Surah 31. Luqman, Ayah 15
| وَإِنْ جَاهَدَاكَ عَلَىٰ أَنْ تُشْرِكَ بِي مَا لَيْسَ لَكَ بِهِ عِلْمٌ فَلَا تُطِعْهُمَا ۖ وَصَاحِبْهُمَا فِي الدُّنْيَا مَعْرُوفًا ۖ وَاتَّبِعْ سَبِيلَ مَنْ أَنَابَ إِلَيَّ ۚ ثُمَّ إِلَيَّ مَرْجِعُكُمْ فَأُنَبِّئُكُمْ بِمَا كُنْتُمْ تَعْمَلُونَ |
| Transliteration | : | wa- 'in jaahadaa -ka calaa 'an tushrik bi- -y maa laysa la- -ka bi- -hi cilm fa- laa tut.ic -humaa wa- s.aah.ib -humaa fe ad- dunyaa macrof(an) wa- ittabic sabel man anaaba 'ilay -ya thumma 'ilay -ya marjic -kum fa- unabbi' -kum bi- maa kuntum tacmalon |
| Pickthall | : | But if they strive with thee to make thee ascribe unto Me as partner that of which thou hast no knowledge, then obey them not. Consort with them in the world kindly, and follow the path of him who repenteth unto Me. Then unto Me will be your return, and I shall tell you what ye used to do. |
| Asad | : | "'[Revere thy parents;] yet should they endeavour to make thee ascribe divinity, side by side with Me, to something which thy mind cannot accept [as divine],16 obey them not; but [even then] bear them company in this world's life with kindness, and follow the path of those who turn towards Me. In the end, unto Me you all must return; and thereupon I shall make you [truly] understand all that you were doing [in life].' |
| Malik | : | If they argue with you to commit shirk, of which you have no knowledge, then do not obey them; however you should still treat them kindly in this world, but follow the way of that individual who has turned to Me. After all, to Me is your return; then I will inform you about the reality of all that you have done." |
| Yusuf Ali | : | "But if they strive to make the join in worship with Me things of which thou hast no knowledge obey them not; Yet bear them company in this life with justice (and consideration) and follow the way of those who turn to Me (in love): in the End the return of you all is to Me and I will tell you the truth (and meaning) of all that ye did." 3597 3598 3599 |
Note - 16Lit., "something of which thou hast no knowledge", i.e.,
"something which is contrary to thy knowledge that divine
qualities are God's alone" (cf. 29:8).
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Note - 3597Where the duty to man conflicts with the duty to Allah,
it means that there is something wrong with the human
will, and we should obey Allah rather than man. But even
here, it does not mean that we should be arrogant or
insolent. To parents and those in authority, we must be
kind, considerate, and courteous, even where they command
things which we should not do and therefore disobedience
becomes our highest duty. The worship of things other
than Allah is the worship of false things, things which
are alien to our true knowledge, things that go against
our own pure nature as created by Allah.
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Note - 3598In any apparent conflict of duties our standard should be
Allah's Will, as declared to us by His command. That is
the way of those who love Allah: and their motive in
disobedience to parents or human authority where
disobedience is necessary by Allah's Law is not self
willed rebellion or defiance, but love of Allah, which
means the true love of man in the highest sense of the
word. And the reason we should give is: "Both you and I
have to return to Allah; therefore not only must I follow
Allah's Will, but you must command nothing against
Allah's Will."
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Note - 3599These conflicts may appear to us strange and puzzling in
this life. But in Allah's Presence we shall see their
real meaning and significance. It may be that that was
one way in which our true mettle could be tested: for it
is not easy to disobey and love man at the same time.
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Lit., "something of which thou hast no knowledge", i.e., "something which is contrary to thy knowledge that divine qualities are God's alone" (cf. 29:8). |
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Where the duty to man conflicts with the duty to Allah, it means that there is something wrong with the human will, and we should obey Allah rather than man. But even here, it does not mean that we should be arrogant or insolent. To parents and those in authority, we must be kind, considerate, and courteous, even where they command things which we should not do and therefore disobedience becomes our highest duty. The worship of things other than Allah is the worship of false things, things which are alien to our true knowledge, things that go against our own pure nature as created by Allah. |
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In any apparent conflict of duties our standard should be Allah's Will, as declared to us by His command. That is the way of those who love Allah: and their motive in disobedience to parents or human authority where disobedience is necessary by Allah's Law is not self willed rebellion or defiance, but love of Allah, which means the true love of man in the highest sense of the word. And the reason we should give is: "Both you and I have to return to Allah; therefore not only must I follow Allah's Will, but you must command nothing against Allah's Will." |
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These conflicts may appear to us strange and puzzling in this life. But in Allah's Presence we shall see their real meaning and significance. It may be that that was one way in which our true mettle could be tested: for it is not easy to disobey and love man at the same time. |
