who preceded them among the earlier nations; and so he was granted Laylat al-Qadr.

Second: the increase is to be taken literally, but only with respect to the conditional term that is recorded on the tablet handed to the angel. For instance, it may be written: “If so-and-so obeys, his lifespan shall be such-and-such; if he disobeys, his lifespan shall be such-and-such.” Allah—majestic and exalted—knows which of the two will actually come to pass. The fixed term mentioned in the verse refers to what lies in Allah’s knowledge, which never changes, and this is what He alludes to in His words, “Allah effaces whatever He wills and confirms, and with Him is the Mother of the Book” (13:39).

Thus, the ḥadith concerns the conditional term indicated at the beginning of the verse, whereas the phrase “and with Him is the Mother of the Book” (13:39) points to the divine knowledge that never changes at all. The latter is called the definitive decree, while the former is the conditional decree.

The first explanation is more in keeping with the wording of the ḥadith in this chapter: al-athar is what follows and remains after a thing; therefore, if it is delayed, it is fitting to understand it as the good reputation that endures after the person is gone.

Al-Ṭayyibī said, “The first view is clearer,” and the author of al-Fāʾiq hints at the same.

4 – I find a view superior to both: Allah, exalted be He, has decreed both causes and effects. When He decrees that a human being’s life be prolonged, He prepares for him tangible and intangible means that serve as the cause for lengthening his lifespan and delaying his appointed end.

5 – This is the opinion adopted by certain investigators, among them Shaykh ʿAbd al-Raḥmān al-Saʿdī, who, while explaining this ḥadith, said: “It urges the maintenance of kinship ties and makes clear that, just as this earns Allah’s pleasure, it also brings an immediate reward by granting the servant the things he loves most. It is a cause for widening and expanding his provision, and a cause for lengthening his life, and this is literal, for He, exalted is He, is the Creator of causes and effects. Allah has appointed for every desired aim a cause and a path by which it is attained. This is in harmony with the great principle that, out of His wisdom and praise, He makes the recompense correspond to the deed; so just as one who maintains…"