Surah al-`Ankabut (The Spider ) 29 : 56

Overview (Verses 56 - 60)

Inevitable Death
 
The sūrah leaves careless unbelievers in this scene of suffering, one which engulfs them from above and from under their feet. It moves on to address the believers who suffer persecution at the hands of the unbelievers, who aim to prevent them from worshipping God. It tells them to try to flee from persecution so that they can truly practise their faith. This is given in the form of a loving address that touches one’s heart:
 
You servants of Mine who have believed! Spacious is My earth: worship Me alone, then. Every soul shall taste death. Then to Us you all must return. Those who believe and do righteous deeds We shall certainly lodge in lofty mansions in paradise through which running waters flow, therein to abide. Excellent is the reward of those who strive, those who are patient in adversity and in their Lord place their trust. How many a living creature is there that does not bear its sustenance! It is God who provides for them and for you. He alone hears all and knows all. (Verses 56-60)
 
The Creator of these hearts who knows all their feelings, fleeting thoughts, perceptions and ideas addresses them with love, inviting them to emigrate for the sake of their faith: “You servants of mine who have believed.” These words, right from the outset give them a feeling of their true status, linking them to their Lord: Servants of Mine!’
 
This is the first caring touch, while the second is felt in what comes next: “Spacious is My earth.” You are My servants, and this is My earth, which is spacious and can comfortably accommodate you. What keeps you, then, in a hostile place where you are oppressed and persecuted on account of your faith, and where you cannot worship God in freedom? Leave this narrow and restricted place and find somewhere else in My spacious earth, to enjoy freedom of worship: “Spacious is My earth: worship Me alone.” (Verse 56)
 
Sorrow at leaving one’s own homeland is the first feeling which stirs in the mind of one who is invited to leave his home. Hence, these words stress closeness to God and the earth’s spaciousness. Since it is all God’s earth, then the place to be loved most is that where one enjoys freedom to worship God alone.
 
The sūrah continues to address people’s thoughts, and hence how we know the fear involved in emigration. The early Muslims in Makkah felt that they ran the risk of death if they tried to leave. The unbelievers were not averse to stopping them from emigrating because they felt that such emigration represented a threat to their own security. There were also the dangers that they could encounter on the way, should they even manage to leave Makkah. Therefore, the next verse addresses such concerns: “Every soul shall taste death. Then to Us you all must return.” (Verse 57)
 
Death is inevitable wherever one happens to be. Therefore, it should not be considered when we do not know its causes. It is to God that everyone will return. They should now emigrate to some place of safety in His spacious earth, for they will inevitably return to Him at the end of their term. They are His servants whom He looks after in this world and in the life to come. Why should any of them entertain any fear or worry now that God speaks to them with such care?
 
God does not, however, leave it at that. He tells them about what He has prepared for them in their future abode. If they leave their own homeland, there are other places on earth that will welcome them; and if they desert their homes, they will be compensated with much better dwellings in heaven: “Those who believe and do righteous deeds We shall certainly lodge in lofty mansions in paradise through which running waters flow, therein to abide.” (Verse 58) At this point God urges them to do what is good, remain patient in all situations and place their trust in Him: “Excellent is the reward of those who strive, those who are patient in adversity and in their Lord place their trust.” (Verses 58-59) This should give them all the encouragement to remain steadfast when worry and fear are keenly felt and encouragement is badly needed.
 
When people are forced to leave their homeland another worry they entertain is that of livelihood. After all they are abandoning their homes and property, where they are familiar with what is needed and with the available opportunities. Therefore, the sūrah also reassures them on this count: “How many a living creature is there that does not bear its sustenance! It is God who provides for them and for you.” (Verse 60) It places before their eyes the realities they see around them. Countless are the living creatures that do not know how to gather, carry, care for their sustenance or know what they need for their own survival. They do not know how to provide or store it. Nevertheless, God provides for them all, preserving them from death by starvation. He provides for people in the same way. They may think that they produce their means of sustenance, but the fact is that God grants them the ways and means to obtain what they need for their living, and this, in itself, is a favour given to them by God. They could not have obtained such ways and means without God’s grace. Therefore, they should not worry about their sustenance when they emigrate. They are God’s servants, travelling on God’s earth, and God will provide for them wherever they are, just as He provides for every living creature.
 
These caring touches conclude by emphasizing the bond with God. This so that believers are fully aware of the care He takes of them. He listens to them, knows their situation and does not abandon them: “He alone hears all and knows all.” (Verse 60) Thus ends this short round which delivers caring touches to every heart and responds to every thought, replacing every sort of worry, fear and weariness with reassurance, confidence and comfort. Believers now feel that they will never be abandoned by God, the Most Merciful. Only the Creator understands the worries that overwhelm people’s minds, and none cures their hearts except the One who knows all that hearts contain.