Verses 1–6
بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمنِ الرَّحِيمِ
In the name of Allah, the All-Merciful, the Ever-Merciful
This sūrah was revealed in Medina and consists of 6 verses. It commands the Prophet to seek the protection of God from the evil of the slinking whisperer. Like the previous sūrah, it was revealed in Medina based on the narrations on the context of its revelation. In fact, the narrations indicate that the two chapters were revealed together.
Commentary
قُلْ أَعُوذُ بِرَبِّ النَّاسِ ١ مَلِكِ النَّاسِ ٢ إِلَٰهِ النَّاسِ ٣
(114:1-3) Say: I seek refuge with the Lord of humankind, the King of humankind, the God of humankind,
When one feels insecure, weak and threatened in face of a danger, it is a human instinct to seek refuge in a source that has the power to protect the person and prevent the occurrence of the threat. There are three possible sources of refuge and protection for a person:
- The person’s lord (rabb), meaning one who is in charge of the person’s affairs, who manages their life, who nurtures them, and to whom they resort for all their needs. One of these needs is deflecting what threatens the person’s survival. This source of refuge would be a sufficient cause who can grant protection to the person independently.
- An influential authority with prevailing power and rule, who can protect one who seeks protection, and use his authority to defend the person against evil, much like a king. This is also a sufficient cause who can effect change independently.
- The god that one worships. An implication of being an ilāh (god, deity, object of worship), especially a sole deity that has no partner, is the exclusive dedication of his worshipers to him. Hence, they would not call upon any other god, and would not resort to any other source for their needs. Likewise, they would want only what their god wills, and would do only what he decrees.
God—the Glorious—is at once the lord of humanity, the king of humanity, and the god of humanity. He encompasses these three aspects alone, as He says: That is Allah, your Lord! To Him belongs all kingdom. There is no god except Him. Then where are you being led away? (). He refers to his lordship [] and godhood [] as sufficient causes in the verse: Lord of the east and the west, there is no god except Him, so take Him for your trustee (). And He points to kingship [] as a sufficient cause in the verse: To Him belongs the kingdom of the heavens and the earth, and to Allah all matters are returned ().
Therefore, when confronted by an impending danger, if one wants to resort to a lord, then the Almighty God is the Lord; there is none other. If one wants to resort to a king, then the Almighty God is the King in truth, for all sovereignty and rule belong to Him. And if one wants to resort to a god, then He is the god; there is no god other than Him.
The commands in these three verses imply an argument which can be elaborated as follows: (a) God is the Lord of humankind… (). (b) The Prophet is one of humankind. (c) Hence, he must seek refuge with God. The same line of argument holds for the other two verses.
Given the above explanations, the following points should be clear:
- Why these three attributes—lord, king and god—are specified amongst all of God’s noble attributes.
- Why they are mentioned in this order. Lord comes first because it is closest to the human being, and signifies a personal relationship. King comes next because it signifies a greater distance and a more general guardianship. For instance, a person who has no guardian would come under the aegis of a king. God is mentioned next because a god is a guardian whom one would seek out of sincere spiritual inclination, not out of merely physical instinct.
- Why there is no conjunction “and” at the beginning of verses 114:-2-3. The lack of “and” indicates that each of these three qualities can be a sufficient cause for repelling harm. God is an independent source of support because He is a lord, because He is a king, and because He is a god. All causality belongs exclusively to Him in any of these three dimensions. We offered a similar explanation [about the lack of the conjunction “and”] above, in our exposition of: Say, He is Allah, the One; Allah, upon whom all depend ().
- Why the word al-nās (humankind, people) is repeated instead of being replaced with a pronoun, such as: “their King” and “their God.” This is to show that each of the three attributes is a sufficient justification on its own for one’s recourse to God, with no need to mention the two others. To Allah belong the most excellent names (), all of them.
Exegetes have offered other explanations for why these three qualities are mentioned, but there is no benefit in discussing their views.
مِنْ شَرِّ الْوَسْوَاسِ الْخَنَّاسِ ٤
(114:4) from the evil of the sneaky (al-khannās) tempter (al-waswās)
Majmaʿ al-bayān says: “Waswās means the speaking of the voice in the mind (ḥadīth al-nafs) as in a whisper.” Apparently it serves as an adjective here, conveying an emphasized description.
Khannās is an intensified form derived from khunūs, which means “to hide after appearing.” It is said that Satan is called al-khannās because he whispers temptations to people, but when they remember God, he withdraws and bides his time. Then again, when they become mindless of God, he resumes his whispering.
الَّذِي يُوَسْوِسُ فِي صُدُورِ النَّاسِ ٥
(114:5) who whispers temptation into the breasts of humankind,
This verse is an adjective for the sneaky tempter (). Breast signifies the human soul, because whispering occurs in the primary locus of human cognition, which is the soul. The word breast is used because cognition is commonly associated with the heart, and the heart is in the breast. as God says: but the hearts turn blind—those that are in the breasts ().
مِنَ الْجِنَّةِ وَالنَّاسِ ٦
(114:6) from (min) among the jinn and humankind.
The particle min (from, of) is bayāniyyah (explanatory, interpretive, descriptive). This verse implies that some humans fall into the same category as the devils. God says: devils of humankind and jinn ().
Examining Narrations
- Once Gabriel came to the Prophet when he was ill, and made a protective charm for him with Chapters 112-114. He [Gabriel] said: “A [protective] spell of God’s name I put on you. May God heal you, from every ailment that troubles you. Take it so it may heal you.” Then he recited: In the name of Allah, the All-Merciful, the Ever-Merciful. Say: I seek refuge with the Lord of humankind… ().
Author’s comment: We already presented some narrations about the context of revelation of the sūrah [under the last sūrah].
- The Messenger of God said: Indeed Satan places his snout on the heart of Adam’s children. When the heart remembers God, he withdraws; but when it forgets, he swallows it. That is the sneaky tempter ().
- The Messenger of God said: All believers have two ears in their heart. An angel murmurs into one ear, and the sneaky tempter () into another. But God fortifies the believers through the angel, as He says in: and He strengthened them with a spirit from Him ().
- Imam al-Ṣādiq said: When God revealed the verse, and those who, when they commit an indecent act or wrong themselves, remember Allah, and plead [Allah’s] forgiveness for their sins (), Iblīs climbed a mountain in Mecca called Thawr, and cried out in his loudest voice for his subordinate demons. They gathered around him and said: “Our master, why have you summoned us?”
“This verse,” he explained, “has been revealed. Who can take care of it?”
One of the demons stood up and said: “I’ll take care of it with this and that [strategy].”
“You’re not the man for it,” Iblīs rejected.
Another one rose and made a similar suggestion, but Iblīs said again: “You’re not the man for it.”
Then the sneaky tempter () said: “I can take care of it.”
“How?” Iblīs inquired.
“I will fill them with false hopes and will tempt them with fanciful desires, until they’re driven to sin. Once they have fallen into sin, I will make them oblivious of [or make them put off] asking forgiveness.”
“You’re the man for it,” Iblīs confirmed, and put him in charge of that until the Day of Resurrection.
Author’s comment: Readers should refer to our discussion on Satan at the beginning of Sūrah al-Aʿrāf.
By God’s grace I conclude this book. The ending of this project coincided with the blessed Night of Destiny, 23 Ramadan 1392 AH (31 October 1972). All praise be to God evermore. May blessings be upon our master Muḥammad and his Household. And peace be with you. (Author)
The final review of this volume was completed on 8 June 2020. We ask God to help us complete the translation of the remaining earlier volumes. And we are ever grateful to Him for filling our lives with this noble project.
Who am I to be found in your mind and sound?
May I be crowned with the dust of your ground.
So gracious you are, and never have you frowned.
Who was your teacher of grace, my queen?
To this servant of yours, so gentle you’ve been;
Unmatched you are, with kindness abound.
O bird of divine, to you I resort;
I’m just setting out, and need your support;
The journey is long, and the path is unbound.
O morning breeze, to my beloved convey:
“I’m a servant of yours, so at dawn when you pray,
Let me be remembered in your prayer’s background.”
I yearn for the day when I leave from
This stage toward you, so my friends have to come
To your neighborhood if I’m to be found.
The pearl of union, O Ḥāfiẓ, appears
When your eyes become an ocean of tears;
It’s worthy to dive in, and it’s worthy to be drowned.
Tell the king of the sea who lives in the south,
To send a shipment of pearls to fill up my mouth,
For my verses are universal, exalted and profound.
In other words, the divine descriptions in these verses offer a justification for the commands. Furthermore, the commands are not for the Prophet alone, but for all humankind, for God is equally their Lord, their King and their God. (Ed.) ↩︎
According to the same book, waswās is a maṣdar (infinitive noun, gerund) much like waswasah (whispering, tempting). Some say it is irregular since its form should be wiswās, like other verbal nouns derived from four-letter roots. Some say that it is indeed an adjective, not a maṣdar. (Auth.)
The current translation is based on the adjective meaning. If it is taken as a maṣdar, the meaning would be: “I seek refuge in God from the sneaky whisperings and temptations which infiltrate the souls.” (Ed.) ↩︎
It means: “including the jinn and humankind.” (Ed.) ↩︎
Majmaʿ al-bayān, on the authority of Abū Khadījah, from Imam al-Ṣādiq. ↩︎
Majmaʿ al-bayān, on the authority of Anas b. Mālik. ↩︎
Majmaʿ al-bayān, on the authority of al-ʿAyyāshī, via its chain of narration, on the authority of Abān b. Taghlib, from Imam al-Bāqir. ↩︎
The word “man” is used figuratively in the translation to highlight the symbolic nature of such narrations. (Ed.) ↩︎
This suggests that al-Waswās al-Khannās is a proper noun, not an adjective. However, given the nature and context of the hadith, it can be a descriptive reference to a demonic tendency to fall for instant gratifications and to procrastinate repentance. (Ed.) ↩︎
Ṣadūq’s al-Amālī, via its a chain of narration. ↩︎
See volume 15, pp. 48ff of the English translation, under verses . (Ed.) ↩︎
Ḥāfiẓ, ghazal 328. (Ed.) ↩︎