Topic: Seeing And Not Equal
View Aspects
قُل لَّآ أَقُولُ لَكُمْ عِندِى خَزَآئِنُ ٱللَّهِ وَلَآ أَعْلَمُ ٱلْغَيْبَ وَلَآ أَقُولُ لَكُمْ إِنِّى مَلَكٌ ۖ إِنْ أَتَّبِعُ إِلَّا مَا يُوحَىٰٓ إِلَىَّ ۚ قُلْ هَلْ يَسْتَوِى ٱلْأَعْمَىٰ وَٱلْبَصِيرُ ۚ أَفَلَا تَتَفَكَّرُونَ
11:32.
10:16; 46:10.
Commentary:
The words, I do not say to you, I possess the treasures of Allah, imply that when the Quran says that the Messengers of God are the announcers of glad tidings, this should not be construed to mean that as soon as a person believes in a Prophet of God, he acquires wealth. He will have to wait for the favours of God to come at their appointed time.
The words, nor do I say to you, I am an angel, here imply that it is not in the power of the Prophet to bring down punishment, for he is not "an angel of punishment."
After the above declarations it might be asked what good there was in following the Prophet when worldly favours took time in coming and when the Prophet was so powerless against his enemies. The Quran answers this implied question by saying that the getting of a treasure was not the only boon which one could desire. The perfect guidance which was received through the Prophet was a great blessing in itself for those who accepted the guidance were like one who possessed eyes, while those who rejected it were like one who had no eyes, and the blind and the seeing could never be alike. These are matters to be reflected upon and pondered over.
a
11:32.
b
10:16; 46:10.
d
11:32.
e
10:16; 46:10.
796
Commentary:
The words, I do not say to you, I possess the treasures of Allah, imply that when the Quran says that the Messengers of God are the announcers of glad tidings, this should not be construed to mean that as soon as a person believes in a Prophet of God, he acquires wealth. He will have to wait for the favours of God to come at their appointed time.
The words, nor do I say to you, I am an angel, here imply that it is not in the power of the Prophet to bring down punishment, for he is not "an angel of punishment."
After the above declarations it might be asked what good there was in following the Prophet when worldly favours took time in coming and when the Prophet was so powerless against his enemies. The Quran answers this implied question by saying that the getting of a treasure was not the only boon which one could desire. The perfect guidance which was received through the Prophet was a great blessing in itself for those who accepted the guidance were like one who possessed eyes, while those who rejected it were like one who had no eyes, and the blind and the seeing could never be alike. These are matters to be reflected upon and pondered over.
c
11:32.
d
10:16; 46:10.
۞ مَثَلُ ٱلْفَرِيقَيْنِ كَٱلْأَعْمَىٰ وَٱلْأَصَمِّ وَٱلْبَصِيرِ وَٱلسَّمِيعِ ۚ هَلْ يَسْتَوِيَانِ مَثَلًا ۚ أَفَلَا تَذَكَّرُونَ
13:17; 35:20, 21.
قرآن مجید میں اندھے اور بہرے اور بینا اور سننے والے کے الفاظ اکٹھے بیان ہوئے ہیں۔ مگر اردو میں اندھے کے مقابلہ میں بینا آتا ہے اور بہرے کے مقابلہ میں سننے والا۔ اس لئے ہم نے اردو محاورہ کے مطابق عبارت کو آگے پیچھے کر دیا ہے۔ جو عربی کے قاعدہ لف و نشر مرتب کے مطابق ہے۔
13:17; 35:20, 21.
A beautiful contrast is instituted here between belief and disbelief. A believer is represented as one who is in perfect possession of the faculties of sight and hearing, while the disbeliever is likened to a blind and deaf person.
13:17; 35:20-21.
Commentary:
This verse beautifully contrasts faith and disbelief. A believer is here represented as one who is in perfect possession of the faculties of sight and hearing, while the disbeliever is likened to a blind and deaf man. Certainly there is a world of difference between them. The epithets "blind" and "deaf" for disbelievers have not been used by way of abuse, but are meant to throw light on the real nature of disbelief.
The difference between a spiritually blind man and one who can see is that the former cannot see the spiritual light that comes from God, while the latter can. Similarly, whereas the former gropes, stumbles and falters on the way to his destination, the latter sees his way clear to it and reaches it directly. Moreover, a blind man cannot distinguish a friend from a foe, and might mistake one for the other, while the seeing man can never make such a mistake.
Similar differences exist between those who follow a true religion and those who reject it. The follower of a true religion knows the Will of God, which serves as a beacon of light for the spiritual wayfarer. But one who rejects truth loses his spiritual vision and thus is deprived of the means to know the Will of his Creator. Similarly, he who has accepted truth, being a seeker after Divine revelation, does not stumble or stagger on the way to his destination, but arrives at it straight away. On the contrary, those who seek to find truth by the unaided help of their own reasoning faculties may sometimes succeed in finding it, but after a good deal of stumbling and groping in the dark. The difference is well illustrated by the statutory prohibition in the United States of America of alcoholic drink in the past few years. Islam prohibited drinking outright, with the result that the Muslim world totally abandoned it. The non-Muslim world has only now begun to realize its evils after an experiment extending over hundreds of years. Another vital difference between a believer and a disbeliever is that the former takes his stand on the firm rock of some recognized truth about which there exists no dispute in his mind, but the latter does not know where he stands, with the result that in order to refute a truth, he sometimes happens to attack even those principles to which he himself subscribes. This is why the Quran repeatedly reminds its opponents that, while attacking Islam, they very often attack their own beliefs and principles.
Believers and disbelievers have also been here compared to the hearing and the deaf. The difference between a man who has ears and one who is deaf is that the former, being able to hear what others have to say, benefits by their experience, while the latter can derive no such benefit. This constitutes one of the chief differences between Islam and other Faiths, and between Muslims and non-Muslims. The teachings of Islam comprise all truths—even those that are found in other religions—and a Muslim is enjoined to get hold of truth wherever he finds it and to make it his own, while a non-Muslim remains contented with his own antiquated and outworn ideas and turns a deaf ear to all others. It is to this peculiarity of Islam that the Holy Prophet has alluded in his famous saying: "A word of wisdom is the lost property of a believer; he gets hold of it wherever he finds it" (Tirmidhi, ch. on ‘Ilm).
In short, the sign of a true religion is that it is catholic and broad-minded and embraces in itself all truths; while a false religion is characterized by narrow-mindedness and perversity. Thus, the very thing which is criticized by the opponents of Islam as one of its defects is claimed here as an excellence. Islam has been accused of plagiarism, but it answers this charge by saying that it is not like a deaf man who cannot hear and therefore is incapable of benefiting by the knowledge and experience of others, but, like a person who is in perfect possession of the power of hearing, it listens to what others have to say and thus supplements and perfects its own store of knowledge. This is why the Quran has not only collected in itself all such teachings of other divinely inspired religions as are fundamentally good and beneficial but has also added to them such new truths as are not to be found in any other Faith.
The epithets "hearing" and "deaf" point to another contrast also. In Islam, the door of Divine revelation is open, and spiritually speaking only such an ear can be said to be gifted with the faculty of "hearing" as listens to the voice of God. In fact, it is for the purpose of hearing the sweet voice of God that the ear has been primarily created. So the ear which does not hear the voice of
God is a deaf ear. Similarly, it is to point to this great difference that believers and disbelievers have been respectively likened to "the seeing" and "the blind." In Islam the door of heavenly signs and miracles is ever open and he alone can be truly said to be "seeing" who sees the fresh signs of God. The eye which refuses to see the signs of God is indeed a blind eye.
c
13:17; 35:20, 21.
1
قرآن مجید میں اندھے اور بہرے اور بینا اور سننے والے کے الفاظ اکٹھے بیان ہوئے ہیں۔ مگر اردو میں اندھے کے مقابلہ میں بینا آتا ہے اور بہرے کے مقابلہ میں سننے والا۔ اس لئے ہم نے اردو محاورہ کے مطابق عبارت کو آگے پیچھے کر دیا ہے۔ جو عربی کے قاعدہ لف و نشر مرتب کے مطابق ہے۔
a
13:17; 35:20-21.
1406
Commentary:
This verse beautifully contrasts faith and disbelief. A believer is here represented as one who is in perfect possession of the faculties of sight and hearing, while the disbeliever is likened to a blind and deaf man. Certainly there is a world of difference between them. The epithets "blind" and "deaf" for disbelievers have not been used by way of abuse, but are meant to throw light on the real nature of disbelief.
The difference between a spiritually blind man and one who can see is that the former cannot see the spiritual light that comes from God, while the latter can. Similarly, whereas the former gropes, stumbles and falters on the way to his destination, the latter sees his way clear to it and reaches it directly. Moreover, a blind man cannot distinguish a friend from a foe, and might mistake one for the other, while the seeing man can never make such a mistake.
Similar differences exist between those who follow a true religion and those who reject it. The follower of a true religion knows the Will of God, which serves as a beacon of light for the spiritual wayfarer. But one who rejects truth loses his spiritual vision and thus is deprived of the means to know the Will of his Creator. Similarly, he who has accepted truth, being a seeker after Divine revelation, does not stumble or stagger on the way to his destination, but arrives at it straight away. On the contrary, those who seek to find truth by the unaided help of their own reasoning faculties may sometimes succeed in finding it, but after a good deal of stumbling and groping in the dark. The difference is well illustrated by the statutory prohibition in the United States of America of alcoholic drink in the past few years. Islam prohibited drinking outright, with the result that the Muslim world totally abandoned it. The non-Muslim world has only now begun to realize its evils after an experiment extending over hundreds of years. Another vital difference between a believer and a disbeliever is that the former takes his stand on the firm rock of some recognized truth about which there exists no dispute in his mind, but the latter does not know where he stands, with the result that in order to refute a truth, he sometimes happens to attack even those principles to which he himself subscribes. This is why the Quran repeatedly reminds its opponents that, while attacking Islam, they very often attack their own beliefs and principles.
Believers and disbelievers have also been here compared to the hearing and the deaf. The difference between a man who has ears and one who is deaf is that the former, being able to hear what others have to say, benefits by their experience, while the latter can derive no such benefit. This constitutes one of the chief differences between Islam and other Faiths, and between Muslims and non-Muslims. The teachings of Islam comprise all truths—even those that are found in other religions—and a Muslim is enjoined to get hold of truth wherever he finds it and to make it his own, while a non-Muslim remains contented with his own antiquated and outworn ideas and turns a deaf ear to all others. It is to this peculiarity of Islam that the Holy Prophet has alluded in his famous saying: "A word of wisdom is the lost property of a believer; he gets hold of it wherever he finds it" (Tirmidhi, ch. on ‘Ilm).
In short, the sign of a true religion is that it is catholic and broad-minded and embraces in itself all truths; while a false religion is characterized by narrow-mindedness and perversity. Thus, the very thing which is criticized by the opponents of Islam as one of its defects is claimed here as an excellence. Islam has been accused of plagiarism, but it answers this charge by saying that it is not like a deaf man who cannot hear and therefore is incapable of benefiting by the knowledge and experience of others, but, like a person who is in perfect possession of the power of hearing, it listens to what others have to say and thus supplements and perfects its own store of knowledge. This is why the Quran has not only collected in itself all such teachings of other divinely inspired religions as are fundamentally good and beneficial but has also added to them such new truths as are not to be found in any other Faith.
The epithets "hearing" and "deaf" point to another contrast also. In Islam, the door of Divine revelation is open, and spiritually speaking only such an ear can be said to be gifted with the faculty of "hearing" as listens to the voice of God. In fact, it is for the purpose of hearing the sweet voice of God that the ear has been primarily created. So the ear which does not hear the voice of
God is a deaf ear. Similarly, it is to point to this great difference that believers and disbelievers have been respectively likened to "the seeing" and "the blind." In Islam the door of heavenly signs and miracles is ever open and he alone can be truly said to be "seeing" who sees the fresh signs of God. The eye which refuses to see the signs of God is indeed a blind eye.
d
13:17; 35:20, 21.
1308
A beautiful contrast is instituted here between belief and disbelief. A believer is represented as one who is in perfect possession of the faculties of sight and hearing, while the disbeliever is likened to a blind and deaf person.
قُلْ مَن رَّبُّ ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضِ قُلِ ٱللَّهُ ۚ قُلْ أَفَٱتَّخَذْتُم مِّن دُونِهِۦٓ أَوْلِيَآءَ لَا يَمْلِكُونَ لِأَنفُسِهِمْ نَفْعًا وَلَا ضَرًّا ۚ قُلْ هَلْ يَسْتَوِى ٱلْأَعْمَىٰ وَٱلْبَصِيرُ أَمْ هَلْ تَسْتَوِى ٱلظُّلُمَٰتُ وَٱلنُّورُ ۗ أَمْ جَعَلُوا۟ لِلَّهِ شُرَكَآءَ خَلَقُوا۟ كَخَلْقِهِۦ فَتَشَٰبَهَ ٱلْخَلْقُ عَلَيْهِمْ ۚ قُلِ ٱللَّهُ خَٰلِقُ كُلِّ شَىْءٍ وَهُوَ ٱلْوَٰحِدُ ٱلْقَهَّٰرُ
23:87.
25:4.
11:25; 35:20.
«古兰经» 用两个不同的单词, اَحَدْ (Ahad) 和 وَاحِدْ (Wahid) 来表示安拉的独一性。前一个单词指安拉的绝对独一, 他与任何其他人没有关系; 后者仅仅意为 ‘第一个’ 或 ‘始点’, 因而需要有第二、第三个紧随其后。安拉的特性--------独一 (وَاحِدْ, Wahid), 表明安拉是一切创造源泉的真正 ‘源泉’ 。就象第二或第三个事物必然指向第一个事物那样, 一切事物都仰向安拉。有些人被错误地给予安拉的儿子的身份。«古兰经» 在驳斥这一教条时, 使用 اَحَدْ (Ahad) 这词。也就是说, 安拉是, 而且一直是独一的, 他从未有过子女。(112:2)
23:87.
25:4.
11:25; 35:20.
The Qur’an has used two different words to express Divine Unity: (1) Ahad and (2) Wahid. Whereas the former word denotes the absolute Unity of God without relation to any other being, the latter means only 'the first' or 'the starting point,' and requires a second and a third to follow it. The Divine attribute, Wahid (One), shows that God is the real 'source' from which all creation springs, and everything points to Him just as a second or a third thing necessarily points to the first. But where the Qur’an seeks to refute the doctrine of the sonship of those who have been falsely given that status, it uses the word Ahad, i.e. He Who is and has ever been One and Alone and Who has begotten no child (112:2).
23:87.
25:4.
11:25; 35:20.
Commentary:
The words, who have no power for good or harm even for themselves, spoken about false deities point to a strange coincidence. Generally, the lives of all those persons who later came to be worshipped as deities were full of hardship and privation. Jesus, Imam Husain, Rama, etc., all led very hard lives. This fact seems to entail a strong warning to their misguided worshippers that they could expect no benefit or help from those who could not even protect themselves from harm or danger.
In the words, Can the blind and the seeing be equal?, disbelievers are told that they, being spiritually and morally blind, should not be deceived by their power and their numbers against the Holy Prophet, as even an army of blind men is powerless against one person who has eyes. The Prophet and his followers possess sight, while disbelievers are blind.
The powerlessness of the disbelievers is further brought home to them in the simile of light and darkness referred to in the words, can darkness be equal to light? Disbelievers are told that as darkness possesses no independent existence, being only the negation of light, it must flee before light. So disbelievers cannot stand against the Holy Prophet. In the last part of the verse disbelievers are challenged to produce anything which they think has been created by their false deities.
The Quran has used two different words to express the Unity of God, viz. (1) احد and (2) واحد. Whereas the former denotes the absolute Unity of God without relation to any other being, the latter means only "the first" or "the starting point" and requires a second and a third to follow it. The Divine attribute of واحد (One) is thus intended to show that God is the real "source" from which all creation springs. Although none of His creatures is similar to Him in perfection and He is Independent of all, yet everything does point to Him, just as a second or a third thing necessarily points to the first. The attribute واحد (One) has therefore been used here as an evidence of the truth of the previous statement, viz. Allah alone is the Creator of all things. As against this, where the Quran seeks to refute the doctrine of the son-ship of those who have been falsely given that status, it uses the word احد i.e. He Who has ever been One and alone and has begotten no child (112:2).
The addition of the attribute of "Most Supreme" to "One" signifies that God does not need the help or assistance of any being for the control and governance of the universe He has brought into existence, because He is not only the source of all things but is also Supreme and Powerful over them. Hence it is useless and absurd for disbelievers to worship their false deities.
c
23:87.
d
25:4.
e
11:25; 35:20.
638
«古兰经» 用两个不同的单词, اَحَدْ (Ahad) 和 وَاحِدْ (Wahid) 来表示安拉的独一性。前一个单词指安拉的绝对独一, 他与任何其他人没有关系; 后者仅仅意为 ‘第一个’ 或 ‘始点’, 因而需要有第二、第三个紧随其后。安拉的特性--------独一 (وَاحِدْ, Wahid), 表明安拉是一切创造源泉的真正 ‘源泉’ 。就象第二或第三个事物必然指向第一个事物那样, 一切事物都仰向安拉。有些人被错误地给予安拉的儿子的身份。«古兰经» 在驳斥这一教条时, 使用 اَحَدْ (Ahad) 这词。也就是说, 安拉是, 而且一直是独一的, 他从未有过子女。(112:2)
a
23:87.
b
25:4.
c
11:25; 35:20.
1628
Commentary:
The words, who have no power for good or harm even for themselves, spoken about false deities point to a strange coincidence. Generally, the lives of all those persons who later came to be worshipped as deities were full of hardship and privation. Jesus, Imam Husain, Rama, etc., all led very hard lives. This fact seems to entail a strong warning to their misguided worshippers that they could expect no benefit or help from those who could not even protect themselves from harm or danger.
In the words, Can the blind and the seeing be equal?, disbelievers are told that they, being spiritually and morally blind, should not be deceived by their power and their numbers against the Holy Prophet, as even an army of blind men is powerless against one person who has eyes. The Prophet and his followers possess sight, while disbelievers are blind.
The powerlessness of the disbelievers is further brought home to them in the simile of light and darkness referred to in the words, can darkness be equal to light? Disbelievers are told that as darkness possesses no independent existence, being only the negation of light, it must flee before light. So disbelievers cannot stand against the Holy Prophet. In the last part of the verse disbelievers are challenged to produce anything which they think has been created by their false deities.
The Quran has used two different words to express the Unity of God, viz. (1) احد and (2) واحد. Whereas the former denotes the absolute Unity of God without relation to any other being, the latter means only "the first" or "the starting point" and requires a second and a third to follow it. The Divine attribute of واحد (One) is thus intended to show that God is the real "source" from which all creation springs. Although none of His creatures is similar to Him in perfection and He is Independent of all, yet everything does point to Him, just as a second or a third thing necessarily points to the first. The attribute واحد (One) has therefore been used here as an evidence of the truth of the previous statement, viz. Allah alone is the Creator of all things. As against this, where the Quran seeks to refute the doctrine of the son-ship of those who have been falsely given that status, it uses the word احد i.e. He Who has ever been One and alone and has begotten no child (112:2).
The addition of the attribute of "Most Supreme" to "One" signifies that God does not need the help or assistance of any being for the control and governance of the universe He has brought into existence, because He is not only the source of all things but is also Supreme and Powerful over them. Hence it is useless and absurd for disbelievers to worship their false deities.
b
23:87.
c
25:4.
d
11:25; 35:20.
1432
The Qur’an has used two different words to express Divine Unity: (1) Ahad and (2) Wahid. Whereas the former word denotes the absolute Unity of God without relation to any other being, the latter means only 'the first' or 'the starting point,' and requires a second and a third to follow it. The Divine attribute, Wahid (One), shows that God is the real 'source' from which all creation springs, and everything points to Him just as a second or a third thing necessarily points to the first. But where the Qur’an seeks to refute the doctrine of the sonship of those who have been falsely given that status, it uses the word Ahad, i.e. He Who is and has ever been One and Alone and Who has begotten no child (112:2).
وَمَا يَسْتَوِى ٱلْأَعْمَىٰ وَٱلْبَصِيرُ
11:25; 13:17; 40:59.
11:25; 13:17; 40:59.
11:25; 13:17; 40:59.
Commentary:
Whenever a Prophet comes into the world the people to whom he preaches his Message become split up into two groups: (1) those who accept his Message and follow his lead; (2) those who reject and oppose him. These two groups of men are likened in the present verse to "the seeing" i.e. those who having been endowed with spiritual eyes see the heavenly light, and "the blind" i.e. those who are afflicted with spiritual blindness as the result of their refusal to see the light. These two classes of men have been further likened to "the living" and "the dead" in verse 23 below. The believers have been called "the living" because by accepting the truth they receive new life, and the disbelievers are called "the dead" because by rejecting truth which is the elixir of life eternal they bring spiritual death upon themselves.
a
11:25; 13:17; 40:59.
a
11:25; 13:17; 40:59.
3192
Commentary:
Whenever a Prophet comes into the world the people to whom he preaches his Message become split up into two groups: (1) those who accept his Message and follow his lead; (2) those who reject and oppose him. These two groups of men are likened in the present verse to "the seeing" i.e. those who having been endowed with spiritual eyes see the heavenly light, and "the blind" i.e. those who are afflicted with spiritual blindness as the result of their refusal to see the light. These two classes of men have been further likened to "the living" and "the dead" in verse 23 below. The believers have been called "the living" because by accepting the truth they receive new life, and the disbelievers are called "the dead" because by rejecting truth which is the elixir of life eternal they bring spiritual death upon themselves.
d
11:25; 13:17; 40:59.
وَمَا يَسْتَوِى ٱلْأَعْمَىٰ وَٱلْبَصِيرُ وَٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ وَعَمِلُوا۟ ٱلصَّٰلِحَٰتِ وَلَا ٱلْمُسِىٓءُ ۚ قَلِيلًا مَّا تَتَذَكَّرُونَ
13:17; 35:20; 39:10.
13:17; 35:20; 39:10.
13:17; 35:20; 39:10.
Commentary:
The verse means to say that those who accept the truth and do good deeds are not like those who do evil deeds, because the former are gifted with spiritual sight while the latter are deprived of it; and the seeing and the blind can never be equal.
b
13:17; 35:20; 39:10.
a
13:17; 35:20; 39:10.
3536
Commentary:
The verse means to say that those who accept the truth and do good deeds are not like those who do evil deeds, because the former are gifted with spiritual sight while the latter are deprived of it; and the seeing and the blind can never be equal.
a
13:17; 35:20; 39:10.