سُوْرَةُ الضُّحٰي
Surah Ad-Dhuhaa (93) — Ayah 6
أَلَمْ يَجِدْكَ يَتِيمًا فَـَٔاوَىٰ ﴿6﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
Did He not find you (O Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم) an orphan and gave you a refuge?
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
أَلَمْ
alam
Did not
يَجِدْكَ
yajid'ka
He find you
يَتِيمًۭا
yatīman
an orphan
فَـَٔاوَىٰ
faāwā
and give shelter
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.
Did He not find you an orphan [5] and then gave you shelter?
[6] You ﷺ were averse to disbelief and polytheism since childhood. By nature, you detested lying, dishonesty, and vile morals. You ﷺ recognized your true Owner and Creator properly. However, you ﷺ could not understand how it would be possible to reform a society immersed in misguidance. History shows that in that dark era of ignorance, there were five or six people who shared your ﷺ thoughts and companionship, foremost among them being Sayyiduna Abu Bakr Siddiq ؓ. These people too were extremely averse to polytheism and other social evils. And you ﷺ were the most concerned about this matter. You ﷺ would go alone into the caves of the mountains. There, you would connect with the True Owner and ponder over what method could be adopted to save the creation of Allah from the misguidance of disbelief and polytheism. Thus, it was for this very purpose that you were residing in the Cave of Hira when, for the first time, Jibreel Amin descended upon you ﷺ. In this way, Allah Almighty paved the way to fulfill that long-standing yearning which had been surging in your ﷺ chest for a long time. In this verse, Allah Almighty has mentioned this favor and blessing of His. It should be clear that in this verse, the word "daallan" is used, and the word ﴿ضَلَّ﴾ in the Arabic language is used in the following six meanings.
The Meaning of ﴿ضلّ﴾:
1. The basic meaning of ﴿ضَلَ﴾ is to lose or miss the way. For example, a person reaches a place where ahead there are either many paths or even the sign of a single path is lost, and he begins to wonder what to do now—should he remain standing there, or if he chooses a path, which one should he take? The state of a person losing the way in this manner is expressed by the word ﴿ضَلَّ﴾, and in this verse, this is the meaning of "daallan." In what sense were you "daallan"?
2. Then, sometimes, in this state of bewilderment, a person may also set out on the wrong path. Now, if this taking of the wrong path happens unintentionally and by mistake, then ﴿ضَلَّ﴾ means "to forget." As it is said: ﴿اَنْ تَضِلَّ اِحْدٰيهُمَا فَتُذَكِّرَ اِحْدٰيهُمَا الْاُخْرٰي﴾ [282:2] meaning, if one of those two women forgets, then the other should remind her.
3. And if taking the wrong path and deviating from the right way is done intentionally, that is, deliberately, then it is a sin, as it is said: ﴿غَيْرِ الْمَغْضُوْبِ عَلَيْهِمْ وَلَاالضَّالِيْنَ﴾ [1: 7] meaning, neither the path of those who have incurred Your wrath nor of those who have gone astray. And in the hadith, it is explicitly mentioned that you ﷺ said to 'Adi bin Hatim that: ﴿مَغْضُوْبِ عَلَيْهِمْ﴾ by "al-Fatiha" refers to the Jews, and ﴿ضَالِّيْنَ﴾ refers to the Christians, who were the originators and adherents of the doctrine of Trinity.
4. And sometimes this word is used in the sense of something losing its own existence and being replaced by something else, as the disbelievers say: ﴿وَقَالُوْٓا ءَاِذَا ضَلَلْنَا فِي الْاَرْضِ ءَاِنَّا لَفِيْ خَلْقٍ جَدِيْدٍ ڛ بَلْ هُمْ بِلِقَاۗئِ رَبِّهِمْ كٰفِرُوْنَ﴾ meaning, when we have mingled with the earth and become earth, will we be created anew?
5. And sometimes this word is used for an action that yields no result, that is, the purpose for which something is done is not fulfilled. As it is said: ﴿اَلَّذِيْنَ ضَلَّ سَعْيُهُمْ فِي الْحَيٰوةِ الدُّنْيَا وَهُمْ يَحْسَبُوْنَ اَنَّهُمْ يُحْسِنُوْنَ صُنْعًا﴾ [104:18] meaning, those whose efforts in the world have been wasted while they thought they were doing good deeds.
6. And sometimes this word is also used for being infatuated in someone's love, as the brothers of Yusuf ؑ said to their father: ﴿تَاللّٰهِ اِنَّكَ لَفِيْ ضَلٰلِكَ الْقَدِيْمِ﴾ meaning, by Allah! You are still infatuated with that old love of Yusuf.
In this verse, both the first and sixth meanings can be applied, because both meanings correspond to your life before prophethood, and in the translation, the first meaning has been chosen because that is the basic meaning of the word.
[6] You ﷺ were averse to disbelief and polytheism since childhood. By nature, you detested lying, dishonesty, and vile morals. You ﷺ recognized your true Owner and Creator properly. However, you ﷺ could not understand how it would be possible to reform a society immersed in misguidance. History shows that in that dark era of ignorance, there were five or six people who shared your ﷺ thoughts and companionship, foremost among them being Sayyiduna Abu Bakr Siddiq ؓ. These people too were extremely averse to polytheism and other social evils. And you ﷺ were the most concerned about this matter. You ﷺ would go alone into the caves of the mountains. There, you would connect with the True Owner and ponder over what method could be adopted to save the creation of Allah from the misguidance of disbelief and polytheism. Thus, it was for this very purpose that you were residing in the Cave of Hira when, for the first time, Jibreel Amin descended upon you ﷺ. In this way, Allah Almighty paved the way to fulfill that long-standing yearning which had been surging in your ﷺ chest for a long time. In this verse, Allah Almighty has mentioned this favor and blessing of His. It should be clear that in this verse, the word "daallan" is used, and the word ﴿ضَلَّ﴾ in the Arabic language is used in the following six meanings.
The Meaning of ﴿ضلّ﴾:
1. The basic meaning of ﴿ضَلَ﴾ is to lose or miss the way. For example, a person reaches a place where ahead there are either many paths or even the sign of a single path is lost, and he begins to wonder what to do now—should he remain standing there, or if he chooses a path, which one should he take? The state of a person losing the way in this manner is expressed by the word ﴿ضَلَّ﴾, and in this verse, this is the meaning of "daallan." In what sense were you "daallan"?
2. Then, sometimes, in this state of bewilderment, a person may also set out on the wrong path. Now, if this taking of the wrong path happens unintentionally and by mistake, then ﴿ضَلَّ﴾ means "to forget." As it is said: ﴿اَنْ تَضِلَّ اِحْدٰيهُمَا فَتُذَكِّرَ اِحْدٰيهُمَا الْاُخْرٰي﴾ [282:2] meaning, if one of those two women forgets, then the other should remind her.
3. And if taking the wrong path and deviating from the right way is done intentionally, that is, deliberately, then it is a sin, as it is said: ﴿غَيْرِ الْمَغْضُوْبِ عَلَيْهِمْ وَلَاالضَّالِيْنَ﴾ [1: 7] meaning, neither the path of those who have incurred Your wrath nor of those who have gone astray. And in the hadith, it is explicitly mentioned that you ﷺ said to 'Adi bin Hatim that: ﴿مَغْضُوْبِ عَلَيْهِمْ﴾ by "al-Fatiha" refers to the Jews, and ﴿ضَالِّيْنَ﴾ refers to the Christians, who were the originators and adherents of the doctrine of Trinity.
4. And sometimes this word is used in the sense of something losing its own existence and being replaced by something else, as the disbelievers say: ﴿وَقَالُوْٓا ءَاِذَا ضَلَلْنَا فِي الْاَرْضِ ءَاِنَّا لَفِيْ خَلْقٍ جَدِيْدٍ ڛ بَلْ هُمْ بِلِقَاۗئِ رَبِّهِمْ كٰفِرُوْنَ﴾ meaning, when we have mingled with the earth and become earth, will we be created anew?
5. And sometimes this word is used for an action that yields no result, that is, the purpose for which something is done is not fulfilled. As it is said: ﴿اَلَّذِيْنَ ضَلَّ سَعْيُهُمْ فِي الْحَيٰوةِ الدُّنْيَا وَهُمْ يَحْسَبُوْنَ اَنَّهُمْ يُحْسِنُوْنَ صُنْعًا﴾ [104:18] meaning, those whose efforts in the world have been wasted while they thought they were doing good deeds.
6. And sometimes this word is also used for being infatuated in someone's love, as the brothers of Yusuf ؑ said to their father: ﴿تَاللّٰهِ اِنَّكَ لَفِيْ ضَلٰلِكَ الْقَدِيْمِ﴾ meaning, by Allah! You are still infatuated with that old love of Yusuf.
In this verse, both the first and sixth meanings can be applied, because both meanings correspond to your life before prophethood, and in the translation, the first meaning has been chosen because that is the basic meaning of the word.
