Tafheem ul Quran

Surah 6 Al-An'am, Ayat 152-152

وَلَا تَقۡرَبُوۡا مَالَ الۡيَتِيۡمِ اِلَّا بِالَّتِىۡ هِىَ اَحۡسَنُ حَتّٰى يَبۡلُغَ اَشُدَّهٗ​ ۚ وَاَوۡفُوۡا الۡكَيۡلَ وَالۡمِيۡزَانَ بِالۡقِسۡطِ​ ۚ لَا نُـكَلِّفُ نَفۡسًا اِلَّا وُسۡعَهَا​ ۚ وَاِذَا قُلۡتُمۡ فَاعۡدِلُوۡا وَلَوۡ كَانَ ذَا قُرۡبٰى​​ ۚ وَبِعَهۡدِ اللّٰهِ اَوۡفُوۡا​ ؕ ذٰ لِكُمۡ وَصّٰٮكُمۡ بِهٖ لَعَلَّكُمۡ تَذَكَّرُوۡنَ ۙ‏ ﴿6:152﴾

(6:152) (vi) and do not even draw near to the property of the orphan in his minority except in the best manner;132 (vii) and give full measures and weight with justice; We do not burden anyone beyond his capacity;133 (viii) When you speak, be just, even though it concern a near of kin; (ix) and fulfil the covenant of Allah.134 That is what He has enjoined upon you so that you may take heed.


Notes

132. That is, one's handling of the property of orphans should be based on maximum selflessness, sincerity and well-wishing for the orphans; it should be of a kind which lends itself to no reproach, either from God or man.

133. Even though this is a full-fledged postulate of the law of God, it is mentioned here in order to stress that one who tries to remain fair and just to the utmost of his ability, in giving weight and measure and in his dealings with people, will be acquitted of responsibility for error. If any mistakes in weight or measure occur out of oversight, and thus involuntarily, he will not be punished.

134. 'Covenant of Allah' signifies, in the first place, the commitment to God, as well as to human beings, to which man binds himself in His name. It also signifies that covenant between man and God, as well as between one human being and another which automatically takes place the moment a person is born onto God's earth and into human society. The first two covenants mentioned are voluntary and deliberate whereas the last one is natural. The last one is no less binding than the first two, even though man does not make it of his own volition. For when man enjoys his own existence, makes use of his physical and mental energy, benefits from the means of sustenance and natural resources - in other words, when he benefits from the world created by God and avails himself of the opportunities provided for him by the operation of natural laws - he incurs certain obligations towards God. In the same way, when one derives nourishment and sustenance from the blood of one's mother while in her womb, when one opens one's eyes in a family which is supported by the toil of one's father, when one benefits from the various institutions of human society, one is placed in varying degrees of obligation towards those individuals and institutions. This covenant between man and God and between man and society is inscribed, not on a piece of paper, but on every fibre of man's being. Man has not entered into this covenant consciously and deliberately, yet the whole of his being owes itself to it. (Surah al-Baqarah 2:27) alludes to this covenant when it says that it is the transgressors 'who break the covenant of Allah after its firm binding, and cut asunder what Allah has commanded to be joined, and spread mischief on earth'. It is also mentioned in (Surah al-A'raf 7:172 )in the following words: 'And recall when your Lord took the children of Adam from their loins and made them testify as to themselves saying, "Am I not your Lord?" (to which) they answered, "Yes, we do bear witness thereto. "