• As it is not easy to cure the natural defects in any one

• The apostle can not guide any one who is allowed by God to stray

Az-Zukhruf Verses 36 – 45

وَمَنْ يَعْشُ عَنْ ذِكْرِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ نُقَيِّضْ لَهُ شَيْطَانًا فَهُوَ لَهُ قَرِينٌ

And whosoever is blinded against the remembrance of the Beneficent (God), for him We appoint a satan and he shall be his close companion.1(43:36)

وَإِنَّهُمْ لَيَصُدُّونَهُمْ عَنِ السَّبِيلِ وَيَحْسَبُونَ أَنَّهُمْ مُهْتَدُونَ

And verily (the satans) turn them away from the (right) path, and deem they that they are guided aright. (43:37)

حَتَّىٰ إِذَا جَاءَنَا قَالَ يَا لَيْتَ بَيْنِي وَبَيْنَكَ بُعْدَ الْمَشْرِقَيْنِ فَبِئْسَ الْقَرِينُ

Until when cometh he unto Us, he would say: “(O’ Satan!) would that between me and thee there were the distance of two Easts!”2(what) an evil companion is (Satan)! (43:38)

وَلَنْ يَنْفَعَكُمُ الْيَوْمَ إِذْ ظَلَمْتُمْ أَنَّكُمْ فِي الْعَذَابِ مُشْتَرِكُونَ

And never shall it profit you on this day, since ye did injustice, that ye be partners in the chastisement. (43:39)

أَفَأَنْتَ تُسْمِعُ الصُّمَّ أَوْ تَهْدِي الْعُمْيَ وَمَنْ كَانَ فِي ضَلَالٍ مُبِينٍ

What! Canst thou then make the deaf hear or guide the blind3and him who is manifestly astray? (43:40)

فَإِمَّا نَذْهَبَنَّ بِكَ فَإِنَّا مِنْهُمْ مُنْتَقِمُونَ

Even if We take thee away, then verily shall We extract retribution from them (43:41) 4

أَوْ نُرِيَنَّكَ الَّذِي وَعَدْنَاهُمْ فَإِنَّا عَلَيْهِمْ مُقْتَدِرُونَ

Or We shall show thee that which We have promised them for verily We are over them (fully) Powerful. (43:42)

فَاسْتَمْسِكْ بِالَّذِي أُوحِيَ إِلَيْكَ إِنَّكَ عَلَىٰ صِرَاطٍ مُسْتَقِيمٍ

Therefore, hold thou fast what hath been revealed unto thee, Verily, thou art on the Right Path. (43:43)5

وَإِنَّهُ لَذِكْرٌ لَكَ وَلِقَوْمِكَ وَسَوْفَ تُسْأَلُونَ

And verily, it is a reminder6for thee and for thy people, and ye shall soon be questioned (about it). (43:44)

وَاسْأَلْ مَنْ أَرْسَلْنَا مِنْ قَبْلِكَ مِنْ رُسُلِنَا أَجَعَلْنَا مِنْ دُونِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ آلِهَةً يُعْبَدُونَ

And ask thou those of Our apostles We sent before thee: Did We appoint besides the Beneficent God any gods to be worshipped? (43:45)7

Commentary

Verse 36

He who avoids remembering God, is naturally going on adding to his evils. The First Holy Imam Ali Ibn Abi Talib says ‘He who goes on sinning gets blind at heart.’ When one leaves the society of God Satan naturally gets free access to the individual. It is to keep man necessarily in communion with the Lord the minimum course prescribed for man is the regular offering of the five times daily prayers.

Verse 37

The worst is that man maddened by evil, thinks that he is on the right path and there is no harm in whatever evil he commits, whereas every step of his, takes him farther away from the right course, and nearer to perdition.

Verse 38

This is what on the Day of Judgment, the victims of Satan would say.

The use of Two Easts – for east and west implies the relative value of the term east and west (A.P.)

Verse 40

Guidance is God’s grace and mercy and it comes only from God and not at the will of even the apostles.

Verse 41

Ibn Mardwaih reports from Jabir Ibn Abdullah Ansari that the Holy Prophet said that this verse is about Ali who after the Holy Prophet would fight and punish the treacherous ones who violate the covenant of faith they had entered into.8

Verse 43

Jabir Ibn Abdullah Ansari reports that after returning from the ‘Hajjat ul-wida’ (i.e., the Last Haj) the Holy Prophet used very frequently to admonish and warn the people about holding fast to the command of Ali as set up at Ghadir Khumm where the Holy Prophet under the command from God had declared ‘Of whomsoever I am the Lord, this Ali is his Lord’9 on the declaration of which, depended the completion of the mission of the apostleship of the Holy Prophet and the perfection of the faith as a duly regulated religion for mankind.10 The concluding words of the verse indicate that to acknowledge Ali in the place of the Holy Prophet and to follow him is the right path.

Verse 44

The question would be as to how much the Holy Qur’an was honoured in practice, in the daily life. The Fifth Holy Imam Muhammad Ibn Ali Al-Baqir and also (the Sixth Holy Imam Jafar Ibn Muhammad As-Sadiq said, “Zikr is the Holy Qur'an and we are those who would be questioned about.” (MS.)

According to ‘Tha’alabi’ one of the renowned Sunni Commentators, the Holy Prophet said that ‘On the night of Mi’raj (Ascension) when I was in the heavens among the souls of the apostles of God, and angels, at the command of God desired me to ask the apostles with what basic object they had been sent into the world. When I asked them, they all unanimously declared, saying, ‘We were sent for thy love and the love of Ali Ibn Abi Talib.’ (MS.) i.e., for the faith, devotion to God, and the virtues personified in Ali.

This is a prophetic statement which history has proved. The Arabic language and the Arabs owe their survival and flourishing to the Holy Qur’an. The nomadic language deprived of all literature except some poetries due to this Holy Book developed into one of the most popular languages of civilization, full of scientific and literary treasures to which this modern civilization owes a lot and the language has developed as one of the most eloquent languages of the world, influencing even the people of the non-Arabic languages who have embraced Islam. (A.P.)

• 1. Associate. Refer to verse 41:25.
• 2. The relative value of the term - East and West.
• 3. The arrogant ones who would neither listen to nor see the facts - thus deaf and blind at heart.
• 4. Refer to verses 23:95, 40:77, 10:46,13:40.
• 5. Therefore, put aside their argument Refer to verse 43:31.
• 6. Imminence.
• 7. A hint to the innovated worship like that of the heathens and the Christians.
• 8. D.M., Tafsir-e-Naishapuri.
• 9. Refer to note on verse 5:67.
• 10. Refer to note on verse 5:3. See Munaqib Ibn Maghazali, Faqih Shafi’i