Tafseer of The Cattle · Al-An'aam · 6:125
So whoever Allah wants to guide - He expands his breast to [contain] Islam; and whoever He wants to misguide - He makes his breast tight and constricted as though he were climbing into the sky. Thus does Allah place defilement upon those who do not believe.
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: "So whomever Allah wills to guide, He expands his breast for Islam."
Abū Jaʿfar said: The Exalted, whose remembrance is exalted, says: whomever Allah wills to guide to belief in Him and in His Messenger and in that which he brought from his Lord, and inspires with the right course thereto — "He expands his breast for Islam." He says: He makes his breast spacious for it and makes it light and easy for him, through His benevolence and His support, until Islam shines forth in his heart and gleams therein, and his breast expands for it with acceptance — as is the report that has come concerning this from the Messenger of Allah (the Prophet ﷺ), namely:
13852- Sawwār ibn ʿAbd Allāh al-ʿAnbarī related to us, saying: al-Muʿtamir ibn Sulaymān related to us, saying: I heard my father relate, on the authority of ʿAbd Allāh ibn Murra, on the authority of Abū Jaʿfar, who said: when this verse was sent down — "So whomever Allah wills to guide, He expands his breast for Islam" — they asked: how does the breast expand? He said: when the light descends into the heart, the breast expands and widens for it. They asked: is there a sign for that by which it is recognized? He said: yes, turning toward the abode of eternity, turning away from the abode of delusion, and preparing for death before its onset.
13853- Al-Ḥasan ibn Yaḥyā related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Razzāq informed us, saying: al-Thawrī informed us, on the authority of ʿAmr ibn Qays, on the authority of ʿAmr ibn Murra, on the authority of Abū Jaʿfar, who said: the Prophet ﷺ was asked: which of the believers is the most discerning? He said: the one among them who most remembers death, and who best prepares for what comes after it. He said: and the Prophet ﷺ was asked about this verse: "So whomever Allah wills to guide, He expands his breast for Islam." They asked: how does He expand his breast, O Messenger of Allah? He said: a light that is cast into it, so that he expands and widens for it. They asked: is there a token for that by which it is recognized? He said: "turning toward the abode of eternity, turning away from the abode of delusion, and preparing for death before death."
13854- Hannād related to us, saying: Qabīṣa related to us, on the authority of Sufyān, on the authority of ʿAmr ibn Murra, on the authority of a man nicknamed "Abū Jaʿfar," who lived in al-Madāʾin, who said: the Prophet ﷺ was asked about His saying: "So whomever Allah wills to guide, He expands his breast for Islam." He said: a light that is cast into the heart, so that it expands and widens. They asked: O Messenger of Allah, is there a token for that by which it is recognized? — then he mentioned the rest of the report in the same manner.
15855- Hilāl ibn al-ʿAlāʾ related to me, saying: Saʿīd ibn ʿAbd al-Malik ibn Wāqid al-Ḥarrānī related to us, saying: Muḥammad ibn Salama related to us, on the authority of Abū ʿAbd al-Raḥīm, on the authority of Zayd ibn Abī Unaysa, on the authority of ʿAmr ibn Murra, on the authority of Abū ʿUbayda, on the authority of ʿAbd Allāh ibn Masʿūd, who said: it was said to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ when this verse was sent down — "So whomever Allah wills to guide, He expands his breast for Islam" — he said: when the light enters the heart, it widens and expands. They asked: is there a token for that by which it is recognized? He said: turning toward the abode of eternity, removing oneself from the abode of delusion, and preparing for death before death.
13856- Saʿīd ibn al-Rabīʿ al-Rāzī related to me, saying: Sufyān ibn ʿUyayna related to us, on the authority of Khālid ibn Abī Karīma, on the authority of ʿAbd Allāh ibn al-Miswar, who said: the Messenger of Allah ﷺ recited: "So whomever Allah wills to guide, He expands his breast for Islam," then the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: when the light enters the heart, it widens and expands. They asked: O Messenger of Allah, is there a sign for that which is recognized? He said: yes, turning toward the abode of eternity, turning away from the abode of delusion, and preparing for death before the descent of death.
13857- Ibn Sinān al-Qazzāz related to me, saying: Maḥbūb ibn al-Ḥasan al-Hāshimī related to us, on the authority of Yūnus, on the authority of ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿUtba, on the authority of ʿAbd Allāh ibn Masʿūd, on the authority of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, who said: "So whomever Allah wills to guide, He expands his breast for Islam." They asked: O Messenger of Allah, and how is his breast expanded? He said: the light enters into it, so that it widens. They asked: and is there a sign for that, O Messenger of Allah? He said: turning away from the abode of delusion, directing oneself toward the abode of eternity, and preparing for death before death descends.
And in agreement with what we have said concerning this, the exegetes have spoken.
Mention of who said that:
13859- Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥusayn related to me, saying: Aḥmad ibn al-Mufaḍḍal related to us, saying: Asbāṭ related to us, on the authority of al-Suddī: "So whomever Allah wills to guide, He expands his breast for Islam" — as for "He expands his breast for Islam," that is: He makes his breast wide for Islam.
13860- Al-Qāsim related to us, saying: al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Ḥajjāj related to me, on the authority of Ibn Jurayj, concerning His saying: "So whomever Allah wills to guide, He expands his breast for Islam" — by "there is no god but Allah."
13861- Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: Suwayd ibn Naṣr related to us, saying: Ibn al-Mubārak informed us, on the authority of Ibn Jurayj, as a recitation: "So whomever Allah wills to guide, He expands his breast for Islam" — by "there is no god but Allah" He makes a spaciousness in his breast for it.
The explanation of the saying: "And whomever He wills to let go astray, He makes his breast tight, constricted."
Abū Jaʿfar said: The Exalted, whose remembrance is exalted, says: and whomever Allah wills to lead astray from the way of right guidance, him He keeps occupied with his unbelief and his turning away from His way, and He makes his breast — through His forsaking him and through the dominion of unbelief over it — constricted (ḥaraj).
And "al-ḥaraj" is the most severe tightness, and that is what cannot be penetrated due to the severity of its tightness; and it is here the breast that the admonition does not reach, and the light of faith does not enter, because of the defilement of associating partners (shirk) that lies upon it. And its origin is from "al-ḥarj"; and "al-ḥaraj" is the plural of "ḥaraja," which is the tree around which the trees are densely entangled, into which nothing can penetrate due to the severity of their entanglement with it — as:
13862- Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: al-Ḥajjāj ibn al-Minhāl related to us, saying: Hushaym related to us, saying: ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿAmmār — a man of the people of Yemen — related to us, on the authority of Abū al-Ṣalt al-Thaqafī: that ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb, may Allah's mercy be upon him, recited this verse: "And whomever He wills to let go astray, He makes his breast tight, constricted (ḥarajan)," with the fatḥa on the rāʾ. He said: and one of those who were with him among the companions of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ recited: "tight, constricted (ḥarijan)." Ṣafwān said: then ʿUmar said: seek out for me a man of Kināna and make him a shepherd, and let him be of the Mudlij. He said: and they brought him to him. Then ʿUmar said to him: O young man, what is "al-ḥaraja"? He said: "al-ḥaraja" with us is the tree that stands among the trees which no grazing animal, nor wild beast, nor anything else can reach. He said: then ʿUmar said: such is the heart of the hypocrite (munāfiq), nothing of good reaches it.
13863- 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 whomever He wills to let go astray, He makes his breast tight, constricted" — he says: whomever Allah wills to let go astray, He makes his breast tight, until He makes Islam tight for him, while Islam is spacious. And that is when He says: "And He has not laid upon you in religion any constriction (ḥaraj)," [Surah Al-Ḥajj: 78] — he says: He has not laid upon you in Islam any tightness.
And the exegetes differed concerning the explanation of that.
Some of them said, its meaning is: doubting.
Mention of who said that:
13864- ʿImrān ibn Mūsā related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Wārith ibn Saʿīd related to us, saying: Ḥumayd related to us, on the authority of Mujāhid: "tight, constricted" — he said: doubting.
13865- Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥusayn related to me, saying: Aḥmad ibn al-Mufaḍḍal related to us, saying: Asbāṭ related to us, on the authority of al-Suddī: "tight, constricted" — as for "constricted," that is: doubting.
And others said, its meaning is: confused.
Mention of who said that:
13866- Bishr related to us, saying: Yazīd related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda: "He makes his breast tight, constricted" — he said: tight, confused.
13867- ʿAbd al-Wārith ibn ʿAbd al-Ṣamad related to us, saying: my father related to me, saying: my uncle related to me, saying: my father related to me, on the authority of al-Ḥasan, on the authority of Qatāda, that he used to recite: "tight, constricted (ḥarijan)," he says: confused.
And others said, its meaning is: that, due to the severity of the tightness, faith does not reach it.
Mention of who said that:
13868- Ibn Wakīʿ related to us, saying: Jarīr related to us, on the authority of Ḥabīb ibn Abī ʿAmra, on the authority of Saʿīd ibn Jubayr: "He makes his breast tight, constricted" — he said: it finds no passage except steeply upward.
13869- Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Aʿlā related to us, saying: Muḥammad ibn Thawr related to us, on the authority of Maʿmar, on the authority of ʿAṭāʾ al-Khurāsānī: "tight, constricted" — he said: there is in it no passage for good.
13870- Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: Suwayd ibn Naṣr related to us, saying: Ibn al-Mubārak informed us, on the authority of Maʿmar, on the authority of ʿAṭāʾ al-Khurāsānī, the same.
13871- Al-Qāsim related to us, saying: al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Ḥajjāj related to me, on the authority of Ibn Jurayj, concerning His saying: "And whomever He wills to let go astray, He makes his breast tight, constricted" — by "there is no god but Allah," for which he finds no passage in his breast.
13872- Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: Suwayd ibn Naṣr related to us, saying: Ibn al-Mubārak informed us, on the authority of Ibn Jurayj, as a recitation, concerning His saying: "And whomever He wills to let go astray, He makes his breast tight" — by "there is no god but Allah," so that you cannot make it enter.
And the reciters differed concerning the recitation of that.
Some of them recited: "tight, constricted (ḥarajan)" with the fatḥa on the ḥāʾ and the rāʾ of "ḥarajan," and that is the recitation of the majority of the Meccans and the Iraqis, with the meaning of the plural of "ḥaraja," in accordance with what I have described.
And the majority of the reciters of Medina recited that: "tight, constricted (ḥarijan)," with the fatḥa on the ḥāʾ and the kasra on the rāʾ.
Then those who recited it thus differed concerning its meaning.
Some of them said: it has the meaning of "al-ḥaraj." And they said: "al-ḥaraj" with the fatḥa on the ḥāʾ and the rāʾ, and "al-ḥarij" with the fatḥa on the ḥāʾ and the kasra on the rāʾ, have one and the same meaning, and they are two well-known linguistic forms, like: "al-danaf" and "al-danif," "al-waḥad" and "al-waḥid," "al-farad" and "al-farid."
And others among them said: no, it has the meaning of sin, derived from their saying: "so-and-so is sinful, laden with guilt (āthim ḥarij)." And it is transmitted from the Arabs, heard from their mouths: "ḥarij ʿalayka ẓulmī" (my wronging of you is a constriction upon you), with the meaning of: tightness and sin.
Abū Jaʿfar said: and my view concerning this is that they are two well-known recitations and two current linguistic forms with one and the same meaning, and with whichever of the two the reciter recites, he is correct, due to the agreement of their two meanings. And that is like what we have mentioned of the reports of the Arabs concerning "al-waḥad" and "al-farad," with the fatḥa on the ḥāʾ of "al-waḥad" and the rāʾ of "al-farad," and with the kasra on both, with one and the same meaning.
And as for "al-ḍayyiq," the majority of the reciters recite with the fatḥa on the ḍād and the doubling (shadda) of its yāʾ, except for some Meccans, for they recited it: "ḍayqan," with the fatḥa on the ḍād and the sukūn on the yāʾ, and without doubling.
And for its sukūn form there are two possible explanations:
The one is that he read it with sukūn while intending the meaning of movement (taḥrīk) and doubling, as it is said: "hayn layn," with the meaning of: "hayyin layyin."
And the other: that he read it with sukūn intending the verbal noun (maṣdar), derived from their saying: "ḍāqa hādhā al-amr yaḍīq ḍayqan," as Ruʾba said:
We have indeed learned, at every constricted passage, the tightness (ḍayq) facing the matter, or its constrictor.
And of that is the saying of Allah: "And be not in tightness (ḍayq) over what they plot," [Surah An-Naḥl: 127]. And Ruʾba also said: "And the heat of thirst has exhausted her in a parched tightness (ḍayaq)," with the meaning of: ḍayyiq (tight). And it is transmitted from al-Kisāʾī that he used to say: "al-ḍayyiq," with the kasra, is used for sustenance and place, and in a matter "al-ḍayq."
Abū Jaʿfar said: and in this verse lies the clearest proof, for whoever is favored with the understanding of its two meanings, that the cause by which one attains to faith and obedience is a cause other than that by which one attains to unbelief and disobedience, and that both causes are from Allah. And that is because Allah, the Exalted whose praise is exalted, has informed concerning Himself that He expands the breast of whomever He wills to guide to Islam, and makes tight the breast of whomever He wills to let go astray for Islam, constricted, as though he were ascending into the sky. And it is known that the expanding of the breast for faith is the opposite of the tightening of it for that, and that, if one were to attain to it through the tightening of the breast for faith, there would be no difference between the tightening of it for that and the expanding of it for that, and that then the one whose breast is tightened for faith would have been expanded for it, and the one whose breast is expanded for it would have been tightened for it — since one would then, through each of the two, namely the tightening and the expanding, attain to that to which one attains through the other. And if that were so, then it would be necessary that Allah had expanded the breast of Abū Jahl for faith in Him, and had tightened the breast of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ for it. And this saying belongs to the worst unbelief toward Allah. And in the absurdity of that, that it should be so, lies the clear proof that the cause by which the believers in Allah and His messengers believed and the obedient obeyed Him is a cause other than that by which the unbelievers disbelieved in Allah and the disobedient disobeyed Him, and that both causes are from Allah and in His hand, for He, the Exalted whose praise is exalted, has informed that it is He who expands the breast of this believer in Him for faith when He wills his guidance, and tightens the breast of this unbeliever for it when He wills his straying.
The explanation of the saying: "As though he were ascending into the sky."
Abū Jaʿfar said: and this is a parable that Allah, the Exalted whose remembrance is exalted, sets forth for the heart of this unbeliever in the severity with which He tightens it so that faith does not reach it, like his inability to ascend into the sky and his incapacity for it, for that does not lie within his power.
And in agreement with what we have said concerning this, the exegetes have spoken.
Mention of who said that:
13873- Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Aʿlā related to us, saying: Muḥammad ibn Thawr related to us, on the authority of Maʿmar, on the authority of ʿAṭāʾ al-Khurāsānī: "as though he were ascending into the sky" — he says: his likeness is as that of one who cannot ascend into the sky.
13874- Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: Suwayd related to us, saying: Ibn al-Mubārak informed us, on the authority of Maʿmar, on the authority of ʿAṭāʾ al-Khurāsānī, the same.
13875- And through him he said: Ibn al-Mubārak informed us, on the authority of Ibn Jurayj, as a recitation: "He makes his breast tight, constricted," by "there is no god but Allah," so that you cannot make it enter, "as though he were ascending into the sky," due to the severity of that for him.
13876- Al-Qāsim related to us, saying: al-Ḥusayn related to us, saying: Ḥajjāj related to me, on the authority of Ibn Jurayj, the same.
13877- Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥusayn related to me, saying: Aḥmad ibn Mufaḍḍal related to us, saying: Asbāṭ related to us, on the authority of al-Suddī: "as though he were ascending into the sky" — due to the tightness of his breast.
And the reciters differed concerning the recitation of that.
The majority of the reciters of the people of Medina and Iraq recited it: "yaṣṣaʿʿadu," with the meaning of: "yataṣaʿʿadu" (he ascends with difficulty); they assimilated the tāʾ into the ṣād, and therefore they doubled the ṣād.
And some Kūfans recited that: "yaṣṣāʿadu," with the meaning of: "yataṣāʿadu," whereby he assimilated the tāʾ into the ṣād and made it a doubled ṣād.
And some reciters of the Meccans recited that: "ka-annamā yaṣʿadu," derived from "ṣaʿida yaṣʿadu" (he ascends).
And all these recitations are close to one another in meaning, and with whichever of them the reciter recites, he is correct; only I prefer in this the recitation of whoever recites it: "yaṣṣaʿʿadu," with doubling of the ṣād without alif, with the meaning of "yataṣaʿʿadu," due to the great number of reciters who recite with it, and due to the saying of ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb, may Allah be pleased with him: "Nothing has burdened me so much as the marriage sermon."
The explanation of the saying: "Thus does Allah place defilement (al-rijs) upon those who do not believe." (6:125)
Abū Jaʿfar said: The Exalted, whose remembrance is exalted, says: just as Allah makes the breast of whomever He wills to let go astray tight and constricted, as though he were ascending into the sky due to its tightness for faith, and requites him with that, so does Allah set Satan over him, and over his like who refuse to believe in Allah and His Messenger, so that he tempts him and turns him away from the way of truth.
And the exegetes differed concerning the meaning of "al-rijs."
Some of them said: it is everything in which there is no good.
Mention of who said that:
13878- Muḥammad ibn ʿAmr related to me, saying: Abū ʿĀṣim related to us, on the authority of ʿĪsā, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid, who said: "al-rijs" is that in which there is no good.
13879- Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: Abū Ḥudhayfa related to us, saying: Shibl related to us, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid: "He places defilement upon those who do not believe" — he said: that in which there is no good.
And others said: "al-rijs" is the punishment (ʿadhāb).
Mention of who said that:
13880- Yūnus related to me, saying: Ibn Wahb informed us, saying: Ibn Zayd said: "Thus does Allah place defilement upon those who do not believe" — he said: "al-rijs" is the punishment of Allah.
And others said: "al-rijs" is Satan.
Mention of who said that:
13881- Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: ʿAbd Allāh ibn Ṣāliḥ related to us, saying: Muʿāwiya ibn Ṣāliḥ related to me, on the authority of ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭalḥa, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, concerning His saying: "al-rijs" — he said: Satan.
And some of the knowers of the languages of the Arabs among the Kūfans used to say: "al-rijs" and "al-nijs" are two linguistic forms. And it is transmitted from the Arabs that they say: "it was rijs (unclean), and it has indeed rajusa rajāsatan" and "najusa najāsatan."
And some grammarians of Basra used to say: "al-rijs" and "al-rijz" are the same, and both are the punishment.
Abū Jaʿfar said: and the correct judgment concerning this, in my view, is what Ibn ʿAbbās said, and what was said by whoever said that "al-rijs" and "al-nijs" are the same, due to the report that is transmitted from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ that he, when he entered the privy, used to say: "O Allah, I seek refuge with You from defilement, the unclean (al-rijs al-nijs), the foul, the defiling, the accursed Satan."
13882- This was related to me by ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn al-Bakhtarī al-Ṭāʾī, saying: ʿAbd al-Raḥmān ibn Muḥammad al-Muḥāribī related to us, on the authority of Ismāʿīl ibn Muslim, on the authority of al-Ḥasan and Qatāda, on the authority of Anas, on the authority of the Prophet ﷺ.
And this report has made clear that "al-rijs" is the same as "al-nijs," the impurity in which there is no good, and that it belongs to the attributes of Satan.
