Transliteration:( Qulid 'ul lazeena za'amtum min doonihee falaa yamlikoona kashfad durri'ankum wa laa tahweelaa )
"Say, 'Call upon those you claim beside Him [121]; they do not possess the power to remove harm from you, nor can they change it [122].'"
Reason for Revelation:
Once the infidels of Arabia were afflicted by a severe drought, so extreme that they resorted to eating the flesh of dogs and dead animals. In desperation, they came weeping to the Holy Prophet ﷺ and requested him to pray for relief.
This verse was revealed at that moment. The phrase “Call them” is a command in form but is used sarcastically—not to permit idolatry, but to mockingly expose their idols’ helplessness.
The meaning is: Call upon your idols and see—they will not remove your drought, nor do they have any real power.
Why then do you worship such powerless beings?
These idols are neither worthy of worship, nor do they possess the ability to remove any difficulty—nor even to transfer it from one person to another.
This is a key difference between false gods and miracles:
True divine intervention removes harm altogether, while idols cannot even shift it.
56. Say: “Call upon those – besides Him whom you pretend. They have neither the power to remove the adversity from you nor even to shift (it from you to another person).” 57. Those whom they call upon, desire a means of access to their Lord, as to which of them should be the nearest; and they hope for His mercy and fear His torment. Verily, the torment of your Lord is (something) to be afraid of!
Allah says:
(Say) O Muhammad to these idolators who worship things other than Allah,
(Call upon those – besides Him whom you pretend.) such as idols and rivals of Allah. Even if you turn to them,
(They have neither the power to remove the adversity from you) they have no such power at all,
(nor even to shift (it from you to another person.)) to lift the distress from you and give it to someone else. The meaning is that the only one Who is able to do that is Allah Alone, with no partner or associate, Who is the One Who creates and issues commands.
(Say: “Call upon those whom you pretend) Al-`Awfi reported from Ibn `Abbas, “The people of Shirk used to say, `we worship the angels and the Messiah and `Uzayr,’ while these (the angels and the Messiah and `Uzayr) themselves call upon Allah.”
(Those whom they call upon, desire) Al-Bukhari recorded from Sulayman bin Mahran Al-A`mash, from Ibrahim, from Abu Ma`mar, from `Abdullah:
(Those whom they call upon, desire a means of access to their Lord,) “Some of the Jinn used to be worshipped, then they became Muslims.” According to another report: “Some humans used to worship some of the Jinn, then those Jinn became Muslim, but those humans adhered to their religion (of worshipping the Jinn).”
(they hope for His mercy and fear His torment.) Worship cannot be complete or perfect unless it is accompanied by both fear and hope. Fear stops one from doing things that are forbidden, and hope makes one do more good deeds.
(Verily, the torment of your Lord is (something) to be afraid of!) meaning, one should beware of it and be afraid lest it happen. We seek refuge with Allah from that.
(17:56) Tell them: “Call upon those whom you fancy to be (your helpers) instead of Him! They have no power to remove any affliction from you, nor can they shift it (to any other).”[64]
64. This warning helps to elaborate the doctrine of Tauhid and negate shirk. According to this, shirk is not confined merely to falling prostrate before any other than Allah but it is also shirk to pray to or invoke the help of any other than Allah. For praying to or calling for help any other than Allah is in reality a kind of worship. Therefore, the one who invokes for help any other than Allah is as much guilty of shirk as the worshiper of an idol. This verse also shows clearly that, none other than Allah, has any power to attend to prayers and relieve any one of trouble or alter any one’s bad condition. Hence, if one believes that someone other than Allah has any power, he shall be guilty of shirk.
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