كَلّا بَل تُحِبّونَ العاجِلَةَ

وَتَذَرونَ الآخِرَةَ

No Indeed! Rather, you love this transitory life

and forsake the hereafter.

EXEGESIS

ʿĀjilah (transitory life) is from the root ʿajala, meaning to hurry and haste.^{‎[1]Raghib, p. 548, ʿ-j-l.} It is a feminine active participle, succinctly standing for the implied al-ḥayāh al-ʿājilah, ‘the transitory life’.

Tadharūna (forsake) is the second-person masculine plural present tense form, derived from wadhara. This root originally means to abandon, to divert attention, and to leave aside.^{‎[2]Tahqiq, 13/81, dh-r-w.}

EXPOSITION

The address in these verses changes away from the Prophet to the second-person plural you, returning to address the disbelievers.

The refrain No indeed! is directed at those disbelievers who do not ponder on the communications of God.^{‎[3]Tabrisi, 10/601.} The previous verses spoke of how God has taught the Quran in clear Arabic and explained its meanings through His Messenger; despite that, these people do not pay heed, because they would rather immerse themselves in the transitory life and its fleeting pleasures.

A similar description is found in, Indeed they love this transitory life (ʿājilah), and disregard a weighty day ahead of them (76:27). The description of this world as ʿājilah is most eloquent as it captures both the impatient nature of the person who seeks it – one who is constantly rushing from one pleasure to another, with little time to think of the consequences – as well as the brief temporality of this world, one that passes by quickly and in a hurry.

These central verses highlight the surah’s main theme^{‎[4]See the Introduction and the commentary on verses 1-2.} regarding the internal human conflict between the base self (nafs ammārah) and the conscience (nafs lawwāmah). The nafs ammārah drives a person to pursue immediate worldly desires without discipline or regard for future consequences. When this impulsive nature dominates, it silences the reproaching conscience, leading to the spiritual ruin described in these verses: a person who is entirely heedless of his hereafter and eternal fate.

The Quran consistently presents the love for this world and the love for the hereafter as an irreconcilable dichotomy. An individual consumed by worldly desires will inevitably prioritise them over the interests of their eternal life. This external conflict mirrors the internal battle within the human soul. Just as the base self (nafs ammārah) and the conscience (nafs lawwāmah) are in opposition, so too are these two loves; to embrace one is to inherently neglect the other. The ultimate challenge for the believer, therefore, is to navigate this life while enjoying its permissible blessings, without allowing the heart to become captivated by it, thereby diverting attention from the hereafter. By forsaking the hereafter, people ignore their duties in this world and engage in sins.^{‎[5]Tibyan, 10/197.} The Quran affirms this: Whoever desires the reward of this world, We will give him of it; and whoever desires the reward of the hereafter, We will give him of it; and soon We will reward the grateful (3:145).^{‎[6]See also verses such as 17:18, 9:38, and 14:3.}

Finally, even if briefly, we should note the insightful description of man’s nature in this verse and its significant relevance to our modern-day lives. Impatience is deeply embedded in man’s nature, and this known psychological fact is subject to great abuse by many modern industries, which try to keep people’s ever-shortening attention spans hooked with a constant bombardment of rapid-fire pleasures and addiction-inducing algorithms. Recognising this flaw and working to overcome it should be a priority for all those interested in their mental, spiritual, and physical well-being. Practices such as dopamine fasts and mindfulness are trending in many societies today, and yet Islam has already provided these tools through its rich traditions of prayer, fasting, dhikr, recitation, iʿtikāf, and so on.

INSIGHTS FROM HADITH

1. From Ibn Shihāb al-Zuhrī, that Imam al-Sajjād (a) said: ‘The love of this world is the root of every evil.’^{‎[7]Kafi, 2/131, 317. The hadith has only been quoted partially. The same statement has been related from Imam al-Ṣādiq (a) (Kafi, 2/315).}

INSIGHTS FROM OTHER TRADITIONS

1. ‘Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy, and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.’^{‎[8]Matthew 6:19-21.}
2. ‘Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. For everything in the world – the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life – comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.’^{‎[9]1 John 2:15-17.}
3. ‘No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.’^{‎[10] Matthew 6:24.}

[1] Raghib, p. 548, ʿ-j-l.
[2] Tahqiq, 13/81, dh-r-w.
[3] Tabrisi, 10/601.
[4] See the Introduction and the commentary on verses 1-2.
[5] Tibyan, 10/197.
[6] See also verses such as 17:18, 9:38, and 14:3.
[7] Kafi, 2/131, 317. The hadith has only been quoted partially. The same statement has been related from Imam al-Ṣādiq (a) (Kafi, 2/315).
[8] Matthew 6:19-21.
[9] 1 John 2:15-17.
[10] Matthew 6:24.