A001
Surah: 103 - Ayah: 001
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103:1
Asr (Time, (the lord of the time))
The Surah of Asr (103:1-3) is full of the wonders and marvels of wisdom. Therefore in order to derive greater benefit from it, we are posing some questions related to it. Question 1: What is the sanctity of the asr that God swears by it? Question 2: Which people are meant here by man? What kind of loss are they in? Question 3: In this world, one is a teacher and the other is a student, but here it mentions to exhort one another, so what is the secret in this? Question 4: What is meant by the truth (haqq) and what does patience (sabr) mean?
Answer 1: God does not swear by an ordinary thing, so by the time is meant the lord of the time (i.e. the Imam of the time). Thus God has sworn by the Imam of the time.
Answer 2: Here by man are meant all people, some of whom are exempt from the loss. The reason for the majority being in loss is that they did not recognise the lord of the time, otherwise the entire time would have been theirs internally.
Answer 3: Every wisdom of the religion of nature (Islam) is circular. Thus, if a successful teacher gives true knowledge to his students, then God helps him through the souls of his students. This is the ta'wil of exhorting one another.
Answer 4: By the truth (haqq) is meant the truth of religion and the holy Prophet had prayed for it to remain with Ali (a.s.) and patience is the name of steadfastness in the path of spirituality.
“By (the lord of) the time, verily man is in (great) loss (because he does not recognise the lord of the time), save those who (truly) believe and do good deeds and exhort one another to truth and exhort one another to patience.” (103:1-3).
Man, in fact, lives in a palace in which the scenery of nasut (human kingdom) can be seen from the windows of the first storey; the secrets of the malakut (angelic kingdom) are observed through the windows of the second storey, and the manifestation of the beauty of the jabarut (kingdom of the Divine attributes) are observed through the windows of the third storey. But man is always very negligent and lazy and hence he is in great loss (103:1). He confines himself to the first storey and does not take the trouble to climb the stairs to the second and third storeys. Or it can be said, he is ill and therefore is not able to use the upper storeys of his palace. Except what God wills!
This verse has been referred 9 times.