{ Has there not come upon man a period of time when he was not a thing mentioned? }

They agreed that **{Hal}** (Has/Did) here, and in the verse {Has there come to you the news of the Overwhelming?} (Al-Ghashiyah: 1), means **"Indeed"** (Qad). Similar to saying: "Have you seen so-and-so's action," when you already know they have seen it, or saying: "Did I admonish you? Did I give to you?" where your intent is to confirm that you have given and admonished. It can also come to mean **negation** (Jahd), as in: "And can anyone do such a thing?" As for it coming to mean **interrogation** (Istifhām), that is apparent.

The evidence that it is **not** meant as an interrogation here is twofold: 1. What is narrated that when the Truthful one (Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him) heard this verse, he said: "Oh, if only it had been completed so we would not be tested!" If it were an interrogation, he would not have said, "If only it had been completed," because an interrogation is answered with "No" or "Yes." If the meaning is a **statement of fact** (Khabar), then such a response is appropriate. 2. Interrogation directed towards Allah, the Exalted, is impossible (Muḥāl), so it must be interpreted as a statement of fact.

There is a difference of opinion concerning the "Human" mentioned here: 1. A group of commentators intended **Adam, peace be upon him**. Those who hold this view say that Allah, the Exalted, mentioned the creation of Adam in this verse and then followed it by mentioning his offspring in the verse: {Indeed, We created man from a mingled drop; We test him} (Al-Insan: 2). 2. The second opinion is that **the offspring of Adam (Banu Adam)** is intended, based on the evidence of the verse: {Indeed, We created man from a drop...}. Thus, the "Human" in both places is the same, and under this interpretation, the structure (Naẓm) of the verses is better.

There are two opinions regarding **{Ḥīn}** (when/a period of time): 1. It refers to a **long, extended period of time** that is not intrinsically quantified. 2. It is **quantified as forty** (years/units of time).

Those who say the intended "Human" is **Adam, peace be upon him**, interpret the meaning as: Adam remained as clay for forty years until the spirit was breathed into him. It is narrated from Ibn Abbas that he remained clay for forty years, then forty years as hardened clay (Ṣalṣāl), and forty years as molded mud (Ḥama’in Masnūn), meaning his creation was complete after 120 years. During this period, he "was not a thing mentioned."

Al-Hasan said that Allah created all things, visible and invisible, land and sea creatures, in the six days He created the heavens and the earth, and the last thing created was Adam, peace be upon him. This aligns with the statement: {he was not a thing mentioned}.

If one objects: "The clay, hardened clay, and molded mud, before the spirit was breathed into him, was not yet a human. Yet the verse implies that a period of time passed during which he was a human, yet he was 'not a thing mentioned'," we reply: If the clay and hardened clay were already shaped in the form of a human and decreed that the spirit would be breathed into it, making it a human, then it is correct to call it "human."

As for those who say the "Human" is the **rational soul (Nafs Nāṭiqah)**, and that it existed before the bodies, the difficulty is removed for them. Know that the purpose of this reminder is to indicate that **man is created (Muḥdath)**, and if something is created, it must have a Creator who is capable.

**{Lam yakun shay’an madhkūran}** (was not a thing mentioned): * It can be in the **accusative case (Naṣb)**, functioning as a circumstantial adverb (Ḥāl) modifying "Human," as if saying: "Has a period of time passed upon the human during which he was not mentioned?" * Or it can be in the **nominative case (Rafʿ)**, describing **{Ḥīn}** (the period), meaning: "Has a period passed upon the human during which there was nothing [of him]?"

7 < { Indeed, We created man from a mingled drop; We test him, and We made him hearing and seeing. } > 7 <