Surah 10 Yunus — Ayah 61
وَمَا تَكُونُ فِى شَأْنٍۢ وَمَا تَتْلُوا۟ مِنْهُ مِن قُرْءَانٍۢ وَلَا تَعْمَلُونَ مِنْ عَمَلٍ إِلَّا كُنَّا عَلَيْكُمْ شُهُودًا إِذْ تُفِيضُونَ فِيهِ ۚ وَمَا يَعْزُبُ عَن رَّبِّكَ مِن مِّثْقَالِ ذَرَّةٍۢ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ وَلَا فِى ٱلسَّمَآءِ وَلَآ أَصْغَرَ مِن ذَٰلِكَ وَلَآ أَكْبَرَ إِلَّا فِى كِتَٰبٍۢ مُّبِينٍ
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.
wamā takūnu fī shanin wamā tatlū min'hu min qur'ānin walā taʿmalūna min ʿamalin illā kunnā ʿalaykum shuhūdan idh tufīḍūna fīhi wamā yaʿzubu ʿan rabbika min mith'qāli dharratin fī l-arḍi walā fī l-samāi walā aṣghara min dhālika walā akbara illā fī kitābin mubīnin
Word by word
- وَمَا wamā And not
- تَكُونُ takūnu you are
- فِى fī [in]
- شَأْنٍۢ shanin any situation
- وَمَا wamā and not
- تَتْلُوا۟ tatlū you recite
- مِنْهُ min'hu of it
- مِن min from
- قُرْءَانٍۢ qur'ānin (the) Quran
- وَلَا walā and not
- تَعْمَلُونَ taʿmalūna you do
- مِنْ min any
- عَمَلٍ ʿamalin deed
- إِلَّا illā except
- كُنَّا kunnā We are
- عَلَيْكُمْ ʿalaykum over you
- شُهُودًا shuhūdan witnesses
- إِذْ idh when
- تُفِيضُونَ tufīḍūna you are engaged
- فِيهِ ۚ fīhi in it
- وَمَا wamā And not
- يَعْزُبُ yaʿzubu escapes
- عَن ʿan from
- رَّبِّكَ rabbika your Lord
- مِن min of
- مِّثْقَالِ mith'qāli (the) weight
- ذَرَّةٍۢ dharratin (of) an atom
- فِى fī in
- ٱلْأَرْضِ l-arḍi the earth
- وَلَا walā and not
- فِى fī in
- ٱلسَّمَآءِ l-samāi the heavens
- وَلَآ walā and not
- أَصْغَرَ aṣghara smaller
- مِن min than
- ذَٰلِكَ dhālika that
- وَلَآ walā and not
- أَكْبَرَ akbara greater
- إِلَّا illā but
- فِى fī (is) in
- كِتَـٰبٍۢ kitābin a Record
- مُّبِينٍ mubīnin clear
Tafsir · Ibn Kathir (Abridged)
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.)