Tafsir of Al-Insan 76:29

Surah Al-Insan (76): Verse 29

{Indeed, this is a reminder. So whoever wills may take to his Lord a way.}

Know that after the Almighty explained the states of the fortunate and the wretched, He followed it with this verse.

The meaning is that this Surah, with its wondrous arrangement, profound structure, promises, warnings, encouragements, and deterrents, is a reminder for those who reflect and insight for those who seek clarity. So, whoever wills good for himself in this world and the Hereafter, he takes a way to his Lord. Taking the way to God is an expression for drawing near to Him.

Know that this verse is among those where the waves of Compulsion (Jabr) and Free Will (Qadar) clash.

1. The Qadariyah (Proponents of Free Will) hold fast to the Almighty's saying: {So whoever wills may take to his Lord a way}, asserting that it explicitly supports their doctrine. A parallel example is: {So whoever wills - let him believe; and whoever wills - let him disbelieve} (18:29).
2. The Jabriyah (Proponents of Compulsion) argue that when this verse is combined with the following one, the doctrine of Compulsion emerges clearly. This is because:
   • {So whoever wills may take to his Lord a way} implies that when the servant's will is sincere, it necessitates action.
   • The subsequent verse, {But you do not will except that Allah wills}, implies that the will of the Almighty necessitates the will of the servant. Since the necessitate of the necessitate is also a necessitate, the will of God necessitates the servant's action—and this is Compulsion (Jabr). They use the same logic for the verse mentioned above ({So whoever wills - let him believe...}), as it also implies that will necessitates action, followed by the principle already established.

Know that the argument against this line of reasoning, which we have summarized, is not directed at the argument of the Qadi (Al-Razi's teacher, perhaps Al-Qadi Abd al-Jabbar). However, we mention it and point out its weakness.

The Qadi said: What is mentioned in this verse is taking the way to God. We concede that God has willed it, because the Almighty has commanded it, so it must have been willed by Him. This does not necessitate that we say the servant only wills what God has willed absolutely, because the intended meaning here is the specific command that has been established as intended and willed by the Almighty.

Know that what the Qadi mentioned is irrelevant to the line of reasoning we presented. Furthermore, the essence of what the Qadi stated is to restrict this general statement to the specific context mentioned prior to this verse. This is weak because the specificity of the preceding context does not necessitate restricting the generality of this verse. It is possible that the ruling in this verse applies generally to that situation and all other situations.

A grammatical question remains regarding the verse: What is the grammatical position of {that Allah wills}?

The answer is that it is in the accusative case, functioning as an adverb of time (ظرف), with the original structure being: except at the time of God's willing. This is supported by the recitation of Ibn Mas'ud: {except what Allah wills} (illa ma sha'a Allah), because ma' combined with the verb is treated as if it were a temporal adverb. It was also recited with the third-person masculine verb form: {except what He wills} (illa ma yasha'u).

Then the Almighty said: {Indeed, Allah was ever Knowing, Wise.}

This means He was Knowing of their states and what they would do, as He created them while possessing full knowledge of them.

Then He concluded the Surah by saying:

{He admits whom He wills into His Mercy, but for the wrongdoers, He has prepared a painful punishment.}