Al-An'am · Makki · ayah 164 of 165

Al-An'am 6:164

قُلْ أَغَيْرَ ٱللَّهِ أَبْغِى رَبًّا وَهُوَ رَبُّ كُلِّ شَىْءٍ ۚ وَلَا تَكْسِبُ كُلُّ نَفْسٍ إِلَّا عَلَيْهَا ۚ وَلَا تَزِرُ وَازِرَةٌ وِزْرَ أُخْرَىٰ ۚ ثُمَّ إِلَىٰ رَبِّكُم مَّرْجِعُكُمْ فَيُنَبِّئُكُم بِمَا كُنتُمْ فِيهِ تَخْتَلِفُونَ

“Say, "Is it other than Allāh I should desire as a lord while He is the Lord of all things? And every soul earns not [blame] except against itself, and no bearer of burdens will bear the burden of another. Then to your Lord is your return, and He will inform you concerning that over which you used to differ."”

Saheeh International

Essence

He is Lord of everything, so there is no other lord to seek, and no one else can carry the load on your back.

A reflection

Hunting for a patron

In one week, an ambitious young man flatters three different directors. He laughs at one's jokes, volunteers for another's project, and copies the third's way of speaking in meetings. He is looking for a patron: someone above him who will look after him, open doors and protect him when things go wrong.

The ayah puts a sharp question in the Prophet's mouth. Shall he seek a lord other than Allah, when He is Lord of everything? One commentator glosses rabb here as the One who raises me, guards me, keeps watch over me and manages my affairs. That is exactly what the young man is shopping for.

A classical commentator points out the absurdity in the alternatives. Every kind of idol-worshipper in that age admitted that Allah created the very things they worshipped beside Him. So the question becomes: how can the lorded be made a partner of the Lord? How can the made thing share in the Maker's place? Every patron the young man courts is himself lorded, raised and kept by the same Lord.

That is a quiet blow to the ego on both sides. To the one who seeks patrons, it says: you are bowing to fellow servants. To the one who enjoys being courted, it says: you are not anyone's lord. Pride lives on forgetting that everyone in the room has the same Master.

Someone may ask why God insists on being the only Lord sought. Does He need our seeking? He needs nothing; He is Lord of everything already. The insistence is mercy. A person with one Lord has one door to knock on. A person with many patrons spends his life managing their moods.

The young man can still work hard and respect his directors. He simply no longer needs one of them to be his lord.

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.