What is the meaning of the verse, "Indeed, We offered the Trust to the heavens and the earth and the mountains, but they refused to bear it and became afraid of it. But man undertook to bear it. Indeed, he was unjust and ignorant," and were we given a choice between the vicegerency of the earth and freedom of choice before our existence, so we agreed to it and then forgot that?

The trust mentioned in the verse from Surat Al-Ahzab (Indeed, We offered the Trust...) refers to the acts of obedience, obligations, and limits (hudud) with which Allah has charged humankind. Allah offered it to the heavens, the earth, and the mountains by way of choice, and they refused to bear it out of apprehension. However, humankind (Adam, peace be upon him) bore it on the condition of reward and punishment. He was not given a choice but was rather obligated with it as an honor and a divine favor. The fact that humankind is "wrongdoing and ignorant" is not because he chose to bear the Trust, but rather because he fell short in fulfilling it. The terms "wrongdoing" (dhulūm) and "ignorant" (jahūl) here express his failure to render the Trust its due and his negligence in fulfilling it. Whoever fulfills it has been granted success, and whoever does not fulfill it has been abandoned.