Al-An'am (The Cattle): Verse 25

Commentary on Verse 25

Allah, the Exalted, after explaining the state of the disbelievers in the Hereafter, follows it up with what necessitates despair regarding the faith of some of them, saying: {And among them are those who listen to you}.

There are several issues concerning this verse:

Ibn Abbas narrated that Abu Sufyan, Al-Walid ibn Al-Mughirah, An-Nadr ibn Al-Harith, 'Uqbah and 'Utbah, the sons of Rabi'ah, Umayyah and Abu, the sons of Khalaf, Al-Harith ibn 'Amir, and Abu Jahl were present with the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). They listened to the Prophet's message. They asked An-Nadr what Muhammad was saying. He replied, "I do not know what he is saying to you, but I see him moving his lips and speaking the legends of the former peoples, like what I used to tell you about the histories of past generations." Abu Sufyan said, "Indeed, I see some of what he says is true." Abu Jahl retorted, "No!" Then Allah revealed: {And among them are those who listen to you, and We place over their hearts coverings (akinnah) lest they understand it}.

• الأكنة (Al-Akinnah): This is the plural of kinān, which means something that covers and conceals something else, like ’inān (reins) and a’innah. The verb form is kanantu and aknantu.
• {lest they understand it} (an yafqahūhu): Al-Zajjaj said that the position of an (that) is accusative (mansūb) as a maf'ūl lah (object of cause). The meaning is: "We placed coverings over their hearts because of their aversion to understanding it." When the lām (for/because of) is omitted, the aversion becomes accusative. When the aversion itself is omitted, its accusative case transfers to an.
• {And We place over their hearts}: Ibn Al-Sikkit said that al-waqr (deafness/heaviness) refers to heaviness in the ear.

Our scholars (Ahl al-Sunnah) use this verse as evidence that Allah may prevent a person from faith and turn him away from it, because the verse indicates that Allah placed the heart in a covering that prevents faith, which is the desired conclusion (for them).

The Mu'tazilah argue that this verse cannot be taken literally, citing several points:

1. The Quran as Proof: Allah sent down the Quran to be proof against the disbelievers, not proof for them against the Messenger. If the verse meant Allah prevented them from faith, they could argue to the Messenger: "Why do you blame us for not believing when Allah prevented us? Why do you not call us to believe?"
2. Injustice in Command: If Allah prevents them from faith and then commands them to believe, this constitutes commanding the incapable, which is negated by reason and by the verse: {Allah does not burden a soul beyond that it can bear} (Al-Baqarah: 286).
3. Contradiction in Blame: Allah recounts this very statement from the disbelievers in a context of blame in other verses, such as: {And they say, "Our hearts are within coverings from what you invite us to, and in our ears is deafness"} (Fussilat: 5). And: {And they say, "Our hearts are wrapped"} (Al-Baqarah: 88), followed by {Rather, Allah has cursed them for their disbelief}. If Allah recounts this belief from them in a context of blame, it cannot be mentioned here in a context of reprimand without contradiction.
4. Cognitive Capacity: It is undisputed that these people understood, heard, and comprehended.
5. Blame Implies Choice: This verse is in the context of blaming them for abandoning faith. If this prevention were from Allah, they would be excused, not blameworthy.
6. Evidence of Understanding: The subsequent phrase {until, when they come to you arguing with you} indicates they understood and distinguished truth from falsehood.

The Mu'tazilah's Interpretations (Tawilat):

1. Al-Jubba'i's View: They listened to the recitation only to ascertain the Prophet's location at night so they could plan to kill or harm him. In response, Allah would cast sleep upon their hearts (the akinnah), and this sleep would cause heaviness in their hearing (the waqr).
2. Sign of Inevitable Doom: Allah marks the heart of one whom He knows will die upon disbelief with a specific sign. The angels recognize this sign, indicating that this person will not believe. This mark can metaphorically be called a kinān (covering), even though the mark itself is not inherently a barrier to faith.
3. Consequence of Persistence: Because they insisted upon disbelief and obstinacy, their turning away from faith in this state became like a covering that prevents faith. Allah mentions the covering as a metaphor for this established state.
4. Withholding Divine Aid (Lutf): Allah withheld the subtle aids (lutf) that are usually granted to those inclined toward guidance, leaving them to their own devices due to their bad deeds. It is not far-fetched for Allah to attribute this withdrawal to Himself by saying, {We place over their hearts coverings}.
5. Quoting the Disbelievers: This statement is a recitation of what they themselves claimed, as mentioned in Surah Fussilat: {And they say, "Our hearts are within coverings from what you invite us to, and in our ears is deafness"}.

The Response to the Mu'tazilah's Arguments:

We argue that the clear rational proof confirms the literal meaning (that Allah prevents them). If a servant commits disbelief and is incapable of attaining faith, then our assertion that Allah carried him to disbelief and prevented him from faith is correct.

If we say that the one capable of disbelief was also capable of faith, then it is impossible for that capacity to result in disbelief rather than faith unless a compelling motive (dā'iyah) is attached. As established in this book, the combination of capacity (qudrah) and motive necessitates the action. Therefore, in this scenario, the disbelief originates from Allah, and that motive leading to disbelief acts as the covering (kinān) for the heart against faith and the deafness (waqr) for the ear against the proofs of faith. Thus, rational proof aligns with the apparent meaning of the verse.

Since rational proof confirms the apparent meaning, the verse must be interpreted accordingly, adhering to both reason and the literal text of the Quran. And Allah knows best.

Allah says: {And among them are those who listen to you} (singular form for man), then He says: {over their hearts} (plural). This is appropriate because man (whoever/some) is singular in form but plural in meaning.

Regarding the phrase {And among them are those who listen to you, and We place over their hearts}, Ibn Abbas said: Even if they see every sign and proof, they will not believe because Allah has placed coverings over their hearts.

This verse refutes the first interpretation mentioned from Al-Jubba'i. If the meaning of {We place over their hearts coverings} was casting sleep upon their hearts so they could not use the sound of his voice to locate him, then the phrasing {And among them are those who listen to you, and We place over their hearts} would not fit this context. Furthermore, if Al-Jubba'i's meaning were intended, it should have been stated: "We place coverings over their hearts so they cannot hear Him," because the goal Al-Jubba'i mentioned is achieved by preventing the hearing of the Messenger's voice. Preventing the understanding of his message has no connection to Al-Jubba'i's explanation. Thus, his view is invalidated. And Allah knows best.

This is another clause connected to the preceding one. Hatta (until) here is followed by a complete clause, which is: {when they come to you arguing with you}.

This means: The disbelievers argue and dispute with you regarding the signs. Their argument is explained by their statement: {This is not but legends of the former peoples}.

Al-Wahidi said that the root of asāṭīr (legends) is saṭr (line/row), which means arranging something extended and composed, like a line of writing or a row of planted trees. Ibn Al-Sikkit said: It is said saṭr and siṭr. The plural of saṭr (for few) is asṭur, and for many is suṭūr. The plural of siṭr is asṭār. Asāṭīr is the plural of the plural. Al-Jubba'i said the singular of asāṭīr is usṭūr, usṭūrah, usṭīr, or usṭīrah. Al-Zajjaj said the singular is usṭūrah, like aḥādīth (sayings) and uḥdūthah (a single saying). Abu Zayd said asāṭīr is a plural without a singular, like ʿabbādīd.

The majority opinion is that asāṭīr al-awwalīn means "what the former people wrote down." Ibn Abbas said it means "the tales of the former people that they used to write down (yasṭurūnahu)." As for the interpretation of asāṭīr as "nonsense/idle talk," this is a meaning derived from the word, not its literal definition. Since the legends of the former peoples (like the stories of Rustam and Isfandiyar) are useless talk, asāṭīr al-awwalīn is consequently interpreted as idle talk.

The disbelievers' intent in saying {This is not but legends of the former peoples} was to undermine the Quran's miraculous nature. They implied: "This speech is of the same category as the written narratives and stories of the ancients. If it belongs to the genre of those books containing ancient tales, then it is not a miracle that defies custom."

The Qadi (Al-Qadi 'Abd al-Jabbar) responded by saying this objection is invalid because if they could produce a parallel, they would have to do so, and their inability proves it is a miracle.

However, one could argue that the people might say: "Although we are masters of the Arabic tongue, we do not know the proper method of compiling and authoring books, nor are we qualified for that. Our inability to produce a parallel does not prove the Quran is a miracle; we maintain it is merely in the category of books containing ancient narratives."

We note that the answer to this specific objection will follow in the subsequent verse.

Verse 26