Al-Hadid (The Iron)

4. He it is Who created the heavens and the earth in six days [and period of time] and then rose over the Throne. He is All-Aware of what goes into the earth and what comes forth from it and what descends from the heaven and what ascends thereto. And He is with you wherever you may be. And Allah is the All-Seer of what you do.

Preceded by an enumeration of eleven Divine Attributes of Divine Pure Essence, the blessed Verse 4 treats of five other Attributes, the first of which is Divine Creativity.

The blessed Verse in question is saying that He is the One Who created the heavens and the earth in six days:

("He it is Who created the heavens and the earth in six days [and period of time] and then rose over the Throne. He is All-Aware of what goes into the earth and what comes forth from it and what descends from the heaven and what ascends thereto. And He is with you wherever you may be. And Allah is the All-Seer of what you do"). "Creation in six days"

is attested seven times in the Glorious Qur’an the first and the last of which are mentioned in 7:54 and 57:4.

As mentioned above, the word

"day" (yawm) in the blessed Verses in question do not denote a normal day but it connotes "period of time" be it brief or long. It may even last millions of years. Such expression is to be found in the Arabic as well as other languages. For instance, it is said that today, it is the turn of such and such group to rule and tomorrow it will be the turn of others. The connotation of "periods" in this context was elaborated upon in details under 7:54.

It is worthy of note that God Almighty could create the whole world in one single moment, but creating in that manner could not reflect Divine Glory, Omnipotence, and Omniscience, but creating the world within a period of billions of years in different periods and forms based on an order and measure may reflect further manifest tokens of His Omniscience and Wisdom.

Furthermore, such creation in time serves as a model for the gradual development of mankind and lack of haste in attaining to different goals. The blessed Verse proceeds with world Sovereignty, saying that following the creation of the world, God Almighty rose over the Throne and took the reign of the Sovereignty of the world.

God Almighty has undoubtedly no body nor the word

"Throne"

mentioned herein denotes the royal throne, but this expression delicately reflects Divine Absolute Sovereignty and His All-Encompassing Omnipotence over the world of existence.

The Arabic word ‘arsh denotes something with a roof over it or the roof itself. It is also employed to denote the royal throne, but it also connotes might, as it is said in the Persian tongue: "The feet of his throne collapsed," which connotes that he lost his power.

It is noteworthy that contrary to what some ignorant people imagine that God created the world and abandoned it, He is the Sovereign and the Ruler of the world and the dependence of the systematicity of the world on His Pure Essence is such that if He deceases His emanation and Grace for one single moment, everything will collapse.

Taking such truth into account bestows such perception and insight upon man that he may see, feel, and love God Almighty everywhere and in everything including his own heart.

The blessed Verse proceeds to treat of another aspect of Divine Omniscience saying that He is All-Aware of what penetrates into the earth and what comes out of it and also what descends from the heaven and what ascends to heaven;

("He is All-Aware of what goes into the earth and what comes forth from it and what descends from the heaven and what ascends thereto. And He is with you wherever you may be. And Allah is the All-Seer of what you do").

Although all these points are encompassed in

"And He is All-Aware of all things"

mentioned in the preceding Verses, but an exposition of such meanings makes man attend further to Divine Omniscience. He is All-Aware of what penetrates into the earth, like rains drops and torrents. He is All-Aware of the seeds of plants disseminated on the earth by wind or insects penetrating into it.

He is All-Aware of the roots of trees penetrating into the depth of the earth in search of nutrients. He is All-Aware of all the mines and treasures which were on the face of the earth but they were interred thereafter.

He is All-Aware of treasures, corpses, insects making their subterranean nests, plants growing from the ground, fountains springing from the heart of rocks and soil, manifesting mines and treasures, humankind growing on it, volcanoes erupting from the heart of the earth, insects growing in their nests, gases emitting from the earth, gravitation waves arising from it, what descends from the heaven, ranging from rain drops to the life giving rays of the sun to the host of angels to the powerful waves of Revelation and Divine Scriptures, from cosmic rays to meteors and shooting stars absorbed by the earth.

He is All-Aware of what ascends to the heaven like angels, human souls, servants' deeds, invocations and devotions, different kinds of birds, vapors, and clouds. What is known and unknown to us are all manifest through His Omniscience.

If we reflect upon the facts that billions of different beings penetrate into the earth and billions of beings descend from the sky or ascend to it within one single moment and no one but God Almighty is aware of their numbers, we may be further acquainted with His Omniscience.

The fourth and the fifth Attributes emphasize that

"He is with you where ever you happen to be and as such, He is All-Aware of what you do. How could He be not with us when we depend on Him and His Grace for all the moments of our existence? He is the Spirit of the world of existence. He is the Spirit of the world. He is superior to all. He was with us when we were scattered dust, when we were embryos in our mothers' wombs. He has been with us at all times. He will be with us in purgatory. How could He be unaware of us?”

Knowing that He is with us bestows majesty and grandeur to us on the one side and grants security and self confidence on the other. Such knowledge engenders bravery and boldness into man and also endows man with great obligations, since He is Omnipresent and watches over every being.

It is the greatest lesson of education, since it is the main root of fear of God, purity, and honest. The secret of His Majesty and Grandeur is that He is Omnipresent. It is not metaphorical and figurative, but such truth is both pleasant and satisfying on the one hand and entailing obligations and inspiring awe on the other.

It is narrated from the Noble Prophet (S):

"The most sublime degree of faith is that man be aware of Divine Omnipresence."1

According to another Prophetic tradition, Moses (as) inquired:

"Where may I find you, O Lord?"

Thus he was addressed:

"Whenever you will, you reach me."2

Such Divine Accompaniment of servants is so precise and delicate that any believing thinker may be aware of its profundity within the capacity of his faith and thought.