Tafseer of The Originator · Faatir · 35:12
And not alike are the two bodies of water. One is fresh and sweet, palatable for drinking, and one is salty and bitter. And from each you eat tender meat and extract ornaments which you wear, and you see the ships plowing through [them] that you might seek of His bounty; and perhaps you will be grateful.
Important: The Arabic source text is always authoritative. This translation is a study aid and has not been verified by scholars — do not use it as a basis for religious proof or for deriving rulings (ahkam). When in doubt, always consult the Arabic text and a qualified scholar.
The explanation of the words of the Exalted: وَمَا يَسْتَوِي الْبَحْرَانِ هَذَا عَذْبٌ فُرَاتٌ سَائِغٌ شَرَابُهُ وَهَذَا مِلْحٌ أُجَاجٌ وَمِنْ كُلٍّ تَأْكُلُونَ لَحْمًا طَرِيًّا وَتَسْتَخْرِجُونَ حِلْيَةً تَلْبَسُونَهَا وَتَرَى الْفُلْكَ فِيهِ مَوَاخِرَ لِتَبْتَغُوا مِنْ فَضْلِهِ وَلَعَلَّكُمْ تَشْكُرُونَ (And the two seas are not alike: this one is sweet and clear, pleasant to drink, and that one is salty and bitter; and from both of them you eat fresh flesh and bring forth ornament that you wear; and you see the ships therein cleaving the waves, that you might seek of His bounty, and that you might be thankful) (12).
The Exalted, whose praise is exalted, says: and the two seas are not in balance such that they would be alike; the one is sweet and clear — and "al-furāt" is the sweetest of the sweet — and that one is salty and bitter; He says: and the other of the two is salty and bitter, and that is the water of the green sea, and "al-ujāj" is the bitter, and that is the saltiest of waters.
As Bishr related to us, saying: Yazīd related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda, concerning His words and that one is salty and bitter: and "al-ujāj" is the bitter.
And His words and from both of them you eat fresh flesh mean: and from all the seas you eat fresh flesh, and that is the fish, from their sweet and clear and from their salty and bitter water. and you bring forth ornament that you wear refers to the pearls and the coral; you bring those forth from the salty and bitter water. And we have already earlier set forth the import of you bring forth ornament — namely that it is brought forth only from the salty water — in a manner that makes repetition unnecessary. And you see the ships therein cleaving the waves — the Exalted, whose praise is exalted, says: and you see the ships in all those seas cleaving the waves, splitting the water with their prow, and that is their breaking through it when they proceed; the singular is "mākhira." Of this it is said: "makharat tamkhuru wa-tamkhar makhran," and that is when they cut through the water with their prow.
And in accordance with what we have said about this, the people of interpretation (ahl al-taʾwīl) have spoken.
* Mention of who said that:
Bishr related to us, saying: Yazīd related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda, concerning His words and from both of them you eat fresh flesh, that is to say: from both of them together; and you bring forth ornament that you wear: that is the pearl; and you see the ships therein cleaving the waves: therein the ships, coming and going with one and the same wind.
ʿAlī related to us, saying: Abū Ṣāliḥ related to us, saying: Muʿāwiya related to me, on the authority of ʿAlī, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, concerning His words and you see the ships therein cleaving the waves, he says: proceeding swiftly.
And His words that you might seek of His bounty mean: that you, through your sailing in these seas in the ships, might seek your livelihood, and that you might conduct your trade therein, and that you might be thankful to Allah for the fact that He made that subservient to you, and for that with which He has provided you from it of good provisions of livelihood and precious ornament.
