۞ وَعِندَهُۥ مَفَاتِحُ ٱلْغَيْبِ لَا يَعْلَمُهَآ إِلَّا هُوَ ۚ وَيَعْلَمُ مَا فِى ٱلْبَرِّ وَٱلْبَحْرِ ۚ وَمَا تَسْقُطُ مِن وَرَقَةٍ إِلَّا يَعْلَمُهَا وَلَا حَبَّةٍ فِى ظُلُمَـٰتِ ٱلْأَرْضِ وَلَا رَطْبٍ وَلَا يَابِسٍ إِلَّا فِى كِتَـٰبٍ مُّبِينٍ 59
Translations
And with Him are the keys of the unseen; none knows them except Him. And He knows what is on the land and in the sea. Not a leaf falls but that He knows it. And no grain is there within the darknesses of the earth and no moist or dry [thing] but that it is [written] in a clear record.
Transliteration
Wa 'indahu mafatihu al-ghaybi la ya'lamuha illa huwa wa ya'lamu ma fi al-barra wa al-bahr wa ma tasqut min waraqatin illa ya'lamuha wa la habbatin fi zulumat al-ardi wa la ratbin wa la yabisin illa fi kitabin mubin
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah affirms Allah's absolute and exclusive knowledge of the unseen (al-ghayb), which no one shares with Him. The verse then elaborates on the comprehensiveness of His knowledge by providing concrete examples: He knows everything on land and sea, every falling leaf, every seed hidden in the earth's darkness, and everything whether fresh or dried—all recorded in a clear, manifest Book (al-Lawh al-Mahfuz). Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir emphasize that this ayah establishes both Allah's omniscience and the futility of human attempts to predict the unseen, while Al-Qurtubi notes that the progression from the general (keys of the unseen) to the specific (leaf, seed, moisture, dryness) demonstrates that no detail escapes His knowledge.
Revelation Context
This ayah appears in the Meccan period of Surah Al-An'am, during a time when the Quraysh were challenging the Prophet's knowledge of future events and hidden matters. The ayah serves to comfort the believers and remind them that only Allah possesses complete knowledge, thereby refuting the polytheists' false claims and their accusations against the Prophet for not knowing supernatural matters.
Related Hadiths
Sahih Bukhari and Sahih Muslim report that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: 'The Pen has dried after writing down all that will occur until the Day of Judgment,' which directly relates to the concept of the clear Book (Kitab Mubin) mentioned in this verse. Additionally, Jami' at-Tirmidhi records that the Prophet taught: 'Know that if the whole of mankind gathered together to benefit you with something, it would benefit you only with something that Allah had already written for you.'
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches believers to trust in Allah's perfect knowledge and providence, releasing anxiety about the future which is known only to Him, and to recognize the humility required in acknowledging human limitations while seeking knowledge within the bounds Allah has set. It also encourages mindfulness of Allah's watchfulness over all creation, including seemingly insignificant things, which should inspire consciousness of accountability before Him.