عبس

عَبَسَ وَتَوَلَّىٰٓ ١

{ عبس } النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم: كلح وجهه { وتولى } أعرض لأجل.

He, the Prophet, frowned, glowered with his face, and turned away,

أَن جَآءَهُ ٱلْأَعْمَىٰ ٢

{ أن جآءه الأعمى } عبد الله بن أم مكتوم فقطعه عما هو مشغول به ممن يرجو إسلامه من أشراف قريش الذين هو حريص على إسلامهم، ولم يدر الأعمى أنه مشغول بذلك فناداه، علمني مما علمك الله، فانصرف النبي صلى الله عليه وسلم إلى بيته فعوتب في ذلك بما نزل في هذه السورة، فكان بعد ذلك يقول له إذا جاء: «مرحبا بمن عاتبني فيه ربي ويبسط له رداءه».

because the blind man came to him: ‘Abd Allāh son of Umm Maktūm, who interrupted him while he was busy with those notables of Quryash whose submission [to God] he was very eager for. The blind man was not aware that he was busy with these and so he called out to him, ‘Teach me of what God has taught you’. However, the Prophet (s) went off to his house. He was then reproached for this with what was revealed in this sūra. Afterwards, whenever he came to him, the Prophet would say to him, ‘Greetings to him on whose account God reproached me!’, and would lay down his cloak for him.

وَمَا يُدْرِيكَ لَعَلَّهُۥ يَزَّكَّىٰٓ ٣

{ وما يدريك } يعلمك. { لعله يزكى } فيه إدغام التاء في الأصل في الزاي، أي يتطهر من الذنوب بما يسمع منك.

And how would you know? Perhaps he would cleanse himself (yazzakkā: the original tā’ [of yatazakkā] has been assimilated with the zāy), that is, [perhaps] he would purge himself of sins by what he hears from you,

أَوْ يَذَّكَّرُ فَتَنفَعَهُ ٱلذِّكْرَىٰٓ ٤

{ أو يذكر } فيه إدغام التاء في الأصل في الذال أي يتعظ { فتنفعه الذكرى } العظة المسموعة منك وفي قراءة بنصب (تنفعه) جواب الترجي.

or be admonished (yadhdhakkar: the original tā’ [of yatadhakkar] has been assimilated with the dhāl) and so the reminder, the admonition heard from you, might benefit him (a variant reading [for tanfa‘uhu] has tanfa‘ahu as the response to the optative statement).

أَمَّا مَنِ ٱسْتَغْنَىٰ ٥

{ أما من استغنى } بالمال.

But as for the one [who thinks himself] self-sufficient, through wealth,

فَأَنتَ لَهُۥ تَصَدَّىٰ ٦

{ فأنت له تصدى } وفي قراءة بتشديد الصاد بإدغام التاء الثانية في الأصل فيها: تقبل وتتعرض.

to him you [do] attend (tasaddā: a variant reading has tassaddā, where the original second tā’ [of tatasaddā] has been assimilated with the sād), [him] you accept and turn your attention to;

وَمَا عَلَيْكَ أَلَّا يَزَّكَّىٰ ٧

{ وما عليك ألا يزكى } يؤمن.

yet it is not your concern if he does not cleanse himself, [if he does not] believe.

وَأَمَّا مَن جَآءَكَ يَسْعَىٰ ٨

{ وأما من جآءك يسعى } حال من فاعل جاء.

But as for him who comes to you hurrying (yas‘ā is a circumstantial qualifier referring to the subject of [the verb] jā’a, ‘comes’)

وَهُوَ يَخْشَىٰ ٩

{ وهو يخشى } الله حال من فاعل (يسعى) وهو الأعمى.

fearful, of God (wa-huwa yakhshā is a circumstantial qualifier referring to the subject of [the verb] yas‘ā, ‘hurrying’) — this being the blind man —

فَأَنتَ عَنْهُ تَلَهَّىٰ ١٠

{ فأنت عنه تلهى } فيه حذف التاء الأخرى في الأصل أي تتشاغل.

to him you pay no heed (talahhā: the original second tā’ [of tatalahhā] has been omitted), that is to say, from him you are distracted [by other things].

كَلَّآ إِنَّهَا تَذْكِرَةٌ ١١

{ كلا } لا نفعل مثل ذلك { إنها } أي السورة أو الآيات { تذكرة } عظة للخلق.

No indeed!, do not behave like this. Truly it, the sūra, is, or the verses [are], a reminder, an admonition for [all] creatures —

فَمَن شَآءَ ذَكَرَهُۥ ١٢

{ فمن شآء ذكره } حفظ ذلك فاتعظ به.

so let whoever will, remember it, preserve it [in his memory] and thus be admonished by it —