سُوْرَةُ الزُّخْرُفِ
Surah Az-Zukhruf (43) — Ayah 45
وَسْـَٔلْ مَنْ أَرْسَلْنَا مِن قَبْلِكَ مِن رُّسُلِنَآ أَجَعَلْنَا مِن دُونِ ٱلرَّحْمَـٰنِ ءَالِهَةً يُعْبَدُونَ ﴿45﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
And ask (O Muhammad صلى الله عليه و سلم) those of Our Messengers whom We sent before you: "Did We ever appoint âlihâh (gods) to be worshipped besides the Most Gracious (Allâh)?"
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
وَسْـَٔلْ
wasal
And ask
مَنْ
man
(those) whom
أَرْسَلْنَا
arsalnā
We sent
مِن
min
before you
قَبْلِكَ
qablika
before you
مِن
min
of
رُّسُلِنَآ
rusulinā
Our Messengers
أَجَعَلْنَا
ajaʿalnā
did We make
مِن
min
besides
دُونِ
dūni
besides
ٱلرَّحْمَـٰنِ
l-raḥmāni
the Most Gracious
ءَالِهَةًۭ
ālihatan
gods
يُعْبَدُونَ
yuʿ'badūna
to be worshipped
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.
45. And ask [44] those Messengers whom We sent before you: “Did We ever appoint any gods to be worshipped besides the Most Merciful?”
[44]
The Believers in the Life of Prophets After Death and Its Refutation:
In this verse, most commentators have explained the meaning of ﴿واسْئَلْ﴾ in two ways: one is that you should ask the heirs of these prophets, the scholars or the scholars of Bani Israel. And the second meaning is that you should search in the books of these messengers to see if it is written anywhere that we have made any other deities besides ourselves, whose worship should be performed. However, there are also some individuals who wish to establish the complete life of the prophets and saints in the realm of Barzakh. That is, they hear the calls of people and also respond to them. In fact, even beyond this, their authority is such that they relieve the difficulties and fulfill the needs of those who call upon them. Accordingly, one such person, after translating this verse, states: "If the prophets did not have life, if they could not understand address and call, and if they did not have the power to respond, then Allah Almighty would not have commanded His beloved ﷺ to inquire from the prophets and messengers." Such individuals generally belong to the Barelvi sect. Therefore, here we quote footnote number 45 from Naeemuddin Muradabadi on the translation of Ahmad Raza Khan Barelvi (Kanzul Iman): "The meaning of asking the messengers is to search their religions and nations. Has idol worship ever been permitted in the community of any prophet? And most commentators have explained its meaning as: ask the believing People of the Book. Has any prophet permitted the worship of other than Allah? So that it may be established upon the polytheists that neither has any messenger taught creature-worship nor has it come in any book. There is also a narration that on the night of Mi'raj, the Leader of the Worlds led all the prophets in prayer at Bayt al-Maqdis. When the Prophet finished the prayer, Jibreel said: O Noble Leader ﷺ! Ask the prophets before you whether Allah has permitted the worship of anyone besides Himself? The Prophet replied: There is no need for this question, that is, there is no doubt that all the prophets have been calling to monotheism. All have forbidden creature-worship." [سوره زخرف كا حاشيه نمبر 45 از نعيم الدين مراد آبادي]
Now see, the narration mentioned in this footnote appears to be incorrect. The reason is that this verse of Surah Zukhruf was revealed quite some time after the incident of Mi'raj. Surah Bani Isra'il, in which the incident of Isra is mentioned, is number 50 in the order of revelation, while Surah Zukhruf is number 63 in the order of revelation. The incident of Mi'raj occurred a year and a half or two before the Hijrah, while this Surah was revealed at a time when the disbelievers were intent on taking your life, as is clear from verses 79–80 of this Surah. Therefore, how is it possible that before the revelation of the mentioned verse, Jibreel would say to the Prophet ﷺ to ask these messengers and then recite the entire verse?
[44]
The Believers in the Life of Prophets After Death and Its Refutation:
In this verse, most commentators have explained the meaning of ﴿واسْئَلْ﴾ in two ways: one is that you should ask the heirs of these prophets, the scholars or the scholars of Bani Israel. And the second meaning is that you should search in the books of these messengers to see if it is written anywhere that we have made any other deities besides ourselves, whose worship should be performed. However, there are also some individuals who wish to establish the complete life of the prophets and saints in the realm of Barzakh. That is, they hear the calls of people and also respond to them. In fact, even beyond this, their authority is such that they relieve the difficulties and fulfill the needs of those who call upon them. Accordingly, one such person, after translating this verse, states: "If the prophets did not have life, if they could not understand address and call, and if they did not have the power to respond, then Allah Almighty would not have commanded His beloved ﷺ to inquire from the prophets and messengers." Such individuals generally belong to the Barelvi sect. Therefore, here we quote footnote number 45 from Naeemuddin Muradabadi on the translation of Ahmad Raza Khan Barelvi (Kanzul Iman): "The meaning of asking the messengers is to search their religions and nations. Has idol worship ever been permitted in the community of any prophet? And most commentators have explained its meaning as: ask the believing People of the Book. Has any prophet permitted the worship of other than Allah? So that it may be established upon the polytheists that neither has any messenger taught creature-worship nor has it come in any book. There is also a narration that on the night of Mi'raj, the Leader of the Worlds led all the prophets in prayer at Bayt al-Maqdis. When the Prophet finished the prayer, Jibreel said: O Noble Leader ﷺ! Ask the prophets before you whether Allah has permitted the worship of anyone besides Himself? The Prophet replied: There is no need for this question, that is, there is no doubt that all the prophets have been calling to monotheism. All have forbidden creature-worship." [سوره زخرف كا حاشيه نمبر 45 از نعيم الدين مراد آبادي]
Now see, the narration mentioned in this footnote appears to be incorrect. The reason is that this verse of Surah Zukhruf was revealed quite some time after the incident of Mi'raj. Surah Bani Isra'il, in which the incident of Isra is mentioned, is number 50 in the order of revelation, while Surah Zukhruf is number 63 in the order of revelation. The incident of Mi'raj occurred a year and a half or two before the Hijrah, while this Surah was revealed at a time when the disbelievers were intent on taking your life, as is clear from verses 79–80 of this Surah. Therefore, how is it possible that before the revelation of the mentioned verse, Jibreel would say to the Prophet ﷺ to ask these messengers and then recite the entire verse?
