Tafseer of The Overthrowing · At-Takwir · 81:5
And when the wild beasts are gathered
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 statement concerning the explanation of His saying, the Exalted: وَإِذَا الْوُحُوشُ حُشِرَتْ ("And when the wild beasts are gathered together") (81:5).
The exegetes differed concerning the meaning of His saying: وَإِذَا الْوُحُوشُ حُشِرَتْ ("And when the wild beasts are gathered together"). Some of them said: its meaning is: they died.
* Mention of who said that:
ʿAlī ibn Muslim al-Ṭūsī related to me, saying: ʿAbbād ibn al-ʿAwwām related to us, saying: Ḥuṣayn informed us, on the authority of ʿIkrima, on the authority of Ibn ʿAbbās, concerning the saying of Allah: وَإِذَا الْوُحُوشُ حُشِرَتْ ("And when the wild beasts are gathered together"), he said: the gathering (ḥashr) of the beasts is their death, and the gathering of every thing is death, except for the jinn and mankind, for these two are brought to a halt on the Day of Resurrection.
Abū Kurayb related to us, saying: Wakīʿ related to us, on the authority of Sufyān, on the authority of his father, on the authority of Abū Yaʿlā, on the authority of Rabīʿ ibn Khuthaym, concerning وَإِذَا الْوُحُوشُ حُشِرَتْ ("And when the wild beasts are gathered together"), he said: the command of Allah has come upon them. Sufyān said: my father said: I mentioned this to ʿIkrima, whereupon he said: Ibn ʿAbbās said: their gathering is their death.
Ibn Ḥumayd related to us, saying: Mihrān related to us, on the authority of Sufyān, on the authority of his father, on the authority of Abū Yaʿlā, on the authority of al-Rabīʿ ibn Khuthaym, in a similar manner.
Others said: no, its meaning is: and when the wild beasts mingle together.
* Mention of who said that:
Al-Ḥusayn ibn Ḥurayth related to us, saying: al-Faḍl ibn Mūsā related to us, on the authority of al-Ḥusayn ibn Wāqid, on the authority of al-Rabīʿ ibn Anas, on the authority of Abū al-ʿĀliya, he said: Ubayy ibn Kaʿb related to me, concerning وَإِذَا الْوُحُوشُ حُشِرَتْ ("And when the wild beasts are gathered together"), he said: they mingled together.
And others said: no, its meaning is: they were gathered together.
* 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 وَإِذَا الْوُحُوشُ حُشِرَتْ ("And when the wild beasts are gathered together"): these creatures appear in full on the Day of Resurrection, after which Allah decides among them what He wills.
The most correct of these statements is the statement of him who said: the meaning of ḥushirat is: they were gathered together and then killed, because the well-known meaning of ḥashr in the language of the Arabs is "gathering together." Of this is also the saying of Allah: وَالطَّيْرَ مَحْشُورَةً ("and the birds gathered together"), that is to say: assembled together. And His saying: فَحَشَرَ فَنَادَى ("then he gathered and called out"). For the interpretation of the Qurʾān must be borne upon its most current and obvious meaning, not upon its most rejected and obscure.
