أَيَوَدُّ أَحَدُكُمْ أَن تَكُونَ لَهُۥ جَنَّةٌ مِّن نَّخِيلٍ وَأَعْنَابٍ تَجْرِى مِن تَحْتِهَا ٱلْأَنْهَـٰرُ لَهُۥ فِيهَا مِن كُلِّ ٱلثَّمَرَٰتِ وَأَصَابَهُ ٱلْكِبَرُ وَلَهُۥ ذُرِّيَّةٌ ضُعَفَآءُ فَأَصَابَهَآ إِعْصَارٌ فِيهِ نَارٌ فَٱحْتَرَقَتْ ۗ كَذَٰلِكَ يُبَيِّنُ ٱللَّهُ لَكُمُ ٱلْـَٔايَـٰتِ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَتَفَكَّرُونَ 266
Translations
Would one of you like to have a garden of palm trees and grapevines underneath which rivers flow in which he has from every fruit? But he is afflicted with old age and has weak [i.e., immature] offspring, and it is hit by a whirlwind containing fire and is burned. Thus does Allāh make clear to you [His] verses that you might give thought.
Transliteration
Ayawaddu ahhadukum an takoona lahu jannatun min nakhiilin wa a'nab tajree min tahtiha al-anhar lahu fiiha min kulli al-thamarati wa asabahu al-kibaru wa lahu dhurriyyatun du'afaa fa asabaha i'saarun fiihi narun fa-ihtaraqat. Kathalika yubayyinu Allahu lakum al-ayat la'allakum tatafakkarun.
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah presents a parable illustrating the fragility of worldly possessions and the importance of gratitude to Allah. It depicts a wealthy man who owns a beautiful garden with date palms, grapes, and flowing rivers, yet when old age befalls him with weak children to inherit after him, a whirlwind carrying fire destroys everything. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir explain this parable as a metaphor for how material wealth can be lost suddenly, and how one's legacy depends on righteousness rather than mere inheritance of property—teaching that trust in Allah and righteous deeds are the true lasting wealth.
Revelation Context
This ayah appears within the Medinan section of Surah Al-Baqarah (revealed in Madinah) and forms part of a broader discussion about spending in the way of Allah and the nature of true wealth. The parable follows verses about charity and wealth, contextualizing it within teachings about proper stewardship of blessings and detachment from material possessions.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet (ﷺ) said, 'The best of you are those who are best to their families, and I am the best among you to my family' (Jami' at-Tirmidhi 3895), relating to the concern for one's offspring mentioned in the ayah. Additionally, 'Wealth and children are adornments of this worldly life, but the everlasting good deeds are better' (Surah Al-Kahf 18:46) conveys the same theme of prioritizing eternal deeds over transient possessions.
Themes
Key Lesson
True security and legacy lie not in accumulated wealth or material possessions, but in righteous character and obedience to Allah, which cannot be lost to misfortune. Believers should cultivate gratitude for blessings while maintaining a detached heart, recognizing that all provisions come from Allah and can be taken away to test our faith and redirect our focus to eternal values.
Related Ayahs
أَمْ حَسِبْتُمْ أَن تَدْخُلُوا۟ ٱلْجَنَّةَ وَلَمَّا يَأْتِكُم مَّثَلُ ٱلَّذِينَ خَلَوْا۟ مِن قَبْلِكُم ۖ مَّسَّتْهُمُ ٱلْبَأْسَآءُ وَٱلضَّرَّآءُ وَزُلْزِلُوا۟ حَتَّىٰ يَقُولَ ٱلرَّسُولُ وَٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ مَعَهُۥ مَتَىٰ نَصْرُ ٱللَّهِ ۗ أَلَآ إِنَّ نَصْرَ ٱللَّهِ قَرِيبٌ
Or do you think that you will enter Paradise while such [trial] has not yet come to you as came to those who passed on before you? They were touched by poverty and hardship and were shaken until [even their] messenger and those who believed with him said, "When is the help of Allāh?" Unquestionably, the help of Allāh is near.
قُلْ أَتُحَآجُّونَنَا فِى ٱللَّهِ وَهُوَ رَبُّنَا وَرَبُّكُمْ وَلَنَآ أَعْمَـٰلُنَا وَلَكُمْ أَعْمَـٰلُكُمْ وَنَحْنُ لَهُۥ مُخْلِصُونَ
Say, [O Muḥammad], "Do you argue with us about Allāh while He is our Lord and your Lord? For us are our deeds, and for you are your deeds. And we are sincere [in deed and intention] to Him."
وَإِذْ قُلْتُمْ يَـٰمُوسَىٰ لَن نَّصْبِرَ عَلَىٰ طَعَامٍ وَٰحِدٍ فَٱدْعُ لَنَا رَبَّكَ يُخْرِجْ لَنَا مِمَّا تُنۢبِتُ ٱلْأَرْضُ مِنۢ بَقْلِهَا وَقِثَّآئِهَا وَفُومِهَا وَعَدَسِهَا وَبَصَلِهَا ۖ قَالَ أَتَسْتَبْدِلُونَ ٱلَّذِى هُوَ أَدْنَىٰ بِٱلَّذِى هُوَ خَيْرٌ ۚ ٱهْبِطُوا۟ مِصْرًا فَإِنَّ لَكُم مَّا سَأَلْتُمْ ۗ وَضُرِبَتْ عَلَيْهِمُ ٱلذِّلَّةُ وَٱلْمَسْكَنَةُ وَبَآءُو بِغَضَبٍ مِّنَ ٱللَّهِ ۗ ذَٰلِكَ بِأَنَّهُمْ كَانُوا۟ يَكْفُرُونَ بِـَٔايَـٰتِ ٱللَّهِ وَيَقْتُلُونَ ٱلنَّبِيِّـۧنَ بِغَيْرِ ٱلْحَقِّ ۗ ذَٰلِكَ بِمَا عَصَوا۟ وَّكَانُوا۟ يَعْتَدُونَ
And [recall] when you said, "O Moses, we can never endure one [kind of] food. So call upon your Lord to bring forth for us from the earth its green herbs and its cucumbers and its garlic and its lentils and its onions." [Moses] said, "Would you exchange what is better for what is less? Go into [any] settlement and indeed, you will have what you have asked." And they were covered with humiliation and poverty and returned with anger from Allāh [upon them]. That was because they [repeatedly] disbelieved in the signs of Allāh and killed the prophets without right. That was because they disobeyed and were [habitually] transgressing.
وَقَـٰتِلُوهُمْ حَتَّىٰ لَا تَكُونَ فِتْنَةٌ وَيَكُونَ ٱلدِّينُ لِلَّهِ ۖ فَإِنِ ٱنتَهَوْا۟ فَلَا عُدْوَٰنَ إِلَّا عَلَى ٱلظَّـٰلِمِينَ
Fight them until there is no [more] fitnah and [until] religion [i.e., worship] is [acknowledged to be] for Allāh. But if they cease, then there is to be no aggression [i.e., assault] except against the oppressors.