Al-Furqan · Makki · ayah 3 of 77

Al-Furqan 25:3

وَٱتَّخَذُوا۟ مِن دُونِهِۦٓ ءَالِهَةً لَّا يَخْلُقُونَ شَيْـًٔا وَهُمْ يُخْلَقُونَ وَلَا يَمْلِكُونَ لِأَنفُسِهِمْ ضَرًّا وَلَا نَفْعًا وَلَا يَمْلِكُونَ مَوْتًا وَلَا حَيَوٰةً وَلَا نُشُورًا

“But they have taken besides Him gods which create nothing, while they are created, and possess not for themselves any harm or benefit and possess not [power to cause] death or life or resurrection.”

Saheeh International

Essence

People take gods that made nothing and were made, that cannot even shield themselves, and that hold no power over death, life or rising.

A reflection

The car washed every Sunday at dawn

Ittakhadhū: they took for themselves. The root pictures a hand closing on a camel's rein. You take hold of something and lead it where you want it to go. Then, over time, it begins to lead you.

The previous ayah said Allah "has not taken" a son. Now the same verb turns round. People have taken gods. One is the act of the One who needs nothing. The other is the act of people who need something to hold.

Ilāh, god, is the one the heart turns to. It is run to in hardship, rested in, loved, feared. That definition matters, because it means you do not need a statue to have one.

It is easy to read this ayah as ancient history. Who bows to carved stone now? A modern reader may feel he has nothing in common with the Makkans.

Watch a man on a Sunday at dawn. Before his family wakes he is in the drive with a bucket, washing his car. He knows every mark on the paintwork. When a neighbour's child leans on the bonnet, his voice goes cold. When it is scratched in a car park, he cannot sleep.

He would laugh if you called it worship. But his heart turns to it, rests in it and fears for it. It sets his mood. It has taken hold of his rein.

The commentators say the gods of this ayah were mostly idols. Some include the angels and others who were worshipped. The pattern is wider than any one object. It is anything you take hold of, and that then holds you.

Try a simple test. What do you check first in the morning? What would you be most frightened to lose? What makes you sharp with the people you love when it is threatened? The answers will not be statues. They may still be gods.

The full entry has 5 more reflections, questions to sit with, and "Live it today" - with the words, the roots and the tafsir alongside. Free, no account, works offline.