Al-A'raf: (26) O children of Adam...

There are two perspectives on the arrangement of this verse:

The First Perspective: Since God Almighty mentioned that He commanded Adam and Eve to descend to Earth, and established the Earth as their dwelling place, He subsequently clarified that He sent down everything they need in both religion and worldly life, including clothing, which is necessary for both realms.

The Second Perspective: Since God Almighty mentioned the incident of Adam's nakedness, where he began covering himself with leaves, He followed it by explaining that He created clothing for humankind so they could cover their private parts. This serves as a reminder of the great favor bestowed upon creation by enabling them to cover themselves.

If it is asked: What is the meaning of "sending down clothing"?

We reply: God Almighty sends down rain, and from the rain, the things that result in clothing are formed. Thus, it is as if He sent down the clothing. The reality is that since the things that occur on Earth are connected to matters descending from the heavens, it is as if God sent them down from the sky. This is similar to His saying: {And He sent down for you from the livestock eight pairs} (Az-Zumar: 6) and His saying: {And We sent down iron, in which there is great military might} (Al-Hadid: 25).

As for His saying: {and garments for covering} (or Rishan), there are two discussions concerning it:

First Discussion: Rish (garments for covering/adornment) is a metaphor derived from the feathers of a bird, as feathers are both its covering and its adornment. This means He sent down two types of garments for you: a garment to cover your private parts, and a garment to adorn you, because adornment is a legitimate purpose, as He said: {and for riding and as adornment} (An-Nahl: 8) and {And you have beauty in them} (An-Nahl: 6).

Second Discussion: There is an uncommon narration from 'Asim: {wa Riyāshan} (and adornments/provisions), which is also narrated from 'Uthman (may God be pleased with him). The rest recite: {wa Rīshan} (and garments for covering).

They differed on the distinction between Rīsh and Riyāsh:

1. It is said that Riyāsh is the plural of Rīsh, similar to Dhiyāb (plural) and Dhayb (singular), or Qidāḥ (plural) and Qudḥ (singular), or Shi'āb (plural) and Shi'b (singular).
2. It is said that they are the same, like Libās and Libs, or Jalāl and Jil.

Tha'lab narrated from Ibn al-A'rabi that he said: Everything by which a person lives, whether it is chattel, wealth, or food, is Rīsh and Riyāsh. Ibn as-Sikkit said: Ar-Riyāsh is specific to clothes and furniture, while Ar-Rīsh can refer to all other wealth.

As for His saying: {and the garment of righteousness/piety} (wa libās at-taqwā), there are two discussions:

First Discussion: Nāfi', Ibn 'Amir, and Al-Kisā'i recited it with the accusative case (wa libāsan), connecting it to His saying: {garments for covering} (libāsan), with the verb being Anzalnā (We sent down). In this case, {That} (dhālika) is the subject (mubtada'), and {is better} (khayrun) is the predicate (khabar). The rest recited it with the nominative case (wa libāsu). In this case, {and the garment of piety} (wa libāsu at-taqwā) is the subject, and {That} (dhālika) is an adjective, an appositive (badal), or an explanation (badal bayān). {is better} (khayrun) is the predicate for {and the garment of piety}. When we say it is an adjective, it means that {That} refers to the garment, as if saying: "And the garment of piety, which is indicated, is better."

Second Discussion: They differed on the interpretation of {and the garment of piety} (wa libās at-taqwā). The principle here is that some interpreted it as referring to the actual clothing worn, while others interpreted it as something else.

Regarding the First View (the actual clothing): There are several interpretations:

1. The intended meaning is that the garment God sent down to cover private parts is the garment of piety. In this case, the garment of piety is the first garment, and God repeated it to inform us that it is better. This is because a group from the Jahiliyyah used to worship by going naked and removing their clothes during the circumambulation (Tawaf) of the Ka'bah. This repetition is like someone saying: "I have known truthfulness in the matters of righteousness, and truthfulness is better for you than anything else," repeating "truthfulness" to convey this specific meaning.
2. The intended meaning of the garment of piety is what is worn for protection, such as armor, breastplates, and helmets, and other things used for defense in battles.
3. The intended meaning of the garment of piety is the clothing prepared for establishing prayers.

Regarding the Second View (metaphorical interpretation): They interpreted {and the garment of piety} metaphorically. They differed in this:

• Qatadah, As-Suddi, and Ibn Jurayj said: The garment of piety is Faith (Iman).
• Ibn 'Abbas said: The garment of piety is Righteous deeds ('Amal Sāliḥ).
• It is also said to be good demeanor (as-samt al-ḥasan).
• Or it is chastity and monotheism (al-'iffah wa at-tawḥīd), because the believer's private parts are not exposed, even if he is naked of clothes, whereas the evildoer's private parts remain exposed even if he is clothed.
• It is also said to be modesty (al-ḥayā').
• It is said to be what appears on a person of tranquility, humility, and righteous deeds.

We interpreted the word "garment" metaphorically for these meanings because the garment that imparts piety is none other than these things.

As for His saying: {That is better} (dhālika khayrun): Abu 'Ali al-Fārisī said: The meaning of the verse {and the garment of piety is better} (Al-A'rāf: 26) for its owner, if he adopts it, is that it brings him closer to God Almighty than the clothing and adornments created for outward display. He added that the garment is attributed to piety just as the garment is attributed to hunger in His saying: {And Allah made them taste the garment of hunger and fear} (An-Nahl: 112).

His saying: {That is from the signs of Allah} means that it is among the signs of Allah that indicate His favor and mercy upon His servants—namely, sending down clothing to them—{so that they may remember} (i.e., recognize the great blessing within it).

7 < { O children of Adam, let not Satan tempt you as he expelled your parents from Paradise, stripping them of their garments to show them their private parts. Indeed, he and his tribe see you from where you do not see them. Indeed, We have made the devils allies to those who do not believe. } > 7 !