Surah an-Naml (The Ant ) 27 : 71

Overview (Verses 67 - 75)

After Being Reduced to Ashes
 
“The unbelievers say: What! After we have become dust, we and our forefathers, shall we be brought back [to life]?” (Verse 67) This has always been the most difficult point for unbelievers to accept. Could it be true that after life has departed from us, and our bodies have decomposed and been reduced to dust and ashes, which happens to all people within a certain period of their burial apart from some exceptional cases, we will be brought back to life? Is it true that we and our forefathers, who died long before us, will be raised up from the earth when we have become part of its dust?
 
This physical image acts as a barrier preventing them from accepting the possibility of future life. They forget that they have been brought into this life from nothing. No one knows where the atoms and cells that make up their bodies were initially. They were scattered on the earth, deep in the sea and high in the air. Some came from the soil, some from space and water, and some from the sun. Indeed, some were breathed in by man, plant or animal, and some came from a carcass that had decomposed allowing some of its elements to evaporate. These atoms and cells were then part of some food or drink, or part of the air people breathe, or the rays to which they are exposed. Then this countless multitude, from an unknown number of sources, was assembled in a fertilized egg that clings to the wall of a woman’s uterus, and which then grows and acquires human form. After a long journey through life, it becomes no more than a dead body wrapped in sheets, ready for burial. Thus was their first creation. What is so strange about bringing them back in the same form, or in a different one, for their second life? But this was what those unbelievers of old used to say. It continues to be said today by some unbelievers, albeit somewhat differently.
 
The unbelievers followed this absurdity with ridicule: “We have been promised this before, we and our forefathers! This is nothing but fables of the ancients.” (Verse 68) They were fully aware that earlier messengers had warned their forefathers in the past, which indicates that those Arabs were not totally unaware of faith. Rather, they thought that such promises had not been fulfilled. Therefore, they discarded the new promise, describing it as fables circulated among ancient people which Muhammad then revived. They forget that the Day of Judgement arrives at the time appointed for it, and it will neither be put forward because people hasten it, nor delayed to fulfil their hopes.
 
Its time has been set by God and remains known only to Him. When Gabriel asked the Prophet about its timing, he said: “The one being asked about it knows no more about it than the one putting the question.” [Related by Muslim, Abū Dāwūd, al- Nasā’ī, al-Tirmidhī and Ibn Mājah.]
 
At this point, the sūrah directs the unbelievers to turn their minds to the end met by earlier communities which, like them, denied the warnings given by God’s messengers. These are described here as the guilty ones: “Say: Go all over the earth and see what happened in the end to the guilty.” (Verse 69) This directive is meant to broaden their view. No human generation stands in isolation. Every generation is subject to the same laws and rules that apply to the rest. What happened to those who were guilty in the past may happen to the guilty in later generations, because divine laws admit no favouritism. Travelling about the land was certain to inform them of past experiences, and these would contain a lesson for them. It would open their minds and hearts to light. The Qur’ān directs people to learn of the operation of divine laws so as to broaden their vision and give wider dimension to their lives.
 
Having given this directive to unbelievers, the sūrah spells out God’s order to the Prophet to leave them to their destinies. He was not to feel distressed at what they might be scheming. They would not be able to cause him any harm. Nor was he to grieve for them, because he had already done his duty, delivering God’s message and warning them against what fate awaits them: “Do not grieve over them, nor be distressed by what they scheme.” (Verse 70) This verse tells us of the Prophet’s compassion. He grieved over what could happen to his people, because he knew what had happened to earlier communities that rejected God’s messages. The verse also tells us how wicked their scheming was against the Prophet, his message and followers.
 
The sūrah continues its discussion of what the unbelievers said about resurrection and their refusal to take the warnings of God’s impending punishment seriously: “They ask: When will this promise be fulfilled, if what you say be true.” (Verse 71) They said this whenever they were reminded of what happened to earlier communities, even though they used to pass by where they lived, such as Lot’s townships, the Thamūd’s dwellings at al-Ĥijr, the `Ād’s home at al-Aĥqāf, and the dwelling place of Sheba after it was destroyed by the floods. In ridicule they asked the Prophet when those warnings would come true? If you speak the truth, then let us have it now, or at least give us an exact timing for it.
 
In a short verse, the sūrah gives the impression of the forthcoming horror, imparting a touch of ridicule to their attitude: “Say: It may well be that something of that which you so hastily demand has already drawn close to you.” (Verse 72) Thus the sūrah strikes fear in their hearts and makes them worry about the impending punishment. It could easily be very close, coming from behind, like a rider seeking another in fast pursuit. Yet they cannot perceive it. Thus, they are hastening it when it is already close to overtaking them. What a frightening surprise to fit their ridicule.
 
But who can tell? What God has kept for Himself will remain hidden behind a curtain that reveals nothing whatsoever. Something very serious, extremely terrible could be moments away. It is wise, then, to be warned and to be ready at all times to what may lie behind those thick curtains.
 
“Your Lord is indeed most bountiful to people, but most of them are ungrateful.” (Verse 73) Perhaps one of the most important aspects of God’s bounty is that He allows people respite when they do wrong or fail to do what is required of them. He does not hasten His punishment, giving them chance after chance to reflect on their positions, repent of their mistakes, and turn back to the right path. Nevertheless, most of them are ungrateful for the grace God bestows on them. Rather, they ridicule the whole idea and hasten their own punishment, or continue in their erring ways, refusing to reflect and take heed. “And indeed your Lord knows all that their hearts conceal and all that they bring into the open.” (Verse 74) He gives them this respite although He is fully aware of the feelings they harbour in their hearts as also what they declare by word and deed. This means that respite is given them in the full knowledge of their actions and feelings. Yet they will inevitably have to face the reckoning of all this.
 
This round concludes with a statement emphasizing God’s perfect knowledge that overlooks nothing anywhere in the universe: “There is nothing that is hidden in the heavens or the earth but is recorded in a clear book.” (Verse 75) Let imagination travel anywhere in the universe, thinking of any hidden thing: a secret, an object, a piece of news or information, force or power: it is all recorded and included in God’s knowledge. Nothing is lost or overlooked. God’s knowledge is emphasized throughout the sūrah, and the reference to it here is just one of many.