Surah 16. An-Nahl

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Verses [Section]: 1-9[1], 10-21 [2], 22-25 [3], 26-34 [4], 35-40 [5], 41-50 [6], 51-60 [7], 61-65 [8], 66-70 [9], 71-76 [10], 77-83 [11], 84-89 [12], 90-100 [13], 101-110 [14], 111-119 [15], 120-128 [16]

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Quran Text of Verse 71-76وَ اللّٰهُAnd Allahفَضَّلَhas favoredبَعْضَكُمْsome of youعَلٰیoverبَعْضٍothersفِیinالرِّزْقِ ۚ[the] provisionفَمَاBut notالَّذِیْنَthose whoفُضِّلُوْاwere favoredبِرَآدِّیْwould hand overرِزْقِهِمْtheir provisionعَلٰیtoمَاwhomمَلَكَتْpossessاَیْمَانُهُمْtheir right handsفَهُمْso (that) theyفِیْهِ(are) in itسَوَآءٌ ؕequalاَفَبِنِعْمَةِThen is it the Favorاللّٰهِof Allahیَجْحَدُوْنَ they reject وَ اللّٰهُAnd Allahجَعَلَ(has) madeلَكُمْfor youمِّنْfromاَنْفُسِكُمْyourselvesاَزْوَاجًاspousesوَّ جَعَلَand has madeلَكُمْfor youمِّنْfromاَزْوَاجِكُمْyour spousesبَنِیْنَsonsوَ حَفَدَةًand grandsonsوَّ رَزَقَكُمْand has provided for youمِّنَfromالطَّیِّبٰتِ ؕthe good thingsاَفَبِالْبَاطِلِThen in falsehood doیُؤْمِنُوْنَthey believeوَ بِنِعْمَتِand the Favorاللّٰهِof Allahهُمْtheyیَكْفُرُوْنَۙdisbelieve 16. An-Nahl Page 275وَ یَعْبُدُوْنَAnd they worshipمِنْother thanدُوْنِother thanاللّٰهِAllahمَاwhichلَاnotیَمْلِكُpossessesلَهُمْfor themرِزْقًاany provisionمِّنَfromالسَّمٰوٰتِthe heavensوَ الْاَرْضِand the earthشَیْـًٔا[anything]وَّ لَاand notیَسْتَطِیْعُوْنَۚthey are able فَلَاSo (do) notتَضْرِبُوْاput forthلِلّٰهِfor Allahالْاَمْثَالَ ؕthe similitudeاِنَّIndeedاللّٰهَAllahیَعْلَمُknowsوَ اَنْتُمْand youلَا(do) notتَعْلَمُوْنَ know ضَرَبَAllah sets forthاللّٰهُAllah sets forthمَثَلًاthe exampleعَبْدًا(of) a slaveمَّمْلُوْكًا(who is) ownedلَّاnotیَقْدِرُhe has powerعَلٰیonشَیْءٍanythingوَّ مَنْand (one) whomرَّزَقْنٰهُWe provided himمِنَّاfrom Usرِزْقًاa provisionحَسَنًاgoodفَهُوَso heیُنْفِقُspendsمِنْهُfrom itسِرًّاsecretlyوَّ جَهْرًا ؕand publiclyهَلْCanیَسْتَوٗنَ ؕthey be equalاَلْحَمْدُAll praiseلِلّٰهِ ؕ(is) for AllahبَلْNayاَكْثَرُهُمْbut most of themلَا(do) notیَعْلَمُوْنَ know وَ ضَرَبَAnd Allah sets forthاللّٰهُAnd Allah sets forthمَثَلًاan exampleرَّجُلَیْنِ(of) two menاَحَدُهُمَاۤone of themاَبْكَمُ(is) dumbلَاnotیَقْدِرُhe has powerعَلٰیonشَیْءٍanythingوَّ هُوَwhile heكَلٌّ(is) a burdenعَلٰیonمَوْلٰىهُ ۙhis masterاَیْنَمَاWhereverیُوَجِّهْهُّhe directs himلَاnotیَاْتِhe comesبِخَیْرٍ ؕwith any goodهَلْIsیَسْتَوِیْequalهُوَ ۙheوَ مَنْand (the one) whoیَّاْمُرُcommandsبِالْعَدْلِ ۙ[of] justiceوَ هُوَand heعَلٰی(is) onصِرَاطٍa pathمُّسْتَقِیْمٍ۠straight

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Translation of Verse 71-76

(16:71) Allah has favoured some of you with more worldly provisions than others. Then those who are more favoured do not give away their provisions to their slaves lest they become equal sharers in it. Do they, then, deny the favour of Allah?⁶²

(16:72) And Allah has given you spouses from your kind, and has granted you through your spouses, sons and grandsons, and has provided you wholesome things as sustenance. (After knowing all this), do they still believe in falsehood⁶³ and deny Allah's bounty,⁶⁴

(16:73) and worship instead of Allah, those helpless beings who have no control over providing them any sustenance from the heavens and the earth; do you worship those who have no power to do anything of this sort?

(16:74) So do not strike any similitudes to Allah.⁶⁵ Allah knows whereas you do not know.

(16:75) Allah sets forth a parable:⁶⁶ There is one who is a slave and is owned by another and has no power over anything; and there is one whom We have granted good provision Ourselves, of which he spends both secretly and openly. Can they be equal? All praise be to Allah.⁶⁷ But most of them do not even know (this simple fact).⁶⁸

(16:76) Allah sets forth another parable: There are two men, one of whom is dumb and has no power over anything; he is a burden to his master, and wheresoever his master directs him, he fails to bring forth any good. Can such a person be the equal⁶⁹ of one who enjoins justice and himself follows the Right Way?

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Commentary

62. This verse has been grossly misinterpreted in recent times. The interpretation to which the verse has been subjected clearly indicates the danger inherent in considering every single verse of the Qur’an separately and attempting to understand it in isolation from its context. This is bound to open the flood-gates of irresponsible and fanciful interpretation.

The present verse has been considered by some people to represent the foundation of the Islamic economic philosophy, and as an important provision of the Islamic economic system. According to such people, the true purpose of the verse is to tell those who have been granted ample worldly provisions to return them to their servants and slaves so as to make them equal sharers of those provisions. It is contended that if they fail to do so, they will be guilty of denying God’s favor.

The fact of the matter is that the context in which this verse occurs renders any discussion of economic questions quite out of place. The discourse is in fact devoted to emphasizing God’s unity and refuting polytheism. The preceding verses are directed to the above subjects, and the same discussion continues. It would be quite odd if an economic principle were suddenly enunciated at this point in the midst of a discussion devoted to quite another subject matter.

If one bears in mind the correct context of the verse it can be easily appreciated that what is being said here is something quite different. Here, people are first reminded of an actual fact of life. They are told that they do not share their wealth — even though it has been bestowed upon them by God — with their slaves and servants. In view of this, how can they justify that they should associate God’s helpless servants with Him in giving thanks for the favor conferred upon them by God alone? How can they consider these creatures of God equal to Him in respect of both rights and authority? Exactly the same point is made asking the same question elsewhere in the Qur’an: ‘He does propound to you a similitude from your own experience. Do you have partners from among those whom your right hands possess so that they would share the wealth We have bestowed on you till they become equals? Do you fear them as you fear your peers? Thus do We explain the signs in detail to a people that understand’ (al-Rum 30: 28).

A comparison of the present verse with the verse just quoted (viz. al-Raum 30: 28), makes it clear that both the verses are geared to the same purpose. The example and the argument which have been marshalled are also identical. In fact, the two verses are complementary, each assisting in the understanding of the other.

Perhaps the misinterpretation which arises has been caused by the Qur’anic statement: ‘Do they, then, deny the favor of Allah?’ (verse 71). Since this statement soon follows the citing of an example, it has led some people to the mistaken view that the failure to hand over one’s possessions to one’s slaves and servants amounts to denying God’s favors. However, anyone well versed in the Qur’an knows well that to. thank someone other than God for a favor bestowed by God is tantamount, according to the Qur’an, to denying God’s favors. This point has been repeated so often in the Qur’an that anyone who is familiar with it can never fall prey to any such misconception. Only those who are not well acquainted with the Qur’an and who, therefore, have to have recourse to studying it with the help of indices and concordances will be unaware of the true Qur’anic teaching on the matter.

Once a person rightly grasps what is meant by ‘denying God’s favors’ the verse becomes quite intelligible. The point that is being emphasized here is that people know the basic difference between master and slave. They also maintain such a distinction between the two in their practical lives, and make an effort to keep the two apart. However, they seem to brush all this aside in God’s case. Instead, they insist on associating His creatures — those who are His born servants — with Him. They also insist on giving thanks to God’s creatures for the favors that He alone has bestowed upon them.

63. To charge the unbelievers that they ‘believe in falsehood’ means that they subscribe to beliefs which are totally baseless and devoid of all truth. They subscribe, for instance, to the belief that it is gods, goddesses, jinn and saints of the past who have full powers to make or mar people’s destiny, to respond to their invocations, to bless them with offspring and the means for their livelihood, to effectively help them in any litigation and in preventing them falling prey to disease.

64. The Makkan polytheists did not deny that they owe to God all the bounties which they had received. They also had no hesitation in gratefully acknowledging God’s favors. However, their mistake lay in the fact that, in addition to giving thanks to God for those favors, they also gave thanks to others whom they considered to be His partners. The Qur’an considers this to be tantamount to denying God’s favor. The Qur’an enunciates the principle that to give thanks to someone other than to whom it is due is identical to denying the favor of the true benefactor.

Likewise, the Qur’an enunciates another principle. It declares that any gratuitous assumption that the benefactor did not bestow favor out of his benevolence, but did so at the behest or intervention of someone else, also amounts to denying the favor of the true benefactor. It will be seen that both principles enunciated by the Qur’an are consonant with the dictates of justice and common sense. Everyone is capable of appreciating their reasonableness. Suppose someone helps a needy person out of compassion and then the person so helped stands up and gives thanks to someone who had nothing to do with the favor granted him. Someone might disregard this outrageous behavior out of magnanimity. He might even be so forbearing as to continue to help him. Nevertheless, he is bound to feel in his heart of hearts that the person whom he had helped was utterly thankless.

Moreover, if a benefactor comes to know that the needy person thanks others rather than himself in the belief that the latter had acted under the influence of someone else rather than out of genuine compassion and generosity, he is bound to feel insulted if such was not the case. Such a foolish explanation on the part of that person will only mean that he had an overly low opinion of his benefactor. It is indicative of the fact that he considers his benefactor to be bereft of compassion and mercy; that he looks upon him as one given to nepotism, as one who does not care for human beings and their sufferings. All he cares for is a group of persons whom he wishes to gratify in and out of season.

65. The command ‘not to strike any similitudes to Allah’ amounts to warning people not to conceive of Him in the image of worldly sovereigns. For many people do indeed develop faulty notions about God owing to the basically false image that-they entertain about Him. They tend to conceive in Him the image of a. worldly ruler who is surrounded in his palace by courtiers, officers and servants. Using this as their analogy, they think that God is also helplessly surrounded by angels, saints and other chosen ones. In the same way as a worldly sovereign cannot be approached directly without having to go.

through intermediaries, so it is in the case of God.

66. God explains the truth by means of sound parables for the benefit of those who are inclined to understand things through parables. The unbelievers had arrived at. wrong conclusions precisely because they had attempted to grasp things with the help of wrong parables.

67. There is a gap between the question which has been posed here and the statement that follows: ‘All praise be to Allah.’ In itself this expression contains a good hint as to how the gap can be filled.

Obviously, it was in no way possible for the polytheists to say, in response to the Prophet’s questions, that the two are equal. The only sensible answer to the question — even that given by many unbelievers — must have been an acknowledgement of the fact that the two are certainly not equal. There would, however, have been others who would have preferred to remain silent. They would have chosen to do so because the logical corollary to such an acknowledgement was that their polytheistic doctrines were false. On hearing both these kinds of responses the Prophet (peace be on him) says: ‘All praise be to Allah.’ With regard to the first response, he thanks God for the fact that even a polytheist was able to grasp at least that point. With regard to the second response, he thanks God that despite his obduracy the polytheist was unable to say that the two were equal, and thus failed to find any fault with the basic premise of monotheism.

68. The unbelievers are fully aware of the difference between the powerful and the powerless among their fellow human beings. Nor do they fail to distinguish between these two categories of people in their practical lives. So it is astonishing that when it comes to applying this reasonable distinction to Creator and created, they show utter foolishness and stupidity insofar as they fail to recognize the essential difference between the two. As a result, they tend to conceive created beings as partners with God in His essence and attributes, in His power and rights. They also adopt towards created beings a stance which ought to be adopted only towards the Creator.

Astonishingly enough, when it comes to worldly life, the unbelievers are quite clever. When they need something they know that they should ask the master of the house for it rather than his servant. However, when it comes to asking for bounties which lie beyond the range of normal causation, rather than seek them from the Lord of the universe, they turn to His servants.

69. In the former parable the difference between God and the false deities is brought out with reference to the all-powerfulness of the One and the powerlessness of the other. In the second parable, the same difference is explained even more emphatically. However, this is done with reference to attributes. The point that emerges, therefore, is not merely that God is the Master Who is possessed of power, while the false deities are powerless servants but in addition there is a further difference between them. Being powerless servants the false deities cannot hear their prayers, nor answer them, nor do they have the power to do anything out of their own power. In fact they owe even their existence to their Lord. Were the Master to assign them any task, they have no power — unless God confers it upon them — to accomplish that task. In sharp contrast to that, the Master is all-powerful and all-wise. He enjoins all to practice justice. He not only has the power to act as He chooses, but He also acts in accordance with truth and rectitude. Thus, the difference between God and the false deities is quite glaring. How can it be wise, then, for anyone to hold the Lord and His servants as equal?