Upholding of Justice, thereby establishing balance is the second most important part after Tawhid which is emphasized at many a place in the Qur'an. This has been deliberated upon in the verses 7-9 of Surah Ar Rahman. We all know that Allah has created a fine balance in all celestial movements and if for a fraction of second, this balance is disturbed, there will be utter chaos. Likewise if justice is not upheld in in a society, the balance will be broken and will lead to injustice and usurping of rights of people. Thus, in a the following few brief sentences the people have been told what teaching has been brought by the Qur'an which the Merciful God has sent for the guidance of man:
وَالسَّمَآءَ رَفَعَهَا وَوَضَعَ الۡمِيۡزَانَۙ
( 7 ) And the heaven He raised and imposed the balance
Almost all the commentators have interpreted mizan " الۡمِيۡزَانَۙ " (balance) to mean justice, and '...set the balance" to imply that Allah has established the entire system of the Universe on justice. Had there been no harmony and balance and justice established among the countless stars and planets moving in space, and the mighty forces working in this Universe, and the innumerable creatures and things found here, this life on earth would not have functioned even for a moment. Look at the creatures existing in the air and water and on land for millions and millions of years on this earth. They continue to exist only because full justice and balance has been established in the means and factors conducive to life; in case there occurs a slight imbalance of any kind, every tract of lift would become extinct.
Yusuf Ali Explanation:
The "balance of justice" in this verse is connected with "the Balance" in the next two verses, that men may act justly to each other and observe due balance in all their actions, following the golden mean and not transgressing due bounds in anything. But the Balance is also connected figuratively with the heavens above in three symbols: (1) Justice is a heavenly virtue: (2) the heavens themselves are sustained by mathematical balance; and (3) the constellation Libra (the Balance) is entered by the sun at the middle of the zodiacal year.
Muhammad Asad Explanation:
The noun mizan, usually denoting a "balance", has here the more general connotation of "measure" or "measuring" by any means whatsoever (Zamakhshari), in both the concrete and abstract senses of the word. (Cf. also the parabolic use of the term mizan in 42:17 and 57:25 .):
[for] it is God [Himself] who has bestowed revelation from on high, setting forth the truth, and [thus given man] a balance [wherewith to weigh right and wrong]. And for all thou knowest, the Last Hour may well be near! (42:17)
Indeed, [even aforetime] did We send forth Our apostles with all evidence of [this] truth; and through them We bestowed revelation from on high, and [thus gave you] a balance [wherewith to weigh right and wrong], so that men might behave with equity; and We bestowed [upon you] from on high [the ability to make use of] iron, in which there is awesome power as well as [a source of] benefits for man: and [all this was given to you] so that God might mark out those who would stand up for him and His Apostle, even though He [Himself] is beyond the reach of human perception.44 Verily, God is powerful, almighty! ( 57:25 )
اَلَّا تَطۡغَوۡا فِى الۡمِيۡزَانِ
( 8 ) That you not transgress within the balance.
وَاَقِيۡمُوا الۡوَزۡنَ بِالۡقِسۡطِ وَلَا تُخۡسِرُوا الۡمِيۡزَانَ
( 9 ) And establish weight in justice and do not make deficient the balance.
That is, "As you are living in a balanced Universe, whose entire system has been established on justice, you also should adhere to justice. For if you act unjustly within the sphere in which you have been given authority, and fail to render the rights of others, you would indeed be rebelling against the nature of the Universe; for the nature of this Universe does not admit of injustice and perversion and violation of the rights. Not to speak of a major injustice, even if a person fraudulently deprives another of an ounce of something, by giving him short measure, he disturbs the balance of the entire Universe.
Yusuf Ali Explanation:
To be taken both literally and figuratively. A man should be honest and straight in every daily matter, such as weighing out things which he is selling: and he should be straight, just and honest, in all the highest dealings, not only with other people, but with himself and in his obedience to Allah's Law. Not many do either the one or the other when they have an opportunity of deceit. Justice is the central virtue, and the avoidance of both excess and defect in conduct keeps the human world balanced just as the heavenly world is kept balanced by mathematical order.
Qur'an Wiki:
"He has raised the skies high, and has set the balance, so that you may not exceed the balance. Weigh, therefore, with justice and do not fall short in the balance." (Verses 7-9) The reference to the skies is intended, like all other references in the Qur'an to the two immediate aspects of the universe, to awaken minds and hearts that have become oblivious to the wonders around them, because of long familiarity. These minds and hearts should look at the universe, appreciate its wonderful beauty, harmony and coordination, and glorify the One who initiated all.
Whatever is meant by the skies, the reference to them lifts our sight to the great space above us, which appears without boundaries, and in which float trillions of huge celestial bodies, yet no collision occurs between them, either individually or in clusters. A cluster may include as many as a billion stars, as in the galaxy which includes our own solar system. Our sun has a diameter of 2.3 million kilometers, yet within our galaxy there are many smaller stars and many that are larger by thousands of times. All these stars and clusters of stars and planets move in space at frightening speeds, but in the great space above they are no more than particles floating far apart from each other.
Another Viewpoint [5]
Allah set a balance of Justice in the Sky and Earth. He commands us not to break this balance, not to lose (tuKhsir) it. In fact Allah is telling us that there is a balance in the sky and earth, and we should look to that and not break the limits of Allah.
Just look at the blue Sky and the worldly Earth around us – that is in of itself working in harmony with each other in precision, order and obedience. There are so many seemingly different things taking place at similar times in the Sky; (different stars, planets, days and nights etc), and on the Earth; different plants, insects and animals (animals only hunt each other for food [in a balanced food chain] but don’t do mass murder for no reason.)
Yet when we see oppression on Earth, we see it is only due to disobedient humans wronging each other – that is why there is corruption, harm and evil in this world. So when people say; why does God allow evil, then no – the entire Sky and Earth are obedient to Allah – at peace with each other even though there are so much differences within them. So why can’t humans get along in obedience to God/Allah and work together in their differences for a greater good, just like the Sky and Earth work together to sustain life for millions of years?
If we humans followed the example of the sun, moon, stars etc. – by being obedient slaves of Allah – their would also be harmony on this Earth, just like it is in the skies. However, us humans have to be sincere to the Abundantly Merciful (ar-Rahman), be students of His Merciful Qur’an, and follow the way of His Merciful Messenger, Muhammad (sal Allah alayhi wasalam.)
May Allah help us understand Qur'ān and help us to act upon the commandments of Allah contained therein. Aameen.
For more Selected Verses, please refer to our reference page: Selected Verses from the Qur'an. You may also refer to our Reference Pages for knowing more about Islam and Qur'ān.
For more Selected Verses, please refer to our reference page: Selected Verses from the Qur'an. You may also refer to our Reference Pages for knowing more about Islam and Qur'ān.
An effort has been made to gather explanation / exegesis of the surahs of the Qur'ān from authentic sources and then present a least possible condensed explanation of the surah. In that:
- The plain translation has been taken from the Qur'ān officially published by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. [1]
- The exegesis of the chapters of the Quran is mainly based on the "Tafhim al-Qur'an - The Meaning of the Qur'an" by one of the most enlightened scholars of the Muslim World Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi. [2]
In order to augment and add more explanation as already provided by [2], additional input has been interjected from following sources:
- Towards Understanding the Quran
- Tafsir Ibn Khatir
- Muhammad Asad Translation
- Al-Quran, Yusuf Ali Translation
- Javed Ahmad Ghamidi / Al Mawrid
- Verse by Verse Qur'an Study Circle
In addition the references of other sources which have been explored have also been given above. Those desirous of detailed explanations and tafsir (exegesis), may refer to these sites.
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