and Malik bin Dinar, there is that which suggests this.

Some said that this livelihood occurs for him in the grave, where he is punished. This has been narrated by a group from Ibn Masud, Abu Said al-Khudri, Abu Salih, al-Rabi, al-Suddi, and Mujahid. In al-Bahr, it is from Ibn Abbas that the verse was revealed concerning al-Aswad bin Abd al-Asad al-Makhzumi, and the meaning is the pressure of the grave until his ribs are intertwined. This has also been narrated as marfu (attributed to the Prophet): Ibn Abi al-Dunya recorded in Dhikr al-Mawt, as did al-Hakim al-Tirmidhi, Abu Yala, Ibn Jarir, Ibn al-Mundhir, Ibn Abi Hatim, Ibn Hibban, and Ibn Mardawayh from Abu Hurairah, who said: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) said: "The believer in his grave is in a green meadow; his grave is widened for him seventy cubits and illuminated until it is like the moon on a full-moon night. Do you know concerning what this was revealed: 'For indeed, he has a straitened livelihood'?" They said: "Allah and His Messenger know best." He said: "The punishment of the disbeliever in his grave; ninety-nine dragons are unleashed upon him. Do you know what a dragon is? Ninety-nine snakes, each snake having seven heads, scratching him, biting him, and blowing into his body until the day they are resurrected."

Abd al-Razzaq, Said bin Mansur, Musaddad in his Musnad, Abd bin Hamid, al-Hakim (who authenticated it), al-Bayhaqi in Kitab Adhab al-Qabr, and a group narrated from Abu Said, who said: The Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) said regarding His saying: "A straitened livelihood": "It is the punishment of the grave." The wording of Abd al-Razzaq is: "His grave is constricted for him until his ribs are intertwined," and the wording of Ibn Abi Hatim is: "The pressure of the grave," in addition to other things. Those who say that "the world" refers to what is before the Major Resurrection say: "What happens after death is occurring in the world, just like what happens before death."

Some said: "It will be on the Day of Resurrection in Hell." Ibn Abi Shaybah and Ibn al-Mundhir recorded this from al-Hasan. Ibn Abi Hatim recorded from Ibn Zayd, who said: "The straitened livelihood is in the Fire, consisting of thorns, Zaqqum, Ghislin, and Dari’; there is no livelihood in the grave nor in the world, and there is no life or livelihood except in the Hereafter." Perhaps the previous reports did not reach this narrator, or were not authentic in his view. You know that if they are authentic, there is no room to turn away from what they indicate; if they are not authentic, it would have been better to say that it is in the world, not the Hereafter, because of the apparent context of His saying (Exalted is He): "And We will gather him..." etc., after the reports that he has a straitened livelihood.

A group among them, including Aban bin Taghlib, read "Wa-nahshuruhu" with the ra quiescent; this is explained as a reduction or as being majzum (jussive) due to being a conjunction to the place of "For indeed he has...", because it is the answer to the conditional, as if it were said: "Whoever turns away from My remembrance, he will have a straitened livelihood, and We will gather him..." Ibn Khalawayh reported from Aban that he read "Wa-nahshuhu" with the ha quiescent, treating the connection like a pause. In al-Bahr, it is better to explain this according to the dialect of Banu Kilab and Uqayl, for they make such has quiescent; it has been read: "Li-rabbihi la-kanud" (for his Lord, he is ungrateful) with the ha quiescent. A group read "Wa-yahshuruhu" with the ya. "On the Day of Resurrection blind." The apparent meaning is that he lacks sight, as in His saying: "And We will gather them on the Day of Resurrection on their faces, blind, mute, and deaf."