فِيهَا عَيْنٌ جَارِيَةٌ 12
Translations
Within it is a flowing spring.
Transliteration
Fīhā 'aynun jāryah
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah describes one of the blessings of Paradise, referring to 'a flowing spring' or 'running water' within it. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir and Al-Qurtubi note that this flowing water (ain jāriyah) represents pure, fresh, and continuously flowing springs—a symbol of abundance and perpetual provision in Paradise. The emphasis on water flowing by itself highlights the effortless nature of rewards in the afterlife, contrasting sharply with the labors of worldly life.
Revelation Context
Surah Al-Ghashiyah is a Meccan surah that vividly describes the Day of Judgment and contrasts the states of the blessed in Paradise with the punished in Hell. This particular ayah appears in the section (88:8-16) describing the delights prepared for the righteous believers (Al-Abrar), emphasizing the sensory and material pleasures that await them.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) said: 'In Paradise, there are rivers of water that does not become stale, rivers of milk whose taste does not change, rivers of wine delicious to those who drink it, and rivers of honey purified' (Sahih Bukhari 3326). This hadith expands upon Quranic descriptions of paradisiacal waters and springs.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah reminds believers that the rewards of obedience to Allah far exceed worldly comforts, offering eternal abundance and ease. It encourages patience through life's hardships by focusing on the perpetual blessings that await the faithful in the Hereafter.
Related Ayahs
وَدَانِيَةً عَلَيْهِمْ ظِلَـٰلُهَا وَذُلِّلَتْ قُطُوفُهَا تَذْلِيلًا
And near above them are its shades, and its [fruit] to be picked will be lowered in compliance.
وَأَمْدَدْنَـٰهُم بِفَـٰكِهَةٍ وَلَحْمٍ مِّمَّا يَشْتَهُونَ
And We will provide them with fruit and meat from whatever they desire.
وَنَزَعْنَا مَا فِى صُدُورِهِم مِّنْ غِلٍّ تَجْرِى مِن تَحْتِهِمُ ٱلْأَنْهَـٰرُ ۖ وَقَالُوا۟ ٱلْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ ٱلَّذِى هَدَىٰنَا لِهَـٰذَا وَمَا كُنَّا لِنَهْتَدِىَ لَوْلَآ أَنْ هَدَىٰنَا ٱللَّهُ ۖ لَقَدْ جَآءَتْ رُسُلُ رَبِّنَا بِٱلْحَقِّ ۖ وَنُودُوٓا۟ أَن تِلْكُمُ ٱلْجَنَّةُ أُورِثْتُمُوهَا بِمَا كُنتُمْ تَعْمَلُونَ
And We will have removed whatever is within their breasts of resentment, [while] flowing beneath them are rivers. And they will say, "Praise to Allāh, who has guided us to this; and we would never have been guided if Allāh had not guided us. Certainly the messengers of our Lord had come with the truth." And they will be called, "This is Paradise, which you have been made to inherit for what you used to do."
عَيْنًا يَشْرَبُ بِهَا عِبَادُ ٱللَّهِ يُفَجِّرُونَهَا تَفْجِيرًا
A spring of which the [righteous] servants of Allāh will drink; they will make it gush forth in force [and abundance].