Transliteration:( Qul anad'oo min doonil laahi maa laa yanfa'unaa wa laa yadurrunaa wa nuraddu 'alaaa a'qaabina ba'da iz hadaanal laahu kallazis tahwat hush Shayaateenu fil ardi hairaana lahooo ashaabuny yad'oo nahooo ilal huda' tinaa; qul inna hudal laahi huwal hudaa wa umirnaa linuslima li Rabbil 'aalameen )
"Say, 'Shall we worship besides Allah that which neither benefits us nor harms us? And shall we turn back on our heels after Allah has guided us? [143] It is like one whom the devils have seduced in the earth, confused, while his companions are calling him towards guidance. [144] Say, “The guidance of Allah is the only guidance, and we have been commanded to submit to the Lord of all the worlds.”'"
This verse refutes the disbelievers who invited Muslims to abandon Islam, offering temptations or issuing threats. It shows that apostasy after guidance is a grave crime, more severe for the learned. The punishment differs: a declared disbeliever may live under jizyah, but an apostate faces death or return to Islam. Turning away after divine guidance is treated as a deliberate betrayal of truth.
An example is given of a confused traveler misled by devils, while his companions call him back to the right path. It teaches that those who mislead us spiritually—even if they are close relatives—are not true friends. A righteous stranger, though unfamiliar, is a true religious companion. Choosing spiritual loyalty over blood ties is essential for remaining on the path of guidance.
71. Say: “Shall we invoke others besides Allah (false deities), that can do us neither good nor harm, and shall we turn on our heels after Allah has guided us — Like one whom the Shayatin (devils) have made to go astray, confused (wandering) through the land, his companions calling him to guidance (saying): `Come to us.”’ Say: “Verily, Allah’s guidance is the only guidance, and we have been commanded to submit (ourselves) to the Lord of all that exists. 72. And to perform the Salah, and have Taqwa of Him, and it is He to Whom you shall be gathered. 73. It is He Who has created the heavens and the earth in truth, and on the Day He will say: “Be!” it shall become. His Word is the truth. His will be the dominion on the Day when the Sur will be blown. All-Knower of the unseen and the seen. He is the All-Wise, Well-Aware.
As-Suddi said, “Some idolators said to some Muslims, `Follow us and abandon the religion of Muhammad.’ Allah sent down the revelation,
(Say: “Shall we invoke others besides Allah, that can do us neither good nor harm, and shall we turn on our heels…”) by reverting to disbelief,
(“…after Allah has guided us.”) for if we do this, our example will be like he whom the devils have caused to wander in confusion throughout the land. Allah says here, your example, if you revert to disbelief after you believed, is that of a man who went with some people on a road, but he lost his way and the devils led him to wander in confusion over the land. Meanwhile, his companions on the road were calling him to come to them saying, `Come back to us, for we are on the path.’ But, he refused to go back to them. This is the example of he who follows the devil after recognizing Muhammad , and Muhammad is the person who is calling the people to the path, and the path is Islam.” Ibn Jarir recorded this statement.Allah’s statement, j
(Like one whom the Shayatin (devils) have made to go astray (wandering) through the land, ) refers to ghouls,
(calling him) by his name, his father’s and his grandfather’s names. So he follows the devils’ call thinking that it is a path of guidance, but by the morning he will find himself destroyed and perhaps they eat him. The Jinns will then let him wander in a wasteland where he will die of thirst. This is the example of those who follow the false gods that are being worshipped instead of Allah, Most Honored. Ibn Jarir also recorded this. Allah said,
(Say: “Verily, Allah’s guidance is the only guidance,”) Allah said in other instances,
(And whomsoever Allah guides, for him there will be none to misguide him.) ﴿39:37﴾, and,
(If you covet for their guidance, then verily Allah guides not those whom He makes to go astray. And they will have no helpers.) ﴿17:37﴾ Allah’s statement,
(and we have been commanded to submit to the Lord of all that exists.) means, we were commanded to worship Allah in sincerity to Him alone, without partners.
(And to perform the Salah, and have Taqwa of Him.) meaning, we were commanded to perform the prayer and to fear Allah in all circumstances,
(and it is He to Whom you shall be gathered.) on the Day of Resurrection.
(It is He Who has created the heavens and the earth in truth.) meaning, in justice, and He is their Originator and Owner Who governs their affairs and the affairs of their inhabitants. Allah said,
(and on the Day He will say: “Be!” it shall become.) Referring to the Day of Resurrection, which will come faster than the blink of an eye, when Allah says to it, `Be.’
Allah’s statement,
(on the Day when the Sur will be blown…) refers to His statement,
(and on the Day He will say: “Be!” it shall become.) as we stated above. Or, it means,
(His will be the dominion on the Day when the Sur will be blown.) Allah said in other Ayat,
(Whose is the kingdom this Day It is Allah’s, the One, the Irresistible!) ﴿40:16﴾, and,
(The sovereignty on that Day will be the true (sovereignty), belonging to the Most Beneficent (Allah), and it will be a hard Day for the disbelievers.) ﴿25:26﴾ The Sur is the Trumpet into which the angel Israfil, peace be upon him, will blow. The Messenger of Allah said,
(Israfil has held the Sur in his mouth and lowered his forehead, awaiting the command to blow in it.) Muslim recorded this Hadith in his Sahih. Imam Ahmad recorded that `Abdullah bin `Amr said, “A bedouin man said, `O Allah’s Messenger! What is the Sur’ He said,
(A Trumpet which will be blown.)”
(6:71) Ask them (O Muhammad!): “Shall we invoke, apart from Allah, something that can neither benefit nor harm us, and thus be turned back on our heels after Allah has guided us? Like the one whom the evil ones have lured into bewilderment in the earth, even though he has friends who call him to true guidance saying: Come to us. Say: “Surely Allah’s guidance is the only true guidance, and we have been commanded to submit ourselves to the Lord of the entire universe,
There is no commentary by Abul Maududi available for this verse.
[317]- i.e., worship. [318]- The example given is of one who has lost his way and is further confused by the evil ones who tempt him to follow various directions, all leading to destruction. Although his sincere friends call him back to the right path, he ignores them.
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