سُوْرَةُ البَقَرَةِ

Surah Al-Baqara (2) — Ayah 150

The Cow · Medinan · Juz 2 · Page 23

‹
›
وَمِنْ حَيْثُ خَرَجْتَ فَوَلِّ وَجْهَكَ شَطْرَ ٱلْمَسْجِدِ ٱلْحَرَامِ ۚ وَحَيْثُ مَا كُنتُمْ فَوَلُّوا۟ وُجُوهَكُمْ شَطْرَهُۥ لِئَلَّا يَكُونَ لِلنَّاسِ عَلَيْكُمْ حُجَّةٌ إِلَّا ٱلَّذِينَ ظَلَمُوا۟ مِنْهُمْ فَلَا تَخْشَوْهُمْ وَٱخْشَوْنِى وَلِأُتِمَّ نِعْمَتِى عَلَيْكُمْ وَلَعَلَّكُمْ تَهْتَدُونَ ﴿150﴾

Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali

And from wheresoever you start forth (for prayers), turn your face in the direction of Al-Masjid-Al-Harâm (at Makkah), and wheresoever you are, turn your faces towards it (when you pray) so that men may have no argument against you except those of them that are wrong-doers, so fear them not, but fear Me! - And so that I may complete My Blessings on you and that you may be guided.

Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning

وَمِنْ wamin And from
حَيْثُ ḥaythu wherever
خَرَجْتَ kharajta you start forth
فَوَلِّ fawalli [so] turn
وَجْهَكَ wajhaka your face
شَطْرَ shaṭra (in the) direction
ٱلْمَسْجِدِ l-masjidi (of) Al-Masjid
ٱلْحَرَامِ ۚ l-ḥarāmi Al-Haraam
وَحَيْثُ waḥaythu And wherever
مَا mā that
كُنتُمْ kuntum you (all) are
فَوَلُّوا۟ fawallū [so] turn
وُجُوهَكُمْ wujūhakum your faces
شَطْرَهُۥ shaṭrahu (in) its direction
لِئَلَّا li-allā so that not
يَكُونَ yakūna will be
لِلنَّاسِ lilnnāsi for the people
عَلَيْكُمْ ʿalaykum against you
حُجَّةٌ ḥujjatun any argument
إِلَّا illā except
ٱلَّذِينَ alladhīna those who
ظَلَمُوا۟ ẓalamū wronged
مِنْهُمْ min'hum among them
فَلَا falā so (do) not
تَخْشَوْهُمْ takhshawhum fear them
وَٱخْشَوْنِى wa-ikh'shawnī but fear Me
وَلِأُتِمَّ wali-utimma And that I complete
نِعْمَتِى niʿ'matī My favor
عَلَيْكُمْ ʿalaykum upon you
وَلَعَلَّكُمْ walaʿallakum [and] so that you may
تَهْتَدُونَ tahtadūna (be) guided

Tafsir al-Quran al-Karim — Hafiz Abdus Salam Bin Muhammad Bhutvi

Tafsir al-Quran al-Karim is a 4-volume Quran commentary by Hafiz Abdus Salam bin Muhammad Bhutvi, a renowned Salafi (Ahl al-Hadith) scholar and Sheikh ul-Hadith from Pakistan. Based on over 45 years of teaching and research, this tafsir follows the methodology of Tafsir bil-Ma'thur — interpreting the Quran through authentic Hadith, statements of the Companions, and the understanding of the early generations (Salaf). It is distinguished by its complete avoidance of Israeliyyat (Judeo-Christian narratives) and unverified reports. The tafsir is originally written in Urdu, translated to English by tohed.com.

(Ayah 150) ➊ In this verse, the previous command has been repeated; in the first phrase { ”فَوَلِّ وَجْهَكَ“ }, the addressee is the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), and in the second phrase {”فَوَلُّوْا وُجُوْهَكُمْ شَطْرَهٗ“}, all Muslims are addressed, so that this command is not considered exclusive to the Prophet (peace be upon him). The reason for repetition seems to be that here, further wisdoms for appointing the Ka'bah as the qiblah are intended to be explained. The first wisdom among them is that no one among the people should have any argument left against you. The People of the Book should not be able to say that in the earlier scriptures, the qiblah of the last Prophet is the Sacred Mosque, so why have they adopted Bayt al-Maqdis as the qiblah? And the disbelievers of Arabia should not be able to say that the qiblah of the religion of Abraham is the Ka'bah, so why are they not adopting it? None of them will have any argument left, but among them, the unjust people will not remain silent, so do not fear them, just fear Me alone. The second wisdom is that just as the commands of this last ummah have been completed and not abrogated until the Day of Judgment, and My favor upon you has been perfected, so too should this favor be perfected regarding the qiblah. And the third wisdom is to grant you guidance to the path of truth in the matter of the qiblah, just as in other commands.

➋ From the beginning of the verses up to here, the command for the Prophet (peace be upon him) to face the Ka'bah has come three times, the command for the Muslims has come twice, the mention of its truth has come three times, and the command to face it has come three times from any place; this clarifies the emphasis and the significance of this command. In between, other phrases, such as the People of the Book knowing its truth and Allah not being unaware of your actions, serve to further emphasize it. (Ibn Ashur)

Tafsir Ahsan al-Bayan — Hafiz Salahuddin Yusuf

Tafsir Ahsan al-Bayan is a well-known Quran commentary by Hafiz Salahuddin Yusuf, a renowned Salafi (Ahl al-Hadith) scholar from Pakistan. This tafsir explains the meanings of the Quran in accordance with the methodology of the Salaf (early righteous generations), relying on authentic sources and straightforward language. Due to its reliability and adherence to sound Islamic scholarship, the Saudi government publishes and distributes this tafsir among the Hujjaj (pilgrims) visiting the Haramain. The tafsir is originally written in Urdu, translated to English by tohed.com.

150. 1 The command to turn towards the Qiblah has been repeated three times, either to clarify its emphasis and importance, or because the ruling of abrogation was the first experience, so to remove mental confusion, it was necessary to repeat it again and again so that it would become firmly established in the hearts. One reason was the desire and wish of the Prophet ﷺ, which was mentioned there. The second reason is that for every community and bearer of a mission, the existence of a permanent center is necessary, so it was repeated there. The third reason is to remove the objections of the opponents, so it was mentioned there (Fath al-Qadeer).

150. 2 That is, so that the People of the Book cannot say that in their books, their Qiblah is the Ka'bah, but they pray towards Bayt al-Maqdis.

150. 3 Here, by ظَلَمُوْا is meant those who are obstinate, that is, among the People of the Book, those who are obstinate, even though they know that the Qiblah of the last Prophet ﷺ will indeed be the Ka'bah, they will, out of stubbornness, say that by making the Ka'bah instead of Bayt al-Maqdis his Qiblah, this Prophet ﷺ has ultimately inclined towards his ancestral religion. And according to some, it refers to the polytheists of Makkah.

150. 4 Do not fear the wrongdoers. That is, do not care about the words of the polytheists. They had said that Muhammad ﷺ has adopted our Qiblah, soon he will also adopt our religion. Fear Me, keep acting upon My command without fear. The changing of the Qiblah has been described as the completion of favor and guidance, meaning that acting upon the command of Allah certainly makes a person deserving of reward and honor, and he is also granted the ability to be guided.

Tafsir Taiseer ul-Quran — Maulana Abdul Rahman Kilani

Tafsir Taiseer ul-Quran (Facilitation of the Quran) is a comprehensive Quran commentary by Maulana Abdul Rahman Kilani, a renowned Salafi (Ahl al-Hadith) scholar from Pakistan. Known for his eloquent and accessible writing style, Kilani authored this tafsir with a focus on clarity — making Quranic meanings understandable to the common reader. The tafsir provides detailed historical context for verses related to battles and expeditions, and firmly refutes modernist ideologies using strong scriptural evidence. It is widely regarded as an invaluable resource for understanding the Quran and countering deviant interpretations. The tafsir is originally written in Urdu, translated to English by tohed.com.

150. And wherever you set out from, turn your face towards the Ka‘bah at the time of prayer. And wherever you (O Muslims) may be, turn your faces towards it, so that people may have no argument against you—except those among them who do wrong; so do not fear them, but fear Me. And this is so that I may perfect My favor upon you, and so that you may be guided.

[187] The unjust or stubborn people will not stop objecting even after the change of Qiblah. For example, the Jews objected that after the truth of our Qiblah became evident and was accepted, now it has been abandoned merely out of stubbornness and jealousy, and the polytheists began to say that now they have realized the rightfulness of our Qiblah, so they have adopted it. In this way, they will accept many more of our matters. Therefore, O Prophet ﷺ! Do not pay attention to what these people say, nor is there any need to fear them; rather, fear only Me and obey My command.
[188]
The Change of Qiblah Was a Blessing:

By blessing is meant the same blessing of leadership and guidance which was taken from the Children of Israel and given to this Ummah. Allah Almighty is saying that this command of changing the Qiblah is actually a sign of your elevation to this position. As long as you continue to obey Me, this position will remain with you. And in case of disobedience, it can also be taken away.
← Previous All Surahs Next →
Telegram
Facebook