Destruction by Shadow
Selections from the Book The Story of The Beginning of Creation and The Creation of Adam, peace be upon him …
Written by Dr. Ali Muhammad al-Sallabi...
Episode (52)
As shade was a blessing, mercy, and grace from Allah for the Children of Israel, it was a torment and destruction for others. Allah Almighty creates things and their opposites; He creates opposites from things with utmost wisdom and abundant grace and generosity, so that people may know that He is capable of all things. Shade is a creation among Allah's creations, a soldier among His obedient soldiers. Allah Almighty makes it a mercy for some people and a punishment for others, and none knows the soldiers of your Lord except Him.
The shade was a punishment for the people of Shu'ayb, the People of the Thicket. The Thicket refers to the many intertwined trees that provide ample shade, as stated in the Almighty's words: {The companions of the thicket [i.e., the people of Madyan] denied the messengers (176) When Shuʿayb said to them, "Will you not fear Allah? (177) Indeed, I am to you a trustworthy messenger. (178)} [Ash-Shu'ara: 176-178], until He says: {And they denied him, so the punishment of the day of the black cloud seized them. Indeed, it was the punishment of a terrible day.} [Ash-Shu'ara: 189].
Ibn Abbas said: They were afflicted by intense heat, so Allah Almighty sent a cloud, and they ran to it for shade. When they gathered beneath it, they were called out to and perished. It is said that Allah raised it above their heads and heated it intensely until they died from the heat.
It is said that Allah imposed intense heat upon them until it took their breath away, and neither shade nor water benefited them. They would enter shelters to cool off but found them even hotter than the outside. They fled to the wilderness, where a cloud overshadowed them—this was the shade—and they found coolness and a breeze. However, it rained fire upon them, and they were burned.
Thus, shade in this world is a mercy for the believers among Allah's servants, and a blessing among the blessings that Allah created and made subservient to all people. However, by Allah's will and power, it can transform into a punishment and hellfire for the disobedient, the unbelievers who deny His oneness and oppose His messengers.
- Ali Muhammad al-Sallabi, The Story of The Beginning of Creation and The Creation of Adam, peace be upon him, pp. 354-355.
- The Story of Creation, Al-Kharaan, p. 257.
- Al-Qurtubi’s interpretation, 13/135-137, with some modifications.
For further information and review of the sources for the article, see:
The Book of The Story of The Beginning of Creation and The Creation of Adam, peace be upon him on the official website of Sheikh Dr. Ali Muhammad al-Sallabi:
