Light from the chest and the right
The believer seeks light coming from the chest and from the right.
Surah Al-Hadid
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللَّهَ وَآمِنُوا بِرَسُولِهِ يُؤْتِكُمْ كِفْلَيْنِ مِن رَّحْمَتِهِ وَيَجْعَل لَّكُمْ نُورًا تَمْشُونَ بِهِ وَيَغْفِرْ لَكُمْ ۚ وَاللَّهُ غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ
“O you who have believed, fear Allah and believe in His Messenger; He will [then] give you a double portion of His mercy and make for you a light by which you will walk and forgive you; and Allah is Forgiving and Merciful”.
Two portions of mercy
A light by which to walk
Forgiveness
Position in the Surah
The concluding section
The final section This ayah begins the sixth and final section of Surah Al-Hadid. The section consists of two verses.
Two goals of believers
Light in the afterlife. Justice in this life.
The ayah gathers the Surah’s goals into a concise closing promise.
Justice and access to the Book
The believer seeks the establishment of justice and makes the Book of Allah available so that people do not lose their way.
Both goals are summarized in this ayah.
Language and structure
The Surah gathered into two commands
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللَّهَ
Become mindful, cautious and aware of Allah
Having Taqwaa of Allah summarizes the first section of Surah Al-Hadid. The easiest way to maintain this mindfulness is to remember that Allah is with every person wherever they are and sees everything they do.
وَهُوَ مَعَكُمْ أَيْنَ مَا كُنتُمْ ۚ وَاللَّهُ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ بَصِيرٌ
“He is with you wherever you are. And Allah is seeing what you do” — Ayah 4 of Al-Hadid
وَآمِنُوا بِرَسُولِهِ
Believe in His Messenger
This phrase captures the gist of the second section of Surah Al-Hadid, which began with the command to believe in Allah and His Messenger.
آمِنُوا بِاللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ
“Believe in Allah and His Messenger” — Ayah 7 of Al-Hadid
The divine response
Mercy, light and forgiveness
Develop Taqwaa of Allah and believe in His Messenger.
يُؤْتِكُمْ كِفْلَيْنِ مِن رَّحْمَتِهِ
Two portions of His Rahmah
Allah gives the believers two portions of His mercy.
وَيَجْعَل لَّكُمْ نُورًا تَمْشُونَ بِهِ
A light by which to walk
Allah makes a light for the believers by which they can walk.
وَيَغْفِرْ لَكُمْ
Forgiveness
Allah forgives the believers. Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.
The meaning of Nūr
A light that gives direction and safety
In the Tafsir of Al-Qurtubi: Mujahid said: The light refers to clarity and guidance. Ibn ‘Abbas said: It refers to the Qur’an. It is said: It is the light that you will walk with in the hereafter upon the Siraat (Bridge) and the light that leads you to Jannah (paradise) on the Day of Judgement. It is said: You walk among the people with this light, calling them to Islam; thus you become leaders in the Deen of Islam, a leadership that will never leave you.
In the Tafsir of Ibn ‘Ashour: His saying وَيَجْعَل لَّكُمْ نُورًا تَمْشُونَ بِهِ ‘And He will make for you a light by which you walk’ is a representation of the situation of people who seek Allah’s pleasure and hope to attain bliss, while fearing to fall into its opposite. It is like the situation of people walking on a path at night, afraid of making a misstep, and then being given a light by which they can discern the twists and turns of the road, so they are safe from straying from the path (and getting lost). (This metaphor shows light to mean clarity, guidance, discernment and safety).
Clarity Guidance The Qur’an Discernment Safety Light upon the Siraat Light leading to Jannah Leadership in the Deen