Ibn Kathir
Which was revealed in Makkah How `Amr bin Al-`As was aware of the Qur'an's Miracle due to this Surah They have mentioned that `Amr bin Al-`As went to visit Musaylimah Al-Kadhdhab after the Messenger of Allah ﷺ was commissioned (as a Prophet) and before `Amr had accepted Islam. Upon his arrival, Musaylimah said to him, "What has been revealed to your friend (Muhammad ﷺ ) during this time" `Amr said, "A short and concise Surah has been revealed to him." Musaylimah then said, "What is it" `Amr replied; وَالْعَصْرِ - إِنَّ الإِنسَـنَ لَفِى خُسْرٍ - إِلاَّ الَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ وَعَمِلُواْ الصَّـلِحَـتِ وَتَوَاصَوْاْ بِالْحَقِّ وَتَوَاصَوْاْ بِالصَّبْرِ (By Al-`Asr. Verily, man is in loss. Except those who believe and do righteous deeds, and recommend one another to the truth, and recommend one another to patience.) So Musaylimah thought for a while. Then he said, "Indeed something similar has also been revealed to me." `Amr asked him, "What is it" He replied, "O Wabr (a small, furry mammal; hyrax), O Wabr! You are only two ears and a chest, and the rest of you is digging and burrowing." Then he said, "What do you think, O `Amr" So `Amr said to him, "By Allah! Verily, you know that I know you are lying." I saw that Abu Bakr Al-Khara'iti mentioned a chain of narration for part of this story, or what was close to its meaning, in volume two of his famous book Masawi' ul-Akhlaq. The Wabr is a small animal that resembles a cat, and the largest thing on it is its ears and its torso, while the rest of it is ugly. Musayli- mah intended by the composition of these nonsensical verses to produce something which would oppose the Qur'an. Yet, it was not even convin- cing to the idol wor- shipper of that time. At-Tabarani recorded from `Abdullah bin Hisn Abi Madinah that he said, "Whenever two men from the Companions of the Messenger of Allah ﷺ used to meet, they would not part until one of them had recited Surat Al-`Asr in its entirety to the other, and one of them had given the greetings of peace to the other." Ash-Shafi`i said, "If the people were to ponder on this Surah, it would be sufficient for them." بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَـنِ الرَّحِيمِ In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. Al-`Asr is the time in which the movements of the Children of Adam occur, whether good or evil. Malik narrated from Zayd bin Aslam that he said, "It is the evening." However, the first view is the popular opinion. Thus, Allah swears by this, that man is in Khusr, which means in loss and destruction. إِلاَّ الَّذِينَ ءَامَنُواْ وَعَمِلُواْ الصَّـلِحَـتِ (Except those who believe and do righteous good deeds) So Allah makes an exception, among the species of man being in loss, for those who believe in their hearts and work righteous deeds with their limbs. وَتَوَاصَوْاْ بِالْحَقِّ (And recommend one another to the truth,) This is to perform acts of obedience and avoid the forbidden things. وَتَوَاصَوْاْ بِالصَّبْرِ (And recommend one another to patience.) meaning, with the plots, the evils, and the harms of those who harm people due to their commanding them to do good and forbidding them from evil. This is the end of the Tafsir of Surat Al-`Asr, and all praise and thanks are due to Allah.
تفسير سورة العصر وهي مكية . ذكروا أن عمرو بن العاص وفد على مسيلمة الكذاب [ لعنه الله ] وذلك بعد ما بعث رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم وقبل أن يسلم عمرو فقال له مسيلمة : ماذا أنزل على صاحبكم في هذه المدة ؟ قال لقد أنزل عليه سورة وجيزة بليغة . فقال : وما هي ؟ فقال : " والعصر إن الإنسان لفي خسر إلا الذين آمنوا وعملوا الصالحات وتواصوا بالحق وتواصوا بالصبر " ففكر مسيلمة هنيهة ثم قال : وقد أنزل علي مثلها . فقال له عمرو : وما هو ؟ فقال : يا وبر يا وبر ، إنما أنت أذنان وصدر ، وسائرك حفز نقز . ثم قال : كيف ترى يا عمرو ؟ فقال له عمرو : والله إنك لتعلم أني أعلم أنك تكذب . وقد رأيت أبا بكر الخرائطي أسند في كتابه المعروف ب " مساوي الأخلاق " ، في الجزء الثاني منه ، شيئا من هذا أو قريبا منه . والوبر : دويبة تشبه الهر ، أعظم شيء فيه أذناه ، وصدره وباقيه دميم . فأراد مسيلمة أن يركب من هذا الهذيان ما يعارض به القرآن ، فلم يرج ذلك على عابد الأوثان في ذلك الزمان . وذكر الطبراني من طريق حماد بن سلمة ، عن ثابت عن عبد الله بن حصن [ أبي مدينة ] ، قال : كان الرجلان من أصحاب رسول الله صلى الله عليه وسلم إذا التقيا ، لم يتفرقا إلا على أن يقرأ أحدهما على الآخر " سورة العصر " إلى آخرها ، ثم يسلم أحدهما على الآخر . وقال الشافعي رحمه الله : لو تدبر الناس هذه السورة ، لوسعتهم . العصر : الزمان الذي يقع فيه حركات بني آدم ، من خير وشر . وقال مالك ، عن زيد بن أسلم : هو العشي ، والمشهور الأول .