Yawma-ithin yasduru annasu ashtatan liyuraw aAAmalahum (surah Zalzalah: 6)

Tafseer Tafheem-ul-Quran by Syed Abu-al-A'la Maududi

(99:6) On that Day people will go forth in varying states *5 so that they be shown their deeds. *6

Yawma iziy yas durun naasu ash tatal liyuraw a`maalahum

*5) This can have two meanings: (1) That each man with present himself in his own individual capacity--families, groups, parties, nations, all will scatter away. This thing has been said at other places also in the Qur'an, e.g., according to Surah Al-An`am 94, Allah on that Day will say to the people "So, you have come before Us all alone, as We created you at first", and in Surah Maryam: "He will appear before Us all alone" (v 80), and "Everyone of them will be presented before Him individually on the Resurrection Day" (v 95) (2) That the people who during thousands and thousands of years had died at different places; will be rising from different corners of the earth and proceeding in groups, as has been said in Surah An-Naba "The day the Trumpet is blown, you will come out in crowds." (v 18) Apart from these, there is no room in the word ashtatan for the meanings, which different commentators have given, and are, therefore, outside the literal bounds of this word, although they are correct by themselves and in accordance with the conditions depicted of the Resurrection Day in Qur'an and the Hadith.
*6) This can have two meanings: (1) That they are shown their deeds, i. e. , each one told what he did in the world; and (2) that they are shown the rewards of their deeds. Although this second meaning also can be taken of the words li yurau' jaza'a a malahum (so as to be shown the rewards of their deeds) but li yurau' a malahum (so as to be shown their deeds). Therefore, the first meaning only is preferable, especially when at several places in the Qur'an it has been stated clearly that the disbeliever and the believer, the righteous and the wicked, the obedient and the disobedient, all will be given their records (e.g. see Al-Haqqah: 19, 25; Al-Inshiqaq: 7, 10). Evidently, there is no difference between showing somebody his deeds and handing over to him his record. Furthermore, when the earth will narrate whatever had happened on her, the whole picture of the conflict between the Truth and the falsehood that has been raging since the beginning of time and will continue to rage till the end, also will appear before the people and they will see what part the truth-loving people played in it and what vile deeds did the supporters of falsehood commit against them. It may well be that the people will hear with their own ears all the speeches and dialogues of the callers to right guidance and of the publicists of error and evil; the whole record of the writings and literature produced by the two sides will be placed intact before them, and the people gathered together in the Plain of Assembly will see with their own eyes the persecution of the lovers of Truth by the worshippers of falsehood and all the scenes of the bitter conflict that raged between the two parties.