وَإِذَا مَسَّكُمُ ٱلضُّرُّ فِى ٱلْبَحْرِ ضَلَّ مَن تَدْعُونَ إِلَّآ إِيَّاهُ ۖ فَلَمَّا نَجَّىٰكُمْ إِلَى ٱلْبَرِّ أَعْرَضْتُمْ ۚ وَكَانَ ٱلْإِنسَـٰنُ كَفُورًا 67
Translations
And when adversity touches you at sea, lost are [all] those you invoke except for Him. But when He delivers you to the land, you turn away [from Him]. And ever is man ungrateful.
Transliteration
Wa-itha massa-kumu al-durru fi al-bahr dalla man tad'un illa iyyah, fa-lamma najja-kum ila al-barr a'rada-tum, wa-kana al-insanu kafura.
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah describes the human tendency toward ingratitude and polytheism: when people face hardship at sea, they abandon their false deities and call upon Allah alone in desperation, yet when He saves them and brings them to safety on land, they return to associating partners with Him and forget their covenant. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir and Al-Qurtubi emphasize this as a profound example of mankind's inherent forgetfulness (nisyan) and ingratitude (kufran), demonstrating the weakness of human nature without divine guidance.
Revelation Context
This ayah is part of Surah Al-Isra, a Meccan surah that addresses the spiritual condition of the disbelievers. The passage is contextually situated within a broader theme of the surah concerning Allah's signs and mankind's rejection of them. While no specific asbab al-nuzul (occasion of revelation) is historically documented for this particular verse, it reflects the universal pattern of human behavior that the Quran repeatedly condemns.
Related Hadiths
The theme of forgetting Allah's blessings is reinforced in numerous hadiths. One relevant tradition from Sunan Ibn Majah relates to the Prophet's (ﷺ) warning about ingratitude: 'The worst of people are those who, when given blessings, become heedless of their Lord.' Additionally, Sahih Bukhari contains hadiths emphasizing that true servitude requires constant remembrance of Allah and gratitude in all circumstances.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches us that true faith requires consistent devotion to Allah in both times of ease and hardship, not merely opportunistic calls in moments of crisis. It serves as a humbling reminder to examine our own hearts for signs of ingratitude and forgetfulness, and to cultivate sincere, continuous gratitude for Allah's blessings.
Related Ayahs
مَّنِ ٱهْتَدَىٰ فَإِنَّمَا يَهْتَدِى لِنَفْسِهِۦ ۖ وَمَن ضَلَّ فَإِنَّمَا يَضِلُّ عَلَيْهَا ۚ وَلَا تَزِرُ وَازِرَةٌ وِزْرَ أُخْرَىٰ ۗ وَمَا كُنَّا مُعَذِّبِينَ حَتَّىٰ نَبْعَثَ رَسُولًا
Whoever is guided is only guided for [the benefit of] his soul. And whoever errs only errs against it. And no bearer of burdens will bear the burden of another. And never would We punish until We sent a messenger.
أَفَأَصْفَىٰكُمْ رَبُّكُم بِٱلْبَنِينَ وَٱتَّخَذَ مِنَ ٱلْمَلَـٰٓئِكَةِ إِنَـٰثًا ۚ إِنَّكُمْ لَتَقُولُونَ قَوْلًا عَظِيمًا
Then, has your Lord chosen you for [having] sons and taken [i.e., adopted] from among the angels daughters? Indeed, you say a grave saying.
أَوْ تَكُونَ لَكَ جَنَّةٌ مِّن نَّخِيلٍ وَعِنَبٍ فَتُفَجِّرَ ٱلْأَنْهَـٰرَ خِلَـٰلَهَا تَفْجِيرًا
Or [until] you have a garden of palm trees and grapes and make rivers gush forth within them in force [and abundance]
۞ أَوَلَمْ يَرَوْا۟ أَنَّ ٱللَّهَ ٱلَّذِى خَلَقَ ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضَ قَادِرٌ عَلَىٰٓ أَن يَخْلُقَ مِثْلَهُمْ وَجَعَلَ لَهُمْ أَجَلًا لَّا رَيْبَ فِيهِ فَأَبَى ٱلظَّـٰلِمُونَ إِلَّا كُفُورًا
Do they not see that Allāh, who created the heavens and earth, is [the one] Able to create the likes of them? And He has appointed for them a term, about which there is no doubt. But the wrongdoers refuse except disbelief.