Allah the Exalted says at the end of Surat al-Ahzab: (We offered the trust to the heavens and the earth and the mountains, but they refused to carry it and were afraid of it, and man took it on. Indeed, he was unjust and ignorant)

The questioner : Allah the Exalted says at the end of Surat al-Ahzab: What is meant by the trust here? Is it the trust of the intellect, or what man is entrusted with?

The Shaykh : What is meant by the trust here is everything with which man is charged in terms of acts of worship and transactions, for it is a trust because he is entrusted with it and it is obligatory for him to perform it. Thus, the ritual prayer is part of the trust, zakah is part of the trust, fasting is part of the trust, Hajj is part of the trust, jihad is part of the trust, dutifulness to parents is part of the trust, and fulfilling contracts is part of the trust, and so on with everything with which man is charged; it all falls under the trust. This trust and this commitment do not exist except through the intellect. Therefore, man carries this trust by virtue of the intellect he possesses. Beasts and the like do not carry the trust because they have no intellect, so they are not held accountable. Allah (Mighty and Majestic) offered the trust to the heavens, the earth, and the mountains, but they refused to carry it and were afraid of it. If these great creations refused to carry the trust and were afraid of it and feared it, then man’s carrying of it is evidence of his injustice and ignorance. However, the one who is successful and fulfills this trust by obeying what Allah has commanded and avoiding what He has forbidden is better than the heavens and the earth, because he accepted carrying this trust and fulfilled it in the manner requested of him. Thus, he has the merit of carrying it first, and the merit of performing it second.
As for if he does not take on this trust and does not fulfill its obligation, then Allah says: , and He (Mighty and Majestic) says: . The person who does not fulfill the obligation of this trust is the worst of beasts in the sight of Allah, and he is like the donkey that carries books. He was likened to the donkey because of its dullness and its failure to appreciate matters, such that it does not do what is required of it.