سُوْرَةُ النِّسَآءِ
Surah An-Nisaa (4) — Ayah 117
إِن يَدْعُونَ مِن دُونِهِۦٓ إِلَّآ إِنَـٰثًا وَإِن يَدْعُونَ إِلَّا شَيْطَـٰنًا مَّرِيدًا ﴿117﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
They (all those who worship others than Allâh) invoke nothing but female deities besides Him (Allâh), and they invoke nothing but Shaitân (Satan), a persistent rebel!
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
إِن
in
Not
يَدْعُونَ
yadʿūna
they invoke
مِن
min
from
دُونِهِۦٓ
dūnihi
besides Him
إِلَّآ
illā
but
إِنَـٰثًۭا
ināthan
female (deities)
وَإِن
wa-in
and not
يَدْعُونَ
yadʿūna
they invoke
إِلَّا
illā
except
شَيْطَـٰنًۭا
shayṭānan
Shaitaan
مَّرِيدًۭا
marīdan
rebellious
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.
117. These polytheists call upon goddesses [155] instead of Allah; in reality, they are only calling upon a rebellious devil [156].
[155]
All Types of Shirk Are Found Among the Polytheists:
There are three main types of shirk, and all three are mentioned in this sentence, for example:
(1) Shirk in the Essence. In this regard, the polytheists considered their goddesses to be the wives and daughters of Allah, and this is evident from the names of these goddesses, such as Lat from Ilah and Uzza from Aziz, etc.
(2) Shirk in the Attributes. It is an attribute of Allah that wherever anyone calls upon Him, He hears their plea, and the polytheists also believed that their goddesses heard their pleas.
(3) Shirk in Worship. According to the explicit statement of the Quran, to call upon anyone with the belief that they can hear one’s plea and remove one’s difficulty or benefit them is, in itself, worship, and the polytheists, holding such a belief, used to call upon their goddesses, and this is clear shirk. They also performed all the rituals of worship before their goddesses that are only worthy of Allah.
[156]
Iblis’s Claim to Misguide Mankind:
Calling upon Satan in this sense means that all the ways of shirk that have been suggested to mankind have been suggested by Satan himself. Thus, holding such a belief and calling upon anyone is also a satanic call and is tantamount to calling upon Satan, even though all people, considering Satan to be a rebel and disobedient to Allah, outwardly curse him.
[155]
All Types of Shirk Are Found Among the Polytheists:
There are three main types of shirk, and all three are mentioned in this sentence, for example:
(1) Shirk in the Essence. In this regard, the polytheists considered their goddesses to be the wives and daughters of Allah, and this is evident from the names of these goddesses, such as Lat from Ilah and Uzza from Aziz, etc.
(2) Shirk in the Attributes. It is an attribute of Allah that wherever anyone calls upon Him, He hears their plea, and the polytheists also believed that their goddesses heard their pleas.
(3) Shirk in Worship. According to the explicit statement of the Quran, to call upon anyone with the belief that they can hear one’s plea and remove one’s difficulty or benefit them is, in itself, worship, and the polytheists, holding such a belief, used to call upon their goddesses, and this is clear shirk. They also performed all the rituals of worship before their goddesses that are only worthy of Allah.
[156]
Iblis’s Claim to Misguide Mankind:
Calling upon Satan in this sense means that all the ways of shirk that have been suggested to mankind have been suggested by Satan himself. Thus, holding such a belief and calling upon anyone is also a satanic call and is tantamount to calling upon Satan, even though all people, considering Satan to be a rebel and disobedient to Allah, outwardly curse him.
