Surah Adh-Dhariyat: (Verse 15) Indeed, the righteous will be in...

After explaining the state of the deluded criminals, the state of the truthful, righteous one is mentioned. In this, there are several issues:

The First Issue: We have previously mentioned that the righteous person (Muttaqi) has stations. The lowest is abstaining from Shirk (polytheism), and the highest is abstaining from everything other than Allah. The lowest degree of the righteous person is Paradise, so no accountable person who avoids disbelief enters except that they enter Paradise and are provided its delights.

The Second Issue: Paradise is sometimes mentioned singularly, as in the verse: {The likeness of the Garden promised to the righteous} (Ar-Ra'd: 35). At other times, it is mentioned in the plural, as in this context where He says: {Indeed, the righteous will be in Gardens...}. Sometimes it is dualized, as in {And for him who feared the standing before his Lord will be two Gardens} (Ar-Rahman: 46). What is the wisdom behind this?

We say:

1. Singular (Garden): This is when referring to the oneness of the reward, as the abodes, trees, and rivers are connected, making it like one Garden.
2. Plural (Gardens): This is because, in relation to this world and its gardens, they are numerous gardens whose count cannot be limited.
3. Dual (Two Gardens): We will explain this in Surah Ar-Rahman. However, here we state that when Allah promises the reward, He mentions the Garden singularly. Similarly, when He makes the purchase, He says: {Indeed, Allah has purchased from the believers their lives and their properties in exchange for Paradise for them} (At-Tawbah: 111). When giving the reward, He mentions it in the plural, indicating that the increase in the promise is present. This contrasts with a situation where one is promised gardens, and then it is said that he is in a Garden, because that would be less than what was promised.

The Third Issue: The Almighty's saying {and springs} implies that the righteous person will be within them. There is no pleasure in a person being in water or other liquids. We say the meaning is amidst the springs, which is between the rivers, as evidenced by the fact that His saying {in Gardens} means nothing other than being among the gardens and within them, because the Garden itself is the trees, and the springs are situated among them in the same manner. The same applies to the use of the indefinite form for the springs, even though definiteness is used for glorification (e.g., saying "such-and-such a man" meaning a great man in manliness).