A point to be noted is that the word “Adl” has not been used for God in the Qura’n but as a duty of human beings. Right opposite it is the denial of God and various kinds of injustice including that of misusing ‘Qist”

It is also possible and we have said, earlier that the word “Adl” has not been used for God because this word has often been used for polytheism and God did not prefer that it should be used for Him.

The first verse clearly states: in th4e first verse of this discussion “Verily God does not deal unjustly with man; it is man that wrongs his own soul.”

This may be referring to the earlier words of God:

“Among them are those who pretend to listen to you but can you make the deaf hear even though they are without understanding? Among them are some who look at you but can you guide the blind even though they will not see? Verily God will not deal unjustly with man in anything; it is man that wrongs his soul.”

There is a group of people unable to see the truth and incapable of hearing it. It is due to their wrong doings that their eyes and ears have been screened and it is not that God brought them to this condition needlessly.

 According to another interpretation it is a Sunnah of God that when the eyes that can see and the ears that can hear are not used for the right purpose they lose their natural abilities.

 So if a person or a community indulges in these activities (wrong doings) then it does injustice to itself and God has not been unjust to them.

This explanation has been accepted by many commentators but the strange fact is some people like Fakhr Razi have not adopted this clear meaning instead have opined that the entire universe is the kingdom of God so nothing that he does will be considered injustice. Though the verse is very clearly and minutely stating that this assumption is wrong. It does not purport that injustice by God will not be injustice. But the verse says that despite having all the powers He will never do such a thing.

There are many such interpretations. If we say that a certain doctor did not accept a certain patient it will mean that he could have treated him but did not. We can never say that a certain untalented doctor did not treat him.

The second verse says the same thing in another style. It says, “And not one will your Lord treat with injustice.”

This can be said for “Rabb” (Lord) for it means that His work is to arrange, nurture, and perfect things but not to oppress of be unjust because this will lead to loss and decadence and that is against His nature. This sentence portrays the condition of the sinners on the Judgment Day. They will cry out when they see their deeds, “Alas! Who has written this record of deeds? Nothing big or small in deeds is missing in it.” Verse 49 of Surah Kahaf says, “Woe to us! What a book is this! It leaves nothing out small or great” They will find the record in front of them.

These are the people who have been unjust to themselves and not God, especially when their deeds are before them. The rejection of injustice from God becomes still clearer.

The third verse speaks of worldly punishments that were meted out to the previous six communities because of their disbelief and rebellion. (2) The verse says, “It is not God who wrongs them, but they wrong their own souls.” God has given them awareness and intelligence and then he sent His messages one after another through His apostles and warned them but when these things did not prove beneficial He punished them. One group was destroyed by water, another group by a fierce wind and the third by earthquake and a shriek from the heavens.

This also warns those communities that are enmeshed in sins even today to control themselves and not to cut their legs off with their own hands and not to burn their abodes with their sins. The words “It is not God who wronged them” are the in the past tense and this is done to say that never ever in any age of time did God ever be unjust to His creations. This is not something perchance but an established nor or Sunnah that is continuous.

The fourth verse speaks about the rewards and punishments on the Day of Judgment. It is said, “Then, on that day, not a soul will be wronged in the least, and you shall be repaid for your past deeds.”

The term “not a soul will be wrong’ is incomplete but God will be the one who will rule that Day especially and so injustice is being denied from God. It says that neither does He neither wrongs any one in this world nor will be wrong anyone in the hereafter. The deeds of men will be evident before them and they are good they will attain peace and tranquility but if they are sinful then they will be subject to chastisement. This is why the verse says that on that Day your deeds will be your rewards.

The fifth verse speaks about charity. It is said, “What ever good you did will be repaid to you and you shall not be dealt with unjustly.” The commentators have taken the injustice mentioned here as loss or you will not be deprived of anything. But injustice too has a vast meaning though it means only loss in the sense of numbers and conditions.

We should pay attention to the fact that the first part of the verse hints about charity while the situation of the revelation speaks specifically about it. Even though the needy may be disbelievers. Qura’n urges the Muslims to spend on the disbelievers if the situation so demand and because they are not responsible for making the disbelievers believe. This is God’s jurisdiction. They should rest assured that if the intention is to help the needy then the person who spends will be reward multifold in the hereafter.

Your wealth will be insured because of charity because when the people are surrounded by poverty then the society will be surrounded by chaos and it will not result in just the loss of wealth but the loss of life also. But the reward in the hereafter from God will be multifold. This in fact urges those who give charity that the best use of wealth is in charity itself because this wealth will return to them with profit. Does any one want to own old dresses and unusable things? So one should not spend the useless things in charity.

The sixth verse speaks about those who praise themselves and seek high offices for their families like the Jews who called themselves the “sons of God’. They believe that if they sin in the day then God will forgive their sins in the night.

The Christians too believe in the same thing (many commentators while explaining this verse has mentioned both these groups and their wrongful assumptions.) Qura’n says self aggrandizement emanates from selfishness and vanity and it is worthless. (The respect comes when God praises you or your deed) God praises those in who finds the necessary piety and capacity and never does any harm even it be like the thread which clings to the fruit seed. Since He knows the human beings in and out His praise will always be in the limit while the praise by other humans will be full of ignorance and have various reasons for it and it is connected with hate and love and vanity and ignorance.

This verse speaks of injustice in regard to this praise and as God has mentioned it. But it can be said that this verse speaks of a great sin that is done due to vanity because these people considered themselves an elite creation which deserves rewards and praise always (And this in itself is a great sin).

Qura’n says that such uttering demands punishment but there is no injustice in it. Anyway the first explanation is more plausible.

The words “Qutl” are “Qatl” and it means weaving. “Qateel” means a woven rope but here it is used for a fine thread that is found in the date palm seed. This is a comparison with something very fine and weak.(3)

The same meaning is there in the seventh verse but in a new style. If in the second verse injustice was denied about humans here injustice is being denied for all creations by God.

The same meaning is there in the 7th verse with a fresh expression though in the second verse there was this denial of injustice by God for men but here is the denial of any injustice for the entire universe for He never intends to be unjust. “Wa -Mallahu yureedu zulmanal Alimeen.”

If the universe is taken to be inhabited by all intelligent creatures then it will include both humans and the angels. According to Tafsir Al Mizan the meaning of the word “worlds’ points to the fact that injustice in any in any form on any one will effect the entire universe (because the universe is one and every thing is inter-connected).

The point to be noted is that the thinkers have taken this verse as a refutation of compulsion; they say that if the deeds of men are the deeds of God then the injustice they mete out to each other will all be attributed to God even though God is never unjust with anyone of His creations. It is then proven that the tyranny and injustice result from man’s own doings for had it been from God then He would have intended to do so but God never intends to be unjust with anyone. This will then mean that God is free from all injustices.

It is surprising that Fakhr Razi quotes this (though it is against his belief) but gives no answer. (4) This verse has three basic issues, universe, injustice and intention and is the most composite proof of God never being unjust.

If we take the word “Alimin” in the plural form then it will include all intelligent people, humans, Jinns, and angels. If we take it as Taghleeb then it will include every living and non-living things and we will be able to prove that He has placed everything in its proper place with justice.

The word “zulman” has been described as singular but with a negative expression and this is because of being all inclusive for it includes the smallest and the tiniest.

The 8th verse lays stress on “Qist” and “Adl” as a permanent Sunnah while the previous verse denied injustice. It says, “And god bears witness that there is no god but He and so do the angels and those endued with knowledge standing firm on justice. “

The point to be noted is that one of the conditions of “Shahood” is His being just so that He can remove all hindrances for them in the path of justice. Here to support has been taken from God’s divine justice to prove His witness.

If we look deeply enough we will discover that justice prevails in the universe because we find every thing in its proper place. We sometimes feel that certain things are defective but when we study them then our doubts are removed. If do not understand the cause at a certain juncture then we should understand that this is due to the paucity of our knowledge.

Justice is also the proof of God’s oneness because had there be another creator and manager then all things would have had duality and would in turn result in chaos. The unity and cohesiveness of the system that prevails in the universe is proof enough of God’s oneness.

We can also say that His oneness is the proof of His justice and His justice is the proof of His oneness. This is a fine point that has been derived from this verse (5)

The special thing is that Zamakhshri has taken this verse as the refutation of injustice because compulsion in justice is not compatible with God. This is a clear point and we will use It in our discussion later Inshallah. What greater injustice can there be than a person forces some one to do something and then punishes him for doing the same?

But Fakhr Razi because of his bias has criticized the author of Kashaf very sharply. He has called him ignorant unaware of the finer points of knowledge. He then used the famous doubt about the knowledge of God as a pretext in the issue of compulsion and said:

 “If the sinners to not disobey and do not commit the sin written in their fate from eternity then God’s knowledge will become His ignorance. (6). the answer to this doubt is very clear and even today those who have little knowledge about compulsion are aware of the answer. We will discuss this in details later Inshallah.

The 9th verse speaks of the rewards and punishments on the Day of Judgment meted out by divine justice. The term “Qist” has been relied upon. The verse says, “It is He who begins the creation and then will repeat it; that he may reward those who believed and did righteous deeds.”

This verse points to the logical explanation of the Day of Judgment because He who has created and originated has the power and the right to erase and destroy what He has created.

The end will definitely come because how will justice be proclaimed and rights be distributed if it doesn’t? There many good people who did not get justice in this world and there are many evil doers who have not yet been punished.

The point to note is that it speaks of severest punishment for the disbelievers on the Day of Judgment Verse 4 of Surah Yunus says, “But those who disbelieved will have a drink of boiling fluids and painful torment because they used to disbelieve”. There is no mention of Qist and Adl in this verse and this because the very beginning of the verse speaks about the punishment of the disbelievers. And then the verse says that it is about the disbelief that they practiced. It is also to tell the righteous people that the Judgment day has been instituted because their rights are to be distributed to them.

Some commentators have opined that the word “Qist” denotes the deeds of the believers because they have installed justice which is an imperative part of faith.

So God will reward such believers (7) but those who believe this did not pay attention to the fact that righteous deeds are always according to the tenets of justice so it should not be confined but taken as a reminder and we know that reminder is against the evident and needs to be arranged.

The 10th verse mentions the same meaning but with a little difference. The terms “Qist” and “Adl” have been taken as balance for deeds and we know that this scale or balance has been installed by God. This is a part of His attribute.

The other difference between this verse and the above one is that its meaning is general and includes both the believers and the disbelievers because the balance of divine justice will mete out perfect justice. It is said, “We shall set up scales of justice for the Judgment Day so that no soul shall be dealt with unjustly.”

The important thing here is that “Qist” is being described as the attribute of the divine scale and it is said that the scale which is justice is a reminder. It is like when we say that a certain person is just so we need not take any word in the verse to mean pre- ordained.

In the 5th volume of this commentary we shall explain that the scale here is not material which may raise the question that how grave is the evil in a certain deed? How will this scale tell us? Then we will be helpless like Fakhr Razi to say that weight here means the weight of the record of deeds. Or we will say that the good deeds will be shining bright and the bad deeds will be dark. (8)

We know that the comparison is connected to the weight and everything is weighed according to its capacity like temperature or the blood pressure etc. The accounting will be done through something that is compatible. We recite in the ziyarat of Amirul Mumineen “Peace be upon you O scale of deeds” The perfect man is the scale for other human beings because everything will be judged according to some thing similar

The important thing is that in some Tafsirs they say that Hazrat Daud requested God to show him the scale for deeds. He fainted when he was shown what he desired and when he awoke he said, “Lord! What a perfect scale! Who can fill its balances with good deeds?” It was replied. “O Daud! When I am pleased with a servant then I fill this side with a date (the one which is given as charity in the Lord’s way) what is required here is the condition and intention of the deed. (9)

1. Lisan-ol-Arab vol. 7 on the word Qist

2. the people of Noah, Aad, Thamud, Ibrahim, Shuaib and Luot

3. Tafsir Al Mizan vol.3 page 1414

4. Tafsir Kabeer vol. 8 page 174

5. Tafsir Al Mizan vol. 3 page 119

6. Tafsir Kabeer Vol. 7 page 206

7. Tafsir Al Minar vol. 11 page 299

8. Tafsir Al Kabeer vol. 22 page 176

9. Tafsir Kabeer vol. 22 page 176