Tafsir of Al-Qiyamah 75:2

This follows the same pattern, although it has been said, regarding the reading lā uqsimu (I do not swear), that the intended meaning here is negation; that is: "I do not swear by the Day of Resurrection, due to its nobility, nor do I swear by the self-reproaching soul, due to its baseness."

'Abd ibn Humayd and Ibn Jarir recorded from Qatadah that which supports this, and it was narrated in al-Bahr from al-Hasan and Qatadah that this soul is the wicked, greedy one, which reproaches its owner for what it missed of worldly efforts and desires. A similar report has come down from Ibn 'Abbas. However, the truth is that this interpretation does not suit this context. Therefore, it was said: "It is the righteous soul that reproaches the souls on the Day of Resurrection for their shortcoming in piety," with the hyperbole (in the form lawwāmah) indicating frequency.

Mujahid said: "It is the soul that blames itself for what has passed, regretting evil—asking why it did it—and regretting good—asking why it did not do more of it. It is constantly blaming, even if it strives in acts of obedience." Thus, the hyperbole here refers to the quality in terms of persistence.

It was also said: The intended meaning of the "self-reproaching soul" is the genus of the soul, encompassing both the righteous and the wicked, based on what was narrated: "There is no soul, whether righteous or wicked, but that it will blame itself on the Day of Resurrection. If it did good, it will say, 'Why did I not do more?' And if it did evil, it will say, 'Would that I had not.'" It is linked to the Day of Resurrection because the purpose of its existence is its recompense and resurrection on that day.

This view was weakened by the argument that this level of reproach is not sufficient to be the subject of such a great oath, even if it proceeds from a sinful believing soul, let alone a disbelieving one included under this genus. It was answered that the oath by it, in that case, is made regardless of the attribute, and the soul—in its own right—is noble because it is the spirit, which is among the great affairs of Allah, Mighty and Majestic is He. The response to this is that, in that case, the mention of the description ("reproaching") would have no purpose.

Al-Imam halted the report on the authority of Ibn 'Abbas and challenged it with three points, then answered them by interpreting the reproach as the wish for more good and the wish that the committed sin had not occurred. As is evident, what was mentioned regarding the reasoning for the link [to the Day of Resurrection] does not apply solely to this view.

It was also said that the intended meaning is the soul of Adam, peace be upon him, for it has not ceased to reproach itself for the action through which it was removed from Paradise.

Most of the Sufis hold that the self-reproaching soul is above the ammarah (the soul that commands to evil) and below the mutma'innah (the soul at peace). They defined the ammarah as that which inclines toward bodily nature, commands sensual pleasures and desires, and pulls the heart toward the lower realm. They said it is the abode of evils and the source of reprehensible morals. They defined the lawwamah (reproaching) as that which has been illuminated by the light of the heart to the extent that it has awakened from the slumber of heedlessness; whenever a sin proceeds from it by the decree of its dark disposition, it begins to reproach itself and recoil from it. They defined the mutma'innah as that which has been fully illuminated by the light of the heart until it has stripped away its reprehensible attributes, adorned itself with praiseworthy morals, and found tranquility from the struggle of nature.

Among them are those who say the lawwamah is the mutma'innah in relation to the ammarah, and others say it is the mutma'innah itself, which has become qualified to discipline others, and so on. It is well known among them to divide the stations of the soul into seven, including these three. There is precious discourse on this in [the books regarding] the path of travel to the King of Kings, so let him who wishes consult it.

The response to the oath is that which is indicated by His saying, the Exalted:...