Tafheem ul Quran

Surah 13 Ar-Ra'd, Ayat 32-37

وَلَـقَدِ اسۡتُهۡزِئَ بِرُسُلٍ مِّنۡ قَبۡلِكَ فَاَمۡلَيۡتُ لِلَّذِيۡنَ كَفَرُوۡا ثُمَّ اَخَذۡتُهُمۡ​ فَكَيۡفَ كَانَ عِقَابِ‏ ﴿13:32﴾ اَفَمَنۡ هُوَ قَآئِمٌ عَلٰى كُلِّ نَفۡسٍۢ بِمَا كَسَبَتۡ​ۚ وَجَعَلُوۡالِلّٰهِ شُرَكَآءَ ؕ قُلۡ سَمُّوۡهُمۡ​ؕ اَمۡ تُنَـبِّـئُـوْنَهٗ بِمَا لَا يَعۡلَمُ فِى الۡاَرۡضِ اَمۡ بِظَاهِرٍ مِّنَ الۡقَوۡلِؕ بَلۡ زُيِّنَ لِلَّذِيۡنَ كَفَرُوۡا مَكۡرُهُمۡ وَصُدُّوۡا عَنِ السَّبِيۡلِ​ؕ وَمَنۡ يُّضۡلِلِ اللّٰهُ فَمَا لَهٗ مِنۡ هَادٍ‏ ﴿13:33﴾ لَهُمۡ عَذَابٌ فِى الۡحَيٰوةِ الدُّنۡيَا​ وَلَعَذَابُ الۡاٰخِرَةِ اَشَقُّ​ ۚ وَمَا لَهُمۡ مِّنَ اللّٰهِ مِنۡ وَّاقٍ‏ ﴿13:34﴾ مَثَلُ الۡجَـنَّةِ الَّتِىۡ وُعِدَ الۡمُتَّقُوۡنَ​ ؕ تَجۡرِىۡ مِنۡ تَحۡتِهَا الۡاَنۡهٰرُ​ ؕ اُكُلُهَا دَآئِمٌ وَّظِلُّهَا​ ؕ تِلۡكَ عُقۡبَى الَّذِيۡنَ اتَّقَوْا​ ​ۖ  وَّعُقۡبَى الۡكٰفِرِيۡنَ النَّارُ‏ ﴿13:35﴾ وَالَّذِيۡنَ اٰتَيۡنٰهُمُ الۡكِتٰبَ يَفۡرَحُوۡنَ بِمَاۤ اُنۡزِلَ اِلَيۡكَ​ وَمِنَ الۡاَحۡزَابِ مَنۡ يُّـنۡكِرُ بَعۡضَهٗ​ؕ قُلۡ اِنَّمَاۤ اُمِرۡتُ اَنۡ اَعۡبُدَ اللّٰهَ وَلَاۤ اُشۡرِكَ بِهٖؕ اِلَيۡهِ اَدۡعُوۡا وَاِلَيۡهِ مَاٰبِ‏ ﴿13:36﴾ وَكَذٰلِكَ اَنۡزَلۡنٰهُ حُكۡمًا عَرَبِيًّا​ ؕ وَلَـئِنِ اتَّبَعۡتَ اَهۡوَآءَهُمۡ بَعۡدَمَا جَآءَكَ مِنَ الۡعِلۡمِۙ مَا لَـكَ مِنَ اللّٰهِ مِنۡ وَّلِىٍّ وَّلَا وَاقٍ‏  ﴿13:37﴾

(13:32) Surely the Messengers before you were ridiculed, but I always initially granted respite to those who disbelieved, and then I seized them (with chastisement). Then, how awesome was My chastisement! (13:33) Is it, then, in regard to Him Who watches over the deeds of every person50,51 that they are acting blasphemously by setting up His associates? Tell them: "Name those associates (if Allah Himself has made them His associates)! Or are you informing Allah of something the existence of which He does not even know?" Or do people arbitrarily utter empty words?52 Indeed, their foul contriving53 has been made to seem fair to the unbelievers and they have been barred from finding the Right Way.54 Whomsoever Allah lets go astray will have none to guide him. (13:34) They shall suffer chastisement in the life of the world, and surely the chastisement of the Hereafter is even more grievous. None has the power to shield them from (the chastisement of) Allah. (13:35) And such will be the Paradise promised to the God-fearing: rivers will flow beneath it, its fruits will be eternal, and so will be its blissful shade. That is the ultimate destiny of the God-fearing while Fire is the destiny of the unbelievers. (13:36) Those upon whom We bestowed the Scriptures earlier rejoice at the Book revealed to you, while there are also some among different groups that reject part of it. Tell them: "I have only been commanded to serve Allah and not to associate anyone with Him. To Him do I call, and to Him is my return."55 (13:37) And it is with the same directive that We revealed to you this Arabic Writ. Were you indeed to follow the vain desires of people after the true knowledge has come to you, none will be your supporter against Allah, and none will have the power to shield you from His punishment.

Notes

50. That is, they are so audacious that they set up partners with Allah Whose knowledge is All-Comprehensive and Who is aware of even the minutest details of the good and bad actions of each individual.

51. These are the audacious things they do. They ascribe partners and equals to Him. They believe that some of His creatures are a part and parcel of His Being, and have attributes and rights like Him. They presume that they shall not be called to account for whatever they do, even though they live in His kingdom.

52. That is, you give empty names to the partners you ascribe to Him for you have no real knowledge about them. For you could get this knowledge only in one of the three following ways.

First, you might have received some authentic information that Allah had made such and such people as His partners in His attributes, powers and rights. If it is so, let us also know their names and the source of your information.

Second, the possibility that Allah might have remained ignorant that some beings have become His partners. Therefore you are going to inform Him about this. If it is so, say it clearly in so many words so that it may be decided whether there are some foolish people who can believe in such a nonsensical claim.

Third, obviously the above two suppositions are absurd. Therefore the only alternative is that, you are ascribing partners to Him without any rhyme or reason, and you, without any knowledge, make one the relative of God, another the hearer of supplications, and still another the helper and fulfiller of certain needs and the ruler of a certain region etc.

53. Shirk has been called fraud because none of the angels, spirits, saints, heavenly bodies, to whom they ascribe divine attributes and powers or render divine rights, ever claimed to possess these attributes or powers. Neither did they ever demand these rights from the people nor told the people that they would fulfill their desires and wants if they would perform some rituals of worship before them. As a matter of fact, some clever people invented these gods in order to practice willful deception and dishonesty so that they might wield powerful influence over the common people and exploit them and deprive them of a part of their hard earned possessions. Accordingly, they made the common people credulous followers of the gods of their inventions and set themselves up as their representatives to get money, etc. from them by this fraud.

The second reason why shirk has been called fraud is that a worldly man pretends to believe in it not because he wants to believe in it but in order to free himself from all moral restraints to enable him to lead an irresponsible life of greed and lust.

The third reason is given below in( E. N. 54).

55. This is in reply to a specific objection which was then raised by the disbelievers. They would say: If he has brought the same message that was brought by the Messengers before him (as he claims), why don’t the Jews and the Christians who are the followers of the former Prophets come forward and welcome it? The verse answers the objection and says that the true followers of the former Prophets really rejoice in the message of the Quran, but the false ones have been offended by it. Then it asks the Prophet (peace be upon him) not to worry at all about this, saying: O Prophet, you should not mind at all whether they are pleased or offended by it. Tell them plainly that this is the guidance I have received from my Lord and I will follow it at all costs.