Surah Luqman (31) — Ayah 12

(Ayah 12) ➊ { وَ لَقَدْ اٰتَيْنَا لُقْمٰنَ الْحِكْمَةَ :} See what has been written in the commentaries about Luqman; in Ruh al-Ma'ani it is stated: "Wahb said, he was the nephew of Ayyub (peace be upon him). Muqatil said, he was his cousin. Abdur Rahman Sahili said, he was the son of 'Anqa bin Sarwan. Some said, he was from the descendants of Azar, lived for a thousand years, met Dawud (peace be upon him) and acquired knowledge from him. Before his being sent (as a prophet), he used to give legal verdicts; when he was sent, he stopped giving verdicts. When he was asked, he said, 'When I have been spared, should I not suffice?' Some said, he was a judge among the Children of Israel. This has been narrated from Waqidi, but he said his era was between Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) and 'Isa (peace be upon him). 'Ikrimah and Sha'bi said, he was a prophet. Most say he was in the time of Dawud (peace be upon him), was not a prophet, and there is disagreement about whether he was free or a slave. Most say he was a slave. There is another disagreement; some said he was an Abyssinian, this is narrated from Ibn 'Abbas and Mujahid, and Ibn Marduyah narrated this from Abu Hurairah (may Allah be pleased with him) as a marfu' narration. Mujahid described him as having thick lips and flat soles of the feet. Some said he was Nubian, with cracked feet and thick lips. This is transmitted from Ibn 'Abbas, Ibn al-Musayyib, and Mujahid. Ibn Abi Hatim narrated from 'Abdullah bin Zubair (may Allah be pleased with them) that he said, I asked Jabir bin 'Abdullah (may Allah be pleased with them), 'What information has reached you about Luqman?' He said, he was of short stature, flat-nosed, Nubian (Abyssinian). Ibn Abi Hatim, Ibn Jarir, and Ibn al-Mundhir narrated from Ibn al-Musayyib that he said Luqman was among the black-skinned people of Egypt, dark in color and with large lips; Allah Almighty granted him wisdom but did not give him prophethood. There is also disagreement about his profession. Thus, Khalid bin Rabi' said he was a carpenter (with ra), i.e., a woodworker, and in Ma'ani al-Zajjaj it is stated he was a 'najjād' (with dal, like 'kitab', one who makes and sews bedding and mattresses, etc.). Ibn Abi Shaybah and Ahmad in "al-Zuhd" and Ibn al-Mundhir narrated from Ibn al-Musayyib that he was a tailor (one who sews clothes), which is more general than 'najjād'. It is narrated from Ibn 'Abbas (may Allah be pleased with them) that he was a shepherd. Some said he used to bring a bundle of firewood for his master every day." After quoting all this, the commentator Alusi, author of Ruh al-Ma'ani, writes: {’’ وَلَا وُثُوْقَ لِيْ بِشَيْءٍ مِنْ هٰذِهِ الْأَخْبَارِ وَإِنَّمَا نَقَلْتُهَا تَأْسِيًا بِمَنْ نَقَلَهَا مِنَ الْمُفَسِّرِيْنَ الْأَخْيَارِ غَيْرَ أَنِّيْ أَخْتَارُ أَنَّهُ كَانَ رَجُلًا صَالِحًا حَكِيْمًا وَلَمْ يَكُنْ نَبِيًّا‘‘} "That is, I do not rely on any of these reports; I have only quoted them because reliable commentators have quoted them. I only prefer the view that he was a righteous and wise (and intelligent) man, not a prophet."

I have also quoted all this to show how some commentators keep quoting things without evidence and do not bother to consider whether Mujahid, Qatadah, Ibn al-Musayyib, etc., had any connection with Luqman who lived thousands of years before, or whether they have narrated any chain of transmission to him. Nor do they take care, when quoting a narration attributed to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him), to quote only an established narration. The reality is that we know nothing more about him than what Allah Almighty has stated in the Noble Qur'an and what the author of Ruh al-Ma'ani has preferred. There is no narration about him being a slave or Abyssinian, etc., that reaches the level of proof. However, even before the advent of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), his wisdom and sagacity were famous among the Arabs, and the poets and orators of the Jahiliyyah used to mention him in their speech, as Ibn Hisham has quoted in his Sirah.

➋ After presenting a strong rational argument against shirk, now the people of Arabia are being told that the message of tawhid did not come only through prophets, but reason and wisdom also demand the same, and earlier intelligent and wise people have always said the same thing. Thus, your own famous sage Luqman said the same thing long ago.

➌ { اَنِ اشْكُرْ لِلّٰهِ :} In Tafsir Qasimi it is stated: {’’قَالَ فِي الْبَصَائِرِ الشُّكْرُ مَبْنِيٌّ عَلٰي خَمْسَةِ قَوَاعِدَ، خُضُوْعُ الشَّاكِرِ لِلْمَشْكُوْرِ وَ حُبُّهُ لَهُ وَاعْتِرَافُهُ بِنِعْمَتِهِ وَالثَّنَاءُ عَلَيْهِ بِهَا وَ أَنْ لَّا يَسْتَعْمِلَهَا فِيْمَا يَكْرَهُ، هٰذَا الْخَمْسَةُ هِيَ أَسَاسُ الشُّكْرِ وَبَنَاءُهُ عَلَيْهَا فَإِنْ عُدِمَ مِنْهَا وَاحِدَةٌ اخْتَلَّتْ قَاعِدَةٌ مِّنْ قَوَاعِدِ الشُّكْرِ وَكُلُ مَنْ تَكَلَّمَ فِي الشُّكْرِ فَإِنَّ كَلَامَهُ إِلَيْهَا يَرْجِعُ وَ عَلَيْهَا يَدُوْرُ‘‘} "In al-Basa'ir it is said that gratitude is based on five things: the grateful person's humility before the one he is thanking, loving him, acknowledging his blessing, praising him for it, and not using that blessing in a place where the giver of the blessing does not like. These five things are the foundation of gratitude and upon them it is based. If any one of them is missing, one of the foundations of gratitude is missing. Whoever has discussed gratitude, the result of his discussion is this, and it revolves around this."

➍ { وَ مَنْ يَّشْكُرْ فَاِنَّمَا يَشْكُرُ لِنَفْسِهٖ :} For its explanation, see Surah Ibrahim (7) and Surah Naml (40).

➎ {وَ مَنْ كَفَرَ فَاِنَّ اللّٰهَ غَنِيٌّ حَمِيْدٌ :} That is, the disbelief of anyone does not harm Allah Almighty in the least, because He is free of need and is not dependent on anyone's gratitude. Whether anyone is grateful or not, every particle of the universe testifies that His being is praiseworthy and He alone possesses all virtues. If anyone has any virtue, it is not his own but granted by Him.

12-1. Hazrat Luqman was a righteous servant of Allah, whom Allah granted a distinguished status in wisdom, that is, intellect, understanding, and religious insight. Someone asked him how he attained this understanding and awareness. He replied, by adopting honesty, trustworthiness, avoiding useless talk, and silence. One famous incident based on his wisdom and prudence is that he was a slave; his master told him to slaughter a goat and bring its two best parts, so he brought the tongue and the heart. On another occasion, the master told him to slaughter a goat and bring its two worst parts, so he brought the tongue and the heart. When asked, he explained that if the tongue and the heart are correct, they are the best, and if they are corrupted, there is nothing worse than them. (Ibn Kathir)

12-2. Shukr means praising and glorifying Allah for His blessings and obeying His commands.

12. And We certainly gave Luqman wisdom, (saying): “Be grateful to Allah.” Whoever is grateful, it is for his own benefit; and whoever is ungrateful [14], then surely Allah is Free of need, Praiseworthy in Himself.

[14]
Who Was Sayyiduna Luqman? The Instruction of Gratitude and Allah’s Independence:

Hazrat Luqman was a resident of either Abyssinia or Egypt. Later, he settled in Syria. He lived during the time of Hazrat Dawud ؑ. There is a difference of opinion regarding his prophethood, and the preferred view is that he was not a prophet. However, he was certainly wise and sagacious. He was famous throughout Arabia for his wisdom and intelligence. Among the foremost of the wise teachings that Allah taught him was that if one shows gratitude to Allah for His blessings, the benefit of this gratitude returns to the one who is grateful. Allah has placed such an effect in gratitude that it draws further attention and kindness towards oneself. One should express gratitude to Allah so that He may bestow further favors, and one should also be grateful to people who do favors. These are matters that almost every person experiences. The results of ingratitude and thanklessness, or being ungrateful for favors, are exactly the opposite: even previous blessings are taken away. In any case, the benefit of gratitude also returns to the one who is grateful, and the harm of ingratitude also befalls the same person. As for Allah, He is independent of people’s gratitude or ingratitude, because all His deeds are such that they are worthy of praise, and He is praiseworthy in His very essence. This was the first wise teaching that Allah taught Hazrat Luqman ؑ.