سُوْرَةُ الْمُؤْمِنُوْنَ
Surah Al-Muminoon (23) — Ayah 100
لَعَلِّىٓ أَعْمَلُ صَـٰلِحًا فِيمَا تَرَكْتُ ۚ كَلَّآ ۚ إِنَّهَا كَلِمَةٌ هُوَ قَآئِلُهَا ۖ وَمِن وَرَآئِهِم بَرْزَخٌ إِلَىٰ يَوْمِ يُبْعَثُونَ ﴿100﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
"So that I may do good in that which I have left behind!" No! It is but a word that he speaks; and behind them is Barzakh (a barrier) until the Day when they will be resurrected.
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
لَعَلِّىٓ
laʿallī
That I may
أَعْمَلُ
aʿmalu
do
صَـٰلِحًۭا
ṣāliḥan
righteous (deeds)
فِيمَا
fīmā
in what
تَرَكْتُ ۚ
taraktu
I left behind
كَلَّآ ۚ
kallā
No
إِنَّهَا
innahā
Indeed, it
كَلِمَةٌ
kalimatun
(is) a word
هُوَ
huwa
he
قَآئِلُهَا ۖ
qāiluhā
speaks it
وَمِن
wamin
and before them
وَرَآئِهِم
warāihim
and before them
بَرْزَخٌ
barzakhun
(is) a barrier
إِلَىٰ
ilā
till
يَوْمِ
yawmi
(the) Day
يُبْعَثُونَ
yub'ʿathūna
they are resurrected
Tafsir Taiseer ul-Quran — Maulana Abdul Rahman Kilani
Tafsir Taiseer ul-Quran (Facilitation of the Quran) is a comprehensive Quran commentary by Maulana Abdul Rahman Kilani, a renowned Salafi (Ahl al-Hadith) scholar from Pakistan. Known for his eloquent and accessible writing style, Kilani authored this tafsir with a focus on clarity — making Quranic meanings understandable to the common reader. The tafsir provides detailed historical context for verses related to battles and expeditions, and firmly refutes modernist ideologies using strong scriptural evidence. It is widely regarded as an invaluable resource for understanding the Quran and countering deviant interpretations. The tafsir is originally written in Urdu, translated to English by tohed.com.
100. So that I may do righteous deeds in what I left behind." (Allah will say), "Never [96]!" It is only a word he is saying. And behind them is a barrier [97] until the Day they are resurrected.
[96] Here, "kalla" gives two meanings: one is that Allah Almighty will say that since sending any human back to this world after death is against My law and My will, therefore, this can never happen. And the second is that what the dying person is saying—that now I will go to the world and perform good deeds instead of bad ones—is a useless statement. Because after witnessing the conditions at the time of death and seeing the angels, there remains no faith in the unseen. And what is required is faith in the unseen, not faith in the witnessed. Anyone can acknowledge what is present and seen, and this cannot be called faith or faith in the unseen. Nor does this world remain a place of trial in that state. And another situation is that it is human nature to turn to Allah in times of distress, but when that distress is removed and prosperity is attained, he forgets all about the times of distress and the promises made to Allah during that distress. This situation is also supported by common observation and by several verses of the Noble Quran. In this respect as well, sending any dead person back to the world is useless. Therefore, whatever the dying person says at the time of death is nothing but nonsense, which will be of no benefit.
[97]
Barzakh: The Period from Death to the Resurrection
Here, the word "barzakh" is used, which means barrier, veil, obstruction, etc., and according to some, this word is actually the Arabicized form of the Persian word "parda" (curtain). However, the barrier or veil here is not like hanging a cloth or building a wall between two things so that everything is hidden from each other. Rather, this barrier also includes a long period of time. And this barzakh encompasses the period from the time of a person's death until his resurrection. Both the world of the living and the Hereafter are hidden from the people of barzakh. Allah Almighty has referred to this world of barzakh as the period of death, which means that during this period, the effects of death prevail. However, since the soul remains alive and is in the possession of Allah Almighty, therefore, during this period, some traces of life are found. During this period, the deceased also receives punishment or reward, but the punishment or reward is much lighter compared to the punishment or reward of the Day of Resurrection. The punishment of this period is called the punishment of the grave, whether the body of the deceased is present in the grave, has decayed, has been eaten by beasts, or has gone to the depths of the water.
[96] Here, "kalla" gives two meanings: one is that Allah Almighty will say that since sending any human back to this world after death is against My law and My will, therefore, this can never happen. And the second is that what the dying person is saying—that now I will go to the world and perform good deeds instead of bad ones—is a useless statement. Because after witnessing the conditions at the time of death and seeing the angels, there remains no faith in the unseen. And what is required is faith in the unseen, not faith in the witnessed. Anyone can acknowledge what is present and seen, and this cannot be called faith or faith in the unseen. Nor does this world remain a place of trial in that state. And another situation is that it is human nature to turn to Allah in times of distress, but when that distress is removed and prosperity is attained, he forgets all about the times of distress and the promises made to Allah during that distress. This situation is also supported by common observation and by several verses of the Noble Quran. In this respect as well, sending any dead person back to the world is useless. Therefore, whatever the dying person says at the time of death is nothing but nonsense, which will be of no benefit.
[97]
Barzakh: The Period from Death to the Resurrection
Here, the word "barzakh" is used, which means barrier, veil, obstruction, etc., and according to some, this word is actually the Arabicized form of the Persian word "parda" (curtain). However, the barrier or veil here is not like hanging a cloth or building a wall between two things so that everything is hidden from each other. Rather, this barrier also includes a long period of time. And this barzakh encompasses the period from the time of a person's death until his resurrection. Both the world of the living and the Hereafter are hidden from the people of barzakh. Allah Almighty has referred to this world of barzakh as the period of death, which means that during this period, the effects of death prevail. However, since the soul remains alive and is in the possession of Allah Almighty, therefore, during this period, some traces of life are found. During this period, the deceased also receives punishment or reward, but the punishment or reward is much lighter compared to the punishment or reward of the Day of Resurrection. The punishment of this period is called the punishment of the grave, whether the body of the deceased is present in the grave, has decayed, has been eaten by beasts, or has gone to the depths of the water.
