al-Dhāriyāt

بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ

وَالذَّارِيَاتِ ذَرْوًا

فَالْحَامِلَآتِ وِقْرًا

فَالْجَارِيَاتِ يُسْرًا

فَالْمُقَسِّمَاتِ أمْرًا

1. By the winds that scatter everything forcefully.

2. Then by the clouds bearing heavy weight [of water].

3. Then by the ships that float with ease.

4. Then by angels distributing the affairs by [Allah’s] Command.

In the opening four blessed Verses of the Chapter in question God Almighty swears by four great things in the world of creation, saying that what the Prophets promised you concerning the exalted states and Bounties in store for good-doers in the Hereafter are certain and true and the Recompense of deeds shall be given at Divine Tribunal in the Hereafter such that each and every person shall certainly be recompensed for his deeds. Qur’anic exegets’ views concerning the opening four blessed Verses of the Chapter in question:

1. By the winds dispersing the clouds or dust. By the angels who disperse the clouds. By the women who disseminate generations of mankind through conception and pregnancy.

2. By the clouds bearing the heavy weight of rain by the angels responsible for making the clouds heavy with the weight of rain to flow. By the women carrying the burden of pregnancy.

3. By the ships floating in the sea with ease. By the planets, the sun, and the moon circling in their orbits. By the winds that move around.

4. Then these are the distributors of affairs or the angels serving as agents of the affairs of creation, responsible for sending down rain and distributors of the provisions of creatures, since each kind of angels are responsible for fulfilling certain duties so that the world of creation be preserved through order.

Ibn al-Kawwa’ asked the Commander of the Faithful, Imam ‘Ali (as) regarding the opening four blessed Verses and narrated from Mujahid that ‘distributors’ refers to the four archangels responsible for the affairs of mankind: Gabriel for severity, Michael for Mercy, ‘Izra’il for taking life, and Israfil for blowing the Trumpet or distributing the winds that distribute the clouds throughout the world. The author of [the exegetic work titled] Kashshaf and Tabarsi narrate from Ibn ‘Abbas and Mujahid who in turn narrate from Ibn al-Kawwa’ that the Commander of the Faithful, Imam ‘Ali (as) was asked while preaching on the pulpit:

“O Commander of the Faithful (as)! I ask you a few questions. Tell me what is meant by :

‘al-Dhariyat Dharwa?’”

He replied:

“The wind is being intended.”

I inquired:

‘What about

fa-al-hamilat waqra?’

He replied:

‘The clouds are being meant.’

I further asked:

‘What is intended by

fa-al-muqassimat amra?’

He answered:

‘Angels are being meant.’”

The tradition is attested in many a tradition source. The tradition in question bears testimony to the aforesaid view as per which dhariyat, hamilat, jariyat, and muqassimat designate the wind, the clouds, the ships, and the distributing angels respectively. Certain Qur’anic exegets have been quoted as saying that in all instances, the word

‘Lord’

is the object of oaths, since it is solely befitting to swear by God Almighty. In this vein, a tradition is narrated from Imam Sadiq (as) as per which he said:

“No one is allowed to take an oath unless he swears by God Almighty, but He may swear by any of His creatures. God Almighty swears by these creatures since they are of great benefits. Divine Unity is also further substantiated through such oaths. The fundamentals of the physical world include these four things; even if one of the four fails to function or transgress its bounds, the affairs of all mankind and also all creatures shall be ruined.”