The Arabic word
"sijn" is often translated as "prison", however, based on
Surah Al-Mutaffifeen perhaps it also has the meaning of "lowliness".
Allah says: "Nay: the record of the corrupt is in sijjeen. And what will
make you know what sijjeen is? It is an inscribed book." 83:7-9 Shortly
thereafter Allah continues: "Nay the record of the righteous is in
'illiyyeen. And what will make you know what 'illiyyeen is? It is an inscribed
book." 83:18-20
Notice in these aayaat He contrasts the record of
the corrupt and the record of the righteous. The record of the corrupt exists
in sijjeen while the record of the righteous exists in 'illiyyeen. What is the
meaning of these two words?
"Sijjeen" is from the Arabic root s-j-n,
which is the same as "sijn" (prison). However, when a word is
lengthened like that in the Arabic language, that is called
"mubaalaghah", or making the meaning far reaching or more extended.
This is a common feature of the Arabic language. Mubaalagah is defined by one
scholar as: "It is when a speaker mentions a description but increases it
so that it will be farther reaching in terms of the meaning he intended."
(Al-Kulliyyaat)
This is a useful concept to know in studying the
Qur'an, and one which is often expressed by the succinct principle: "Ziyaadatun
fil mabnaa ziyaadatun fil ma'naa", or, "An increase in the form is an
increase in the meaning."
So sijn (prison) is one thing, but sijjeen is the
toughest and most extreme sijn (prison).
Look at how beautiful the Qur'an is! The record of
the corrupt is in the most extreme form of prison. We will come to how this
fits into the whole surah in a moment, but first let's discuss the meaning of
"lowliness". In these aayaat the record of the corrupt is in sijjeen,
and that is contrasted with the record of the righteous which is in 'illiyyeen.
The word 'illiyyeen comes from the word 'alaa
which means "to be high, elevated..." (The Hans Wehr Dictionary of
Modern Written Arabic) There are various explanations for the meaning of this
word in this aayah, however one of the simplest ways to define it is the
"...loftiest heights". (ibid.) This is because some people think of
this word as meaning the place, and others believe it refers to the people
themselves. In either case the state of the righteous is an elevated one, hence
the translation "the loftiest heights" covers all possible
explanations. Allah knows best.
So the record of the corrupt is in sijjeen, and
the record of the righteous is in 'illiyyeen. These are two contrasting states.
An Arabic couplet says: "The beauty of the opposite is manifested by its
opposite, so it is by opposites that things are distinguished." By
comparing these two opposite states, we come to learn something about the true
state of the corrupt versus the true state of the righteous.
Sijjeen, as previously stated, is the utmost form
of prison. Here, however, it is contrasted with a state of elevation
('illiyyeen). This perhaps shows that the meaning of sijn is not just
confinement, but a state of lowliness. The corrupt exist in a state of
confinement and lowliness.
They are not free! They are imprisoned by their
attachment to the material world. They are not elevated! They are continuously
brought down by clinging to this world. It is only those who hold onto the
aayaat (signs) of Allah that can truly float above this world. Allah says:
"And recite upon them the news of the one who we gave him our aayaat and
he stripped himself from them...and if we had willed WE WOULD HAVE ELEVATED HIM
BY THEM, BUT HE CLUNG TO THE EARTH AND FOLLOWED HIS DESIRES..." 7:175-176
Allah gives us a subtle indication of this in
Surah Yusuf. Yusuf chooses worldly confinement and lowliness (sijn) over
disobeying Allah when he says: "My Lord, the sijn is more beloved to me
than that which they invite me to..." 12:33 Later in the story, his
innocence is acknowledged and he is released from the sijn (12:51), after which
he is promoted to a high position in the government (12:55). On top of that,
those who were in the sijn with him recognized him as a doer of good (12:36).
Who was really in prison?
Returning to Surah Al-Mutaffifeen, we learn that
the corrupt are in sijjeen (the most extreme form of prison), as contrasted
with the righteous who are in 'illiyyeen (the loftiest heights). Why does Allah
tells us that in this particular surah? If we study the whole context, we can
discover some possible reasons.
The surah begins with a discussion of
Al-Mutaffifeen. This comes from the word "tafeef" which means
"an insignificant thing". (Mufradaat Alfaadh Al-Qur'an)
Al-Mutaffifeen in usually translated as "those who defraud others",
or translations to that effect. But let's think about this in the context of
the surah as a whole to see how inspirational this beautiful surah is.
Al-mutaffifeen are defined in the next ayah as:
"Those who, when they have to receive by measure from people, demand their
full measure." Then Allah says: "And when they 'iktaaluhum' or
'wazanuhum' give less than due", which is translated as "give by
measure or weight", but literally means "measure them" or
"weigh them". Here is the beauty of understanding that al-mutaffifeen
comes from tafeef (a trivial thing). Allah is talking about how they measure
and weigh people! They trivialize them. This goes with the end of the surah where
Allah discusses how certain people make fun of those who have faith (83:29-36)
So now we see the beauty of perhaps why Allah
discussed who was really in the most extreme prison and who is really in the
loftiest heights in 83:7-21. He is inspiring all of us, those of us who have
been trivialized, marginalized, and weighed by the scales of the material world
to remember: "And do not become weak or sad, while you are the most
elevated, if you are believers." 3:139
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