Surah Faatir (35) — Ayah 27

(Ayah 27) ➊ { اَلَمْ تَرَ اَنَّ اللّٰهَ اَنْزَلَ مِنَ السَّمَآءِ مَآءً … :} That is, the diversity of things in this universe is evidence of Allah Almighty’s power, just as examples of the sweet river and salty sea, the blind and the seeing people, darkness and light, shade and hot wind, the dead and the living, the believer and the disbeliever have already been mentioned. Now reflect on the variety and diversity of plants and inanimate objects; if there were not the craftsmanship of a Wise Maker, this diversity would never exist in the universe. This is not the work of blind, deaf, and senseless matter, but rather the work of the All-Powerful, Who has presented this diversity as evidence of His Oneness and perfect power.

➋ The literal meaning of {’’ اَلَمْ تَرَ ‘‘} is “Have you not seen?” Sometimes this phrase is said to a person who already knows the matter; in that case, it is for expressing amazement. Sometimes it is said to a person who does not already know; in that case, the purpose is to inform him and to astonish him. This phrase is famous as a proverb in this second sense, as if a person who has not seen something is addressed like one who has seen it, in the sense that it is not appropriate for you to be unaware of this, and then he is addressed as if he has seen it and knows it well. In the verse, the meaning of {’’ اَلَمْ تَرَ ‘‘} is {’’أَلَمْ تَعْلَمْ‘‘}, “Have you not known?”—that is, surely you know. (Summary from Alusi)

➌ That is, O intelligent man! Surely you know that Allah Almighty sent down a great deal of water from the sky (the tanween in {’’ مَآءً ‘‘} is for abundance), then with it He brought forth from the earth many fruits, whose colors, shapes, types, and tastes are different. Some are red, some yellow, some green, some sweet, some sour, and some otherwise, even though all are produced from the same earth and watered with the same water, as Allah Almighty said: «وَ فِي الْاَرْضِ قِطَعٌ مُّتَجٰوِرٰتٌ وَّ جَنّٰتٌ مِّنْ اَعْنَابٍ وَّ زَرْعٌ وَّ نَخِيْلٌ صِنْوَانٌ وَّ غَيْرُ صِنْوَانٍ يُّسْقٰى بِمَآءٍ وَّاحِدٍ وَ نُفَضِّلُ بَعْضَهَا عَلٰى بَعْضٍ فِي الْاُكُلِ اِنَّ فِيْ ذٰلِكَ لَاٰيٰتٍ لِّقَوْمٍ يَّعْقِلُوْنَ » [ الرعد : ۴ ] “And in the earth are neighboring tracts, and gardens of grapes, and crops, and date palms, growing out of single roots or otherwise; watered with the same water, yet We make some of them excel others in fruit. Surely in that are signs for people who understand.”

➍ In {’’ اَلَمْ تَرَ اَنَّ اللّٰهَ اَنْزَلَ مِنَ السَّمَآءِ مَآءً ‘‘}, Allah Almighty mentioned sending down water using the third person pronoun, then in {’’فَاَخْرَجْنَا بِهٖ ‘‘} He mentioned Himself with the first person plural pronoun; this is called “iltifat” (rhetorical shift). The purpose is to highlight His perfect power in bringing forth such diverse things from the earth, that all of this We have accomplished.

➎ {وَ مِنَ الْجِبَالِ جُدَدٌۢبِيْضٌ … : ’’ جُدَدٌ‘‘ ’’جُدَّةٌ‘‘} is the plural; it means path or line. What is meant is the streaks and sections of different colors in the mountains. {’’ سُوْدٌ ‘‘ ’’أَسْوَدُ‘‘} is the plural. {’’ غَرَابِيْبُ ‘‘} is the plural of {’’غِرْبِيْبٌ‘‘}. When something is to be described as very black, this word comes as an emphasis for {’’أَسْوَدُ‘‘}, meaning {’’أَسْوَدُ غِرْبِيْبٌ‘‘}, just as in Urdu one says “kaala siyaah” or “kaala bhajanga” (pitch black). Here, for the sake of the verse’s rhyme, {’’ غَرَابِيْبُ ‘‘} is mentioned first. In this, another example of Allah Almighty’s power is mentioned: He said, it is a marvel of Our power that in the mountains there are sections of different colors—some are white, some red, some pitch black, and some of other colors; some have one form, some another; some are small, some large; some are of stone, some of clay; some are of marble, some of salt, and some of other substances. In {’’ غَرَابِيْبُ سُوْدٌ ‘‘}, attention is drawn to another important point: first, the colors of plants and inanimate objects are different, then within each color there is further diversity—some are black, some even blacker, and some pitch black. Just look at the blackness of people’s hair: the blackness of one person’s hair is different from another’s. Keep observing and marveling: is there any limit to the diversity in the workshop of wisdom of this All-Powerful? He has made the blackness of the hair of every human from Adam (peace be upon him) to the last person different from that of another, and the lines of his hands and the pupil of his eye, indeed every part of his body, different from another. He has made the green of every tree different from the green of another; the lines of every leaf are different from those of another leaf. Every fruit, such as mango, jamun, and date, is made different from another, and then within each fruit there is so much diversity that the fruit produced from the seed of a mango or date is of a different kind from the fruit of the original tree from which the seed came, just as every human is of a different color and form from his parents. In short, the color of everything is different, and within each color—such as white, red, yellow, or black—the whiteness, redness, yellowness, and blackness of each is different from another; the same is true of its taste. «فَتَبٰرَكَ اللّٰهُ اَحْسَنُ الْخٰلِقِيْنَ» [ المؤمنون : ۱۴ ] “So blessed is Allah, the best of creators.”