Tafsir of Az-Zukhruf 43:36

(And whoever turns away)—that is, feigns blindness and turns away—(from the remembrance of the Most Gracious). This refers to the Quran. Its attribution to "the Most Gracious" is intended to announce its revelation as a mercy to the worlds. It is also permissible that it is an infinitive attributed to the object, meaning: "whoever turns away from remembering the Most Gracious." Or, it may be an infinitive attributed to the subject, meaning: "from the reminder the Most Gracious gives to His servants."

Yahya ibn Sallam al-Basri read it as (ya‘sha) with a fatha on the shin, similar to yarda (to be satisfied), meaning to become blind. It is said: "‘ashiya" (like radiya) if the ailment originates in his sight, and "‘asha" (like ghaza) if one looks with the gaze of one whose sight is weak due to an external factor. Al-Hutay’ah said: "Whoever approaches you, 'ya‘shu' (looks intently) towards the light of your fire, finds the best fire and the best keeper of it." This means looking at it with the gaze of one whose sight is weakened by the intensity of the flames and the expanse of the light. If it were not for this, the word denoting the goal (al-ghayah) would have no place. Even more clear regarding the intended meaning is the statement of Hatim: "I 'a‘shu' (look intently) when my neighbor emerges, until the veil hides my neighbor." This is because he qualified it with a time and provided a limit, which is not an inherent trait that does not fade.

Some have said: "I have not seen anyone permit the usage ‘ashawtu ‘anhu (I turned away from it). Rather, it is said ta‘ayshtu or ta‘amaytu (I feigned blindness) towards a thing, as if you did not see it." It is said ‘ashawtu ila al-nar (I looked toward the fire) if one is guided by it with weak sight, but this is an opinion that holds no weight. Similar to this is ‘ashiya and ‘asha: ‘arija (with a kasra on the ra’) for one who has an inherent ailment, and ‘araja (with a fatha) for one who walks with a limp without being naturally lame, according to al-Kashshaf. There is a dispute among linguists regarding this. In al-Qamus, it is said: ‘araja (with fatha) is used if something befalls his leg that is not innate. If it is innate, it is ‘arija (like fariha), or it can be vocalized with three vowel movements for that which is not innate.

Zayd ibn Ali read it as (ya‘shu) with the inclusion of the waw. Al-Zamakhshari explained this by asserting that man (whoever) is a relative pronoun (mawsulah), not a conditional one (shartiyyah) requiring the jussive. It is also possible that it is conditional, and the vowel elongation (madda) is either for the sake of fullness (ishba‘) or according to a dialect where the verb with a weak ending is made jussive by deleting the vowel, as reported by al-Akhfash. It is also possible that the verb is jussive due to the elision of the nun, with the waw being the plural pronoun, taking into account the meaning of man. Al-Zamakhshari’s interpretation is based on the eloquent, consistent, and immediate usage.

(We appoint for him a devil)—meaning, We set upon him a devil to take complete control over him, like the shell (qayd) over the egg (bayd), which is the outer layer—(so he becomes a companion to him).

(Always)—he does not depart from him, and he continues to whisper to him and lead him astray. This is a punishment for his disbelief, in terms of sealing his fate and his lack of success, just as it is said that Allah Almighty punishes for sin by increasing one's acquisition of further sins.

Ali (may Allah honor his face), al-Sulami, al-A‘mash, Ya‘qub, Abu ‘Amr (with a differing narration), Hammad from ‘Asim, ‘Ismah from al-‘A‘mash, and from ‘Asim, and al-‘Ulaymi from Abu Bakr, read it as (yuqayyidu) with a ya’, attributing it to the pronoun of "the Most Gracious." Ibn Abbas read it as (yuqayyadu) with a ya’ and in the passive voice, with (shaytan) in the nominative. The verb in all readings is in the jussive; we have not heard of it being read in the nominative. In al-Kashshaf, it states that it is correct for the one who reads (man ya‘shu) with a waw to read it in the nominative, based on the interpretation that man is a relative pronoun. It is also permissible in that case for (yuqayyidu) to be in the nominative, though it was vocalized with a sukun for ease of pronunciation.

In al-Bahr, it is permissible that man is a relative pronoun, and the jussive of (nuqayyid) is an imitation of the relative pronoun being treated like a conditional noun. Since this is heard in the case of alladhi (which was never a conditional noun), it is more appropriate to apply it to what is used both as a relative and a conditional. The poet said: "Do not dig a well wanting to harm a brother with it, for you, in it, will fall beneath him. So too, he who transgresses against people unjustly, the consequences of what he has wrought will befall him despite his resistance." Ibn al-A‘rabi strengthened this, and it is a school of thought among the Kufans. It has a basis in analogy, which is that just as the relative pronoun is likened to the conditional noun—taking the fa’ in its predicate—so too is the predicate made jussive, though the entrance of the fa’ is standard when the predicate is caused by the connection (silah) according to its grammatical conditions, which the Basrans do not use as an analogy.