Tafseer of The Dunes · Al-Ahqaf · 46:29
And [mention, O Muhammad], when We directed to you a few of the jinn, listening to the Qur'an. And when they attended it, they said, "Listen quietly." And when it was concluded, they went back to their people as warners.
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 saying of the Exalted: En toen Wij een groep van de djinn naar jou wendden, die naar de Koran luisterden; en toen zij daarbij aankwamen, zeiden zij: "Wees stil!"; en toen het beëindigd was, keerden zij terug naar hun volk als waarschuwers. (46:29)
The Exalted, whose praise is sublime, says — reproaching the disbelievers of the Quraysh for their disbelief in that which the jinn believed in: And when We turned toward you — O Muḥammad — a group of the jinn who listened to the Qurʾān. It is mentioned that they were turned toward the Messenger of Allah ﷺ on account of the event that took place when they were pelted with falling stars.
* Mention of who said that:
Ibn Ḥumayd related to us, saying: Jarīr related to us, on the authority of Mughīra, on the authority of Ziyād, on the authority of Saʿīd ibn Jubayr, who said: "The jinn used to eavesdrop; when they were pelted with stars, they said: verily, this which has happened in the heaven is something that has happened on the earth. So they set out searching, until they saw the Prophet ﷺ coming out from the market of ʿUkāẓ, while he was performing the dawn prayer with his companions; so they went to their people."
Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Aʿlā related to us, saying: Ibn Thawr related to us, on the authority of Maʿmar, on the authority of Ayyūb, on the authority of Saʿīd ibn Jubayr, who said: "When the Prophet ﷺ was sent, the heaven was guarded; so the devil said: it is only guarded on account of a matter that has happened on the earth. He then sent out his troops over the earth, and they found the Prophet ﷺ standing performing the dawn prayer with his companions at Nakhla, while he was reciting. They listened, until he had finished, they returned to their people as warners up to His saying straight."
Muḥammad ibn Saʿd related to me, saying: my father related to me, saying: my uncle related to me, saying: my father related to me, on the authority of his father, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, concerning His saying And when We turned toward you a group of the jinn who listened to the Qurʾān to the end of the verse; he said: the heaven was not guarded during the interim period (fatra) between Jesus and Muḥammad ﷺ, and they used to take up positions to eavesdrop. When Allah sent Muḥammad ﷺ, the heaven was guarded with a severe guard and the devils were pelted with stars; they rejected that and said: We know not whether evil is intended for those on the earth, or whether their Lord intends for them the right path. So Iblīs said: verily, something has happened on the earth. And the jinn gathered around him, and he said: disperse over the earth, and bring me word of what this news is that has happened in the heaven. The first dispatch was a cavalry-band of the inhabitants of Nasibīn, and they were the nobles of the jinn and their chiefs; he sent them to Tihāma, and they set out until they reached the valley, the valley of Nakhla, and they found the Prophet of Allah ﷺ performing the dawn prayer in the interior of Nakhla, and they listened. When they heard him reciting the Qurʾān, they said: be silent! And the Prophet of Allah ﷺ did not know that they were listening to him while he recited the Qurʾān; and when it was concluded, they returned to their people as warners.
The people of the explanation differed over the number of the group concerning which Allah said And when We turned toward you a group of the jinn. Some of them said: they were seven men.
* Mention of who said that:
Abū Kurayb related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Ḥamīd related to us, saying: al-Naḍr ibn ʿArabī related to us, on the authority of ʿIkrima, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās: And when We turned toward you a group of the jinn who listened to the Qurʾān — the verse; he said: they were seven men of the inhabitants of Nasibīn, and the Messenger of Allah ﷺ made them messengers to their people.
And others said: no, they were nine men.
* Mention of who said that:
Ibn Bashshār related to us, saying: Yaḥyā related to us, on the authority of Sufyān, on the authority of ʿĀṣim, on the authority of Zirr: And when We turned toward you a group of the jinn who listened to the Qurʾān — he said: they were nine men, among whom was Zawbaʿa.
Ibn Bashshār related to us, saying: Abū Aḥmad related to us, saying: Sufyān related to us, on the authority of ʿĀṣim, on the authority of Zirr ibn Ḥubaysh, who said: "It was sent down upon the Prophet ﷺ while he was in the interior of Nakhla, and when they came to it — he said: they were nine, one of them was Zawbaʿa."
And His saying and when they came to it — He says: and when this group of the jinn whom Allah had turned toward His Messenger, the Prophet of Allah ﷺ, came to it.
The people of knowledge differed over the manner of their presence with the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. Some of them said: they were present with the Messenger of Allah ﷺ in order to find out what the matter was that had occurred prior to that which had happened in the heaven, while the Messenger of Allah ﷺ did not perceive their presence, as we have previously mentioned from Ibn ʿAbbās.
And as Ibn Bashshār related to us, saying: Hawdha related to us, saying: ʿAwf related to us, on the authority of al-Ḥasan, concerning His saying And when We turned toward you a group of the jinn — he said: the Messenger of Allah ﷺ did not perceive them until they came, and Allah, mighty and exalted is He, revealed to him concerning them and informed him about them.
And others said: no, the Prophet of Allah ﷺ was commanded to recite the Qurʾān to them, and they were gathered before him after Allah had charged him to warn them and had commanded him to recite the Qurʾān to them.
* 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 saying And when We turned toward you a group of the jinn who listened to the Qurʾān — he said: "It was mentioned to us that they were turned toward him from Nineveh. He said: the Prophet of Allah ﷺ said: verily, I have been commanded to recite the Qurʾān to the jinn; which of you will follow me?" Then they fell silent; then he asked them again to follow, and they fell silent; then he asked them a third time to follow, and they fell silent. Then a man said: O Messenger of Allah, you are full of readiness (1); so ʿAbdullāh ibn Masʿūd followed him. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ entered a mountain pass which is called the pass of al-Ḥajūn. He said: and the Prophet of Allah ﷺ drew a line around ʿAbdullāh in order thereby to keep him in his place. He [Ibn Masʿūd] said: then they began to descend upon me, and I saw something like vultures walking upon their wings, and I heard a violent uproar, until I feared for the Prophet of Allah ﷺ; then he recited the Qurʾān. When the Prophet of Allah returned, I said: O Prophet of Allah, what was that uproar that I heard? He said: they gathered around me over a slain one who was among them, and judgment was given justly between them.
And it was mentioned to us that Ibn Masʿūd, when he arrived in Kufa, saw gray, gray-speckled old men of the Zuṭṭ, and they disturbed him; he said: who are these? They said: these are a group of the foreigners. He said: I have not seen, of those to whom the Prophet ﷺ recited Islam from among the jinn, any likeness closer to these than they.
Ibn ʿAbd al-Aʿlā related to us, saying: Ibn Thawr related to us, on the authority of Maʿmar, on the authority of Qatāda, that the Prophet of Allah ﷺ set out with Ibn Masʿūd on the night that he summoned the jinn; the Prophet ﷺ drew a line around Ibn Masʿūd, and then said to him: do not go out of it. Then the Prophet ﷺ went to the jinn and recited the Qurʾān to them; then he returned to Ibn Masʿūd and said: did you see anything? He said: I heard a violent uproar. He said: verily, the jinn disputed over a slain one who had been killed among them, and judgment was given justly between them. And they asked him for provisions; so he said: every bone is meat for you, and every dung is green fodder for you. They said: O Messenger of Allah, the people consider those impure for us. So the Prophet ﷺ forbade that one cleanse oneself with either of those two [bone or dung]. And when Ibn Masʿūd arrived in Kufa, he saw the Zuṭṭ — and they are a tall, black people — and they disturbed him; he said: have they come forth? It was said to him: verily, these are a people of the Zuṭṭ; so he said: how they resemble the group that was turned toward the Prophet ﷺ.
He said: Ibn Thawr related to us, on the authority of Maʿmar, on the authority of Yaḥyā ibn Abī Kathīr, on the authority of ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAmr ibn Ghaylān al-Thaqafī, that he said to Ibn Masʿūd: "It has been related to me that you were with the Messenger of Allah ﷺ on the night of the deputation of the jinn. He said: yes. He said: how was it?" Then he mentioned the entire narration. And it was mentioned that the Prophet ﷺ drew a line around him and said: do not go away from here. And it was mentioned that something like a black dust-cloud enveloped the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, and he [Ibn Masʿūd] was made afraid three times, until, when it was nearly morning, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ came to me and said: did you sleep? I said: no, by Allah, and I considered several times calling the people to aid, until I heard you rebuking them with your stick, while you were saying: sit down. He said: had you gone out, I would not have been sure that one of them would not snatch you away. Then he said: did you see anything? He said: yes, I saw black men, clad in white garments. He said: those are the jinn of Nasibīn; they asked me for provision (al-matāʿ, that is the provision), and I provided them with every dried bone, or camel dung, or horse dung. I said: O Messenger of Allah, what benefit is that to them? He said: verily, they will find no bone but they find upon it its meat on the day it was eaten, and no dung but they find in it its grain on the day it was eaten; so let none of you, when he comes out from relieving himself, cleanse himself with a bone, nor with camel dung, nor with horse dung.
Muḥammad ibn ʿAbdullāh ibn ʿAbd al-Ḥakam related to me, saying: Abū Zurʿa Wahb ibn Rāshid informed us, saying: Yūnus said: Ibn Shihāb said: Abū ʿUthmān ibn Shabba al-Khuzāʿī informed me — and he was among the inhabitants of Syria — "that Ibn Masʿūd said: the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said to his companions, while he was at Mecca: whichever of you would like to attend the affair of the jinn this night, let him do so." But none of them attended it except me. He said: we set out until, when we were in the upper part of Mecca, he drew a line for me with his foot, and then commanded me to sit down within it; then he went off until he stood and began the Qurʾān. Then great black figures enveloped him, coming to stand between me and him, so that I could no longer hear his voice; then they began to draw away like pieces of clouds, until a small group of them remained. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ finished at the break of dawn, went off to relieve himself, then came to me and said: what has the small group done? I said: they are there, O Messenger of Allah. So he took a bone or dung or a skull and gave it to them as provision; then he forbade that anyone cleanse himself with a bone or dung.
Aḥmad ibn ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Wahb related to me, saying: my uncle ʿAbdullāh ibn Wahb related to us, saying: Yūnus informed me, on the authority of Ibn Shihāb, on the authority of Abū ʿUthmān ibn Shabba al-Khuzāʿī — and he was among the inhabitants of Syria — that ʿAbdullāh ibn Masʿūd said: the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said — and he mentioned the same precisely, except that he said: so he gave them dung or a bone as provision, and he did not mention the skull.
Aḥmad ibn ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Wahb related to me, saying: my uncle related to me, saying: Yūnus informed me, on the authority of al-Zuhrī, on the authority of ʿUbaydullāh ibn ʿAbdullāh, that Ibn Masʿūd said: I heard the Messenger of Allah ﷺ say: "I have spent this night reciting to the jinn of a group [of them] at al-Ḥajūn."
And they differed over the place where the Messenger of Allah ﷺ recited the Qurʾān to them. ʿAbdullāh ibn Masʿūd said: he recited to them at al-Ḥajūn, and we have already mentioned the narration from him concerning that.
And others said: he recited to them at Nakhla, and we have already mentioned some of those who said that, and we now mention those whom we have not yet mentioned.
Abū Kurayb related to us, saying: Khallād related to us, on the authority of Zuhayr ibn Muʿāwiya, on the authority of Jābir al-Juʿfī, on the authority of ʿIkrima, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās: "that the group of the jinn of Nasibīn who came to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ came to him while he was at Nakhla."
Muḥammad ibn ʿAmr related to me, saying: Abū ʿĀṣim related to us, saying: ʿĪsā related to us; and al-Ḥārith related to me, saying: al-Ḥasan related to us, saying: Warqāʾ related to us — both — on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid: And when We turned toward you a group of the jinn — he said: he met them at Nakhla on that night. And His saying and when they came to it, they said: "Be silent!" — the Exalted, whose praise is sublime, says: and when they came to the Qurʾān while the Messenger of Allah ﷺ was reciting, they said to one another: be silent, so that we may listen to the Qurʾān.
As Ibn Bashshār related to us, saying: Yaḥyā related to us, on the authority of Sufyān, on the authority of ʿĀṣim, on the authority of Zirr: and when they came to it, they said: "Be silent!" — they said: silence!
He said: Abū Aḥmad related to us, saying: Sufyān related to us, on the authority of ʿĀṣim, on the authority of Zirr ibn Ḥubaysh, the like of it.
Bishr related to us, saying: Yazīd related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda, concerning His saying and when they came to it, they said: "Be silent!" — the people knew that they would not understand it until they fell silent.
And His saying and when it was concluded — He says: and when the Messenger of Allah ﷺ had finished the recitation and the delivery of the Qurʾān.
And in the spirit of what we have said concerning this, the people of the explanation have spoken.
* Mention of who said that:
Muḥammad ibn Saʿd related to me, saying: my father related to me, saying: my uncle related to me, saying: my father related to me, on the authority of his father, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās: and when it was concluded — he says: and when he had finished the prayer. They returned to their people as warners. And His saying they returned to their people as warners — He says: they returned, warning against the punishment of Allah on account of disbelief in Him.
And it was mentioned from Ibn ʿAbbās that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ made them messengers to their people.
Abū Kurayb related to us thereby, saying: ʿAbd al-Ḥamīd al-Ḥimmānī related to us, saying: al-Naḍr related to us, on the authority of ʿIkrima, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās. And this saying contradicts the saying transmitted from him, that he said: the Prophet of Allah ﷺ did not know that they were listening to him while he recited the Qurʾān; for it is impossible that he sent them to others except after his knowledge of their presence — unless one were to say: he did not know of their presence during their listening to the Qurʾān, but knew it afterward, before their departure to their people, and then sent them as messengers to their people; and that is not in the narration that has been transmitted.
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Footnotes:
(1) In Ibn Kathīr it reads "ladhū nadba" [full of zeal], and it is as though the man marveled at the energy of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and his swiftness when he called his companions and they shrank back. Perhaps it is derived from their expression "rajul nadb," that is: a man who is deft and swift in the matter.
