Surah Al-Qasas (28) — Ayah 81

(Ayah 81) ➊ { فَخَسَفْنَا بِهٖ وَ بِدَارِهِ الْاَرْضَ :} Allah, the Exalted, was so provoked by this display of arrogance that He caused him and his house, in which were his family, servants, and treasures, all to be swallowed up by the earth. This state of Qarun is reflected in the hadith narrated by Ibn Umar (may Allah be pleased with them both), that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said: [ بَيْنَمَا رَجُلٌ يَجُرُّ إِزَارَهُ مِنَ الْخُيَلاَءِ خُسِفَ بِهِ ، فَهُوَ يَتَجَلْجَلُ فِي الْأَرْضِ إِلٰي يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ ] [ بخاري، أحادیث الأنبیاء، باب : ۳۴۸۵ ] "A man was dragging his garment with pride, so he was swallowed up by the earth and will continue to sink in it until the Day of Resurrection." The scholars of tafsir are inclined to the view that this refers to Qarun.

➋ From this verse and hadith, it is understood that even letting one's garment hang out of arrogance is so disliked by Allah, the Exalted, that if it were not for His mercy, such a person would be swallowed up by the earth. There is no doubt that if the garment slips down by itself, that is not arrogance, as in the case of Abu Bakr as-Siddiq (may Allah be pleased with him), whose garment would slip down, and the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, "You do not do this out of arrogance." But some people deliberately let their garments hang and say, "We do not do this out of arrogance." Regarding them, listen to the statement of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), as Jabir bin Sulaym (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated in a long hadith that the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him) said to him: [ وَارْفَعْ إِزَارَكَ إِلٰی نِصْفِ السَّاقِ فَإِنْ أَبَيْتَ فَإِلَی الْكَعْبَيْنِ وَ إِيَّاكَ وَ إِسْبَالَ الْإِزَارِ فَإِنَّهَا مِنَ الْمَخِيْلَةِ وَ إِنَّ اللّٰهَ لاَ يُحِبُّ الْمَخِيْلَةَ ] [أبو داوٗد، اللباس، باب ما جاء في إسبال الإزار : ۴۰۸۴، و صححہ الألباني ] "Raise your garment to the middle of your shin, and if you do not accept that, then to the ankles, and beware of letting your garment hang, for that is from arrogance, and indeed Allah does not like arrogance." This proves that deliberately letting the garment hang is arrogance, because after hearing the statement of the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), not accepting it and deliberately letting the garment hang is clear arrogance. Deliberately letting the garment hang is such a great sin that Abu Dharr (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated from the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) that he said: [ ثَلَاثَةٌ لَا يُكَلِّمُهُمُ اللّٰهُ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ وَلَا يَنْظُرُ إِلَيْهِمْ وَلَا يُزَكِّيْهِمْ وَلَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيْمٌ ، قَالَ فَقَرَأَهَا رَسُوْلُ اللّٰهِ صَلَّی اللّٰهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ ثَلاَثَ مَرَّاتٍ، قَالَ أَبُوْ ذَرٍّ خَابُوْا وَخَسِرُوْا مَنْ هُمْ يَا رَسُوْلَ اللّٰهِ!؟ قَالَ الْمُسْبِلُ إِزَارَهُ وَالْمَنَّانُ وَ الْمُنَفِّقُ سِلْعَتَهُ بِالْحَلِفِ الْكَاذِبِ ] [مسلم، الإیمان، باب بیان غلظ تحریم إسبال الإزار… : ۱۰۶] "There are three people to whom Allah will not speak on the Day of Resurrection, nor will He look at them, nor will He purify them, and for them is a painful punishment." He said this three times, so Abu Dharr (may Allah be pleased with him) said, "They are ruined and lost, O Messenger of Allah! Who are they?" He (peace and blessings be upon him) said, "The one who lets his garment hang (below the ankles), the one who reminds others of his favors, and the one who sells his goods by swearing falsely."

➌ It is evident from the statement of the Noble Qur'an that the cause of him being swallowed up by the earth was his arrogance and his going out with his adornment and pomp to display it. However, some commentators have also mentioned other incidents of his rebellion and transgression, one of which is that Qarun gave some wealth to an immoral woman on the condition that she would accuse Musa (peace be upon him) of indecency; when he would be reciting the Book of Allah among the Children of Israel, this woman would say, "Musa! You have done such and such with me." So when she said this to Musa (peace be upon him) in the gathering, he became frightened and trembled, and after praying two rak'ahs, he turned to her and said, "I adjure you by Allah, Who parted the sea and saved you from Pharaoh and did such and such favors for you, that you must tell who incited you to say what you have said." She said, "Since you have asked me by Allah, Qarun gave me so much wealth on the condition that I say this and that to you, and I seek forgiveness from Allah and repent." Upon this, Musa (peace be upon him) fell into prostration and prayed to Allah, the Exalted, regarding Qarun. Allah revealed to him that He had commanded the earth to obey his command regarding Qarun, so Musa (peace be upon him) commanded the earth to swallow him, and so it happened. Ibn Kathir narrated this incident from Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both). Even if its chain is good, it is his statement; he did not narrate it from the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), and it is clear that Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them both) was not present at the time of this incident, but rather there are thousands of years in between. Therefore, there is no doubt that this is an Isra'ili narration, in which certainty is not possible. Especially because it also mentions Qarun crossing the sea, whereas in Surah Ghafir, Allah, the Exalted, mentioned sending Musa (peace be upon him) to Pharaoh, Haman, and Qarun, and that all three denied him, then regarding Pharaoh and his companions, He said: «{ وَ حَاقَ بِاٰلِ فِرْعَوْنَ سُوْٓءُ الْعَذَابِ (45) اَلنَّارُ يُعْرَضُوْنَ عَلَيْهَا غُدُوًّا وَّ عَشِيًّا }» [ المؤمن : ۴۵، ۴۶ ] "And the people of Pharaoh were enveloped by the worst punishment. The Fire, they are exposed to it morning and evening." Similarly, in Surah Al-Ankabut (29:39-40), it is mentioned that these three did not believe due to arrogance and were seized for their sins. In short, there is no indication in the Noble Qur'an that Qarun believed or crossed the sea; rather, it only mentions his persistent denial, arrogance, and being swallowed up by the earth as a consequence. Ibn Kathir said, "Many Isra'ili narrations have been mentioned here, which we have avoided." If only Ibn Kathir had not mentioned even those Isra'ili narrations which he did mention.

➍ { فَمَا كَانَ لَهٗ مِنْ فِئَةٍ يَّنْصُرُوْنَهٗ …:} That is, at that time there was no group to come to his aid, nor could he save himself. His servants, companions, and friends were of no use to him.

81-1. That is, Qarun was sunk into the earth along with his palace and treasures because of his arrogance. In the hadith, it is mentioned that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: A man was walking with his lower garment trailing on the ground (Allah did not like his arrogance), so he was sunk into the earth, and he will continue to sink into it until the Day of Resurrection.

81. Then We caused the earth to swallow him and his house, and he had no group to help him against Allah, nor was he able to defend himself.

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The Fate of Qarun:

It is said that when Qarun became an opponent of Musa ؑ and joined Pharaoh, he devised a plot to defame Hazrat Musa ؑ. He bribed a prostitute and persuaded her to falsely accuse him of adultery. However, when Hazrat Musa ؑ made her swear to tell the truth, she revealed that she had acted at Qarun’s instigation and that the real culprit was Qarun. Hazrat Musa ؑ became very angry at this act of his. He prayed against him. It was as a result of this prayer against him that Qarun, along with his palace, his treasures, and his servants, was swallowed up by the earth. That entire piece of land sank far below the general surface of the earth, and when this divine wrath descended upon him, neither his treasures availed him, nor his servants, nor could Pharaoh and his courtiers come to his aid to save him from being swallowed by the earth.