Surah Al-Anaam, Verse 135 and 136

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*Surah Al-Anaam, Verse 135:*

قُلْ يَا قَوْمِ اعْمَلُوا عَلَىٰ مَكَانَتِكُمْ إِنِّي عَامِلٌ فَسَوْفَ تَعْلَمُونَ مَن تَكُونُ لَهُ عَاقِبَةُ الدَّارِ إِنَّهُ لَا يُفْلِحُ الظَّالِمُونَ

Say (O Muhammad [Blessings and Peace of ALLĀH be upon him]): "O my people! Work according to your way, surely, I too am working (in my way), and you will come to know for which of us will be the (happy) end in the Hereafter. Certainly the Zalimun (polytheists and wrong-doers, etc.) will not be successful.

#COMMENTARY

In so far as this is addressed to the Unbelievers it is a challenge: "Do your utmost; nothing will detect me from my duty: we shall see who wins in the end. "Passing from the particular occasion, we can understand it in a more general sense, which is true for all time. Let the evil ones do their worst. Let those who believe do all they can, according to their opportunities and abilities. The individual mist do the straight duty that lies before him. In the end Almighty ALLĀH will judge, and His judgement is always true and just.

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*Surah Al-Anaam, Verse 136:*

وَجَعَلُوا لِلَّهِ مِمَّا ذَرَأَ مِنَ الْحَرْثِ وَالْأَنْعَامِ نَصِيبًا فَقَالُوا هَٰذَا لِلَّهِ بِزَعْمِهِمْ وَهَٰذَا لِشُرَكَائِنَا فَمَا كَانَ لِشُرَكَائِهِمْ فَلَا يَصِلُ إِلَى اللَّهِ وَمَا كَانَ لِلَّهِ فَهُوَ يَصِلُ إِلَىٰ شُرَكَائِهِمْ سَاءَ مَا يَحْكُمُونَ

And they assign to Allah a share of the tilth and cattle which He has created, and they say: "This is for Allah according to their pretending, and this is for our (Allah's so-called) partners." But the share of their (Allah's so-called) "partners" reaches not Allah, while the share of Allah reaches their (Allah's so-called) "partners"! Evil is the way they judge!

#COMMENTARY

There is scathing sarcasm here, which some of the commentators have missed. The Pagans have generally a big Pantheon, though above it they have a Vague idea of a Supreme ALLĀH (Sub-haanahu wata'aala). But the material benefits go to the the godlings, the fancied "partners" of Almighty ALLĀH (Sub-haanahu wata'aala); for they have temples, priests, dedications, etc., while the true and supreme ALLĀH has only lip-worship, or at best a share with numerous "partners." This was so in Arabia also. The shares assigned to the "partners" went to the priests and hangers-on of the "partners", who were many and clamorous for their rights. The share assigned to Almighty ALLĀH possibly went to the poor, but more probably went to the priests who had the cult of the "partners", for the Supreme God had no separate priests of His own. It is also said that when heaps were thus laid out, if any portion of Almighty ALLĀH'S heap fell into the heaps of the "partners" the priests greedily and promptly appropriated it, while in the contrary case, the "partners" priests were careful to reclaim any portion from what they called "ALLĀH'S heap." The absurdity of the whole thing is ridiculed. Almighty ALLĀH created everything: how can He have a share?