Tafsir of Al Imran 3:145

(And it is not for a soul to die except by Allah’s permission) This is an inaugural statement introduced to incite [the believers] toward Jihad and to rebuke those who abandoned it out of fear of death, while simultaneously cutting off the excuses of those who fled due to such fear. It is also permissible that it serves as a consolation for what befell the people upon the death of the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), indicating that he—peace be upon him—is like others, for he does not die except by the permission of Allah Almighty; thus, no one has an excuse to abandon their religion after his death.

The word "soul" (nafs) refers to the entire genus, and restricting it to the Prophet (peace be upon him), as narrated from Ibn Ishaq, is of no substance. Death here is more general than dying a natural death; it includes death by killing, as we shall verify. "Kana" (was/is) is an incomplete verb (nakisah), its subject is "that it dies" (an tamuta), and "for a soul" (linafsin) is connected to a suppressed predicate that acts as its news (khabar). The exception (istithna) is distributive (mufarragh) from the most general of causes.

Abu al-Baqa went on to say that "by Allah's permission" (bi-idhnillah) is the predicate of kana, and "the soul" (al-nafs) is connected to it, with the lam being for clarification (lil-tabyin). It has been reported from some that the prepositional phrase is connected to a suppressed [word], the estimation being "death is for a soul," and "that it dies" (an tamuta) is an explanation of the suppressed word. It is narrated from al-Zajjaj, and similarly from al-Akhfash, that the estimation is "wa ma kana nafsun litamuta" (and no soul would die), then the lam was moved forward. All these opinions are weaker than weak, especially the latter.

The meaning is: death does not occur for any soul whatsoever, absolutely, due to any cause, except by the will of Allah Almighty and His facilitation. "Permission" (idhn) is a metaphor for this, as it is one of its concomitants. The outward structure of the composition indicates that death is one of the acts that one approaches by choice, for it is common to say "it is not for Zayd to do such-and-such" when that action is elective. However, the apparent meaning here is abandoned by treating this as a form of representation (tamthil), where death is portrayed regarding souls in the image of an elective act which one does not approach except by permission.

The intent is the lack of power over it, or by placing the souls' approach to its preliminaries—such as fighting, for instance—in the position of approaching the act itself, to emphasize the realization of the goal. For if it is impossible for death to occur when they approach it or its preliminaries and strive to bring it about, then it is all the more impossible and evident for it to occur when that is absent. In this view, it is permissible to keep "permission" in its literal sense, with its object implied because it is known: the meaning is, by His permission—His permission to the Angel of Death, for he is the one who seizes the soul of every living being, whether human or otherwise, martyr or non-martyr, on land or at sea. It has even been said: he seizes his own soul. Some have excepted the souls of sea martyrs, for Allah Almighty is the one who seizes them without an intermediary, and they cite the Hadith of Juwaybir as evidence, though it is very weak and contains a disconnection in the chain of narrators from al-Dahhak. The Mu'tazila went on to hold that the Angel of Death only seizes the souls of the two heavy [groups: mankind and jinn] and no others. Some innovators said: he seizes everyone except the souls of beasts, for his aides are the ones who seize those. There is no contradiction between [the verses]: (Allah takes the souls at the time of their death), (The Angel of Death will take you), and (Our messengers take him), because attributing it to Him Almighty is by way of true creation and bringing into existence, to the Angel because he is the one directly performing it, and to the messengers because they are his aides who handle the extraction from the nerves, bones, flesh, and veins.

(A book [kitaban]) is a source (masdar) emphasizing its operator, which is derived from the preceding sentence. The meaning is: that permitted death was written as a book. (Deferred/Timed [mu’ajalan]) means: set for a known time, neither advancing nor delaying. It is also said: it means a necessary, irrevocable decree. It is an adjective for "a book." Describing it [as deferred] does not harm the fact that the source is an emphatic one, based on it being known from what preceded; not every description falls outside the scope of emphasis. The hidden aspect in that is to make the source [act as] a description of its type (mubayyin lil-naw'), and this is better than making it purely emphatic and considering "deferred" as a circumstantial qualifier (hal) of "death"—not an adjective—because that is extremely far-fetched. So contemplate this.

It has been recited as (mu’ajalan) with a waw instead of the hamza, following the rule of phonetic softening. The outward appearance of the verse supports the school of the People of Sunnah, who maintain that the killed person is dead by his ajal (allotted time/term), meaning by the time decreed for him. It implies that if he had not been killed, it would have been possible for him to die at that time, and possible for him not to die, without any certainty of extended life nor death in place of killing. For upon the estimation of not being killed, there is no certainty of the existence or absence of the ajal, hence no certainty of death or life. The Mu'tazila differed in this; al-Ka'bi from among them held that the killed is not "dead" because killing is the act of the servant, and death is the act of Allah—meaning His creation and the effect of His attribute—and that the killed has two terms: one is the killing, and the other is [natural] death. He held that if he had not been killed, he would have lived until his ajal which is death. Abu al-Hudhail held that if the killed had not been killed, he would have died inevitably at that [same] time.

The majority of them (the Sunnis) hold that the killer has cut off the ajal of the killed, and that if he had not been killed, he would have lived until a time that is his ajal in which Allah Almighty knew he would die if not for the killing. The dispute between our scholars and the majority is not merely verbal, as the Professor and many of the investigators viewed, saying: if the ajal is the time of the cessation of life in Allah's knowledge, then the killed person is undoubtedly dead by his ajal, with no disagreement from the Mu'tazila, for they do not deny that the killed is dead by the ajal that Allah knew, which is the ajal caused by the killing. And if the cessation of life is restricted as "not resulting from an act of the servant," then there is no disagreement from our scholars, for they say the killed is not dead by an ajal not linked to the servant's act. We say: the essence of the dispute is that the term "killed person's ajal," which is added to him, refers to the time of the cessation of his life such that there is no escape from it, no advancing, and no delaying, according to what Allah Almighty points to: (When their term comes, they cannot delay it an hour, nor can they advance it). The disagreement returns to whether this is realized in the case of the killed person, or if what is known about him is that if he is killed, he dies, and if not killed, he lives. This is how it is in Sharh al-Maqasid. Perhaps the answer is to choose the first option: that the intent is the time of the cessation of life in the knowledge of Allah, but not absolutely; rather, upon what He Almighty knew and decreed by way of certainty. In that case, it serves as a site for disagreement, because it does not necessarily follow from the lack of such realization in the killed—as the Mu'tazila say—that knowledge fails to correspond to the known, for it is possible to know the occurrence of his death by killing while delaying the ajal which cannot be contravened. It is also said: it is possible that the answer is to choose a third option: that which is decreed by way of certainty, for in the framing of the answer, there is no exposure to "knowledge," and "the decreed" is more specific than "the known ajal" absolutely. The difference between this and choosing the first is the consideration of the restriction of "knowledge" in the ajal which is the site of dispute on the choice of the first, and its non-consideration on the choice of the third, even if it is also known in reality. So understand. Then, Abu al-Husayn and those who followed him claim there is a necessity in this issue, as does the majority in the view of some, while according to others, it is a matter of inference.

They argued for their position with the Hadiths stating that some acts of obedience increase one's lifespan, and that if the killed person were dead by his ajal, the killer would not deserve blame or punishment, nor would there be grounds for retaliation or payment of blood money or compensation—like the slaughter of another's sheep—because he would not have cut off an ajal nor caused death by his act. They also argued that perhaps thousands are killed in a great battle, and custom dictates the impossibility of their deaths all occurring at that moment by their [natural] ajals. Abu al-Hudhail held onto the idea that if the killed did not die, the killer would be cutting off an ajal that Allah Almighty decreed and changing a matter He knew, which is impossible. Al-Ka'bi held onto the saying of Allah Almighty: (So if he dies or is killed), where He made "killing" a coordinate to "death," based on the idea that "killing" means being killed, which is the very cessation of life, and "death" is specific to that which is not by way of killing. And whenever death is not killing, the killed has two ajals: one for the killing, and one for death.

The first group’s evidence was answered: First, those Hadiths are solitary reports (ahad) and cannot contradict categorical verses like His saying: (When their term comes, they cannot delay it an hour nor can they advance it). Or, the intent of "obedience increases lifespan" is that it increases what is most important of it, which is the acquisition of perfections, virtues, and blessings through which human souls are completed and win eternal happiness. Or, that 'umr (lifespan) is not ajal (term), because 'umr linguistically is "time," while ajal of a thing is said for its entire duration or its end, as one says "the term of a debt is two months" or "the end of such-and-such a month." Then it became common to use it for the end of the life span. From here, it is interpreted as the time at which Allah Almighty knew the life of the animal would cease, according to what we have established.

‘Umr linguistically is the duration of life, like "the life of Zayd is such," and the duration of survival, like "the life of the world." It is often used metaphorically for the duration of a person’s mention among people for good after his death. From this is their saying: "The youth's memory is his second life." From here it is said to one who dies and leaves behind a good mention and a beautiful trace: "His deeds did not die." The Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) intended that those acts of obedience increase this 'umr because they become a cause for a beautiful mention. Most of what reached us regarding this is in charity and maintaining kinship ties, and that they are among the things that result in people's praise is without doubt. It is said: this is why the Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) did not say regarding this that it increases the ajal. Or, that Allah Almighty knew that this obedient person, had he not done this act of obedience, his 'umr would have been forty, for example, but He knew that he would do it and his 'umr would be seventy years. Thus, the attribution of this increase to that act is based on Allah's knowledge that were it not for it, this increase would not have been. The conclusion of this is that He Almighty decreed his life to be seventy such that advancing or delaying is not conceivable, due to His knowledge that his obedience would be a cause for thirty, so it becomes seventy with the forty of the [non-obedience] scenario. The conclusion of this is not that He Almighty decreed it as seventy in one state and forty in another, such that a multiplicity of the ajal would follow—and our scholars do not say that.

Second, the worthiness of blame and punishment and the imposition of retaliation or blood money, for example, upon the killer is not because of the death occurring in the victim, but because of what he earned and committed by approaching the forbidden act through which Allah Almighty creates death, as is the case in all causes and effects—especially when signs of survival appear and there is nothing to suggest the arrival of the ajal. So much so that if the death of a sheep was known through a truthful, infallible report, or signs leading to certainty appeared, it would not be guaranteed/compensated according to some jurists. Third, custom is also broken by the occurrence of thousands of deaths at one time without fighting or war, such as in days of plague, for example. Moreover, holding onto such evidence for such a matter is in the utmost degree of invalidity.

Abu al-Hudhail's evidence was answered: that the non-killing is only conceivable upon the assumption of Allah's knowledge that he will not be killed, and in that case, we do not accept the necessity of the impossible. And [it was answered] that there is no impossibility in cutting off the decreed ajal that would have been fixed were it not for the killing, for it is a confirmation of the known, not a change to it. And al-Ka'bi's evidence—who opposed the Mu'tazila and Ash'aris in proving two ajals—was answered by the fact that the killing is resident in the killer and is a state for him, not for the killed. His state is merely death and the extraction of the soul, which is by the creation of Allah, His permission, and His will, and the desire of the "being-killedness" (al-maqtuliyyah) which is generated by the killer's killing. This is the state of the killed, as it is the cessation of life. The restriction to that which is not by way of killing, as sensed by (So if he dies or is killed), is contrary to his school of denying qada and qadar in the actions of servants, for the cessation of life generated by the killer's killing is an ajal Allah Almighty decreed, designated, and limited. The meaning of the verse, as we have pointed out, is: so if he dies a natural death without cause, or dies by the cause of killing. Thus, it indicates that the mere cessation of life is death. From here it was said: in the killed person there are two meanings: a "killing," which is the act of the agent, and a "death," which is from Allah Almighty alone. The philosophers held a view similar to al-Ka'bi’s regarding the multiplicity of the ajal. They said: the animal has a natural ajal through the dissolution of its moisture and the extinguishing of its innate heat, and "extractive" (ikhtirami) ajals that multiply with the number of countless causes of illnesses and calamities. Its explanation is that the essences dominated by moist parts were structured with innate heat, becoming for it like oil for a lit wick. Whenever those moistures are depleted, the innate heat follows it in that, until when it ends in depletion and dryness increases, the heat is extinguished like a lamp upon the exhaustion of its oil. Thus, natural death occurs, which differs according to the variation of temperaments; in humans, it is mostly at the end of one hundred and twenty years.

Sometimes, calamities occur, such as freezing cold, melting heat, types of poisons, and types of physical separation and poor temperament, which corrupt the body and remove it from its readiness to accept life—since its condition is the balance of temperament—so it dies because of it. This is the "extractive" ajal. This is countered by the fact that it is built on their foundations of the influence of nature and temperament, and that is false according to us, as there is no influencer except Him Almighty. Those matters, according to us, are customary causes, not rational ones, as they claimed. Some investigators claimed that the dispute between us and the philosophers, like the dispute between us and the Mu'tazila on the Professor's view, is verbal, as they do not deny qada and qadar. The time in which Allah Almighty knew the cessation of life would occur, for any reason, is one according to them as well. What they mentioned of the natural ajal, we do not deny either, but they make the balance of temperament and the stability of heat and moisture, etc., true rational conditions for the survival of life, while we make them customary causes. That is another discussion, and a completion of the talk on this issue will come, for matters are mortgaged to their times, and for every ajal there is a book.

(And whoever desires [wa man yurid])—meaning by his action, such as Jihad—(the reward of the world)—such as war booty—(We shall give him of it)—using the plural of majesty by way of shift—(that is, some of its reward, if We will). It is on the level of His saying: (Whoever desires the immediate—We hasten for him therein what We will to whom We intend). This is an allusion to those who were occupied by war booty on the day of Uhud away from the interest of the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace), and the detail of that has already preceded.

(And whoever desires)—meaning by his action, such as Jihad and defending the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace)—(the reward of the Hereafter)—from what Allah Almighty has prepared for His servants therein of bliss—(We shall give him of it)—meaning of its reward—(what We will), according to what the pen of the noble promise has recorded. This is an allusion to praising those who remained steadfast on that day with the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace). Even though the verse was revealed specifically regarding Jihad, it is general to all actions. (And We will reward the grateful)—it is possible that those who desire the Hereafter are meant, and it is possible that the genus of the grateful is meant, and they are included in it primarily.

The sentence is a tail-piece (tadhyil) confirming the content of what preceded it and a promise of increase upon it. In beginning it with the sin (wa sanajzi) and the ambiguity of the reward, there is an emphasis and an indication of the magnificence of the reward, and that it is of a state that the scope of expression falls short of. This is something not hidden. By this, the unity of the two worships in the affair of the two parties was compensated, and the difference was clarified for those with eyes. The three verbs have been recited with a ya (yajzi).

This is by way of allusion: (O you who have believed, do not consume usury, doubled and multiplied)—this is either an allusion to the command to trust in Allah Almighty in seeking provision and turning to Him, or a symbol of the command to be benevolent to the needy servants of Allah without seeking benefit from them; for it has been reported in some traditions that a loan (qard) is better than charity (sadaqah). Or it is an allusion to not seeking a reward for actions, so that one does them purely for the manifestation of servitude. (And fear Allah)—from consuming usury—(that you may be successful)—meaning that you may win the Truth. (And fear the Fire which has been prepared for the disbelievers)—meaning, fear Me in the Fire, for its burning and its punishment are from Me. This is the mystery of the "eye of the gathering" (’ayn al-jam’). They said: in reality, it returns to the manifestation of Compulsion (al-qahr), and by its outward appearance, it is a frightening of the commoners, while the first frightening is for the elite, and they are few. (And hasten to forgiveness from your Lord)—which is the veiling of your actions that are your greatest barrier from seeing the Truth—(and a Garden, the width whereof is the heavens and the earth)—which is the Garden of the Unity of Actions (tawhid al-af'al), and it is the unity of the world of Dominion (mulk). Therefore, He Almighty mentioned the heavens and the earth, and mentioned the width without the length, because actions, in consideration of the horizontal series—which is the dependence of every act upon another—are confined to the world of Dominion which the understandings of people reach and which they can estimate. As for the vertical consideration, it is not confined to it, nor can its extent be estimated, for the act is a manifestation of the Attribute, and the Attribute is a manifestation of the Essence, and the Essence has no end and no limit. (And they have not appraised Allah with true appraisal)—so those veiled from the Essence and Attributes see nothing but this Garden. As for those who are manifest to Allah, the One, the Compeller, the width of their Garden is the very same as its length, and there is no limit to its length, so its extent cannot be estimated in length or width. (Prepared for the righteous)—who veil their actions and leave the attribution of actions to other than the Truth—glorious is His majesty. It is possible that He Almighty invited His creation, according to their varying ranks, to perform that which leads to forgiveness according to their varying ranks, for sins vary, and the sin of the infallible (Ma'sum) is the lack of his knowledge of his Lord in view of the greatness of His beauty and majesty in actual fact.

In the report from the Master of the Knowers (may Allah bless him and grant him peace): "Glory be to You, we have not known You with the true knowledge of You." So, the knowers did not know Him as He is; rather, they knew Him as they are, and there is a difference between the two knowledges. For this, it was said: "None has known Allah Almighty except Allah Almighty." He also invited them to that which brings them to the Garden. If the address here is for the knowers, then it is an invitation to the "eye of the gathering" to manifest to them through the intermediaries because of their remaining in knowledge. In reality, His knowledge is His proximity and His Garden is witnessing Him. In the "reality of reality," it is the Essence, the Collective, which the others (aghyar) do not reach. From here, it was said: "There is nothing in the Garden except Allah Almighty." If the address is in view of individual believers, then what is meant by it are the types of beautiful manifestations (tajalliyat jamaliyya), or its outward meaning which the tongue of Sharia has articulated, and their invitation to it is by way of nurture and drawing human souls—which have not yet been weaned from suckling the breast of pleasures—to what makes them desire the acquisition of human perfections and ascending to the pinnacle of the divine stairways. (Those who spend...) their precious souls for their Master in ease and hardship, in the states of Beauty (jamal) and Majesty (jalal). It is possible that it means those whose contradictory states do not prevent them from spending in what pleases Allah Almighty due to the soundness of their trust in Him Almighty by seeing all actions from Him. (And who restrain the rage)—which befalls a human according to human nature—and their restraining of it may be by tightening upon it with the knots of submission and contentment, and this is in view of the one who is in the station of the Garden of Attributes. As for those below them, their restraint is less than this restraint. The cause of the restraint is that they see the injury done to them as an act of Allah, and the creation has no entry in it. (And who pardon the people)—either because they are in the station of the Unity of Actions, or because they are in the station of the Unity of Attributes. (And Allah loves the doers of good)—according to their ranks in benevolence. (And those who, when they commit an immorality)—meaning a major sin, which is seeing their actions [as their own], which is forbidden to them, the prohibition of seeing foreign women with desire—(or wrong themselves)—by diminishing their rights and delaying their completion—(remember Allah)—meaning they remember His greatness and know that there is no doer in reality other than Him—(and seek forgiveness for their sins)—meaning they seek the veiling of their actions from them by disavowing power and strength except in Allah—(and who can forgive sins)—which is the seeing of actions—(except Allah?)—and He is the Great King whom nothing makes bend. (And do not persist in what they have done)—in their heedlessness and diminution of their souls' rights—(while they know)—the reality of the matter, and that there is no act for other than Him. (Those—their reward is forgiveness from their Lord)—which is His veiling of their existence with His existence, and their ascent from the station of the Unity of Actions to what is above it—(and Gardens)—meaning hidden things, which are the Gardens of the Unseen and the orchards of witnessing and nearness, which are the springs of the Attributes of the Essence—(beneath which rivers flow)—meaning rivers of eternal Attributes flow from them—(abiding therein)—without stay, interruption, danger of time, barriers of space, or change—(and excellent is the reward of the [righteous] workers)—among whom are those standing by the condition of fulfillment in love at the Ancient Presence without breaking covenants or forgetfulness in witnessing. (Verily, there have been before you ways of life)—striking events and occurrences among those who denied the prophets in their call to unity—(so travel)—with your thoughts—(through the earth and observe)—and reflect upon their traces to know—(how was the end of the deniers)—meaning the end of their affair and its termination, which denial necessitated. It is possible that this is a command for souls to look at the traces of the psychological powers that are in the earth of nature, to know what befell them and how their state ended, so perhaps they may ascend because of that from the lowliness of following them. (This)—meaning the Speech of Allah Almighty—(is a declaration to the people)—explaining to them the realities of the affairs of the two worlds—(and a guidance and an exhortation)—by which one reaches the Divine Presence—(for the righteous)—and they are the people of Allah Almighty and His elite.

The state varied due to the varying preparedness of those listening to the speech, for among them are a people who hear it with the ears of the intellects, and among them are a people who hear it with the ears of the secrets. The share of the former is compliance and taking a lesson, and the share of the latter, along with that, is unveiling and observing the lights. The Truth has manifested in it to the elite of His servants and the brought-near among His chosen ones, so they witnessed lights manifesting an ancient attribute beyond the world of letters being recited. (So do not weaken)—meaning do not become weak in Jihad—(and do not grieve)—over what you missed of victory and what befell you of the killing of the brothers—(and you are the superior)—in rank—(if you are believers)—meaning monotheists, for the monotheist sees everything from his Master, so the least of his levels is patience. (If a wound should touch you, a similar wound has touched the [opposing] people)—and they did not care, even though they are beneath you. (And these days)—meaning the occurrences—(We alternate among the people)—for one day it is for a group, and another for another—(and that Allah may make evident those who believe)—meaning that He may show His detailed knowledge that follows the occurrence of the known—(and take from among you martyrs)—and they are those who witness the Truth, so they become oblivious of their own selves. (And Allah does not like the wrongdoers)—meaning those who wronged themselves and wasted its right and did not complete its growth. (And that Allah may purify those who believe)—meaning to cleanse them from the sins and veils that distance them from Allah Almighty by punishment and trial—(and destroy)—meaning annihilate—(the disbelievers)—with the fire of their egoism. (Or did you think)—that you would enter the Garden, meaning, enter the world of Sanctity—(while Allah has not yet made evident those who fought among you and made evident those who are steadfast)—meaning, and there has not yet appeared from you struggles that result in witnessings, and patience in purifying the souls and cleansing the hearts according to the Sharia and the law of the Way, so that the lights of Truth may manifest to the spirits. (And you had certainly wished for death)—meaning the death of the souls from their attributes—(before you encountered it through struggles and spiritual exercises; and you have seen it)—by seeing its causes, which is the war with the enemies of Allah Almighty—(while you are looking on)—meaning you know that that Jihad is one of the causes of the death of the soul from its attributes. It is possible to say: if the certain one (muqin) does not have his certainty as a stable trait (malakah), he wishes for things and claims states, until when he is tested, there appears from him that which contradicts his claim and negates his wish. From here it was said: "And when the coward is alone in the land, he seeks the stabbing alone and the combat." And when that certainty takes root and settles and becomes a trait and a station, and ceases to be merely a state, the matter does not differ for him upon the test. The verse points to rebuking the defeated ones, in that their certainty was a state, not a station. (And Muhammad is not but a messenger; [other] messengers have passed on before him)—meaning he is a human like his brothers among the messengers, so just as they passed on before him, he will pass on after them. (So if he dies or is killed, would you turn back on your heels [to unbelief]?)—and return in retreat? The allusion in that is that He Almighty admonished those who were shaken by the departure of the greatest intermediary from between them, and it is contradictory to witnessing the Truth and seeing Him. Therefore, the greatest Truthful one (Abu Bakr), may Allah Almighty be pleased with him, said: "Whoever used to worship Muhammad, then Muhammad has indeed died; and whoever used to worship Allah Almighty, then Allah Almighty is Ever-Living and does not die." (And whoever turns back on his heels will never harm Allah at all)—due to his essential annihilation—(and Allah will reward)—with true faith—(the grateful)—with conventional faith by fulfilling its rights through carrying out the commands of the Sharia and refraining from its prohibitions. (And it is not for a soul to die)—this known death, or the death from its base attributes and vile morals—(except by Allah’s permission)—and His will, or His drawing [to Himself] by the shining of His light. (And whoever desires)—according to the requirements of his preparedness—(the reward of the world)—as a recompense for his action—(We shall give him of it)—according to what wisdom requires. (And whoever desires the reward of the Hereafter)—as a recompense for his action—(We shall give him of it, and We will reward the grateful.) Perhaps they are those who did not desire the two rewards and had no purpose other than servitude, and He left their reward ambiguous to indicate that it is a matter beyond expression. Perhaps the Truth manifested to them, and this is the limit of the wish of the lovers and the end of the goal of the wayfarers. We ask Allah Almighty for His pleasure and His guidance.