Ar-Ra'd (13:12-13) - It is He Who Shows You...

It should be noted that after warning the servants with the inevitable descent of what cannot be repelled, the Almighty follows this by mentioning these verses, which encompass three matters. This is because they are proofs of Allah's power and wisdom. They resemble blessings and favor in some aspects, and torment and subjugation in others.

The Almighty mentioned four matters here.

The First: Lightning, which is His saying: {He shows you the lightning, out of fear and hope} (13:12). This involves several issues:

The author of Al-Kashshaf mentioned several possibilities for the accusative case of {fear and hope}:

1. They cannot be direct objects (Maf'ul li-ajlih) unless we assume a deleted noun, meaning "the intention of fear and hope," or interpret it as "causing fear and causing hope."
2. They can be circumstantial accusatives (Hal) referring to the lightning itself, as if the lightning inherently possesses fear and hope. The meaning would be: "possessing fear and possessing hope," or "causing fear and causing hope."
3. They can be circumstantial accusatives referring to the addressees (humans), meaning "while you are fearful and hopeful."

There are several interpretations for why lightning is described as fear and hope:

1. When lightning flashes, people fear the descent of thunderbolts and hope for the rain to fall. Al-Mutanabbi said:

   A youth like the dark cloud, feared and hoped for, From which rain is hoped, and thunderbolts are feared.

2. Those who are harmed by rain (like travelers or those with dried fruits) fear it, while those who benefit from it hope for it.

3. Everything that occurs in the world is good for some people and bad for others. Similarly, rain is good for those who need it at the right time, and bad for those whom it harms, either due to location or time.

The occurrence of lightning is a wondrous proof of Allah's power. The explanation is: Clouds are undoubtedly composite bodies made of moist, watery parts and airy/fiery parts. Water is generally cold and moist, while fire is hot and dry. The emergence of an opposite from its complete opposite contradicts natural reasoning. Therefore, there must be an active, choosing Creator who manifests the opposite from its opposite.

If it is argued: Why can't we say that the wind is trapped inside the cloud mass, and the coldness dominates its exterior, freezing the outer surface? Then, this trapped wind violently tears it apart, and this violent tearing generates intense movement, which in turn causes heat—this heat being the lightning?

The Answer: Everything you mentioned contradicts rational understanding, for several reasons:

1. If that were the case, wherever lightning occurs, thunder (the sound resulting from the tearing of the cloud) must necessarily occur. This is not the case, as strong lightning often occurs without thunder.
2. The heat resulting from intense movement opposes the watery nature that causes coldness. How could this strong accidental quality produce fire? Indeed, great fires are extinguished by pouring water on them, and the entire cloud is water—how could a weak fiery spark arise within it?
3. According to your doctrine, pure fire has absolutely no color. Even if fire were generated due to the intense friction among the cloud particles, from where does that red color originate?

Thus, the cause they mentioned is weak. The generation of fire within the cloud mass, despite it being pure water, can only happen through the power of the Capable, Wise One.

The Second Type of Proof in this Verse is His saying: {And He brings forth the heavy clouds} (13:12).

The author of Al-Kashshaf stated: Suhab (clouds) is a collective noun, and its singular is sahābah. Thiqāl (heavy) is the plural of thaqīlah (heavy), just as you say imra'ah karīmah (a noble woman) and nisā'un kirām (noble women). These clouds are heavy with water.

This is also a proof of power and wisdom. These watery particles either originated in the atmosphere or ascended from the Earth's surface.

1. If they originated in the atmosphere, their creation necessitates a Wise, Capable Creator—which is the desired conclusion.
2. If they ascended from the Earth, they would cool down upon reaching the cold layer of the air, become heavy, and return to Earth. This is false because rainfall varies: sometimes the drops are large, sometimes small; sometimes close together, sometimes far apart; sometimes the rain lasts a long time, sometimes a short time. This variation in rainfall characteristics, despite the Earth's nature being one and the Sun's heating nature being one, must be due to the specific designation of an active, choosing Agent. Furthermore, experience shows that supplication and humility have a great effect on the descent of rain, which is why the Prayer for Rain (Salat al-Istisqa') is legislated. We thus know that the influencer is the power of the Agent, not mere nature or inherent property.

The Third Type of Proof in this Verse is Thunder: {And the thunder exalts His praise, and the angels out of fear of Him} (13:13). This involves several opinions:

Opinion 1: Thunder is the name of an Angel. This audible sound is the voice of that Angel glorifying (Tasbih) and proclaiming oneness (Tahleel).

• According to Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him): The Jews asked the Prophet (peace be upon him) about thunder. He replied: "(It is an angel appointed over the clouds, having fiery rods with which he drives the clouds wherever Allah wills.)" They asked: "What is the sound we hear?" He replied: "(It is his driving of the clouds.)"
• Al-Hasan said it is a creation of Allah, not an angel.
• Under this view, thunder is the angel appointed over the clouds, and his voice is glorification of Allah. The sound itself is also called thunder. This is supported by what is narrated from Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him): When he heard thunder, he would say: "Glory be to Him whom everything glorifies." And from the Prophet (peace be upon him): "Indeed, Allah creates the heavy clouds, and they utter the most beautiful speech and laugh the most beautiful laugh; their speech is thunder, and their laughter is lightning."

This view is not far-fetched. For Ahlus-Sunnah, structure is not a prerequisite for life. It is not impossible for Allah to create life, knowledge, power, and speech in the components of the cloud, making the audible sound an act of that entity. How can this be rejected when we see the salamander generated in fire, frogs generated in cold water, and a great worm sometimes generated in old snow? Furthermore, if the glorification of mountains in the time of David (peace be upon him) and the glorification of pebbles in the time of Muhammad (peace be upon him) are not rejected, how can the glorification of clouds be rejected?

Under this view, whether the entity called thunder is an angel or not, there are two opinions:

1. It is not an angel because the angels are mentioned separately: {and the angels out of fear of Him}. The conjoined term must be different from the term it is conjoined to.
2. It is possible that it is of the category of angels, but it was singled out for honor, similar to {and His angels, and His messengers, and Gabriel} (2:98), and {And [recall] when We took from the prophets their covenant, and from you, and from Noah} (33:7).

Opinion 2: Thunder is the name of this specific sound. Even so, thunder glorifies Allah because glorification, sanctification, and similar expressions are nothing but the existence of a word indicating the attainment of transcendence and sanctification for Allah the Exalted. Since the occurrence of this sound is proof of the existence of a Being transcendent from defect and contingency, this is, in reality, glorification, which aligns with the meaning of {And there is not a thing except that it exalts [Allah] with praise, but you do not perceive their exaltation} (17:44).

Opinion 3: The meaning of thunder glorifying is that whoever hears thunder glorifies Allah. For this reason, this glorification is attributed to it.

Opinion 4 (from the Sufis): Thunder is the sharp cries of the angels, lightning is the sighing of their hearts, and rain is their weeping.

If it is asked: What is the reality of thunder? We reply: We have elaborated on this in Surah Al-Baqarah regarding the verse: {darkness, thunder, and lightning} (2:19).

Regarding {and the angels out of fear of Him}: Some commentators say this refers to the angels who are the assistants of thunder, as Allah appointed assistants for it. The meaning of {and the angels out of fear of Him} is: and the angels glorify out of the fear and awe of Allah. Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) said: They are fearful of Allah, not like the fear of Adam's son, as one of them does not know who is to his right or left, nor is he distracted from worshipping Allah by food, drink, or anything else.

The discerning scholars mention that these celestial phenomena are accomplished by astral spiritual powers. The cloud has a specific spirit from the astral spirits that manages it, and similarly for the winds and other celestial phenomena. This is precisely what we narrated: that thunder is the name of an angel who glorifies Allah. What the commentators stated using this phrasing is exactly what the discerning scholars stated about the philosophers. How fitting is it for an intelligent person to deny this?

The Fourth Type of Proof in this Verse is His saying: {And He sends the thunderbolts and strikes therewith whom He wills} (13:13).

We have already mentioned the meaning of thunderbolts in Surah Al-Baqarah. Commentators said this verse was revealed concerning 'Amir ibn al-Tufayl and Arbad ibn Rabi'ah, the brother of Labid ibn Rabi'ah. They came to the Prophet (peace be upon him) arguing and intending to harm him. Arbad ibn Rabi'ah asked: "Inform us about our Lord—is He made of copper or iron?" When Arbad returned, a thunderbolt was sent upon him and burned him, and 'Amir was afflicted with a swelling like a camel's hump and died in the house of Banu Sulayl.

The matter of the thunderbolt is very strange because it sometimes originates from the clouds. When it descends from the clouds, it might plunge into the sea and burn the fish in the depths. The philosophers exaggerated in describing its power. The proof lies here: Fire is hot and dry, and its nature opposes the nature of the cloud. Therefore, its nature in heat and dryness should be weaker than the nature of the fires generated by custom among us. However, it is not so; rather, it is the strongest fire in this world. Thus, its specialization with this extra power must be due to the designation of an active, choosing Agent.

After mentioning these four proofs, the Almighty said: {And they argue concerning Allah} (13:13). This means that Allah demonstrated the perfection of His knowledge in {Allah knows what every female bears} (13:8), and demonstrated the perfection of His power in these verses.

Then He said: {And they argue concerning Allah}. This refers to these disbelievers, despite the clarity of these proofs, arguing about Allah. This has several possible meanings:

1. It could be a refutation of the disbeliever who asked: "Inform us about our Lord—is He made of copper or iron?"
2. It could be a refutation of their arguments in denying the Resurrection and invalidating the gathering and resurrection.
3. It could be a refutation of their demand for other miracles.
4. It could be a refutation of their demand for the punishment of annihilation.

Regarding the conjunction 'Waw' (and), there are two opinions:

1. It is a circumstantial conjunction (Waw al-Hal). The meaning is: He strikes with the thunderbolt whom He wills while they are arguing about Allah. This is supported by Arbad being burned by lightning when he argued about Allah.
2. It is an independent conjunction (Waw al-Istinaf), as if Allah, having completed the mention of these proofs, then said: {And they argue concerning Allah}.

Then the Almighty said: {And He is severe in might (Mihal)} (13:13). There are opinions regarding the word Mihal:

• Ibn Qutaybah said the 'M' is extra, and it derives from Hawl (power/might), similar to Makan (place).
• Al-Azhari said this is incorrect, as a word on the pattern of Fa'āl beginning with a broken 'M' has an original root, like mihād, madās, and midād. They differed on its derivation in several ways:
  1. It is said to derive from the saying: Māhala fulānan bi-fulān (He reported someone to the ruler, exposing him to destruction), and tamahhallu li-kadha (he exerted effort in using cunning). Thus, the meaning is that Allah is severe in His plotting against His enemies, destroying them in a way they do not expect.
  2. Mihāl is an expression for severity. Hence, a difficult year is called sanat al-mahall (a year of hardship), and māhalathu means "it resisted me; which of us is stronger?" Abu Muslim said: Mihāl is Fa'āl derived from Mahall (severity), and the pattern Fa'āl can denote reciprocity or opposition. So the meaning is that Allah is severe in overpowering. Commentators offered various interpretations: Mujahid and Qatadah said: severe in power. Abu Ubaydah said: severe in punishment. Al-Hasan said: severe in vengeance. Ibn Abbas said: severe in might (Hawl).
  3. Ibn 'Arfah said: It is said Māhala 'an amrihi (he argued about his matter). So {severe in Mihal} means severe in argument.
  4. It is narrated from some that {severe in Mihal} means severe in rancor/hatred. They said this is incorrect as rancor cannot be attributed to Allah. However, we have mentioned in this book that when such terms are used concerning Allah, they refer to the ultimate consequences of the attributes, not their origins. Thus, what is meant by rancor here is that Allah intends to inflict harm upon someone while concealing that intention from him.

< {To Him belongs the true invocation, and those whom they invoke besides Him do not respond to them at all, except as one who stretches out his hands toward water that it may reach his mouth, but it will not reach it. And the invocation of the disbelievers is not but in vain.} >