The Meaning and Types of Tawaffī

The term tawaffī is used for both death and sleep, therefore one cannot restrict its meaning to death in the verse under discussion, because when there are multiple different instances, applying a comprehensive meaning to a specific instance requires a determining context, which is not present here.

If the intended meaning of tawaffī in this verse specifically refers to death, then Jesus would have passed away like the prophets before him. And if the intended meaning specifically refers to sleep, then the Messiah did not pass away or die in that event. In either case, the current state of Jesus (a.s.) regarding life or death is not made clear, and one must rely on other evidence from verses and reliable traditions to understand his current state (a.s.).

The point is that since it is not clear whether the word “mutawaffīk” means complete taking in the form of death, or complete taking in the form of sleep,(537) if a reliable tradition indicates that Jesus the Messiah (a.s.) is alive, after presenting it to the Qur’an, it would not contradict the divine book. Those who have specifically interpreted the word tawaffī as death (imāta) have considered the traditions about Jesus (a.s.) being alive as contradicting the Qur’an and rejected them; unaware that the apparent meaning of the verse is not death.

The source of misconception for the author of al-Manār, which others have also fallen into, is that he has taken tawaffī to mean death (imāta) without a determining context,(538) whereas applying a comprehensive concept to a specific instance requires evidence determining that specific instance.

The point is that tawaffī means complete taking, not death, and the primary focus of tawaffī is the human being. To explain, the reality of a human is their soul, although in the lower stage and natural realm, the soul is united with the material body, and in the intermediate realm (barzakh), with the intermediate body, just as our speech and writings are the lower stage of our abstract thoughts and ideas.

The terms tawaffī and imāta (causing death) mean separating the soul from the body, so only the soul is the focus of discussion. The Qur’an also says regarding tawaffī at the time of death: “God takes the souls at the time of their death”,(539) and does not say “takes the souls and bodies.” Also, in response to those who thought death was annihilation and being lost in the earth: “They say, ‘When we have been lost in the dust, shall we be indeed created anew?’ Rather they disbelieve in the encounter with their Lord”,(540) it says: “Say, ‘You will be taken away by the angel of death, who has been charged with you. Then you will be brought back to your Lord.’”(541) This means that you do not perish when you die, but rather you experience wafāt, and nothing of you is lost or diminished, and your entire reality will be taken at the time of death.(542) Therefore, the addresses or focus of discussion in tawaffī is always directed at the human soul; meaning tawaffī only applies to the spirit, and this point applies to both types of tawaffī.

Tawaffī has two instances: one is death and the other is sleep; and applying the comprehensive meaning of tawaffī to either one requires context. Therefore, applying tawaffī to death without context must be due to an apparent restriction that the claimant must prove.