Surah Yunus: Verse 61 - وما تكون في شأن وما... - English
Tafsir of Verse 61, Surah Yunus
English Translation
And, [O Muhammad], you are not [engaged] in any matter or recite any of the Qur\'an and you [people] do not do any deed except that We are witness over you when you are involved in it. And not absent from your Lord is any [part] of an atom\'s weight within the earth or within the heaven or [anything] smaller than that or greater but that it is in a clear register.English Transliteration
Wama takoonu fee shanin wama tatloo minhu min quranin wala taAAmaloona min AAamalin illa kunna AAalaykum shuhoodan ith tufeedoona feehi wama yaAAzubu AAan rabbika min mithqali tharratin fee alardi wala fee alssamai wala asghara min thalika wala akbara illa fee kitabin mubeenunTafsir of Verse 61
In the fifth verse (61), mention has been made of the all-encompassing knowledge of the most exalted Allah and its unmatched multi-dimensional extensions. The address is to the Holy Prophet ﷺ . He is being told that nothing he does by way of his work or recital of the Qur'an remains hidden from Allah. Similarly, whatever all human beings do remains before Him. And not even a single particle in the heavens and the earth is concealed from Him. Rather, everything is written in the clear Book, that is, the Preserved Tablet (al lawh al-mahfuz).
At this place, as it seems, the wisdom of describing the all-encompassing nature of Divine knowledge is aimed at consoling the Holy Prophet ﷺ that his enemies cannot harm him in any way for he was under the protection of Allah Ta` ala.
Everything Small or Large is within the Knowledge of Allah
Allah informed His Prophet that He knows and is well acquainted with all of the affairs and conditions of him and his Ummah and all of creation and its creatures at all times -- during every hour and second. Nothing slips or escapes from His knowledge and observation, not even anything the weight of a speck of dust within the heavens or earth, or anything that is smaller or larger than that. Everything is in a manifest Book, as Allah said:
(And with Him are the keys of the Ghayb (all that is hidden and unseen), none knows them but He. And He knows whatever there is in the land and in the sea; not a leaf falls, but He knows it. There is not a grain in the darkness of the earth nor anything fresh or dry, but is written in a Clear Record.)(6:59) He stated that He is Well-Aware of the movement of the trees and other inanimate objects. He is also Well-Aware of all grazing beasts. He said:
(There is not a moving creature on earth, nor a bird that flies with its two wings, but are communities like you.) (6:38) He also said:
(And no moving creature is there on earth but its provision is due from Allah. )(11:6) If this is His knowledge of the movement of these things, then what about His knowledge of the movement of the creatures that are commanded to worship Him Allah said:
(And put your trust in the Almighty, the Most Merciful, Who sees you when you stand up, and your movements among those who fall prostrate.)(26:217-219) That is why Allah said:
(Neither you do any deed nor recite any portion of the Qur'an, nor you do any deed, but We are Witness thereof when you are doing it.) meaning, `We are watching and hearing you when you engage in that thing.' When Jibril asked the Prophet about Ihsan, he said:
(It is that you worship Allah as if you are seeing Him. But since you do not see Him, be certain that He is watching you.)
