36:1-4 YāÌ Sīn. By the Wise Qur'an, surely thou are one of the envoys, upon a straight path.
It has been said that the name of the surah is Yāsīn because of the report in which Muṣ?afā said, "God recited Ṭāhā and Yāsīn two thousand years before the creation of Adam. When the angels of the Dominion heard it, they said, 'Happy is the community upon which this pure speech descends! Happy are the tongues that recite it! Happy are the breasts that are the oyster for this hidden pearl!'"
It is reported that when the friends and the faithful go into that scented garden of felicity and arrive at the joy and bliss of paradise, a call will come from the Compeller: "You have heard much from others. Now is the time to hear from Me." Then He will make them hear the surahs al-Fātiḥa, Ṭāhā, and Yāsīn. Muṣ?afā said, "When the people listen to the Qur'an recited by the All-Merciful, it will be as if they had never heard it before." You must take the rose from its own bush to catch its scent correctly.
Hear it from Him who spoke it and increase thereby
in burning love, for the sweetness of the rose comes from its branches.
It has also been said that it means "O man [yā insān]!" and is addressed to Muṣ?afā's form and mortal nature, just as He said elsewhere: "Say: 'I am but a mortal like you'" [18:110], for his human nature and genus are similar to that of the people. This address, "O man!," accords with that. But, in respect of the eminence of prophethood and the specification for messengerhood, he is addressed, "O Prophet!" and "O Messenger!" He is addressed in terms of form and mortal nature as jealousy's mask, so that not just anyone will be privy to and be aware of his beauty and perfection. This is as they say, "Call me Arsalan so that no one will know who I am." It would be a shame for such beauty and perfection to be touched by the eyes of Abū Jahl, ʿAtaba, and Shayba. Thou seest them looking at thee, but they do not see [7:198]. The eyes of Abū Jahl, which were dazzled by denial, saw only his human and mortal nature. One needs the eyes of Abū Bakr, cleansed by asking forgiveness, so as to see the beauty of his prophethood and the perfection of his messengerhood. The eyes of ʿAtaba and Shayba, which were veiled by the night of rejection in the Beginningless, saw only his relation to ʿAbd al-Mu??alib. The eyes of Abū Bakr and ʿUmar, brightened by the morning of acceptance in the Beginningless, are needed to see the eminence and caresses given to Muḥammad, God's messenger.
Indeed, there is no stipulation to show the private quarters to the non-privy. It wants someone who has become privy to the Shariah and the Tariqah. When the medicine of following the Master has been placed in the eyes of someone's seeking and has become the eye-strengthener of veneration, he will be qualified to see that beauty.
It has also been said that the Yā' of Yāsīn alludes to the Day of the Compact [mīthāq], and the Sīn alludes to His secret [sirr] with the lovers. It is as if He is saying, "By the rightful due of the Day of the Compact, by My secret with the lovers, and by the Wise Qur'an, surely thou are one of the envoys, upon a straight path."