Commentary By Maulana Wahiduddin khan
1-8. God causes such events to take…
God causes such events to take place in the present world as make the occurrence of Doomsday understandable in advance. An event of this type occurred in the days of the Prophet Muhammad a few years before the Hijrah, when people saw that the moon was ‘cleft in two.’ At that time, the Prophet told the people that just as the moon had broken into pieces, the world would also break into pieces and then a new world would be built.
Undoubtedly, there is a lesson to be learned from such events. But this is possible only when a man applies his mind to it. Those who are slaves to their own desires, will look at such events and simply say, ‘This is magic’. They will interpret such events as they please and treat them as inapplicable to themselves. For such people even the most cogent reasoning is meaningless. They will come to their senses only when the blast of Doomsday bursts on them and deprives them of the opportunity to reform.
8-17. The leaders of Noah’s community…
The leaders of Noah’s community, consumed as they were by false prestige, were not prepared to accept Noah. The result was that they were afflicted by the retribution of God. This punishment came upon them in the shape of a terrible flood. The entire people and their dwellings were submerged in it. But, Noah and his companions, as commanded by God, boarded an ark. This vessel sailed forth and stopped at Mount Judi in the Mount Ararat range.
Ararat is in Turkey. The highest mountain of the region, it rises to 16,853 ft. Certain aeroplane pilots claim that, while flying over the snow-covered Ararat peak, they have seen some boat-like thing caught up in the snow there. If this is correct, then just as the dead body of Pharaoh (of Moses’s period) was extracted from its pyramid in the late nineteenth century and became a sign of God (10:92), similarly perhaps Noah’s ark may be discovered and become a sign of God for mankind.
18-22. The people of ‘Ad merited divine…
The people of ‘Ad merited divine retribution, so God unleashed a hurricane which made it difficult for them to remain upright. The winds lifted them and tossed them about violently and waves dashed them against the trees. Others were crushed when their roofs fell down on their heads. All this was a demonstration of the fact that man was absolutely helpless, and that he had no power or authority of any sort before God.
33-40. When Lot called to the Truth…
When Lot called to the Truth, there were a few individuals who responded positively. They accepted the greatness of Truth and, as compared to it, they conceded that they were small. But many did not concur. Instead of accepting sound arguments in support of Lot’s call, they indulged in false reasoning just in order to reject it. This sort of rejection of the Truth is a major crime. So, while the accepters were spared, the rejecters were seized upon by God. This is an example which shows that, in this world, the fate of the rejecters of the call for Truth is destruction, while those who accept it earn salvation.
41-48. Pharaoh was a very powerful…
Pharaoh was a very powerful ruler of his time, but on rejecting the truth he became valueless in the eyes of God. Thereafter, he was killed like any other helpless man. In this world, a man standing out against the Truth renders himself weak.
For those who refused to accept the Prophet Muhammad, there was a lesson in the fatal incidents which befell those who rejected the earlier prophets. But they did not learn from this. This has been true of all the peoples. In spite of clear signs, every community has considered itself safe from God’s ire and therefore exempt from religious obligations. Every community has indulged in the same arrogant behaviour as the previous communities, as a result of which they have had to suffer God’s retribution.
49-55. Just as everything in the world…
Just as everything in the world is governed by definite rules, so also are human beings bound to follow fixed principles. They have been given the opportunity to perform deeds in the present world, but by the same fixed principles they are removed from the site of action and taken to the place where rewards and punishments are meted out. The power of the Creator, which is everywhere manifested, is enough to ensure that this happening will occur exactly at the appointed time without delay. Similarly, the system of recording existing in the present world is advance intimation of the fact that (in the Hereafter) everybody will be given such treatment as will be strictly in accordance with his deeds. However, all such matters will be comprehended only by one who by nature is inclined to give deep consideration to events and who, going beyond appearances, is able to see the inner latent realities.
The present world is a world of trial. Here everybody has full freedom. So, in this world it is possible for a man to gain prominence, even if he lives a life of falsehood in order to obtain respect and status. But nothing of this sort will be possible in the Hereafter. In the Hereafter, the manifestation of the perfect authority of God will guarantee that standing on any ground except that of Truth will be of no avail to anybody.
