سُوْرَةُ الْعَنْكَبُوْتِ
Surah Al-Ankaboot (29) — Ayah 48
وَمَا كُنتَ تَتْلُوا۟ مِن قَبْلِهِۦ مِن كِتَـٰبٍ وَلَا تَخُطُّهُۥ بِيَمِينِكَ ۖ إِذًا لَّٱرْتَابَ ٱلْمُبْطِلُونَ ﴿48﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
Neither did you (O Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم) read any book before it (this Qur’ân), nor did you write any book (whatsoever) with your right hand. In that case, indeed, the followers of falsehood might have doubted.
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
وَمَا
wamā
And not
كُنتَ
kunta
(did) you
تَتْلُوا۟
tatlū
recite
مِن
min
before it
قَبْلِهِۦ
qablihi
before it
مِن
min
any
كِتَـٰبٍۢ
kitābin
Book
وَلَا
walā
and not
تَخُطُّهُۥ
takhuṭṭuhu
(did) you write it
بِيَمِينِكَ ۖ
biyamīnika
with your right hand
إِذًۭا
idhan
in that case
لَّٱرْتَابَ
la-ir'tāba
surely (would) have doubted
ٱلْمُبْطِلُونَ
l-mub'ṭilūna
the falsifiers
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.
48. And (O Prophet!) before this, you could neither read any book nor write it with your hand [80]. If it had been so, the followers of falsehood would have doubted.
[80]
The Wisdom in You Being Unlettered:
Among the things that the Quraysh invented to deny or at least cast doubt upon your ﷺ prophethood was the claim that this man has benefited from previous heavenly books, and their basis for this was that many of the subjects presented in your Book, i.e., the Quran, resembled those in the Torah, and some fair-minded People of the Book would even confirm this. In this verse, their objection is answered: before prophethood, you could neither read any book from which you could have gained such knowledge, nor could you write so that you might have listened to the scholars of the People of the Book, noted it down, and later presented it as your own. If either of these had been the case, there would have been some basis for the doubts and suspicions of these disbelievers. But since neither of these is true, then their denial of your prophethood is nothing but prejudice, stubbornness, and obstinacy. Some Muslims have inferred from "مِنْ قَبْلِہِ" that before prophethood, you truly could not read or write, but after prophethood, you learned to read and write. The basis of this invention is the Muslims’ intense devotion to you. They think that how could the Messenger who was sent as a Messenger and teacher for all the worlds be unlettered? In other words, they wish to remove the supposed deficiency of being unlettered from the person of the Prophet. Later, the opponents of Islam and Orientalist researchers of the present era also joined in this claim, because it was beneficial for them.
Did You Learn to Read and Write Later?
We appreciate the sentiment of devotion in these Muslims, but we regret that the claim of these well-meaning friends is serving the interests of wise enemies. Now, we will refute this claim in two ways: first, from a rational perspective, and second, from a historical perspective. Rationally, we should consider: is it more astonishing and a manifestation of Allah’s power that an unlettered person becomes the teacher of the whole world, or that a very learned and educated person becomes a teacher? Clearly, only the first case can be considered a miracle. This also removes all the doubts and suspicions that the opponents of Islam of that era raised against the Prophet of Islam, or that the opponents of Islam of this era are raising. And the proof of this is that the Quran, in two verses, has honored you with the title "Ummi" as a praise. [7: 157، 158]
And in Surah Jumu'ah it is said: "He it is Who sent among the unlettered ones a Messenger from among themselves." [62: 2]
From the style of the Quran, it is also clearly evident that the title "Ummi" is a source of great pride for you. And from a historical perspective, this claim is wrong because the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah was written in 6 AH. The writer was Hazrat Ali ؓ and the one dictating was the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. When you ﷺ dictated "Bismillah-ir-Rahman-ir-Raheem," the Qurayshi envoy Suhail bin Amr objected, saying, "Write instead 'Bismika Allahumma'." Then you dictated "From Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah," and he objected, "Write 'From Muhammad, son of Abdullah,' because if we accepted you as Allah’s Messenger, then what would be the dispute?" When the envoy Suhail bin Amr insisted on his point, you ﷺ said to Hazrat Ali ؓ, "Erase these words and write according to the Qurayshi envoy’s wishes." Hazrat Ali ؓ said, "My conscience does not allow me to erase the words 'Messenger of Allah' with my own hand." You ﷺ asked Hazrat Ali ؓ, "Alright, tell me, which word is it?" And when Hazrat Ali ؓ pointed it out, you erased it yourself. [بخاری۔ کتاب الشروط۔ باب الشروط فی الجہاد والمصالحة]
This incident took place when you had been granted prophethood for 19 years, and at that time you were 59 years old. And four or five years after this incident, you ﷺ passed away. So, when did you ﷺ learn to read and write?
And the second proof is the Messenger of Allah’s ﷺ own admission: "We are unlettered people; we do not know how to write or calculate. (The lunar) month is sometimes like this and sometimes like that." Then you raised both hands’ fingers to show that sometimes it is thirty days and sometimes twenty-nine days. [بخاری۔ کتاب الصوم۔ باب قول النبی لا نکتب و لا نحسب]
[80]
The Wisdom in You Being Unlettered:
Among the things that the Quraysh invented to deny or at least cast doubt upon your ﷺ prophethood was the claim that this man has benefited from previous heavenly books, and their basis for this was that many of the subjects presented in your Book, i.e., the Quran, resembled those in the Torah, and some fair-minded People of the Book would even confirm this. In this verse, their objection is answered: before prophethood, you could neither read any book from which you could have gained such knowledge, nor could you write so that you might have listened to the scholars of the People of the Book, noted it down, and later presented it as your own. If either of these had been the case, there would have been some basis for the doubts and suspicions of these disbelievers. But since neither of these is true, then their denial of your prophethood is nothing but prejudice, stubbornness, and obstinacy. Some Muslims have inferred from "مِنْ قَبْلِہِ" that before prophethood, you truly could not read or write, but after prophethood, you learned to read and write. The basis of this invention is the Muslims’ intense devotion to you. They think that how could the Messenger who was sent as a Messenger and teacher for all the worlds be unlettered? In other words, they wish to remove the supposed deficiency of being unlettered from the person of the Prophet. Later, the opponents of Islam and Orientalist researchers of the present era also joined in this claim, because it was beneficial for them.
Did You Learn to Read and Write Later?
We appreciate the sentiment of devotion in these Muslims, but we regret that the claim of these well-meaning friends is serving the interests of wise enemies. Now, we will refute this claim in two ways: first, from a rational perspective, and second, from a historical perspective. Rationally, we should consider: is it more astonishing and a manifestation of Allah’s power that an unlettered person becomes the teacher of the whole world, or that a very learned and educated person becomes a teacher? Clearly, only the first case can be considered a miracle. This also removes all the doubts and suspicions that the opponents of Islam of that era raised against the Prophet of Islam, or that the opponents of Islam of this era are raising. And the proof of this is that the Quran, in two verses, has honored you with the title "Ummi" as a praise. [7: 157، 158]
And in Surah Jumu'ah it is said: "He it is Who sent among the unlettered ones a Messenger from among themselves." [62: 2]
From the style of the Quran, it is also clearly evident that the title "Ummi" is a source of great pride for you. And from a historical perspective, this claim is wrong because the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah was written in 6 AH. The writer was Hazrat Ali ؓ and the one dictating was the Messenger of Allah ﷺ. When you ﷺ dictated "Bismillah-ir-Rahman-ir-Raheem," the Qurayshi envoy Suhail bin Amr objected, saying, "Write instead 'Bismika Allahumma'." Then you dictated "From Muhammad, the Messenger of Allah," and he objected, "Write 'From Muhammad, son of Abdullah,' because if we accepted you as Allah’s Messenger, then what would be the dispute?" When the envoy Suhail bin Amr insisted on his point, you ﷺ said to Hazrat Ali ؓ, "Erase these words and write according to the Qurayshi envoy’s wishes." Hazrat Ali ؓ said, "My conscience does not allow me to erase the words 'Messenger of Allah' with my own hand." You ﷺ asked Hazrat Ali ؓ, "Alright, tell me, which word is it?" And when Hazrat Ali ؓ pointed it out, you erased it yourself. [بخاری۔ کتاب الشروط۔ باب الشروط فی الجہاد والمصالحة]
This incident took place when you had been granted prophethood for 19 years, and at that time you were 59 years old. And four or five years after this incident, you ﷺ passed away. So, when did you ﷺ learn to read and write?
And the second proof is the Messenger of Allah’s ﷺ own admission: "We are unlettered people; we do not know how to write or calculate. (The lunar) month is sometimes like this and sometimes like that." Then you raised both hands’ fingers to show that sometimes it is thirty days and sometimes twenty-nine days. [بخاری۔ کتاب الصوم۔ باب قول النبی لا نکتب و لا نحسب]
