قُل أَرَأَيتُم إِن أَصبَحَ ماؤُكُم غَورًا فَمَن يَأتيكُم بِماءٍ مَعينٍ
Say: ‘Tell me, should your water sink down [into the ground], who will bring you running water?’
EXEGESIS
Aṣbaḥa is from the root ṣabaḥa, which means to be clear and manifest. Morning is called ṣubḥ because of this quality. Iṣbāh means to become something or turn into some condition. It especially concerns the initiation and early stage when something happens or a condition is brought about. In common as well as Quranic usage, it often simply means ‘to become’. Overall, it involves the introduction of a new situation, or a new stage of an event, like morning in a day.
Ghawran: sunk in the ground. Ghawr means a pit or valley in the earth, and is used when something completely enters or immerses in something else. In this context, it means: If all of the water on the earth completely sinks into it such that it is out of your reach. The verse uses an infinitive (ghawr) instead of an adjective (ghāʾir), which involves a sense of emphasis and exaggeration.
Maʿīn: similar to ḥasīr in verse 4, maʿīn can be either an object or a subject. In case of the former, it would mean a water that is manifest to the observer. In case of the latter, it would mean a running water. The term has been interpreted to both meanings by the exegetes. Perhaps one can combine between the two: it is a water that is manifest to the observer, as opposed to waters that flow underground and require excavation to be reached. It has also been interpreted to fresh potable water by Ibn Abbas.
EXPOSITION
This verse concludes the discussions in the entire chapter by pointing to the case of our drinking water which is readily available for us. Therefore, the verse involves a reference to the blessedness of God, His infinite power, the need and destitution of mankind, and a threat and warning to the heedless souls. It wraps up the chapter by mixing threat and mercy, and urging the audience to ponder more upon themselves, and thus have recourse to their Lord.
It is indeed very well possible that we run out of drinking water due to the running water on the surface of the earth sinking into the earth, accompanied by a period of drought. It is among the signs of God’s power and blessedness that the earth stores our water, such that it neither sinks too deep in, nor does it evaporate away: We sent down water from the sky in a measured manner, and We lodged it within the ground, and We are indeed able to take it away (23:18).
This verse justifies the claims made in the previous verse: Say: ‘He is the all-beneficent; we have faith in Him, and in Him do we trust. Soon you will know who is in manifest error’ as follows: 1. He is the all-beneficent because He has provided you with your drinking water and has not deprived you of that while He can easily do so. 2. One should have faith in God and trust in Him because one’s faith and trust should be in a source that suffices from other sources, while other sources cannot suffice from Him.
It has been narrated that the verse was specifically revealed concerning the wells of Zamzam and Maymūn, which were the only two sources of water for the Meccans. But the notion of the verse is more general and may be applied to any kind of water, including spiritual ones. It has also been narrated that this verse was once read to an arrogant mocker of revelation, whereby he called for some axe and pick as his response to this verse, but then his eyes went dry. Indeed, the whole point of these verses is to awaken us and to make us realise the unreliability of worldly means and instruments to which we are so accustomed. There is no movement and no power except by God, the all-exalted, the all-supreme. That is the monotheistic view of Prophet Abraham (a), who sees God as the provider of his food and drink: It is He who guides me, and provides me with food and drink, and when I get sick, it is He who cures me (26:78-80).
The argument presented in this verse is very similar to verses 16, 17, and 21, as well as the argument mentioned in 18:41 and the following verses: Have you considered the water that you drink? Is it you who bring it down from the rain-cloud, or is it We who bring [it] down? If We wish We can make it bitter. Then why do you not give thanks? (56:68-70).
Why should one turn his back to his Lord while He is the only possessor of water, without which life is impossible: We made every living thing out of water – will they not then have faith? (21:30). This is not limited to natural life; rather, the source of any type of life can be called ‘water’ as it serves the general purpose of giving life. Thus, an example of should your water sink down [into the ground] would be: if God takes away His Messenger from amongst the people, Say: ‘Tell me, whether Allah destroys me and those with me, or He has mercy on us, who will shelter the faithless from a painful punishment?’ (verse 28). In fact, man’s need to spiritual water is far greater and more crucial than his need to natural water, as he needs the former for his eternal life and salvation, while he needs the latter only for his temporary worldly life.
The Prophet was a fountainhead of guidance, who offered enlivening spiritual water to all mankind for free: Answer Allah and the Apostle when he summons you to that which will give you life (8:24). Likewise, the Imams of guidance that followed him are running waters as long as they are among the people and in their reach, and they are hidden underground water if they are taken away by God due to His wisdom and due to mankind’s lack of capacity. This sense of running water has been referred to in the forthcoming narrations. Shall We withhold the reminder from you unconcernedly, because you are a profligate lot? (43:5).
INSIGHTS FROM HADITH
- Imam al-Kāẓim (a) interpreted this verse as follows: ‘Should your Imam be hidden from you, who will bring you a new Imam?’ In another narration he said: ‘When you miss your Imam such that you cannot see him, then what will you do?’
- Imam al-Riḍā (a) was asked about this verse and he replied: ‘Your water means your gates, which are the Imams. The Imams are the gates of God. Who will bring you running water means who will bring you the knowledge of the Imam?’
- Imam al-Bāqir (a) elaborated on this verse further, where he said: ‘Should your Imam be hidden from you such that you do not know where he is, then who will bring you a manifest Imam that gives you the news of the heavens and the earth, and what God has made lawful and unlawful?’ Then the Imam continued: ‘By God, the external realisation of this verse has not come yet, but surely it shall come.’
- Prophet Muhammad (s) told ʿAmmār: ‘O ʿAmmār, indeed God, blessed and exalted is He, has promised me that He will bring out nine leaders from the progeny of al-Husayn, the ninth of which will hide from them [i.e. from the people]. That is the [interpretation of] His word: Say: ‘Tell me, should your water sink down [into the ground], who will bring you running water?’ He shall have a long occultation …’
Note: These narrations clearly interpret water as the Imam, his knowledge, and his guidance. Some of these narrations explicitly match the verse with Imam al-Mahdī (a), while others are more general. As mentioned in Exposition, the Imam with his guidance is the source of real spiritual life, and is therefore a clear instance of water, which is the source of natural life.
That traveller with whom our hearts are bound;
Wherever he is, O God, make him sound.
INSIGHTS FROM OTHER TRADITIONS
- Behold, he withholdeth the waters, and they dry up: also he sendeth them out, and they overturn the earth.
[1] Tahqiq; Raghib, under ṣ-b-ḥ.
[2] Raghib; Tahqiq, under gh-w-r; Zamakhshari, 4/583.
[3] Tibyan, 10/72.
[4] Ayn; Raghib, under ʿ-y-n; Tibyan, 10/72.
[5] Tabari, 29/9.
[6] Alusi, 15/24.
[7] Zamakhshari, 4/583.
[8] Kafi, 1/339-340, h. 14.
[9] Kamal, 2/360, h. 3.
[10] Qummi, 2/379.
[11] Qummi, 2/379.
[12] Kharrāz Rāzī, Kifāyat al-Athar, p. 121.
[13] Ḥāfiẓ, ghazal 277.
[14] Job 12:15.