Tafsir of Surah Fatir - Verse 14

The gods of the Idolators do not even own a Qitmir

Another aspect of His perfect power and might is that He has subjugated the night with its darkness and the day with its light. He takes from the length of the one and adds it to the shortness of the other, until they become equal. Then He takes from the latter and adds to the former, so one becomes long and the other becomes short, so they take from one another in summer and in winter.

وَسَخَّرَ الشَّمْسَ وَالْقَمَرَ

(And He has subjected the sun and the moon,) and the stars and planets, with their light. All of them run in their appointed courses and in the manner prescribed for them, as decreed by the Almighty, All-Knowing.

كُـلٌّ يَجْرِى لاًّجَـلٍ مُّسَـمًّى

each runs its course for a term appointed. means, until the Day of Resurrection.

ذَلِكُـمُ اللَّهُ رَبُّـكُمْ

Such is Allah, your Lord؟ means, the One Who has done all this is the Almighty Lord besides Whom there is no other true God.

وَالَّذِينَ تَدْعُونَ مِن دُونِهِ

(And those, whom you invoke or call upon instead of Him,) means, `the idols and false gods whom you claim to be in the form of angels who are close to Allah,'

مَا يَمْلِكُونَ مِن قِطْمِيرٍ

own not even a Qitلm0r. Ibn Abba0s, may Allah be pleased with him, Muja0hid, Ikrimah, Ata0 , Atلiyah Al- Awfi, Al-Hلasan, Qata0dah and others said, This is the thread that is attached to the pit of a date. In other words, they do not possess anything in the heavens or on earth, not even anything equivalent to this Qitلm0r. Then Allah says:

إِن تَدْعُوهُمْ لاَ يَسْمَعُواْ دُعَآءَكُمْ

(If you invoke them, they hear not your call;) means, `the gods upon whom you call instead of Allah, do not hear your supplication, because they are inanimate and have no soul in them.'

وَلَوْ سَمِعُواْ مَا اسْتَجَابُواْ لَكُمْ

(and if (in case) they were to hear, they could not grant it to you.) means, `they are not able to do any of the things that you ask them for.'

وَيَوْمَ الْقِيَـمَةِ يَكْفُرُونَ بِشِرْكِـكُمْ

And on the Day of Resurrection, they will disown your worshipping them means, `they will disown you.' This is like the Ayat:

وَمَنْ أَضَلُّ مِمَّن يَدْعُو مِن دُونِ اللَّهِ مَن لاَّ يَسْتَجِيبُ لَهُ إِلَى يَوْمِ الْقِيَـمَةِ وَهُمْ عَن دُعَآئِهِمْ غَـفِلُونَ - وَإِذَا حُشِرَ النَّاسُ كَانُواْ لَهُمْ أَعْدَآءً وَكَانُواْ بِعِبَادَتِهِمْ كَـفِرِينَ

(And who is more astray than one who calls on besides Allah, such as will not answer him till the Day of Resurrection, and who are (even) unaware of their calls to them And when mankind are gathered, they (false deities) will become their enemies and will deny their worshipping.) (46:5-6), and

وَاتَّخَذُواْ مِن دُونِ اللَّهِ ءالِهَةً لِّيَكُونُواْ لَهُمْ عِزّاً

كَلاَّ سَيَكْفُرُونَ بِعِبَـدَتِهِمْ وَيَكُونُونَ عَلَيْهِمْ ضِدّاً

(And they have taken gods besides Allah, that they might give them honor, power and glory. Nay, but they will deny their worship of them, and become opponents to them.) (19:81-82)

وَلاَ يُنَبِّئُكَ مِثْلُ خَبِيرٍ

(And none can inform you like Him Who is the All-Knower.) means, no one can tell you about the consequences of things and how they will end like the One Who is the All-Knower of them. Qatadah said, "He is referring to Himself, may He be blessed and exalted, for He undoubtedly tells the truth."

In the last verse: إِن تَدْعُوهُمْ لَا يَسْمَعُوا دُعَاءَكُمْ وَلَوْ سَمِعُوا مَا اسْتَجَابُوا لَكُمْ (If you call them, they do not hear your call, and even if they were to hear, they would not respond to you. - 35:14). To explain, it can be said that if you call those idols or some prophets or angels you take as god and worship them asking them to help you in distress, they will, first of all, be unable to listen to you because idols do not have the ability to listen. Though, prophets and angels have this ability, yet they are not present everywhere nor do they hear that which is said by everybody. Further on, it was said that, should they, as a matter of supposition, be able to listen, as in the case of angels and prophets, still, they would not fulfill your request, because they themselves have no control over it, and cannot intercede with Allah on behalf of anyone without His permission.

In the last verse: إِن تَدْعُوهُمْ لَا يَسْمَعُوا دُعَاءَكُمْ وَلَوْ سَمِعُوا مَا اسْتَجَابُوا لَكُمْ (If you call them, they do not hear your call, and even if they were to hear, they would not respond to you. - 35:14). To explain, it can be said that if you call those idols or some prophets or angels you take as god and worship them asking them to help you in distress, they will, first of all, be unable to listen to you because idols do not have the ability to listen. Though, prophets and angels have this ability, yet they are not present everywhere nor do they hear that which is said by everybody. Further on, it was said that, should they, as a matter of supposition, be able to listen, as in the case of angels and prophets, still, they would not fulfill your request, because they themselves have no control over it, and cannot intercede with Allah on behalf of anyone without His permission.

The issue of the ability of the dead to hear سماع الموتی sama`-ulmawta) has appeared earlier. The present verse neither confirms nor rejects it. Arguments and proofs relating to this issue are different. They have already been mentioned in details under the commentary on Surah Ar-Rum [ 30] (Ma` ariful-Qur an, Volume VI).

There is a large store of water on the earth—salt water in the oceans and seas, and fresh water in rivers, lakes and springs. This water is the source of innumerable advantages for man. It is used for drinking and irrigation. The creatures which live in water provide valuable food for man. The oceans and seas, spread over three-fourths of the Earth enable transportation and form a vast storehouse of valuable objects like pearls, mineral ores, etc. God causes the earth to revolve around the sun and rotate on its axis in a regulated manner, thereby causing the seasons, and the alternation of day and night. There are similar innumerable arrangements which have been brought into being by the all-powerful God. As such, who else is there other than God who deserves man’s utmost gratitude? It is God with His unfathomable powers who can fulfill the needs of man, and not those imaginary gods who possess absolutely no powers.