SURAH 2 AL-BAQARAH, AYAT 170-171
Arabic Text:
وَاِذَا قِيۡلَ لَهُمُ اتَّبِعُوۡا مَآ اَنۡزَلَ اللّٰهُ قَالُوۡا بَلۡ نَـتَّبِعُ مَآ اَلۡفَيۡنَا عَلَيۡهِ اٰبَآءَنَا ؕ اَوَلَوۡ كَانَ اٰبَآؤُهُمۡ لَا يَعۡقِلُوۡنَ شَيۡـئًـا وَّلَا يَهۡتَدُوۡنَ ﴿2:170﴾
وَمَثَلُ الَّذِيۡنَ کَفَرُوۡا كَمَثَلِ الَّذِىۡ يَنۡعِقُ بِمَا لَا يَسۡمَعُ اِلَّا دُعَآءً وَّنِدَآءً ؕ صُمٌّۢ بُكۡمٌ عُمۡـىٌ فَهُمۡ لَا يَعۡقِلُوۡنَ ﴿2:171﴾
Q: What do Ayat 170-171 address?
A: These two verses address the stubbornness of those who refuse to follow divine revelation, preferring instead to blindly follow the customs and practices of their forefathers, even when those forefathers lacked understanding and right guidance.
Q: What is the response of the disbelievers when told to follow what Allah has revealed (2:170)?
A: They say, “No, we shall follow what we found our forefathers adhering to.” Their only justification for clinging to their taboos and practices was that they had been sanctioned by ancestral tradition passed down through generations — an argument they considered sufficient, despite its flimsiness.
Q: What does Allah say in response to their appeal to ancestral tradition?
A: Allah challenges them with a rhetorical question: “What! Even if their forefathers were devoid of understanding and right guidance?” This exposes the irrationality of blindly following tradition regardless of whether it has any basis in reason or truth.
Q: What parable does Allah use in Ayat 171 to describe the disbelievers?
A: Allah compares them to cattle being called by a shepherd — they hear only sounds and shouting but understand nothing of the meaning behind the call. They are described as deaf, dumb, and blind, and therefore incapable of comprehension.
Q: What are the two aspects of this parable as explained in the notes?
A: The parable carries a dual meaning. First, it likens the disbelievers to irrational herd animals that follow their leaders without understanding where they are being led. Second, it describes their indifference to the Truth — when preached to, they are like animals that register only sounds but cannot grasp meaning. The expression deliberately lends itself to both interpretations.
Q: What is the significance of the phrase “deaf, dumb and blind” in this context?
A: These terms are used spiritually rather than literally. The disbelievers have closed themselves off from hearing the truth, speaking it, and perceiving it — rendering them incapable of rational reflection or genuine understanding of divine guidance.
Messages from Quran 