سورة الفرقان

Imam Sajjad (peace be upon him): Praise be to Allah, who, if He had withheld from His servants the knowledge of praising Him for the successive favours He bestowed upon them and the manifest blessings He completed for them, they would have used up His favours without praising Him and would have consumed His abundant provision without giving thanks to Him. And had that been so, they would have gone out from the bounds of humanity and descended to the level of beasts and animals, and would have become as He described in His Book: إِنْ هُمْ إِلَّا کَالْأَنْعامِ بَلْ هُمْ أَضَلُّ سَبِیلًا [They are nothing but as cattle; nay, they are straying farther off from the path].

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): A man came to Amir al-Mu'minin (peace be upon him) and said: "If you are truly a scholar, inform me about people, and those resembling people, and the nasnas." Amir al-Mu'minin (peace be upon him) said: "As for your question about the nasnas, they are the majority of people." And he gestured with his hand towards the crowd of people and then said: "إِنْ هُمْ إِلَّا کَالْأَنْعامِ بَلْ هُمْ أَضَلُّ سَبِیلًا [They are nothing but as cattle; nay, they are straying farther off from the path]."

Imam Jawad (peace be upon him): The Waqifis are the donkeys of the Shia. Then he recited this verse: إِنْ هُمْ إِلاَّ کَالْأَنْعامِ بَلْ هُمْ أَضَلُّ سَبیلاً [They are nothing but as cattle; nay, they are straying farther off from the path].

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Abu Yahya al-Wasiti narrates from someone who reported to him: He said to Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): "Do you regard all these two-legged creatures as human beings?" He said: "Set aside and cast off several groups: the one who does not use the miswak, the one who sits cross-legged in a narrow place, the one who meddles in what does not concern him, the one who argues about that of which he has no knowledge, the one who is not ill but feigns illness, the one who becomes distraught without any calamity having befallen him, the one who opposes his companions in a correct matter upon which they have agreed, the one who prides himself on his fathers and ancestors while being devoid of their good deeds — such a person is like the khalanj plant, whose bark is peeled off layer by layer until one reaches its core. He is as Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, has said: إِنْ هُمْ إِلَّا کَالْأَنْعامِ بَلْ هُمْ أَضَلُّ سَبِیلًا [They are nothing but as cattle; nay, they are straying farther off from the path]."

Imam Hadi (peace be upon him): Abdullah ibn Muhammad ibn Ubayd says: I heard my master Imam Hadi (peace be upon him) in Samarra saying: "The killers of the prophets and the murderers of the messengers (peace be upon them) are these very low and vile people. 'Amma' and 'awamm' come from the root 'ama' meaning blindness. Allah was not content merely to liken them to cattle and animals, but He said: بَلْ هُمْ أَضَلُّ [nay, they are more astray]."

Imam Sadiq (peace be upon him): Deeds are connected to intentions, and every person is raised up with his own intention. A servant must have a pure intention in all his movements and stillness, for if the intention is not pure, he is counted among the heedless; and these are the very heedless ones. (al-A'raf/179) Intention, in its perfection and purity, follows the perfection and purity of a person's knowledge and insight, and it varies in strength and weakness according to the differing states and times. One who possesses a pure and sincere intention has his soul and its desires subdued and submissive before the sovereignty, power and majesty of Allah, and he always feels shame and abashment before Allah, and the spirit of submission rules over his nature, inclinations and hopes. He himself is in toil and hardship, while people are in ease and comfort from his side.

Imam Kazim (peace be upon him): (In a testament to Hisham ibn al-Hakam, the Imam described the intellect thus:) "O Hisham! Allah the Exalted has given glad tidings to the people of intellect and understanding in the Qur'an and said: 'And when it is said to them: Follow what Allah has sent down, they say: Nay, we follow that upon which we found our fathers. What! Even though their fathers understood nothing and were not guided [would they still follow them]?!' (al-Baqarah/170) And Allah said: 'The likeness [of you in calling] the disbelievers is as the likeness of one who calls out [to sheep and animals to save them from the claws of danger], but they hear nothing but a shout and a cry [and do not grasp the reality and meaning of his speech. These disbelievers, in reality,] are deaf, dumb and blind, so they do not understand!' (al-Baqarah/171) 'And among them are those who listen to you [but as though they hear nothing and are deaf]! Can you make the deaf hear, even though they do not understand?!' (Yunus/42) And أَمْ تَحْسَبُ أَنَّ أَکْثَرَهُمْ یَسْمَعُونَ أَوْ یَعْقِلُونَ إِنْ هُمْ إِلَّا کَالْأَنْعامِ بَلْ هُمْ أَضَلُّ سَبِیلًا [Or do you think that most of them hear or understand? They are nothing but as cattle; nay, they are straying farther off from the path]."

The Messenger (peace be upon him and his family): Amir al-Mu'minin (peace be upon him) said: "I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) — and the Book of Allah is also proof of it — say: Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, created people in three classes and placed them in three ranks, and this is what Allah, the Mighty and Majestic, said in His Book: أَصْحَابُ الْمَیْمَنَةِ وَ أَصْحَابُ الْمَشْأَمَةِ وَ السَّابِقُون [the Companions of the Right, the Companions of the Left, and the Foremost]. As for the Companions of the Left (as-hab al-mash'amah), they are the Jews and the Christians, about whom Allah says: 'Those to whom We have given the [heavenly] Book recognise him (the Prophet) as they recognise their own sons' (al-Baqarah/146) — meaning, just as they recognise their own sons in their own houses, so do they recognise Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family) and [his] wilayah in the Torah and the Injil. 'And indeed a group of them knowingly conceal the truth. The truth is from your Lord, so never be among the doubters' — the meaning is that they know the truth, that you are the Messenger of Allah (al-Baqarah/146-147). When they denied what they knew, Allah put them to trial on account of this, and stripped from them the spirit of faith (ruh al-iman), and left in their bodies only three spirits: the spirit of power-seeking, the spirit of desire, and the spirit of the body. Then He placed them among the cattle and said: إِنْ هُمْ إِلَّا کَالْأَنْعَامِ [They are nothing but as cattle], because the beast carries loads by its spirit of power, feeds on fodder by its spirit of desire, and walks by its spirit of the body."

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): Jabir said: I asked Imam Baqir (peace be upon him) about the spirit (ruh). He said: "O Jabir! Allah created people in three classes and placed them in three ranks, and He made this explicit in His Book, saying: [First,] the fortunate and blessed ones — what fortunate and blessed ones! The other group are the wretched and ill-omened — what wretched and ill-omened ones! And [the third group are] the foremost of the foremost — they are the near-ones (al-muqarrabun)! (al-Waqi'ah/8-11). As for the Companions of the Left, they are the People of the Book. Allah says of them: 'Those to whom We have given the [heavenly] Book recognise him (the Prophet) as they recognise their own sons, [but] a group of them knowingly conceal the truth. This (command to change the qiblah) is a true ruling from your Lord, so never be among those who doubt it!' (al-Baqarah/146-147). They recognised the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) and gained knowledge of his successor (wasi), but out of envy and injustice they denied the truth. So Allah stripped from them the spirit of faith and left in them three spirits: the spirit of strength, the spirit of desire and the spirit of the body. After this He classed that group as cattle and said: إِنْ هُمْ إِلاَّ کَالْأَنْعامِ بَلْ هُمْ أَضَلُّ سَبیلاً [They are nothing but as cattle; nay, they are straying farther off from the path], because the four-legged beast carries loads only by the spirit of strength, feeds on fodder by the spirit of desire, and walks by the spirit of the body."

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): Abu Ishaq al-Laythi narrates from Imam Baqir (peace be upon him) who said: On the Day of Resurrection, Allah will take from the nasibi enemy all the deeds which, in terms of natural disposition and outward structure, inner constitution and essential element, are of the kind and resembling the qualities of the believer, and He will transfer them to the believer; and from the believer He will remove all the deeds which, in terms of natural disposition and outward structure, inner make-up and essential root, resemble the qualities of the nasibi enemy, so that all his base deeds are joined to the nasibi enemy — without any wrong being done to him. Allah will address the nasibi: "No wrong has been done to you. All these wicked deeds are of your own nature and disposition, and you are more deserving of them; and the righteous deeds are in accord with the nature and disposition of the believer, and he is more deserving of them. Today every soul is recompensed for what it has done, and no wrong will be seen today, and Allah is swift in reckoning the deeds of His servants." (Ghafir/17). [Then the Imam turned to Ibrahim and said]: "O Ibrahim, do you see any injustice or wrong here?" I said: "No, O Messenger of Allah! Rather, you have presented a far-reaching, excellent, clear and manifest wisdom." Then he said: "Shall I give you further explanation of this from the Qur'an?" I said: "Yes, O grandson of the Messenger of Allah!" Then he said: "O Ibrahim! It is for this reason that Allah the Exalted said concerning them: إِنْ هُمْ إِلاَّ کَالْأَنْعامِ بَلْ هُمْ أَضَلُّ سَبیلاً [They are nothing but as cattle; nay, they are straying farther off from the path]. Allah was not even content to liken them to donkeys, cows, dogs and beasts; rather, He said they are more misguided than them!"

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): As for the refutation of idols and idol-worship, what Allah has uttered against the Quraysh on the tongue of the Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) is this: "Those whom you call upon besides Allah are servants like yourselves; if you are truthful, call upon them and let them answer you. Have they feet with which they walk, or have they hands with which they strike, or have they eyes with which they see, or have they ears with which they hear?" (Al-A'raf/194-195). أُولئِکَ کَالْأَنْعامِ بَلْ هُمْ أَضَلُّ سَبِیلا [They are as cattle; nay, they are more misguided in path].

Imam Ali (peace be upon him): There were names of seeking refuge which Imam Ali (peace be upon him), when he finished the istighfar (seeking forgiveness), used every day to seek refuge with Allah through them, and it was known by the name "khaslah" ... O Allah, blind the hearts of my enemies from seeing me, and place between me and those who wish to harm me a veil of al-Hamdulillah and Ayat al-Kursi ... You have placed between me and them a curtain of the majesty of Allah and the veil of the Qur'an and the resolute firm verses and the clear beautiful names and the complete proof ... O Allah, O One who does whatever He wills, keep away from me everyone who wishes to harm me, O One whose blessings cannot be counted, O Most Merciful of the merciful. Their day and state is like darknesses in a deep sea covered by a wave, above which is another wave, above which is a dark cloud — darknesses, one above the other, such that if he brings out his hand he can hardly see it. And he to whom Allah has not granted light has no light at all. (Nur/40) As a result they went astray, and they are unable to find the path of truth. (Isra/48) Their position and place is worse, and they are more astray from the straight path. (Ma'idah/60) أَمْ تَحْسَبُ أَنَّ أَکْثَرَهُمْ یَسْمَعُونَ أَوْ یَعْقِلُونَ إِنْ هُمْ إِلَّا کَالْأَنْعامِ بَلْ هُمْ أَضَلُّ سَبِیلا [Or do you think that most of them hear or understand? They are nothing but as cattle; nay, they are further astray from the path].