(Revealed before Hijrah)

Date of Revelation, Context and Subject-Matter
This Surah, like the preceding one, belongs to the early Meccan period. It is also called Al-Insan. Towards the end of the preceding Surah it was stated that man's creation from an insignificant fluid and his development into a full-fledged human being, endowed with great natural powers, leads to the inescapable inference that his life has a Divine purpose to serve and that the Great God Who created him from a sperm-drop possesses the power to give him a new life after he is dead.

The present Surah constitutes an extension of the same theme, viz., that man has been gifted with wonderful natural capabilities to rise to great spiritual heights. Its opening verses remind him of his insignificant beginning and of his having been endowed with reason and understanding, in order that, following the path shown to him by God's Prophets, he may make interminable spiritual progress and thus achieve the object for which he has been created. But when Divine Teachers appear to guide men to God, some of them reject God's Message and incur His displeasure, while others, more fortunate, respond to the Divine Call and earn Heavenly blessings.

The Surah, then, gives a beautiful description of the Divine favors which are bestowed upon the righteous believers in this world and in the Hereafter, referring briefly also to the kind of punishment which the disbelievers receive here and will receive in the Hereafter for their willful rejection of the Divine Message. It fittingly closes with the observation that God has revealed the Qur'an, to guide man to the path which leads to the Lord and Creator of all creation, but he can derive no benefit from it unless he conforms his will to the Will of God.

بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيم
[76:1] In the name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful.

هَلْ أَتَى عَلَى الإِنسَانِ حِينٌ مِنَ الدَّهْرِ لَمْ يَكُنْ شَيْئًا مَذْكُورًا
[76:2] There has certainly come upon man a period of time when he was not a thing spoken of.

إِنَّا خَلَقْنَا الإِنسَانَ مِنْ نُطْفَةٍ أَمْشَاجٍ نَبْتَلِيهِ فَجَعَلْنَاهُ سَمِيعًا بَصِيرًا
[76:3] We have created man from a mingled sperm-drop[3190] that We might try him; so We made him hearing, seeing.

إِنَّا هَدَيْنَاهُ السَّبِيلَ إِمَّا شَاكِرًا وَإِمَّا كَفُورًا
[76:4] We have shown him the Way, whether he be grateful or ungrateful.

إِنَّا أَعْتَدْنَا لِلْكَافِرِينَ سَلاَسِلاً وَأَغْلاَلاً وَسَعِيرًا
[76:5] Verily, We have prepared for the disbelievers chains and iron-collars and a blazing Fire.[3191]

إِنَّ الأَبْرَارَ يَشْرَبُونَ مِنْ كَأْسٍ كَانَ مِزَاجُهَا كَافُورًا
[76:6] But the virtuous drink of a cup, tempered with camphor [3192] —

عَيْنًا يَشْرَبُ بِهَا عِبَادُ اللَّهِ يُفَجِّرُونَهَا تَفْجِيرًا
[76:7] A spring[3192A] wherefrom the servants of Allah drink. They make it gush forth — a forceful gushing forth.

يُوفُونَ بِالنَّذْرِ وَيَخَافُونَ يَوْمًا كَانَ شَرُّهُ مُسْتَطِيرًا
[76:8] They fulfil their vow[3193], and fear a day the evil of which is widespread.

وَيُطْعِمُونَ الطَّعَامَ عَلَى حُبِّهِ مِسْكِينًا وَيَتِيمًا وَأَسِيرًا
[76:9] And they feed, for love of Him[3194], the poor, the orphan, and the prisoner,

إِنَّمَا نُطْعِمُكُمْ لِوَجْهِ اللَّهِ لاَ نُرِيدُ مِنْكُمْ جَزَاءً وَلاَ شُكُورًا
[76:10] Saying, ‘We feed you for Allah’s pleasure only. We desire no reward nor thanks from you.

إِنَّا نَخَافُ مِنْ رَبِّنَا يَوْمًا عَبُوسًا قَمْطَرِيرًا
[76:11] ‘Verily, we fear from our Lord a frowning and distressful[3195] day.’

فَوَقَاهُمْ اللَّهُ شَرَّ ذَلِكَ الْيَوْمِ وَلَقَّاهُمْ نَضْرَةً وَسُرُورًا
[76:12] So Allah will save them from the evil of that day, and will grant them cheerfulness and happiness.

وَجَزَاهُمْ بِمَا صَبَرُوا جَنَّةً وَحَرِيرًا
[76:13] And He will reward them, for their steadfastness, with a Garden and a raiment of silk,

مُتَّكِئِينَ فِيهَا عَلَى الأَرَائِكِ لاَ يَرَوْنَ فِيهَا شَمْسًا وَلاَ زَمْهَرِيرًا
[76:14] Reclining therein upon couches, they will find there neither excessive heat nor excessive cold.

وَدَانِيَةً عَلَيْهِمْ ظِلاَلُهَا وَذُلِّلَتْ قُطُوفُهَا تَذْلِيلاً
[76:15] And its shades will be close over them, and its clustered fruits will be brought within easy reach.

وَيُطَافُ عَلَيْهِمْ بِآنِيَةٍ مِنْ فِضَّةٍ وَأَكْوَابٍ كَانَتْ قَوَارِيرَ
[76:16] And vessels of silver will be passed round among them, and also goblets of glass,

قَوَارِيرَ مِنْ فِضَّةٍ قَدَّرُوهَا تَقْدِيرًا
[76:17] Bright as glass but made of silver, which they will measure according to their own measure.

وَيُسْقَوْنَ فِيهَا كَأْسًا كَانَ مِزَاجُهَا زَنجَبِيلاً
[76:18] And therein will they be given to drink a cup tempered with ginger,[3196]

عَيْنًا فِيهَا تُسَمَّى سَلْسَبِيلاً
[76:19] From a spring therein named Salsabil.[3197]

وَيَطُوفُ عَلَيْهِمْ وِلْدَانٌ مُخَلَّدُونَ إِذَا رَأَيْتَهُمْ حَسِبْتَهُمْ لُؤْلُؤًا مَنثُورًا
[76:20] And there will wait upon them youths who will not age. When thou seest them, thou thinkest them to be pearls scattered about.

وَإِذَا رَأَيْتَ ثَمَّ رَأَيْتَ نَعِيمًا وَمُلْكًا كَبِيرًا
[76:21] And when thou seest thou wilt see there a bliss and a great kingdom.[3198]

عَالِيَهُمْ ثِيَابُ سُندُسٍ خُضْرٌ وَإِسْتَبْرَقٌ وَحُلُّوا أَسَاوِرَ مِنْ فِضَّةٍ وَسَقَاهُمْ رَبُّهُمْ شَرَابًا طَهُورًا
[76:22] On them will be garments of fine green silk and thick brocade. And they will be made to wear bracelets of silver. And their Lord will give them to drink a pure beverage.[3199]

إِنَّ هَذَا كَانَ لَكُمْ جَزَاءً وَكَانَ سَعْيُكُمْ مَشْكُورًا
[76:23] ‘This is your reward, and your labour has been appreciated.’

إِنَّا نَحْنُ نَزَّلْنَا عَلَيْكَ الْقُرْآنَ تَنْزِيلاً
[76:24] Surely, We have revealed unto thee the Qur’an piecemeal.[3200]

فَاصْبِرْ لِحُكْمِ رَبِّكَ وَلاَ تُطِعْ مِنْهُمْ آثِمًا أَوْ كَفُورًا
[76:25] So wait patiently for the judgment of thy Lord, and yield not to any one among them who is sinful or ungrateful.

وَاذْكُرْ اسْمَ رَبِّكَ بُكْرَةً وَأَصِيلاً
[76:26] And remember the name of thy Lord morning and evening.

وَمِنْ اللَّيْلِ فَاسْجُدْ لَهُ وَسَبِّحْهُ لَيْلاً طَوِيلاً
[76:27] And during the night prostrate thyself before Him, and extol His glory for a long part of the night.

إِنَّ هَؤُلاَءِ يُحِبُّونَ الْعَاجِلَةَ وَيَذَرُونَ وَرَاءَهُمْ يَوْمًا ثَقِيلاً
[76:28] Verily, these people love the present life, and they neglect the hard day that is before them.

نَحْنُ خَلَقْنَاهُمْ وَشَدَدْنَا أَسْرَهُمْ وَإِذَا شِئْنَا بَدَّلْنَا أَمْثَالَهُمْ تَبْدِيلاً
[76:29] We have created them and strengthened their make; and when We will, We can replace them by others like them.[3201]

إِنَّ هَذِهِ تَذْكِرَةٌ فَمَنْ شَاءَ اتَّخَذَ إِلَى رَبِّهِ سَبِيلاً
[76:30] Verily, this is a Reminder. So whoever wishes, may take a way unto his Lord.

وَمَا تَشَاءُونَ إِلاَّ أَنْ يَشَاءَ اللَّهُ إِنَّ اللَّهَ كَانَ عَلِيمًا حَكِيمًا
[76:31] And you exercise your will because Allah has so willed. Verily, Allah is All-Knowing, Wise.

يُدْخِلُ مَنْ يَشَاءُ فِي رَحْمَتِهِ وَالظَّالِمِينَ أَعَدَّ لَهُمْ عَذَابًا أَلِيمًا
[76:32] He causes whom He pleases to enter His mercy, and for the wrongdoers He has prepared a painful punishment.

3190.  Man is created from a sperm-drop which itself is a mixture of several things, the implication being that he has been endowed with various natural powers, faculties and attributes which are meant for his moral and spiritual advance. This process points only to a general rule of man's creation; not that in no case could it be otherwise.

3191. Every action which a man does is followed by a corresponding act of God. The entanglements of disbelievers in worldly affairs will take the form of chains in the next world; cares of the world will take the form of iron-collars, and greed and carnal desires that of hellfire and so on. See also 3116.

3192. Kafur is derived from Kafara which means, to cover or to suppress. The significance of the verse is that the quaffing of camphor-drink will have the effect of cooling down animal passions. The heart of righteous believers will be cleansed of all impure thoughts and they will be refrigerated with the coolness of deep Divine knowledge.

3192A. The righteous believers will drink of cups which will be filled from springs that they will have dug with great labour, this being the meaning of the word Tajir. The deeds, which they had done in the earthly life, would appear in the next world in the form of springs. This is the first stage of spiritual evolution which requires hard and continuous striving on the part of believers, because unless man brings under control and suppresses his evil propensities, he cannot make any spiritual progress. "The spring" mentioned in the verse is the spring of God's love and Divine realization.

3193.  'Fulfilling the vow' signifies discharging of man's duties to God. Man's obligations to his fellow-beings are mentioned in the next verse.

3194. The verse may mean, (1) because the righteous believers love God, so in order to win His pleasure they feed the poor and the captives. (2) They feed the poor for the sake of feeding them, i.e., they do the good act of feeding the poor for the sake of doing good, seeking no reward, appreciation or approbation for what they do. (3) They feed the poor while they themselves love the money which they spend on them. (4) They feed the poor with wholesome and agreeable food, Ta’am eaning agreeable and wholesome food (Sane).

3195. Yaumun 'Abusun means, a distressful or calamitous day, or a day that makes one distressful, and Yaumun Qamtarirun means, a distressful or calamitous day, or a day that makes one knit the brow or contract the skin berween the eyes (Lane).

3196. The word Zanjabil, being a compound of Zana (to ascend) and Jabal (mountain) signifies, he ascended the mountain. Zanjabil or ginger is very useful in promoting the natural heat of the body. It gives strength to and generates heat in the weak body so as to enable a person to ascend precipitous heights. The two verses; in which Kafur (camphor) and Zanjabil (ginger) are mentioned, are meant to call attention to the two stages through which a believer has to pass in order to make spiritual advance from the low position of slavery to passions to the heights of virtue and righteousness. The first stage in which poisonous matter is suppressed and the flood of passions begins to subside is termed the Kafur (camphor) stage; for in this stage only the suppression of poisonous matter is effected just as camphor has the property of nullifying the strong effect of passion. But the spiritual power which is required to overcome all difficulties is acquired in the second stage which is called the Zanjabil stage. The spiritual ginger which has the effect of a tonic on the spiritual system is the manifestation of Divine Beauty and Glory which affords nourishment to the soul. Braced with this manifestation the spiritual wayfarer is able to traverse the dreary deserts and to climb the steep heights to be met with on his spiritual journey.

3197. The word, Salsabil, literally meaning, 'enquire about the way,' the verse signifies that at the Zanjabil stage the spiritual wayfarer becomes so much intoxicated with Divine love that, in his overbearing anxiety to meet God, he enquires everywhere and of everyone about the nearest and speediest approach to the Divine threshold.

3198. In addition to the spiritual kingdom that the righteous believers are promised in the Hereafter, the Companions of the Holy Prophet were given mastery of the great empires of the time in this very life.

3199. While at the Kafur stage of spiritual journey the God-intoxicated wayfarer is described as himself seeking to drink the wine of God's love (v. 6) and at the Zanjabil stage he is served by others with the life-giving beverage (v. 18), at the last or Salsabil stage God Himself gives him to drink the elixir of everlasting life. This is a significant graduation in the three kinds of drink. Camphor has a cooling and ginger a warming effect, and Salsabil means to pursue naturally the appointed course. The first drink is tempered with camphor. It helps to cool desires and passions. The second drink, tempered with ginger, stimulates the pursuit of righteousness and Salsabil marks the stage in which the believer will naturally follow the righteous course.

3200. The Qur'an was revealed gradually and piecemeal. Its revelation spread over a period of 23 years. This gradual process served a double purpose. It helped believers to learn, remember and assimilate it and to mould their lives in accordance with its teachings. The gradual process was also intended to meet the increasing needs of changing circumstances and to strengthen the belief and conviction of Muslims, since, during the interval they had the opportunities to witness fulfillment of prophecies made earlier in the Qur'an. The piecemeal revelation of the Qur'an also fulfilled the following biblical prophecy: "For, it is precept upon precept; line upon line, here a little and there a little; for, with strange lips and another tongue will he speak to this people" (Isa. 28: 10).

3201. God has created man in the best make (955) that he may develop and manifest in himself Divine attributes. So if the disbelievers refused to benefit by the Quranic teaching they will be replaced by another people who will.

3202. Besides the meaning given in the text, the verse may mean: ( I ) It is God's wish that you should exercise your will to take a way unto your Lord and so be admitted into His mercy. (2) You cannot take the way unto your Lord unless you subordinate and conform your will to the Will of God. (3) You should have subordinated your will to the Will of God; but you seem not to have done so.

3203.  The verse may also mean that God admits into His mercy him who himself wishes to be admitted into His mercy by obeying Divine commandments.