7. وامْتازوا الْیوْم أیّها الْمجْرمون

 “And ‘Get apart today, you guilty ones!”

Last week we ended our programme on the description of the eternal bliss of the people of Paradise and the bounties of the Lord Most High they will enjoy forever without being tired, bored, or exhausted.

The ayah that we have recited to you now refers to the separation of the guilty ones from the righteous ones on the Day of Judgment in accordance with the law of Divine Justice. As is clear by the tone it is a destined order and not a matter of choice. In the beginning, a voice will be heard in the Field of Grand Gathering: “Get apart today you guilty ones”. It means that during the transient life of the mortal world there was a veil over your deeds; nothing was known; no one knew what was in the heart of others because a number of hypocrites had placed themselves among the believers; but today truth is manifest.

Here there is no scope for false claims. There is nothing except what is right, truthful and actual. Those who had died in the state of unbelief, and unrepentant of their sins, must separate themselves from every side; by their appearance, words, place and time. On that day, whosoever is sinful, his face is black and whosoever is among the people of paradise, his face is bright. Thus the sinners would be recognized by their faces.

From this ayah we learn that:

1. The Resurrection is the day of sifting of truth from falsehood; the day of distinction between the people of paradise and hell.
2. It means there might be separation between parents and offspring, while those unrelated by birth or ethnicity would be together on the basis of beliefs.
3. The Day of Judgment is the day of fulfillment of the Divine Promise of the punishment of the wicked and the reward of the virtuous by the All-Merciful God, Who had given ample respite, time, and opportunity for the wayward to repent, reform and rectify their ways.

Now we listen to and read ayahs 60 to 62 of Surah Ya Sin:

7. ألمْ أعْهدْ إلیْکمْ یا بنی آدم أن لّا تعْبدوا الشّیْطان إنّه لکمْ عدوٌّ مّبینٌ
8. وأنْ اعْبدونی هذا صراطٌ مّسْتقیمٌ
9. ولقدْ أضلّ منکمْ جبلًّا کثیرًا أفلمْ تکونوا تعْقلون

“Did I not exhort you, O children of Adam, saying, “Do not worship Satan. He is indeed your manifest enemy.”

“Worship Me. That is the straight path”?

“Certainly he has led astray many of your generations. Did you not use to apply reason?”

These ayahs are addressed to the guilty ones, and how they had disobeyed God and deviated from the straight and unwavering path of guidance by following whims and carnal desires, which are indeed the temptations of the Satan to indulge in vices of every kind, without using their God-given intellect in the proper manner to discriminate between good and evil, and without learning from the fate of the past generations that were misled to doom by their archenemy, Lucifer or Iblis.

It is a reminder of God’s covenant with mankind which is mentioned in three stages: First in the stage at the beginning of creation, secondly relating to Adam the Father of entire mankind, and thirdly, and through the Prophets and Divine Messengers who took promise from people that they would not worship Satan, that is, not follow the insinuations of their mortal and manifest enemy Satan.

It is a reminder of the command from God to worship Him alone which the sinners had refused and allowed themselves to be duped, misled and destroyed by the Devil.

This is conclusion of the argumentation for mankind, which had been forewarned during mortal life of the consequences of sins and misdeeds through Prophets and Heavenly Scriptures, so that on the Day of Judgment, the sinners might not say: “O God! We had no knowledge of the right path and Your commandments as the One and Only Creator?”

There are some points in this ayah which demand deep reflection. Firstly, what does worshipping Satan mean? Secondly why is Satan inimical to man? Thirdly, how to protect ourselves from this open enemy?

Worshipping Satan means to indulge in sins, vices, oppression and the like by failing to heed not just the message of the Prophets but the inner voice of reason bestowed by God to all human beings that cautions the conscience against doing wrongs. When this conscientious nature is suppressed due to indulgence in sins and wrongdoings, it means worshipping of Satan.

Ever since the creation of Adam and his eternal damnation for refusing to obey God’s commandment, Satan has vowed to mislead the children of Adam and as a Divine Test and Tribulation of mankind, he has been given the respite to try to tempt them, although the Satan has no power to force human beings to obey him.

To protect oneself from Satan and his temptations is to be cognizant of God, be heedful of the messages delivered through Prophets and to use the intellect in the proper manner to distinguish between good and evil by overcoming carnal desires.

From these ayahs we learn that:

1. Through innate human nature, God has made covenant with mankind to obey Him and never be misled by the temptations of the Satan, and this is possible by heeding the message of the Divine Messengers.
2. There is no middle path between good and evil or faith and unbelief.
3. In every prayer, a Muslim beseeches God to guide us on the Right Path.
4. Reason and the intellect should be used in the proper manner for salvation of the self and welfare of all mankind without being deceived by Satan.

Now we listen to and read ayahs 63 to 65 of Surah Ya Sin:

“This is the hell you had been promised!”

“Enter it today, because of what you used to defy.”

“Today We shall seal their mouths, and their hands shall speak to Us, and their feet shall bear witness concerning what they used to earn.”

In continuation of the previous ayahs about the situation of the guilty ones on the Day of Resurrection, these ayahs mean to say that the Prophets had conveyed God's message to mankind of rewards for the believers and punishment for the sinners by warning against the pitfalls of hell, which the sinners used to deny and ridicule, and which promise has now become manifest. On the Day of Judgment, the sinners will not only see the blazing inferno of hell with their own eyes, but will be cast into it for the punishment that was promised, and they will become speechless since they have no pretext or argument to defend their disbelief. In the Divine Court, there is no need to speak of criminals, because their own bodily organs will stand witness against their sins and misdeeds for having misused their hands, feet, etc.

In explanation of the Divine Words “We shall seal their mouths”, Imam Reza (AS), the 8^th Infallible Heir of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA), says that it is for the unbelievers that is, those who died in a state of disbelief. Their tongue is sealed because the tongue of every denier is not truthful, neither in the world nor in the Hereafter. Their tongues always utter falsehood.   

From these ayahs we learn that:

1. The Prophets had forewarned mankind against the dangers and punishment of hell.
2. On the Day of Resurrection, the mouth, which is the means of speaking, is sealed, and instead hands and feet are given the power to speak out.
3. Whatever one has done in life is minutely recorded and will replayed or retold on the Day of Resurrection.