Surah Al-Baqara (2) — Ayah 7

As a result of their disbelief and evil deeds, their consciences have become dead, and the capacity to accept the truth, which is naturally placed in every person, has been taken away from them. Although this seal has been set by Allah Almighty, its cause is their own actions. He said: «{ بَلْ طَبَعَ اللّٰهُ عَلَيْهَا بِكُفْرِهِمْ }» [ النساء : ۱۵۵ ] "Rather, Allah has set a seal upon them because of their disbelief." The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: "When a servant commits a sin, a black dot is placed upon his heart. Then, if he refrains, seeks forgiveness, and repents, his heart becomes polished. But if he returns to sin, the dot increases until it overtakes his heart. This is the rust that Allah has mentioned: «{ كَلَّا بَلْ رَانَ عَلٰى قُلُوْبِهِمْ مَّا كَانُوْا يَكْسِبُوْنَ }» [ المطففین : ۱۴ ] 'No! Rather, the rust has covered their hearts for what they used to earn.'" [ ترمذی، تفسیر القرآن، باب و من سورۃ ویل للمطففین …: ۳۳۳۴، عن أبی ہریرۃ رضی اللہ عنہ و حسنہ الألبانی ] The tanween on « غِشَاوَةٌ » is for emphasis, therefore it has been translated as "a heavy covering."

1. This explains the reason for their lack of faith: due to their continuous persistence in disbelief and sin, their hearts have lost the capacity to accept the truth, their ears are not ready to listen to the truth, and their eyes are deprived of seeing the signs of the Lord spread throughout the universe. So how can they possibly have faith now? Faith is only granted to those who make proper use of the abilities given by Allah and attain forgiveness through them. On the contrary, these people are a case in point for the hadith in which it is stated that when a believer commits a sin, a black dot appears on his heart. If he repents and refrains from sin, his heart becomes clean and clear as before. But if, instead of repenting, he continues to commit sin after sin, that black dot spreads and covers his entire heart. The Prophet ﷺ said this is the rust that Allah has mentioned (كَلَّا بَلْ ۫ رَانَ عَلٰي قُلُوْبِهِمْ مَّا كَانُوْا يَكْسِبُوْنَ 14؀) 83:14, meaning that because of their deeds, rust has covered their hearts, which is the logical result of their continuous evil actions.

7. Allah has set a seal upon their hearts and their ears [11], and over their eyes [12] is a covering. And for them is a great punishment.

[11]
How is the Seal Placed on the Disbelievers?

Allah Almighty places the seal only on the hearts of those disbelievers who, after fully understanding the commands of Allah Almighty, reject them merely out of stubbornness and obstinacy. As stated at another place:
﴿وَجَحَدُوْا بِهَا وَاسْتَيْقَنَتْهَآ اَنْفُسُهُمْ ظُلْمًا وَّعُلُوًّا ﴾ [14: 27]
"And they denied them out of stubbornness and arrogance, even though their hearts were convinced of them." And at another place it is said:
﴿ فَمَا كَانُوا لِيُؤْمِنُوا بِمَا كَذَّبُوا مِن قَبْلُ كَذَٰلِكَ يَطْبَعُ اللَّهُ عَلَىٰ قُلُوبِ الْكَافِرِينَ﴾ [ 101: 7]
"They were not willing to believe in what they had once denied. Thus Allah seals the hearts of the disbelievers." As for the general disbelievers, a large number among them have always been accepting Islam.

[12] The function of the heart is to understand, and the function of the ear is to hear, and these two organs are not restricted to any specific direction. But the eye can only see what is in front of it. Therefore, the sealing is mentioned for the hearts and ears, and only a covering is mentioned for the eyes. How can such people be ready to understand the realities when they are not even willing to hear or see them? For the ear and the eye are the two main gateways to the heart, through which all kinds of information reach the heart.

Why and When is the Seal Placed?

Allah Almighty did not give man eyes, ears, and a heart so that he would use these organs only as much as other animals do, and, like animals, focus only on eating, drinking, and worldly interests. For Allah Almighty has granted man much greater faculties of understanding and wisdom than other animals. For the guidance of mankind, Allah Almighty sent down heavenly books, which draw man's attention to the signs of Allah scattered throughout the universe, so that man may attain the recognition of Allah through them. Then, if a person is not even willing to listen to the verses of the Quran with his ears, nor to take the trouble to see the signs scattered in the universe with his eyes, is there any way left for his guidance? And an even worse situation is that of those who do hear the verses of Allah and their hearts do understand them, but due to their leadership or some other worldly interests, they are not willing to accept the truth; rather, they become oppositional and prejudiced. For such people, there remains no way for future guidance, and this is what Allah Almighty has described as sealing the hearts and ears and placing a covering over the eyes. This is also supported by the following marfu' hadith:

Sayyiduna Abu Hurairah ؓ says that the Prophet ﷺ said: When a servant commits a sin, a black dot appears on his heart. Then, if he gives up the sin, seeks forgiveness, and repents, his heart is cleansed. But if he repeats the sin, the dot increases until it covers the heart, and this is the rust about which Allah Almighty has said: ﴿كَلَّا بَلْ رَانَ عَليٰ قُلُوْبِهِمْ مَّا كَانُوْا يَكْسِبُوْنَ﴾ [ترمذي، ابواب التفسير]

Why is the act of sealing attributed to Allah Almighty? As for the question that if the sealing of the hearts and ears of the disbelievers happens due to their own evil deeds, then why has Allah Almighty attributed this act to Himself, the answer is that this too is a law of Allah: when a person stops using certain organs or faculties, or disregards the information provided by them, then the capacity of those organs and faculties automatically declines and eventually ceases. For example, if a person does not use his arm for some time and does not move it at all, it will become paralyzed on its own, and the ability to move it will no longer remain. And since this law is also made by Allah Almighty, the attribution of this act to Allah Almighty is correct, even though it occurs as a result of the person's own evil deeds.