Tafsir of An-Naml 27:16

"And Solomon inherited David" (i.e., he succeeded him in prophethood and kingship, becoming both a prophet and a king immediately after the death of his father, David, peace be upon them both. His inheriting from him is a metaphor for his succession in the aforementioned matters after his death. It has been said: the intended meaning is inheriting prophethood only. It has also been said: inheriting kingship only. From Al-Hasan—attributed by Al-Tabarsi to the Imams of the Household (Ahl al-Bayt)—it is that it refers to the inheritance of wealth. This is countered by the authentic statement: "We, the company of prophets, do not leave behind an inheritance." This was mentioned by the Truthful One [Abu Bakr] and the Distinguisher [Umar], may Allah be pleased with them, in the presence of all the Companions—who were those who would not fear, for the sake of Allah, the blame of any critic—and none of them denied it to them.

Abu Dawood and Al-Tirmidhi recorded from Abu al-Darda that he said: I heard the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, say: "Indeed, the scholars are the heirs of the prophets, and the prophets did not bequeath a dinar or a dirham, but they bequeathed knowledge; so whoever takes it has taken a bountiful share." Muhammad ibn Ya'qub al-Razi narrated in Al-Kafi from Abu al-Bakhtari, from Abdullah Ja'far al-Sadiq, that he also said this. Among what indicates that this inheritance is not the inheritance of wealth is what Al-Kulayni narrated from Abu Abd Allah that "Solomon inherited David, and Muhammad inherited Solomon, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him." Furthermore, the inheritance of wealth would not be specific to Solomon, peace be upon him, for David had several children other than him, as Al-Kulayni also narrated from him, and others mentioned that he, peace be upon him, passed away leaving nineteen sons. Thus, informing [people] of this regarding Solomon holds no significant benefit. If the intention were to inform of what is implied by it—that Solomon remained after David—then what would necessitate turning away from that which conveys it clearly, such as: "And Solomon said after the death of his father, David: 'O people...'"?

Moreover, the context and the sequence forbid that the intended meaning be the inheritance of wealth, as is not hidden from any fair-minded person. It appears that the narration from Al-Hasan is not established, and likewise the narration from the Imams of the Household, may Allah be pleased with them; for you have heard in the narration of Al-Kulayni from al-Sadiq, may Allah be pleased with him, that which contradicts its validity. The inheritance of things other than wealth is common in the Noble Quran, for the Almighty has said: "Then We caused to inherit the Book," and the Glorified has said: "And there succeeded them a generation who inherited the Book." The difference in context does not detract from this; so understand.

He was twelve or thirteen years old on the day David, peace be upon them both, died. David had bequeathed the kingdom to him; so when he died, he ruled while he was of that age. It is said that David, peace be upon him, appointed him over the Children of Israel during his lifetime, as narrated in Al-Bahr.

"And he said" (proclaiming Allah’s favor and magnifying its magnitude, and inviting people to believe in his prophethood by mentioning the blinding miracles he was given, not out of boastfulness): "O people, we have been taught the speech of the birds" (i.e., their utterance. In common usage, this is every word used to express what is in the mind, whether singular or compound. It is sometimes applied to every sound emitted as an explicit metaphor, and it is permissible to consider it a comparison of the sound-maker to a human, with a metonymic metaphor and the attribution of speech being for the sake of imagery). It is said: It is also permissible to intend by "speech" absolute sound, as an absolute metonymy, but that is not strong.

The three aspects are possible in the statement: "Nothing prevented the drinking from it, except that a pigeon spoke in the branches of a tree with a melody." It is sometimes used for congruity, as in their saying: "The speaker and the silent one" for animals and inanimate objects. What he, peace be upon him, learned of the speech of birds is, as it is said, what they understand from one another of their meanings and intentions. It is narrated that he, peace be upon him, passed by a nightingale on a tree moving its head and swaying its tail, so he said to his companions: "Do you know what it says?" They said: "Allah and His Prophet know best." He said: "It says: 'I have eaten half a fruit; the world is a ruin.'" A sandgrouse called out, and he informed them that it says: "I wish this creation were not created." A peacock called out, and he said: "It says: 'As you judge, you shall be judged.'" A hoopoe called out, and he said: "It says: 'Seek the forgiveness of Allah, O sinners.'" A plover called out, and he said: "It says: 'Every living thing dies, and everything new wears out.'" A swallow called out, and he said: "It says: 'Send ahead good and you shall find it.'" A vulture called out, and he said: "It says: 'Glory be to my Lord, the Most High, filling His heaven and His earth.'" A turtledove called out, and he reported that it says: "Glory be to my Lord, the Most High." The kite said: "It says: 'Everything is perishing except Allah.'" The grouse says: "Whoever is silent is safe." The parrot says: "Woe to him whose concern is the world." The rooster says: "Remember Allah, O heedless ones." The eagle says: "O son of Adam, live as you wish, your end is death." The falcon says: "In distance from people is solace." The frog says: "Glory be to my Lord, the Holy." The lark says: "O Allah, curse the one who hates Muhammad and the family of Muhammad." The starling says: "O Allah, I ask You for the sustenance of the day, day by day, O Provider." And the partridge says: "The Most Merciful is established over the Throne."

The classification of the frog into the category of birds is not appropriate, and despite this, Allah knows best the authenticity of this account. It is said: The birds used to speak to him, peace be upon him, as a miracle for him, similar to what occurred with the hoopoe in the coming story. It is said: He, peace be upon him, knew what the birds intended in their sounds in all their states, so he understood their glorification, their preaching, what they addressed him with, and what they addressed one another with. In short, he learned from their speech what a human learns from the speech of their own kind. It is not considered far-fetched that birds might have rational souls and specific languages through which they convey their intentions, just as in the human species, though human souls are stronger and more perfect. It is not far-fetched that they vary just as human souls vary, as argued by those who hold this view. It is permissible for Allah to teach the speech of birds to whom He wills among His servants, and this is not exclusive to the prophets, peace be upon them. What we mentioned applies to all other animals. Some people held that Solomon, peace be upon him, also knew the speech of plants, but the birds were specified because they were an army of his soldiers needed for shading from the sun and for dispatching in various matters. It is not hidden that the verse does not prove this, so claiming it requires an authentic report. Some imagined that he also knew the speech of plants, so he would pass by a tree and it would tell him of its benefits and harms; I have not found an authentic report for this. Many sages know the properties of plants through their color, appearance, taste, and so on, and do not need them to speak in the language of words to know them.

The pronoun in "we have been taught" and "we have been given" is said to refer to him and his father, peace be upon them—this is contrary to the apparent meaning, and it is better that it refers to him, peace be upon him. Since he was a king who was obeyed, he addressed his subjects according to the custom of kings to observe the rules of policy—to prepare for what is desired from the subjects in terms of obedience and submission in commands and prohibitions. This was not arrogance or haughtiness on his part, peace be upon him, for observing the rules of policy to attain that which brings the pleasure of Allah is among the important matters. Our Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, ordered Al-Abbas to detain Abu Sufyan until the battalions passed by him on the day of the Conquest for this reason.

"Everything" originally denotes encompassing, but it is often used for exaggeration, such as saying: "Such-and-such person is sought by everyone and knows everything." This is an allusion or a well-known metaphor. This meaning is what is intended here if "of" (min) is considered connective (as an explanation), which is appropriate for the context of speaking of blessings. If it is not considered connective, it remains in its original sense, as it is said. You know that this only succeeds if the "all" (kull) refers to a collective whole, and it is as you see.

In Al-Bahr, it is said that the Almighty’s statement "we have been taught the speech of the birds" is an indication of prophethood, and His saying "and we have been given of everything" is an indication of kingship; and the two sentences are like an explanation of the inheritance. From Muqatil, it is that what he was given refers to prophethood, kingship, the subjugation of jinn, humans, devils, and the wind. From Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with them, it is what matters to him, peace be upon him, regarding the affairs of this world and the Hereafter. It is also said: It is what a king needs of war equipment and other things.

"Indeed, this" (a reference to what was mentioned of teaching and giving) "is the favor and the grace from Allah" (the clear) "obvious" (which is not hidden from anyone). Or, that this favor which I have been given is the "clear favor," and thus it is from his speech, peace be upon him, as an appended remark to what preceded it to indicate that he only said what he said by way of gratitude, just as the Prophet, peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, said: "I am the master of the children of Adam, and no boast," with the ra unpointed at the end, as in the famous narration—meaning, I say this statement in gratitude, not out of boastfulness. Close to this meaning is "and no boast," with a za, as in the less famous narration.