ثُمَّ رَدَدناهُ أَسفَلَ سافِلينَ
Then We relegated him to the lowest of the low.
EXEGESIS
Radadnā-hu is from the root word r-d-d which means to return something. However, considering the context, radd here cannot be taken to mean return, since return means to go back to a previous place or state, and certainly man was never previously in the state of the lowest of the low. It is for this reason that many exegetes have taken radd here to mean jaʿl, which implies to place or to accommodate.
Sāfil is the opposite of ʿālī (high) and means low or below. Asfal is its comparative form and the expression asfal al-sāfilīn means the lowest of the low.
EXPOSITION
Following the previous verse which discussed the lofty position of the human being, this verse states the opposite, in that if mankind does not utilise its potential, and if it abandons the path of guidance and spiritual growth, it will end up in the lowest position of creation.
Tabatabai considers three different meanings for the word radd; the first is the common meaning which is to return, as explained earlier; the second is to place (jaʿl), in which case the verse would be saying: Allah placed the human being in the lowest position after He created him in the best form. And the third meaning is to change, in which case the verse would be saying: We changed the status of the human being who was created in the best of forms to the lowest of the low. He then expands on the meaning of the lowest of the low and says that it is the lowest position, inferior to the position of any loser or destitute. In this regard the Quran also states, Certainly We have created for hell many of the jinn and humans: they have hearts with which they do not understand, they have eyes with which they do not see, they have ears with which they do not hear. They are like cattle; rather they are more astray. It is they who are the heedless (7:179).
The reason why human beings may descend to such a low position is because they have been given desires as well as intellect, as Imam Ali (a) narrates: ‘God has created the angels with intellect but no desire, and He has created animals with desire but no intellect, and He has created the human being with both of these faculties; therefore, whosoever’s intellect overcomes their desire is higher than the angels, and whosoever allows their desire to overcome their intellect is lower than the animals.’
REVIEW OF TAFSĪR LITERATURE
Ṭabrisī, amongst others, has argued that Then We relegated him to the lowest of the low may also refer to the time a person becomes old and weak after he was young and strong: And whomever We give a long life, We cause him to regress in creation (36:68). Although this meaning is not compatible with the next verse of the surah under discussion since the exception does not make sense when applied to the elderly and infirm, there are those who have allowed this meaning by taking the next verse to be a discontinuous exceptive.
[1] Lisan, under r-d-d.
[2] Raghib, p. 413.
[3] Qaraati, p. 530; Nemuneh, 27/144.
[4] Mizan, 20/542.
[5] Mizan, 20/542.
[6] Ilal, 1/4.
[7] Tabrisi, 10/511.