And indeed, those who disbelieve would almost make you slip with their eyes [i.e., looks] when they hear the message, and they say, "Indeed, he is mad."
The Command to be Patient and to refrain from being Hasty like Yunus was
Allah says,
فَاصْبِرْ
(So wait with patience) `O Muhammad, persevere against the harm your people cause you and their rejection. For verily, Allah will give you authority over them, and make the final victory for you and your followers in this life and the Hereafter.'
وَلاَ تَكُن كَصَـحِبِ الْحُوتِ
(and be not like the Companion of the Fish) meaning, Dhun-Nun, who was Yunus bin Matta, when he went off angry with his people. Various things happened to him, such as riding on a ship at sea, being swallowed by a (large) fish, the fish carrying him off into the ocean, being in the darkness and depth of the sea and hearing the sea's and its dwellers glorification of the Most High, the Most Able (Allah). For He (Allah) is the One Whose execution of divine decree cannot be resisted. After all of this, he (Yunus) called out from the layers of darkness,
وَإِن يَكَادُ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا لَيُزْلِقُونَكَ بِأَبْصَارِهِمْ (And indeed the disbelievers seem to trip you up with their glances when they hear the Reminder, and say, "He is a madman indeed 68:51). The verb 'layuzliqunaka' is derived from izlaq which means 'to trip up or to cause someone to fall or make a mistake' [ Raghib ]. The verse says to the Holy Prophet that disbelievers cast angry looks at him that they might frighten him into giving up his mission or intimidate him into yielding to their pressure tactics. When they listen to Divine words, they call him a madman. But far from it, his teaching contains the quintessence of wisdom - the Qur'an puts it thus:
وَمَا هُوَ إِلَّا ذِكْرٌ لِّلْعَالَمِينَ (And it is nothing else but a Reminder for all the worlds.... 68:52). Divine words are a Reminder and an admonition for the entire universe. The Reminder will lift the people from the lowest depths of degradation to the highest summits of greatness and glory. It would also cleanse them and free them from moral blemishes and raise their spiritual stature. Is it possible for an insane person to receive and deliver such a Sublime Divine Message? Can a Prophet of such a high caliber be called a madman? The earlier verses of this Surah rebutted the charge of insanity against the Holy Prophet ﷺ . Towards the end of the Surah, the same charge of lunacy is rebutted again in a different style.
Imam Baghawi (رح) and some other commentators have reported another event as background of this verse. The evil eye is a reality which causes loss, illness and destruction. Authentic Traditions report that it is a reality. The Arabs also believed that an evil eye is a reality. There was a person famous in Arabia to cast an evil eye on camels or animals to cause instant death or destruction. The pagans of Arabia were enemies of the Holy Prophet ﷺ and in every possible way they were after persecuting him and killing him. They left no stone unturned in harming him. They even contemplated afflicting him with an evil eye. They therefore decided to secure the services of the particular person who could effectively cast an evil eye. He was instructed to cast the evil eye on the Messenger of Allah ﷺ so that he would become ill. He exerted himself to the utmost, but to no avail. Allah protected him and he was unaffected. The verses were revealed in connection with this incident.
Special Note
Sayyidna Hasan Basri (رح) reports that if anyone is affected by the evil eye, these verses (51 52) may be recited and blown on the person: the ill effect will be dispelled.
Alhamdulillah
The Commentary on
Surah Al-Qalam
Ends here
Tazkirul Quran
Maulana Wahiduddin KhanOn ayahs 45–51
On the Day of Judgement when God will reveal Himself, the true believers will fall prostrate before their Lord, just as they bowed down before Him in their previous life. On this occasion, the deniers will be inspired likewise to prostrate themselves (sajdah). But the backs of the people who offered ‘false prostration’ in this world, will grow stiff just as they virtually were in this world. Such people will want to prostrate themselves at that time of realisation, but they will not be able to do so. It will be the greatest sign of God’s appreciation of sincere people of Faith that He Himself should appear and accept their offering of sajdah. On the contrary, it will be the moment of the greatest humiliation for those making false claims of Faith; in spite of their Creator and Lord being right there before them, they will not be able to do obeisance to Him.
Uthmani text of the Madinah mushaf (King Fahd Complex). Translation: Saheeh International. Tafsir via Quran.com.
![Surah Al-Qalam 68:51 in Arabic with its translation: “And indeed, those who disbelieve would almost make you slip with their eyes [i.e., looks] when they hear the…”](/surah/al-qalam/51/image.jpg)