Tafsir of An-Naml 27:83

This is a summary description of the state of the deniers at the onset of the Hour, following the mention of some of its precursors. "The day" (Yawm) is in the accusative case due to an implied verb, addressed to our Prophet (may Allah exalt him and grant him peace), meaning: "Remember the day." The directive to remember a time, despite the intent being to recall the events that occur within it, has had its secret explained repeatedly.

The intent of this gathering is the gathering for reproach and punishment, subsequent to the total, comprehensive gathering of all creation, which is mentioned later in His saying: "And the day the Trumpet will be blown..." and so on. Perhaps the reason this is presented before the other, despite the chronological order requiring the reverse, is to signify that each of the conditions described in both is a massive catastrophe and an overwhelming calamity, worthy of being remembered on its own. If the chronological order were observed, one might mistakenly assume that the whole is a single calamity that has been commanded to be remembered, as occurred in Surah Al-Baqarah. Moreover, since it is fitting to mention after "those who do not believe in Our verses"—meaning they deny them—that which involves reproach and punishment from Him (Exalted is He) for that denial, this sequence is adopted.

The second "min" (from) is explanatory (bayaniyyah), brought to explain "a troop" (fawjan). The first "min" is partitive (tab'idiyyah), because every nation is divided into believers and deniers; meaning: "And the day We gather from every nation—from the nations of the Prophets (peace be upon them) or from every century of the centuries—a large group that denied Our verses, so they will be restrained (yūza'ūn)." This means the first of them are held back for the last of them until they catch up and are gathered at the station of reproach and interrogation. This contains an indication of their great number and the distance between their extremes, which is self-evident.

It is said that the second "min" is also partitive like the first, and "troop" refers to a group of the leaders followed by the disbelievers. It is narrated from Ibn Abbas that it refers to Abu Jahl, Al-Walid ibn al-Mughirah, and Shaibah ibn Rabi'ah; they are driven before the people of Makkah, and thus the leaders of all other nations are gathered before them into the Fire.

This verse is among those most famously cited by the Imami [Shi'a] to argue for the "Raj'ah" (the Return). Al-Tabarsi stated in his commentary Majma' al-Bayan: "Those who hold this view among the Imamis have argued for the validity of the Raj'ah from this verse, stating: The inclusion of 'min' (from) in the speech necessitates partitivity (tab'id), thereby proving that some people are gathered, not others. This is not the condition of the Day of Resurrection, about which the Almighty says: '...and We gathered them and did not leave behind any of them.' Reports have been corroborated from the Imams of guidance from the family of Muhammad (may Allah exalt him and grant him peace) that Allah will bring back, upon the rise of the Mahdi, a people from those who passed away before from His allies (Awliya) and his followers (Shi'a), so that they may win the reward of supporting and aiding him, and rejoice in the appearance of his state. He will also bring back a group of his enemies to take vengeance upon them, and they shall receive some of the punishment they deserve through killing at the hands of his followers, or through the humiliation and disgrace they witness in the loftiness of his word."

No rational person doubts that this is within the power of Allah and not impossible in itself. Allah has done such things in past nations, and the Quran has spoken of this in several places, such as the story of Uzair (peace be upon him) and others. It is authentically narrated from the Prophet (may Allah exalt him and grant him peace) that he said: "Everything that was in the Children of Israel will happen in my Ummah, step by step, and feather by feather, even if one of them entered a lizard's hole, you would enter it."

A group of the Imamis have interpreted the reports regarding the Raj'ah as the return of the state, power, and authority, rather than the return of individuals and the resurrection of the dead. They interpreted the reports on this matter because they thought the Raj'ah contradicts the concept of Taklif (religious accountability). This is not the case, for there is nothing in it that compels one to do the obligatory or refrain from the prohibited; Taklif remains valid with it, just as it remains valid with the appearance of dazzling miracles and overwhelming signs, such as the parting of the sea, the turning of the staff into a serpent, and the like. Furthermore, the Raj'ah has not been established by the literal meanings of transmitted reports, so interpretation is applicable to them. The reliance in this is only upon the consensus (Ijma') of the Imami Shi'a, even if the reports support and bolster it.

I say: The first to speak of the Raj'ah was Abdullah ibn Saba', but he restricted it to the Prophet (may Allah exalt him and grant him peace). Jabir al-Ju'fi followed him at the beginning of the second century, also speaking of the return of the Commander [Ali] (may Allah honor his face), but he did not specify a time for it. When the third century arrived, its people among the Imamis established the return of all the Imams and their enemies, and they specified for this the time of the appearance of the Mahdi, citing what they narrated from the Imams of the Ahl al-Bayt. The Zaydiyyah, as a whole, vehemently deny this claim and have refuted it in their books in a comprehensive manner, using narrations from the Imams of the Ahl al-Bayt that contradict the reports of the Imamis. The verses mentioned here do not indicate the Raj'ah as they claim, and I do not think any of them even claim it indicates that; rather, the most they say is that it indicates the return of the deniers or their leaders, thus it would indicate the origin and validity of the Raj'ah, not the Raj'ah in the manner they describe. Al-Tabarsi’s words contain an allusion to this.

You know that it is hardly correct to intend the return to the world (dunya) from the verse, because it indicates that the mentioned gathering is for the reproach and scolding of the deniers by His (Exalted is He) side. Rather, the appearance of what follows implies that He (Exalted is He) Himself reproaches and scolds them for their denial of His verses. What is known from the verses for such an event is the Day of Resurrection. Moreover, the verses indicate that punishment befalls them and that they are occupied by it, away from answering. They do not indicate their death and return to what is more severe and lasting—which is the punishment of the Hereafter, as necessitated by the gravity of their crime. Thus, the apparent meaning is the continuation of their life and punishment after this gathering, and this is only possible if the gathering is on the Day of Resurrection.

It may also be said: Among the factors that prevent the interpretation of this gathering as the Raj'ah is that it would contain a reprieve for them in some sense, as it would cause them to miss the punishment of the Barzakh (interworld), which for the deniers is—in any case—more severe than the punishment of the world; in this is a neglect of what the gravity of the crime necessitates. Furthermore, how can the intent of the Raj'ah be valid when there are verses that forbid it, such as His saying: "My Lord, send me back, that I might do righteousness in that which I left behind. No! It is only a word he is saying; and behind them is a barrier (Barzakh) until the day they are resurrected"? The end of the verse is explicit in the absence of a return absolutely.

That being brought to life after death and the return to the world are matters within the power of the Almighty is a matter on which no two people would clash. However, the discussion is regarding its occurrence. The Sunnis and those who agree with them do not subscribe to it and prevent its intended meaning from the verse, relying in this upon many verses. As for the reports narrated by the Imamis on this subject, the Zaydiyyah have spared us the trouble of refuting them, especially since Al-Tabarsi indicated that they are not proofs and that the reliance is not upon them, but only upon the consensus of the Imamis. You know that the basis for the authority of consensus, according to their choice, is the attainment of certainty regarding the agreement of the Infallible (Ma'sum); yet the Sunni does not attain this certainty regarding their consensus, so it does not constitute a proof against him. Moreover, the Sunni has a consensus that contradicts it: the consensus of his people on the non-occurrence of the Raj'ah, which reveals the position of the Master of the Infallibles (may Allah exalt him and grant him peace). Everything the Imamis say regarding this consensus, the Sunni says the same regarding theirs.

As for what was mentioned, that he (may Allah exalt him and grant him peace) said: "There will be in my Ummah..."—we do not know its authenticity with this wording; rather, the apparent meaning is its lack of authenticity. For there were things in the Children of Israel that no one mentioned would have their like in this Ummah, such as the shaking of the mountain over them when they refused to accept what Allah gave them of the Book, and remaining in the wilderness for forty years when they said to Moses (peace be upon him): "Go, you and your Lord, and fight; indeed, we are sitting here," and the descent of the Manna and Quail upon them, and so on.

In short, the belief in the Raj'ah, according to what the Imamis claim, is something for which no evidence stands, and there are many verses in the Glorious Quran that resist it and are not open to interpretation. It is as if the darkness of their hatred for the Companions (may Allah be pleased with them) stood between them and acquiring knowledge of those verses, so they fell into the errors that they fell into.