Tafsir of Al-`Ankabut 29:43

Surah Al-Ankabut (The Spider): Verse 43

وَتِلْكَ الْأَمْثَالُ نَضْرِبُهَا لِلنَّاسِ وَمَا يَعْقِلُهَا إِلَّا الْعَالِمُونَ

The Disbelievers' Objection and the Wisdom of Parables

The disbelievers said: How can the Creator of the heavens and the earth strike parables using lowly insects and vermin, such as mosquitoes, flies, and spiders?

It is answered: Parables are struck for the people so that—unless you are like cattle—you may attain understanding that necessitates your aversion from your current state. This is because analogy (or simile) has an effect on the soul similar to the effect of proof.

For instance, if a wise person tells someone who engages in backbiting: "You are, through backbiting, as if you are eating the flesh of a dead person," this is because you are attacking this person while he is absent, unable to understand what you say or hear so that he may respond. This is like attacking a dead person, eating from him while he is unaware of what is being done to him and unable to repel it even if he knew. Thus, a person's nature recoils from this comparison, just as it recoils if he is told that backbiting incurs punishment and brings about torment.

The Meaning of "Only the Knowing Grasp Them"

Then the Almighty said: {And none comprehends them except the knowing.} (43b)

This means that the reality of these parables and their implications are only known by those who have attained knowledge regarding the nullity of everything other than God and the corruption of worshipping anything besides Him.

There is also a jurisprudential meaning here: that intuitive knowledge (al-ʿilm al-ḥissī) is grasped by the intelligent person (al-ʿāqil), whereas subtle, precise intellectual knowledge (al-ʿilm al-fikrī al-daqīq) is comprehended (yaʿqiluhu) only by the scholar (al-ʿālim).

This is because when an apparent matter is presented to the intelligent person, he grasps it as it is in its essence, due to the apparent nature of the perceived object and the intelligence of the perceiver. He does not require prior knowledge of other things. However, a subtle matter requires prior knowledge, making the scholar indispensable. Furthermore, a matter might be extremely subtle; the intelligent person might perceive it but not fully comprehend or grasp it unless he is a scholar.

Given this, the statement {And none comprehends them except the knowing} means that these parables are struck for the people, and their reality and all the benefits contained within them are only understood by the scholars.

Consolation for the Believers

The Almighty, having commanded creation to believe, demonstrated the truth through clear proofs, yet the disbelievers did not adhere to what they were commanded. He recounted to them stories containing admonitions, warned them of the fate of those who perished due to their disbelief, and clarified the weakness of their arguments through parables. Yet, they were not guided to the straight path.

When despair set in regarding their guidance, He consoled the believers by saying:

{God created the heavens and the earth in truth. Indeed, in that is a sign for the believers.} (43c)