80: 11 No, indeed, it is a reminder.
80: 12 So whoever wills shall pay heed to it.
80: 13 It is recorded on honored sheets,
80: 14 exalted and purified,
80: 15 in the hands of scribes,
80: 16 noble and pious.
80: 17 Cursed be man! How ungrateful he is!
80: 18 From what thing did He create him?
80: 19 From a drop of fluid He created him and then fashioned him in due proportion.
80: 20 Then He made the way easy for him.
80: 21 Then He causes him to die and be buried.
80: 22 Then when He wills, He will resurrect him.
80: 23 No, he has not fulfilled what He commanded him.
Relationship with the Previous Part
In the previous part, Messenger Muhammad was mildly reproached for turning away from the blind man, Abdul Allah ibn Maktum, because he was busy with inviting some noble disbelievers to Islam. Then Allah commanded Messenger Muhammad not to do such a thing in the future and told him that the Quran is a reminder for people. So whoever wants to learn lessons from it let him do so.
Tafsir
80: 11 No, indeed, it is a reminder.
80: 12 So whoever wills shall pay heed to it.
O noble Messenger Muhammad, do not do such a thing in the future, i.e. giving attention to the noble leaders hoping that they might embrace Islam and ignoring those who eagerly seek to learn lessons from you. Indeed, the ayat of the Quran, which contain teachings that lead to happiness in this world and the Hereafter are a reminder. They invite to follow the path of the truth, leading to success in this world and the Hereafter. They also contain wise admonitions that every sane person should follow. So whoever wills to learn from this admonition shall pay heed to the teachings of the Quran and whoever ignores them will lose in this world and the Hereafter.
80: 13 It is recorded on honored sheets,
80: 14 exalted and purified,
80: 15 in the hands of scribes,
80: 16 noble and pious.
The ayat of the Quran are a reminder. They are recorded on honored sheets with Allah as they contain great knowledge and wisdom. Besides, these ayat have an exalted position as they contain the speech of Allah and they are purified so that no impurity may affect them. These sheets are in the hands of noble and pious scribes, i.e. the angels. They take Allah’s revelation to His Messengers. Those angels are obedient to Allah and have dignified rank with Allah, Exalted be He.
80: 17 Cursed be man! How ungrateful he is!
The story of the blind man that is mentioned at the beginning of surah Abasa implies that the leaders of the disbelievers in Mecca used to disdain the poor Muslims. The believers were amazed at this behavior of the disbelievers. It is as if it is said, ‘What is the reason for this conceit and arrogance though man was created from a drop of fluid and would be a dead rotten corpse. And between these two stages, man carries feces in his body while alive. Allah mentions what could be a remedy for the disbelievers’ conceit and arrogance in this part as well as what could be a remedy for their disbelief in His Oneness. Indeed, the creation of man is evidence that there is a Creator, and that resurrection and reckoning on the Day of Judgment will certainly take place [Tafsir al-Razi].
Man refers to the disbeliever, who disbelieves in Allah’s Oneness and is ungrateful to His blessings on him.
Cursed be man! How ungrateful he is! How strange his attitude towards his Creator, Allah, is! This curse indicates that the disbeliever deserves great wrath because he reaches a great degree of arrogance and conceit, which makes him deserves to be cursed.
The intended meaning is to show the insignificance of the ungrateful disbeliever. It is known that people are the ones who invoke Allah and that Allah never calls down on someone, and that the weak do such a thing, and Allah, Exalted be He, is far above any imperfection.
80: 18 From what thing did He create him?
80: 19 From a drop of fluid He created him and then fashioned him in due proportion.
Indeed, Allah’s blessings on man are countless and He deserves to be thanked for giving them.
From what thing did Allah create the ungrateful man that he becomes conceited and ungrateful? From what thing did Allah create the disbeliever that he disbelieves in Allah’s Oneness and disobeys Him?
Allah created man from an insignificant drop of fluid that comes out of the man and enters into the woman’s womb. Then, Allah created him in the best form and fashioned him in due proportion. Allah, the Giver of all blessings, created man in the best form to worship Him alone and use the blessings in a manner that pleases Him.
80: 20 Then He made the way easy for him.
After creating man in the best form and fashioning him in due proportion, which would enable him to think and understand correctly, Allah made the way and method of understanding easy for him so that he could distinguish between the truth, falsehood, guidance, and misguidance.
The scholars have three opinions about the meaning of ‘then He made the way easy for him.’ They are as follows: 1) Allah made easy the manner that man comes out of his mother's womb. 2) Allah made clear the path of happiness and misery for man. 3) Allah made clear the path of guidance and misguidance for man [Tafsir an-Nikat wal-Oyoun, Al-Mawardi].
80: 21 Then He causes him to die and be buried.
After man’s life ends, Allah will cause him to die and He, out of His generosity, will make him be buried in his grave so that he will not remain on the earth’s surface liable to animals’ attack. Besides, if he remains on the earth’s surface, people will consider him a filthy thing.
Moreover, Allah has honored man by facilitating his burial after death. Burying the dead is one of Islamic teachings while leaving them without burial or burning them, which some societies practice, contradicts honoring the dead.
80: 22 Then when He wills, He will resurrect him.
After creating man in such a marvelous creation, showing him the path of guidance and misguidance, and commanding to bury him after death, Allah will resurrect him for reckoning on the Day of Judgment, which will take place at the time He wills.
80: 23 No, he has not fulfilled what He commanded him.
This is a criticism to man as he fails to fulfill Allah’s obligations on him.
No, this arrogant and conceited man has not fulfilled Allah’s obligations on him. He has not obeyed Allah’s commands, he has not thanked Him for His blessings, and he has not obeyed His messengers. Rather, he has insisted on following the path of misguidance and stubbornness.
The intended meaning is to deter man from disobeying Allah and neglecting His rights on him.
Learned Lessons from Surah Abasa Ayah 11- 23
• The Quran is a reminder. It contains admonitions and lessons for all people; however, only those who seek to learn from these admonitions and lessons will benefit from them by complying with its commands and avoiding its prohibitions.
• The Quran is the speech of Allah and it contains great knowledge and wisdom. It is preserved in honored sheets that noble angel scribes carry. Those angels have high ranks with Allah.
• The disbeliever deserves Allah’s curse. He disbelieves in Allah’s Oneness and denies resurrection and reckoning that will take place on the Day of Judgment.
• Allah created man from a drop of fluid. Then he passed through different stages, which made him be created in the best form.
• Allah, out of His generosity and justice, has made the path of guidance and misguidance clear for man. If he follows the path of guidance, he will succeed in this world and the Hereafter. On the other hand, if he chooses to follow the path of misguidance, he will lose and his abode will be Hell.
• Allah, the generous, has instructed people to bury the dead to honor them and to protect them from beasts’ attacks.
• Allah will resurrect people for reckoning on the Day of Judgment when He wills.
• Most people, except those whom Allah has guided to the right path, fail to fulfill Allah’s obligations on them.
• Creating man in such an amazing creation is evidence that there is a Great Creator, Allah, who created him in the best form.
The Noble Quran, Surah Abasa, English Translation
The Noble Quran, Surah Abasa, Tafsir ibn Kathir
The Noble Quran Surah an-Nahl, Translation and Tafsir
The Noble Quran Tafsir Surah an-Nahl Ayah 70
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