In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
Summary of Tafsir al-Tabari.
Abridged by Dr. 'Aqil ibn Salim al-Shammari.
Surah al-An'am.
In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
“Only those can accept who hear. As for the dead, Allah will raise them up; then unto Him they will be returned.” (6:36)
◁ And the dead—Allah will resurrect them. ▷
◁ Then to Him they will be returned. ▷
Allah, exalted be His mention, says to His Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him):
Do not let the aversion of these people who turn away from you weigh heavily upon you.
For none will respond to your call except those whose ears Allah has opened to listen to the truth,
and for whom He has made it easy to follow right guidance.
As for the disbelievers, Allah will resurrect them along with the dead,
and then to Allah will return the believers who responded to Allah and the Messenger,
as well as the disbelievers whom Allah has prevented from understanding anything from you.
“They say: Why hath no portent been sent down upon him from his Lord? Say: Lo! Allah is Able to send down a portent. But most of them know not.” (6:37)
“They say: Why hath no portent been sent down upon him from his Lord? Say: Lo! Allah is Able to send down a portent. But most of them know not.” (6:37)
◁ And they say, "Why has a sign not been sent down to Muhammad from his Lord?" ▷
Say, O Muhammad: Allah is indeed Able to send down a proof according to what they desire and ask for,
but most of those who say this and ask you for a sign
do not know the calamity that would befall them through the sign if He were to send it down,
nor do they comprehend the wisdom behind My withholding its revelation from you.
Had they known the reason for which I did not send it down to you, they would not have said that.
◁ But most of them do not know. ▷
“There is not an animal in the earth, nor a flying creature flying on two wings, but they are peoples like unto you. We have neglected nothing in the Book (of Our decrees). Then unto their Lord they will be gathered.” (6:38)
“There is not an animal in the earth, nor a flying creature flying on two wings, but they are peoples like unto you. We have neglected nothing in the Book (of Our decrees). Then unto their Lord they will be gathered.” (6:38)
Say to these turners-away:
O people, do not think that Allah is unaware of what you do.
How could He be unaware of your deeds
when He is not heedless of any creature that crawls upon the earth, whether small or large,
nor of the action of a bird flying with its two wings in the air?
Rather, He has classified all of them into distinct kinds
that recognize one another just as you recognize one another,
and conduct their affairs according to what they were subjected to, just as you conduct yours.
All their actions—whether for them or against them—are preserved and recorded,
and every single one of their deeds is registered in the Mother of the Book.
Thus, the Lord who did not neglect preserving the actions of beasts and crawling creatures on earth,
nor the birds in the air,
is all the more worthy of not neglecting your deeds, O people,
until He gathers you and requites you for them.
◁ But those who deny Our verses are deaf and dumb within darknesses. ▷
“Those who deny Our revelations are deaf and dumb in darkness. Whom Allah will sendeth astray, and whom He will He placeth on a straight path.” (6:39)
And those who reject Allah's proofs and evidence
are deaf to hearing the truth, dumb to speaking it,
wandering blindly in the darkness of disbelief.
So Allah misleads among His creation whomever He wills to mislead from faith into disbelief,
and He guides to the straight path whomever among them He wills to guide,
granting him success by His grace and favor to believe in Him.
Say, O Muhammad:
Tell me, O people, if Allah's punishment should come upon you,
like that which came upon the nations before you,
or if the Hour should come upon you, wherein you will be raised from your graves,
would you call upon any other than Allah to remove the calamity that has befallen you,
if you are truthful in your claims
that the deities you invoke besides Allah can bring benefit or cause harm?
“Nay, but unto Him ye call, and He removeth that because of which ye call unto Him, if He will, and ye forget whatever partners ye ascribed unto Him.” (6:41)
◁ And you forget what you associate with Him. ▷
Rather, in that moment, you will call upon your Lord who created you,
and He will relieve you, when you seek His help and beseech Him,
of the immense calamity that has descended upon you,
and you will forget, when Allah's punishment comes upon you
or when the Hour comes upon you with its terrors,
those partners you used to associate with Allah.
“We have sent already unto peoples that were before thee, and We visited them with tribulation and adversity, in order that they might grow humble.” (6:42)
◁ So We seized them with poverty and hardship ▷
◁ that perhaps they might humble themselves. ▷
We have indeed sent messengers, O Muhammad, to communities and generations before you,
and We commanded them and prohibited them,
but they rejected Our messenger.
So We tested them with severe poverty, hardship in living,
and ailments in their bodies.
We did that to them so that they might humble themselves before Me
and devote their worship sincerely to Me through submission and obedience.
“If only, when Our disaster came on them, they had been humble! But their hearts were hardened and the devil made all that they used to do seem fair unto them!” (6:43)
◁ But their hearts hardened... ▷
“If only, when Our disaster came on them, they had been humble! But their hearts were hardened and the devil made all that they used to do seem fair unto them!” (6:43)
Why then, when Our punishment came upon these denying nations,
did they not humble themselves, submit to their Lord, and yield to His obedience
so that their Lord might avert His punishment from them?
Instead, they acted arrogantly toward their Lord's command
out of the hardness of their hearts,
and Satan made fair-seeming to them the deeds they used to commit—
actions that Allah hates and is displeased with.
◁ So when they forgot that by which they had been reminded... ▷
“Then, when they forgot that whereof they had been reminded, We opened unto them the gates of all things till, even as they were rejoicing in that which they were given, We seized them unawares, and lo! they were dumbfounded.” (6:44)
“Then, when they forgot that whereof they had been reminded, We opened unto them the gates of all things till, even as they were rejoicing in that which they were given, We seized them unawares, and lo! they were dumbfounded.” (6:44)
“Then, when they forgot that whereof they had been reminded, We opened unto them the gates of all things till, even as they were rejoicing in that which they were given, We seized them unawares, and lo! they were dumbfounded.” (6:44)
◁ ...they were in despair. ▷
When they abandoned acting upon what We had commanded them,
We replaced their hardship with
ease and abundance in living, and in place of adversity,
We gave them
health and well-being in their bodies and physical forms,
as a gradual draw toward destruction from Us.
Until, when these rejecters rejoiced in Our opening for them the gates of abundance and health,
We seized them with punishment suddenly while they were unaware,
and thereupon they were destroyed, regretting what they had previously done.
“So of the people who did wrong the last remnant was cut off. Praise be to Allah, Lord of the Worlds!” (6:45)
◁ And praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds. ▷
Thus, the people who were insolent toward their Lord and defied His command were eradicated
down to the very last one of them;
not a single one was left un annihilated.
Perfect praise and complete gratitude belong to Allah, Lord of the worlds,
for His favor upon His messengers and the people of His obedience
by manifesting their proofs over those disbelievers who opposed them,
and fulfilling what He promised them regarding their disbelief in Allah.
“Say: Have ye imagined, if Allah should take away your hearing and your sight and seal your hearts, Who is the Allah Who could restore it to you save Allah? See how We display the revelations unto them! Yet still they turn away.” (6:46)
“Say: Have ye imagined, if Allah should take away your hearing and your sight and seal your hearts, Who is the Allah Who could restore it to you save Allah? See how We display the revelations unto them! Yet still they turn away.” (6:46)
◁ See how We diversify the verses; then they still turn away. ▷
Say, O Muhammad: Tell me, O polytheists,
if Allah should make you deaf, taking away your hearing, and make you blind, taking away your sight,
and set a seal upon your hearts, stamping them closed
so that you can neither comprehend a word nor perceive a proof—
what deity other than Allah could restore to you what Allah has taken from you?
See how We present the proofs to them one after another,
and strike for them parables and lessons so that they may take heed,
yet despite that, they turn away.
“Say: Can ye see yourselves, if the punishment of Allah come upon you unawares or openly? Would any perish save wrongdoing folk?” (6:47)
“Say: Can ye see yourselves, if the punishment of Allah come upon you unawares or openly? Would any perish save wrongdoing folk?” (6:47)
Say, O Muhammad:
Tell me, if Allah's punishment should come upon you unexpectedly for your polytheism,
or if Allah's punishment should come upon you while you see it plainly,
will Allah destroy, from among us and you, any except those who worshiped other than the One who alone deserves worship?
◁ And We send not the messengers except as bringers of good tidings and warners. ▷
“We send not the messengers save as bearers of good news and warners. Whoso believeth and doeth right, there shall no fear come upon them neither shall they grieve.” (6:48)
We send Our messengers for no reason other than to bring glad tidings of Paradise to the obedient
and to warn those who disobey Us of Our punishment.
So whoever believes Our messengers, accepts what they bring from Allah, and performs righteous deeds in this world,
no fear shall come upon them regarding His punishment and torment when they arrive before their Lord,
nor shall they grieve at that time over what they left behind in the world.
“But as for those who deny Our revelations, torment will afflict them for that they used to disobey.” (6:49)
As for those who deny Our messengers and defy Our commands and prohibitions,
Our punishment will afflict them directly because of their denial of Our proofs.
“Say (O Muhammad, to the disbelievers): I say not unto you (that) I possess the treasures of Allah, nor that I have knowledge of the Unseen; and I say not unto you: Lo! I am an angel. I follow only that which is inspired in me. Say: Are the blind man and the seer equal? Will ye not then take thought?” (6:50)
“Say (O Muhammad, to the disbelievers): I say not unto you (that) I possess the treasures of Allah, nor that I have knowledge of the Unseen; and I say not unto you: Lo! I am an angel. I follow only that which is inspired in me. Say: Are the blind man and the seer equal? Will ye not then take thought?” (6:50)
◁ I only follow that which is revealed to me. ▷
◁ Say, "Is the blind equal to the seeing?" ▷
◁ Will you not then reflect? ▷
Say to those who deny your prophethood:
I do not say to you that I possess the treasuries of the heavens and the earth,
nor that I know the unseen reality of hidden things,
such that you would call me a liar regarding what I claim of that.
“Say (O Muhammad, to the disbelievers): I say not unto you (that) I possess the treasures of Allah, nor that I have knowledge of the Unseen; and I say not unto you: Lo! I am an angel. I follow only that which is inspired in me. Say: Are the blind man and the seer equal? Will ye not then take thought?” (6:50)
For it is not fitting for an angel to appear visibly in his true form to human eyes in this worldly life.
I do not follow in what I say to you and call you toward
except Allah's revelation that He reveals to me;
so I proceed according to His revelation and comply with His command.
Say to them, O Muhammad:
Is the one who is blind to the truth equal to the one who sees it clearly?
The blind one is the disbeliever, and the seeing one is the believer.
Will you not then reflect upon these proofs I have presented against you, O people,
so that you may know the truth of what I say and the falsehood of the idol-worship you persist upon?
“Warn hereby those who fear (because they know) that they will be gathered unto their Lord, for whom there is no protecting ally nor intercessor beside Him, that they may ward off (evil).” (6:51)
“Warn hereby those who fear (because they know) that they will be gathered unto their Lord, for whom there is no protecting ally nor intercessor beside Him, that they may ward off (evil).” (6:51)
And warn with the Qur'an, O Muhammad, those who fear being gathered to their Lord,
for they believe in Allah's promise and threat.
They have no protector besides Allah to help or rescue them from His punishment,
nor any intercessor to intercede for them with Allah to deliver them from His penalty.
Warn them so that they may fear Allah within themselves,
obeying their Lord and striving for their ultimate return to Him.
◁ And do not dismiss those who call upon their Lord morning and evening, seeking His countenance. ▷
“Repel not those who call upon their Lord at morn and evening, seeking His Countenance. Thou art not accountable for them in aught, nor are they accountable for thee in aught, that thou shouldst repel them and be of the wrong-doers.” (6:52)
“Repel not those who call upon their Lord at morn and evening, seeking His Countenance. Thou art not accountable for them in aught, nor are they accountable for thee in aught, that thou shouldst repel them and be of the wrong-doers.” (6:52)
Do not drive away, O Muhammad, those who call upon their Lord, asking Him for His pardon and forgiveness,
remembering Him with their tongues morning and evening,
seeking thereby closeness to Allah and nearness to His pleasure.
You are not accountable for their provision that you supply in any way,
nor are they accountable for your provision that Allah supplies you in any way.
“Repel not those who call upon their Lord at morn and evening, seeking His Countenance. Thou art not accountable for them in aught, nor are they accountable for thee in aught, that thou shouldst repel them and be of the wrong-doers.” (6:52)
“And even so do We try some of them by others, that they say: Are these they whom Allah favoureth among us? Is not Allah best Aware of the thanksgivers?” (6:53)
“And even so do We try some of them by others, that they say: Are these they whom Allah favoureth among us? Is not Allah best Aware of the thanksgivers?” (6:53)
“And even so do We try some of them by others, that they say: Are these they whom Allah favoureth among us? Is not Allah best Aware of the thanksgivers?” (6:53)
Thus have We tested and tried some of His creation by means of others.
Among those tests is the variation He created among them in the provisions and character He distributed to them:
He made some wealthy and some poor,
some strong and some weak,
making them dependent upon one another,
so that the one whom Allah led astray might say:
"Are these the ones upon whom Allah has favored with guidance and rectitude,
while they are poor, weak, and lowly?"
Allah says: I know best who among My creation is grateful for My favor and who is ungrateful for it.
“And when those who believe in Our revelations come unto thee, say: Peace be unto you! Your Lord hath prescribed for Himself mercy, that whoso of you doeth evil through ignorance and repenteth afterward thereof and doeth right, (for him) lo! He is Forgiving, Merciful.” (6:54)
“And when those who believe in Our revelations come unto thee, say: Peace be unto you! Your Lord hath prescribed for Himself mercy, that whoso of you doeth evil through ignorance and repenteth afterward thereof and doeth right, (for him) lo! He is Forgiving, Merciful.” (6:54)
“And when those who believe in Our revelations come unto thee, say: Peace be unto you! Your Lord hath prescribed for Himself mercy, that whoso of you doeth evil through ignorance and repenteth afterward thereof and doeth right, (for him) lo! He is Forgiving, Merciful.” (6:54)
◁ ...and then repented after it and reformed, then indeed, He is Forgiving and Merciful. ▷
When those who believe in Our proofs and evidence come to you, O Muhammad,
seeking your guidance regarding their past sins
and asking whether repentance is open to them, do not cause them to despair of it.
Say to them: Allah has granted you security regarding your sins,
that He will not punish you for them after your repentance from them.
Your Lord has prescribed mercy for His creation, such that whoever among you commits a sin
and then repents and reforms, He will forgive his sin when he repents,
showing mercy to the penitent by not punishing him for his sin after his repentance from it.
“Thus do We expound the revelations that the way of the unrighteous may be manifest.” (6:55)
Thus do We clarify for you Our signs and evidence, explaining them to you
so that truth may be distinguished for you from falsehood, and the sound from the defective,
and so that the path of the guilty may become clear to you and to the believers.
◁ Say, "Indeed, I have been forbidden to worship those you invoke besides Allah." ▷
“Say: I am forbidden to worship those on whom ye call instead of Allah. Say: I will not follow your desires, for then should I go astray and I should not be of the rightly guided.” (6:56)
Say, O Muhammad, to these polytheists:
Allah has forbidden me from worshiping those whom you invoke besides Him,
so I will never follow you in what you invite me to regarding that,
nor will I grant you your desire and inclination in it.
Were I to do that, I would have abandoned the proof of truth
and become astray like you, off the straight path.
“Say: I am (relying) on clear proof from my Lord, while ye deny Him. I have not that for which ye are impatient. The decision is for Allah only. He telleth the truth and He is the Best of Deciders.” (6:57)
“Say: I am (relying) on clear proof from my Lord, while ye deny Him. I have not that for which ye are impatient. The decision is for Allah only. He telleth the truth and He is the Best of Deciders.” (6:57)
◁ Legislation belongs to none but Allah. ▷
“Say: I am (relying) on clear proof from my Lord, while ye deny Him. I have not that for which ye are impatient. The decision is for Allah only. He telleth the truth and He is the Best of Deciders.” (6:57)
Say, O Muhammad: Indeed, I stand upon a clear proof that I have verified
and a decisive evidence that has become manifest to me from my Lord,
whereas you have denied your Lord.
That punishment and vengeance of Allah which you seek to hasten is not in my hands,
nor am I capable of bringing it about.
The judgment concerning what you seek to hasten of Allah's punishment, O polytheists, belongs to none
except Allah, who is never unjust in His judgment,
and He is the best of deciders between us through His decree and judgment.
“Say: If I had that for which ye are impatient, then would the case (ere this) have been decided between me and you. Allah is Best Aware of the wrong-doers.” (6:58)
“Say: If I had that for which ye are impatient, then would the case (ere this) have been decided between me and you. Allah is Best Aware of the wrong-doers.” (6:58)
◁ And Allah is most knowing of the wrongdoers. ▷
Say, O Muhammad: If that punishment which you seek to hasten were in my hands,
“Say: If I had that for which ye are impatient, then would the case (ere this) have been decided between me and you. Allah is Best Aware of the wrong-doers.” (6:58)
the matter between us would have been settled with the utmost speed.
However, that is in the hand of Allah alone,
who knows best the proper time to send it down upon the wrongdoers,
and knows best the exact time to exact retribution from them.
Summary of Tafsir al-Tabari.