زُيِّنَ لِلنَّاسِ حُبُّ الشَّهَوَاتِ مِنَ النِّسَاء وَالْبَنِينَ وَالْقَنَاطِيرِ الْمُقَنطَرَةِ مِنَ الذَّهَبِ وَالْفِضَّةِ وَالْخَيْلِ الْمُسَوَّمَةِ وَالأَنْعَامِ وَالْحَرْثِ ذَلِكَ مَتَاعُ الْحَيَاةِ الدُّنْيَا وَاللّهُ عِندَهُ حُسْنُ الْمَآبِ {14}

14. "The love of desires (that come) from women, and of offspring, and heaped-up hoards of gold and silver and well-bred branded horses and cattle and tilth, is made to seem fair to mankind. This is the provision of the life of this world, while Allah is He with Whom is the good resort. "

Commentary:

The Arabic term /qanatir/ is the plural form of /qintar/ which in the Qur'anic Glossary means 'heap of talent' or, here, 'abundaut wealth'. The word /muqantarah /, from the same root, has been added after that for additional, emphasis.

The term /xayl/, applied in this verse, means 'horse' and a 'riding horse'. And the word /musawwamah/ means 'branded', Viz. the horses that possessed special prominces. That speciality was because of the beauty of their stature and or the kind of training they had gotten. Those horses were called 'well-bred branded horses'.

"The love of desires (that come) from women, and of offspring, and heaped-up hoards of gold and silver and well-bred branded horses and cattle and tilth, is made to seem fair to mankind...."

Things being seemed fair to mankind may sometimes be done by the means of imaginations, sometimes by Satan, and sometimes by flattering people in around.

The attractive examples mentioned in the verse are those in regard of the time of the revelation. They can have some new and different examples in every period.

"... This is the provision of the life of this world, while Allah is He with Whom is the good resort. "

قُلْ أَؤُنَبِّئُكُم بِخَيْرٍ مِّن ذَلِكُمْ لِلَّذِينَ اتَّقَوْا عِندَ رَبِّهِمْ جَنَّاتٌ تَجْرِي مِن تَحْتِهَا الأَنْهَارُ خَالِدِينَ فِيهَا وَأَزْوَاجٌ مُّطَهَّرَةٌ وَرِضْوَانٌ مِّنَ اللّهِ وَاللّهُ بَصِيرٌ بِالْعِبَادِ {15}

15. "Say: 'Shall I tell you of what is better than these? For those who keep from evil are gardens with their Lord; beneath which rivers flow, wherein they will abide forever, and pure spouses, and Allah's pleasure; and Allah is well aware of the servants."

Commentary:

In the previous verse, Allah's word was upon belittling the love of this world and enjoining people to piety and good goal of life. In this verse, it introduces the Hereafter, as grand and worthy, and encourages people towards it.

"Say: 'Shall I tell you of what is better than these? ..."

It addresses the Prophet (s) commanding to 'say' a great information in the form of a question. Some of commentators believe that the content of the inquiry stretches upto the phrase 'with their Lord' in the verse. They say what it informs which begins from the Qur'anic phrase 'gardens beneath which rivers flow'.

Therefore, the consequence of the meaning of the verse is: 'Shall I inform you of what is better than that which was formerly said about the desires of this world and lusts and their attractions?'

"... For those who keep from evil... "

"... are gardens with their Lord, beneath which rivers flow..."

Then it adds:

"... where in they will abide forever ..."

When enumerating the merits in Heaven, it refers to spouses therein who are pure from any pollution, filthiness, indecent qualities, and disgraceful manners:

"…and pure spouses ..."

Besides Heaven of this kind, the pleasure of Allah is theirs-

"... and Allah's pleasure... "

Finally, it adds:

"... and Allah is well aware of the servants."

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الَّذِينَ يَقُولُونَ رَبَّنَا إِنَّنَا آمَنَّا فَاغْفِرْ لَنَا ذُنُوبَنَا وَقِنَا عَذَابَ النَّارِ {16}

الصَّابِرِينَ وَالصَّادِقِينَ وَالْقَانِتِينَ وَالْمُنفِقِينَ وَالْمُسْتَغْفِرِينَ بِالأَسْحَارِ {17}

16. "Those who say: ' Our Lord! Verily we believe, so forgive us our sin and save us from the torment of the Fire."

17. "The patient, and the truthful, and the obedient, and those who spend (benevolently), and those who seek forgiveness before dawn (times)."

Commentary:

The characteristics of the pious ones, who were hinted out in the previous verse, are stated here in this verse with more details.

At first it says about them:

"Those who say: 'Our Lord! We believe..."

That is: we believe in You and Your Apostle. Then, they continue saying:

"...so forgive us our sin and save us from the torment of the Fire."

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After that, the Qur'an has stated some other characteristics of the pious ones where it has praised them. It says the pious are the same as:

"The patient, and the truthful, and the obedient, and those who spend (benevolently), and those who seek forgiveness before dawn (times)"

Thus, the pious have the following qualities:

1. Patience in tolerating the difficulties, the prohibitions, and the Divine services.

2. To be truthful in speech and manner.

3. Humility and submission without pride and self -admiration.

4. Giving in charity from what Allah has provided them as sustenance.

5. Supplications and seeking forgiveness from their Lord during the time before dawn.

The term /munfiqin / (those who spend out), in the verse, refers to those who spend out their wealth benevolently in righteous deeds, when it consists of giving obligatory alms and recommended charity.

Opinions are divided as to the meaning of the Qur'anic phrase /wal mustaqfirina bil ashar/ (and those who seek forgiveness before dawn times). They are four varieties as follows:

1. To establish prayer at midnight, (said by Qattadah). This very meaning has been cited by Imam Rida (a) who narrated from his father (a) from Imam Ja'far Sadiq (a) .[6]

2. Those who seek forgiveness before dawn, (said by 'Anas).

3. Those who keep the morning prayer in congregation, (said by Ziyd-ibn 'Aslam).

4. Those who continue keeping prayers until before dawn and then ask Allah to forgive them their sins, (said by Hassan).

It is narrated from Imam -Sadiq (a) who has said: "Whosoever, at midnight, seeks forgiveness seventy times is involved in the people of this verse..." [7]

In a tradition it is narrated from the Prophet (s) who said:

"Verily Allah, Almighty and Glorious, says: ' Whenever I will to punish the people of the earth, I restrain it from them when I observe the constructors of mosques, the performers of the night prayers, those who make friends with each other in My way, and those who seek forgiveness before dawn (times)..." [8]

In Islamic literature, it is cited that if a person continuously recites /astaghfirullaha rabbi wa 'atiibu 'ilayh/ seventy times in his personal preyer of odd prayer at midnight for one year, the one will be involved of the people of this verse.[9]

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[6] Majma'-ul-Bayan, Vol. 2, P. 419 (Arabic version).

[7] Ibid

[8] Ibid

[9] Atyab-ul-Bayan, Vol. 3, P. 137