> The Killing of an Innocent man

[Assad]

Then a man came from the farthest end of the city at speed. He said: ‘My people! Follow these messengers. Follow those who ask you for no reward, and are themselves rightly guided. Why should I not worship the One who has brought me into being? It is to Him that you will all return. Should I worship other deities besides Him? If the Lord of Grace should will that harm befall me, their intercession will avail me nothing, nor will they save me. Indeed, I should clearly be in error. I do believe in the Lord of you all; so listen to me.’

He was told: ‘Enter paradise.’ He said: ‘Would that my people knew how my Lord has forgiven me my sins, and has placed me among the highly honored!’ After that, We did not send an army from heaven against his people; nor do We send any. Nothing was needed but one single blast, and they fell down lifeless. (Ya Sin: 36: 20-29)

The first few verses in this passage speak of a man from the town mentioned in the surah to whom God sent three messengers, but they were met with stubborn rejection. This man stands up to speak in support of the messengers, outlining to his people the great wisdom of the message they preached. The man then speaks about himself, outlining the reasons that motivated him to believe, and appealing to sound human nature: “Why should I not worship the One who has brought me into being? It is to Him that you will all return. Should I worship other deities besides Him? If the Lord of Grace should will that harm befall me, their intercession will avail me nothing, nor will they save me. Indeed, I should clearly be in error.” The question is posed by sound human nature, which feels the presence of its Creator and the source of its existence: “Why should I not worship the One who has brought me into being?” Why would I deviate from this natural way, which is the first to present itself to human nature? Needless to say, man is by nature attracted to his Creator and only deviates from Him under the pressure of some outside element. To turn to the Creator is the right and appropriate course, requiring no alien element or a pull from outside. The man here strongly feels this and states it clearly and simply.

The man also feels by nature that a created being must in the end return to its Creator, in the same natural law that brings everything homing to its originator: “It is to Him that you will all return.” He wonders why he should not worship his Creator when he is bound to return to Him, as will we all. It is He who creates, and it is He who should be worshiped.

The man then looks at the opposite way, which is contrary to sound nature, only to find that it is nothing but manifest error: “Should I worship other deities besides Him? If the Lord of Grace should will that harm befall me, their intercession will avail me nothing, nor will they save me.” Can anyone be in greater error than the one who abandons the way of sound nature, which requires that a created being worship its Creator? Why would anyone choose to worship someone or something else unnecessarily? Indeed, the one who turns his back on the Creator, resorting instead to weak deities that cannot protect him, has gone far into error: “Indeed, I should clearly be in error.”

Now that the man has stated his case, speaking for sound human nature that is aware of the truth, he declares his own final decision, confronting his people who had threatened God’s messengers. The voice of sound nature in his heart was clearer and stronger than any threat: “I do believe in the Lord of you all; so listen to me.” He wants them to witness his stand on the side of truth, implying that they too should follow his suit and declare themselves believers.

The drift of the story suggests that the unbelievers then killed the man. The surah, however, does not mention this clearly. Instead, it lets the curtain drop to cover this city, its people and their preoccupations. When the curtain rises again we see the martyr who spoke out clearly and loudly for the truth, confronting those in power. We see him in the next world and see the honor granted him by God, as fits a brave believer who does not hesitate to stand up for the truth: “He was told: Enter paradise. He said: Would that my people knew how my Lord has forgiven me my sins, and has placed me among the highly honored!”

Thus this present life is connected to the life to come: Death is merely a transfer from this transitory world to the one that is everlasting. It is but a step that takes a believer from the narrowness of the earth to the expanse of heavens, from the tyranny of falsehood to the security of the truth, and from the darkness of ignorance to the light of certainty. When the man sees what God has in store for him in heaven, he good-naturedly remembers his people, wishing that they could see the happiness and honor God has granted him so that they would know and accept the truth.

Such is the reward of faith. As for tyranny, it is too weak to require that God should send angels to destroy it: “After that, We did not send an army

from heaven against his people; nor do We send any. Nothing was needed but one single blast, and they fell down lifeless.” The surah does not speak in detail about how these people were destroyed. They are too insignificant to deserve such mention. They needed no more than one blast and no further trace of life was to be seen from them

Commentary by Sayyid Qutb