Al-A'la · Makki · ayah 18 of 19

Al-A'la 87:18

إِنَّ هَـٰذَا لَفِى ٱلصُّحُفِ ٱلْأُولَىٰ

“Indeed, this is in the former scriptures,”

Saheeh International

Essence

Purify yourself, remember your Lord, pray and prefer what lasts: not new advice, but the oldest message there is.

A reflection

What 'this' points to

After a fire, a town's great bell is recast in a foundry two hundred miles away. The metal is new, the rope is new, even the tower has been rebuilt. The first morning it rings out, the old people in the square go quiet. It is the same note.

Inna hādhā, truly this, is in the former scriptures. The commentators asked the obvious question: what is 'this'?

Some early readers said the whole surah. One said that everything in it was in the scrolls of Ibrāhīm and Mūsā. Others said only the last line: the Hereafter is better and more lasting. One of them put it memorably. The books of Allah followed one after another, as you hear, saying that the Hereafter is better and more lasting. Another said 'this' meant the Quran itself, as in the ayah: it is in the scriptures of the earlier peoples (26:196).

One great early commentator chose the middle view, and gave a reason. 'This' points to something present, he said, so it most fittingly points to what is nearest. That means the four ayat just before: successful is the one who purifies himself, remembers the name of his Lord and prays. But you prefer the life of this world, while the Hereafter is better and more lasting. A later commentator called that choice good and strong.

One commentary adds a careful point. The ayah does not claim these exact words were in the earlier scrolls. It is their meaning that was there.

So whichever view you follow, the core is the same four movements. Clean the soul. Remember your Lord. Stand in prayer. Choose what lasts over what is near. These were not invented in seventh-century Makkah. They were written in scrolls centuries older.

That is worth remembering when a new method for a meaningful life appears every January. Test it against the note that has been ringing since the first scrolls. If it rings true, it is probably not new.

The full entry has 4 more reflections, questions to sit with, and "Live it today" - with the words, the roots and the tafsir alongside. Free, no account, works offline.