سُوْرَةُ الْحُجُراتِ
Surah Al-Hujuraat (49) — Ayah 13
يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلنَّاسُ إِنَّا خَلَقْنَـٰكُم مِّن ذَكَرٍ وَأُنثَىٰ وَجَعَلْنَـٰكُمْ شُعُوبًا وَقَبَآئِلَ لِتَعَارَفُوٓا۟ ۚ إِنَّ أَكْرَمَكُمْ عِندَ ٱللَّهِ أَتْقَىٰكُمْ ۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ عَلِيمٌ خَبِيرٌ ﴿13﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
O mankind! We have created you from a male and a female, and made you into nations and tribes, that you may know one another. Verily, the most honourable of you with Allâh is that (believer) who has At-Taqwâ [i.e. he is one of the Muttaqûn (the pious. See V.2:2)]. Verily, Allâh is All-Knowing, All-Aware.
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا
yāayyuhā
O mankind
ٱلنَّاسُ
l-nāsu
O mankind
إِنَّا
innā
Indeed, We
خَلَقْنَـٰكُم
khalaqnākum
created you
مِّن
min
from
ذَكَرٍۢ
dhakarin
a male
وَأُنثَىٰ
wa-unthā
and a female
وَجَعَلْنَـٰكُمْ
wajaʿalnākum
and We made you
شُعُوبًۭا
shuʿūban
nations
وَقَبَآئِلَ
waqabāila
and tribes
لِتَعَارَفُوٓا۟ ۚ
litaʿārafū
that you may know one another
إِنَّ
inna
Indeed
أَكْرَمَكُمْ
akramakum
(the) most noble of you
عِندَ
ʿinda
near
ٱللَّهِ
l-lahi
Allah
أَتْقَىٰكُمْ ۚ
atqākum
(is the) most righteous of you
إِنَّ
inna
Indeed
ٱللَّهَ
l-laha
Allah
عَلِيمٌ
ʿalīmun
(is) All-Knower
خَبِيرٌۭ
khabīrun
All-Aware
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.
13. O mankind! We created you from a male and a female, and made you into peoples and tribes so that you may recognize one another. Surely, the most honorable of you in the sight of Allah is the one who is most righteous [22] among you. Indeed, Allah is All-Knowing, All-Aware.
[22]
The Basis of Nations’ Conflicts and Their Prevention:
In the present era, nation, homeland, race, color, and language have been made into five gods or deities. By taking any one of these as a basis, all of humanity has been divided into many groups, who are constantly at war with each other and keep fighting and dying against one another. Some take pride in their nationality, for example, that they belong to the German or English nation. Some boast of being of the white race. Some take pride in being Syed, Farooqi, or Siddiqi. In other words, these things have been made a means of pride and mutual hatred. Whereas all humans are the children of Adam and Hawwa. This verse uproots the very foundation of such deities, or in other words, the basis of discord and endless wars.
The Only Basis for Superiority is Taqwa:
Allah Almighty says that We made your tribes and nations so that you may recognize one another, for example, if two people are named Zaid and both their fathers are named Bakr, then by belonging to different tribes or communities, they can be distinguished from each other. But what injustice you have committed is that you have made these things a means of pride and mutual hatred. Some, on the basis of lineage, have considered themselves noble and superior and have begun to regard others as lowly, mean, and despicable, while others have made themselves great on the basis of nation, homeland, color, or language. Instead of all these things, Allah Almighty has made taqwa (piety) the standard of honor and dignity. That is, the more a person refrains from sins and fears Allah, the more honorable and respected he will be in the sight of Allah. The same subject was stated by the Messenger of Allah ﷺ in his Farewell Sermon, which contained extremely important constitutional clauses, as follows: No white has superiority over a black, nor does a black have superiority over a white; no Arab has superiority over a non-Arab, nor does a non-Arab have superiority over an Arab. The only basis for superiority is taqwa. Because you are all the children of Adam, and Adam was created from clay.
[22]
The Basis of Nations’ Conflicts and Their Prevention:
In the present era, nation, homeland, race, color, and language have been made into five gods or deities. By taking any one of these as a basis, all of humanity has been divided into many groups, who are constantly at war with each other and keep fighting and dying against one another. Some take pride in their nationality, for example, that they belong to the German or English nation. Some boast of being of the white race. Some take pride in being Syed, Farooqi, or Siddiqi. In other words, these things have been made a means of pride and mutual hatred. Whereas all humans are the children of Adam and Hawwa. This verse uproots the very foundation of such deities, or in other words, the basis of discord and endless wars.
The Only Basis for Superiority is Taqwa:
Allah Almighty says that We made your tribes and nations so that you may recognize one another, for example, if two people are named Zaid and both their fathers are named Bakr, then by belonging to different tribes or communities, they can be distinguished from each other. But what injustice you have committed is that you have made these things a means of pride and mutual hatred. Some, on the basis of lineage, have considered themselves noble and superior and have begun to regard others as lowly, mean, and despicable, while others have made themselves great on the basis of nation, homeland, color, or language. Instead of all these things, Allah Almighty has made taqwa (piety) the standard of honor and dignity. That is, the more a person refrains from sins and fears Allah, the more honorable and respected he will be in the sight of Allah. The same subject was stated by the Messenger of Allah ﷺ in his Farewell Sermon, which contained extremely important constitutional clauses, as follows: No white has superiority over a black, nor does a black have superiority over a white; no Arab has superiority over a non-Arab, nor does a non-Arab have superiority over an Arab. The only basis for superiority is taqwa. Because you are all the children of Adam, and Adam was created from clay.
