Tafsir of Al-Waqi'ah 56:96

The fa (ف) in His saying, "So glorify (فسبح) the name of your Lord, the Tremendous," is for the sequential ordering of glorification or the command for it. This is because the reality of what was detailed throughout the noble Surah is that which necessitates glorification [of Him] from what does not befit Him—things which the disbelievers attribute to Him—whether through speech or state. Exalted is He far above that with a great exaltation. Imam Ahmad, Abu Dawud, Ibn Majah, Ibn Hibban, Al-Hakim (who authenticated it), and others recorded from Uqbah ibn Amir al-Juhani that he said: "When 'Glorify the name of your Lord, the Tremendous' was revealed to the Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, he said: 'Place it in your bowing (ruku').' And when 'Glorify the name of your Lord, the Most High' was revealed, he said: 'Place it in your prostrations (sujud).'"

Among what the masters of spiritual indication (ahl al-isharah) have said concerning some parts of this noble Surah is that Al-Waqi'ah (The Inevitable Event) is a name for the resurrection of the spirit, just as Al-Azifah (The Approaching) is a name for the resurrection of the hidden (al-khafa), Al-Haqqah (The Reality) is a name for the resurrection of the secret (al-sirr), and As-Sa'ah (The Hour) is a name for the resurrection of the heart. They said: When the Waqi'ah occurs, it elevates its possessor at one time and lowers him at another; it ignites the fires of divine jealousy and causes the rivers of knowledge to flow. For the seeker (salik), it occurs when he engages in spiritual wayfaring and purification until his remembrance (dhikr) reaches the spirit. In the beginning, it is like a black veil that comes from above the head during the intensity of remembrance. As it descends further, awe and tranquility fall upon the one remembering, and he may faint at the beginning. If it descends upon his eyes, he witnesses the realms of the Unseen, seeing what Allah the Exalted wills for him to see. Spiritual sciences are unveiled for him, and he witnesses wonders and marvels that cannot be counted. When he recovers, he should present what he received to his path so that it may guide him toward what is in the interest of his time; it will interpret for him what is appropriate for his capacity, strengthen his heart, and command him to continue in remembrance and complete orientation until he is perfected by the purity of the secret of the Waqi'ah. Thus, he becomes a radiant secret.

It may be that the seeker reaches a state where, if he opens his eyes after its descent in the realm of witnessing ('alam al-shahadah), he perceives what he was witnessing within it. This is a lofty state considered valid by the masters of spiritual wayfaring. Its event is not one of falsehood; rather, it is true, for Satan flees from it, and the lower self (nafs) cannot deceive its possessor. This is true wakefulness, whereas what people consider wakefulness is sleep, as indicated by the words of the Commander of the Faithful, Ali—may Allah ennoble his countenance—"People are asleep; when they die, they awaken."

Furthermore, they have spoken about most of what is in this magnificent Surah in relation to the souls. Regarding His saying, "the positions of the stars," they said it is an indication of the purified subtleties (lata'if), for they are the positions of the stars of hidden, sacred inflows from the Jabrutic and Theological heavens.

Regarding His saying, "None touch it except the purified," it is said that it is an indication that it is not appropriate for one who is not purified in soul from the minor ritual impurity—which is the inclination toward minor desires—and from the major ritual impurity—which is the inclination toward major desires—to touch with his hand or his intellect the meanings of the noble Quran, just as it is not appropriate for one who is not purified in body from the two well-known bodily impurities to touch its written words with his physical hand and body. It is also said that it is permissible to say the meaning is: none reach the innermost truths of the secrets of the Quran except those purified from the filth of desires and the impurities of disobedience.

If this sentence is an attribute of the Preserved Tablet (al-lawh al-mahfuz) and "the purified" refers to the angels—peace be upon them—and the meaning is that none are informed of it except the angels, then this is a refutation of those who claim that the saints (awliya) see the Preserved Tablet and are informed of what is in it. Carrying "the purified" to include both angels and the saints—whose souls have been purified and whose beings have been sanctified until they have joined the angels—does not serve the argument with the people of Sacred Law (ahl al-shar), for the axis of their deductions regarding legal rulings is the outward manifestation. Moreover, it has not been narrated of the Prophet, peace be upon him—and he is who he is—that he once looked at the Preserved Tablet while he was among his companions and informed them of something within it, saying: "I have seen the Preserved Tablet and I saw such and such in it." Likewise, it has not been narrated of his senior companions, the Rightly Guided Caliphs, that this occurred for them, even though issues arose among them where they differed, and their dispute in resolving them was so prolonged that the crescent of truth was almost eclipsed; yet none of them sought to uncover it by looking at the Preserved Tablet.

Some scholars have mentioned that the Sidrat al-Muntaha (Lote Tree of the Utmost Boundary) is the limit of knowledge for those below it, and that the Tablet is far above it. Both of these are supported by reports, and this implies that the saints do not have access to the Tablet. Notwithstanding all this, whoever claims that such access occurs, the burden of proof is upon him—and how could he produce it? What you have heard is based on what the reports have stated regarding the description of the Preserved Tablet: that it is a physical body in which what has been and what will be until the Day of Resurrection is written. If something else is said about it, the discussion extends beyond what you have heard, and the circle widens.

Among these are their statements that there are four tablets: the Tablet of Pre-ordainment (Qada) that precedes effacement and affirmation, which is the Tablet of the First Intellect; the Tablet of Decree (Qadar), meaning the Tablet of the Universal Rational Soul in which the universals of the first Tablet are detailed, which is what is called the Preserved Tablet; the Tablet of the Celestial Particular Soul in which every shape, form, and measure of this world is imprinted, which is called the Lowest Heaven, serving as the imagination of the world just as the first serves as its spirit and the second as its heart; and the Tablet of Primordial Matter (Hayuli) which is receptive to form in the realm of witnessing. They say what they say, and one who supports it recites: If you do not see the crescent, then submit to a people who saw it with their own eyes.

However, do not think that denying their vision of the Preserved Tablet is a denial of their visionary miracles or their hidden inspirations; Allah forbid. The ways in which Allah the Exalted informs whom He wills among His saints of what He wills of His knowledge are not restricted to the contemplation of the Preserved Tablet. Possibility is not a matter of dispute; the discussion is only regarding the occurrence of such events and their transmission from the Prophet, peace be upon him, and his senior companions like the Truthful (Abu Bakr), the Distinguisher (Umar), the Possessor of the Two Lights (Uthman), and the Gate of the City of Knowledge (Ali)—may Allah be pleased with them all. Allah the Exalted knows best.

Regarding His saying, "And We are closer to him than you, but you do not see," [he spoke about] what they founded upon the doctrine of the Unity of Existence (wahdat al-wujud). Discussion on this is common, and we have indicated it in this book more than once. They have various expressions regarding certainty (yaqin), the eye of certainty ('ayn al-yaqin), and the truth of certainty (haqq al-yaqin). Among them: Yaqin is the vision of observation through the strength of faith, not by proof and argument. It is also said: It is witnessing the Unseen through the purity of the heart and observing the secrets by maintaining the thoughts. It is also said: It is the tranquility of the heart regarding the reality of a thing, [derived from] "the water settled (yaqana) in the basin," when it becomes still. As for Haqq al-yaqin, it is the annihilation of the servant in the Truth and abiding by Him in knowledge, witnessing, and state, not in knowledge alone. For instance, every sane person knows of death—that is 'ilm al-yaqin (knowledge of certainty). When he sees the angels, it is 'ayn al-yaqin (the eye of certainty). When he tastes death, it is haqq al-yaqin (the truth of certainty). It is also said: 'Ilm al-yaqin is the outer aspect of the Law, 'ayn al-yaqin is sincerity within it, and haqq al-yaqin is the witnessing within it.

We ask Allah the Exalted for guidance to the most upright path, and that He expand our breasts with the lights of the sciences of His noble and magnificent Book. He, glory be to Him, is our sufficiency in both abodes, and an excellent Trustee.