Al-A'raf: (73-74) And to Thamūd, their brother...

This is the third narrative, the story of Ṣāliḥ.

Regarding the phrase: {And to Thamūd}, the meaning is similar to: {And We sent Noah} (Al-A'rāf: 59), {to 'Ād, their brother Hūd} (Al-A'rāf: 65), {to Thamūd, their brother Ṣāliḥ} (Hūd: 61).

There are several points concerning this:

Abū 'Amr ibn al-'Alā' stated that they were named Thamūd due to the scarcity of their water, as thamad means little water. Their dwellings were in Al-Ḥijr, between Al-Ḥijaz and Al-Shām, near Wādī al-Qurā. Another opinion is that they were named Thamūd after their great ancestor, Thamūd ibn 'Ād ibn Iram ibn Sām ibn Nūḥ (peace be upon him).

The word {وإلى ثمود} (wa ilā Thamūd) was read without tanwīn (diptote), interpreting it as a tribal name that is not fully declined. It was also read with tanwīn ({وإلى ثموداً}), interpreting it as a tribe (a living entity) or based on its origin as the name of their great ancestor. Both readings are explicitly found in the Qur'an, such as: {Verily, Thamūd disbelieved in their Lord; then away with Thamūd!} (Hūd: 68).

It is recounted that God commanded them to worship Him and forbade them from worshipping others, just as He did with the prophets mentioned before.

Then He said: {A clear sign has come to you from your Lord}. This addition is specific to this story and indicates that all previous prophets presented proofs for the truth of monotheism and prophethood. If mere imitation (taqlīd) were sufficient, mentioning this clear sign here would be superfluous.

He then clarified that this sign was the she-camel: {This is the she-camel of God, a sign for you}.

It is mentioned that after God destroyed 'Ād, Thamūd succeeded them. Their lifespan was long, and they enjoyed great prosperity. Then they disobeyed God and worshipped idols. God sent Ṣāliḥ, who was one of them. They demanded a miracle from him.

They asked him to join them during their festival, where they would bring out their idols and he would ask his God, and they would ask their idols. If the effect of his prayer appeared, they would follow him; if the effect of their prayer appeared, he would follow them.

He went out with them and they asked him to bring forth a large she-camel from a specific rock. He took their pledge that if he did so, they would believe. They agreed. He prayed two rak'ahs and supplicated to God. The rock began to labor like a pregnant animal, then split open, and the she-camel emerged from within it, being extremely large.

Since water was scarce among them, they agreed that the she-camel would drink all the water for one day, and the entire people would drink on the next day. Al-Suddī reported that on the day the she-camel drank, she would pass between two mountains, ascend them, drink, and then yield enough milk to suffice everyone, as if she were pouring out milk abundantly. On the day the people drank, she would not come to them. She had a calf with her.

Ṣāliḥ told them: "A boy will be born in your month whose hands will bring about your destruction." Nine men among them slaughtered their sons. The tenth son was born, but his father refused to slaughter him. The boy grew rapidly. When he grew up, he sat with a group drinking. They wanted water to mix with their drink, but it was the she-camel's drinking day, so they found no water, and this distressed them greatly. The young man said, "Shall I hamstring this she-camel?" He attacked her, and when she saw him, she charged him. He fled behind a rock, and they cornered him. When she passed by him, he seized her and hamstrung her, causing her to fall. This is what is meant by: {Then they called their companion, and he undertook [the deed] and hamstrung [her]}.

At that point, they revealed their disbelief and arrogance against their Lord's command. Ṣāliḥ told them: "The sign of punishment is that tomorrow you will wake up red, the second day yellow, and the third day black." When the punishment dawned upon them, they prepared themselves with funerary shrouds.

Knowing this, we discuss the scholars' differing views on why the she-camel was a sign:

1. The First Opinion: She was a sign because she emerged fully formed from the rock. Al-Qāḍī said that if this is true, it is a miracle in several aspects: (a) emerging from the mountain, (b) being created without a male or female parent, and (c) being fully formed without gradual development.
2. The Second Opinion: She was a sign because she had one day to drink, and Thamūd had one day to drink. The fact that one she-camel could consume the water ration of an entire nation is astonishing. Furthermore, she provided what was appropriate for that water in terms of fodder and grass.
3. The Third Opinion: The miraculous aspect was that on the day she came to drink, they would milk her an amount equivalent to the water they drank on their day. Al-Ḥasan held the opposite view, saying she never yielded a drop of milk, which contradicts the previous account.
4. The Fourth Opinion: The miraculous aspect was that on the day she came to the water source, all other animals refrained from approaching it, and on the day she abstained, the animals would come.

The Qur'an confirms that she was a sign, but it does not specify which aspect constituted the miracle. We know for certain that she was a miracle in some way. And God knows best.

{This is the she-camel of God, a sign for you}. The word {آية} (sign) is in the accusative case (naṣb) as a ḥāl (circumstantial adverb), meaning: "She is pointed to while being a sign." The word hādhihi (this) already implies pointing, and āyah means "indicator," justifying its use as a ḥāl.

Objection: That she-camel was a sign for everyone, so why was it specified to those specific people?

Answer: There are several reasons:

1. They witnessed her directly, whereas others only heard reports. Direct witnessing is not like hearing a report.
2. Perhaps other miracles were established, but this specific miracle was requested by the people as a challenge (iqtirāḥ). God manifested it for them precisely for this reason, making the specification appropriate.

Objection: What is the benefit of specifying that she is the "she-camel of God"?

Answer: There are several interpretations:

1. It is attributed to God for honor and distinction, like saying "Bayt Allāh" (House of God).
2. Because she was created without an intermediary (natural means).
3. Because she had no owner other than God.
4. Because she was God's proof against the people.

Then He said: {So leave her to eat in God's land}. The land is God's land, and the she-camel is God's she-camel. So leave her to eat in the land of her Lord. The land is not yours, nor is the vegetation upon it your creation. {And do not touch her with harm, nor strike her, nor drive her away, nor approach her with any kind of harm.} The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "O 'Alī, the most wretched of the first people was the one who hamstrung Ṣāliḥ's she-camel, and the most wretched of the last people is the one who kills you."

Then God Almighty said: {And remember when He made you successors after 'Ād}. It is said that after God destroyed 'Ād, Thamūd inhabited their lands, succeeding them on earth, multiplying, and living long lives.

Then He said: {And settled you in the land}—meaning He caused you to dwell. Mubawwa' means a settled place on earth, referring to the land of Al-Ḥijr between Al-Ḥijaz and Al-Shām.

Then He said: {You take from its plains [to build] palaces}—meaning you make palaces from the plains, as palaces are built from clay, mud, and bricks, materials derived from the plains. {And you carve from the mountains houses} (Ash-Shu'arā': 149), meaning you carve houses from the mountains and roof them.

Objection: Why is buyūtan (houses) in the accusative case?

Answer: It is in the accusative case as a ḥāl (circumstantial adverb), similar to saying, "Sew this cloth into a shirt" or "Sharpen this reed into a pen." This is a ḥāl muqaddarah (estimated circumstance), because the mountain is not a house while being carved, nor is the cloth a shirt, nor the reed a pen, while being sewn or sharpened. Another view is that they used the plains in the summer and the mountains in the winter, which indicates they were affluent and luxurious.

Then He said: {So remember the favors of God}. Meaning, I have mentioned some categories of the blessings God bestowed upon you, and mentioning all of them is lengthy. So, use your intellects to remember what is there. {And do not commit evil in the land as corrupters}. It is said that this refers to the prohibition against hamstringing the she-camel. However, the stronger interpretation is to take it at its apparent meaning: a prohibition against all types of corruption.

{Said the chiefs who were arrogant among his people to those who were deemed weak—to those among them who believed: "Do you know that Ṣāliḥ is a messenger from his Lord?" They said: "Indeed, in what he was sent with, we are believers." * Said those who were arrogant: "Indeed, in that which you have believed, we are disbelievers." * So they hamstrung the she-camel and defied the command of their Lord and said: "O Ṣāliḥ, bring upon us what you threaten, if you should be one of the messengers." * Then the earthquake seized them, and they became in their dwellings fallen prostrate. * Then he turned away from them and said: "O my people, I have certainly conveyed to you the message of my Lord and advised you, but you do not like advisors."}