Tafsir of Al-A'la 87:8

Surah Al-A'la (The Most High), Verse 8: "And We will make it easy for you to the easier path."

This verse contains several points of discussion:

There are several interpretations regarding what "the easier path" refers to:

1. The Easier Path is Good Deeds: The easier path refers to the good deeds that lead to ease. In this context, the structure is: "And We will make it easy for you" (wa-nuyassiruka) is coordinated with "We will make you recite" (sanuqri'uka). The phrase "Indeed, Allah knows the manifest and what is hidden" (Allahu innahu ya'lamu al-jahra wa ma yakhfa) is an interjection. The meaning is: We will make you recite [the Qur'an] so you will not forget, and We will facilitate for you the way that is easiest and simplest, meaning in memorizing the Qur'an.
2. The Easier Path is Paradise: Ibn Mas'ud said that "the easier path" refers to Paradise. The meaning is: We will facilitate for you the actions that lead to it.
3. Ease in Revelation: We will make the revelation easy for you so that you may memorize it, teach it, and act upon it.
4. Ease in the Law (Shari'ah): We will facilitate for you the Hanifiyyah (the upright monotheistic path), which is easy and lenient.

The first interpretation is considered the closest.

A question arises: Usually, one says, "We made such-and-such an action easy for so-and-so," not, "We made so-and-so easy for such-and-such an action." What is the benefit of this phrasing?

The answer is: This phrasing is chosen by the Qur'an in this place, and similarly in Surah Al-Layl. It is also the choice of the Prophet (peace be upon him) in his saying: "Act, for everyone is facilitated for what they were created for."

There is a subtle intellectual point here: That specific action, in itself, is a possible essence (mahiyyah mumkina), equally capable of existing or not existing. As long as the capable agent (al-qadir) remains balanced regarding performing the action or abandoning it, the action cannot originate from him. Only when the side of agency (al-fa'iliyyah) is favored over the side of abandonment (al- tarkiyyah) does the action occur. Thus, it is established that an action does not occur unless it becomes necessary. This preference (the favoring of agency) is what is termed facilitation (taysir). Therefore, it is established that the reality is that the doer becomes facilitated for the action, not that the action becomes facilitated for the doer. Glory be to Him, under every word of whom lies a hidden wisdom and a wondrous secret that dazzles the intellects.

The phrase "And We will make it easy for you" (wa-nuyassiruka) uses the first-person plural (nun al-ta'dhim - the 'We' of majesty) so that the greatness of the Giver indicates the greatness of the giving. This is similar to His saying: "Indeed, We have sent it down" (Yusuf: 2), "Indeed, it is We who sent down the Reminder" (Al-Hijr: 9), and "Indeed, We have granted you the Abundance (Al-Kawthar)" (Al-Kawthar: 1).

This verse indicates that Allah, the Exalted, opened for him doors of facilitation and ease that He did not open for anyone else. How could He not, when he was an orphan without a father or mother, raised among ignorant people, yet Allah made him a role model in his actions and sayings for all the worlds, and a guidance for all creation?