Translation of the Meanings of the Noble Qur'an - English Translation - Dr. Waleed Bleyhesh Omary * - Translations’ Index
Translation of the meanings Ayah: (85) Surah: Al-Isrā’
وَيَسۡـَٔلُونَكَ عَنِ ٱلرُّوحِۖ قُلِ ٱلرُّوحُ مِنۡ أَمۡرِ رَبِّي وَمَآ أُوتِيتُم مِّنَ ٱلۡعِلۡمِ إِلَّا قَلِيلٗا
(85) [3683]They ask you ˹Muhammad˺ about the soul[3684], say: “The soul is a matter of my Lord!”[3685] The knowledge that you ˹people˺ have been given is only but a little![3686]
[3683] Such a question highlights what kind of resistance the Message was met with resulting in even more loss for the idolaters. Their question was not posed to gain knowledge but to baffle the Noble Messenger (ﷺ). ʿAbdullāh Ibn ʿAbbās (رضي الله عنه) reported: “The Quraysh said to the Jews: “Give us something to ask this man ˹i.e. Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ)˺ about!” They replied: “Ask him about the Soul.” For this the Aya “They ask you ˹Muhammad˺ about the Soul, say: “The Soul is a matter of my Lord!” was sent down” The Jews then said: “Have we only been given little knowledge when the Torah was given to us! Whoever is given the Torah, is given good aplenty!” Then “Say ˹Muhammad˺: “If the sea were ink for the Words of my Lord, the sea would be exhausted before the Words of my Lord were exhausted, even if We brought the like thereof to replenish it”’ (18:109) was sent down” (al-Tirmidhī: 3140; al-Nasā’ī, al-Sunan al-Kubrā: 11314; Imām Aḥmad: 2309).
[3684] Exegetes are of two opinions as to what the soul (al-rūḥ) being asked about here refers to. The majority agree that it is the soul that sustains life in the body (cf. al-Wāḥidī, al-Wajīz, al-Samʿānī, al-Rāzī, al-Bayḍāwī, Abū Ḥayyān, al-Shawkānī, Ibn ʿĀshūr). Some others see that it refers to the great Archangel Gabriel, who is said to be al-Rūḥ in Aya 78: 38 (cf. al-Ṭabarī, Ibn al-Jawzī).
[3685] That is, this matter is exclusive to God Almighty, He Only knows its truth, being its Creator and none knows its truth except Him (cf. al-Ṭabarī, al-Qurṭubī, Ibn Kathīr, al-Shawkānī).
[3686] The knowledge that humans have been given is very little compared to that of God Almighty (cf. al-Ṭabarī, Ibn Kathīr, al-Alūsī, al-Qāsimī): “He knows what is there in front of them and what is there behind them, but they know nothing of His Knowledge, except what He wills!” (2: 255)
Ubayy Ibn Kaʿb (رضي الله عنه) narrated that the Messenger (ﷺ) mentioned the following in the story of Moses and al-Khiḍr (q): “When they boarded the ship, a bird came and perched on the edge of the vessel and dipped its beak in the sea once or twice. Upon seeing this al-Khiḍr said: “O Mūsā, your knowledge and mine ˹combined˺ subtract no more of Allah’s Knowledge than this bird’s beak has subtracted from the sea!”” (al-Bukhārī: 3401; Muslim: 2380)
This reply teaches people to be humble and that there is a limit to their knowledge and that they should not be fooled by their intellectual acumen. The question of the soul, its nature and the truth behind it, is one of the biggest questions in human history that has occupied the brightest human minds throughout times long and hard (cf. Encyclopaedia Britannica, “Soul”), but none arrived at a conclusive answer, simply because this matter, although, sensed in its decisive effect on life and death, lies beyond human perception and human tools of empirical inspection.
People need to occupy themselves and use their time with seeking knowledge that is both attainable and beneficial (cf. al-Shawkānī).
[3684] Exegetes are of two opinions as to what the soul (al-rūḥ) being asked about here refers to. The majority agree that it is the soul that sustains life in the body (cf. al-Wāḥidī, al-Wajīz, al-Samʿānī, al-Rāzī, al-Bayḍāwī, Abū Ḥayyān, al-Shawkānī, Ibn ʿĀshūr). Some others see that it refers to the great Archangel Gabriel, who is said to be al-Rūḥ in Aya 78: 38 (cf. al-Ṭabarī, Ibn al-Jawzī).
[3685] That is, this matter is exclusive to God Almighty, He Only knows its truth, being its Creator and none knows its truth except Him (cf. al-Ṭabarī, al-Qurṭubī, Ibn Kathīr, al-Shawkānī).
[3686] The knowledge that humans have been given is very little compared to that of God Almighty (cf. al-Ṭabarī, Ibn Kathīr, al-Alūsī, al-Qāsimī): “He knows what is there in front of them and what is there behind them, but they know nothing of His Knowledge, except what He wills!” (2: 255)
Ubayy Ibn Kaʿb (رضي الله عنه) narrated that the Messenger (ﷺ) mentioned the following in the story of Moses and al-Khiḍr (q): “When they boarded the ship, a bird came and perched on the edge of the vessel and dipped its beak in the sea once or twice. Upon seeing this al-Khiḍr said: “O Mūsā, your knowledge and mine ˹combined˺ subtract no more of Allah’s Knowledge than this bird’s beak has subtracted from the sea!”” (al-Bukhārī: 3401; Muslim: 2380)
This reply teaches people to be humble and that there is a limit to their knowledge and that they should not be fooled by their intellectual acumen. The question of the soul, its nature and the truth behind it, is one of the biggest questions in human history that has occupied the brightest human minds throughout times long and hard (cf. Encyclopaedia Britannica, “Soul”), but none arrived at a conclusive answer, simply because this matter, although, sensed in its decisive effect on life and death, lies beyond human perception and human tools of empirical inspection.
People need to occupy themselves and use their time with seeking knowledge that is both attainable and beneficial (cf. al-Shawkānī).
Arabic explanations of the Qur’an:
Translation of the meanings Ayah: (85) Surah: Al-Isrā’
Translation of the Meanings of the Noble Qur'an - English Translation - Dr. Waleed Bleyhesh Omary - Translations’ Index
Translation of the meanings of the Noble Qur’an into English - in progress - translated by Dr. Walid Bleihesh Al-Omari.