ﱍ ﱎ ﱏ
And when the [contents of] graves are scattered,
ﱍ ﱎ ﱏ
And when the [contents of] graves are scattered,
Tafsir
Verse range: 82:4
Its meaning is the overturning of its soil, which is upon its dead, and the removal and bringing forth of what was buried within it, according to the explanation provided by more than one scholar. The root of ba‘thara, as it is said, is the scattering of soil and the like, which is done only to bring forth something underneath it. It is sometimes mentioned when the meaning and its necessity are intended together, and upon this is what you have heard. Sometimes it is used metaphorically for resurrection (ba‘th) and bringing forth, as is customary in language where it is attributed to what is in the graves rather than the graves themselves, as is the case here.
Some have claimed that it is a term shared between digging up (nabsh) and bringing forth (ikhraj). Some Imams, such as al-Zamakhshari and al-Suhayli, held the view that it is a compound of two words formed by abbreviation, a process known as naht (acronymic derivation). The origin of ba‘thara is ba‘thara [derived from] ba‘atha (to send/raise) and athara (to turn over soil). Similar to this are basmala, hamdala, hawqala, and dam‘aza—meaning: saying "In the name of Allah," "Praise be to Allah," "There is no power nor strength except in Allah," and "May Allah perpetuate His glory"—along with other such counterparts, of which there are many in the Arabic language. On this basis, its meaning encompasses both digging up and bringing forth.
Abu Hayyan objected to this, arguing that the letter 'Ra' is not among the letters of augmentation. This is a misconception on his part, for there is a distinction between compounding/acronyms from two words and the augmentation of some radical letters within a single word, as detailed in al-Zahr quoting the Imams of language. Indeed, the default principle is the absence of compounding.