Tafsir of Al-`Ankabut 29:41

(The parable of those who take, other than Allah, allies) is a resumption of speech containing an evaluation—condemning the condition of those perished, self-oppressing people, and their peers among those who have taken as allies someone other than Allah Almighty. In this there is an allusion to the greatest types of their oppression. The intended meaning of the relative pronoun (alladhina) is all the polytheists who worshipped idols other than Allah Almighty. It is also permitted that it refers to everyone who has taken someone other than the Exalted as a refuge and reliance—whether that be an idol or otherwise; and for this reason, the text transitioned to "allies" (awliya) rather than "gods" (aliha), meaning their description or their likeness.

(As the likeness of the spider), meaning as its description or its likeness, (which takes a house). (And indeed, the weakest of houses is the house of the spider) is an explanation of the spider’s quality upon which the structure of the parable revolves. This sentence, according to the transmission from al-Akhfash regarding the necessity of pausing at "spider," is a resumption. "And indeed, the weakest of houses..." is in the position of a state (hal) of the agent hidden within the verb "takes" (ittakhadhat). It is also permitted that it is in the position of a state of its object, based on the permissibility of a state occurring from an indefinite noun. Under both views, the explicit noun is placed in the position of the pronoun that would have referred to the possessor of the state, and the sentence is a completion of the description. The lam (in "the houses") is for generalization (istighraq). The meaning is: The likeness of those who take for themselves allies other than Allah Almighty in their taking of them is like the spider; for it takes a house for itself, while the truth is that the weakest and most frail of all houses is its house. Likewise, these people took for themselves allies other than Allah Almighty, while the truth is that the weakest and most frail of all allies is their allies. If you wish, say: It took a house of extreme weakness, and these people took a god or a reliance of extreme weakness; thus, both are partners in taking that which is at the limit of weakness in its category.

It is also permitted that the sentence "it takes a house" is a state from the spider, by estimating the word qad (already) or without it, or as an adjective for it, because the al (definite article) here is for the generic class. Scholars have permitted both views for sentences occurring after nouns defined by the generic al, such as the saying of the Almighty: (...like the donkey carrying volumes). Al-Farra’ stated that the sentence is a connective to an omitted relative pronoun which functions as an adjective for "spider"—i.e., "that which takes." Ibn Durustawayh chose the omission of the relative pronoun in such instances, and according to this, one does not pause at "spider." You know that the view that the sentence is an adjective is more apparent. The meaning then is: The likeness of the polytheist who worshipped an idol, in comparison to the monotheist who worshipped Allah Almighty, is like a spider that built a house, in comparison to a man who built a house of brick and plaster or hewed it from stone. Just as the weakest of houses, when you examine them house by house, is the spider's house, so too the weakest of religions, when you examine them religion by religion, is the worship of idols. This is a beautiful facet mentioned by al-Zamakhshari regarding the verse, in which he considered the differentiation of the similitude. The purpose is to highlight the disparity between the "takers" and the "taken," while depicting the extreme frailty of the one and consolidating the firm stability of the other.

Based on this, it is permissible for the saying of the Almighty (And indeed, the weakest of houses...) to be a state-sentence because it is a completion of the similitude, or for it to be parenthetical, because if it had not been brought, there would still be within the speech that which guides to this meaning. Al-Tayyibi leaned toward it being a state-sentence, while the author of al-Kashf said: Al-Zamakhshari’s speech is closer to it being parenthetical, because his statement, "Just as the weakest of houses..." contains no indication of restricting the first [part]. Abu Hayyan criticized this view, saying the wording of the verse does not indicate it, and that it is merely burdening the text with what it might bear, as is his habit in much of his exegesis. This is a recklessness toward the author of al-Kashshaf, as is not hidden.

It is also permitted that the meaning is: The likeness of those who take allies other than Allah in that which they take as a reliance and refuge in their religion, and whom they support other than Allah Almighty, is like the spider in what it weaves and takes as a house. The similitude in this case is of a compound nature, where one considers in the side of the subject (the one being likened) a "taking," a "taken object," and "reliance upon it," and likewise in the other side that which corresponds to it. One considers the likeness of the state extracted from all of that to the state extracted from this. The goal is the confirmation of the frailty of their religion and that it has reached a limit beyond which there is no further limit. The pivot of the similitude is that their allies are in the position of the spider’s weave in terms of weakness of condition and lack of suitability for reliance. According to this, the saying of the Almighty (Indeed, the weakest of houses...) is a tailpiece (tadhil) that confirms the purpose of the similitude.

It is also permitted that the purpose of the similitude is what you have heard, except that the tailpiece is made a metaphor of representation (isti'ara tamthiliyya), and what precedes it acts as a prelude to it. It is as if it were said: "And indeed, the weakest of things relied upon in religion is the worship of idols." This confirms the purpose of the similitude via the confirmation of the object of comparison (al-mushabbah), whereas in the previous view, the confirmation was via the confirmation of the instrument of comparison (al-mushabbah bihi). This is close to the stripping (tajrid) and reinforcement (tarshih) of a metaphor. An example is your saying: "Zayd, in generosity, is a sea, and the sea does not disappoint those who come to it," if the second "sea" is metaphorically used for the generous person. Mentioning both sides only prevents it from being a metaphor if it is within a single sentence. The former [view] is preferred because the custom of the eloquent is to confirm the matter of the instrument of comparison so that it may be used to confirm the object of comparison, and because this [interpretation] only distinguishes itself from riddles after the similitude has already been established.

It is also permitted that the saying of the Almighty (The likeness of those...) is like the first premise, and His saying (And indeed, the weakest of houses...) is like the second, and that which is like the conclusion is omitted, indicated by what follows, as stated in al-Kashf. The whole indicates the intended meaning of confirming the frailty of their religion and that it has reached the limit beyond which there is no further limit, by way of evocative metonymy (kinaya imaiyya). So reflect on this.

The apparent meaning is that the "spider" refers to the species that weaves its house in the air and hunts flies with it—they are among the venomous creatures, so it is recommended to kill them for that reason, not because of what Abu Dawud narrated in his Marasil from Yazid ibn Marthad from the Prophet, peace be upon him: "The spider is a devil which Allah Almighty transformed, so whoever finds it, let him kill it," for this is, as al-Damiri mentioned, weak. It is said that killing it is not recommended; al-Khatib narrated from Ali—may Allah honor his face—that he said: The Messenger of Allah, peace be upon him, said: "I and Abu Bakr entered the cave, and the spider gathered and wove [a web] at the door, so do not kill them." Al-Jalal al-Suyuti mentioned this report in al-Durr al-Manthur, and Allah the Almighty knows best regarding its authenticity and whether it is suitable for evidence. Scholars have explicitly stated the purity (tahara) of its house because it is not established that what it weaves with is its food transformed within its belly, and also because the original state of things is purity. Al-Damiri mentioned that it is not excreted from its belly, but from outside its skin, though there is remoteness in this. I have not verified the matter of this, nor have I determined whether it is from its mouth, its posterior, or outside its skin, due to a lack of concern for the matter, not because of the impossibility of arriving at the truth.

It is mentioned that it is good to remove its web from houses, based on what al-Tha'labi, Ibn Atiyyah, and others attributed to Ali—may Allah honor his face—that he said: "Cleanse your houses of spider webs, for leaving them in houses inherits poverty." If this is authentic from Imam Ali, may Allah honor his face, then so be it; otherwise, it is good to remove them because they contain cleanliness, and there is no doubt regarding its recommendation.

The ta in 'ankabut (spider) is augmentative, like the ta in Talut; thus, its measure is fa'lalut, and it applies to the singular, plural, masculine, and feminine. An example of its masculine usage is the saying: "Upon their pouring rain from them, houses / as if the spider had built it." The learned Sa'di Chalabi deemed it likely that the intended meaning here is the singular, and he also leaned toward its femininity, stating that it was chosen here to be feminine because it is more appropriate for expressing frailty and weakness in what one takes. Mawlana al-Khafaji, commenting on this, said: "The apparent meaning is the plural, not the singular, due to the Almighty's saying (those). As for the singular 'house,' it is because the intent is the generic class. For this reason, 'ittakhadhat (she took) was made feminine, not because the intended meaning is feminine."

In al-Qamus: "The 'ankabut is well-known, and it is the 'ankaba', the 'aknabah, the 'ankabawah, the 'ankaba', and the male is 'ankab, and it is the 'ankabah. Its plural is 'ankabutāt, ‘anākib, and ‘akāb and ‘akab and al-a‘kab are collective nouns." This was criticized on the grounds that counting what is not what was mentioned first as a collective noun has no basis, because a‘kab cannot be said to be such. They also mentioned in its plural ‘anākīb.

There is disagreement regarding its nun (letter N); it is said it is original, and it is said it is augmentative, like the ta. Its plural as ‘akāb indicates this. Al-Sijistani mentioned in Gharib Sibawayh that he mentioned ‘anākib in two places; he said in one place its measure is fanā‘il, and in another fa‘ālil. According to the first, the nun is augmentative, and it is derived from ‘akb (the ‘ayn and kaf and ba), meaning error. This is the intended meaning of it. Perhaps closer than that is it being derived from ‘ab (with a fatha), meaning intensity in running/travel; as if, due to the intensity of its leap to hunt flies or the intensity of its movement when fleeing, the name "spider" was applied to it.

(If they only knew)—that is, if they only knew anything at all, they would have known that this is their parable, or that the condition of their religion has reached this limit of frailty. It is said: i.e., if they only knew the frailty of the idols, they would not have taken them as allies other than Allah Almighty. In al-Kashf, it says that the saying of the Almighty (If they only knew), according to all the perspectives mentioned in al-Kashshaf—and we have already mentioned in what passed of the iyghal (hyperbolic ending) their ignorance in the act of taking—the Exalted added to their ignorance by stating that they do not know this manifest ignorance which is not hidden to anyone who has the slightest shred of intelligence.

The law (if) is conditional, and its response is omitted, as we have indicated. Some permitted that it is for wishing (tamanni), so it has no response, and that is not apparent.