Arabic roots and vocabulary
From Skin to Glad Tidings — The Root ب ش ر
Ibn Fāris (رَحِمَهُ اللهُ) says that the three root letters ب ش ر return to one basic meaning:
ظُهُورُ الشَّيْءِ مَعَ حُسْنٍ وَجَمَالٍ
“ Something becoming visible or apparent, together with beauty and goodness .”
Let's look closely how this meaning runs through very different Arabic words:
بَشَرَةٌ — skin
More precisely, the visible outer skin.
And this meaning appears in the Qurʾān:
لَوَّاحَةٌ لِّلْبَشَرِ
“ Scorching the skins .”
[74:29]
Here الْبَشَر is explained as the plural of بَشَرَة — the skin.
Then we have:
بَشَرٌ — a human being
Al-Rāghib explains that the human being is called بَشَر because his skin is visible , unlike animals whose skin is covered with wool, fur or hair.
And from the same root come several verbs which still preserve this idea of بَشَرَة — skin.
بَاشَرَ / يُبَاشِرُ
Literally, it carries the idea of skin coming into direct contact with skin. Hence, when used between a husband and wife, it means to have intimate relations.
Then:
بَشَّرَ / يُبَشِّرُ — to give glad tidings
Allāh (سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى) says:
وَبَشِّرِ الصَّابِرِينَ
“ And give glad tidings to the patient .”
[2:155]
But what does giving glad tidings have to do with skin?
Al-Rāghib explains that بَشَّرَ is to tell someone something joyful which causes the بَشَرَة of his face to open and change visibly with happiness.
In other words, it is not simply to inform someone.
It is news whose emotional effect becomes visible on the face.
And from the same root:
اِسْتَبْشَرَ / يَسْتَبْشِرُ — to rejoice, to become filled with happiness
From it comes:
مُسْتَبْشِرٌ — rejoicing, visibly happy
Now look at the precision of these words in the Qurʾān:
وُجُوهٌ يَوْمَئِذٍ مُّسْفِرَةٌ ضَاحِكَةٌ مُّسْتَبْشِرَةٌ
“ Faces that Day will be bright, laughing, rejoicing .”
[80:38–39]
Arabic has many words for happiness and joy.
But here Allāh (سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى) describes the faces themselves as:
مُسْتَبْشِرَةٌ
— a word from the very root connected with بَشَرَة, the visible skin.
The happiness inside them has become visible upon their faces.
ظُهُورُ الشَّيْءِ مَعَ حُسْنٍ وَجَمَالٍ
“ Something becoming visible or apparent, together with beauty and goodness .”
Let's look closely how this meaning runs through very different Arabic words:
بَشَرَةٌ — skin
More precisely, the visible outer skin.
And this meaning appears in the Qurʾān:
لَوَّاحَةٌ لِّلْبَشَرِ
“ Scorching the skins .”
[74:29]
Here الْبَشَر is explained as the plural of بَشَرَة — the skin.
Then we have:
بَشَرٌ — a human being
Al-Rāghib explains that the human being is called بَشَر because his skin is visible , unlike animals whose skin is covered with wool, fur or hair.
And from the same root come several verbs which still preserve this idea of بَشَرَة — skin.
بَاشَرَ / يُبَاشِرُ
Literally, it carries the idea of skin coming into direct contact with skin. Hence, when used between a husband and wife, it means to have intimate relations.
Then:
بَشَّرَ / يُبَشِّرُ — to give glad tidings
Allāh (سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى) says:
وَبَشِّرِ الصَّابِرِينَ
“ And give glad tidings to the patient .”
[2:155]
But what does giving glad tidings have to do with skin?
Al-Rāghib explains that بَشَّرَ is to tell someone something joyful which causes the بَشَرَة of his face to open and change visibly with happiness.
In other words, it is not simply to inform someone.
It is news whose emotional effect becomes visible on the face.
And from the same root:
اِسْتَبْشَرَ / يَسْتَبْشِرُ — to rejoice, to become filled with happiness
From it comes:
مُسْتَبْشِرٌ — rejoicing, visibly happy
Now look at the precision of these words in the Qurʾān:
وُجُوهٌ يَوْمَئِذٍ مُّسْفِرَةٌ ضَاحِكَةٌ مُّسْتَبْشِرَةٌ
“ Faces that Day will be bright, laughing, rejoicing .”
[80:38–39]
Arabic has many words for happiness and joy.
But here Allāh (سُبْحَانَهُ وَتَعَالَى) describes the faces themselves as:
مُسْتَبْشِرَةٌ
— a word from the very root connected with بَشَرَة, the visible skin.
The happiness inside them has become visible upon their faces.