16:76 An-Nahl (The Bee)

والمثل الثاني مثل { رَجُلَيْنِ أَحَدُهُمَا أَبْكَمُ } لا يسمع ولا ينطق و { لَا يَقْدِرُ عَلَى شَيْءٍ } لا قليل ولا كثير { وَهُوَ كَلٌّ عَلَى مَوْلَاهُ } أي: يخدمه مولاه، ولا يستطيع هو أن يخدم نفسه فهو ناقص من كل وجه، فهل يستوي هذا ومن كان يأمر بالعدل وهو على صراط مستقيم، فأقواله عدل وأفعاله مستقيمة، فكما أنهما لا يستويان فلا يستوي من عبد من دون الله وهو لا يقدر على شيء من مصالحه، فلولا قيام الله بها لم يستطع شيئا منها، ولا يكون كفوا وندا لمن لا يقول إلا الحق، ولا يفعل إلا ما يحمد عليه.

قال مجاهد وهذا أيضا المراد به الوثن والحق تعالى يعني أن الوثن أبكم لا يتكلم ولا ينطق بخير ولا بشيء ولا يقدر على شيء بالكلية فلا مقال ولا فعال وهو مع هذا "كل" أي عيال وكلفة على مولاه "أينما يوجهه" أي يبعثه "لا يأت بخير" ولا ينجح مسعاه "هل يستوي" من هذه صفاته "ومن يأمر بالعدل" أي بالقسط فمقاله حق وفعاله مستقيمة "وهو على صراط مستقيم" وقيل الأبكم مولى لعثمان وبهذا قال السدي وقتادة وعطاء الخراساني واختار هذا القول ابن جرير. وقال العوفي عن ابن عباس هو مثل للكافر والمؤمن أيضا كما تقدم وقال ابن جرير حدثنا الحسن بن الصباح البزار حدثنا يحيى بن إسحاق السالحيني حدثنا حماد حدثنا عبدالله بن عثمان بن خيثم عن إبراهيم عن عكرمة عن يعلى بن أمية عن ابن عباس في قوله "ضرب الله مثلا عبدا مملوكا لا يقدر على شيء" قال نزلت في رجل من قريش وعبده يعني قوله "عبدا مملوكا" الآية. وفي قوله "وضرب الله مثلا رجلين أحدهما أبكم" - إلى قوله- "وهو على صراط مستقيم" قال هو عثمان بن عفان قال والأبكم الذي أينما يوجهه لا يأت بخير قال هو مولى لعثمان بن عفان كان عثمان ينفق عليه ويكلفه ويكفيه المئونة وكان الآخر يكره الإسلام ويأباه وينهاه عن الصدقة والمعروف فنزلت فيهما.

Another Example

Mujahid said, "This also refers to idols and the True God, may He be exalted." Meaning that the idol is dumb and cannot speak or say anything, good or otherwise. It cannot do anything at all, no words, no action, it is dependent and is a burden on its master.

أَيْنَمَا يُوَجِّههُّ

(whichever way he directs him,) meaning, wherever he sends him

لاَ يَأْتِ بِخَيْرٍ

(he brings no good.) meaning, he does not succeed in what he wants.

هَلْ يَسْتَوِى

(Is such a man equal) meaning, a man who has these attributes

وَمَن يَأْمُرُ بِالْعَدْلِ

(to one who commands justice) meaning fairness, one whose words are true and whose deeds are righteous.

وَهُوَ عَلَى صِرَطٍ مُّسْتَقِيمٍ

(and is himself on the straight path) Al-`Awfi reported that Ibn `Abbas said: "This is also an example of the disbeliever and the believer", as in the previous Ayah.

And God strikes a similitude mathalan this is substituted by the following rajulayn two men one of whom is dumb from birth having no power over anything as he cannot understand nor be understood and who is a liability burdensome to his master — the legal guardian of his affairs — wherever he directs him he does not bring therefrom any good he does not succeed and this is the similitude of the disbeliever. Is he that is the dumb one mentioned equal to one who enjoins justice that is to one who is able to speak of benefit to people since he enjoins it justice and encourages others to it and follows a path a way that is straight? — this being the second man the believer — No he is not equal to him. It is also said that this last similitude is a similitude of God while the similitude of the dumb one is of the idols so that the preceding verse contains the similitude of the disbeliever and the believer.

In the second example, there is a man who bids justice and teaches what is good. This is a model of his intellectual perfection. Then he him-self takes the path of moderation and right guidance. This is the model of his practical perfection. Set against the power of this intellectually and practically perfect man, there is the other man who cannot do anything for himself nor can he do anything right for others. These two men of two different kinds, despite being from one genus, one species and one brotherhood, cannot be equal to each other. So, how can some created being or thing become equal to the Creator and Master of the universe who is Absolute in Wisdom, Absolute in Power, and All-Knowing and All-Aware?

(Allah coineth a similitude: (on the one hand) a (mere) chattel slave, who hath control of nothing, and (on the other hand) one on whom we have bestowed a fair provision from Us, and he spendeth thereof secretly and openly. Are they equal? Praise be to Allah! But most of them know not. And Allah coineth a similitude: Two men, one of them dumb, having control of nothing, and he is a burden on his owner; whithersoever he directeth him to go, he bringeth no good. Is he equal with one who enjoineth justice and followeth a straight path (of conduct)?) [16:75-76]. Muhammad ibn Ibrahim ibn Muhammad ibn Yahya informed us> Abu Bakr ibn al-Anbari> Ja�far ibn Muhammad ibn Shakir> �Affan> Wuhayb> �Abd Allah ibn �Uthman ibn Khuthaym> Ibrahim> �Ikrimah> Ibn �Abbas who said: �This verse (Allah coineth a similitude: (on the one hand) a (mere) chattel slave�) about Hisham ibn �Amr who used to spend his wealth openly and in secret and his client Abu�l-Jawza� who used to bid him to stop doing so. As for the verse (And Allah coineth a similitude: Two men, one of them dumb, having control of nothing), the dumb who has control of nothing is Usayd ibn Abi al-�Is and the one who (enjoineth justice and followeth a straight path�) is �Uthman ibn �Affan�.