Tafseer of The Cleaving · Al-Infitaar · 82:2
And when the stars fall, scattering,
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.
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
The explanation of the words of the Exalted: إِذَا السَّمَاءُ انْفَطَرَتْ (١) وَإِذَا الْكَوَاكِبُ انْتَثَرَتْ (٢) وَإِذَا الْبِحَارُ فُجِّرَتْ (٣) وَإِذَا الْقُبُورُ بُعْثِرَتْ (٤) عَلِمَتْ نَفْسٌ مَا قَدَّمَتْ وَأَخَّرَتْ (٥) (When the heaven splits apart (1), and when the stars scatter (2), and when the seas are made to burst forth (3), and when the graves are overturned (4), then every soul will know what it has sent forward and what it has left behind (5)).
The Exalted, whose praise is exalted, says: (إِذَا السَّمَاءُ انْفَطَرَتْ) – when the heaven splits open, and when its stars scatter out of it and therefore fall down; (وَإِذَا الْبِحَارُ فُجِّرَتْ) – He says: one part of them is made to burst forth into another part, so that they all become full.
And something similar to what we have said about this has been said by the people of interpretation (ahl al-taʾwīl), even though they differ among themselves about a part of it.
* The mention of who said that:
ʿAlī related to me, 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: (وَإِذَا الْبِحَارُ فُجِّرَتْ) – he says: one part of them into another part.
Bishr related to us, saying: Yazīd related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda, concerning His words: (وَإِذَا الْبِحَارُ فُجِّرَتْ) – its sweet water was made to burst forth into its salt water, and its salt water into its sweet water.
Ibn ʿAbd al-Aʿlā related to us, saying: Ibn Thawr related to us, on the authority of Maʿmar, on the authority of al-Ḥasan: (وَإِذَا الْبِحَارُ فُجِّرَتْ) – he said: one part of them was made to burst forth into another part, so that their water flowed away. And al-Kalbī said: they were filled.
And His words: (وَإِذَا الْقُبُورُ بُعْثِرَتْ) – He says: and when the graves are overturned, so that the dead who are in them are brought out of them alive. One says: «baʿthara so-and-so» the pool of such-and-such, when he makes its bottom its top. One says «baʿtharah» and «baḥtharah»: these are two linguistic variants.
And something similar to what we have said about this has been said by the people of interpretation (ahl al-taʾwīl).
* The mention of who said that:
ʿAlī related to me, 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: (وَإِذَا الْقُبُورُ بُعْثِرَتْ) – he says: they were searched through / overturned.
And His words: (عَلِمَتْ نَفْسٌ مَا قَدَّمَتْ وَأَخَّرَتْ) – The Exalted, whose praise is exalted, says: every soul will know what it has sent forward for that Day of a good deed that benefits it, and what it has left behind it of something that it established as a custom (sunna) so that it was acted upon.
The people of interpretation differed about the interpretation of this. Some of them said something similar to what we have said about this.
* The mention of who said that:
Ibn ʿAbd al-Aʿlā related to us, saying: al-Muʿtamir ibn Sulaymān related to us, on the authority of his father, saying: I was told on the authority of al-Quraẓī, that he said concerning (عَلِمَتْ نَفْسٌ مَا قَدَّمَتْ وَأَخَّرَتْ): «what it has sent forward» is what it performed of deeds, and what «it has left behind» is the custom (sunna) that a man establishes and which is acted upon after him.
Others said: by this is meant what he has sent forward of obligatory duties (farāʾiḍ) that he fulfilled, and what he has left behind of obligatory duties that he neglected.
* The mention of who said that:
Abū Kurayb related to us, saying: Wakīʿ related to us, on the authority of his father, on the authority of Saʿīd ibn Masrūq, on the authority of ʿIkrima: (عَلِمَتْ نَفْسٌ مَا قَدَّمَتْ) – he said: what was imposed upon him as a duty; (وَأَخَّرَتْ) – he said: of what was imposed upon him as a duty.
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: (عَلِمَتْ نَفْسٌ مَا قَدَّمَتْ وَأَخَّرَتْ) – he said: he will know what he has sent forward of obedience to Allah, and what he has left behind of that which he was commanded concerning a right that Allah had upon him and which he did not act upon.
Bishr related to us, saying: Yazīd related to us, saying: Saʿīd related to us, on the authority of Qatāda, concerning His words: (عَلِمَتْ نَفْسٌ مَا قَدَّمَتْ وَأَخَّرَتْ) – he said: what he has sent forward of good, and has left behind of a right that Allah had upon him and which he did not act upon.
Ibn ʿAbd al-Aʿlā related to us, saying: Ibn Thawr related to us, on the authority of Maʿmar, on the authority of Qatāda: (مَا قَدَّمَتْ وَأَخَّرَتْ) – he said: what he has sent forward of obedience to Allah and what he has left behind of a right of Allah.
Yūnus related to me, saying: Ibn Wahb informed us, saying: Ibn Zayd said concerning His words: (عَلِمَتْ نَفْسٌ مَا قَدَّمَتْ وَأَخَّرَتْ) – he said: «what he has sent forward»: that he performed; and «what he has left behind»: that he omitted and neglected, and he left behind of the good deed to which Allah had called him.
And others said: no, the meaning of it is rather: what he has sent forward of good or evil, and has left behind of good or evil.
