Surah 43
(Ornaments)
(Makkan Period)
Title
The title is derived from verse 35 of this surah, wherein the word al-zukhruf (ornaments) occurs.
Period of Revelation
We have no authentic traditions indicating the time when the surah was revealed. On studying its contents, it appears, however, that it was revealed around the same time as Surahs al-Mu'min, Ḥā Mīm al-Sajdah and al-Shūrā. All of them seem to belong to one and the same series of sūrahs that were revealed at a time when the Makkan unbelievers were after the Prophet's blood. In secret meetings, they hatched conspiracies about the possible ways to eliminate him. In fact, an attempt on the Prophet's life had already been made; verses 79-80 clearly indicate this.
Subject Matter and Themes
The surah strongly debunks the foolish beliefs and superstitions to which the Quraysh, and the Arabs as a whole for that matter, adamantly clung to. Effectively and convincingly it brings into sharp relief the utter irrationality of such beliefs and superstitions. All this is done in such a manner as prompts all sensible people to reflect on the follies which they continue to hold on to. At that time, however, the Quraysh were hell-bent on eliminating the one person who was showing them the way out of their error and ignorance.
The surah opens by making it clear that the unbelievers' mischief- making will not interrupt the Qur'an's revelation. Indeed, such opposition never prevented God from sending His Messengers and revealing His Scriptures. On the contrary, in the past, He destroyed all wrong-doers who obstructed the spread of His Guidance, and He will presently do the same. This statement is repeated later on in verses 41-43 and in verses 79-80. While addressing the Prophet (peace be on him) those who were hell bent on spilling his blood are sternly told that regardless of what happens to the Prophet (peace be on him), God will punish the miscreants. It is also made clear to them that if they act against the Prophet (peace be on him), God will act against them and decisively so.
This is followed by an account of the erroneous way of life cherished by the unbelievers accompanied by the arguments which they proffered against the Prophet (peace be on him).
These unbelievers, in any case, recognised that God was the Creator of the heavens and the earth and of everyone, including themselves and their deities. Yet still, they also recognised that God was the source of all the bounties from which they benefited. Yet still they insisted on associating others as partners with Him. They took God's creatures to be His children, and these included daughters whom they otherwise considered to be a matter of disgrace.
Likewise, they declared angels to be goddesses. Furthermore, their idols took feminine form and were even dressed in female clothing and jewellery. These they worshipped, held them to be God's daughters and invoked for help and support. It was quite obvious, however, that they had no basis to say with certainty anything about these angels' gender.
When these people were asked to give up their ignorant fancies, they argued that such idol-worship was part of their fate. They also argued that if their ways were unacceptable to God, they could not have indulged in polytheism in the first place. The fact, however, is that the Scriptures are the best means to ascertain what pleases God and what displeases Him. They should not, therefore, cite happenings in the world to prove their contention. This because everything ultimately happens by God's Will [even though not all of it pleases God]. Theft, robbery, illicit sex and all sorts of sins are committed every day and all happens by God's Will. Yet, if this argument is accepted, would it not then legitimate and justify all such misdeeds?
The unbelievers' main argument in support of polytheism was that it had come down from their ancestors, and this, for them, was sufficiently weighty. They also took great pride in being the Prophet Abraham's descendants. Abraham (peace be on him), however, had altogether rejected blind conformity to ancestral faith. If the Makkans were keen on following in the footsteps of their ancestors, they should better emulate the example set by their great forefathers, the Prophets Abraham and Ishmael (peace be on them.) Both had renounced their ancestral faith because it was flawed, and in so doing left their hearth and home. Strangely enough, shunning this aspect of the example set by Abraham and Ishmael, they chose to follow the ways of the most ignorant and foolish of their ancestors.
When they were asked whether any Prophet or Scripture had taught that others besides God should be worshipped, they cited the example of the Christians. They argued that the Christians took Jesus, son of Mary, as the Son of God and worshipped him. By so doing, they mixed the teachings of a Prophet with the practices of his people, for the Prophet Jesus (peace be on him) had never laid any claim to Divinity. Nor did he ever direct his followers to serve and worship him. His teaching was the same as that of every other Prophet: that God alone is his Lord and the Lord of all and that all should worship Him and Him alone. The unbelievers were disinclined to accept the Prophet Muhammad (peace be on him) as God's Messenger because he neither enjoyed wealth nor political authority, nor did he command social awe and prestige. They also contended that if God had to appoint a Prophet, He would have appointed a distinctively privileged person from Makkah and Ta'if. It was exactly on the same grounds that Pharaoh had earlier belittled the Prophet Moses' (peace be on him) claim. Pharaoh's contention was that if God, the King of the heavens, had indeed sent His emissary to him, the King on earth, he should have worn bracelets of gold and should have been escorted by a retinue of angels. Pharaoh also boasted of his rule over the Egyptian kingdom, including the River Nile. In short, he dismissed the Prophet Moses (peace be on him) as too lowly and resourceless to be a match for him.
Thus all false notions cherished by the unbelievers were refuted, one by one, on the basis of weighty, reasoned arguments. It is unequivocally stated in the concluding parts of the surah that God does not have any child. Nor are there several gods, the god of the heavens being separate from and independent of the god of earth. Nor is there any intercessor who can save the unbelievers from God's punishment. God alone is the Supreme Lord, while all others are His servants. No one has any share in His Divine attributes or authority. Only those who are themselves truthful can intercede with God on behalf of those who have adhered to the truth.