وَقَالُوا۟ هَـٰذِهِۦٓ أَنْعَـٰمٌ وَحَرْثٌ حِجْرٌ لَّا يَطْعَمُهَآ إِلَّا مَن نَّشَآءُ بِزَعْمِهِمْ وَأَنْعَـٰمٌ حُرِّمَتْ ظُهُورُهَا وَأَنْعَـٰمٌ لَّا يَذْكُرُونَ ٱسْمَ ٱللَّهِ عَلَيْهَا ٱفْتِرَآءً عَلَيْهِ ۚ سَيَجْزِيهِم بِمَا كَانُوا۟ يَفْتَرُونَ 138
Translations
And they say, "These animals and crops are forbidden; no one may eat from them except whom we will," by their claim. And there are those [camels] whose backs are forbidden [by them] and those upon which the name of Allāh is not mentioned - [all of this] an invention of untruth about Him. He will punish them for what they were inventing.
Transliteration
Wa qalū hādhihi an'āmun wa hartun hijrun lā yat'amuhā illā man nashā'u bi za'mihim wa an'āmun hurrimat zuhūruhā wa an'āmun lā yadhkurūn asma Allāhi 'alayhā iftirā'an 'alayh. Sayajzīhim bi mā kānū yaftarūn.
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah condemns the pre-Islamic Arabian practice of fabricating false religious laws regarding livestock and crops. The pagans arbitrarily declared certain animals and agricultural land as forbidden (haram) to common people, claiming only their chosen individuals could benefit from them, while also prohibiting the slaughtering of certain livestock without mentioning Allah's name—all false inventions attributed to divine law. Classical scholars like Al-Tabari and Ibn Kathir emphasize that these practices represented shirk (associating partners with Allah) through unlawful prohibition and the omission of Allah's name during sacrificial acts.
Revelation Context
This ayah addresses the idolatrous customs of pre-Islamic Arabia (Jahiliyyah) regarding food taboos and animal restrictions. Surah Al-An'am extensively discusses the false beliefs and superstitions of the Meccan polytheists, and this specific verse targets their arbitrary regulations on livestock and agriculture that had no basis in divine revelation, serving as evidence against their claims of following divine guidance.
Related Hadiths
Sahih Muslim records that the Prophet ﷺ said: 'The worst of the people in the sight of Allah on the Day of Resurrection will be the one who invents a lie against Allah or denies His signs.' This directly relates to the fabrication condemned in this ayah. Additionally, hadith regarding the prohibition of declaring things haram without Allah's permission appears in multiple collections.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches that no person or institution has the right to declare lawful things unlawful or create religious laws without divine authorization; such fabrications constitute grave sins and will face divine punishment. For modern readers, this warns against accepting cultural or religious restrictions that lack proper scriptural basis and encourages questioning the legitimacy of practices presented as Islamic law.
Related Ayahs
وَإِن كَانَ كَبُرَ عَلَيْكَ إِعْرَاضُهُمْ فَإِنِ ٱسْتَطَعْتَ أَن تَبْتَغِىَ نَفَقًا فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ أَوْ سُلَّمًا فِى ٱلسَّمَآءِ فَتَأْتِيَهُم بِـَٔايَةٍ ۚ وَلَوْ شَآءَ ٱللَّهُ لَجَمَعَهُمْ عَلَى ٱلْهُدَىٰ ۚ فَلَا تَكُونَنَّ مِنَ ٱلْجَـٰهِلِينَ
And if their evasion is difficult for you, then if you are able to seek a tunnel into the earth or a stairway into the sky to bring them a sign, [then do so]. But if Allāh had willed, He would have united them upon guidance. So never be of the ignorant.
فَلَوْلَآ إِذْ جَآءَهُم بَأْسُنَا تَضَرَّعُوا۟ وَلَـٰكِن قَسَتْ قُلُوبُهُمْ وَزَيَّنَ لَهُمُ ٱلشَّيْطَـٰنُ مَا كَانُوا۟ يَعْمَلُونَ
Then why, when Our punishment came to them, did they not humble themselves? But their hearts became hardened, and Satan made attractive to them that which they were doing.
وَلَوْ جَعَلْنَـٰهُ مَلَكًا لَّجَعَلْنَـٰهُ رَجُلًا وَلَلَبَسْنَا عَلَيْهِم مَّا يَلْبِسُونَ
And if We had made him [i.e., the messenger] an angel, We would have made him [appear as] a man, and We would have covered them with that in which they cover themselves [i.e., confusion and doubt].
وَجَعَلُوا۟ لِلَّهِ شُرَكَآءَ ٱلْجِنَّ وَخَلَقَهُمْ ۖ وَخَرَقُوا۟ لَهُۥ بَنِينَ وَبَنَـٰتٍۭ بِغَيْرِ عِلْمٍ ۚ سُبْحَـٰنَهُۥ وَتَعَـٰلَىٰ عَمَّا يَصِفُونَ
But they have attributed to Allāh partners - the jinn, while He has created them - and have fabricated for Him sons and daughters without knowledge. Exalted is He and high above what they describe.