وَمَن كَانَ فِى هَـٰذِهِۦٓ أَعْمَىٰ فَهُوَ فِى ٱلْـَٔاخِرَةِ أَعْمَىٰ وَأَضَلُّ سَبِيلًا 72
Translations
And whoever is blind in this [life] will be blind in the Hereafter and more astray in way.
Transliteration
Wa man kana fee hathihi a'ma fahuw fee al-akhirati a'ma wa adallu sabila
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah establishes a principle of spiritual correspondence: whoever is blind to the truth and guidance in this worldly life will be blind in the Hereafter and even more astray from the path. The blindness referred to here is not physical but spiritual—an inability or refusal to perceive divine truth. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir and Al-Qurtubi emphasize that this blindness represents the hardening of hearts and the rejection of clear signs, which results in greater spiritual perdition in the afterlife.
Revelation Context
This ayah appears in Surah Al-Isra, which discusses various categories of people and their responses to divine guidance. The broader context of the surah addresses those who possess reason and intellect but choose to ignore the signs of Allah, contrasting the guided with the astray. This particular ayah follows the theme of accountability and the consequences of rejecting guidance.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: 'The best of you are those who have the best character' (Tirmidhi). Related thematically is the hadith in Sahih Muslim where the Prophet warned that hearts can become sealed: 'When a servant commits a sin, a black spot appears on his heart, and when he repents, it is wiped away.'
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah reminds us that spiritual awareness and receptivity to divine guidance in this life directly determines our state in the Hereafter. We must actively seek understanding of Allah's signs and guard our hearts from heedlessness, as spiritual blindness is a choice that carries eternal consequences.