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 Surah Hud 11:61-68 [6/10]
  
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Verse Summary -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
۞ وَإِلَىٰAnd to
ثَمُودَThamud
أَخَاهُمْ(We sent) their brother
صَـٰلِحًا‌ۚSalih.
قَالَHe said,
يَـٰقَوْمِ"O my people!
ٱعْبُدُواْWorship
ٱللَّهَAllah,
مَاnot
لَكُمyou have
مِّنْany
إِلَـٰهٍgod
غَيْرُهُۥ‌ۖother than Him.
هُوَHe
أَنشَأَكُمproduced you
مِّنَfrom
ٱلْأَرْضِthe earth
وَٱسْتَعْمَرَكُمْand settled you
فِيهَاin it.
فَٱسْتَغْفِرُوهُSo ask forgiveness of Him,
ثُمَّthen
تُوبُوٓاْturn in repentance
إِلَيْهِ‌ۚto Him.
إِنَّIndeed,
رَبِّىmy Lord
قَرِيبٌ(is) near,
مُّجِيبٌAll-Responsive."
﴿٦١﴾
قَالُواْThey said,
يَـٰصَـٰلِحُO Salih!
قَدْVerily
كُنتَyou were
فِينَاamong us
مَرْجُوًّاthe one in whom hope was placed
قَبْلَbefore
هَـٰذَآ‌ۖthis.
أَتَنْهَـٰنَآDo you forbid us
أَنthat
نَّعْبُدَwe worship
مَاwhat
يَعْبُدُ ءَابَآؤُنَاour forefathers worshipped?
وَإِنَّنَاAnd indeed we
لَفِىsurely (are) in
شَكٍّdoubt
مِّمَّاabout what
تَدْعُونَآyou call us
إِلَيْهِto it,
مُرِيبٍsuspicious."
﴿٦٢﴾
قَالَHe said,
يَـٰقَوْمِ"O my people!
أَرَءَيْتُمْDo you see,
إِنif
كُنتُI am
عَلَىٰon
بَيِّنَةٍa clear proof
مِّنfrom
رَّبِّىmy Lord,
وَءَاتَـٰنِىand He has given me
مِنْهُfrom Him,
رَحْمَةًa Mercy
فَمَنthen who
يَنصُرُنِى(can) help me
مِنَagainst
ٱللَّهِAllah,
إِنْif
عَصَيْتُهُۥ‌ۖI (were to) disobey Him?
فَمَاSo not
تَزِيدُونَنِىyou would increase me
غَيْرَbut
تَخْسِيرٍ(in) loss.
﴿٦٣﴾
وَيَـٰقَوْمِAnd O my people!
هَـٰذِهِۦThis
نَاقَةُshe-camel
ٱللَّهِ(of) Allah
لَكُمْ(is) for you
ءَايَةًa Sign,
فَذَرُوهَاso leave her
تَأْكُلْto eat
فِىٓin
أَرْضِthe earth
ٱللَّهِ(of) Allah,
وَلَاand (do) not
تَمَسُّوهَاtouch her
بِسُوٓءٍwith harm,
فَيَأْخُذَكُمْlest will seize you
عَذَابٌa punishment
قَرِيبٌimpending."
﴿٦٤﴾
فَعَقَرُوهَاBut they hamstrung her.
فَقَالَSo he said,
تَمَتَّعُواْ"Enjoy (yourselves)
فِىin
دَارِكُمْyour home(s)
ثَلَـٰثَةَ(for) three
أَيَّامٍ‌ۖdays.
ذَٲلِكَThat
وَعْدٌ(is) a promise
غَيْرُnot
مَكْذُوبٍ(to) be belied."
﴿٦٥﴾
فَلَمَّاSo when
جَآءَcame
أَمْرُنَاOur command
نَجَّيْنَاWe saved
صَـٰلِحًاSalih,
وَٱلَّذِينَand those who
ءَامَنُواْbelieved
مَعَهُۥwith him,
بِرَحْمَةٍby a Mercy
مِّنَّاfrom Us,
وَمِنْand from
خِزْىِ(the) disgrace
يَوْمِئِذٍ‌ۗ(of) that Day.
إِنَّIndeed,
رَبَّكَyour Lord,
هُوَHe
ٱلْقَوِىُّ(is) All- Strong,
ٱلْعَزِيزُAll-Mighty.
﴿٦٦﴾
وَأَخَذَAnd seized
ٱلَّذِينَthose who
ظَلَمُواْwronged,
ٱلصَّيْحَةُthe thunderous blast
فَأَصْبَحُواْthen they became
فِىin
دِيَـٰرِهِمْtheir homes
جَـٰثِمِينَfallen prone.
﴿٦٧﴾
كَأَنAs if
لَّمْnot
يَغْنَوْاْthey (had) prospered
فِيهَآ‌ۗtherein.
أَلَآNo doubt,
إِنَّindeed,
ثَمُودَاْThamud
كَفَرُواْdisbelieved
رَبَّهُمْ‌ۗ(in) their Lord,
أَلَاso
بُعْدًاaway
لِّثَمُودَwith Thamud.
﴿٦٨﴾


​وَاِلٰى ثَمُوۡدَ اَخَاهُمۡ صٰلِحًا​ۘ قَالَ يٰقَوۡمِ اعۡبُدُوا اللّٰهَ مَا لَـكُمۡ مِّنۡ اِلٰهٍ غَيۡرُهٗ​ ؕ هُوَ اَنۡشَاَكُمۡ مِّنَ الۡاَرۡضِ وَاسۡتَعۡمَرَكُمۡ فِيۡهَا فَاسۡتَغۡفِرُوۡهُ ثُمَّ تُوۡبُوۡۤا اِلَيۡهِ​ ؕ اِنَّ رَبِّىۡ قَرِيۡبٌ مُّجِيۡبٌ‏   قَالُوۡا يٰصٰلِحُ قَدۡ كُنۡتَ فِيۡنَا مَرۡجُوًّا قَبۡلَ هٰذَآ​ اَتَـنۡهٰٮنَاۤ اَنۡ نَّـعۡبُدَ مَا يَعۡبُدُ اٰبَآؤُنَا وَاِنَّنَا لَفِىۡ شَكٍّ مِّمَّا تَدۡعُوۡنَاۤ اِلَيۡهِ مُرِيۡبٍ‏  قَالَ يٰقَوۡمِ اَرَءَيۡتُمۡ اِنۡ كُنۡتُ عَلٰى بَيِّنَةٍ مِّنۡ رَّبِّىۡ وَاٰتٰٮنِىۡ مِنۡهُ رَحۡمَةً فَمَنۡ يَّـنۡصُرُنِىۡ مِنَ اللّٰهِ اِنۡ عَصَيۡتُهٗ​ فَمَا تَزِيۡدُوۡنَنِىۡ غَيۡرَ تَخۡسِيۡرٍ‏  وَيٰقَوۡمِ هٰذِهٖ نَاقَةُ اللّٰهِ لَـكُمۡ اٰيَةً فَذَرُوۡهَا تَاۡكُلۡ فِىۡۤ اَرۡضِ اللّٰهِ وَلَا تَمَسُّوۡهَا بِسُوۡٓءٍ فَيَاۡخُذَكُمۡ عَذَابٌ قَرِيۡبٌ‏  فَعَقَرُوۡهَا فَقَالَ تَمَتَّعُوۡا فِىۡ دَارِكُمۡ ثَلٰثَةَ اَ يَّامٍ ​ؕذٰ لِكَ وَعۡدٌ غَيۡرُ مَكۡذُوۡبٍ‏  فَلَمَّا جَآءَ اَمۡرُنَا نَجَّيۡنَا صٰلِحًـا وَّالَّذِيۡنَ اٰمَنُوۡا مَعَهٗ بِرَحۡمَةٍ مِّنَّا وَمِنۡ خِزۡىِ يَوۡمِـئِذٍ​ؕ اِنَّ رَبَّكَ هُوَ الۡقَوِىُّ الۡعَزِيۡزُ‏   وَاَخَذَ الَّذِيۡنَ ظَلَمُوا الصَّيۡحَةُ فَاَصۡبَحُوۡا فِىۡ دِيَارِهِمۡ جٰثِمِيۡنَۙ‏   كَاَنۡ لَّمۡ يَغۡنَوۡا فِيۡهَا​ ؕ اَلَاۤ اِنَّ ثَمُوۡدَا۟ كَفَرُوۡا رَبَّهُمۡ​ؕ اَلَا بُعۡدًا لِّـثَمُوۡدَ‏ 

Translation
(11:61) And to Thamud We sent their brother Sali'h.66 He said: 'My people! Serve Allah; you have no god other than Him. He brought you into being out of the earth, and has made you dwell in it.67 So ask Him to forgive you, and do turn towards Him in repentance.68 Indeed My Lord is near, responsive to prayers .69 (11:62) They said: 'O Salih! Until now you were one of those among us on whom we placed great hopes.70 Now, would you forbid us to worship what our forefathers were wont to worship?71 Indeed we are in disquieting doubt about what you are calling us to.72 (11:63) Salih said: 'My people! What do you think? If I had a clear evidence from my Lord, and then He also bestowed His mercy upon me, who will rescue me from the punishment of Allah if I still disobey Him? You can only make me lose even more.73 (11:64) My people! This she-camel of Allah is a sign for you. So let her pasture on Allah's earth, and do not hurt her or else some chastisement - which is near at hand -should overtake you.' (11:65) But they slaughtered her. Thereupon Salih warned them: 'Enjoy yourselves in your homes for a maximum of three days. This is a promise which shall not be belied.' (11:66) Then, when Our command came to pass, We saved Salih and those who shared his faith through Our special mercy, from the disgrace of that day.74 Truly Your Lord is All-Strong, All-Mighty. (11:67) And the Blast overtook those who were wont to do wrong, and then they lay lifeless in their homes (11:68) as though they had never lived there before. Oh, verily the Thamud denied their Lord! Oh, the Thamud were destroyed.

Commentary

66. Please keep in view (E.Ns 57-62 of Surah Al-Aaraf).

67. This is the proof of the claim: “You have no other Deity than Allah” .The argument is based on the fact which the mushriks themselves acknowledged that it is Allah Who is their Creator. Therefore Prophet Salih (peace be upon him) argued like this: You yourselves acknowledge that it is Allah Who has created your wonderful human body out of the lifeless particles of the earth and that it is Allah Who has made the earth a suitable place for you to live. How can then there be any Deity other than Allah Who may be worthy of Godhead, service and worship?

68. That is, so ask His forgiveness for the sin you have been committing by worshiping others.

69. In this concise sentence, the Quran has refuted a grave misunderstanding of the mushriks, which has in every age misled people into wrong creeds. They presumed that Allah lived far away from them and, therefore, was unapproachable like their own rulers on the earth. As the only way of approach to them was an intercessor who alone could receive and present their requests and applications to their rulers, and convey their answers to them, they presumed that there should be some intercessor to help approach Allah and bring to them the answers to their prayers. Obviously this is a false presumption, which has been endorsed and encouraged by clever people that Allah is out of the reach of common people and it is not possible for them to reach Him and present their prayers and get their answers. So they should search for such sacred beings as may have an approach to Him. Accordingly, they tried to secure the services of those who were well versed in the art of conveying the requests with the necessary presents and gifts to the Highest Authority. This misunderstanding created hosts of intercessors, and the establishment of the system of priesthood, which has so incapacitated the followers of mushrik creeds of ignorance that they cannot perform by themselves any religious ceremony from birth to death.

Now let us consider the concise answer of Prophet Salih (peace be upon him), by which he broke asunder the false presumption of the mushriks. It is this: Allah is near at hand, so you can invoke His help directly without the help of any interceder. He answers prayers, so you can yourselves receive the answer to your prayer. Though He is the Highest, each one of you will find Him so near to yourself that you will be able to convey your request even in a whisper, nay, you are permitted to convey your requests openly or secretly to Him. Therefore give up the folly of seeking interceders and setting them up as His partners, and address your prayers to Him Who is near at hand and answers prayers. (Refer also to (E.N. 188 of Surah Al-Baqarah).

70. That is, we had expected that by your wisdom, intelligence, foresight, serious behavior and dignified personality, you would become a great and prosperous man. So we had looked forward to the great success you would achieve and to the manifold advantages we would gain over other clans and tribes because of you. But you have brought to naught all of our hopes by adopting the way based on Tauhid and the Hereafter which is bound to lead us to utter ruin.

It may be noted here that the people of Muhammad (peace be upon him) have had the same great expectations of him. They, too, had a very high opinion of his abilities and capabilities before his appointment as a Prophet. For they expected that he would become a great leader, and his foresight would bring innumerable benefits to them also. But when, contrary to their expectations, he began to invite them to the doctrines of Tauhid and the Hereafter, and preach the principles of high morality, they lost not only all hope in him, but began to entertain and express quite the reverse views. They said: What a pity, this man who was quite good till now has, under the influence of some charm, not only ruined his own career but has destroyed all of our hopes as well.

71. That was their argument for the worship of their gods. They said that they would worship them because their forefathers worshiped them. Prophet Salih (peace be upon him), argued like this: Worship Allah....Who has created you from the earth, and Who made it a living place for you. In answer to this they argued, as if to say: These deities are also worthy of worship, and we will not give them up because our forefathers have been worshiping them for a long time. This is an apt example of the type of arguments employed by the supporters of Islam and those of ignorance. The former base their arguments on sound reasoning, while the latter base them on blind imitation.

72. The Quran has not specified the nature of the doubts and feelings of distraction. This is because, though all of them had these feelings, these were different in different persons. For it is one of the characteristics of the message that it takes away the peace of mind of all these people to whom it is addressed. Though the feelings of distraction are of various kinds, everyone gets a portion of them. This is because it becomes simply impossible for anyone to continue treading the paths of deviation with that peace of mind which one had before the coming of the message. For it impels everyone to think whether one is following the right way or any of the wrong ways of ignorance. No one can shut one’s ears and eyes against the penetrating and merciless criticism of the weaknesses of the ways of ignorance, and the strong and rational arguments for the right way. Then the high moral character of the Messenger, his perseverance, his nobility, his gentle conduct, his frank and righteous attitude and his dignity cannot fail to shake their impressions even on the most obdurate, and prejudiced opponents. The message by itself attracts the best elements from that society and brings about the most revolutionary changes in the characters of its followers so as to make them models of excellence. Naturally all these things combine to produce the feelings of distraction in the minds of those who desire to uphold the ways of ignorance even after the coming of the truth.

73. This is the answer to the preceding question: If I disobey Allah by discarding the guidance I have received from Him in order to please you, you cannot defend me against Him. You will rather add to the intensity of my guilt of disobedience to Him. Thus I shall incur additional punishment from Him for misleading you instead of showing the right way for which I had been sent to you.

74. According to the traditions that are current in the Sinai Peninsula, Allah delivered them from the torment and led them there. There is a Mount near Jabal-i-Musa, known by the name of Prophet Salih where, it is said, the Prophet took refuge after the destruction of his people.