Tafsir of At-Takweer 81:22

Surah At-Takwir (The Overthrowing)

{وَمَا صَاحِبُكُمْ بِمَجْنُونٍ} (And your companion is not mad.)

Then the Almighty said: {And your companion is not mad}.

Some scholars used this verse as evidence to argue for the superiority of Gabriel (عليه السلام) over Muhammad (صلى الله عليه وسلم). They argue that when one compares the preceding verses:

{إِنَّهُ لَقَوْلُ رَسُولٍ كَرِيمٍ * ذِي قُوَّةٍ عِندَ ذِي الْعَرْشِ مَكِينٍ * مُطَاعٍ ثُمَّ أَمِينٌ} (Indeed, it is the word of a noble messenger, possessed of strength, established in the presence of the Owner of the Throne, obeyed and trustworthy)

with this verse: {And your companion is not mad}, a great disparity becomes apparent.

{وَلَقَدْ رَآهُ بِالأُفُقِ الْمُبِينِ} (And he has certainly seen him in the clear horizon.)

This means where the sun rises, according to the consensus of scholars. This is explained in Surah An-Najm.

{وَمَا هُوَ عَلَى الْغَيْبِ بِضَنِينٍ} (Nor is he a miser with respect to the unseen.)

This means Muhammad (صلى الله عليه وسلم) is not a miser concerning the unseen.

• Al-Ghayb (The Unseen) here refers to the Qur'an and what it contains of news, stories, and prophecies.
• Ad-Dhanīn (A Miser/Suspicious): The root dhanīn here means one who is suspected or accused. It is derived from the verb dhanantu Zaydan (I suspected Zayd), meaning I accused him. This is not the sense of dhann that takes two objects.
• The meaning is: Muhammad is not suspected regarding the Qur'an; rather, he is trustworthy in what he conveys from God.

Regarding the variant reading (with Dhad instead of Dha):

• Whoever reads it with Dhad (ضَنِينٍ), it is derived from stinginess/miserliness. It is said dhanantu bihi adunnu (I was stingy with it).
• The meaning is: He is not stingy with what God has revealed.
• Al-Farra' said: The unseen (revelation) comes to him from the sky, and it is a precious thing, so he is not stingy in conveying it to you.
• Abu Ali al-Farisi said: The meaning is that he informs about the unseen and clarifies it, and does not conceal it as the soothsayer conceals it and refrains from informing until he receives payment for it.
• Abu Ubaydah preferred the first reading (with Dha, meaning suspected) for two reasons:
  1. The disbelievers did not accuse him of stinginess; rather, they accused him of madness/falsehood. Therefore, negating suspicion is more appropriate than negating stinginess.
  2. The phrase is {‘ala al-Ghayb} (concerning the unseen). If the meaning intended was stinginess, the preposition bi (with) would typically be used, as one says dhanīnun bi-kadha (stingy with such-and-such), and rarely is ‘ala used in that context.

{وَمَا هُوَ بِقَوْلِ شَيْطَانٍ مَّرِيدٍ} (Nor is it the word of a rejected devil.)

Then the Almighty said: {Nor is it the word of a rejected devil}.