Man: (4-5) Indeed, We have prepared for the disbelievers...

His saying, the Exalted: {Indeed, We have prepared for the disbelievers chains and shackles and a blazing Fire.}

Know that when the Almighty mentioned the two groups (the disbelievers and the righteous), He followed it with a warning and a promise. In this, there are several issues:

Issue 1: Definition of Preparation and the Nature of the Punishment

The term "prepared" (a'tadna) means arranging something so that it is ready and present whenever needed, like His saying, the Exalted: {This is what is ready with Me} (Qaf: 23).

As for the chains (salāsil), they are used to bind their feet. As for the shackles (aghlāl), they bind their hands to their necks. As for the blazing Fire (sa'īr), it is the fire kindled upon them, making them fuel for it. This represents one of the severest forms of deterrence and terror.

Issue 2: The Creation of Hellfire's Components

Our scholars used this verse as evidence that Hell, along with its chains and shackles, has already been created. This is because His saying, the Exalted, {We have prepared} is a report about the past.

The Judge (Al-Qadi) said: Since He threatened them with this with certainty, it is as if it already exists. We reply: What you mentioned abandons the apparent meaning, and one should not resort to it except out of necessity.

Issue 3: Grammatical Variations of "Chains" (Salāsil)

It has been recited as "salāsilan" (with tanwīn - indefinite ending), just like "qawārīra qawārīra" (vessels, vessels). Some pronounce it without tanwīn and stop on an alif.

For those who use tanwīn and allow declension (i.e., sarf), there are two explanations:

1. Al-Akhfash said that it has been heard from the Arabs that they allow declension for all words that are normally indeclinable (mā lā yanṣarif). He said this is the language of poets because they are compelled to do so in poetry, so their tongues become accustomed to it.
2. These plural forms resemble singular nouns. Because they said "ṣawāḥibāt Yūsuf" (Yusuf's female companions), when they pluralized it, they treated it like the plural of indeclinable singular nouns, thus allowing it to be declined.

As for those who refrain from declension, they treat it like His saying: {and ruined monasteries and churches and synagogues and mosques} (Al-Hajj: 40), where the plural nouns are treated as indeclinable.

As for attaching the alif when stopping (as in al-ẓunūnā), this is done to make it resemble the indefinite form in rhyme schemes (qawāfī).

Then, the Almighty mentioned what He prepared for the grateful monotheists, saying: {Indeed, the righteous will drink from a cup whose mixture is from Kāfūr}.

"Al-Abrār" (the righteous) is the plural of Barr, like Arbāb is the plural of Rabb. The discussion regarding the reality of righteousness has already passed in the exegesis of His saying: {But righteousness is [that] one believes in Allah...} (Al-Baqarah: 177).

Then He mentioned a description of their drink as a type of their bliss: {They will drink from a cup}, meaning from a vessel containing the drink. For this reason, Ibn Abbas and Muqatil said it refers to wine. There are two questions regarding this verse:

Since mixing camphor with a drink is not usually pleasant, what is the reason for mentioning it here?

Answer: There are several views:

1. Camphor is the name of a spring in Paradise whose water possesses the whiteness, fragrance, and coolness of camphor, but it lacks its taste and harmful effects. Thus, the meaning is that this drink is mixed with the water of this spring.
2. The fragrance of camphor is an attribute (ʿaraḍ), which cannot exist except in a substance. So, when Allah creates that fragrance in the essence of that drink, that substance is named Kāfūr, even if its taste is good.
3. What harm is there if Allah the Exalted creates camphor in Paradise, but with a pleasant, delicious taste, stripping it of its harmful properties? Furthermore, He mixes it with that drink, just as He stripped all foods and drinks in this world of their harmful components.

What is the benefit of the word {was} (kāna) in His saying: {whose mixture was from Kāfūr}?

Answer: Some said that kāna is superfluous, and the meaning is: {a cup whose mixture is Kāfūr}. Others said that the meaning is that its mixture was Kāfūr in the knowledge and decree of Allah.

{A spring from which the servants of Allah will drink, causing it to gush forth abundantly.}