Tafsir of Al-An'am 6:55

(And thus do We detail), meaning, always; (the verses), meaning the Qur’anic verses regarding the description of the people of obedience, the persistent criminals among them, and the penitent. The comparison here is like the one that preceded just now: (And that the way of the criminals may become manifest).

The verb is in the feminine, based on the femininity of the subject (the way/sabil). This is the reading of Ibn Kathir, Ibn ‘Amir, Abu ‘Amr, Ya‘qub, and Hafs from ‘Asim. It is a conjunction linked to a deleted cause for the aforementioned verb, for which no specific intent was meant to be assigned; rather, it is intended to signify that it has numerous benefits, among which is what was mentioned. Or, it is a cause for an implied verb, which is a phrasing of the aforementioned, as Abu al-Baqa’ indicates; thus, it is an initiating clause, meaning: “And so that their way may become manifest, We do what We do of detailing.” Nafi‘ read it with a ta’ (feminine) and the accusative case for al-sabil (the way), implying the verb is transitive, meaning: “And so that you, O Muhammad, may clearly distinguish the way of the criminals, so that you may deal with them in a manner befitting them.” The others read it with a ya’ (masculine) and the nominative case for al-sabil, based on the verb being attributed to a masculine subject; the feminization and masculinization of al-sabil are two well-known dialects.

(Only those who hear will respond; but the dead - Allah will resurrect them; then to Him they will be returned.) Ibn ‘Ata’ said: He, the Exalted, informed through this verse that those who possess hearing are the living, and they are the people of address and response, and He informed that the others are the dead. Others said: The meaning is that no one responds except those whose hearts Allah, the Exalted, has opened to hear through primordial guidance, and to whom He has granted true life through the purity of preparedness and the light of natural disposition (fitra). Not the dead of ignorance whose instincts have died due to compound ignorance, or due to natural veils, or who had no preparedness according to their primordial disposition; for they have turned deaf to hearing, and it is impossible for them. Rather, Allah, the Exalted, shall resurrect them to Him through a second creation, then they shall be returned to Him, the Exalted, in the absolute gathering for requital and compensation, while they remain veiled. It is said: The verse is an indication of the people of sobriety (sahw) and the people of annihilation (mahw).

(And there is no creature on [or within] the earth or bird that flies with its wings except [that they are] nations like you.) In that they were created upon monotheism and innate for gnosis, having drinkable portions from the sea of Allah’s address and branches from the trees of the gardens of His words, the Exalted, and a yearning for Him, the Almighty. Their chirping is in the name of Him, by His name. It is said that Samnun the Lover, when he spoke of love, the birds would fall from the air. It is narrated in some traditions that the dabb (lizard), after speaking with the Messenger of Allah (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) and testifying to his messengership, composed: “O Messenger of Allah, you are truthful; blessed be you as a guided one, and blessed be you as a guide, and blessed be you in the pre-eternal, alive and dead; blessed be you as a newborn, and blessed be you in your growth.” Indeed, among them are also those who are veiled, those who commit vices, and so on. This topic has been discussed in detail previously.

(We have not neglected in the Book [of their deeds]) of anything; (then unto their Lord they will be gathered) in the absolute gathering. And those who denied, due to being veiled by the coverings of their own soul’s attributes, (to Our verses)—which are the manifestations of the Attributes—are (deaf), so they do not hear with the ears of the hearts, (and dumb), so they do not speak with the tongues of the intellects. They are in the darknesses—the darknesses of nature and the depths of ignorance. Whomsoever Allah wills, He leads astray by drawing the veils of His Majesty; and whomsoever He wills, He places upon a straight path by the radiance of the lights of His Beauty.

(Say, "Have you considered: if the punishment of Allah should come to you [from illness or all other types of distress] or the Hour should come to you—is it other than Allah you would invoke, if you should be truthful?") Nay, it is Him you would invoke to remove that. Some gnostics said: The return of the elite is to the Truth, the Glorious, from the very beginning; the return of the commoners is to Him, the Exalted, after despairing of creation. This was true during the time of that gnostic, but in our time, we see that when the commoners are distressed, they abandon the invocation of the Creator King and invoke the dwellers of the dust who neither hear nor see.

(And We have already sent to nations before you, then We seized them with poverty and hardship that perhaps they might humble themselves.) Meaning, so that they might obey, emerge from the veil, and submit in humility through the manifestation of the attribute of Compulsion (Qahr). (But why, then, did they not humble themselves when Our punishment came to them?) Meaning, they did not humble themselves because of the hardness of their hearts due to the density of the veil and the dominance of the covering of desire and love of the world; the root of all that is poor preparedness.

(Say, "Have you considered: if Allah should take away your hearing [so you would not hear His address] and your sight [so you would not witness the wonders of His power and the secrets of His workmanship] and seal upon your hearts [so that nothing of His gnosis, the Exalted, could enter them]—which deity other than Allah could bring it to you?") Meaning, is there anyone besides Him, the Exalted, capable of opening one of these doors? No; rather, He is the Capable, the Doer of what He wills.

(Say, "I do not tell you that I possess [as I am] the treasuries of Allah [His decrees], nor do I know [as I am also] the unseen, nor do I tell you that I am an angel [a pure spirit, not needing food or drink]. I follow [from that perspective] only what is revealed to me") from Allah, the Exalted. For him, peace be upon him, is the station: (And you threw not when you threw, but it was Allah who threw. Indeed, those who pledge allegiance to you are actually pledging allegiance to Allah. The hand of Allah is over their hands.) The bird of the intellect has no flight in that atmosphere.

(Say, "Is the blind [to the light of Allah and His encompassment of every atom from the Throne to the dust, and His appearance in what He wills according to wisdom, and His, the Exalted, lack of restriction by any of the manifestations] equal to the seeing [of that]?") So he speaks in every station with an appropriate speech. (And do not send away [for the sake of education, refinement, and testing] those who call upon their Lord, who brought them to where He brought them of the ascents of perfection, in the morning [the time of the manifestation of Beauty] and the evening [the time of the manifestation of Might and Majesty], desiring His countenance), meaning they desire Him, the Exalted, by His Essence and Attributes, and seek His manifestation, the Almighty, to their hearts. (Not upon you is anything of their account)—meaning the account of their inner deeds—(of anything), for Allah, the Exalted, has taken charge of protecting their hearts and has rained upon them the clouds of His care, so they stirred and grew and produced of every beautiful pair. And His, the Exalted, saying, (And not is any of your account upon them of anything) is a conjunction to the previous one, brought for emphasis, as mentioned in the phrasing. It is possible that it is intended: “Do not send away the travelers for the sake of the veiled; there is no account of the travelers or the veiled upon you of anything.” The meaning of that is known by the slightest attention; for if you send them away from sitting with you, you would be of the unjust to them by diminishing their rights and failing to attend to their status.

Among those who interpret are those who say: The verse is concerning the people of Unification. Meaning: Do not rebuke the ones who have arrived and are complete, and do not warn them; for warning, just as it is of no avail to those whose hearts are hardened, is of no avail to those who have vanished and lost themselves in Allah, the Exalted. They are those who specify Him, the Exalted, with worship at all times, with presence of heart, and without witnessing anything other than Him, even their own selves. (Not upon you is anything of their account in what they do), for there is no intermediary between them and their Lord. (And not is any of your account upon them of anything), meaning: They do not delve into the matters of your call regarding victory and aiding you, because of their preoccupation with Him, the Exalted, over anyone else, and their constant presence with Him. Thus, if you send them away from the state of constant presence they are in by calling them for a religious matter, you would be of the unjust for disturbing their moments. And Allah, the Exalted, knows best the reality of His speech.

(And thus did We try some of them [the people, who are the veiled] with others [the gnostics], so that they [the veiled] might say, pointing to the gnostics, disparaging them as they saw nothing of them except their outward state and poverty, and did not see their worth, rank, and the goodness of their inward state, while being deceived by the wealth, status, ease, and comfort of life they were in: "Are these the ones whom Allah has favored with guidance and gnosis from among us?") They meant that He, the Exalted, did not favor them. (Is not Allah most knowing of the grateful?) Those who thank Him with the truth of His gratitude, so He favors them with His great generosity. (And when those come to you who believe in Our verses [by means of them], then say to them [O means/intermediary]: "Peace be upon you.") This is because they are in the station of intermediaries; had they reached the degree of the people of witnessing, He would have granted them with His own greeting, as He, the Almighty, said: “Peace,” a word from a Merciful Lord. The rest of the verse is clear.

Imam al-Razi said: His, the Exalted, saying, (And when those come to you), etc., comprises high secrets. This is because everything other than Allah, the Exalted, is a verse of Allah’s existence, the verses of His attributes of Majesty and Generosity, and the verses of His Oneness; and there is no end to what is other than Him, the Exalted. There is no way for the intellect to grasp it in complete detail; however, what is possible is that it perceives some of the verses and uses the knowledge of them as a means to the knowledge of Allah, then believes in the remainder in a summary fashion. Then, for the duration of his life, he is like one swimming in those seas and like one traveling in those deserts. And since they are endless, there is no end to the servant's ascent in the ascents of those verses. This is a summary explanation, the details of which have no end. Then, when the servant becomes described by this attribute, Allah, the Exalted, commanded His Prophet (may Allah bless him and grant him peace) to say to them: “Peace be upon you.” This greeting is a glad tiding of the attainment of safety. His, the Exalted, saying: (Your Lord has decreed upon Himself mercy) is a glad tiding of the attainment of honor following that safety. As for safety, it is through salvation from the sea of the world of darknesses, the center of physicalities, the source of calamities and fears, and the place of changes and transformations. As for honor, it is through reaching the remaining righteous deeds, the sanctified abstractions, the arrival into the expanse of the world of lights, and ascending to the heights of the pavilions of Majesty. End quote.

Another said: The indication is to a type of traveler. Meaning: When those who believe in Our verses come to you, by annihilating their attributes in Our Attributes, say: “Peace be upon you,” for your transcendence above the faults of your attributes and your detachment from their garments. (Your Lord has decreed upon Himself mercy), meaning He has bound His sanctified Essence to mercy, by substituting your attributes with His Attributes for you, for in Allah, the Exalted, is a compensation for everything that has passed. (That whoever does among you evil out of ignorance)—meaning, it appears upon him in his coloring an attribute of His Attributes through absence or heedlessness—(then repents after that)—meaning, after the appearance of that attribute, by returning from his coloring in fulfillment to the Presence—(and corrects himself)—meaning, what appeared from him through submission, humbling himself before Him, the Exalted, and self-discipline—(then indeed, He, the Almighty, is Forgiving), He conceals it from him, (Merciful), He has mercy on him by gifting him steadfastness and the blessing of integrity. (And thus do We detail the verses)—meaning, like that clarification which We clarified for these believers, We clarify for you Our attributes, (and that the way of the criminals may become manifest)—they are those veiled by their attributes who do for that what they do. And Allah, the Exalted, is the Granter of success to what is correct.