Tafsir of Al-Waqi'ah 56:31

Sufyan and others said: Flowing without channels. It is also said: It flows wherever they wish, without needing a water-drawing camel or a rope. These things were mentioned because many of the believers, due to their Bedouin nature, yearned for them. Abd ibn Humayd, Ibn Jarir, and al-Bayhaqi recorded from Mujahid that he said: They used to admire [the valley of] Wajj and its shades of acacia and lote trees, so Allah the Exalted revealed: (And the companions of the right—what are the companions of the right? [They will be] among lote trees with thorns removed), and so on. In a narration from al-Dahhak: The Muslims looked at Wajj and were amazed by its lote trees and said, "If only we had something like this," so this verse was revealed.

It is said: It is as if, when He likened the state of the foremost to the furthest extreme imaginable to city-dwellers—being on thrones with servants circling them with various delights—He likened the state of the companions of the right to the most complete state imaginable to Bedouins—descending into fertile places containing waters, trees, and shades—to signify that the difference between the two groups is like the difference between city-dwellers and Bedouins.

The Imam mentioned, claiming it to be among what conforms to His saying: (Among lote trees with thorns removed and banana trees layered), that it is along the lines of His saying: (Lord of the East and the West), because the lote tree has leaves that are extremely small, and the talh—meaning the banana tree—has leaves that are extremely large. Thus, the reference covers both extremes, and it is intended to signify all trees, for they are, with respect to their leaves, confined between these two. This is something that is acceptable.

Ali—may Allah honor his face—and Ja’far ibn Muhammad and Abdullah—may Allah be pleased with them all—recited it as wa-tali with an ‘ayn instead of wa-talh with an ha’. Ibn al-Anbari in al-Masahif and Ibn Jarir recorded from Qays ibn 'Abbad that he said: I read to Ali—may Allah honor his face—(wa-talhin mandud), and he said, "What is the matter with talh? Do you not read tali?" Then he recited His saying: (having layered fruit/tali). It was said to him, "O Commander of the Faithful, shall we alter it in the Mushaf?" He replied, "The Quran shall not be agitated today." This is an incorrect narration, as al-Tibi pointed out. How could the Commander of the Faithful—may Allah honor his face—approve of a distortion in the Book of Allah the Exalted that is circulated among the people? Or how could it be imagined that those who transmitted the Quran, its narrators, and its scribes, previously intentionally did so or were heedless of it? This is while Allah the Exalted has guaranteed its preservation. Glory to You; this is a great falsehood.

Furthermore, that which the sublime structure requires, as al-Tibi said, is to interpret (Among lote trees with thorns removed), etc., as referring to shading and the density of trees, by way of progression (taraqqi), because fruits are already accounted for previously. This is to correspond with His saying: (And the companions of the left—what are the companions of the left? [They will be] in scorching fire and scalding water and a shade of black smoke), [as opposed to] His saying: (And the companions of the right), etc. Therefore, the discussion of the "tali" (banana/fruit) has no place in the meaning of the shade and what is connected to it.

However, the author of al-Kashf said: The description of talh as being mandud (layered) does not appear to have much relevance if the intended purpose is the benefit of shading. The talh should be understood as being of the large ’idah (thorny) trees, as mentioned in al-Sihah; for the umm ghaylan (acacia) and the banana tree have no shade that can be relied upon. He then said: If talh were interpreted as "the aromatic," it would be a valid point. We have already provided you with the report of the reason for the revelation, so do not be heedless.