Tafsir of Surah al Layl - Verse 1

Tafsir of Surah al Layl - Verse 1

The Night (Surah 92) {By the night as it envelops; (1) And by the day as it appears in brightness; (2) And by Him Who created male and female; (3) Certainly, your efforts and deeds are diverse (different in aims and purposes)} [Al-Layl 92:1-4] {وَاللَّيْلِ إِذَا يَغْشَىٰ ﴿١﴾ وَالنَّهَارِ إِذَا تَجَلَّىٰ ﴿٢﴾ وَمَا خَلَقَ الذَّكَرَ وَالْأُنثَىٰ ﴿٣﴾ إِنَّ سَعْيَكُمْ لَشَتَّىٰ} الليل: 1-4 Transliteration: Waallayli itha yaghsha (1) Waalnnahari itha tajalla (2) Wama khalaqa alththakara waalontha (3) Inna saAAyakum lashatta (4) In this chapter Allah takes an oath by the times in which the servants, in all their differing circumstances, perform their deeds. “By the night when it enshrouds,” its darkness falling on creation, and man takes his repose, resting from toil and labour.
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SHAPE OF THE EARTH IS SPHERICAL CAUSING DAY AND NIGHT

In early times, people believed that the earth was flat. For centuries, men were afraid to venture out too far, for fear of falling off the edge! Sir Francis Drake was the first person who proved that the earth is spherical when he sailed around it in 1597. Consider the following Qur’anic verse regarding the alternation of day and night: “Seest thou not that Allah merges Night into Day and He merges Day into Night?” [Al-Qur’an 31:29] Merging here means that the night slowly and gradually changes to day and vice versa. This phenomenon can only take place if the earth is spherical. If the earth was flat, there would have been a sudden change from night to day and from day to night. The following verse also alludes to the spherical shape of the earth: “He created the heavens and the earth in true (proportions): He makes the Night overlap the Day.
____________________________________________________________ 1 The Arabic word dahaahaa has been translated by A. Yusuf Ali as “vast expanse”, which also is correct. This word also means an ostrich-egg. and the Day overlap the Night.” [Al-Qur’an 39:5] The Arabic word used here is Kawwara meaning ‘to overlap’ or ‘to coil’– the way a turban is wound around the head. The overlapping or coiling of the day and night can only take place if the earth is spherical. The earth is not exactly round like a ball, but geo-spherical, i.e. it is flattened at the poles. The following verse contains a description of the earth’s shape: “And the earth, moreover, hath He made egg shaped.” [Al-Qur’an 79:30] The Arabic word for egg here is dahaahaa which means an ostrich-egg. The shape of an ostrich-egg resembles the geo-spherical shape of the earth. Thus the Qur’an correctly describes the shape of the earth, though the prevalent notion when the Qur’an was revealed was that the earth was flat. Reference Link

Tafseer Surah Al Layl - Verse 1

The previous surah mentioned rebellion and this surah mentions one of the root causes of rebellion which is the diseased attitude one can have to their wealth. When one becomes wealthy they can sometimes stop relying on Allah (swt) and feel that they are independent and free of need because of their wealth. The danger is that when you think you can mange on your own you stop feeling the authority of someone else. For example, when you work for someone who controls your paycheck you are obedient to him but if you acquire enough wealth your obedience to your boss starts disappearing. In the previous surah Allah (swt) told man to purify himself and in this surah He (swt) tells us how to do that.

The surah begins with a number of oaths and when an oath is taken you are being asked to reflect on each item within the oath and to prepare yourself for the response which is usually central to the entire surah. The fundamental lesson of this surah is that the efforts of man are truly diverse. Some are working hard towards righteousness and some are working hard towards being wretched and disobedient to Allah (swt) and these efforts and how Allah (swt) facilitates them are then described in detail. Reward and punishment in this life and the next are both owned by Allah (swt) and He (swt) warns of a fire that none will enter save the most wretched (Al Ashqa). Yet Allah (swt) also informs us how one can be saved. The most recurring theme in this surah is wealth and we learn in this surah that if you want to cleanse yourself it has much to do with your attitude towards wealth. There is nothing wrong with owning wealth but there is something wrong with the love of money entering one’s heart. Either you want to get wealthy in this world or the next. However, it is still possible to be wealthy in both if you are sincere to Allah (swt) and are striving for the next life more. When one concerns themselves with worldly things and it becomes a priority in their life and a priority over the next then they have turned away and are in danger of becoming one of the wretched ones (Al Ashqa). 92:1

1) By the night as it envelops

Allah (swt) swears by the night as it covers up but He (swt) does not mention what he covers up which is a part of the style of this surah where objects are not mentioned. The benefit of this is that it poses a question of what is covered up. Allah (swt) wants us to contemplate and reflect on the Quran and to not expect to have everything spelt out for us and this is one of the great styles of the Quran. The word yaghsha means to cover with darkness all that had light before and when Allah (swt) refers to the night he is alluding to disbelief and when he refers to the day he is alluding to revelation which like light gets rid of darkness. In the previous surah the night was also mentioned using the same word in a very similar looking ayah. In Ash-Shams though there was a pronoun attached (yaghshaha). The pronoun made it clear that the sun was being referred to and that the night covers up the sun. Thus, the question posed in this surah was answered in the previous surah. We learn from this that this surah is almost expecting us to look at the previous surah as a reference point because by saying yaghsha without an object you are forced to think what the object might be and that takes you back to the previous surah where it was mentioned.

When Allah (swt) speaks about the night and it’s covering up he uses the present tense. In English we think of the past and present tense in very simple terms but in the Arabic language there are additional benefits. One of the benefits of the present tense is that it can also be used for something incomplete whilst the past tense is used for a complete act. The benefit of using the present tense here is understood when we appreciate that the night is covered up gradually in stages and does not necessarily cover everything up. Furthermore, we learnt in the previous surah that some light from the sun does still come out and is used by the moon which reflects it and allows us to see at night. So the use of the present tense tells us that the night is not absolute in its covering. There is a difference in the sequencing also as in the previous surah the covering of the night was mentioned after the brilliance of the day and in this surah the opposite sequence is used with the covering of the night mentioned first.

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In verse 1 of Surah Al Layl , the darkness of the night has been likened to the darkness of the soul which is persistent in committing sins. Just as Allah taala takes away the daylight from us at night, so also is the light of faith and piety taken away or is absent in the heart of a habitual sinner who has no care for the consequences of evil deeds . thus his soul becomes as dark as night. This is what has been explained in the following articles

The Consequences of Committing Sins -
The great scholar Ibn Al-Qayyim Al-Jawziyyah wrote the following words in a famous tract called Al-Jawaab Al-Kaafi in response to a letter written to him by an individual who was seeking advice on how to rid himself of major sin. The great scholar Ibn Al-Qayyim Al-Jawziyyah wrote the following words in a famous tract called Al-Jawaab Al-Kaafi in response to a letter written to him by an individual who was seeking advice on how to rid himself of major sin. We take a look at the dire consequences of committing sins in general: One: The Prevention of Knowledge. Knowledge is a light which Allah throws into the heart, and disobedience extinguishes this light. Imaam Shaafi’ee said: I complained to Wakee’ about the weakness of my memory So he ordered me to abandon disobedience And informed me that knowledge is light And that the light of Allah is not given to the disobedient. Two: The Prevention of Sustenance, Just as Taqwaa brings about sustenance, the abandonment of Taqwaa causes poverty. There is nothing which can bring about sustenance like the abandonment of disobedience. Three: The Prevention of Obedience (to Allah). If there was no other punishment for sin other than that it prevents one from obedience to Allah then this would be sufficient. Four: Disobedience weakens the heart and the body. Its weakening the heart is something which is clear. Disobedience does not stop weakening it until the life of the heart ceases completely. Five: Disobedience reduces the lifespan and destroys any blessings. Just as righteousness increases the lifespan, sinning reduces it. Six: Disobedience sows its own seeds and gives birth to itself until separating from it and coming out of it becomes difficult for the servant. Seven: Sins weaken the hearts will and resolve so that the desire for disobedience becomes strong and the desire to repent becomes weak bit by bit until the desire to repent is removed from the heart completely. Eight: Every type of disobedience is a legacy of a nation from among the nations which Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, destroyed. Sodomy is a legacy of the People of Lot. Taking more than one’s due right and giving what is less is a legacy of the People of Shu’ayb. Seeking greatness in the land and causing corruption is a legacy of the People of Pharoah. Pride/arrogance and tyranny is a legacy of the People of Hud. So the disobedient one is wearing the gown of some of these nations who were the enemies of Allah. Nine: Disobedience is a cause of the servant being held in contempt by his Lord. Al-Hasan Al-Basree (radiallahu ‘anhu) said: They became contemptible in (His sight) so they disobeyed Him. If they were honorable (in His sight) He would have protected them. Allah the Exalted said: {And whomsoever Allah disgraces, none can honour him.} [Al-Hajj 22:18] {وَمَن يُهِنِ ٱللَّـهُ فَمَا لَهُۥ مِن مُّكْرِمٍ} الحج: 18 Transliteration: waman yuhini Allahu famalahu min mukrimin Ten: The ill-effects of the sinner fall upon those besides him and also the animals as a result of which they are touched by harm. Eleven: The servant continues to commit sins until they become very easy for him and seem insignificant in his heart, and this is a sign of destruction. Every time a sin becomes insignificant in the sight of the servant it becomes great in the sight of Allah. Ibn Mas’ood (radiallahu ‘anhu) said: “Indeed, the believer sees his sins as if he was standing at the foot of a mountain fearing that it will fall upon him and the sinner sees his sins like a fly which passes by his nose so he tries to remove it by waving his hand around.” [Al-Bukhari] «قال ابن مسعود:إن المؤمن يرى ذنوبه كأنه قاعد تحت جبل يخاف أن يقع عليه ، وإن الفاجر يرى ذنوبه كذباب مر على أنفه ، فقال به هكذا» رواه البخاري Twelve: Disobedience inherits humiliation and lowliness. Honor, all of it, lies in the obedience of Allaah. Abdullaah ibn al-Mubaarak said: I have seen sins kill the hearts and humiliation is inherited by their continuity. The abandonment of sins gives life to the hearts and the prevention of your soul is better for it. Thirteen: Disobedience corrupts the intellect. The intellect has light and disobedience extinguishes this light. When the light of the intellect is extinguished it becomes weak and deficient. Fourteen: When disobedience increases, the servant’s heart becomes sealed so that he becomes of those who are heedless. The Exalted said: {Nay! But on their hearts is the Ran (covering of sins and evil deeds) which they used to earn.} [Al-Mutaffifeen 83:14] {كَلَّاۖ بَلْۜ رَانَ عَلَىٰ قُلُوبِهِم مَّا كَانُوا۟ يَكْسِبُونَ} المطففين: 14 Transliteration: Kalla bal rana AAala quloobihim makanoo yaksiboona Fifteen: Sins cause the various types of corruption to occur in the land. Corruption of the waters, the air, the plants, the fruits and the dwelling places. The Exalted said: {Evil (sins and disobedience of Allah, etc.) has appeared on land and sea because of what the hands of men have earned (by oppression and evil deeds, etc.), that Allah may make them taste a part of that which they have done, in order that they may return (by repenting to Allah, and begging His Pardon).} [Ar-Rum 30:41] {ظَهَرَ ٱلْفَسَادُ فِى ٱلْبَرِّ وَٱلْبَحْرِ بِمَا كَسَبَتْ أَيْدِى ٱلنَّاسِ لِيُذِيقَهُم بَعْضَ ٱلَّذِى عَمِلُوا۟ لَعَلَّهُمْ يَرْجِعُونَ} الروم: 41 Transliteration: Thahara alfasadu fee albarri waalbahri bima kasabat aydee alnnasi liyutheeqahum baAAda allathee AAamiloo laAAallahum yarjiAAoona Sixteen: The disappearance of modesty, which is the essence of the life of the heart and is the basis of every good. Its disappearance is the disappearance of all that is good. It is authentic from the Messenger (sallallahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) that he said: “Modesty is goodness, all of it.” [Muslim] «الحياء كله خير» رواه مسلم A Poet said: And by Allah, there is no good in life or in the world when modesty goes. Seventeen: Sins weaken and reduce the magnification of Allaah, the Mighty in the heart of the servant. Eighteen: Sins are the cause of Allah forgetting His servant, abandoning him and leaving him to fend for himself with his soul and his shaytaan and in this is the destruction from which no deliverance can be hoped for. Nineteen: Sins remove the servant from the realm of Ihsaan (doing good) and he is prevented from (obtaining) the reward of those who do good. When Ihsaan fills the heart it prevents it from disobedience. Twenty: Disobedience causes the favors of Allah to cease and justify His retribution. No blessing ceases to reach a servant except due to a sin and no retribution is made deserving upon him except due to a sin. Ali (radiallahu ‘anhu) said: “No trial has descended except due to a sin and it (the trial) is not repelled except by repentance.” Allaah the Exalted said: {And whatever of misfortune befalls you, it is because of what your hands have earned. And He pardons much.} [Ash-Shura 42:30] {وَمَآ أَصَـٰبَكُم مِّن مُّصِيبَةٍ فَبِمَا كَسَبَتْ أَيْدِيكُمْ وَيَعْفُوا۟ عَن كَثِيرٍ} الشورى: 30 Transliteration: Wama asabakum min museebatin fabima kasabat aydeekum wayaAAfoo AAan katheerin And the Exalted also said: {That is so because Allah will never change a grace which He has bestowed on a people until they change what is in their ownselves.} [Anfaal 8:53] {ذَٰلِكَ بِأَنَّ ٱللَّـهَ لَمْ يَكُ مُغَيِّرًا نِّعْمَةً أَنْعَمَهَا عَلَىٰ قَوْمٍ حَتَّىٰ يُغَيِّرُوا۟ مَا بِأَنفُسِهِمْ} الأنفال: 53 Transliteration: Thalika bianna Allaha lam yaku mughayyiran niAAmatan anAAamahaAAala qawmin hatta yughayyiroo mabianfusihim May Allah have mercy upon us and help us to abandon the sins that are the causes of our problems. Ameen. [The bulk of this article was derived from Ibn Al-Qayyim’s Al-Jawaab Al-Kaafi English Translation by Abu ‘Iyaad and The Ill-Effects Of Sins by Muhammad Saalih ibn Al-‘Uthaimeen] Reference Link