Meaning of Ummat-e-wasat from Tafsir Surah Al-Baqarah, ayat 143 (Holy Qurán 2:143)

Muhammad Asad
This is taken from The Message of The Qurán. Translated and Explained by Muhammad Asad. 

Translation of the meaning

And thus have we willed you to be a community of the middle way¹¹⁸, so that [with your lives] you might bear witness to the truth before all mankind, and that the Apostle might bear witness to it before you.¹¹⁹ <...contd...> (Holy Qurán 2:143)

Tafsir (Interpretation & Commentary

[118] Lit., "middlemost community" - i.e., a community that keeps an equitable balance between extremes and is realistic in its appreciation of man's nature and possibilities, rejecting both licentiousness and exaggerated asceticism. In tune with its oft-repeated call to moderation in every aspect of life, the Qurán exhorts the believers not to place too great an emphasis on the physical and material aspects of their lives, but postulates, at the same time, that man's urges and desires relating to this "life of the flesh" are God-willed and, therefore, legitimate. On further analysis, the expression "a community of the middle way" might be said to summarize, as it were, the Islamic attitude towards the problem of man's existence as such: a denial of the view that there is an inherent conflict between the spirit and the flesh, and a bold affirmation of the natural, God-willed unity in this twofold aspect of human life. This balanced attitude, peculiar to Islam, flows directly from the concept of God's oneness and, hence, of the unity of purpose underlying all His creation: and thus, the mention of the "community of the middle way" at this place is a fitting introduction to the theme of the Ka'bah, a symbol of God's oneness.

[119] I.e., "that your way of life be an example to all mankind, just as the Apostle is an example to you."

[Also read the interpretation of the same verse by Maulana Maududi: Tafsir surah 2 (al-baqarah) ayat 143 - Maulana Maududi]