Tafsir of Al-Qalam 68:6

Surah Al-Qalam (The Pen): Verse 6

بِأَيِّكُمُ الْمَفْتُونُ (By which of you is the afflicted/possessed?)

There are several interpretations regarding this verse:

First View: This is the opinion of Al-Akhfash, Abu Ubaidah, and Ibn Qutaybah. They hold that the preposition بـ (bi-) is superfluous (a ṣilah zā’idah).

The meaning then becomes: "Which of you is the afflicted/possessed?" (i.e., the one afflicted with madness/insanity). This is similar to the verse:

{تَنبُتُ بِالدُّهْنِ} (The believers, 20) Meaning: "It grows oil/fat."

Abu Ubaidah cited the following verse as evidence:

نَضْرِبُ بِالسَّيْفِ وَنَرْجُو بِالْفَرَجِ (We strike with the sword and hope for relief.)

Al-Farra’ criticized this interpretation, stating that if the correct meaning can be conveyed without discarding the preposition بـ, that approach is preferable. As for the cited verse, its meaning is: "We hope for the removal of our distress through relief, or we hope for victory through relief."

Second View: This is the preferred view of Al-Farra’ and Al-Mubarrad. They argue that الْمَفْتُونُ (al-maftūn) here means الْفُتُون (al-futūn), which signifies madness or insanity. Nouns derived from verbal nouns (Masdar) can sometimes take the form of the passive participle (Maf'ūl), such as الْمَعْقُود (al-ma'qūd) and الْمَيْسُور (al-maysūr), meaning al-'aqd (the tying) and al-yusr (the ease), respectively. For example, it is said: "He has no ma'qūd ra'y," meaning he has no firm resolution ('aqd ra'y).

This view is also held by Al-Hasan, Al-Dahhak, and a narration from 'Atiyyah on the authority of Ibn Abbas.

Third View: The preposition بـ (bi-) here means فِي (fī) (in). The meaning of the verse is: "Soon you and they will see in which party the mad one is—is he in the party of Islam or in the party of the disbelievers?"

Fourth View: الْمَفْتُونُ (Al-Maftūn) refers to Satan, as there is no doubt that he is misguided (maftūn) in his religion. When they (the disbelievers) accused the Prophet (PBUH) of being mad, they were essentially claiming he was possessed by a devil. Therefore, Allah says: "They will know tomorrow which of them is the one possessed by the devil, whose touch causes madness and derangement of the mind."

Then Allah Almighty says:

! 7 < { إِنَّ رَبَّكَ هُوَ أَعْلَمُ بِمَن ضَلَّ عَن سَبِيلِهِ وَهُوَ أَعْلَمُ بِالْمُهْتَدِينَ } . > 7 ! < (Indeed, your Lord is most knowing of who has strayed from His path, and He is most knowing of those who are guided.)