Tafsir of Surah Al-Hajj - Verse 71

The Idolators' worship of others besides Allah and Their vehement rejection of the Ayat of Allah

Allah tells us that the idolators, in their ignorance and disbelief, worship besides Allah others which He has sent down no authority for, i.e., no proof or evidence for such behavior. This is like the Ayah:

وَمَن يَدْعُ مَعَ اللَّهِ إِلَـهَا ءَاخَرَ لاَ بُرْهَانَ لَهُ بِهِ فَإِنَّمَا حِسَابُهُ عِندَ رَبِّهِ إِنَّهُ لاَ يُفْلِحُ الْكَـفِرُونَ

(And whoever calls upon, besides Allah, any other god, of whom he has no proof; then his reckoning is only with his Lord. Surely, the disbelievers will not be successful.) 23:117 So Allah says here:

مَا لَمْ يُنَزِّلْ بِهِ سُلْطَـناً وَمَا لَيْسَ لَهُمْ بِهِ عِلْمٌ

(for which He has sent down no authority, and of which they have no knowledge;) meaning, they have no knowledge in the subject that they fabricate lies about; it is only something which was handed down to them from their fathers and ancestors, with no evidence or proof, and its origins lie in that which the Shaytan beautified for them and made attractive to them. Allah warned them:

وَمَا لِلظَّـلِمِينَ مِن نَّصِيرٍ

(and for the wrongdoers there is no helper.) meaning, no one to help them against Allah when He sends His punishment and torment upon them. Then Allah says:

وَإِذَا تُتْلَى عَلَيْهِمْ ءَايَـتُنَا بَيِّنَاتٍ

(And when Our clear Ayat are recited to them, ) means, when the Ayat of the Qur'an and clear evidence and proof for Tawhid of Allah are mentioned to them, and they are told that there is no god besides Allah and that the Messengers spoke the truth,

يَكَـدُونَ يَسْطُونَ بِالَّذِينَ يَتْلُونَ عَلَيْهِمْ ءَايَـتُنَا

(They are nearly ready to attack with violence those who recite Our Ayat to them.) then they nearly attack and do harm to those who bring proof to them from the Qur'an, and cause them harm using their tongues and hands.

قُلْ

(Say) O Muhammad to these people,

أَفَأُنَبِّئُكُم بِشَرٍّ مِّن ذلِكُمُ النَّارُ وَعَدَهَا اللَّهُ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُواْ

(Shall I tell you of something worse than that The Fire which Allah has promised to those who disbelieved,) The fire and wrath and torment of Allah are far worse than that with which you are trying to scare the believing close friends of Allah in this world. The punishment in the Hereafter for these deeds of yours is worse than that what you claim you want to do to the believers.

وَبِئْسَ الْمَصِيرُ

(and worst indeed is that destination!) how terrible is the Fire as a final destination and abode!

إِنَّهَا سَآءَتْ مُسْتَقَرّاً وَمُقَاماً

(Evil indeed it is as an abode and as a place to rest in. ) 25:66

Commentary

لِّكُلِّ أُمَّةٍ جَعَلْنَا مَنسَكًا (For every ummah (religious community) We have appointed a way of worship - 22:67). This sentence has come earlier in almost identical words in verse number 34 of this Surah, but the word مَنسَكً (mansak) conveys a different meaning in each verse. In the earlier verse the words مَنسَكً and نسَكً have been used in the context of the rites of Hajj and mean sacrifice of animals, while in the present verse the word مَنسَكً has been used in the sense of the rules of slaughter or general rules of worship. That is why, unlike the verse 34, the present verse does not have the conjunctive letter ' وَ ' (i.e. 'and' ) in the beginning.

One interpretation of this verse is that the infidels used to engage the Muslims in futile arguments regarding the slaughter of animals. They thought it odd that Islam permitted its followers to eat the meat of those animals which they slaughtered with their own hands but forbade eating the meat of those animals whom Allah Ta’ ala killed, that is the carrion. The present verse was revealed to answer these objections of the infidels. (Ruh ul-Ma’ ani). Thus the meaning of the word مَنسَكً here would refer to ` the method of slaughter', and the sum and substance of the verse is that Allah Ta’ ala gave each nation a code of laws, and the rules governing the slaughter of animals are different in each code. The rules of slaughter given to the Holy Prophet ﷺ are independent and self-sufficient and it is not permissible to compare them. with those of an earlier Shari'ah, let alone comparing them with someone's own whims and conjectures. As regards the meat of dead animals, it is well known that its oral use was forbidden in all earlier codes. (Ruh u1-Ma` ani) Therefore, it is sheer ignorance to argue with the Holy Prophet ﷺ on that basis.

However, majority of commentators has interpreted this verse in another way. They say that the word مَنسَكً here means the general rules of Shari'ah. Lexically, the word مَنسَكً means a place which is fixed for a

specific purpose, whether the purpose is good or bad, and for this reason the rites of pilgrimage are known as نسَكً , because different rites connected with the pilgrimage have to be performed at places fixed for each rite. (Ibn Kathir). The dictionary meaning of is ` piety and worship of Allah Ta’ a1a', and the words أَرِ‌نَا مَنَاسِكَنَا (And show us our ways of worship - 2:128) occurring in the Qur'an have been used in this sense Manasik means rules governing worship. Sayyidna Ibn ` Abbas ؓ has adopted this second interpretation also. Ibn Jarir, Ibn Kathir, Qurtubi, Ruh u1-Ma` ani etc. have adopted this meaning of the word, and the context of the verse also lends support to this interpretation. Having said all this, it is evident that the meaning of this verse would be that the infidels and the polytheists who dispute the Islamic code of laws on the ground that their own ancestral religion did not include those laws must understand very clearly that any comparison between the old book or Shari` ah and the new book or Shari` ah is totally misplaced and irrelevant, because Allah Ta` a1a granted to each nation in its own time a special Shari` ah and a Book which was binding upon it until another book or Shari` ah arrived on the scene after which it becomes the duty of all people to follow the new Shari` ah, and if any of its laws are in conflict with the laws of the old Shari` ah, then the new rules shall prevail and the old laws will stand invalidated, and nobody has the right to raise a dispute on this matter with the Prophet ﷺ ، who is the recipient of the latest book and Shari` ah. This is the meaning of the following words of this verse. فَلَا يُنَازِعُنَّكَ فِي الْأَمْرِ‌ (They should never quarrel with you in the matter - 22:67). That is, now that the Holy Prophet has brought a new Book and new code of laws no one has the right to dispute them and create any confusion about them.

This also shows that there is in fact no inconsistency between the two interpretations of this verse. It is quite possible that this verse was revealed with reference to some specific dispute about the slaughter of animals but since, as a general rule, the words must be interpreted in the sense they are understood by the common people and not in reference to a particular event, the words of this verse can be so construed as to apply to all the laws of Shari'ah. The essence of both the interpretations, therefore is, that since Allah Ta’ ala has given each nation its own particular set of rules where differences as to details do exist, the latest set of rules becomes binding on all peoples, and issues relating to these differences cannot be raised. This is the reason why it has been stated at the end of this verse وَادْعُ إِلَىٰ رَ‌بِّكَ إِنَّكَ لَعَلَىٰ هُدًى مُّسْتَقِيمٍ (And do call them to your Lord. Surely, you are on straight Guidance - 22:67) in which the Holy Prophet ﷺ has been advised not to take any notice of the machinations and disputes raised by the infidels but to continue with his mission, because he was following the path of righteousness whereas his opponents were steeped in error.

A doubt and its answer

In verse 67 it has been averred that Allah Ta’ ala granted to the earlier nations their own Shari` ah or set of rules, and the Mosaic Code and the Christian Code are instances in point. The Jews and the Christians may, therefore, are that their Codes also being Divine should be allowed to exist alongside of the Islamic Code. But this is a fallacious argument because it is a well established fact that an earlier Shari` ah is cancelled by a subsequent Shari` ah, and this view is reinforced by the following verses in which the infidels who challenge the Islamic Shari` ah have been warned of severe chastisement. وَإِن جَادَلُوكَ فَقُلِ اللَّـهُ أَعْلَمُ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ (And if they dispute with you, then say, "Allah knows best what you do." - 22:68)

Inevitably, the call for pure monotheism is intolerable to those who have reposed their faith in many gods rather than in the one and only God. They become deeply agitated when their gods and beloved personalities are criticised. Being unable to refute by rational arguments the call of Truth, they resort to violence against the upholder of the call of monotheism, and want him to be eliminated altogether. When told by God that their behaviour is unwise in the extreme, they are not prepared to bear even verbal criticism. But what will be their condition subsequently when they will be required to undergo the punishment of Hellfire on account of their opposition to the Truth?