إِنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ فَرَّقُوا۟ دِينَهُمْ وَكَانُوا۟ شِيَعًا لَّسْتَ مِنْهُمْ فِى شَىْءٍ ۚ إِنَّمَآ أَمْرُهُمْ إِلَى ٱللَّهِ ثُمَّ يُنَبِّئُهُم بِمَا كَانُوا۟ يَفْعَلُونَ 159
Translations
Indeed, those who have divided their religion and become sects - you, [O Muḥammad], are not [associated] with them in anything. Their affair is only [left] to Allāh; then He will inform them about what they used to do.
Transliteration
Inna alladhina farraqoo deenaham wa kanoo shiyaan lasta minhum fee shay'in innama amruhum ilallah thumma yunabbihum bima kanoo yaf'aloon
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah condemns those who fragment and divide their religion into competing sects and factions, declaring that the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) has no association with such divisiveness. According to Ibn Kathir and Al-Tabari, Allah alone will judge these people for their schisms and will inform them of their deeds on the Day of Judgment. The verse emphasizes religious unity as a fundamental principle while reserving final judgment to Allah, who sees all intentions and actions.
Revelation Context
Revealed in Mecca during a period when the Prophet was consolidating the Muslim community's identity. The ayah addresses the tendency of people to create sects based on ego, cultural differences, or misunderstanding of doctrine—a concern that would intensify after the Prophet's time. It occurs within Surah Al-An'am's broader theme of monotheism and rejecting idolatry and false divisions in faith.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet (peace be upon him) said: 'My ummah will be divided into seventy-three sects, all of which will be in the Fire except one.' (Jami' at-Tirmidhi 2641). Also related: 'The best of you are my generation, then those who follow them, then those who follow them' (Sahih Bukhari 2509), emphasizing adherence to united principles.
Themes
Key Lesson
Muslims must prioritize religious unity and reject unnecessary sectarian divisions while maintaining core Islamic principles—our responsibility is to follow truth together, while Allah's role is to judge our intentions and deeds.
Related Ayahs
فَلَمَّا نَسُوا۟ مَا ذُكِّرُوا۟ بِهِۦ فَتَحْنَا عَلَيْهِمْ أَبْوَٰبَ كُلِّ شَىْءٍ حَتَّىٰٓ إِذَا فَرِحُوا۟ بِمَآ أُوتُوٓا۟ أَخَذْنَـٰهُم بَغْتَةً فَإِذَا هُم مُّبْلِسُونَ
So when they forgot that by which they had been reminded, We opened to them the doors of every [good] thing until, when they rejoiced in that which they were given, We seized them suddenly, and they were [then] in despair.
وَهَـٰذَا كِتَـٰبٌ أَنزَلْنَـٰهُ مُبَارَكٌ مُّصَدِّقُ ٱلَّذِى بَيْنَ يَدَيْهِ وَلِتُنذِرَ أُمَّ ٱلْقُرَىٰ وَمَنْ حَوْلَهَا ۚ وَٱلَّذِينَ يُؤْمِنُونَ بِٱلْـَٔاخِرَةِ يُؤْمِنُونَ بِهِۦ ۖ وَهُمْ عَلَىٰ صَلَاتِهِمْ يُحَافِظُونَ
And this is a Book which We have sent down, blessed and confirming what was before it, that you may warn the Mother of Cities [i.e., Makkah] and those around it. Those who believe in the Hereafter believe in it, and they are maintaining their prayers.
وَقَالُوا۟ لَوْلَا نُزِّلَ عَلَيْهِ ءَايَةٌ مِّن رَّبِّهِۦ ۚ قُلْ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ قَادِرٌ عَلَىٰٓ أَن يُنَزِّلَ ءَايَةً وَلَـٰكِنَّ أَكْثَرَهُمْ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ
And they say, "Why has a sign not been sent down to him from his Lord?" Say, "Indeed, Allāh is Able to send down a sign, but most of them do not know."
۞ وَلَهُۥ مَا سَكَنَ فِى ٱلَّيْلِ وَٱلنَّهَارِ ۚ وَهُوَ ٱلسَّمِيعُ ٱلْعَلِيمُ
And to Him belongs that which reposes by night and by day, and He is the Hearing, the Knowing.