سُوْرَةُ اٰلِ عِمْرٰنَ
Surah Aal-i-Imraan (3) — Ayah 103
وَٱعْتَصِمُوا۟ بِحَبْلِ ٱللَّهِ جَمِيعًا وَلَا تَفَرَّقُوا۟ ۚ وَٱذْكُرُوا۟ نِعْمَتَ ٱللَّهِ عَلَيْكُمْ إِذْ كُنتُمْ أَعْدَآءً فَأَلَّفَ بَيْنَ قُلُوبِكُمْ فَأَصْبَحْتُم بِنِعْمَتِهِۦٓ إِخْوَٰنًا وَكُنتُمْ عَلَىٰ شَفَا حُفْرَةٍ مِّنَ ٱلنَّارِ فَأَنقَذَكُم مِّنْهَا ۗ كَذَٰلِكَ يُبَيِّنُ ٱللَّهُ لَكُمْ ءَايَـٰتِهِۦ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَهْتَدُونَ ﴿103﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
And hold fast, all of you together, to the Rope of Allâh (i.e. this Qur’ân), and be not divided among yourselves, and remember Allâh’s Favour on you, for you were enemies one to another but He joined your hearts together, so that, by His Grace, you became brethren (in Islâmic Faith), and you were on the brink of a pit of Fire, and He saved you from it. Thus Allâh makes His Ayât (proofs, evidence, verses, lessons, signs, revelations, etc.,) clear to you, that you may be guided.
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
وَٱعْتَصِمُوا۟
wa-iʿ'taṣimū
And hold firmly
بِحَبْلِ
biḥabli
to (the) rope
ٱللَّهِ
l-lahi
(of) Allah
جَمِيعًۭا
jamīʿan
all together
وَلَا
walā
and (do) not
تَفَرَّقُوا۟ ۚ
tafarraqū
be divided
وَٱذْكُرُوا۟
wa-udh'kurū
And remember
نِعْمَتَ
niʿ'mata
(the) Favor
ٱللَّهِ
l-lahi
(of) Allah
عَلَيْكُمْ
ʿalaykum
on you
إِذْ
idh
when
كُنتُمْ
kuntum
you were
أَعْدَآءًۭ
aʿdāan
enemies
فَأَلَّفَ
fa-allafa
then He made friendship
بَيْنَ
bayna
between
قُلُوبِكُمْ
qulūbikum
your hearts
فَأَصْبَحْتُم
fa-aṣbaḥtum
then you became
بِنِعْمَتِهِۦٓ
biniʿ'matihi
by His Favor
إِخْوَٰنًۭا
ikh'wānan
brothers
وَكُنتُمْ
wakuntum
And you were
عَلَىٰ
ʿalā
on
شَفَا
shafā
(the) brink
حُفْرَةٍۢ
ḥuf'ratin
(of) pit
مِّنَ
mina
of
ٱلنَّارِ
l-nāri
the Fire
فَأَنقَذَكُم
fa-anqadhakum
then He saved you
مِّنْهَا ۗ
min'hā
from it
كَذَٰلِكَ
kadhālika
Thus
يُبَيِّنُ
yubayyinu
makes clear
ٱللَّهُ
l-lahu
Allah
لَكُمْ
lakum
for you
ءَايَـٰتِهِۦ
āyātihi
His Verses
لَعَلَّكُمْ
laʿallakum
so that you may
تَهْتَدُونَ
tahtadūna
(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.
And hold firmly to the rope of Allah [93] and do not become divided. And remember Allah’s favor upon you when you were enemies, then He joined your hearts together so that by His grace you became brothers. And you were on the edge of a pit of fire, and He saved you from it. Thus does Allah make His signs clear to you so that you may be guided.
[93]
Prohibition of Sectarianism:
By "the rope of Allah" is meant Allah's religion or the commands of the Book and Sunnah, and it is called the rope of Allah because it is the bond that keeps all the believers connected to Allah, and on the other hand, it binds the believers to one another. By strictly adhering to the commands of the Book and Sunnah, there remains no possibility of discord, division, or enmity arising among Muslims. Therefore, Muslims should focus all their attention on religious teachings and avoid creating division in the Muslim Ummah by getting entangled in subsidiary issues and refrain from sectarianism.
[94]
The Blessing of Mutual Affection, Love, and Unity Among the Companions:
That is, at the time when the tribal system prevailed throughout Arabia and the market of looting and bloodshed was heated. There was neither any government nor any court in existence to which one could turn. If a man from a tribe was killed, the tribe of the slain would not rest until they had taken revenge. Tribal pride, which the Quran has called "the pride of ignorance," had reached such an extreme that no party would bother to consider who was at fault. It was only seen that since a man from our tribe was harmed by a man from another tribe, it was necessary to take revenge. In this revenge, justice was not considered. The result of these things was that wherever a war broke out, it would not come to an end. In Mecca, the war between Banu Bakr and Banu Taghlib started, which lasted for half a century. Families were destroyed, heaps of corpses piled up, but the war would not end. A similar situation existed in Medina between Aws and Khazraj in the Battle of Bu'ath. The sensible class throughout Arabia was deeply troubled by this situation, but they saw no way out. Moreover, this situation was not limited to Mecca and Medina, but the same fire was burning throughout Arabia, and it was near that the entire Arab nation would be annihilated. In this state, Allah Almighty honored these people with the wealth of Islam, through which old grudges and resentments were removed. Instead of enmity, love and affection for one another were created in the hearts of the Muslims, and they became like brothers. In this way, Allah Almighty saved the people from falling into the pit of the fire of war and, after death, from falling into the pit of the fire of Hell. The mention of this blessing of affection and love is made by Allah Almighty in Surah Anfal, where He addressed the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and said: If you had spent all the wealth in the world to create such love and affection among them, you could not have done so. It is Allah alone who has created affection in their hearts [8: 63], and this was an unexpected blessing that was granted to them only through Islam and Allah's mercy, and which everyone was witnessing with their own eyes.
[93]
Prohibition of Sectarianism:
By "the rope of Allah" is meant Allah's religion or the commands of the Book and Sunnah, and it is called the rope of Allah because it is the bond that keeps all the believers connected to Allah, and on the other hand, it binds the believers to one another. By strictly adhering to the commands of the Book and Sunnah, there remains no possibility of discord, division, or enmity arising among Muslims. Therefore, Muslims should focus all their attention on religious teachings and avoid creating division in the Muslim Ummah by getting entangled in subsidiary issues and refrain from sectarianism.
[94]
The Blessing of Mutual Affection, Love, and Unity Among the Companions:
That is, at the time when the tribal system prevailed throughout Arabia and the market of looting and bloodshed was heated. There was neither any government nor any court in existence to which one could turn. If a man from a tribe was killed, the tribe of the slain would not rest until they had taken revenge. Tribal pride, which the Quran has called "the pride of ignorance," had reached such an extreme that no party would bother to consider who was at fault. It was only seen that since a man from our tribe was harmed by a man from another tribe, it was necessary to take revenge. In this revenge, justice was not considered. The result of these things was that wherever a war broke out, it would not come to an end. In Mecca, the war between Banu Bakr and Banu Taghlib started, which lasted for half a century. Families were destroyed, heaps of corpses piled up, but the war would not end. A similar situation existed in Medina between Aws and Khazraj in the Battle of Bu'ath. The sensible class throughout Arabia was deeply troubled by this situation, but they saw no way out. Moreover, this situation was not limited to Mecca and Medina, but the same fire was burning throughout Arabia, and it was near that the entire Arab nation would be annihilated. In this state, Allah Almighty honored these people with the wealth of Islam, through which old grudges and resentments were removed. Instead of enmity, love and affection for one another were created in the hearts of the Muslims, and they became like brothers. In this way, Allah Almighty saved the people from falling into the pit of the fire of war and, after death, from falling into the pit of the fire of Hell. The mention of this blessing of affection and love is made by Allah Almighty in Surah Anfal, where He addressed the Messenger of Allah ﷺ and said: If you had spent all the wealth in the world to create such love and affection among them, you could not have done so. It is Allah alone who has created affection in their hearts [8: 63], and this was an unexpected blessing that was granted to them only through Islam and Allah's mercy, and which everyone was witnessing with their own eyes.
