Tafsir of Al-A'raf 7:186

His saying—Exalted is His Majesty—: "Whoever God leads astray, there is no guide for him," is an inauguration confirming what preceded it, based upon the sealing of their hearts. The intent is the continuity of the negation, not the negation of continuity.

His saying—Sublime and Exalted is He—: "And He leaves them in their transgression," (written with the ya and in the nominative case as an inauguration, meaning "and He leaves them"). Many have recited it with the nun of majesty, following the method of iltifat (shift in mode of address), meaning "and We leave them." Hamza and al-Kisa’i recited it with the ya and the jussive (jazm), acting as a conjunction to the status of the nominal sentence occurring as the answer to the condition, as if it were said: "Whoever God leads astray, none shall guide him, and He leaves them." It is also possible that this is a quiescent jazm for the sake of lightness, as in the recitations yush’irkum and yansurkum. The jussive with the nun has also been narrated from Nafi’ and Abu ‘Amr in the shadh (irregular) readings, and its derivation follows one of the two aforementioned possibilities.

His saying—Blessed and Exalted is He—: "Wandering blindly," is a state (hal) from the object of "He leaves them." ‘Amh (blind wandering) is oscillation in error and confusion, or that one does not recognize a proof. The singular pronoun in the domain of negation (hadin) follows the wording of man (whoever), and its plural in the domain of affirmation (ya‘mahun) follows its meaning, to stipulate that the negation and affirmation encompass the whole, as it is said, "This is..."

"And had We willed, We could have elevated him thereby"—to the enclosure of Sanctity—"but he inclined toward the earth," meaning he leaned toward the earthy, lower nature, "and followed his desire" in preferring what is other than God. "So his example is like that of the dog," in his most debased states. "If you attack him," by scolding him, "he pants," hanging out his tongue with heavy breathing, "or if you leave him, he pants" as well. The intent is that he pants continuously. It is as if this is an allusion that this one who has "detached himself" never ceases to loosen his tongue against the people of perfection, whether he is scolded or not.

"And We have certainly created for Hell many of the jinn and mankind," for they are the manifestations of His Majesty. "They have hearts with which they do not understand" the mysteries, "and they have eyes with which they do not see" the cosmic proofs, "and they have ears with which they do not hear" the revealed signs. They are deaf, dumb, and blind. "Those are like livestock," having no concern but food and drink, "rather, they are more astray," for they are not deterred when scolded, nor are they guided when instructed.

Among the things considered distant from the path of reason is that which Imam al-Sha'rani narrated from his teacher Ali al-Khawas—may his secret be sanctified—that beasts are held accountable, arguing by the saying of the Almighty: "And there is no creature on [or within] the earth or bird that flies with its wings except [that they are] communities like you," alongside His saying: "And there was no nation but that there had passed within it a warner," and by what has been transmitted from the Prophet—may God bless him and grant him peace—that "Retribution shall be taken for the hornless sheep from the horned sheep." While this refers to the sheep, no one claims a distinction. It was narrated from him that everything in existence—animal, plant, and inanimate—is alive and cognizant. Then he said: "I asked him: 'Is the Almighty's comparison of those among His servants who go astray to livestock a statement of the deficiency of livestock relative to man, or of their perfection in knowledge of God the Almighty?'" He replied—may God be pleased with him—: "I do not know, but I heard some say: 'Comparing them to livestock is not a deficiency; rather, it is to demonstrate the perfection of their rank in knowledge of God—Mighty and Majestic—such that they were bewildered in Him.' Thus, the comparison in reality occurs in the bewilderment, not in the subject of the bewilderment. There is no one more bewildered than the knowers of God the Almighty. The highest point reached by the scholars in their knowledge of their Lord—Sublime and Exalted—is the beginning of the beasts, which have not departed from their origin—even if they shift in their affairs according to the shifting of the Divine affairs—because they do not remain upon one state."

For this reason, those whom the Almighty described among these people are "more astray in way than livestock," because they desire to exit this bewilderment by way of their own thought and reflection, which is impossible for them, whereas the beasts knew this, stopped at it, and did not seek to exit it due to the intensity of their knowledge of God the Almighty. It is mentioned that they were only called baha’im (beasts) because their affair has been ubhim (obscured/ambiguous) to the majority of creation, so they do not know it as the people of unveiling (kashf) know it. End quote.

This is speech that instills in the believer a yearning for the beasts—may God the Almighty benefit us through them and protect us from envy.

"And to God belong the best names," through which He manages every affair by one of them, "so invoke Him by them," according to the levels. The highest of them is invocation by the tongue of action, which is to adorn oneself with their meanings to the extent conceivable for the servant, and that is the portion of those who are near to Him. The Proof of Islam, al-Ghazali—may his secret be sanctified—mentioned that their portions of the meanings of His names are three:

First, knowing them by way of unveiling and witnessing until their realities become clear to them through a proof in which error is not possible, and God's possession of them is revealed to them with a clarity that proceeds in lucidity and manifestation like the certainty a person has of his inner attributes, which he perceives by observing his interior, not by the sensation of his exterior. How far this is from the belief taken from parents and teachers by imitation, and clinging to it, even if accompanied by dialectical, scholastic proofs.

Second, their regarding as magnificent that which is revealed to them of the attributes of Majesty and Perfection, in a manner that produces a yearning to be characterized by what is possible of those attributes, so that they may draw near to the Truth—a closeness of attribute, not of place—thereby taking on a resemblance to the angels who are near to God the Almighty. The absence of this yearning only occurs for one of two reasons: either due to weakness of knowledge, or because the heart is filled with another yearning, engrossed by it.

Third, striving to acquire what is possible of those attributes, characterizing oneself by them, and adorning oneself with their virtues. Thereby, the servant becomes Rabbani (divine), a companion of the High Assembly of angels, similar to them. At that point, proximity and distance do not affect his perception; rather, his perception is not limited to what is conceivable within those bounds. He becomes sanctified from desire and anger, such that his actions are not according to their dictates; rather, the caller to them is the seeking of closeness to God the Almighty. It does not follow from this to establish equivalence between God—Sublime and Exalted—and the servant. The Almighty said: "There is nothing like unto Him," for equivalence is participation in genus and essence, not absolute participation. A keen horse, even if it reaches the ultimate in keenness, is not equivalent to a human being, due to its difference in genus, even if it resembles him in the keenness which is an attribute external to the essential components of humanity.

You know, with the slightest reflection, that sharing is not conceivable between God the Almighty—the Living, the Knowing, the Willing, the Powerful, the Speaking, the Hearing, the Seeing—and the servant—who is characterized by life, knowledge, will, power, hearing, and sight—except in the application of the name, nothing more. The discourse regarding the tradition "My servant continues to draw near to Me through supererogatory acts..." requires plunging into a sea that has no shore. So take what We have brought you.

"And leave those who deviate in His names," who seek their meanings from other than Him—Sublime is He—and attribute them to others. These are among those whom the Almighty created for Hell. "They will be recompensed for what they have been doing" of deviation.

"And among those We created is a nation guiding by the Truth and with it they establish justice." These are the perfect guides.

"But those who deny Our signs," such as those who reject this nation, "We will lead them step by step from where they do not know" that We are leading them step by step, "and I will give them time," I will grant them respite. "Indeed, My plan"—My taking—"is firm," severe. It has been the habit of God the Almighty regarding those who reject His saints that He takes them with the most severe taking. We have witnessed that often. We take refuge in God the Almighty from His plan.

"Do they not look into the realm of the heavens and the earth and what God has created of things?" These are the creative signs. The meaning of malakut (realm) has already been mentioned. In the terminology of the Sufis—may God the Almighty sanctify their secrets—it is an expression for the world of the unseen, specifically the spirits and souls. They interpreted mulk (dominion) as the world of the manifest, of natural observables like the Throne, the Footstool, and others, and every body composed of the four elements.

"Whoever God leads astray, there is no guide for him," for there is no guide other than Him—Sublime is He. He who chokes on a morsel seeks water; he who chokes on water, where shall he seek? "And He leaves them in their transgression, wandering blindly," oscillating, for their receptivity necessitates that. And God the Almighty is the Granter of success.