Tafseer of The Heights · Al-A'raaf · 7:46
And between them will be a partition, and on [its] elevations are men who recognize all by their mark. And they call out to the companions of Paradise, "Peace be upon you." They have not [yet] entered it, but they long intensely.
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 His word: "And between the two of them is a partition, and on the heights (al-aʿrāf) are men who recognize each by his mark."
Abū Jaʿfar said: He, exalted is His praise, means by His word: "and between the two of them is a partition," and between the Garden (janna) and the Fire (al-nār) is a partition, that is to say: a dividing wall. That is the wall which Allah, the Exalted, mentioned when He said: "Then a wall will be erected between them with a gate, the interior of which contains mercy and the exterior of which, on its side, contains the punishment" (Sūrat al-Ḥadīd: 13). And that is "the heights" (al-aʿrāf) of which Allah says: "and on the heights are men," so it is.
14671 - Ibn Wakīʿ related to us, saying: ʿAbd Allāh ibn Rajāʾ related to us, on the authority of Ibn Jurayj, saying: it reached me from Mujāhid, who said: "the heights" are a partition between the Garden and the Fire.
14672 - 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: "and between the two of them is a partition," and that is "the wall," and that is "the heights."
As for His word: "and on the heights are men," "al-aʿrāf" is a plural, of which the singular is "ʿurf." Every elevation of the earth is, among the Arabs, a "ʿurf." The comb of the rooster is called "ʿurf" because of its elevation above the rest of its body. To this testifies the saying of al-Shammākh ibn Ḍirār:
And she dwelt by heights, lofty, as though they were spears that someone had aimed and planted facing into the wind.
By his saying "by heights" he means: by high-lying places of the earth. To this also testifies the saying of another:
Each one thick and firmly filled with flesh, tall, like the mountain peak that towers above the heights.
Al-Suddī said: "the heights" are called heights only because the people who are upon them recognize the people.
14672 - This was related to me by Muḥammad ibn al-Ḥusayn, saying: Aḥmad ibn al-Mufaḍḍal related to us, saying: Asbāṭ related to us, on the authority of al-Suddī.
And in the sense of what we have said concerning this, the exegetes have spoken.
* Mention of who said that:
14673 - Sufyān ibn Wakīʿ related to us, saying: Ibn ʿUyayna related to us, on the authority of ʿUbayd Allāh ibn Abī Yazīd, who heard Ibn ʿAbbās say: "the heights" are the high-lying place.
14674 - Al-Ḥasan ibn Yaḥyā related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Razzāq informed us, saying: Ibn ʿUyayna informed us, on the authority of ʿUbayd Allāh ibn Abī Yazīd, saying: I heard Ibn ʿAbbās say the same.
14675 - Ibn Wakīʿ related to us, saying: my father related to me, on the authority of Sufyān, on the authority of Jābir, on the authority of Mujāhid, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, who said: "the heights" are a wall like the comb of a rooster.
14676 - Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: Abū Nuʿaym related to us, saying: Sufyān related to us, on the authority of Jābir, on the authority of Mujāhid, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, the same.
14677 - Muḥammad ibn ʿAmr related to me, saying: Abū ʿĀṣim related to us, saying: ʿĪsā related to us, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid, who said: "the heights" are a partition between the Garden and the Fire, a wall which has a gate = Abū Mūsā said: and ʿUbayd Allāh ibn Abī Yazīd related to me, that he heard Ibn ʿAbbās say: verily, the heights are a hill between the Garden and the Fire, upon which people of the sinners are held back between the Garden and the Fire.
14678 - 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, who said: "the heights" are a partition between the Garden and the Fire, a wall which has a gate.
14679 - Ibn Wakīʿ related to us, saying: Jarīr related to us, on the authority of Manṣūr, on the authority of Ḥabīb ibn Abī Thābit, on the authority of ʿAbd Allāh ibn al-Ḥārith, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, who said: "the heights" are a wall between the Garden and the Fire.
14680 - Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: ʿAbd Allāh ibn Ṣāliḥ related to us, saying: Muʿāwiya related to us, on the authority of ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭalḥa, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, who said: "the heights" are a wall between the Garden and the Fire.
14681 - 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, His word: "and on the heights are men," he means by the heights: the wall which Allah mentioned in the Qurʾān, and which is between the Garden and the Fire.
14682 - Al-Ḥārith related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz related to us, saying: Isrāʾīl related to us, on the authority of Jābir, on the authority of Mujāhid, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, who said: "the heights" are a wall which has a comb like the comb of a rooster.
14683 - Ibn Wakīʿ related to us, saying: my father related to us, on the authority of Isrāʾīl, on the authority of Jābir, on the authority of Abū Jaʿfar, who said: "the heights" are a wall between the Garden and the Fire.
14684 - It was related to me on the authority of al-Ḥusayn ibn al-Faraj, saying: I heard Abū Muʿādh say: ʿUbayd ibn Sulaymān related to me, saying: I heard al-Ḍaḥḥāk say: "the heights" are the wall which is between the Garden and the Fire.
The exegetes differed concerning the description of the men of whom Allah, exalted is His praise, informed that they are upon the heights, and what is the reason for their having come to be there.
Some of them said: it is a people from the children of Adam, whose good deeds and bad deeds came out equal, and who therefore were placed there until Allah decides concerning them what He wills, and then admits them into the Garden through the bounty of His mercy toward them.
* Mention of who said that:
14685 - Ibn Ḥumayd related to us, saying: Yaḥyā ibn Wāḍiḥ related to us, saying: Yūnus ibn Abī Isḥāq related to us, saying: al-Shaʿbī said: ʿAbd al-Ḥamīd ibn ʿAbd al-Raḥmān sent for me, and with him was Abū al-Zinād ʿAbd Allāh ibn Dhakwān, the mawlā of Quraysh, and behold, they had mentioned concerning the dwellers of the heights something that was not as they mentioned it. I said to the two of them: if you wish, I will inform you of what Ḥudhayfa mentioned. They said: come on! Then I said: verily, Ḥudhayfa mentioned the dwellers of the heights and said: it is a people whose good deeds carried them past the Fire, and whose bad deeds held them back from the Garden. When their gazes are turned toward the side of the dwellers of the Fire, they say: "Our Lord, do not place us among the wrongdoing people." While they are thus, your Lord, blessed and exalted is He, looks down upon them and says: go and enter the Garden, for verily, I have forgiven you.
14686 - Yaʿqūb ibn Ibrāhīm related to me, saying: Hushaym related to us, saying: Ḥuṣayn informed us, on the authority of al-Shaʿbī, on the authority of Ḥudhayfa, that he was asked about the dwellers of the heights, and he said: it is a people whose good deeds and bad deeds came out equal; their bad deeds held them back from the Garden, and their good deeds kept them away from the Fire. He said: thus they were brought to a halt there upon the wall until Allah decides concerning them.
14687 - Ibn Wakīʿ related to us, saying: Jarīr and ʿImrān ibn ʿUyayna related to us, on the authority of Ḥuṣayn, on the authority of ʿĀmir, on the authority of Ḥudhayfa, who said: the dwellers of the heights are a people who had sins and good deeds; their sins held them back from the Garden, and their good deeds carried them past the Fire. Thus they are until Allah judges among His creatures and carries out His decree concerning them.
14688 - Ibn Wakīʿ related to us, saying: Yaḥyā ibn Yamān related to us, on the authority of Sufyān, on the authority of Jābir, on the authority of al-Shaʿbī, on the authority of Ḥudhayfa, who said: the dwellers of the heights are a people whose good deeds and bad deeds came out equal; then He says: enter the Garden through My bounty and My forgiveness; no fear shall be upon you this day, nor shall you grieve.
14689 - Ibn Wakīʿ related to us, saying: my father related to us, on the authority of Yūnus ibn Abī Isḥāq, on the authority of ʿĀmir, on the authority of Ḥudhayfa, who said: the dwellers of the heights are a people whose good deeds carried them past the Fire, and whose bad deeds held them back from the Garden.
14690 - Al-Muthannā related to us, saying: Suwayd ibn Naṣr related to us, saying: Ibn al-Mubārak informed us, on the authority of Abū Bakr al-Hudhalī, saying: Saʿīd ibn Jubayr said, relating it on the authority of Ibn Masʿūd, who said: the people are called to account on the Day of Resurrection; whoever's good deeds exceed his bad deeds by one, enters the Garden, and whoever's bad deeds exceed his good deeds by one, enters the Fire. Then he recited the word of Allah: "Then those whose scales are heavy, those are the successful." "And those whose scales are light, those are the ones who have brought loss upon themselves" (Sūrat al-Aʿrāf: 8-9). Then he said: verily, the scale becomes light by the weight of a grain and tips over. He said: and whoever's good deeds and bad deeds came out equal, belonged to the dwellers of the heights; they were brought to a halt upon the Bridge (al-ṣirāṭ). Then they recognized the dwellers of the Garden and the dwellers of the Fire. When they looked at the dwellers of the Garden, they called out: "Peace be upon you," and when they turned their gazes to their left side, they saw the dwellers of the Fire and said: "Our Lord, do not place us among the wrongdoing people" (Sūrat al-Aʿrāf: 47). Thus they seek their refuge with Allah against their dwelling-places. He said: as for the possessors of good deeds, a light is given to them by which they proceed, before them and on their right side, and every male servant is given a light on that day, and every female servant a light. When they come upon the Bridge, Allah takes away the light from every hypocrite man and every hypocrite woman. When the dwellers of the Garden saw what befell the hypocrites, they said: "Our Lord, complete for us our light." As for the dwellers of the heights, their light was in their hands and was not taken away from their hands. There Allah says: "They have not entered it, though they longed for it," and the longing was [directed] toward entering. He said: Ibn Masʿūd said: this is because the servant, when he performs a good deed, is credited tenfold for it, and when he performs a bad deed, only one is recorded. Then he said: lost is he whose single [bad deeds] have exceeded his tenfolds.
14691 - Abū Hammām al-Walīd ibn Shujāʿ related to us, saying: Ibn Wahb informed me, saying: ʿĪsā al-Ḥannāṭ informed me, on the authority of al-Shaʿbī, on the authority of Ḥudhayfa, who said: the dwellers of the heights are a people who had deeds by which Allah saved them from the Fire; they are the last to enter the Garden; they recognized the dwellers of the Garden and the dwellers of the Fire.
14692 - Ibn Bashshār related to us, saying: Abū Dāwūd related to us, saying: Hammām related to us, on the authority of Qatāda, who said: Ibn ʿAbbās said: the dwellers of the heights are a people whose good deeds and bad deeds came out equal; their good deeds did not exceed their bad deeds, nor did their bad deeds exceed their good deeds.
14693 - Ibn Wakīʿ and Ibn Ḥumayd related to us, they said: Jarīr related to us, on the authority of Manṣūr, on the authority of Ḥabīb ibn Abī Thābit, on the authority of ʿAbd Allāh ibn al-Ḥārith, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, who said: "the heights" are a wall between the Garden and the Fire, and the dwellers of the heights are upon that place, until it pleases Allah to grant them mercy; then they are brought to a river called "the Life" (al-Ḥayāt), whose two banks are of golden reeds, crowned with pearls, with soil of musk. They are cast into it until their colors are set right and upon their breasts appears a white birthmark by which they are recognized. Then, when their colors have been set right, the All-Merciful (al-Raḥmān) brings them and says: wish for what you will! He said: so they wish, until their wishes are exhausted; then He says to them: for you is what you have wished, and seventy times the like of it! Thus they enter the Garden, with upon their breasts a white birthmark by which they are recognized; they are called the poor of the Garden.
14694 - Ibn Bashshār related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Raḥmān related to us, saying: Sufyān related to us, on the authority of Ḥabīb, on the authority of Mujāhid, on the authority of ʿAbd Allāh ibn al-Ḥārith, who said: the dwellers of the heights, they are commanded to go to a river called "the Life," whose soil is of wars (a yellow dye) and saffron, and whose two banks are of pearl-reeds = he said: and I think he said: crowned with pearls = and he said: thus they bathe in it, and upon their breasts appears a white birthmark, and it is said to them: wish! And it is said to them: for you is what you have wished, and seventyfold! And verily, they are the poor of the dwellers of the Garden = Ḥabīb said: and a man related to me that their good deeds and bad deeds came out equal.
14695 - Ibn Wakīʿ related to us, saying: my father related to us, on the authority of Sufyān, on the authority of Ḥabīb ibn Abī Thābit, on the authority of Mujāhid, on the authority of ʿAbd Allāh ibn al-Ḥārith, who said: the dwellers of the heights, they are brought to a river called "the Life," whose two banks are of reeds of gold = Sufyān said: I think he said: crowned with pearls = he said: thus they bathe in it once, and upon their breasts appears a white birthmark; then they return and bathe again, and they increase. Every time they bathe, their whiteness increases. It is said to them: wish for what you will! So they wish for what they will, and it is said to them: for you is what you have wished, and seventyfold! He said: they are the poor of the dwellers of the Garden.
14696 - Al-Ḥasan ibn Yaḥyā related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Razzāq informed us, saying: Ibn ʿUyayna informed us, on the authority of Ḥuṣayn, on the authority of al-Shaʿbī, on the authority of Ḥudhayfa, who said: the dwellers of the heights are a people whose good deeds and bad deeds came out equal; they are upon a wall between the Garden and the Fire: "They have not entered it, though they longed for it."
14697 - Bishr ibn Muʿādh related to us, saying: Yazīd related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda, who said: Ibn ʿAbbās said: "the heights" are between the Garden and the Fire; upon them peoples are held back because of their deeds. And he said: it is a people whose good deeds and bad deeds came out equal; their good deeds did not exceed their bad deeds, nor did their bad deeds exceed their good deeds.
14698 - Al-Ḥasan ibn Yaḥyā related to us, saying: ʿAbd al-Razzāq informed us, saying: Maʿmar informed us, on the authority of Qatāda, who said: Ibn ʿAbbās said: the people of the heights are a people whose good deeds and bad deeds came out equal.
14699 - Ibn Wakīʿ related to us, saying: Abū Khālid related to us, on the authority of Juwaybir, on the authority of al-Ḍaḥḥāk, who said: the dwellers of the heights are a people whose good deeds and bad deeds came out equal.
14700 - . . . . And he said: Yaḥyā ibn Yamān related to us, on the authority of Sharīk, on the authority of Manṣūr, on the authority of Saʿīd ibn Jubayr, who said: the dwellers of the heights, their deeds came out equal.
14701 - Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: ʿAmr ibn ʿAwn related to us, saying: Hushaym informed us, on the authority of Juwaybir, on the authority of al-Ḍaḥḥāk, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, who said: the dwellers of the heights are a people whose good deeds and bad deeds came out equal, and who therefore were brought to a halt there upon the wall.
14702 - Ibn Ḥumayd related to us, saying: Jarīr related to us, on the authority of Manṣūr, on the authority of Ḥabīb ibn Abī Thābit, on the authority of Safīʿ — or Samīʿ = Abū Jaʿfar said: thus I found it in the book of Safīʿ = on the authority of Abū ʿAlqama, who said: the dwellers of the heights are a people whose good deeds and bad deeds came out equal.
Others said: they were killed in the way of Allah, while in the world they had been disobedient to their fathers.
* Mention of who said that:
14703 - Ibn Wakīʿ related to us, saying: Yaḥyā ibn Yamān related to us, on the authority of Abū Misʿar, on the authority of Shuraḥbīl ibn Saʿd, who said: it is a people who went out to battle without the permission of their fathers.
14704 - Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: ʿAbd Allāh ibn Ṣāliḥ related to us, saying: al-Layth related to me, saying: Khālid related to me, on the authority of Saʿīd, on the authority of Yaḥyā ibn Shibl: that a man of the Banū al-Naḍīr informed him, on the authority of a man of the Banū Hilāl: that his father informed him: that he asked the Messenger of Allah ﷺ about the dwellers of the heights, and he said: it is a people who fought in the way of Allah, while they were disobedient to their fathers; they were killed, and Allah delivered them from the Fire because of their falling slain in His way, and they were held back from the Garden because of the disobedience to their fathers; thus they are the last to enter the Garden.
14705 - Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: Isḥāq related to us, saying: Yazīd ibn Hārūn related to us, on the authority of Abū Maʿshar, on the authority of Yaḥyā ibn Shibl, the mawlā of the Banū Hāshim, on the authority of Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Raḥmān, on the authority of his father, who said: the Messenger of Allah ﷺ was asked about the dwellers of the heights, and he said: it is a people who were killed in the way of Allah with disobedience to their fathers; their falling slain in the way of Allah held them back from the Fire, and the disobedience to their fathers held them back from entering the Garden.
Others said: no, they are rather a righteous people, those versed in fiqh and scholars.
* Mention of who said that:
14706 - Ibn Wakīʿ related to us, saying: my father related to us, on the authority of Sufyān, on the authority of Khaṣīf, on the authority of Mujāhid, who said: the dwellers of the heights are a righteous people, those versed in fiqh and scholars.
Others said: no, they are rather angels and not children of Adam.
* Mention of who said that:
14707 - Yaʿqūb ibn Ibrāhīm related to me, saying: Ibn ʿUlayya related to us, on the authority of Abū Mijlaz, His word: "and between the two of them is a partition, and on the heights are men who recognize each by his mark," he said: they are men of the angels, who recognize the dwellers of the Garden and the dwellers of the Fire. He said: "And they called out to the dwellers of the Garden: Peace be upon you," up to His word: "Our Lord, do not place us among the wrongdoing people." He said: then the dwellers of the heights called out to men in the Fire whom they recognized by their mark: "What did your gathering avail you and that over which you were arrogant?" "Are these the ones of whom you swore that Allah would not touch them with mercy?" He said: this is the moment at which the dwellers of the Garden entered the Garden: "Enter the Garden; no fear shall be upon you, nor shall you grieve."
14708 - Ibn ʿAbd al-Aʿlā related to us, saying: al-Muʿtamir related to us, saying: I heard ʿImrān say: I said to Abū Mijlaz: Allah says: "and on the heights are men," and you claim that they are the angels? He said: verily, they are male, not female.
14709 - Ibn Wakīʿ related to us, saying: Jarīr related to us, on the authority of Sulaymān al-Taymī, on the authority of Abū Mijlaz: "and on the heights are men," he said: men of the angels, who recognize both groups together by their mark, the dwellers of the Fire and the dwellers of the Garden, and this is before the dwellers of the Garden enter the Garden.
14710 - Ibn Wakīʿ related to us, saying: Muḥammad ibn Abī ʿAdī related to us, on the authority of al-Taymī, on the authority of Abū Mijlaz, something similar.
14711 - . . . . And he said: Yaḥyā ibn Yamān related to us, on the authority of Sufyān, on the authority of al-Taymī, on the authority of Abū Mijlaz, who said: the dwellers of the heights are the angels.
14712 - Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: Yaʿlā ibn Asad related to us, saying: Khālid related to us, saying: al-Taymī informed us, on the authority of Abū Mijlaz: "and on the heights are men," he said: they are the angels.
14713 - Ibn Wakīʿ related to us, saying: my father related to us, on the authority of ʿImrān ibn Ḥudayr, on the authority of Abū Mijlaz: "and on the heights are men," he said: they are the angels. I said: O Abū Mijlaz, Allah, blessed and exalted is He, says "men," and you say: angels? He said: verily, they are male, not female.
14714 - Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: al-Ḥajjāj related to us, saying: Ḥammād related to us, on the authority of ʿImrān ibn Ḥudayr, on the authority of Abū Mijlaz concerning His word: "and on the heights are men who recognize each by his mark," he said: the angels. I said: Allah says "men"? He said: the angels are male.
Abū Jaʿfar said: and the correct view concerning the dwellers of the heights is that one says as Allah, exalted is His praise, said concerning them: they are men who recognize each of the dwellers of the Garden and the dwellers of the Fire by his mark. There is no report from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ with a sound chain of transmission, nor is there agreement upon its interpretation, nor a consensus of the community, that they are angels.
Since this is so, and since this cannot be reached by analogy, and since it is well known among those versed in the Arabic language that "the men" (al-rijāl) is a name that comprises the male descendants of Adam to the exclusion of his female descendants and to the exclusion of the remaining creatures, it is clear that what Abū Mijlaz said — that they are angels — is a statement without meaning, and that the correct view in this is what the remaining exegetes besides him have said. This is alongside those who have said the opposite from among the companions of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ, and alongside what has been transmitted from the Messenger of Allah ﷺ concerning this in reports, even if there is in their chains of transmission what is in them. And indeed:
14715 - Al-Qāsim related to me, saying: al-Ḥusayn related to me, saying: Jarīr related to me, on the authority of ʿUmāra ibn al-Qaʿqāʿ, on the authority of Abū Zurʿa ibn ʿAmr ibn Jarīr, who said: the Messenger of Allah ﷺ was asked about the dwellers of the heights, and he said: they are the last of the servants over whom judgment is passed; and when the Lord of the worlds is finished with His judgment between the servants, He says: you are a people whose good deeds took you out of the Fire, while they did not admit you into the Garden; you are My freed ones, so pasture in the Garden wherever you will.
The explanation of His word: "They recognize each by his mark, and they called out to the dwellers of the Garden: Peace be upon you. They have not entered it, though they longed for it" (7:46).
Abū Jaʿfar said: He, exalted is His mention, says: and on the heights are men who recognize the dwellers of the Garden by their mark, and that is the whiteness of their faces and the radiance of bliss upon them = and they likewise recognize the dwellers of the Fire by their mark, and that is the blackness of their faces and the blueness of their eyes. Then, when they see the dwellers of the Garden, they call out to them: "Peace be upon you."
And in the sense of what we have said concerning this, the exegetes have spoken.
* Mention of who said that:
14716 - Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: ʿAbd Allāh ibn Ṣāliḥ related to us, saying: Muʿāwiya related to me, on the authority of ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭalḥa, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, His word: "and on the heights are men who recognize each by his mark," he said: they recognize the dwellers of the Fire by the blackness of their faces, and the dwellers of the Garden by the whiteness of their faces.
14717 - 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 on the heights are men who recognize each by his mark," he said: Allah placed them in that rank so that they would recognize who is in the Garden and in the Fire, and so that they would recognize the dwellers of the Fire by the blackness of their faces, and seek their refuge with Allah against being placed among the wrongdoing people; and they thereupon greet the dwellers of the Garden with the greeting of peace, while they have not entered it and they long to enter it, and they will enter it, if Allah wills.
14718 - Muḥammad ibn ʿAmr related to me, saying: Abū ʿĀṣim related to us, saying: ʿĪsā related to us, on the authority of Ibn Abī Najīḥ, on the authority of Mujāhid: "by their mark," he said: by the blackness of the faces and the blueness of the eyes.
14719 - 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: "and on the heights are men who recognize each by his mark," the unbelievers by the blackness of the faces and the blueness of the eyes, and the mark of the dwellers of the Garden is that their faces are whitened.
14720 - Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: ʿAmr ibn ʿAwn related to us, saying: Hushaym related to us, on the authority of Juwaybir, on the authority of al-Ḍaḥḥāk, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, who said: the dwellers of the heights, when they see the dwellers of the Garden, recognize them by the whiteness of the faces, and when they see the dwellers of the Fire, recognize them by the blackness of the faces.
14721 - Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: Suwayd ibn Naṣr related to us, saying: Ibn al-Mubārak informed us, on the authority of Juwaybir, on the authority of al-Ḍaḥḥāk, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, who said: verily, the dwellers of the heights are men who had great sins, and the decision concerning their affair was with Allah; therefore they were stationed at that place. When they looked at the dwellers of the Fire, they recognized them by the blackness of the faces, and said: "Our Lord, do not place us among the wrongdoing people," and when they looked at the dwellers of the Garden, they recognized them by the whiteness of the faces. That is His word: "and they called out to the dwellers of the Garden: Peace be upon you. They have not entered it, though they longed for it."
14722 - It was related to me on the authority of al-Ḥusayn ibn al-Faraj, saying: I heard Abū Muʿādh say: ʿUbayd ibn Sulaymān related to us, saying: I heard al-Ḍaḥḥāk concerning His word: "and on the heights are men who recognize each by his mark," they claimed that the dwellers of the heights are men of the sinners who committed sins, and the decision concerning their affair was with Allah; therefore Allah placed them upon the heights. When they looked at the dwellers of the Fire, they recognized them by the blackness of the faces and sought their refuge with Allah against the Fire. And when they looked at the dwellers of the Garden, they called out to them: "Peace be upon you." Allah said: "They have not entered it, though they longed for it." He said: and this is the view of Ibn ʿAbbās.
14723 - 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: "they recognize each by his mark," they recognize the people by their mark; they recognize the dwellers of the Fire by the blackness of their faces, and the dwellers of the Garden by the whiteness of their faces.
14724 - Bishr ibn Muʿādh related to us, saying: Yazīd ibn Zurayʿ related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda, His word: "they recognize each by his mark," they recognize the dwellers of the Fire by the blackness of their faces, and the dwellers of the Garden by the whiteness of their faces.
14725 - Yūnus related to me, saying: Ibn Wahb informed us, saying: Ibn Zayd said concerning His word: "and on the heights are men who recognize each by his mark," he said: the dwellers of the Garden by their mark, white faces = and the dwellers of the Fire by their mark, black faces. He said: and His word: "they recognize each by his mark," he said: the dwellers of the Garden and the dwellers of the Fire = "and they called out to the dwellers of the Garden," he said: when they saw that their faces had been whitened.
14726 - Ibn Wakīʿ related to us, saying: al-Muḥāribī related to us, on the authority of Juwaybir, on the authority of al-Ḍaḥḥāk: "they recognize each by his mark," he said: by the blackness of the faces.
14727 - Ibn Wakīʿ related to us, saying: Yaḥyā ibn Yamān related to us, on the authority of Mubārak, on the authority of al-Ḥasan: "by their mark," he said: by the blackness of the faces and the blueness of the eyes.
And "al-sīmāʾ" is the sign that points to something, in the language of the Arabs. Its origin is from "al-sima" (the brand-mark); its wāw, which is the first radical of the verb, was moved to the place of the middle radical, as one says "iḍmaḥalla" and "imḍaḥalla." It has been transmitted, heard from some of the Banū ʿUqayl: "hiya arḍ khāma," by which they mean "waghima" (marshy). To this also belongs their saying: "lahu jāh ʿinda al-nās" (he has standing among the people), in the meaning of "wajh" (face/standing); its wāw was moved to the place of the middle radical of the verb. And there exist three linguistic forms of it: "sīmā," shortened, and "sīmāʾ," lengthened, and "sīmiyāʾ," with an additional yāʾ after the mīm in it, and lengthened, after the pattern of "al-kibriyāʾ," as the poet said:
A youth whom Allah struck with beauty when He struck him; he has a sīmiyāʾ that does not tire the eye.
As for His word: "and they called out to the dwellers of the Garden: Peace be upon you. They have not entered it, though they longed for it," that is to say: the security of Allah against His punishment and His painful torment has descended upon them.
The exegetes differed concerning what is meant by His word: "They have not entered it, though they longed for it."
Some of them said: this is a report from Allah concerning the dwellers of the heights: that they said to the dwellers of the Garden what they said before the dwellers of the heights entered [the Garden], except that they said it while they longed to enter it.
* Mention of who said that:
14728 - 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, who said: the people of the heights recognize the people. When a group passes by them that is being brought to the Garden, they say: "Peace be upon you." Allah says to the people of the heights: they have not entered it, though they long to enter it.
14729 - Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Aʿlā related to me, saying: Muḥammad ibn Thawr related to us, on the authority of Maʿmar, saying: al-Ḥasan recited: "They have not entered it, though they longed for it," he said: by Allah, He placed that longing in their hearts only because of an honor that He intends for them.
14730 - Bishr related to us, saying: Yazīd related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda, His word: "They have not entered it, though they longed for it," he said: Allah has informed you about their position of longing.
14731 - Al-Muthannā related to me, saying: Suwayd related to us, saying: Ibn al-Mubārak informed us, on the authority of Abū Bakr al-Hudhalī, saying: Saʿīd ibn Jubayr said, relating it on the authority of Ibn Masʿūd, who said: as for the dwellers of the heights, the light was in their hands and was snatched from their hands. Allah says: "They have not entered it, though they longed for it," he said: longed to enter it. Ibn ʿAbbās said: thus Allah caused the dwellers of the heights to enter the Garden.
14732 - Al-Ḥārith related to me, saying: ʿAbd al-ʿAzīz related to us, saying: Isrāʾīl related to us, on the authority of Jābir, on the authority of ʿIkrima and ʿAṭāʾ: "They have not entered it, though they longed for it," the two of them said: longed to enter it.
Others said: rather, what is meant by it is the dwellers of the Garden, namely that the dwellers of the heights say to them, before they enter the Garden: "Peace be upon you," and the dwellers of the Garden long to enter it, while they have not yet entered it.
* Mention of who said that:
14733 - Ibn Ḥumayd related to us, saying: Wakīʿ related to us, saying: Jarīr related to us, on the authority of Sulaymān al-Taymī, on the authority of Abū Mijlaz: "and they called out to the dwellers of the Garden: Peace be upon you. They have not entered it, though they longed for it," he said: the angels, who recognize both groups together by their mark. And this is before the dwellers of the Garden enter the Garden; the dwellers of the heights call out to the dwellers of the Garden: Peace be upon you. They have not entered it, though they long to enter it.
