سُوْرَةُ الْحَجِّ
Surah Al-Hajj (22) — Ayah 31
حُنَفَآءَ لِلَّهِ غَيْرَ مُشْرِكِينَ بِهِۦ ۚ وَمَن يُشْرِكْ بِٱللَّهِ فَكَأَنَّمَا خَرَّ مِنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ فَتَخْطَفُهُ ٱلطَّيْرُ أَوْ تَهْوِى بِهِ ٱلرِّيحُ فِى مَكَانٍ سَحِيقٍ ﴿31﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
Hunafâ’ Lillâh (i.e. worshiping none but Allâh), not associating partners (in worship) unto Him; and whoever assigns partners to Allâh, it is as if he had fallen from the sky, and the birds had snatched him, or the wind had thrown him to a far off place.
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
حُنَفَآءَ
ḥunafāa
Being upright
لِلَّهِ
lillahi
to Allah
غَيْرَ
ghayra
not
مُشْرِكِينَ
mush'rikīna
associating partners
بِهِۦ ۚ
bihi
with Him
وَمَن
waman
And whoever
يُشْرِكْ
yush'rik
associates partners
بِٱللَّهِ
bil-lahi
with Allah
فَكَأَنَّمَا
faka-annamā
then (it is) as though
خَرَّ
kharra
he had fallen
مِنَ
mina
from
ٱلسَّمَآءِ
l-samāi
the sky
فَتَخْطَفُهُ
fatakhṭafuhu
and (had) snatched him
ٱلطَّيْرُ
l-ṭayru
the birds
أَوْ
aw
or
تَهْوِى
tahwī
had blown
بِهِ
bihi
him
ٱلرِّيحُ
l-rīḥu
the wind
فِى
fī
to
مَكَانٍۢ
makānin
a place
سَحِيقٍۢ
saḥīqin
far off
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.
31. Be devoted solely [48] to Allah and do not associate anyone with Him. Whoever associates partners with Allah is like one who falls from the sky [49], then birds snatch him away or the wind blows him off to a distant place.
[48]
The Literal Meaning of Hanif:
Hunafaa is the plural of Hanif. And Hanif means to incline towards steadfastness by leaving all false paths (Mufradat al-Quran). And a Hanif is a person who, abandoning all false ways, comes to the straight path of Allah Almighty. And that straight path is that in the essence and attributes of Allah, in worship and actions, nothing whatsoever is considered even slightly as a partner to Him.
[49]
Shirk is an Insult to Humanity, and Its Example is Like Someone Thrown Down from a Height:
Man has been created nobler and superior to all creatures. Therefore, it is only fitting for him to bow his head solely before his Creator and Master, to seek his needs only from Him, and to worship Him alone. Now, if he worships anything other than Allah, bows his head before it, or seeks his needs from it, it means that a superior being has bowed before something of a lesser rank. Or, if he bows before another human, it also means that he is bowing before a creature as needy as himself, and this too is a humiliation of humanity. The example of such a person is like one who has fallen from the heights of Tawheed into the depths of Shirk. And now he has fallen into the hands of other polytheists like himself, who will sometimes advise him to go to one door, sometimes to another threshold. Until these predatory birds will not leave him until they have completely misled and made him faithless. And even if he somehow escapes from them, the desires of his own self in opposition to Allah are enough to throw him into the pit of misguidance. And following one's own desires is, in itself, also a kind of Shirk. As the Divine Word says: ﴿اَفَرَءَيْتَ مَنِ اتَّخَذَ اِلٰهَهٗ هَويٰهُ﴾ [43: 25] That is, even if he does not fall into the hands of other polytheists, his own self is enough to mislead him.
[48]
The Literal Meaning of Hanif:
Hunafaa is the plural of Hanif. And Hanif means to incline towards steadfastness by leaving all false paths (Mufradat al-Quran). And a Hanif is a person who, abandoning all false ways, comes to the straight path of Allah Almighty. And that straight path is that in the essence and attributes of Allah, in worship and actions, nothing whatsoever is considered even slightly as a partner to Him.
[49]
Shirk is an Insult to Humanity, and Its Example is Like Someone Thrown Down from a Height:
Man has been created nobler and superior to all creatures. Therefore, it is only fitting for him to bow his head solely before his Creator and Master, to seek his needs only from Him, and to worship Him alone. Now, if he worships anything other than Allah, bows his head before it, or seeks his needs from it, it means that a superior being has bowed before something of a lesser rank. Or, if he bows before another human, it also means that he is bowing before a creature as needy as himself, and this too is a humiliation of humanity. The example of such a person is like one who has fallen from the heights of Tawheed into the depths of Shirk. And now he has fallen into the hands of other polytheists like himself, who will sometimes advise him to go to one door, sometimes to another threshold. Until these predatory birds will not leave him until they have completely misled and made him faithless. And even if he somehow escapes from them, the desires of his own self in opposition to Allah are enough to throw him into the pit of misguidance. And following one's own desires is, in itself, also a kind of Shirk. As the Divine Word says: ﴿اَفَرَءَيْتَ مَنِ اتَّخَذَ اِلٰهَهٗ هَويٰهُ﴾ [43: 25] That is, even if he does not fall into the hands of other polytheists, his own self is enough to mislead him.
