Tafsir of Luqman 31:20

Surah Luqman (31): Verse 20

When He established the proof of His Oneness through His statement: {Did you not see that Allah created the heavens without pillars},

And He clarified through the narrative of Luqman that knowing this [Oneness] is not exclusive to prophethood, but rather aligns with wisdom. Everything the Prophet (peace be upon him) brought—monotheism, prayer, and noble ethics—is profound wisdom. Even if it were purely devotional (ta'abbud), it would necessitate acceptance, let alone the fact that it conforms to wisdom.

He then established proof for Oneness through blessings (Ni'mah). We have repeatedly explained that a king is served due to his greatness, even if he does not bestow favors, but he is also served due to his favors. Since He established that He is the one to be worshipped due to His greatness by creating the heavens without pillars and casting firm mountains upon the earth, and mentioned some blessings by saying: {And We sent down water from the sky} (Al-Mu'minun: 18), He then mentioned the general blessings: {He has subjected to you whatever is in the heavens}—meaning, whatever is in the heavens is subjected for your sake. The sun, moon, and stars are subjected by Allah's command, and they contain benefits for His servants. And He subjected what is in the earth for the sake of His servants.

And His statement: {And He has showered upon you His favors, apparent and hidden}. The apparent favors are the soundness of the limbs. The hidden favors are what resides in the faculties (powers). For the limb is apparent, yet it possesses an inner power. Do you not see that the eye and the ear are outwardly flesh and cartilage, and the tongue and nose are outwardly flesh and bone? Yet, within each one is a hidden meaning: sight, hearing, taste, and smell. This is true for every limb. Sometimes the faculty ceases to function while the physical organ remains intact.

This interpretation is superior to others, because under this view, the proof rests on the blessings of the horizons (outward world) and the blessings of the selves (inward being). Thus, {whatever is in the heavens and whatever is in the earth} refers to the blessings of the horizons, and {And He has showered upon you His favors, apparent and hidden} refers to the blessings of the selves. There are many opinions regarding this, mentioned in all books of Tafsir. It is not unlikely that what we have mentioned is a transmitted scholarly view, and even if it is not, it remains a sound and rational position.

Then the Almighty said: {And among people are those who dispute concerning Allah}. This means: Since His Oneness has been established through creation and bestowing favors, some people dispute concerning Allah, affirming others [as deities or benefactors]—{without knowledge, without guidance, and without an illuminating Book}.

These three things are ordered: Knowledge (‘ilm), Guidance (hudā), and the Book (kitāb). Knowledge is higher than Guidance, and Guidance is higher than the Book. The explanation is that Knowledge encompasses clear, evident matters that are known without the guidance of a guide. Then, Guidance includes what comes through a Book or what comes through inspiration or revelation.

So, the disputer argues without clear knowledge, without guidance sent to him by a guide, and without a Book recited to him.

It is as if the first [knowledge] refers to one who has been granted knowledge directly from Him, as He says: {And Allah taught you what you did not know} (An-Nisā’: 113). The second [guidance] refers to the rank of one guided to the straight path through an intermediary, as He says: {He was taught by one of severe strength} (An-Najm: 5) [referring to Gabriel]. The third [Book] refers to the rank of one guided through two intermediaries. This is why He said: {Alif, Lām, Mīm. That is the Book, wherein is no doubt, a guidance for the righteous} (Al-Baqarah: 2). And He said in this Surah: {a guidance and a mercy for the doers of good} (Luqman: 3). And He said in As-Sajdah: {And We gave Moses the Book, and made it a guidance for the Children of Israel} (Al-Isrā’: 2).

Thus, the Book is guidance for the people of the Prophet (peace be upon him), and the Prophet’s guidance is from Allah, either directly or through the Trustworthy Spirit (Gabriel). So, He said: The disputer argues without knowledge granted to him as insight, nor guidance sent to him as revelation, nor a Book recited to him as admonition.

There is another subtlety here: He said concerning the Book: {and without an illuminating Book}. This is because some of those who dispute do so based on a Book, but it is a distorted one, like the Torah after distortion. If He had only said: "and without a Book," someone could argue that they do not dispute without some book, as some of what they say is found in their scriptures. The Magians and Christians assert duality and trinity based on their books. Therefore, He said: {and without an illuminating Book}, because that book is dark. Since the first two ranks (Knowledge and Guidance) do not admit of distortion or alteration, He did not qualify them with "illuminating" or "true" or anything similar.

{And when it is said to them, "Follow what Allah has sent down," they say, "Rather, we will follow that upon which we found our fathers." Even if Satan should invite them to the punishment of the Blaze?}

{And whoever submits his face to Allah while he is a doer of good, he has certainly grasped the most trustworthy handhold. And to Allah is the end of all matters.}