سُوْرَةُ الْاَنْفَالِ
Surah Al-Anfaal (8) — Ayah 31
وَإِذَا تُتْلَىٰ عَلَيْهِمْ ءَايَـٰتُنَا قَالُوا۟ قَدْ سَمِعْنَا لَوْ نَشَآءُ لَقُلْنَا مِثْلَ هَـٰذَآ ۙ إِنْ هَـٰذَآ إِلَّآ أَسَـٰطِيرُ ٱلْأَوَّلِينَ ﴿31﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
And when Our Verses (of the Qur’ân) are recited to them, they say: "We have heard (the Qur’ân); if we wish we can say the like of this. This is nothing but the tales of the ancients."
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
وَإِذَا
wa-idhā
And when
تُتْلَىٰ
tut'lā
are recited
عَلَيْهِمْ
ʿalayhim
to them
ءَايَـٰتُنَا
āyātunā
Our Verses
قَالُوا۟
qālū
they say
قَدْ
qad
Verily
سَمِعْنَا
samiʿ'nā
we have heard
لَوْ
law
if
نَشَآءُ
nashāu
we wish
لَقُلْنَا
laqul'nā
surely, we could say
مِثْلَ
mith'la
like
هَـٰذَآ ۙ
hādhā
this
إِنْ
in
Not
هَـٰذَآ
hādhā
is this
إِلَّآ
illā
but
أَسَـٰطِيرُ
asāṭīru
tales
ٱلْأَوَّلِينَ
l-awalīna
(of) the former (people)
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.
31. And when Our verses are recited to them, the disbelievers say: "We have heard this. If we wished, we could say something like this. This is nothing but tales of the ancients."
[32]
The Statement of Nadr bin Harith That We Too Can Bring Forth Such Speech:
It was Nadr bin Harith, who was among the chiefs of Quraysh and used to travel to Persia for trade. He used to say that we have heard this speech; what is in it except stories and tales? If we wish, we too can bring forth such speech. Thus, he brought stories of Rustam and Isfandiyar from Persia and said that the Quran contains the stories of ‘Ad and Thamud, and I have the stories of Rustam and Isfandiyar. But even his like-minded disbelievers did not accept this statement of his. Because when the Quran, not once but several times, challenged the disbelievers to gather all their writers and poets and produce even a single surah like the Quran, all of them expressed their inability. From this, it becomes clear that Nadr bin Harith’s own literary taste was of a very low kind. As for his attention to the guidance of the Quran, that was a far-off matter.
[32]
The Statement of Nadr bin Harith That We Too Can Bring Forth Such Speech:
It was Nadr bin Harith, who was among the chiefs of Quraysh and used to travel to Persia for trade. He used to say that we have heard this speech; what is in it except stories and tales? If we wish, we too can bring forth such speech. Thus, he brought stories of Rustam and Isfandiyar from Persia and said that the Quran contains the stories of ‘Ad and Thamud, and I have the stories of Rustam and Isfandiyar. But even his like-minded disbelievers did not accept this statement of his. Because when the Quran, not once but several times, challenged the disbelievers to gather all their writers and poets and produce even a single surah like the Quran, all of them expressed their inability. From this, it becomes clear that Nadr bin Harith’s own literary taste was of a very low kind. As for his attention to the guidance of the Quran, that was a far-off matter.
