The Reality of Kashf (Sura 50:22)

بسم الله الرحمـن الرحيم

والصلوة والسلام على رسوله الكريم

وعلى آله واهل بيته اجمعين

The term Kashf (lit. “unveiling”) refers to a Qur’anic concept based on the following Ayah

لَّقَدْ كُنتَ فِي غَفْلَةٍ مِّنْ هَـٰذَا فَكَشَفْنَا عَنكَ غِطَاءَكَ فَبَصَرُكَ الْيَوْمَ حَدِيدٌ

You were certainly in unmindfulness of this, and We have removed from you your cover, so your sight, this Day, is sharp

(Sura 50:22)

Although some exegetes posit that this Verse is in the context of Judgment Day, and is a specific address to the disbeliever, some others, such as Zaid b. Aslam and his son from the Tabi’un interpreted this Verse as Allah Most High specifically addressing His beloved Prophetﷺ

According to them, the Verse means to say: “O beloved Prophetﷺ! You were unaware of the reality of this Dîn during the period of ignorance; but now We have removed [Kashafnaa] from you your cover (over your eyes), so today your vision is as sharp as iron”

Reference: Tafsir Ibn Kathir, v.7 p.401; Tafir Ibn Jarir, v.21 p.434

Kashaf, in light of this Verse, means the removal of the screen that obstructs perception of the reality, and allows the truth revealed upon one’s heart by Allah to be observed with one’s eyes.