Surah An-Nur, Ayah 49

The Treachery of the Hypocrites and the Attitude of the Believers

Allah tells us about the characteristics of the hypocrites who show one thing while hiding another, and who say with their tongues,

آمَنَّا بِاللَّهِ وَبِالرَّسُولِ وَأَطَعْنَا ثُمَّ يَتَوَلَّى فَرِيقٌ مِّنْهُمْ مِّن بَعْدِ ذلِكَ

("We have believed in Allah and in the Messenger, and we obey," then a party of them turn away thereafter,) meaning, their actions contradict their deeds, and they say that which they do not do. Allah says:

وَمَآ أُوْلَـئِكَ بِالْمُؤْمِنِينَ

(such are not believers.)

وَإِذَا دُعُواْ إِلَى اللَّهِ وَرَسُولِهِ لِيَحْكُمَ بَيْنَهُمْ

(And when they are called to Allah and His Messenger, to judge between them...) means, when they are asked to follow the guidance which Allah has revealed to His Messenger , they turn away and are too arrogantly proud of themselves to follow him. This is like the Ayah:

مِنَ السَّمَاءِ مِن جِبَالٍ فِيهَا

From the sky mountains (of clouds) having hail in them - 43.

Here the word سَمَاء is purported for clouds, and Jibal جِبَالٍ (mountains) for big masses of clouds, while hails are called Barad.

To all appearances, this is a world of multiplicity. Basing their belief on this view, the people of ancient times assumed the creators of all the numerous things of this world to be numerous themselves. But one who deeply observes nature finds that a certain uniformity is hidden in all its apparent multiplicity and diversity; this observation gives an entirely different hue to previous assumptions. There are many different kinds of animals. But, an in-depth study shows that the underlying biological system of all animals is uniform. Given these facts, the multiplicity and diversity of life around us must be regarded as a miracle of nature’s creation. Things which, seen from one angle, appear to manifest the multiplicity of creation, observed from another angle, demonstrate the proof of the unity of creation. The present world is the one in which one has to discover reality amidst falsity. Here, one has to set oneself above things that are deceptive in order to perceive the Truth. Man has been given wisdom solely for this purpose. Only one who properly uses this divine torch of wisdom shall find the right path, while one who does not, shall descend into a state of moral chaos.