إِنَّ الْمُتَّقِينَ فِي جَنَّاتٍ وَعُيُونٍ ﴿۱۵﴾ آخِذِينَ مَا آتَاهُمْ رَبُّهُمْ إِنَّهُمْ كَانُوا قَبْلَ ذَلِكَ مُحْسِنِينَ ﴿۱۶﴾ كَانُوا قَلِيلًا مِنَ اللَّيْلِ مَا يَهْجَعُونَ ﴿۱۷﴾ وَبِالْأَسْحَارِ هُمْ يَسْتَغْفِرُونَ ﴿۱۸﴾ وَفِي أَمْوَالِهِمْ حَقٌّ لِلسَّائِلِ وَالْمَحْرُومِ ﴿۱۹﴾ وَفِي الْأَرْضِ آيَاتٌ لِلْمُوقِنِينَ ﴿۲۰﴾

﴾15﴿ Innal muttaqeena fee jannaatinw wa 'uyoon
﴾16﴿ Aakhizeena maaa aataahum Rabbuhum; innahum kaanoo qabla zaalika muhsineen
﴾17﴿ kaanoo qaleelam minal laili maa yahja'oon
﴾18﴿ Wa bil as haari hum yastaghfiroon
﴾19﴿ Wa feee amwaalihim haqqul lissaaa'ili walmahroom
﴾20﴿ Wa fil ardi aayaatul lilmooqineen

﴾15﴿ Indeed, the righteous will be in gardens and springs
﴾16﴿ Receiving the blessings their Lord has given them, for indeed, they were doers of good before this
﴾17﴿ They used to sleep but little during the night
﴾18﴿ And in the early dawn, they would seek forgiveness
﴾19﴿ And in their wealth was a share for the beggar and the deprived
﴾20﴿ And on the earth are many signs for those who have certainty

[15,16] This verse brings glad tidings (bushrā) following the previous warnings and rebukes (takhwīf wa zajr).
It contains three blessings and mentions five qualities of the righteous (muttaqīn).
(آخِذِينَ مَا آتَاهُمْ رَبُّهُمْ) — “Receiving what their Lord has given them”:
This is a general glad tiding, referring to all the countless blessings of Paradise.
The word ākhidhīn indicates that they accept these gifts willingly, gratefully, and gradually, because the blessings of Paradise are endless and continuously increasing.
(مُحْسِنِينَ) — “Those who do good”:
This refers to ihsān (excellence) in three areas:
1. With Allah — through sincere worship and inner devotion, as mentioned in the Ḥadīth of Jibrīl: “To worship Allah as if you see Him…”
This includes pure tawḥīd in belief, action, and speech.
2. In acts of worship — by performing them beautifully and according to the Sunnah.
3. With people — by having good character, just dealings, and inviting others to the truth with kindness.
This quality of iḥsān is a comprehensive trait of the righteous — and after this, the verse goes on to mention more specific attributes of the muttaqīn.
[17,18,19] In these three verses, the Qur’an highlights specific examples of iḥsān (excellence) from individuals — and because it is addressing particular acts rather than general qualities.
1. (كَانُوا قَلِيلًا مِنَ اللَّيْلِ مَا يَهْجَعُونَ) — “They used to sleep little at night”:
This means they would sleep only a small portion of the night, and spend most of it in tahajjud (night prayer).
This is a very high-level trait of worship, though difficult for most of the ummah to maintain consistently.
2. (وَبِالْأَسْحَارِ هُمْ يَسْتَغْفِرُونَ) — “And at dawn, they seek forgiveness”:
Indicates that they would continue their night worship until the time of suḥūr (pre-dawn).
Also shows that despite such long worship, they did not become proud, but still turned to Allah with humility and admission of their shortcomings.
The verb yastaghfirūn shows that no matter how much worship a person does, it can never fulfill the full right of Allah’s servitude — thus seeking forgiveness at the end of acts of worship is sunnah, like saying astaghfirullāh after fard prayers or at the end of gatherings.
3. (وَفِي أَمْوَالِهِمْ حَقٌّ لِلسَّائِلِ وَالْمَحْرُومِ) — “And in their wealth is a right for the one who asks and the one who is deprived”:
The previous traits focused on iḥsān toward Allah — this now turns to iḥsān toward creation.
The word ḥaqq (a due right) is general — it includes both obligatory dues (like zakāt and mandatory charity) and voluntary acts (like helping relatives, giving extra in charity, etc.).
(لِلسَّائِلِ) — Refers to the one who openly asks for help due to visible need.
(وَالْمَحْرُومِ) — Refers to someone who does not ask, either due to self-respect or hidden need, and others are unaware of his situation.
This shows the depth of their compassion — they don’t just give to those who
[20,21] Now, after mentioning the two groups (the righteous and the deniers), the surah begins presenting evidences for resurrection (baʿth baʿd al-mawt) — which is the central claim of the surah.
It also implies that the traits of the righteous mentioned earlier are only truly developed when a person reflects upon the world and his own self.
(آيَاتٌ) — The signs referred to here include:
Mountains, seas, trees, plants, stones, dry lands, and rain — all of these are signs that point to resurrection, along with signs of divine oneness (tawḥīd).
(وَفِي أَنْفُسِكُمْ) — “And within your own selves”:
This refers to everything from the beginning of human creation to its end, and all the internal and external organs and systems.
In the design, function, and origin of the human body are countless signs for both tawḥīd and resurrection.
Thus, reflecting on both the universe and the self leads to a deep conviction in the truth of resurrection and the oneness of Allah.