Surah An-Naml (The Ants) - Verse 60: "Or is He Who created the heavens and the earth and sent down for you water from the sky, and We caused to grow thereby gardens of beauty? You could never cause the growth of their trees. Is there a god along with Allah? Nay, but they are a people who swerve aside."

Issues Discussed Herein:

The author of Al-Kashshaf states that the difference between Am (أَمْ) in the phrase {أَمْ يُشْرِكُونَ} (Or do they associate partners?) and A (أَ) in {أَمَنْ خَلَقَ} (Or is He Who created?) is that the former is connected (i.e., a choice between two alternatives, implying "which is better?"), whereas the latter is disjunctive (a break, meaning "rather" or "but").

Regarding the phrase {ذَاتِ بَهْجَةٍ} (of beauty/splendor):

1. The garden (Hadiqa) is a plantation surrounded by a wall (Sur) derived from Ihdāq (encompassing/surrounding).
2. Alternatively, it is described as {ذَاتِ} (possessing) because the meaning is "a collection of gardens possessing splendor," similar to saying "women went forth" (where the plural noun is used for a collective singular subject).
3. Al-Bahjah (splendor/delight) refers to beauty because the observer takes delight (yabtajij) in it.

Regarding {مَعَ اللَّهِ} (along with Allah): Does this mean "Is there another being associated with Him and made a partner to Him?"

• It is also read as {أَنَّ مَعَ اللَّهِ} (That there is with Allah), meaning "Do you call upon or associate partners with Allah?"

The Almighty clarified that He alone is distinguished by creating the heavens and the earth, making the sky a place for water, and the earth for vegetation. He then mentioned the greatest blessing: the splendid gardens.

The Almighty pointed to the fact that only He can cause this vegetation to grow in the gardens. If a human being could do it, he would not need to plant seeds, persevere until the fruit appears, or exert effort. Since the Almighty is the one exclusively responsible for this bounty, He must be the one exclusively deserving of worship.

Then He said: {بَلْ هُمْ قَوْمٌ يَعْدِلُونَ} (Nay, but they are a people who swerve aside). There is a difference of opinion regarding the meaning of ya'dilūn (they swerve/deviate):

1. It is said they deviate from this evident truth.
2. It is said they associate others with Allah besides Him.

A similar verse is found at the beginning of Surah Al-An'am.

What is the wisdom behind the shift in perspective (from third person to first person plural) in the phrase {فَأَنبَتْنَا} (And We caused to grow)?

Answer: There is no doubt in the mind of an intelligent person that the Creator of the heavens and the earth and the Descender of water from the sky can only be Allah. However, doubt might arise concerning the one who makes the tree grow, as a human might claim: "I am the one who casts the seed into fertile earth, waters it, and strives to expose it to the sun." Since the agent of the cause is considered the agent of the effect, the human might conclude, "Therefore, I am the one who makes the tree grow."

Because this possibility exists, the Almighty removed this doubt by shifting the perspective from the third person (implied in the preceding context) to the first person plural: {فَأَنبَتْنَا} (And We caused to grow). He then followed this with {مَا كَانَ لَكُمْ أَن تُنبِتُوا شَجَرَهَا} (It was not for you to cause the growth of their trees).

This is because a human may provide the seed, water, effort, and sun exposure, yet the result may not align with his desire. If the result does align with his desire, he is ignorant of the nature, measure, and manner of that growth. How, then, can he be the true agent of it? For this subtle point (nukta), the shift in perspective here is excellent.

The Second Type: Matters Related to the Earth

{أَمَّنْ جَعَلَ الْأَرْضَ قَرَارًا وَجَعَلَ خِلَالَهَا أَنْهَارًا وَجَعَلَ لَهَا رَوَاسِيَ وَجَعَلَ بَيْنَ الْبَحْرَيْنِ حَاجِزًا أَإِلَهٌ مَعَ اللَّهِ بَلْ أَكْثَرُهُمْ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ}

(Or is He Who made the earth a resting place, and placed within it rivers, and placed upon it firm mountains, and placed between the two seas a barrier? Is there a god along with Allah? Nay, but most of them do not know.)