Commentary on Tafsir al-Jalalayn: “It is a tree that grows in the bottom of the blazing fire,” meaning the bottom of Hell.

The Shaykh :
The student: ...

The Shaykh : This is the Qur'an
The student: Are there any recitations?

The Shaykh : There are no recitations of the bottom of Hell and its branches rising to its levels . We have previously discussed whether this tree is a single individual or a single species and type. We stated that there are two possibilities: it is possible that it is one large tree that fills the entire Fire, with its branches extending into its levels, as is the apparent meaning of the author's words. It is also possible that it is multiple trees, but it was mentioned in the singular with respect to its species, just as if you see a tree in the desert and you say, "This tree has a bitter taste" or "a sweet taste," and so on. You do not mean that single tree; you mean that species and type. So, the tree of Zaqqum is possibly one tree that has filled the Fire with its branches, and Allah is capable of all things. Otherwise, the Fire is deep, as in the hadith of Abu Hurayrah (may Allah be pleased with him), who said, "We were with the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and we heard a sound, so he said:
meaning seventy years, and he is falling in the Fire and has not reached its bottom. If we say that this tree is one and its branches have filled the Fire, then Allah is capable of all things. And if we say that it is one in species and type, there is no problem in that. Now, he says:
And what do you think of this fiery tree that grows at the root of the Hellfire? There will be an effect of its root in it, because the root affects the plant. Even if the same type is planted in this land, it differs from when it is planted in another land, and it is the same type. This tree that grows at the root of the Hellfire will have an effect of its root in it. For this reason, he said and did not say "in the Hellfire," to make it clear that it is deep-rooted, and refuge is sought in Allah, in the Fire. He says:
"

its fruit

طلعها

its fruit is like the heads of the date palm

as if it was heads of the devils.

كأنه رؤوس الشياطين

[As-Saffat 37:65]

meaning the ugly-looking snakes " Its fruit means the fruit that resembles the fruit of the date palm. And the devils is the plural of Shaytan. Is the intended meaning the real Shaytan, or is it a type of snakes as the author said? If we look at the apparent wording, we say the intended meaning is the real Shaytan. It is possible that the intended meaning is a type of ugly-looking snakes, because a bad animal may be called a devil, as the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: But it is obligatory for us, as we have passed through many times, to take the Qur'an by its apparent meaning and to say that the intended meaning of the devils is the known Shaytan. And it was compared to the heads of the devils, although people do not see them, because everyone knows that what is attributed to the Shaytan is ugly and repulsive, and no one turns to it. So the comparison here is to what is imagined in the mind, not to what is known by the senses. And in this, it is the most eloquent of ugly comparisons. There is no need to say that they are snakes. Even if we say that they are snakes, are these snakes known to everyone? There are snakes that only a rare few people know, and people are not repelled by them. In fact, when the author now said that they are snakes, the value of this ugliness decreased in the human heart. But as if they are the heads of the devils, a person's skin and hair bristle when he hears this ugly comparison. And in this, the correct view is that the intended meaning is the heads of the real devils, but they were compared to them because it is known that they are ugly to all people and that they are repulsive.