سورة الشرح

Imam Rida (peace be upon him): There is no prayer except that it is accompanied by the perfection of ablution, the presence of intention, purity of certainty, emptying of the heart, and abandoning of preoccupations — and that is the meaning of these words of Allah: فَإِذا فَرَغْتَ فَانْصَبْ* وَ إِلی رَبِّکَ فَارْغَبْ [So when you are free, exert yourself, and turn to your Lord with longing].

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): When you have performed your prayer, before you give the salam and while you are still seated, strive in supplication concerning the affairs of this world and the Hereafter; and when you have finished the supplication, turn eagerly to Allah the Mighty and Majestic that He may accept it from you.

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): It is narrated from Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) that concerning the verse فَإِذا فَرَغْتَ فَانْصَبْ* وَ إِلی رَبِّکَ فَارْغَبْ [So when you are free, exert yourself, and turn to your Lord with longing] he said: "[What is meant by it] is supplication after the obligatory prayer — beware of abandoning it; for the merit of supplication after the obligatory prayer is like the merit of the obligatory prayer over the recommended prayer."

Imam Baqir and Imam Sadiq (peace be upon them): So turn towards the Truth, Mighty and Exalted, and be eager in offering supplication, and ask Allah the Exalted to grant you whatever you wish and to bring your need to fulfilment through successes.

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): What is meant by it is supplication after the prayer, in the seated position.

Ibn Abbas (may Allah have mercy on him): فَإِذا فَرَغْتَ فَانْصَبْ [So when you are free, exert yourself]; when you have finished the obligatory prayer, strive in supplication before your Lord, and turn to Him with eagerness in your request.

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): When you have performed your prayer, before you give the salam and while you are still seated, strive in supplication regarding the affairs of this world and the Hereafter; and when you have finished the supplication, turn with eagerness to Allah, Blessed and Exalted.

Ibn Abbas (may Allah have mercy on him): When you finish the obligatory acts, occupy yourself with the deeds that Allah has made you desirous of.

Ali ibn Ibrahim (may Allah have mercy on him): فَإِذا فَرَغْتَ فَانْصَبْ [So when you are free, appoint]; when you have finished with the Farewell Pilgrimage, وَ إِلی رَبِّکَ فَارْغَبْ [and turn eagerly to your Lord] — appoint Amir al-Mu'minin (peace be upon him) as your successor.

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): فَإِذا فَرَغْتَ فَانْصَبْ عَلِیّاً [So when you are free, appoint Ali] (peace be upon him). The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) was performing the Hajj, and then it was revealed: "When you finish your Hajj, appoint Ali (peace be upon him) [as your successor] over the people."

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): When you are done with your prophethood, appoint Ali (peace be upon him) as your successor (wasi), and turn to your Lord in this matter.

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Abu Hatim Razi narrated from Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him) that he recited this verse: فَإِذَا فَرَغْتَ فَانصَبْ [So when you are free, appoint], and then said: "So when you have finished perfecting the sharia (sacred law), appoint Ali (peace be upon him) as Imam for them."

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him) and Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): When you are done with [conveying] your religion, appoint Ali (peace be upon him) to the wilaya (guardianship), so that a group may be guided through him.

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Allah the Mighty and Majestic commanded the noble Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) with prayer, zakat, fasting and hajj; then He ordered him that when he had accomplished these things, he should appoint Ali (peace be upon him) as his successor (wasi).

The Messenger (peace be upon him and his family): Imam Baqir (peace be upon him) said: The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) would always mention to them something of the merit of his successor (wasi), until this surah (al-Inshirah) was revealed. And when the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) was informed of his death and the news of it was conveyed to him, he argued openly against them, and Allah the Exalted said: فَإِذا فَرَغْتَ فَانْصَبْ* وَ إِلی رَبِّکَ فَارْغَبْ [So when you are free, appoint, and to your Lord turn in longing], meaning: when you have finished [conveying the message], set up your banner and standard (that is, Ali (peace be upon him)) and make your testament manifest. So the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) [on the day of Ghadir] openly proclaimed the merit of Ali (peace be upon him).

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): When Allah the Mighty and Majestic sent Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family), the later Mustahfizin (custodians) submitted to him, but the Children of Israel denied him. He called to Allah the Mighty and Majestic and strove in His path, until Allah the Exalted commanded him to make manifest the virtue of his successor. The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) said: 'O Lord! The Arabs are a harsh people; there was no book among them, no prophet was sent to them, and they do not know the virtue and honour of the prophets (peace be upon them). If I tell them of the virtue of my Ahl al-Bayt, they will not believe.' So Allah the Exalted said: وَ لا تَحْزَنْ عَلَیْهِمْ [And do not grieve over them] (Nahl/127), وَ قُلْ سَلامٌ فَسَوْفَ یَعْلَمُونَ [And say: peace — soon they will know] (Zukhruf/89). The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) mentioned a little of the virtue of his successor, and hypocrisy fell into their hearts. The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) became aware of that hypocrisy and their words. Allah the Exalted said: 'O Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family)! وَ لَقَدْ نَعْلَمُ أَنَّکَ یَضِیقُ صَدْرُکَ بِما یَقُولُونَ [Indeed We know that your breast is straitened by what they say] (Hijr/97). فَإِنَّهُمْ لا یُکَذِّبُونَکَ وَ لکِنَّ الظَّالِمِینَ بِآیاتِ اللَّهِ یَجْحَدُونَ [They do not deny you, but the wrongdoers reject the signs of Allah] (Anam/33), meaning they reject without having any proof.' The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) used to conciliate them and enlist some against others, and he continued to bring out for them something of the virtue of his successor, until this Surah (al-Inshirah) was revealed. When the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) was informed of his death and the news of it was announced to him, he brought his argument against them. Allah the Exalted said: فَإِذا فَرَغْتَ فَانْصَبْ* وَ إِلی رَبِّکَ فَارْغَبْ [So when you are free, set up (your banner), and to your Lord turn (your desire)], meaning: when you are done [with delivering the message], set up your banner and sign (that is, Ali (peace be upon him)) and make your succession manifest. So the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) [on the day of Ghadir] openly announced the virtue of Ali (peace be upon him) and said: 'Whoever I am his master, Ali (peace be upon him) is his master. O Allah, befriend whoever befriends him and be an enemy to whoever is his enemy' — three times. And again [at the Battle of Khaybar, after he had made several men bearers of the banner and they could not achieve victory] he said: 'Indeed I shall send a man who loves Allah and His Messenger, and Allah and His Messenger love him; he is no runaway.' By this statement the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) alluded to the one who had turned back [from the gate of the fortress of Khaybar]. He considered his companions cowardly, and his companions considered him cowardly.