What does 'a cup filled to the brim' with no idle talk mean in An-Naba 34–35?

Answer

An-Naba 78:34 mentions 'a cup filled to the brim (kaʾsan dihāqan),' and 78:35 says the people of Paradise 'will hear in it neither idle talk (laghw) nor any lie (kidhdhāb).' The early authorities, including Ibn ʿAbbās and Mujāhid, explained 'dihāq' as a cup poured out full and overflowing, continuously replenished. The Qur'an elsewhere clarifies that the drink of Paradise, unlike worldly wine, causes no intoxication, headache, or loss of reason (e.g. 37:47, 56:19) — so the imagery of a brimming cup conveys abundance and delight without the harm that drink causes in this life. Verse 35 then describes the moral atmosphere of Paradise: there is no laghw (vain, empty, frivolous speech) and no kidhdhāb (lying or denial of truth). al-Qurṭubī contrasts this with the corrupting talk of worldly gatherings. The parallel verse 56:25 reinforces it: 'They hear no ill speech therein nor any sinful talk.' Thus Paradise is portrayed not merely as physical pleasure but as a realm of perfect speech and truthfulness, where the social diseases of gossip, deception, and idle chatter are entirely absent.