Tafsir of At-Tawbah 9:72

(God has promised the believing men and believing women gardens beneath which rivers flow, abiding therein forever) — this is in contrast to the previous threat issued to the hypocrites, which was expressed as a "promise" by way of irony, as has been mentioned. It is understood from the words of some that His saying, Glory be to Him, "He will have mercy on them," is an explanation of the effusion of the worldly effects of mercy, such as support and victory; and this (current verse) is a detailed account of the effects of His mercy, Glory be to Him, in the Hereafter. The use of the manifest noun (the believing men and women) in the place of the pronoun is for the sake of greater emphasis, and to signal that faith is the effective cause for that which the promise relates to. The remaining attributes were not added to it to indicate that this (faith) is of its prerequisites and concomitants. The discussion regarding "abiding therein" here is the same as the discussion that has passed.

"And pleasant dwellings," meaning those which the souls find pleasant, or in which life is pleasant. Thus, the attribution is either literal or metaphorical. Ibn Abi Hatim and Ibn Marduyah recorded from Al-Hasan, who said: I asked Imran ibn Husayn and Abu Hurayrah about the interpretation of "pleasant dwellings," and they said: You have fallen upon one who is informed; we asked the Messenger of God, peace and blessings of God be upon him, about it, and he said: "A palace of pearl in Paradise; in that palace are seventy abodes of red ruby; in each abode are seventy houses of green emerald; in each house are seventy beds; upon each bed are seventy mattresses of every color; upon each mattress is a woman of the hour al-ayn (wide-eyed houris); in each house are seventy dining tables; on each table are seventy types of every food; in each house are seventy manservants and maidservants." The believer is given the strength each morning to consume all of that.

"In gardens of Eden": It is said that this is a proper name for a specific place, evidenced by the saying of God, Exalted is He: "Gardens of Eden which the Most Merciful has promised," where it is described by definiteness. Al-Bazzar, Ad-Daraqutni in Al-Mu'talif wa Al-Mukhtalif, and Ibn Marduyah recorded from the hadith of Abu Darda that the Messenger of God, peace and blessings of God be upon him, said: "Eden is the house of God, Exalted is He, which no eye has seen and which has never occurred to the heart of a human being. None shall inhabit it except three: the Prophets, the Truthful (Siddiqun), and the Martyrs. God, Glory be to Him, says: 'Glad tidings to he who enters you.'" It is reported from Abdullah ibn Amr ibn al-Aas that in Paradise there is a palace called Eden, surrounded by towers and meadows, having five thousand doors; none enters it except a Prophet, a Truthful one, or a Martyr. Ibn Mas'ud said it is the interior and the marrow of Paradise. Ata' ibn al-Sa'ib said: Eden is a river in Paradise, with gardens upon its banks. It is also said that 'adn in origin means stability and permanence; it is said "he 'adana in a place" if he resides there. The intended meaning here is residence with eternity, for that is the perfect individual (meaning) appropriate for the station of praise—that is, in gardens of residence and eternity. According to this, all the gardens are gardens of Eden.

"They shall not desire any change from them." The distinction between the dwellings and the gardens, which is signaled by the conjunction, is either essential—based on the view that the "gardens" refers to other than Eden (which is for the general believers, while Eden is for the Prophets, may peace and blessings be upon them, the Truthful, and the Martyrs)—or it refers to the orchards themselves, which are distinct from the dwellings, as is apparent. In that case, the promise explicitly concerns two things: the orchards and the dwellings; thus, for everyone there is a garden and a dwelling. Or, the distinction is descriptive: both are general, but the first is in view of their encompassing rivers and orchards, and the second is not in that view. It is as if He described what they were promised, firstly, as being of the same genus as the most honorable places known to them—the gardens with flowing rivers—so that their natures would incline toward it the moment it strikes their ears. Then, He described it as being surrounded by pleasantness of life, stripped of the impurities of disturbance from which the places and people of the world are hardly ever free; and therein is what the souls desire and the eyes delight in. Then, He described it as a house of residence without departure, and stability without cessation. This is not considered a repetition of His saying, Glory be to Him, "abiding therein," as is not hidden.

Then, He promised them—as understood from the speech, and it is more majestic and higher than all of that—with His saying, Blessed and Exalted is He: "(And a good pleasure from God) is greater." Meaning: and a small amount of His pleasure, Glory be to Him, is greater. To intend the conveyance of this, He departed from the phrase "the pleasure of God" (the superlative) to what is in the magnificent arrangement. It is said the departure (to the indefinite form) implies that what is mentioned is more manifest in the direction of His pleasure toward them. Perhaps He did not use the expression "satisfaction" (rida') to venerate the state of God, Exalted is He, in Himself, because in the word "good pleasure" (ridwan) there is a hyperbole that is not hidden; for this reason, it is not used in the Qur'an except regarding the pleasure of God, Glory be to Him. This was "greater" because it is the source of dwelling in the house of residence and the attainment of every happiness and honor; it is the ultimate desire of the lovers and the final wish of those who aspire.

The two Sheikhs and others recorded from Abu Sa'id al-Khudri who said: The Messenger of God, peace and blessings of God be upon him, said: "God, Exalted is He, says to the people of Paradise: 'O people of Paradise!' They say: 'At your service, our Lord, and at your command, and all good is in Your hands.' He says: 'Are you satisfied?' They say: 'Our Lord, and why should we not be satisfied, when You have given us what You have not given to anyone of Your creation?' He says: 'Shall I not give you something better than that?' They say: 'And what thing is better than that, our Lord?' He says: 'I bestow My good pleasure upon you, so I shall never be angry with you after it, ever.'" Perhaps the lack of stringing this "good pleasure" into the thread of the promise in the manner of what preceded—despite its rarity in itself—is because it is realized within every existing thing, and because it is continuous in both abodes.

"(That) — meaning all that has been mentioned — (is the great attainment)." Not what people count as an attainment among the fortunes of the world; for the world, setting aside its perishability, its changeability, and its being spoiled by pains, is not, compared to the least thing of the blessings of the Hereafter, but the equivalent of the wing of a gnat. In the hadith: "If the world weighed, in the sight of God, the wing of a gnat, He would not have given a disbeliever a drink of water from it." How excellent is he who said: "By God, if the whole world were to remain for us, and its provision were abundant, a free man would not debase himself for it; how then, when it is but an enjoyment that shall vanish tomorrow?"

It is permitted that the reference is to the "good pleasure," for it is a great attainment in comparison to which the blessings of the world and its fortunes are held in contempt; or (it refers to) the world and its blessings, and Paradise and what is within it. Under both interpretations, it does not contradict His saying, Glory be to Him: "God has promised them gardens beneath which rivers flow, abiding therein forever; that is the great attainment." For the "great" is interpreted therein as that in comparison to which the blessings of the world are held in contempt. So contemplate.