Surah Al-Qalam

It is among the earliest of what was revealed of the Quran in Makkah. According to what is narrated from Ibn Abbas, it was revealed after "Read in the name of your Lord" (Al-Alaq), then this [Surah], then "The Enshrouded One" (Al-Muzzammil), then "The Cloaked One" (Al-Muddaththir). In al-Bahr, it is stated that it is Makkan without disagreement among those versed in interpretation (ta'wil). In al-Itqan, it is noted that the verses from "Indeed, We have tested them" to "for they would be among the righteous" were excepted, as they are Madani; al-Sakhawi recounted this. In Jamal al-Qurra', it states its verses are fifty-two by consensus.

Regarding its connection to Surah Al-Mulk, it has been said that it lies in the fact that the former concluded with a warning, and this one commences with one. Jalal al-Suyuti said regarding this that when He, the Exalted, mentioned at the end of Al-Mulk the threat of the water sinking away, He provided evidence for it in this Surah through the destruction of the fruit of the owners of the garden in a single night, as a calamity circled upon them while they were asleep; they awoke and found no trace of it, to the extent that they thought they had lost their way. Since this occurred to fruits—which are dense bodies—the water, which is subtle, is more susceptible to vanishing. It is for this reason that He, glory be to Him, said here: "While they were asleep, and it became like a harvested crop," and said there: "If your water were to become sunken," pointing to the fact that it can be carried away in a night just as the fruit was carried away in a night. This concludes the point, and it is not devoid of beauty.

Abu Hayyan said regarding it that [the previous Surah] mentioned matters concerning the states of the fortunate and the wretched, and mentioned His dazzling power and the vast knowledge of the Exalted, and that if He, the Almighty and Majestic, had willed, He would have caused the earth to swallow them or sent a rain of stones upon them. What He, the Exalted, informed of was what He revealed to His Messenger, may Allah bless him and grant him peace; he recited it, and the disbelievers attributed him at times to poetry, at others to sorcery, and at others to madness. Therefore, He, the Majestic, began this noble Surah with his—may Allah bless him and grant him peace—exoneration from the madness they attributed to him, the glorification of his reward for his patience regarding their harm, and the praise of his character. Thus, He, the Mightiest of Speakers, said:

Nun: It is recited with a vowelless nūn (sukun) regarding the pause. The majority recite it with a vowelless nūn and its assimilation (idgham) into the wāw of "and the Pen"—with a nasal sound (ghunnah) according to some, and without it according to others. It has also been recited with a kasrah on the nūn. Ibn Abbas, Ibn Abi Ishaq, and Isa (with a variance reported from him) recited it with a fathah. All of these [variations] are to avoid the meeting of two vowelless letters. It is also suggested that the fathah is due to the omission of a particle of oath, as in their saying "Allah" (with a genitive case), though that is technically an accusative case due to the omission of "I swear" and the like, not a fathah. Its indeclinability is due to its being a proper noun for the Surah, being definite and feminine.

Furthermore, whether it is considered a name for the letter itself—recited in the manner of enumeration for the purpose of challenge, as is well-known and explained in its proper place—or a name for the Surah (in the accusative case as mentioned, or in the nominative as the predicate of an omitted subject), they have stated that in His saying "and the Pen," it is for the oath. If it is considered something sworn by, then the "and" is for conjunction with it, according to common usage.

The predecessors chose that "Nun" is from the ambiguous (mutashabih) verses, while many of the later scholars held that it is one of the names of the letters. They argued that this is supported by the fact that if it were a generic noun or a proper noun, it would be declined with nunation or be diptote, and it would have been written as it is pronounced. The fact that its writing is as you see it is due to the intention of the pause, and applying the rules of continuity is contrary to the principle. While it is accepted that the script of the Mushaf is not to be measured by grammatical analogy, the principle is to apply analogy as much as possible.

It has been said that it is the name of a whale upon which the earth rests, called al-Yahmūt (with a fathah on the yā and a sukun on the hā). There is a report narrated by Al-Diya’ and Al-Hakim, who authenticated it, from a group via Ibn Abbas, that "Allah created the Nun, then the earth was spread upon it. The Nun shook, causing the earth to sway, so it was anchored with the mountains." Then he recited: "Nun. By the Pen..." This is also reported from Mujahid.

It is also reported from Ibn Abbas, Al-Hasan, Qatadah, and Al-Dahhak that it is the name of an inkwell (dawāt). Al-Zamakhshari denied the occurrence of "Nun" in the sense of an inkwell in the language or in reputable usage. Ibn Atiyyah said it is possible that it is a dialect of some Arabs or a non-Arabic word adopted into Arabic, citing the poet’s verse: "When yearning weighs heavily upon me for them, the Nun casts forth shedding tears."

The former group [the scholars who spoke on the Pen] interpret the "Pen" as that which wrote upon the Preserved Tablet what is to occur until the Day of Resurrection. Others interpret it as the pen of the noble recording angels. In both interpretations, the definite article al- is for specification (al-ahd). The others interpret it as the generic, such that the definition is generic. A few interpret it as mentioned before, but the apparent meaning of their discourse is that the "inkwell" is not the well-known inkwell, but rather an inkwell created on the day that Pen was created.

From Mu'awiyah bin Qurrah, rising to the Prophet (marfu'), it is narrated that the Nun is a tablet of light and the Pen is a pen of light, flowing with what is to occur until the Day of Resurrection. From Ja'far al-Sadiq, it is that it is a river in Paradise. In Al-Bahr, it is stated: "Perhaps none of this is sound"—that is, none of what was mentioned regarding Nun except that it is one of the names of the letters. It seems that if he were aware of the reports we mentioned, he would not have considered the authentication by Al-Hakim regarding the first report from Ibn Abbas, nor the fact that one of its narrators is Al-Diya’ in Al-Mukhtarah (which is considered a criterion of authentic reports), nor the frequency of reports from him. This is what prevails in my estimation, given the great disagreement in reports from him regarding the definition of its intended meaning—to the point that it is reported from him that it is the last letter of the letters of Al-Rahman, and that this majestic name is split into Ra, Ha, Mim, and Nun.

It is not hidden that if the whale or a river in Paradise is intended, the speech becomes like the phrase "How many a Caliph" or "A thousand eggplants." As for the inkwell, the indefiniteness [of the term] rejects that most strongly, especially since, as you heard from Al-Zamakhshari, it is a dialect that has not been proven. The refutation of him [Al-Zamakhshari] only succeeds by proving it from reliable sources, and where is that to be found? The author of Al-Qamus mentioned it, but it does not constitute proof that it is a linguistic meaning. There is contention regarding the validity of the reports, and the verse cited by Ibn Atiyyah is not established as Arabic.

The claim that it means a whale, applied to an inkwell metaphorically due to the relationship of resemblance—as some whales produce a substance blacker than ink used for writing—is obviously crude, as that specific type [of whale] is not famous enough to be used as a standard for resemblance, nor is there any indication for the denier that it is that specific kind. That it is a name for a letter used metaphorically for it is even more profound and bitter. Such is what is said, and there is room for investigation in some of these points. Storytellers have reports for this chapter that are not to be relied upon and should not be listened to.

Furthermore, the Pen’s entitlement to be venerated by being sworn by—if it refers to the Pen of the Tablet mentioned in reports as the first thing Allah created, or the Pen of the noble recording angels—is obvious. As for the entitlement of what is in the hands of people, if the generic is intended, it is due to its many benefits. Even if it had no merit other than being the instrument for transcribing the books of Allah (Mighty and Majestic is He), that would be sufficient grace to necessitate its veneration.

And the pronoun in His saying—Exalted is He—"and what they inscribe": That is, what they write. It refers either to the Pen, intended as the Pen of the Tablet—expressing it with the plural pronoun for its veneration—or to the genus of that with which writing is performed, in which case the plural pronoun is for its multiplicity. However, it is not a writer in reality; rather, it is an instrument for the writer, so attributing the act to it is a metaphorical attribution to an instrument, and expressing it with the pronoun of rational beings is because it takes their place and is made an actor. Or, it refers to the scribes or the watchers understood from the "Pen," or to them [the angels] considering that the "Pen" was intended to denote its possessors metaphorically, or by estimating an omitted noun alongside it. It is not hidden which of these is the most evident. As for it being the "what" (mā) in the sense of "who" (man), it is a forced and weak interpretation. The apparent meaning is that it is either a relative pronoun—i.e., "and that which they inscribe"—or a source-indicating particle (masdariyyah)—i.e., "and their inscribing."