In the Shade of the Qur'an by Sayyid Qutb

This last passage of this second longest sūrah in the Qur’ān is a confrontation with the Christians just as the preceding one was a confrontation with the Jews. Both had received revelations from God through their prophets in earlier times. They are, therefore, addressed in the Qur’ān as “people of the Book”, or “people of earlier revelations” in our preferred rendering of the relevant Arabic terms. In the preceding passage, the sūrah did justice to Jesus, son of Mary, and his pure mother against the fabrications of the Jews. It also stated the view of the true faith concerning the alleged crucifixion and also did justice to the truth itself against the Jews, their schemes and stubborn opposition. In this passage, the sūrah also states the view of the true faith and does justice to Jesus, son of Mary, against the excesses of the Christians themselves. It also shows the fallacy of pagan legends that have crept into Christianity from all nations and creeds with whom Christianity has come into close contact. These include Greek and Roman legends as well as Egyptian and Indian mythology.

Having found the faith of the people of earlier revelations full of distortions and rife with alien mythology, the Qur’ān has taken it upon itself to put this faith back into its original, true form. It also states the truth concerning the faith of the pagan Arabs which combined some remaining traces of the original faith of Abraham, (peace be upon him) covered by a great heap of legends and ignorant absurdities.

Indeed, Islam aims to state the true concept of Godhead to all mankind. It eliminates every distortion, excess, and complacency in human thinking. It puts right among other philosophies mistaken notions about the concept of God’s oneness in the philosophy of Aristotle in Athens before the Christian era, Plotinus in Alexandria after Christianity, as well as all intervening and subsequent philosophies and concepts. All these grope in the dark, guided only by the flickering ray of the human mind which cannot be properly guided without a message from God.

The main issue discussed in this passage is that of the trinity, including the legend of whose son Jesus was. It goes on to state the true concept of God’s oneness.

At the time when Islam was revealed, the Christian faith, including all denominations, was based on the concept of one god in three elements or manifestations: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Jesus Christ is considered the son. Beyond that there are great differences among Christian sects with regard to Jesus Christ and whether he has a dual nature: Divine and human, or a single Divine nature; whether he has a single will despite his dual nature; whether time does not apply to him in the same way as it does not apply to the Father; and whether or not he was created. There are numerous concepts which vary much and which have led to persecution by one sect or another.

If we closely follow the history of the Christian faith, we are bound to come to the conclusion that the concept of trinity and that of Jesus being the son of God, (limitless is God in His glory) were unknown to the early Christians. Also unknown to them was the concept of Mary’s Divine nature and her being included in the various concepts of trinity. These concepts were introduced into Christianity much later, at different times, when pagans embraced Christianity without altogether abandoning their pagan and polytheistic concepts. It is perhaps more likely that the concept of trinity was imported from ancient Egyptian religions, such as the concept of the trinity of Osiris, Isis and Horus, as well as the many other trinities in ancient Egyptian religions.

Unitarian Christians continued to resist every type of persecution which they suffered at the hands of Roman emperors and the various synods which followed the line dictated by the state until the sixth century, suffering in the process untold torture.

The concept of trinity continues to represent an intellectual shock to Christian intelligentsia. The Church tries to make it acceptable to them by all means possible, including references to something unknown, the secrets of which will not be given to man until the day when everything in the heavens and on the earth is laid bare.

Potter, the author of a treatise entitled “Fundamentals and Details” who is considered one of the main commentators on the Christian faith, states in his comments on the concept of trinity, “We have understood this as best as our minds can do. We however, hope to understand it more clearly in the future, when everything in the heavens and on earth is laid bare.” It is not our intention to give a historical account of the method and stages by which this concept has crept into Christianity. We will confine ourselves to the study of the Qur’ānic verses in this sūrah which aim at correcting this concept, alien as it is to true monotheism.

People of earlier revelations! Do not overstep the bounds [of truth] in your religious beliefs, and do not say about God anything but the truth. The Christ Jesus, son of Mary, was no more than a messenger from God and His Word which He gave to Mary and a soul from Him. So believe in God and His messengers and do not say, “[God is] a trinity!” Desist, for that will be better for you. God is only One God. Infinite He is in His Glory! [To imagine] that He may have a son! To Him belongs all that is in the heavens and all that is on earth. Sufficient is God as a guardian. (Verse 171)

This verse describes the claim that God has a son as overstepping the bounds of truth. It is nothing short of the type of excess which enabled the people who had received earlier revelations to make false claims about God and allege that He had a son. Far removed is such an idea from Him. They also allege that God is a trinity.

The concepts of fatherhood and trinity have gone through different stages with Christians, according to how advanced or backward the intellectual status of different generations may have been. The thought of God having a son sounds repugnant to human nature. The higher one’s education, the more absurd that idea appears to him. The Christians were compelled, therefore, to try to make their claims more plausible by saying that the Son was not born as human beings are. It was merely a relationship of love between the father and the son. They have also tried to explain away the concept of trinity by saying that the three elements are “attributes” of the Divine Being who may have three different states. Hard as they may try, they remain unable to give a rational explanation of these paradoxical concepts. Hence, they give them a mysterious outlook and claim that their reality will not completely appear until the secrets of the heavens and the earth are revealed.

Infinite is God in His glory. He neither has nor needs any partner. Nor is anyone similar to Him in any way. The very fact that He is the Creator means that He is different from all creatures. It stands to reason that the Creator should be different from His creation, the owner different from his property. It is to this fact that this Qur’ānic verse refers: “God is only One God. Infinite He is in His Glory! [To imagine] that He may have a son! To Him belongs all that is in the heavens and all that is on earth.

Sufficient is God as a guardian.” (Verse 171)

That the birth of Jesus (peace be upon him) without a father seems miraculous and preternatural to human beings is only because it is totally different from what is familiar. We must remember that what is familiar to us is certainly not all that is in the universe. Nor are the natural laws we know the only laws in the universe. We must remember that God creates natural laws and sets them into operation according to His will, which is unrestricted, free, absolute.

As regards Jesus Christ, God says the following, and what He says is always true:

“The Christ Jesus, son of Mary, was no more than a messenger from God and His Word which He gave to Mary and a soul from Him.” (Verse 171) He is, then, definitely and undoubtedly “a messenger from God”. He is the same as the rest of God’s messengers, Noah, Abraham, Moses and Muĥammad, and the other most honourable servants of God whom He selected to convey His message to mankind at various points in time.

“And His Word which He gave to Mary” Perhaps the best explanation of this phrase is that God created Jesus through a direct command which is described in various places in the Qur’ān and which means that when God wants to create something He only says to it “Be”, and there it is. He casts this Word to Mary to create Jesus in her womb, without going through the process which is familiar to us humans and which involves a woman’s egg being fertilised by a man’s sperm. That is how human beings are created, apart from Adam. God’s command can create everything and anything from nothing. No wonder that it can create Jesus in Mary’s womb with the breathing of His spirit to which reference is made in the following part of the verse.

“And a soul from Him.”

Formerly, God breathed of His spirit into the clay from which Adam was made, and thus Adam became a man. God says in the Qur’ān: “When your Lord said to the angels: I am creating a human being from clay. When I have fashioned him and breathed into him of My spirit, fall down before him in prostration.” (38: 71-2) In the context of the creation of Jesus and referring to Jesus’s mother, He also says: “As for the one who guarded her chastity, We breathed into her of Our spirit.” (21: 91) The matter is, then, not without precedent. The spirit to which reference is made in all these statements is the same. None of the people who received revelations before Islam and who believed in Adam’s creation and that God breathed into him of His spirit claim that Adam was a god, or one of the elements which constitute the Divine Being, as some people allege regarding Jesus. The two cases are similar: both have spirit breathed into them and both were created in the same fashion. Indeed, Adam was created without either a father or a mother, while Jesus was created having a mother. God also states: “The case of Jesus in the sight of God is the same as the case of Adam. He created him of dust, and then said to him: ‘Be’, and he was, (3: 59)

We see how clear and simple the whole issue is. We, therefore, wonder how personal prejudices and lingering traces of polytheism have added all this complexity to the simple issue of the creation of Jesus in the minds of one generation after another. The Creator who gave Adam, who had no parents, a human life which is different from that of all other creatures by breathing into him of His own spirit is the One who has given the same human life to Jesus who had no father. This simple, straightforward explanation is far more logical and easier to understand than those endless legends which speak of Jesus’s Divine nature simply because he was born with no father. These legends, however, do not stop there. They also speak of the Divinity of the three elements of the trinity. Far exalted is God above all that.

“So believe in God and His messengers and do not say, ‘(God is] a trinity!’ Desist, for that will be better for you.” (Verse 171) Having given this simple and straightforward explanation, the sūrah makes this timely call to all mankind to believe in God and His messengers, including Jesus, who was only a messenger of God, and including Muĥammad, the last of God’s messengers. To do so means to desist from making any false claim or advancing any legend or superstition.

“God is only One God.” (Verse 171) This is a fact to which the consistency of natural laws, the unity of creation and its single method testify. It is also endorsed by human intellect, for the whole matter is easily appreciated by our minds which cannot imagine a creator looking the same as his creation and cannot conceive how three can merge into one, nor how one can be three.

“Infinite He is in His Glory! [To imagine] that He may have a son! To Him belongs all that is in the heavens and all that is on earth.” (Verse 171) To have a son is only an extension of the existence of someone who dies. It is a sort of survival through offspring. God the Eternal has no need to continue His existence in the shape of mortals. Whatever exists in the heavens and on earth belongs to Him. It is sufficient for all mankind to be God’s servants. He takes care of them all and there is no need to claim or imagine that He may have a closer relationship with them by having a son from among their number. The relationship between Him and them is one of protection and guardianship: “Sufficient is God as a guardian.” (Verse 171)

We see that the Qur’ān does not stop at explaining the truth in perfect clarity with regard to beliefs. It goes further to reassure people that God looks after them and will see to it that they have their needs and interests served. With such reassurance, they are able to surrender themselves to Him.

The sūrah goes on to establish the most important issue of the true faith. It states one direct result of the concept of God’s oneness, namely, that all creatures are His servants. This means in effect that there is one Godhead to whom everything in the universe, every living creature is a servant. At this juncture, the Qur’ān shows the fallacy of Christian concepts as well as every concept which considers angels to be the children of God or His partners.

Never did the Christ feel too proud to be God’s servant, nor do the angels who are near to Him. Those who feel too proud to worship Him and glory in their arrogance will He gather all together before Himself, then, to those who believe and do good deeds, He will grant their reward in full, and will give them yet more out of His bounty; while those who feel too proud and glory in their arrogance He will cause to suffer a grievous punishment. They shall find none to protect them from God and none to bring them any help. (Verses 172-173)

Islam has taken much care to state God’s oneness in the clearest of terms so that no trace of partnership with God or similarity to Him in any shape or form may be entertained. It has also taken care to explain that there is absolutely nothing which has any similarity with God — limitless is He in His glory. Nothing has any element, attribute or quality in common with God. Islam also takes care to explain that the true relationship between God and all things, including living creatures, is one between the Creator who is the Lord of the universe and His servants, a description which applies to everything in the universe. When we study the Qur’ān carefully we will not fail to notice the great care it takes to state these facts, or indeed this single fact in all its aspects, so that no trace of ambiguity or suspicion is left.

Islam makes it clear that this is the truth which all God’s messengers have stated in the clearest of terms. It includes it in the Qur’ānic account of every messenger and his approach to his people. This is the central principle of all Divine messages from the time of Noah, to the time of Muĥammad, the last of all prophets. Every single one of them has declared very clearly: “My people, worship God alone, for you have no deity other than Him.” (11: 61)

It is indeed singular that followers of Divine religions which emphasise this fact most strongly have distorted it and alleged that God may have sons and daughters or may be united with one or more of His creatures in one form or another. In this way, they borrow concepts from pagan religions.

There is, then, an all-pervasive rule that applies to everything in the universe. God is the only deity and all creatures are His servants. People’s faith and concepts, and indeed their whole lives, will not be set right unless this basic principle is made absolutely clear, untarnished, pure. To achieve that clarity, people must realise that God is their Lord and they are His servants. He is the Creator and they are creatures; He is the Owner and they belong to Him. In relation to Him they are all the same.

No one is His son and no one has a position of favour with Him except through something that is available to all. They only need to have the will to achieve this position and then they can easily have it through being God-fearing and doing good works.

Their roles, relationships, and indeed their lives generally will not be set on the right footing until the notion has been firmly settled in their minds that they are all servants of one Lord, which means that they are all in the same position towards Him. The means to draw closer to Him is available to everyone, because all human beings are equal and they stand in the same rank towards God. All claims to act as an intermediary between people and God are false. Equally false is every privilege claimed by any individual, group, family or clan. This is, indeed, essential to give credence to the principle that all mankind are equal and their social systems must he established on the basis of this equality.

We are not talking, then, of a mere question of faith considered intellectually before it is finally settled on this firm basis. It is a question of a complete system of life that defines social ties and establishes a complete code for human relationships. It heralds a new birth for man at the hands of Islam, which liberates man from being enslaved by other creatures so as to be a servant of only the Lord of all Creatures. At no time in the history of Islam was there a clerical order that subjugated people under the pretext that it represents God’s son who imparts to it a considerable measure of authority. Nor has Islam ever known any form of theocratic government claiming a Divine right alleged to be delegated to it by God.

The Divine right was enjoyed by the Church and popes on the one hand and, on the other, by emperors who claimed for themselves a similar right. Both rights were exercised under the name of the son until the Crusaders launched their campaigns to conquer the land of Islam. On their way back, they carried with them the seeds of rebellion against this Divine right. This has led to the revolts of Martin Luther, Calvin, and others, which are given the general title of a Reform Movement. They were all influenced by Islam and its clear concept which denies to all human beings any holy position and denies the delegation of Divine authority to man or woman in any way, shape or form. According to Islam, there is only the general relationship which applies to all creatures alike, namely, that Godhead belongs to God alone and everyone else is His servant.

Now the sūrah makes a final and decisive statement concerning the claims about the Divine nature of Jesus Christ, his alleged sonship and the divinity claimed for the Holy Spirit. It provides a final and decisive word about every legend claiming that God has any son whatsoever, or that anyone other than God has any element of divinity in any shape or form. This the Qur’ān does by stating that Jesus, son of Mary, is only God’s servant who will not disdain to acknowledge his position as such. Similarly, the angels who are favoured with being near to God are also His servants and they will not disdain to be so named. It also states that all creatures shall be gathered together before God and that those who disdain to be described as His servants will have grievous suffering awaiting them. As for those who acknowledge their servitude to God, these shall have great reward.

Never did the Christ feel too proud to be God’s servant, nor do the angels who are near to Him. Those who feel too proud to worship Him and glory in their arrogance will He gather all together before Himself, then, to those who believe and do good deeds, He will grant their reward in full, and will give them yet more out of His bounty; while those who feel too proud and glory in their arrogance He will cause to suffer a grievous punishment. They shall find none to protect them from God and none to bring them any help. (Verses 172-173)

Jesus, son of Mary, will never be too proud to accept his position as God’s servant.

Being God’s Prophet and Messenger, Jesus (peace be upon him) was the best one to recognise the true nature of Divinity and that of servitude and that the two cannot be combined. He knew very well that he was only God’s creature and that God’s creatures cannot be like God or part of Him. He also knew that it is not merely that servitude to God is the only established fact, but also that it does not lower his position in any way. Indeed, no one rejects such servitude to God except an unbeliever who does not recognise the grace involved in the very process of being created. It is also the rank God assigns to His messengers, when they occupy their highest positions. The same applies to favoured angels, including Gabriel, the Holy Spirit. As has already been said, this is a rank that applies to Jesus as well as to all prophets. It is certainly strange that a section of Jesus’s followers do not accept for him what he himself accepts and knows full well.

“Those who feel too proud to worship Him and glory in their arrogance will He gather all together before Himself, then, to those who believe and do good deeds, He will grant their reward in full, and will give them yet more out of His bounty.” (Verses 172-173) Their pride will not stop them being gathered by God who has the total authority of Godhead over His servants. His power over them is the same as His power over those who acknowledge their servitude and surrender themselves to Him. Those are likely to do good works, because this is the natural result of such knowledge and submission. These will be granted their reward in full and will be given an increase in addition to that.

On the other side, “those who feel too proud and glory in their arrogance He will cause to suffer a grievous punishment. They shall find none to protect them from God and none to bring them any help.” (Verse 173) God — limitless is He in His glory — does not want His servants to acknowledge their servitude and to serve Him alone because He needs their service or their worship. Nor does that acknowledgement and submission increase His kingdom in any way. He only wants them to realise the true nature of Divinity and servitude in order to have clear concepts, feelings and systems. Human life with all its systems and concepts cannot be established on a sound basis without this knowledge, acknowledgement and submission.

God wants this principle, with all the aspects we mentioned earlier, to be well established in people’s minds and lives, so that they free themselves from the worship of creatures and worship God alone. They will then know who has the final authority in the universe, submit to Him alone and implement His law and system which governs their existence anyway. He wants them to realise that all His creatures are His servants, so that they can face up to anyone other than Him, and prostrate themselves to Him alone. They then stand proud, confident in front of tyrants and despots, while at the same time bowing and prostrating themselves to Him, glorifying Him alone. He wants them to know that winning favour with Him does not come through family relations, but through good works. They will then do well and build the earth in order to win favour with God. Moreover, when they appreciate the true nature of Divinity and servitude, they will rise to defend God’s authority on earth when others try to usurp it for themselves, either in His name or otherwise. They will accept nothing of this, but will defer to His authority alone, and their life will become nobler and more honourable when it is conducted on this basis.

When this great principle is fully appreciated, when people’s hearts and minds look up to God alone, seeking His pleasure and watching Him before every step or action and establishing their systems on the basis of His guidance, it will add to human life a great credit of goodness, dignity, freedom, justice and honesty. This is the sort of elevation which life on earth experiences as a result of people’s submission to God alone. As for God’s reward to those who acknowledge His Divinity and Lordship and exert themselves in doing good, this is certain to come when they meet Him. Whatever He gives them is an aspect of His grace that He bestows on whom He wills.

It is in this light that we should look on the issue of faith as it is explained clearly and lucidly by Islam. We should remember that this is the true basis of all Divine messages and it is the same principle that was central to all Divine messages before they were distorted by those who claimed to be their followers. As we have already said, it represents a new birth of man guaranteeing him dignity, justice, and liberation from all sorts of servitude to creatures, so that he remains free to serve God alone. That servitude is reflected in his worship as well as in his system of life.

Those who disdain to acknowledge their servitude to God are indeed humiliated by other forms of servitude that know no end. They submit to their desires and succumb to superstition and to human beings as well. They recognise that those are human like them, but they nevertheless bow their heads to them and accept their authority over their lives, systems, laws, values and standards. Both groups of people, the ones who are worshipped and the ones who worship them are alike in God’s view. The one group humiliate themselves so as to serve the other in this life, but in the life to come, “He will cause [them] to suffer a grievous punishment. They shall find none to protect them from God and none to bring them any help.” (Verse 173)

This is the greatest issue of faith, which is presented in the above passage so as to provide the final judgement on the distortion perpetrated by Christians at the time of the revelation of the Qur’ān. It continues to be the final word against all distortions that may be perpetrated at any future time.

As the sūrah moves to its conclusion, it makes a general call to all mankind, similar to the one that followed the confrontation with the Jews earlier in the sūrah. It tells people that this final message brings its own proof from God and that it is a glorious light which removes all doubt. Those who accept its guidance will receive God’s mercy and His grace. They will find themselves guided by this light along a straight path.

Mankind, a clear proof has now come to you from your Lord, and We have sent down to you a glorious light. Those who believe in God and hold fast to Him, will He surely admit to His mercy and grace, and will guide them to Himself along a straight path.

(Verses 174-175) Again, the Qur’ān brings its own proof to mankind from their Lord: “Mankind, a clear proof has now come to you from your Lord.” (Verse 174) The Divine mark is apparent in the Qur’ān which distinguishes it from what human beings say or write in both construction and message. This is so clear that it is sometimes acknowledged, quite remarkably, by people who do not understand Arabic at all.

We were once travelling by sea across the Atlantic towards our destination, New York. We, six passengers from different Arab countries and most of the crew who came from Nubia in the remote south of Egypt, organised Friday Prayer. It was left to me to deliver the sermon, in which I included several verses from the Qur’ān. All the passengers on board gathered around us to watch.

After we finished Prayer, many passengers came to express to us their admiration for our worship. One of them was a Yugoslav lady fleeing the tyranny of Communism, hoping to settle in the United States. There were tears in her eyes and her voice was trembling as she said in broken English: “I cannot hide my great admiration of your remarkable Prayer. However, this is not what I want to say. I do not understand a single word of your language but I feel that it has an exceptional rhythm which I have not come across in any other language. There were certain paragraphs in the sermon which were even more remarkable and had a greater effect on me.” It was clear that she was referring to the Qur’ānic verses that I had included in the speech, because these have their own special rhythm. I do not say that this applies to everyone who does not speak Arabic, but it is certainly very significant.

As for those who know this language and understand its style and can appreciate its finer expressions and methods of construction, theirs was a special case when they were presented with the Qur’ān by Muĥammad, God’s Messenger, (peace be upon him). We know the famous story of al-Akhnas ibn Sharīq, Abū Sufyān and Abū Jahl, three of the fiercest opponents of Islam, when they sought to listen to the Qur’ān secretly under the cover of darkness. They came only to listen to the Qur’ān, when the Quraysh tribe had decided not to listen to anything the Prophet said.

Nevertheless, these Quraysh leaders came out individually, none knowing anything about what the other two were doing, and none realising that he had companions doing the same thing as he. They sat there, outside the place where the Prophet and his few followers were reading the Qur’ān, to listen to it. At dawn, they went back, hoping to arrive home before anyone could see them. But they met on the road and each then blamed the others. They pledged to one another that they would never do it again. However, all three did the same thing for three consecutive nights, before they made a solemn pledge never to repeat their deed. This is only one among many similar stories. People who appreciate fine style can understand the unique nature of the Qur’ān and its captivating effect on people and the clear proof it provides of the truthfulness of its message.

We cannot speak in detail here on the subject matter of the Qur’ān, the concept of life it presents, its approach to human life and the system it lays down. In each of these, we have a clear proof of its origin and that it can never be the word of man. It carries the mark of its author, God, the Glorious.

The Qur’ān also provides light: “And We have sent down to you a glorious light.” (Verse 174) It is a light which lays bare the very nature of things, and defines the parting of the ways of truth and falsehood within man himself and in human life altogether. When it is properly appreciated, this light gives man the ability to see himself and everything around him clearly, without anything covering its nature or presenting itself in a false light or position. Everything then becomes clear and simple so that man wonders how he could not see it so clearly and simply before he was able to benefit by the light of the Qur’ān.

When man allows his soul to be guided by the Qur’ān and receives from it its values and standards, he feels that he has acquired a new element, one which allows him to see all matters with perfect ease and clarity. Many things that used to worry him now fall into place, all appearing as part of a general system, which is simple, natural and clear.

We can dwell at great length on this expression: “and We have sent down to you a glorious light”. But whatever we say, we will never be able to describe its message in our own words and we cannot impart its significance to anyone who has not experienced it. Such concepts can only be appreciated by personal experience.

“Those who believe in God and hold fast to Him, will He surely admit to His mercy and grace, and will guide them to Himself along a straight path.” (Verse 175) Holding fast to God is an essential quality of faith, when it is properly understood and held. When man appreciates the true nature of God and the fact that all creation are His servants, he realises that his own choice is to hold fast to God alone who has all power over all things. He admits to His mercy and grace those who hold fast to Him. These aspects are shown them in this life as they benefit by the reassurance of faith and spare themselves all the worry experienced by those who have no faith. Moreover, it provides the basis upon which the life of the community and its system is established, clean, free, honest and dignified. Everyone knows his proper place. He is a servant of God and a person of great honour in relation to everyone else. This is something unique to the system of faith as provided by Islam, the system that frees people from service to other creatures, and which makes them submit to God alone.

It ensures their absolute equality as it gives all sovereignty to God alone.

The believers, then, enjoy God’s mercy and grace in this life as well as in the life to come. He “will guide them to Himself along a straight path.” The phrase, “to Himself”, adds an exceptional measure of vividness to this expression, as it portrays the believers being guided by God along the path which is straight and which leads them to Him, step by step. Anyone who consciously believes in God and confidently holds fast to Him will appreciate this expression for he feels himself being guided at every moment in his life and before every step. He or she realises that they are drawing closer to God along a straight path. But this cannot be properly appreciated except by those who experience it.

They will ask you for a verdict. Say, God Himself gives you His ruling concerning [inheritance from] a person who leaves no heir in the direct line. If a man dies childless and has a sister, she shall inherit one-half of what he has left, just as he shall inherit all her [property] if she dies childless. But if there are two sisters, they shall both together have two-thirds of whatever he has left; and if there are brothers and sisters, then the male shall have the equal of two females’ share. God makes all this clear to you, lest you go astray; and God knows everything. (Verse 176)

Thus, this sūrah is concluded with a verse that relates to the family system and to social security which is provided within the family. This brings the sūrah’s conclusion in line with its beginning, when many of the rules of this social system were first explained. Here in conclusion, we have rules governing the inheritance of a person who is described as kalālah. This term, defined by Abū Bakr and all scholars, describes someone who has no parents and no children. In other words, he leaves no heir in the direct line of inheritance.

Some of the rules which relate to the estate of such a person were given very early in the sūrah defining the way his estate is distributed when he has no heirs on his father’s side but is inherited by heirs on his mother’s side. In this verse, the rest of the rules governing this form of inheritance are provided. If the deceased who has no heir in the direct line has a sister, whether by both of his parents or by his father only, she inherits half of what her brother leaves behind. In the case of her death, leaving behind no children and no parents, her brother takes all her property after the other heirs who have apportioned shares have taken their shares. If it happens that the deceased person has two sisters by both his parents or by his father only, they share together two-thirds of his property. If he has more brothers and sisters, then the general rule which gives a male twice the share of a female applies in the distribution of his estate. Brothers and sisters by both parents exclude brothers and sisters on the father’s side only when both types happen to survive the deceased person.

This verse, providing for the legislation of inheritance, is concluded with a comment that refers all matters to God alone and relates the regulation of duties and rights, financial or otherwise, to God’s law. “God makes all this clear to you lest you go astray; and God knows everything.” “Everything” means all things, whether they relate to inheritance or to any other subject, within family relations or community relations. God provides legislations and laws and people have the choice of either following them in all matters or falling into error. The choice is simple: what mankind is offered is either to follow clear guidance or to go astray. God tells the truth, and He says: “What lies beyond the truth except error?”