أَمْ لَهُمْ إِلَـٰهٌ غَيْرُ ٱللَّهِ ۚ سُبْحَـٰنَ ٱللَّهِ عَمَّا يُشْرِكُونَ 43
Translations
Or have they a deity other than Allāh? Exalted is Allāh above whatever they associate with Him.
Transliteration
Am lahum ilahun ghayru Allah, subhana Allah amma yushrikun
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah presents a rhetorical question challenging the polytheists: do they have a god other than Allah? The answer is emphatically no. The phrase "Subhana Allah" (Glory be to Allah) expresses Allah's transcendence and absolute uniqueness, while the final clause condemns the act of associating partners with Allah (shirk). Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir emphasize that this ayah serves as a powerful rebuttal to idolatry, asserting that no deity exists besides Allah and that attributing partners to Him is a grave violation of His divine perfection.
Revelation Context
Surah At-Tur is a Meccan surah revealed during the early period of Islam when the polytheists of Mecca were actively resisting the monotheistic message. This ayah appears within a section addressing the Meccan disbelievers' rejection of Allah's oneness and their insistence on worshipping idols. The rhetorical questioning throughout the surah challenges the logical foundations of polytheism.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: "The greatest sin is to associate partners with Allah (shirk) in worship." (Sahih Bukhari 4476). Additionally, in the hadith regarding the greatest sin, shirk is consistently positioned as the most severe transgression against Allah's oneness.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah reminds believers of the fundamental Islamic principle that Allah alone deserves worship and that associating anything or anyone with Him contradicts His absolute oneness and perfection. For contemporary Muslims, it serves as a reminder to continuously guard against subtle forms of shirk—whether through materialism, ego, or misplaced reliance—and to reinforce their commitment to pure monotheism in all aspects of life.
Related Ayahs
فَلَمَّا رَأَوْا۟ بَأْسَنَا قَالُوٓا۟ ءَامَنَّا بِٱللَّهِ وَحْدَهُۥ وَكَفَرْنَا بِمَا كُنَّا بِهِۦ مُشْرِكِينَ
And when they saw Our punishment, they said, "We believe in Allāh alone and disbelieve in that which we used to associate with Him."
تَدْعُونَنِى لِأَكْفُرَ بِٱللَّهِ وَأُشْرِكَ بِهِۦ مَا لَيْسَ لِى بِهِۦ عِلْمٌ وَأَنَا۠ أَدْعُوكُمْ إِلَى ٱلْعَزِيزِ ٱلْغَفَّـٰرِ
You invite me to disbelieve in Allāh and associate with Him that of which I have no knowledge, and I invite you to the Exalted in Might, the Perpetual Forgiver.
لَهُۥ مُلْكُ ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضِ ۖ يُحْىِۦ وَيُمِيتُ ۖ وَهُوَ عَلَىٰ كُلِّ شَىْءٍ قَدِيرٌ
His is the dominion of the heavens and earth. He gives life and causes death, and He is over all things competent.
لَهُۥ دَعْوَةُ ٱلْحَقِّ ۖ وَٱلَّذِينَ يَدْعُونَ مِن دُونِهِۦ لَا يَسْتَجِيبُونَ لَهُم بِشَىْءٍ إِلَّا كَبَـٰسِطِ كَفَّيْهِ إِلَى ٱلْمَآءِ لِيَبْلُغَ فَاهُ وَمَا هُوَ بِبَـٰلِغِهِۦ ۚ وَمَا دُعَآءُ ٱلْكَـٰفِرِينَ إِلَّا فِى ضَلَـٰلٍ
To Him [alone] is the supplication of truth. And those they call upon besides Him do not respond to them with a thing, except as one who stretches his hands toward water [from afar, calling it] to reach his mouth, but it will not reach it [thus]. And the supplication of the disbelievers is not but in error [i.e., futility].