Why Is "هُ" (it) Singular When Two Things Are Mentioned?

 Detailed meaning of هَـٰذَا فَلْيَذُوقُوهُ حَمِيمٌ وَغَسَّاقٌ, here hamim and gasak are two different things but used as single by hu

ChatGPT said:

The phrase هَٰذَا فَلْيَذُوقُوهُ حَمِيمٌ وَغَسَّاقٌ occurs in Surah Sad (38:57):

هَٰذَا فَلْيَذُوقُوهُ حَمِيمٌ وَغَسَّاقٌ

“This – so let them taste it: scalding water and [foul] purulence.”

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🔍 Detailed Explanation of the Words and Structure:

1. هَـٰذَا

• Literally: “This”

• Refers to what has just been described — the punishment or torment for the disbelievers in Hell.

2. فَلْيَذُوقُوهُ

• فَ = So / Then (resultative or consequential particle)

• لْيَذُوقُوهُ = Let them taste it

  • ذَاقَ = to taste

  • يَذُوقُ = he tastes

  • لْيَذُوقُوا = let them taste (jussive command)

  • هُ = it (refers to the punishment)

So together: "So let them taste it" – an ironic command inviting them to now experience what was warned.

3. حَمِيمٌ

• Boiling hot water, extremely scalding.

• Mentioned multiple times in the Qur’an as one of the punishments of Hell.

• It burns the insides; described as tearing apart bowels (e.g., 47:15).

4. غَسَّاقٌ

• From the root غ س ق, meaning to flow or ooze, especially with darkness, filth, or coldness.

• غَسَّاق is a very intense form (on the pattern of فَعَّال), often translated as:

  • Putrid discharge, foul pus, freezing cold filth, or extremely repulsive matter

  • According to some scholars, it refers to fluid oozing from the bodies of the people in Hell (sweat, blood, pus, etc.)

  • Others say it's an extremely cold and dark substance — the opposite of Hamīm, showing contrast in the punishment: burning and freezing.

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🔁 Why Is "هُ" (it) Singular When Two Things Are Mentioned?

“فَلْيَذُوقُوهُ حَمِيمٌ وَغَسَّاقٌ”

This is the key part of your question. Let's address that.

✅ Syntactic Structure

• The verb يَذُوقُوهُ refers to a single object: "it" (هُ)

• But then two nouns follow: حَمِيمٌ وَغَسَّاقٌ

So we have:

"Let them taste it: Hamīm and Ghassāq"

🔍 How to Understand This Grammatically and Rhetorically?

1. "هُ" refers to the composite punishment:

   • Though Hamīm and Ghassāq are two distinct things, they form one unified experience of torment.

   • Thus, they are treated as a single object in the verb phrase.

   • Think of it as: "Let them taste this (punishment), which includes boiling water and filth."

2. This is a rhetorical device in Arabic:

   • Often, a singular pronoun refers to a complex or dual concept, especially when it's presented as a single outcome or event.

   • It emphasizes the unity and inescapability of the punishment.

   • Similar usage can be seen in other Qur'anic verses (e.g., 44:48, 78:25).

3. Elliptical structure (Taqdīr):

   • The phrase can be interpreted as elliptical:

     فَلْيَذُوقُوهُ، وَهُوَ حَمِيمٌ وَغَسَّاقٌ
     “Let them taste it – it is Hamīm and Ghassāq”

   • The noun pair is appositional to "it" — a further clarification.

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🌟 Summary:

Element	Meaning
هَٰذَا	This punishment
فَلْيَذُوقُوهُ	So let them taste it (mocking command)
حَمِيمٌ	Boiling, scalding water
غَسَّاقٌ	Foul pus or freezing dark discharge
Why singular "it"?	Because the two items together form one unified torment; the singular pronoun refers to the combined punishment

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💡 Rhetorical Impact:

• This verse powerfully contrasts the forms of suffering:

  • Burning (Hamīm) vs. freezing / foulness (Ghassāq)

• Using “it” makes the torment feel like one single unavoidable horror — no escape in any direction.

Let me know if you'd like Tafsīr from Ibn Kathīr, al-Ṭabarī, or Zamakhsharī on this verse.

You said:

Why Is "هُ" (it) Singular When Two Things Are Mentioned? in pre islamic arabic

ChatGPT said:

Excellent and precise question:

Why is "هُ" (it) singular when two things — حَمِيمٌ and غَسَّاقٌ — are mentioned? Does this kind of singular pronoun usage with multiple nouns occur in pre-Islamic Arabic?

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✅ Short Answer (Pre-Islamic Arabic Context):

Yes, this usage is entirely consistent with pre-Islamic Arabic. In both Qur'anic and pre-Islamic usage, it is common to refer to a composite idea (even if made up of multiple items) with a singular pronoun, especially when the speaker wants to refer to:

• The punishment as a whole

• The outcome or effect of those multiple things

• A singular implied noun (e.g., "torment", "thing", "punishment", "drink", etc.)

This is a classical Arabic rhetorical and grammatical style.

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🔍 Deeper Linguistic Explanation:

1. Implied (Mahdhūf) Singular Antecedent

In this case, the singular pronoun "هُ" refers not to Hamīm and Ghassāq as individual nouns, but to an implied singular concept, like:

العذاب (the punishment), or
الشراب (the drink), or
الجزاء (the recompense)

This elliptical construct was commonly used in pre-Islamic Arabic poetry and khutbahs (orations). Arabs would frequently refer to a combined set of things via a singular pronoun because the collective sense was clear from context.

📌 Example from Pre-Islamic Usage:
Let’s take a poetic parallel:

فَذُقْهُ فَإِنَّكَ أَنتَ الْعَذُولُ
“So taste it, for you are the blameworthy one.”

Here, the poet may have described various elements of suffering or consequences, but still refers to them with a singular pronoun, because the concept is one: a single punishment or fate.

2. The Dual/Multi-Item Can Be Treated As One

In Arabic, especially classical Arabic, two things can be referred to with a singular pronoun when they are meant to be experienced together or are tightly bound in function.

Just like in English we might say:

“This is your fate: fire and poison. Now taste it.”
— even though fire and poison are two distinct things.

3. Parallel in the Qur’an (and pre-Islamic style)

This same style appears throughout the Qur'an — reflecting the eloquence and norms of pre-Islamic Arabic:

• Surah 44:48

  ثُمَّ صُبُّوا فَوْقَ رَأْسِهِ مِنْ عَذَابِ الْحَمِيمِ
  “Then pour over his head from the punishment of scalding water.”
  – Even though the water is the medium, it is called “punishment” as a singular.

• Surah 78:25

  لَا يَذُوقُونَ فِيهَا بَرْدًا وَلَا شَرَابًا إِلَّا حَمِيمًا وَغَسَّاقًا
  “They will taste no coolness nor drink except scalding water and pus.”
  – Two items (Hamīm & Ghassāq) are seen as one type of “drink”, so treated grammatically as one.

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🏺 Pre-Islamic Arabic Rhetorical Style:

📝 From Balāghah (Rhetoric):

• In ‘Ilm al-Maʿānī, this is a known concept:

  • Using a singular pronoun for multiple nouns if they represent a single outcome, object, or purpose.

This was not just accepted but considered more eloquent, because:

• It compresses meaning,

• Adds rhetorical force, and

• Keeps focus on the overall horror or emphasis.

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🧠 Summary:

Element	Explanation
Why singular "هُ"?	Refers to a single implied concept (like punishment or torment), even though it’s made of multiple parts.
Pre-Islamic usage?	Yes, common. Arabs used singular pronouns to refer to combined concepts.
Grammatical basis	Ellipsis and rhetorical compression — widely used in Arabic oration and poetry.
Effect	Adds force, emphasis, and treats the two torments as one experience.