7:146 Al-A'raaf (The Heights)

سَأَصْرِفُ عَنْ آيَاتِيَ أي: عن الاعتبار في الآيات الأفقية والنفسية، والفهم لآيات الكتاب الَّذِينَ يَتَكَبَّرُونَ فِي الأرْضِ بِغَيْرِ الْحَقِّ أي: يتكبرون على عباد اللّه وعلى الحق، وعلى من جاء به، فمن كان بهذه الصفة، حرمه اللّه خيرا كثيرا وخذله، ولم يفقه من آيات اللّه ما ينتفع به، بل ربما انقلبت عليه الحقائق، واستحسن القبيح. وَإِنْ يَرَوْا كُلَّ آيَةٍ لا يُؤْمِنُوا بِهَا لإعراضهم واعتراضهم، ومحادتهم للّه ورسوله، وَإِنْ يَرَوْا سَبِيلَ الرُّشْدِ أي: الهدى والاستقامة، وهو الصراط الموصل إلى اللّه، وإلى دار كرامته لا يَتَّخِذُوهُ أي: لا يسلكوه ولا يرغبوا فيه وَإِنْ يَرَوْا سَبِيلَ الْغَيِّ أي: الغواية الموصل لصاحبه إلى دار الشقاء يَتَّخِذُوهُ سَبِيلا والسبب في انحرافهم هذا الانحراف ذَلِكَ بِأَنَّهُمْ كَذَّبُوا بِآيَاتِنَا وَكَانُوا عَنْهَا غَافِلِينَ فردهم لآيات اللّه، وغفلتهم عما يراد بها واحتقارهم لها - هو الذي أوجب لهم من سلوك طريق الغي، وترك طريق الرشد ما أوجب.

يقول تعالى "سأصرف عن آياتي الذين يتكبرون في الأرض بغير الحق" أي سأمنع فهم الحجج والأدلة الدالة على عظمتي وشريعتي وأحكامي قلوب المتكبرين عن طاعتي ويتكبرون على الناس بغير حق أي كما استكبروا بغير حق أذلهم الله بالجهل كما قال تعالى "ونقلب أفئدتهم وأبصارهم كما لم يؤمنوا به أول مرة" وقال تعالى "فلما زاغوا أزاغ الله قلوبهم" وقال بعض السلف لا ينال العلم حيي ولا مستكبر وقال آخر: من لم يصبر على ذل التعلم ساعة بقي في ذل الجهل أبدا. وقال سفيان بن عيينة في قوله "سأصرف عن آياتي الذين يتكبرون في الأرض بغير الحق" قال أنزع عنهم فهم القرآن وأصرفهم عن آياتي قال ابن جرير: وهذا يدل على أن هذا خطاب لهذه الأمة. قلت: ليس هذا بلازم لأن ابن عيينة إنما أراد أن هذا مطرد في حق كل أمة ولا فرق بين أحد وأحد في هذا والله أعلم وقوله "وإن يروا كل آية لا يؤمنوا بها" كما قال تعالى "إن الذين حقت عليه كلمة ربك لا يؤمنون ولو جاءتهم كل آية حتى يروا العذاب الأليم" وقوله "وإن يروا سبيل الرشد لا يتخذوه سبيلا" أي وإن ظهر لهم سبيل الرشد أي طريق النجاة لا يسلكوها وإن ظهر لهم طريق الهلاك والضلال يتخذوه سبيلا ثم علل مصيرهم إلى هذه الحال بقوله "ذلك بأنهم كذبوا بآياتنا" أي كذبت بها قلوبهم" وكانوا عنها غافلين" أي لا يعلمون شيئا مما فيها.

Arrogant People will be deprived of Allah's Ayat

Allah said,

سَأَصْرِفُ عَنْ ءَايَـتِي الَّذِينَ يَتَكَبَّرُونَ فِي الأَرْضِ بِغَيْرِ الْحَقِّ

(I shall turn away from My Ayat those who behave arrogantly on the earth, without a right). Allah says, "I shall deprive the hearts of those who are too proud to obey Me, and arrogant with people without right, from understanding the signs and proofs that testify to My Might, Law and Commandments." And just as they acted arrogantly without justification, Allah has disgraced them with ignorance. Allah said in another Ayah,

وَنُقَلِّبُ أَفْئِدَتَهُمْ وَأَبْصَـرَهُمْ كَمَا لَمْ يُؤْمِنُواْ بِهِ أَوَّلَ مَرَّةٍ

(And We shall turn their hearts and their eyes away (from guidance), as they refused to believe therein for the first time) 6:110, and,

فَلَمَّا زَاغُواْ أَزَاغَ اللَّهُ قُلُوبَهُمْ

(So when they turned away (from the path of Allah), Allah turned their hearts away (from the right path).) 61:5 Sufyan bin `Uyaynah commented on this Ayah,

سَأَصْرِفُ عَنْ ءَايَـتِي الَّذِينَ يَتَكَبَّرُونَ فِي الأَرْضِ بِغَيْرِ الْحَقِّ

(I shall turn away from My Ayat those who behave arrogantly on the earth, without a right), "(Allah says) I shall snatch away comprehension of the Qur'an from them and turn them away from My Ayat. " Ibn Jarir commented on Sufyan's statement that, "This indicates that this part of the Ayah is addressed to this Ummah." This is not necessarily true, for Ibn `Uyaynah actually meant that this occurs in every Ummah and that there is no difference between one Ummah and another Ummah in this regard. Allah knows best. Allah said next,

وَإِن يَرَوْاْ كُلَّ ءَايَةٍ لاَّ يُؤْمِنُواْ بِهَا

(and (even) if they see all the Ayat, they will not believe in them). Allah said in a similar Ayah,

إِنَّ الَّذِينَ حَقَّتْ عَلَيْهِمْ كَلِمَةُ رَبِّكَ لاَ يُؤْمِنُونَ - وَلَوْ جَآءَتْهُمْ كُلُّ ءايَةٍ حَتَّى يَرَوُاْ الْعَذَابَ الاٌّلِيمَ

(Truly, those, against whom the Word (wrath) of your Lord has been justified, will not believe. Even if every sign should come to them, until they see the painful torment.) 10:96-97 Allah's statement,

وَإِن يَرَوْاْ سَبِيلَ الرُّشْدِ لاَ يَتَّخِذُوهُ سَبِيلاً

(And if they see the way of righteousness, they will not adopt it as the way,) means, even if the way of guidance and safety appears before them, they will not take it, but if the way that leads to destruction and misguidance appears to them, they adopt that way. Allah explains why they do this,

ذلِكَ بِأَنَّهُمْ كَذَّبُواْ بِـَايَـتِنَا

(that is because they have rejected Our Ayat), in their hearts,

وَكَانُواْ عَنْهَا غَـفِلِينَ

(and were heedless of them.), gaining no lessons from the Ayat. Allah's statement,

وَالَّذِينَ كَذَّبُواْ بِـَايَـتِنَا وَلِقَآءِ الاٌّخِرَةِ حَبِطَتْ أَعْمَـلُهُمْ

(Those who deny Our Ayat and the meeting in the Hereafter, vain are their deeds.) indicates that whoever among them does this, remaining on this path until death, then all his deeds will be in vain. Allah said next,

هَلْ يُجْزَوْنَ إِلاَّ مَا كَانُواْ يَعْمَلُونَ

(Are they requited with anything except what they used to do) meaning, `We only recompense them according to the deeds that they performed, good for good and evil for evil. Surely, as you bring forth, you reap the harvest thereof.'

I shall turn away from My signs the proofs of My power in the way of creations and otherwise those who behave arrogantly in the earth without right by humiliating them so that they do not magnify themselves; and if they see every sign do not believe in it and if they see the way the path of rectitude the guidance that has come from God do not adopt it as a way to follow and if they see the way of error misguidance adopt it as a way. That turning of them away is because they have denied Our signs and were heedless of them. A similar statement has been made above.

Commentary

The verse 146 spoke of the arrogant people as showing arrogance unjustly. The word without truth or unjustly indicates that assuming arrogance in response to the arrogant people is a justified act, since it is the act of arrogance in appearance, and not in reality. It is a known dictum: اَلتَّکَبُّرُ مَعَ المُتَّکبِّرِینَ تواضُعُ "Showing arrogance to the arrogant is an act of humbleness". (Masail as-Suluk).

The effects of Arrogance

By saying, "I shall keep away from My verses those who show arrogance," the verse implies that the people who have an offensive sense of superiority over others are deprived of knowledge and understanding. They are rendered incapable of benefitting themselves from the signs of Allah. The term 'Signs of Allah', may have a reference to the revealed verses of the Torah, Evangel and the Qur'an, as well as to the signs inherent in all the things of the heavens and the earth. The false sense of superiority is, therefore, the worst habit which keeps man away from deliberations in the signs of Allah and getting awareness of the truth.

We find it stated in Ruh-al-Bayan that arrogance is such a wicked habitude as raises a wall between man and the knowledge from Allah. Since divine knowledge comes only through the mercy of Allah, and the mercy of Allah visits those who are humble. The spiritual leader Sheikh Rumi has said:

ھر کجا آب پستی آب آنجا رود ھر کجا مشکل جواب آنجا رود

"Water flows down towards the slope, and solution goes where difficulty appears."

I shall turn away from My signs those who are proud in the earth without the Real. Even were they to see all the signs, they would not have faith in them. Were they to see the way of rectitude, they would not take it as a way. Pride is of two sorts: one with the Real, the other without the Real. That which is with the Real is the pride of the poor toward the rich. They are high in aspiration and rich in the heart through the Real. They have turned their aspiration away from the Throne and everything beneath it, cut their hearts off from the creatures, and busied themselves with love for the Real. Their aspiration is greater than this world and better than the afterworld. Their yearning is for the vision of the Patron. WāsiṬī said, “Pride with the Real is pride toward the rich and the sinful and toward the unbelievers and the folk of innovation. It is been transmitted in the traditions, 'Meet the ungodly with dark faces.'” The pride that is without the Real is the pride of the rich and the world-rulers toward the poor. This is what is meant by His words, “who are proud in the earth without the Real.” Ibn ʿAṬāÌ said on this verse: “I shall keep back their hearts, their secret cores, and their spirits from roaming in the dominion of holiness.”5 In other words, “I will bind their hearts and secret cores from going. I will make their own being into their veil. I will turn them away from My road so that their secret cores will not be able to roam in the world of holiness and the Dominion. They will be held back from seeing the wonders of the Dominion and become intimate with their own souls and the creatures of this world. They will not taste the flavor of finding and they will remain unaware of the charismatic gifts of the folk of election. They will never see a day of good fortune for themselves, nor will the rose of union bloom for them.” The poor wretch who has never caught a scent of these words! How can he have anything of the ocean when he has no stream? Were they to see the way of rectitude, they would not take it as a way.