God’s Swear by Fig and Olive
The word “tin”, meaning fig, has been mentioned once in the Holy Quran and that is in Surah At-Tin. “I swear by the fig and the olive, and mount Sinai, and this city made secure.” (verses 1-3)
There are different opinions about what is actually meant by the “fig and olive” here. Interpreters have two viewpoints for the opening verses of the surah.
Firstly, it is said that there should have been a relation between the first two elements (fig and olive) with the next two (mount Sinai and secure city). Accordingly, they say fig and olive refer to special places.
Mount Sinai is where Hazrat Musa (AS) started talking with God after returning from Egypt and it is where he was appointed as a prophet.
After finishing the construction of Kaaba, Hazrat Ibrahim (AS) said: “My Lord, make this a land secure.” (Surah Ibrahim, verse 35)
Accordingly, the two words refer to places in the north of today’s Saudi Arabia and Palestine. These regions have been the birthplace of many divine prophets.
The second view is that the two words are actually referring to the namesake fruits. If so, then how should we relate them to the next two words?
A group of interpreters believe that the first two words are food for the body and the next two ones, are related to the spirit.
Accordingly, one can have a better view of the next verse which reads: “Certainly We created man in the best make.” (Surah At-Tin, verse 4)
So, humans have been created in the best spiritual and balanced manner.
