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Learn › Tafsīr al-Ṭabarī The Source Commentary › Lesson 77

Tafsīr al-Ṭabarī The Source Commentary · Juzʾ Tabārak and Juzʾ ʿAmma Surahs 67–114
Lesson 77

Sūrah Al-Mursalāt The Emissaries

سورة المرسلات

A Makkan sūrah of 50 verses. Al-Ṭabarī examines the divine oath by the emissaries (winds or angels), the repeating refrain "Woe that Day to the deniers," and the nature of the Day of Distinction (yawm al-faṣl).

Surah Overview

DetailInformationClassificationSignificance
SurahالمرسلاتMakkī 50 versesOath by emissaries, "woe to deniers" refrain, Day of Distinction
Key DisagreementWhat are the "mursalāt" winds or angels?Oath subject identityAl-Ṭabarī: presents both chains (winds: Ibn ʿAbbās and Mujāhid; angels: Masrūq and others) and prefers angels for the first group, winds for others
Competing OpinionsWhat is "yawm al-faṣl" (77:13–14)?Day of Distinction identityAl-Ṭabarī: the Day of Judgment when Allah makes the final distinction between believers and disbelievers through chains from Ibn ʿAbbās
MethodologyPresenting competing chains for oath subjects and choosing between them by chain qualityTarjīḥ between chain setsAl-Ṭabarī presents both the winds and angels interpretations with full chains before stating his preferred reading

Key Themes from Al-Ṭabarī

The five-element oath sequence (77:1–6) mursalāt ʿurfan (sent in succession), ʿāṣifāt ʿaṣfan (violent in blowing), nāshirāt nashran (spreading), fāriqāt farqan (separating), mulqiyāt dhikran (casting reminder) is analyzed by al-Ṭabarī through competing chains. He presents: Ibn ʿAbbās says winds, Masrūq says angels. His tarjīḥ: the first three are winds, the last two (fāriqāt and mulqiyāt) are angels carrying revelation a mixed interpretation that uses chain quality to differentiate within the oath sequence.

The repeating refrain "waylun yawmaʾidhin li-l-mukadhdhibīn" (Woe that Day to the deniers), appearing ten times, is analyzed by al-Ṭabarī as the surah's structural refrain connecting each argument about divine power (creation, provision, judgment) to the same consequence for those who deny. Each repetition is followed by a new argument, making the refrain a logical connector rather than mere repetition. This mirrors his analysis of Sūrah Raḥmān's refrain structure.

وَالْمُرْسَلَاتِ عُرْفًا فَالْعَاصِفَاتِ عَصْفًا وَالنَّاشِرَاتِ نَشْرًا Wa-l-mursalāti ʿurfan fa-l-ʿāṣifāti ʿaṣfan wa-l-nāshirāti nashrā "By those sent forth in gusts, and the winds that blow violently, and those spreading widely." (77:1–3) Al-Ṭabarī presents competing chains from Ibn ʿAbbās (winds) and Masrūq (angels) and notes the chain quality for each before offering his partial-synthesis tarjīḥ.
وَيْلٌ يَوْمَئِذٍ لِّلْمُكَذِّبِينَ Waylun yawmaʾidhin li-l-mukadhdhibīn "Woe that Day to the deniers." (77:15 et al.) Al-Ṭabarī analyzes the ten-time repetition as a deliberate structural device each occurrence follows a new argument, making "woe" the logical consequence of denying that specific divine reality.
  • Mixed tarjīḥ: Al-Ṭabarī's partial synthesis some oath subjects are winds, some are angels shows his willingness to split the tarjīḥ when chain evidence supports it.
  • Refrain structure: The ten repetitions of "woe to the deniers" are analyzed as logical connectors not mere rhetorical emphasis each refrain following a specific argument.
  • Day of Distinction: "Yawm al-faṣl" is identified through chains as the Day of Judgment, specifically as the day of definitive divine separation of peoples.
  • Creation arguments: 77:20–28 on human creation from water are analyzed through chains as sequential arguments for resurrection if Allah created from water, recreating is not impossible.
  • Hell's shade: 77:30–33's description of Hell's "shade" of three branches of smoke is analyzed through chains a shade that does not cool, a fire that does not diminish.

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