al-Infiṭār

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمنِ الرَّحِيمِ

In The Name of Allah, The Beneficent, The Merciful

إِذَا السَّمَاءُ انْفَطَرَتْ

وَإِذَا الْكَوَاكِبُ انْتَثَرَتْ

وَإِذَا الْبِحَارُ فُجِّرَتْ

وَإِذَا الْقُبُورُ بُعْثِرَتْ

عَلِمَتْ نَفْسٌ مَا قَدَّمَتْ وَأَخَّرَتْ

1. "When The Sky is cleft asunder."
2. "And when the planets are scattered."
3. "And when the seas burst forth,”
4. "And when the graves are over turned (emptied),”
5. "Every soul shall know what it has sent forward and (what it has) held back."

The Disturbance in Order and Symmetry

Again, at the beginning of this Surah, we are informed about a part of the horrible events that occur, throughout the world immediately before the Day of Judgment. It says:

The present phenomenal order will not last for ever. Then, constellations will lose their regularity and the order of this world will be disturbed. All stars and planets in the sky, revolving around special points, will leave their routine and, hitting each other, burst violently. All will be destroyed before the new Spiritual World is established. The term /infatarat/ is based on /infitar/ which means 'being cloven asunder'. It resembles the term used in some verses of the Qur'an, such as, Surah Inshiqaq, No. 84, Verse 1 which says:

And, it also resembles Surah Muzammil, No. 73, verse 18 which says:

The term /intatharat/ is basically derived from /nathr/ which means 'to disperse' and the term /intithar/ means 'to scatter', and, hence, scattered stars cause each one of them to be thrust in different directions, then many commentators have interpreted the term /intatharat/ as the 'falling of the stars' which is appropriate with the sense of 'scatter'. The term /kawakib/ is the plural form of /kaukab/ which carries many meanings in the Arabic language, including: 'star', in the general sense, and 'Venus' in a proper sense: i.e. a white point in the eye, tall plants, blossoms, the shine of steel, a handsome lad, a sword, water, the chief of a group, etc.

However, it seems that the main meaning is 'a bright star' and other meanings are used metaphorically in relation to that meaning. What factor or factors cause the stars to be scattered? Is it because of the disturbance of their polarization? Does a mysterious power have an effect on them? Or is it the consequence of the world's gradual contraction, which is now approved of by the scientific community. No one knows the exact answer, but it is, at least, understood from them that when these great phenomena cannot resist and will be totally shattered then the position of man, a weak creature, is obvious.

This is an admonishment to man, in relation to the destruction of this phenomenal world, in order for him not to consider it immortal or not to be attached to it and avoid committing numerous sins for its sake. After speaking about the sky the Surah says:

Although the seas and oceans (other than the lakes), on the Earth, are now connected to each other, it seems that prior to the Hereafter the mountains will turn to rubble, because of earthquakes, and will fill them up, entirely, so that water will cover all the lands, and the seas will join to each other as a single ocean which will overwhelm the whole planet (Earth); as Surah Takwir No. 81 verse 6 says:

There is another probability, in commenting on these two verses, which interprets the term /fujjirat/ and /sujjirat/ in the sense of 'explosion in the seas which turns the seas into fire', because, as was said before, water is formed with a combination of two elements; both of which are combustible. If something chemically separates the water of the seas into oxygen and hydrogen, a small spark can ignite it into an overwhelming, blazing inferno. Then, speaking about the Resurrection, where the dead are thrown out for reckoning, which is the stage for the rebirth of the dead and the world, it says:

The term /bu'thirat/ means 'to turn upside-down' or 'to be scattered'. Raqib cites in his book 'Mufradat' that the word may be combined from two parts: /ba'th/ and /athirat/ where both meanings are gathered in it, (like /bismillah/ which is formed from /bismi/ and /allah/). In any event, what is said in the above verse is similar to what Surah Zilzal No. 99 verse 2 denotes:

Or, it resembles Surah Naziat No.79 Verse 13-14 which say:

All these statements show that the rebirth, and the dead coming out from their graves, will occur suddenly and rapidly. And, after pointing to some events that happen before and after the Resurrection; as a conclusion it says:

Verily, on that Day, everything will be obvious to all and the curtains of arrogance and pride will be removed, then, the full Reality will be manifested. Man will see his deeds altogether, irrespective of good or evil, and understands what sort of deeds he had sent forth and what kind of deeds, together with their effects, remained in the world, whose result reached him later after his death; such as, acts of charity done, any remaining voluntary alms and/or pious foundations and endowments, or the books and works he had left behind; whether with good intention or evil ones, of which other persons used after him, and, also, the good or bad habits that remain among societies for generations.

These are some of man's deeds that their result reaches him after his death and they are the examples of the term /axxarat/ 'what it has held back', which is mentioned in the verse. It is true that in this world everyone is, more or less, familiar with what he has done, but forgetfulness, selfishness, and self-love often prevent man from keeping all of his actions in mind and understanding the depth of their final result. However, on the Day when everything changes and there will be a revolution in all things in the world, including man's spirit; he will have a complete knowledge and a precise comprehension of what he has done in his life.

Or, more than that, he will see all of them in front of himself as Surah al-i-Imran, No. 3, verse 30 says:

Some of the commentators have rendered the verse with some other interpretations, one of which is that it means the deeds that man has committed at the beginning of his life and the deeds that he has postponed to do at the end of his life. But, the first commentary is more appropriate in every respect. By the way, the term

here, means every individual human spirit, and it includes all mankind, in general.

Explanations

Besides what is said in the above verses about the remaining result of man's deeds, there are some narration's which say that there may be some actions, fulfilled by man, whose effect; good or bad, lasts for many years or even forever, and he receives its fruit. A narration from Imam Sadiq (as) says:

"There will be no reward for a man after his death except in three ways: the pious foundations that he has established in his life and that will continue after his death, a tradition of guidance for the benefit of people according to which they behave after his death, and a believing good child who asks forgiveness from Allah for him”. ¹

The things that are beneficial for the believers after their death are six according to another narration: a pious child, the Qur'an that he studies, a well he has dug (for its water), a tree he has planted, providing water, and, finally, a good tradition that persists after him and is beloved by all.² Some narrations focus on the science that a person leaves behind amongst people.³ There are numerous narrations that warn people to be especially careful about their behavior, because their behavior may cause their societies to have some good or bad traditions later.

The late Tabarsi cites a tradition corresponding with the above mentioned verses that states: once a person, who was attending with the Prophet (S), rose and asked people to help him with some financial matter. No one responded to him. At this moment, one of the Prophet's (S) companions gave the beggar something. Then others followed suit and everyone gave him something to help him and the Prophet (S) said:

"He who leaves a good tradition behind himself one that others follow, will have his own reward and, in addition to this he will have a reward similar to his followers' rewards; without decreasing anything from that which they gained. And he who leaves an evil tradition behind himself and others follow it, will have his own sin plus a sin similar to his followers' sins, both, without decreasing from any of them".

At that moment Khathifah, one of the Prophet's companions (S), recited the verse:

Amir-al-Mo'mineen Ali (as) says:

"What will your position be, then, when your affairs reach their end and graves are turned upside down (to throw out the dead)? There, every soul shall realize what it has sent before, and they shall be brought back to Allah their true Lord, and what they did fabricate (the false deities) will vanish from them”. ⁵

These verses and narrations illustrate man's responsibility for his deeds, from the Islamic point of view, so that they may result in some good rewards or painful punishments for him even after the passing of thousands of years.