The Holy Qur'an, like a radiant lamp, illuminates the path of guidance for humanity and, through its enlightening verses, portrays the reality of divine justice and the consequences of human deeds. Verses 165 and 166 of Surah Al-Imran, with profound and meaningful expressions, delineate the fate of two groups of people in response to disobedience and obedience to the command of the Lord: one group that attains salvation through adherence to forbidding evil, and another that suffers a wretched punishment due to oppression and wickedness. This treatise, relying on the lecture of session 1343, examines these verses with a deep and reflective perspective. The objective is to elucidate the concepts of the world's infallibility, human requisites, and the consequences of sin in a manner that preserves the spiritual essence of the verses while conveying the truth to the reader in a clear and dignified language. This work, structured methodically and employing literary allegories, strives to present the exalted Qur'anic meanings in a novel and profound light.
فَلَمَّا نَسُوا مَا ذُكِّرُوا بِهِ أَنْجَيْنَا الَّذِينَ يَنْهَوْنَ عَنِ السُّوءِ وَأَخَذْنَا الَّذِينَ ظَلَمُوا بِعَذَابٍ بَئِيسٍ بِمَا كَانُوا يَفْسُقُونَ
Then, when they forgot what they were reminded of, We delivered those who forbid evil, and seized those who wronged with a wretched punishment because of their transgression.
This verse, like a clear mirror, displays the fate of the Children of Israel in their disobedience to the divine commands. Those who disregarded the reminders of the Lord and refrained from fishing on the Sabbath were divided into two distinct groups. The first group consisted of believers who, through adherence to forbidding evil, followed the path of salvation and were spared divine punishment. The second group comprised oppressors who, through wickedness and sin, brought upon themselves a wretched punishment. This punishment, termed bs in the Holy Qur'an, is not merely physical pain but rather a state of helplessness and misery that deprives a person of dignity and identity.
The distinction between Anjayn (We delivered) and Akhan (We seized) in this verse signifies the unassailable divine justice. God, with His wisdom, guides the believers who forbid evil towards the light of guidance, and afflicts the oppressors who plunge into the darkness of sin with a punishment commensurate with their deeds. This bifurcation, like two branches of one tree, portrays the two opposing paths of human life: one leading to salvation and the other to despair.
The world, like an open book, is infallible under divine sovereignty, and no action escapes the scrutiny of the Lords justice. This infallibility, as elucidated in the lectures, is grounded in the principle: "As you sow, so shall you reap." Humans, by their free will, create requisites that entail good or evil. God, with His absolute causality, responds to these requisites: good with salvation and evil with punishment. This principle, like an invisible thread, connects all human actions to divine justice.
The Qur'anic phrase l awla wa l quwwata ill billh ("There is no power nor strength except by God") opens this truth as a golden keythat power and causality rest with God, and humans act only within their requisites. These requisites may lead towards good or evil, but the divine response is always infallible and just. Contemporary examples, such as uncontrollable forest fires and ocean pollution, demonstrate that human injustice towards nature is a requisite that leads to wretched punishment.
From this perspective, humans resemble farmers who sow the seeds of their deeds in the soil of the world. If they sow seeds of good, they harvest fruits of salvation; if they sow seeds of evil, they gather thorns of despair. God, like a wise gardener, responds to these seeds with causality. This linkage between human requisite and divine causality, like a harmonious dance, preserves the order of the world. Environmental examples, such as global warming or marine life destruction, indicate that human injustice towards nature is a requisite that elicits a divine punishment.
This section, by elucidating the concept of the world's infallibility, demonstrated that the world under divine sovereignty is infallible and just. Humans choose the path of good or evil by their requisites, and God responds to these requisites with His wise causality. This connection, like a firm bridge, manifests divine justice in the world and calls humans to reflect on their deeds.
The bs punishment, like a heavy shadow, plunges humans into a state of helplessness and misery. This punishment is not only physical but also psychological and social, depriving individuals of their dignity and identity. In the lectures, this punishment is elucidated with tangible examples: people forced to abandon their homes due to uncontrollable natural disasters like vast forest fires, unable even to carry their possessions; or those who, due to sin and disobedience, suffer social isolation and disrespect.
This punishment is the consequence of human wickedness and oppression, which, like a poisoned seed, is sown in the soil of their lives. An example of a woman complaining of inability to sleep without makeup or to be unclothed illustrates the psychological helplessness depicted by the bs punishment. This helplessness does not arise from falling roofs or physical death, but from the inability to maintain peace and self-respect.
The lectures, referring to contemporary natural and social disasters, portray the bs punishment in today's world. Massive forest fires, ocean pollution with plastics, and global warming are all consequences of human injustice toward nature. These calamities, like mirrors, reveal human requisites in opposition to divine causality. Societies once proud of their progress are now helpless before these disasters, unable to control them. This helplessness is a manifestation of the bs punishment that reduces humans to lowliness and incapacity.
The bs punishment, like a mirror, reflects the consequences of sin and disobedience. It entails not only physical suffering but also psychological and social helplessness. Contemporary examples, ranging from environmental pollution to the inability to cope with natural disasters, demonstrate the depth of this punishment, calling humans to reflect upon their deeds.
فَلَمَّا عَتَوْا عَنْ مَا نُهُوا عَنْهُ قُلْنَا لَهُمْ كُونُوا قِرَدَةً خَاسِئِينَ
Then, when they transgressed what they had been forbidden, We said to them: "Be apes, despised."
Verse 166 of Surah Al-Imran vividly portrays the fate of the Children of Israel who disobeyed divine commands. The phrase qirdah khsin ("despised apes") is not to be taken literally as a physical transformation but is a metaphor for moral and spiritual degradation. This verse describes humans who, despite possessing intellect and consciousness, due to sin and disobedience, sink into a state lower than that of animals. The ape in this context symbolises helplessness and misery that renders humans weaker even than animals.
The lectures emphasise that animals such as cats, ants, or jackals find ways to survive under difficult circumstances, whereas humans afflicted by the bs punishment fall into helplessness and incapacity. This degradation occurs not in appearance but in the content and essence of human identity. Humans who fail to utilise their intellect and awareness due to sin become beings lower than apes, without remedy or hope of salvation.
The lectures, recalling memories from previous sessions, beautifully elucidate this concept. In one such recollection, an individual speaks of the hardships of life during wartime and laments the inability to sleep without makeup or to be unclothed. This incapacity, a clear example, depicts the bs punishment: not death or physical suffering, but helplessness in maintaining peace and self-respect. Another example involves people forced
