Surah Al-An'am, Ayah 83

أَتُحَاجُّونِّى فِى اللَّهِ وَقَدْ هَدَانِى

(Do you dispute with me about Allah while He has guided me). The Ayah means, do you argue with me about Allah, other than Whom there is no god worthy of worship, while He has guided me to the Truth and made me aware of it Therefore, how can I ever consider your misguided statements and false doubts Ibrahim said next,

وَلاَ أَخَافُ مَا تُشْرِكُونَ بِهِ إِلاَّ أَن يَشَآءَ رَبِّى شَيْئاً

(and I fear not those whom you associate with Allah in worship. (Nothing can happen to me) except when my Lord wills something.) Ibrahim said, among the proofs to the falsehood of your creed, is that these false gods that you worship do not bring about any effect, and I do not fear them or care about them. Therefore, if these gods are able to cause harm, then use them against me and do not give me respite. Ibrahim's statement,

In the second verse (83), Allah Ta` ala has said that the triumph of Sayyidna Ibrahim (علیہ السلام) in his debate against his people and in which he had silenced them was a blessing of Allah alone for He gave him a sound theory to propound and glowing arguments to employ. Let no one wax proud about his or her intelligence and understanding or art of discourse and power of oration as self-sufficient. Nothing crosses the barrier of possibility without the support and help of Allah Ta` ala. Bland human reason is not enough to comprehend realities. This is a matter of common observation in every age. Philosophers of great standing go astray while many among the illiterate get a firm hold on correct belief and right thinking. Maulana Rumi was on the beam when he said:

بے عنایاتِ حق و خاصانِ حق

گر مَلک بشد سید ہستش ورق

Without the graces of The True One and those close to Him

Dark shall be the record of deeds, even if one be an angel.

By saying: نَرْ‌فَعُ دَرَ‌جَاتٍ مَّن نَّشَاءُ (We raise in ranks whom We will) towards the end of the verse (83), the hint given is that the station of special reverence received by Sayyidna Ibrahim (علیہ السلام) in this world which would last through generations to come until the Last Day, a homage universally paid by Jews, Christians, Muslims and Buddhists, was no feat of personal acquisition or recognition, instead of which, this was nothing but the grace and reward from Allah.

The story of Abraham narrated here is not the story of his search for Truth but that of his observation of Truth. Abraham was born in Iraq four thousand years ago in an environment in which the sun, moon and stars were worshipped. However, Nature’s guidance and God’s special help kept Abraham away from polytheism. His keen vigilant eyes observed signs in the phenomena spread throughout the universe which supported the idea of the oneness of God (tawhid). Everywhere in the mirror of the universe, the face of the one God would appear before him. Feeling sorry for his community, he used to ask them why they were blind to reality, in spite of the facts revealed before them. Whenever a thing or person is given the status of the worshipped one (ma‘bud), it naturally follows that the concepts of mysterious pre-eminence and greatness become attached to that thing or person. People start thinking that, in the scheme of the universe, this being has a high status such as is not enjoyed by anybody else. Pleasing him brings good fortune, while displeasing him does the reverse. Accordingly, when Abraham said that his community’s deities were valueless and that in this world of God they had absolutely no powers, people were afraid that, as a result of this ‘insolence’, they might be subjected to some suffering and they started arguing with Abraham. They warned him against such talk and said that the vengeance of these deities would be wreaked upon him—he would become blind, go mad, would face destruction, etc.