Surah ash-Shams (The Sun ) 91 : 8

Overview (Verses 7 - 10)

A Look into the Human Soul

The surah moves on to state the basic truth about man, and relates this truth to the various phenomena of the universe, for man is one of the most remarkable wonders in this harmonious creation: “By the soul and its moulding and inspiration with knowledge of wickedness and righteousness. Successful is the one who keeps it pure, and ruined is the one who corrupts it.” (Verses 7-10)

The basis of the Islamic concept of human psychology is outlined in these four verses, along with verse 10 of the preceding surah, The City, “And [We have] shown him the two paths,” and verse 3 in Surah 76, Man, which says: “We have shown him the right path, be he grateful or ungrateful.” They supplement the verses which point out the duality in man’s make-up in Surah 38, Sad, which says: “Your Lord said to the angels, ‘I am creating man from clay. When I have fashioned him, and breathed of My spirit into him, kneel down and prostrate yourselves before him.’“ (38: 7172) These verses also supplement and relate to the verses which define man’s responsibility and accountability for his actions, such as the one in Surah 74, The Cloaked One, which reads: “Everyone is held in pledge for whatever he has wrought,” and the verse in Surah 13, Thunder, which states that God’s attitude to man is directly related to man’s own behaviour: “God does not change a people’s lot until they change what is in their hearts.” (13: 11) These and similar verses define the Islamic view of man with perfect clarity.

God has created man with a duality of nature and ability. What we mean by duality is that the two ingredients in his make-up, i.e. earth’s clay and God’ spirit, form within him two equal tendencies to good or evil, to either follow divine guidance or go astray. Man is just as capable of recognizing the good as he is of recognizing the evil in everything he encounters, and he is equally capable of directing himself one way or the other. This dual ability is deeply ingrained within him. All external factors, like divine messages, only serve to awaken his ability and help it take its chosen way. In other words, these factors do not create this innate ability; they only help it to develop.

In addition to his innate ability, man is equipped with a conscious faculty which determines his line of action. Hence, he is responsible for his actions and decisions. He who uses this faculty to strengthen his inclinations to what is good and to purify himself and to weaken his evil drive will be prosperous and successful. By contrast, a person who uses this faculty to suppress the good in him will ruin himself: “Successful is the one who keeps it pure, and ruined is the one who corrupts it.” (Verses 9- 10)

There must be, then, an element of responsibility attached to man’s conscious faculty and freedom of choice. Since he is free to choose between his tendencies, his freedom must be coupled with responsibility. He is assigned a definite task related to the power given to him. But God, the Compassionate, does not leave man with no guidance other than his natural impulses or his conscious, decision-making faculty. God helps him by sending him messages which lay down accurate and permanent criteria, and points out to him the signs, within him and in the world at large, which should help him choose the right path and clear his way of any obstructions so that he can see the truth. Thus, he recognizes his way easily and clearly and his conscious decision-making faculty functions in full knowledge of the nature of the direction it chooses and the implications of that choice.

This is what God has willed for man and whatever takes place within this framework is a direct fulfilment of His will.

From this very general outline of the Islamic concept of man emerge a number of vital and valuable facts: firstly, that this concept elevates man to the high position of being responsible for his actions and allows him freedom of choice, within the confines of God’s will that has granted him this freedom. Responsibility and freedom of choice, therefore, make man the honoured creature of this world, a position worthy of the creature in whom God has blown something of His own spirit and whom He ha made with His own hand and raised above most of His creation

Secondly, it puts man’s fate in his own hands — according to God’s will as already explained — and makes him responsible for it. This stimulates caution in him as well as a positive sense of fear of God. For he knows then that God’s will is fulfilled through his own actions and decisions: “God does not change a people’s lot until they change what is in their hearts.” (13: 11) This is in itself a great responsibility which demands that one should always be alert.

Thirdly, it reminds man of his permanent need to refer to the criteria fixed by God in order to ensure that his desires do not get the better of him. Thus man stays near to God, follows His guidance and illuminates his way by divine light. Indeed, the standard of purity man can achieve is limitless.