Surah Al-Mutaffifin, Ayah 15

The Record of the Wicked and some of what happens to Them

Allah says truly,

إِنَّ كِتَـبَ الْفُجَّارِ لَفِى سِجِّينٍ

(Nay! Truly, the Record of the wicked is in Sijjin.) meaning, that their final destination and their abode will be in Sijjin, which is derived from the word prison (Sijn), and here it means straitened circumstances. Thus, Allah expresses the greatness of this matter, saying;

وَمَآ أَدْرَاكَ مَا سِجِّينٌ

(And what will make you know what Sijjin is) meaning, it is a great matter, an eternal prison, and a painful torment. Some have said that it is beneath the seventh earth. It has been mentioned previously in the lengthy Hadith of Al-Bara' bin `Azib that the Prophet said,

إِنَّهُمْ عَن رَّبِّهِمْ يَوْمَئِذٍ لَّمَحْجُوبُونَ (No! Indeed they will be screened off from their Lord on that Day...83:15). This will be their punishment for their failure to recognise Allah in the world. The unbelievers will remain deprived of seeing their Lord on the Day of Judgment, and a screen will fall between them and their Lord. Imams Shafi` i and Malik said that in this verse is a proof that the believers and friends of Allah will be able to see Him. Otherwise, the wording that the unbelievers will be screened off from their Lord on that Day will have no real sense.

Special Note

According to some of the learned predecessors, this verse is a proof that man, by virtue of his innate nature, is forced to love Allah. Therefore, all unbelievers in the world, no matter how deeply they are steeped in their form of disbelief or hold false beliefs regarding the [ Supreme ] Being and attributes of Allah, there is a common denominator in their hearts. They love, respect and honour Allah. They worship Him according to their belief system in quest of Him and His pleasure. Because they have taken the wrong road, they are unable to reach their destination, but they are, nonetheless, in search of the same destination of truth. If they did not have the desire to see their Lord, it would not have been said, in their punishment, that they will remain deprived of seeing Allah, because if a person is not desirous [ rather he is hateful ] of seeing Him, it would be no punishment for him.

Every human being wants to have his dues paid in full. But it is only right and proper that, if he is a man of character, he should also take care to give to others their full and rightful dues. He should want for others whatever he wants for himself. Those who take full measure for themselves and give less to others, will reach the Hereafter in such an ill state of grace that they will be doomed to eternal perdition. One who tries to ensure full measure for himself knows that everyone should receive his just deserts. In this context, if he gives less while giving to others, he lessens his realization of or sensitivity to the rights of others. If a man repeats this sort of misdeed again and again, a time will finally come when he will completely lose his sensitivity to others’ rights. His heart will be completely corroded by his sinful actions. In the present world many people are not at all keen to respect the rights of others or to give them their full dues. They are interested solely in recovering in full what is due to them from others. Such people will remain in a state of deprivation in the Hereafter. Wise are those who are eager to discharge others’ rights and dues fully, because they are the ones who will be entitled to the great bounties of God in the Hereafter.