The Event: (41) And those on the left hand...

There are several issues here:

Issue 1: The Wisdom in Mentioning Scorching Winds (Sumūm) and Boiling Water (Hamīm) While Omitting Fire (Nār) and Its Horrors

We say: There is an indication from the lesser to the greater. He said: Their air that blows upon them is sumūm (scorching winds), and the water they cry out for is hamīm (boiling water). This is despite the fact that air and water are the coldest things, yet sumūm and hamīm are among the most harmful things, unlike air and water in this world, which are among the most beneficial.

So, what do you think of their Fire, which is hotter than what we know? If He had said: "They are in a Fire," we might have thought their Fire was like our fire, because we have not seen anything hotter than what we have seen, nor hotter than sumūm, nor colder than pure water (zalāl). Therefore, He said: the coldest things for them are the hottest. So, what must their state be concerning their hottest things?

If it is asked: What are al-Sumūm? We say: The famous opinion is that it is a hot wind that blows, usually causing sickness or death. A better opinion is that it is putrid air that moves from one side to another. When a person inhales it, it corrupts the heart due to the putrefaction and kills the person. Its root is from poison (summ), like the poison of a snake or scorpion, etc.

It is also possible that this summ is from the poison of a needle, as stated in the verse: {Until the camel enters the eye of a needle} (Al-A'rāf: 40), because the venom of a viper penetrates the pores and corrupts them. It is also said that al-Sumūm is specific to what blows at night. Based on this, the statement {Sumūm} would indicate the darkness of their state, but this is very remote, because al-Sumūm can be seen during the day due to its density.

Issue 2: Al-Hamīm and Al-Yahmūm

Al-Hamīm is hot water, derived from hamama (with a kasra on the mīm), meaning an active participle (like fā'il), or a passive participle (like maf'ūl) if hamama means to heat the water. We have mentioned this repeatedly.

However, there is a linguistic subtlety here: The pattern fa'ūl is used for something that recurs repeatedly, like the wind that blows one after another, so al-Sumūm is specified with this pattern. Since hot water does not imply a sequence of occurrences, it is not said to have humūm.

If it is asked: What is al-Yahmūm? We say: There are several views:

1. It is one of the names of Hellfire.
2. It is smoke.
3. It is darkness. Its root is from al-ḥamam (charcoal/embers), so it is named after its blackness, and the extra letter (mīm) is added to intensify that meaning. This addition might signify two things: an increase in blackness and an increase in heat.

In all three interpretations, there is an indication of their constant degradation in torment: If they expose themselves to the blowing air, they are afflicted by the air, which is al-Sumūm. If they seek shelter, as one does to ward off al-Sumūm by taking refuge in a sheltered place (kinn), they will be in the shade of Yahmūm. If they seek to repel al-Sumūm by taking refuge in a place of Hamīm, they cannot escape the torment of the Hamīm.

It is also possible to suggest a sequence: The Sumūm strikes them, causing thirst, and the fire of the Sumūm inflames their insides. Then they drink water, which cuts their intestines. Then they desire shade, and that shade will be the shade of Yahmūm.

If it is asked: How is the use of the preposition min (from) justified in the verse {from Yahmūm}? We say:

1. If we take it as a name for Hellfire, it is for the beginning of the limit, like saying, "A breeze came to me from Paradise."
2. If we take it as smoke, it is like saying, "A ring of silver."
3. If we take it as darkness, the same applies.

If it is asked: How can it be interpreted as Hellfire when it is an indefinite, uninflected noun, yet it is used for a definite place? If it were a name for it, it should be used with the definite article (al-) like al-Jaḥīm, or it should be indeclinable like other names of Hellfire. We say that its use with alif and lām is like al-Jaḥīm, or it is indeclinable, and its occurrence in three places (Yahmūm) confirms this.

Then the Almighty said:

{Not cold, nor pleasing}