Tafsir of Ya seen 36:36

This is a new commencement (istiʾnāf) intended to declare the transcendence (tanzīh) of the Exalted One, beyond what they have done by neglecting to thank Him—the Almighty and Exalted—and to emphasize the wondrous effects of His power, the mysteries of His wisdom, and the marvels of His bounties mentioned within the relative clause (ṣilah). These [wonders] necessitate thanking Him, dedicating worship to Him alone, and expressing astonishment at their failure to do so, especially in light of the aforementioned facts.

The discussion regarding the word Subḥān has already preceded. It is noted in the Irshād that it is a proper noun for tasbīḥ (glorification/transcendence), which means to distance [Him] from evil, both in belief and in speech. That is: the belief in His distance from it and the declaration of such, derived from the phrase "he swam (sabaḥa) in the earth and the water" when one moves far into them and deepens their movement. Its accusative case is based on its function as an infinitive (maṣdar), meaning: usabbiḥu subḥānahu, i.e., I declare His transcendence from all that does not befit Him, both in belief and action, a transcendence specific to Him and worthy of His majesty.

It contains hyperbolic force from several perspectives: the derivation itself, the shift to the tafʿīl form, the shift from a generic infinitive to a proper noun specifically assigned to it—especially as a proper name—and the substitution of it in place of the infinitive along with the verb. It is also said: It is an infinitive like ghufrān, intended to denote perfect transcendence and absolute distance from evil. Thus, it contains emphasis from the perspective of attributing transcendence to the Sacred Essence; the meaning being that He is transcendent by His very Essence from all that does not befit Him—a transcendence exclusive to Him. According to the first interpretation, the sentence is a declaration from Him—the Almighty and Exalted—of His own transcendence and innocence from everything unbecoming that they have done or neglected. According to the second, it is a decree from Him—the Almighty and Exalted—and an instruction to the believers to say it, believe it, and not neglect or become heedless of it.

Some have estimated the governing verb to be in the imperative, meaning: "Say Subḥāna."

The term al-azwāj (pairs) refers to kinds and categories. Al-Rāghib said: Al-azwāj is the plural of zawj (pair/mate). It is applied to each of two associates, and to everything that is paired with another, whether similar to it or its opposite. Everything in the universe is a "pair" in the sense that it has an opposite, a similar, or a composition. Indeed, nothing is devoid of composition in some way—between form and matter, or substance and accident.

{mimmā tunbitu al-arḍ} (from what the earth grows): This is an explanation of the "pairs," and it refers to everything that grows in it, among the things mentioned and others.

{wa min anfusihim} (and from themselves): That is, and He created the pairs from themselves, meaning the male and the female.

{wa mimmā lā yaʿlamūn} (and from what they do not know): That is, and pairs from what Allah—the Exalted—has not disclosed to them and has not provided them a path to know specifically. He only disclosed this to them generally, following the approach of {and He creates what you do not know}, for the sake of that upon which their awareness of the greatness of His power, the vastness of His kingdom, and the majesty of His authority—the Almighty and Exalted—is contingent.

Perhaps, since knowledge is among the most specific attributes of Divinity, it is not established in a state of perfection and comprehension for anyone other than Him—the Exalted. Even if it were by way of effusion from Him—Blessed and Exalted is He—the capacity of the possible (the created) is too narrow to contain [absolute] comprehension. Thus, what everyone is ignorant of is far greater than what they know.

It is sometimes said, based on certain considerations, that what everyone knows is finite, while what they are ignorant of is infinite; and there is no ratio at all between the finite and the infinite. Therefore, there is no ratio between what anyone knows and what they do not know. Reflect on this, alongside the claim of some of the great scholars regarding the apprehension of the Aʿyān al-Thābitah (Fixed Entities) and the insight into them, and say: "My Lord, increase me in knowledge."