Surah Al-Isra (The Night Journey ) 17 : 13

وَكُلَّ إِنسَٰنٍ أَلْزَمْنَٰهُ طَٰٓئِرَهُۥ فِى عُنُقِهِۦ ۖ وَنُخْرِجُ لَهُۥ يَوْمَ ٱلْقِيَٰمَةِ كِتَٰبًا يَلْقَىٰهُ مَنشُورًا

Translations

 
 Muhsin Khan
 Pickthall
 Yusuf Ali
Quran Project
And [for] every human being We have imposed his fate upon his neck, and We will produce for him on the Day of Resurrection a record which he will encounter spread open.

1. Lessons/Guidance/Reflections/Gems

[ edit ]

Explanatory Note

The law of action and reward is directly linked to the meticulous law of the universe:

Every human being’s action have We tied around his own neck. On the Day of Resurrection We shall produce for him a record which he will find wide open. [And We will say:] ‘Read this your record! Sufficient it is for you today that your own soul should make out your account.’ (Verses 13-14)

 

 

2. Linguistic Analysis

[ edit ]
The data for this section is awaiting to be be uploaded. Be the first to contribute.


Frequency of Root words in this Ayat used in this Surah *


3. Surah Overview

4. Miscellaneous Information

[ edit ]
The data for this section is awaiting to be be uploaded. Be the first to contribute.

5. Connected/Related Ayat

[ edit ]
The data for this section is awaiting to be be uploaded. Be the first to contribute.

6. Frequency of the word

[ edit ]
The data for this section is awaiting to be be uploaded. Be the first to contribute.

7. Period of Revelation

[ edit ]

The very first verse indicates that this Surah was revealed on the occasion of the ascension (Mi’raj). According to the narrations (hadith) on the life of the Prophet, this event happened one year before migration (Hijrah). Thus this Surah was revealed in the last stage of Prophethood in Makkah.

8. Reasons for Revelation

[ edit ]

The Prophet had been propagating Monotheism (Tawhid) for twelve years now. In spite of all the opposition, Islam had spread to every corner of Arabia and there was hardly a clan which had not been influenced by the invitation. In Makkah itself, the true Believers had formed themselves into a small community.  A large number of the people from the Aws and Khazraj tribes (two influential clans of Madinah) had also now accepted Islam. Thus the time had come for the Muslims to emigrate from Makkah to Madinah, at behest of the Aws and Khazraj to establish an Islamic state.

9. Relevant Hadith

[ edit ]
The data for this section is awaiting to be be uploaded. Be the first to contribute.

10. Wiki Forum

Comments in this section are statements made by general users – these are not necessarily explanations of the Ayah – rather a place to share personal thoughts and stories…

11. Tafsir Zone

 

Overview (Verses 13 - 15)

Personal Responsibility
 
The law of action and reward is directly linked to the meticulous law of the universe:
 
Every human being’s action have We tied around his own neck. On the Day of Resurrection We shall produce for him a record which he will find wide open. [And We will say:] ‘Read this your record! Sufficient it is for you today that your own soul should make out your account.’ (Verses 13-14)
 
The Arabic phraseology of this verse provides a highly graphic description which uses the word, ‘bird’, in place of ‘action’, as used in the translated text. Thus we have here a metaphor referring to what flies of a person’s actions and becomes tied around his neck, so that it never parts from him. Thus does the Qur’ān in graphically describing things in order to emphasize its point. A person’s actions do not leave him, and he cannot disown them. The same applies to the wide open record of all his actions. Thus whatever he has done in life is laid bare. He cannot hide, ignore or disown it. Both descriptions, of the bird denoting action and the record thrown open, produce a very strong effect that adds to the fears experienced on that very difficult day when nothing remains hidden. Everyone is told to read their own records because, “Sufficient it is for you today that your own soul should make out your account.” (Verse 14)
 
Again the same accurate universal law is linked to the rules governing action and reward: “Whoever chooses to follow guidance does so for his own good, and whoever goes astray does so to his own loss. No soul shall be made to bear the burden of another.” (Verse 15) It is all individual responsibility. When one follows guidance, one reaps the fruits, and when one chooses error, one bears the consequences. None will bear or lighten the burden of another. Everyone will be questioned about their own actions and will have the reward for what they have done in this life. Close friends will be of no help to each other.
 
Yet as a sign of God’s grace, He does not leave man’s guidance dependent only on the signs that are available in the universe. Nor does He leave him to the covenant God has made with human nature before a person is born. He has sent messengers to warn and remind: “We would never inflict punishment [on anyone] until We have sent a messenger [to give warning].” (Verse 15) This is certainly an aspect of God’s grace which gives everyone ample opportunity to follow His guidance. Only when they have been properly warned and still persist in error does He punish them, if He so wills.


12. External Links

[ edit ]
The data for this section is awaiting to be be uploaded. Be the first to contribute.