Sūrah As-Sajdah The Prostration: Tafsīr al-Ṭabarī The Source Commentary

Surah Overview

DetailInformationClassificationSignificance

SurahالسجدةMakkī 30 versesContains the sajdah verse prayer and prostration before Fajr

Key DisagreementWhat is the "rūḥ" that Allah breathed into Adam?Theological / ontologicalAl-Ṭabarī: a created spirit from Allah's command not part of Allah's essence; the iḍāfah "My spirit" = possession not identity

Competing OpinionsWhat is the "coolness of the eye" for believers (32:17)?Eschatological descriptionAl-Ṭabarī: what no eye has seen, no ear has heard, no heart has conceived from authentic ḥadīth (Bukhārī)

MethodologyUsing qudsī ḥadīth to decode Quranic promisesḤadīth qudsī in tafsīrAl-Ṭabarī cites the famous qudsī ḥadīth ("I have prepared for My righteous servants...") to decode 32:17

Key Themes from Al-Ṭabarī

The rūḥ verse (32:9) "then He breathed into him from His spirit" generates one of the most important theological questions in tafsīr: what is this spirit? Al-Ṭabarī argues carefully: the iḍāfah "My spirit" (rūḥī) is possessive (iḍāfat taʿẓīm) not identity just as "My House" (baytī for the Kaʿbah) doesn't mean the Kaʿbah is part of Allah, "My spirit" doesn't mean the spirit is part of Allah's essence. The spirit is a created entity from Allah's command (amr), breathed into Adam to give him life. This protects against the Christian theological error of the divine breath being equated with divinity.

For 32:17 "no soul knows what is hidden for them of comfort for the eye" al-Ṭabarī presents the famous qudsī ḥadīth from Bukhārī (narrated from Abū Hurayrah): "Allah says: I have prepared for My righteous servants what no eye has seen, no ear has heard, and has not arisen in the heart of a human being." Al-Ṭabarī treats this qudsī ḥadīth as the prophetic commentary on this verse the Quran deliberately withholds the specifics to preserve their incomprehensible nature.

ثُمَّ سَوَّاهُ وَنَفَخَ فِيهِ مِن رُّوحِهِ وَجَعَلَ لَكُمُ السَّمْعَ وَالْأَبْصَارَ وَالْأَفْئِدَةَ Thumma sawwāhu wa-nafakha fīhi min rūḥihī wa-jaʿala lakumu s-samʿa wa-l-abṣāra wa-l-afʾidah "Then He proportioned him and breathed into him from His spirit and made for you hearing, sight, and hearts" (32:9) Al-Ṭabarī: the rūḥ is a created entity; "His spirit" = possessive of creation not of divine essence protecting tawḥīd in the creation narrative.

فَلَا تَعْلَمُ نَفْسٌ مَّا أُخْفِيَ لَهُم مِّن قُرَّةِ أَعْيُنٍ جَزَاءً بِمَا كَانُوا يَعْمَلُونَ Fa-lā taʿlamu nafsun mā ukhfiya lahum min qurrati aʿyunin jazāʾan bi-mā kānū yaʿmalūn "No soul knows what is hidden for them of comfort for the eye as reward for what they used to do" (32:17) Al-Ṭabarī: the qudsī ḥadīth (Bukhārī) is the prophetic commentary; deliberately withheld to preserve the incomprehensible magnitude of the reward.

Rūḥ as created entity: Al-Ṭabarī's iḍāfah analysis protects tawḥīd "My spirit" is possessive of a created thing, not a divine identity claim.
Qudsī ḥadīth as tafsīr: The Bukhārī qudsī ḥadīth on Paradise rewards is used by al-Ṭabarī as the definitive prophetic commentary on 32:17.
Night prostration: 32:15–16 on believers prostrating at night and rising from their beds al-Ṭabarī traces chains on the qiyām al-layl (night prayer) practice.
Three hearings: The triad "samʿ, abṣār, afʾidah" (hearing, sight, hearts) is traced through chains establishing that ingratitude for these three is the source of human wrongdoing.
Fajr recitation Sunnah: The Prophet's Sunnah of reciting As-Sajdah in the Fajr prayer of Friday is verified through chains from Abū Hurayrah.

Surah Overview

Key Themes from Al-Ṭabarī

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