هَـٰٓؤُلَآءِ قَوْمُنَا ٱتَّخَذُوا۟ مِن دُونِهِۦٓ ءَالِهَةً ۖ لَّوْلَا يَأْتُونَ عَلَيْهِم بِسُلْطَـٰنٍۭ بَيِّنٍ ۖ فَمَنْ أَظْلَمُ مِمَّنِ ٱفْتَرَىٰ عَلَى ٱللَّهِ كَذِبًا 15
Translations
These, our people, have taken besides Him deities. Why do they not bring for [worship of] them a clear evidence? And who is more unjust than one who invents about Allāh a lie?"
Transliteration
Haa'ulaa'i qawmunā ittakhadhū min dūnihi āliha. Law lā ya'tūn 'alayhim bi-sulṭānin bayyinā. Fa-man aẓlamu mimman iftarā 'alallāhi kadhiban.
Tafsir (Explanation)
The young men of the Cave lament that their people have adopted false gods besides Allah without any clear evidence or proof to support their idolatry. The ayah emphasizes the logical absurdity and grave sin of polytheism—that fabricating lies about Allah by attributing partners to Him is the greatest injustice (zulm). Classical scholars like Al-Qurtubi note that this statement by the companions of the Cave demonstrates their intellectual clarity and moral courage in recognizing the falsehood of their society's religion.
Revelation Context
This ayah occurs within the narrative of Ashab al-Kahf (the Companions of the Cave), a Meccan surah revealed during a period when the Prophet Muhammad (ﷺ) faced intense opposition from the Meccan polytheists. The story illustrates how young believers stood firm against societal pressure and false religion, serving as comfort to the early Muslims facing similar persecution for their monotheism.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet (ﷺ) said, 'The greatest sin is to associate partners with Allah' (Sahih Bukhari). Also relevant is the hadith: 'Whoever dies while associating partners with Allah will enter the Fire' (Sahih Muslim), highlighting the severity of shirk mentioned in this ayah.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches believers to demand clear, rational proof for religious claims and to recognize that adopting false beliefs without evidence is not merely error but represents profound injustice. It inspires courage to reject falsehood even when surrounded by a society that embraces it, reminding us that monotheistic conviction should be rooted in clear understanding, not blind imitation.
Related Ayahs
قُل لَّوْ كَانَ ٱلْبَحْرُ مِدَادًا لِّكَلِمَـٰتِ رَبِّى لَنَفِدَ ٱلْبَحْرُ قَبْلَ أَن تَنفَدَ كَلِمَـٰتُ رَبِّى وَلَوْ جِئْنَا بِمِثْلِهِۦ مَدَدًا
Say, "If the sea were ink for [writing] the words of my Lord, the sea would be exhausted before the words of my Lord were exhausted, even if We brought the like of it in [continual] supplement."
لَّـٰكِنَّا۠ هُوَ ٱللَّهُ رَبِّى وَلَآ أُشْرِكُ بِرَبِّىٓ أَحَدًا
But as for me, He is Allāh, my Lord, and I do not associate with my Lord anyone.
ءَاتُونِى زُبَرَ ٱلْحَدِيدِ ۖ حَتَّىٰٓ إِذَا سَاوَىٰ بَيْنَ ٱلصَّدَفَيْنِ قَالَ ٱنفُخُوا۟ ۖ حَتَّىٰٓ إِذَا جَعَلَهُۥ نَارًا قَالَ ءَاتُونِىٓ أُفْرِغْ عَلَيْهِ قِطْرًا
Bring me bars of iron" - until, when he had leveled [them] between the two mountain walls, he said, "Blow [with bellows]," until when he had made it [like] fire, he said, "Bring me, that I may pour over it molten copper."
وَمَا مَنَعَ ٱلنَّاسَ أَن يُؤْمِنُوٓا۟ إِذْ جَآءَهُمُ ٱلْهُدَىٰ وَيَسْتَغْفِرُوا۟ رَبَّهُمْ إِلَّآ أَن تَأْتِيَهُمْ سُنَّةُ ٱلْأَوَّلِينَ أَوْ يَأْتِيَهُمُ ٱلْعَذَابُ قُبُلًا
And nothing has prevented the people from believing when guidance came to them and from asking forgiveness of their Lord except that there [must] befall them the [accustomed] precedent of the former peoples or that the punishment should come [directly] before them.