كَأَنَّهُمْ حُمُرٌ مُّسْتَنفِرَةٌ 50
Translations
As if they were alarmed donkeys.
Transliteration
Ka-annnahum humur mustanfiroh
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah describes the disbelievers as being like frightened donkeys fleeing from a hunter or predator, illustrating their heedless and panicked rejection of the Qur'an. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir explain that just as donkeys run away instinctively without understanding the reason, the disbelievers flee from the message of truth without rational consideration, driven only by stubbornness and fear of losing their worldly status. The comparison emphasizes their lack of intellectual engagement and their animal-like response to divine guidance.
Revelation Context
This ayah appears in the context of Surah Al-Muddaththir, which was revealed to console the Prophet Muhammad during the early Meccan period when he faced severe opposition and rejection from the Quraysh. The surah addresses the disbelievers' stubborn refusal to accept the message despite its clarity, placing this ayah within the broader theme of describing the nature of those who reject divine revelation.
Related Hadiths
While no hadith directly quotes this ayah, the thematic concept of heedlessness is reflected in the hadith: 'The example of the one who remembers his Lord and the one who does not remember his Lord is like that of the living and the dead' (Sahih Bukhari 5010), emphasizing the spiritual death of those who turn away from guidance.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah reminds us that rejecting truth without rational reflection reduces humans to acting on mere instinct and fear rather than wisdom, and serves as a warning against allowing pride, tradition, or worldly concerns to prevent us from thoughtfully considering divine guidance.
Related Ayahs
أَمْ تَحْسَبُ أَنَّ أَكْثَرَهُمْ يَسْمَعُونَ أَوْ يَعْقِلُونَ ۚ إِنْ هُمْ إِلَّا كَٱلْأَنْعَـٰمِ ۖ بَلْ هُمْ أَضَلُّ سَبِيلًا
Or do you think that most of them hear or reason? They are not except like livestock. Rather, they are [even] more astray in [their] way.
أَفَرَءَيْتَ ٱلَّذِى تَوَلَّىٰ
Have you seen the one who turned away
وَإِنَّهُمْ لَنَا لَغَآئِظُونَ
And indeed, they are enraging us,
وَقَالَ ٱلْمَلَأُ مِن قَوْمِ فِرْعَوْنَ أَتَذَرُ مُوسَىٰ وَقَوْمَهُۥ لِيُفْسِدُوا۟ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ وَيَذَرَكَ وَءَالِهَتَكَ ۚ قَالَ سَنُقَتِّلُ أَبْنَآءَهُمْ وَنَسْتَحْىِۦ نِسَآءَهُمْ وَإِنَّا فَوْقَهُمْ قَـٰهِرُونَ
And the eminent among the people of Pharaoh said, "Will you leave Moses and his people to cause corruption in the land and abandon you and your gods?" [Pharaoh] said, "We will kill their sons and keep their women alive; and indeed, we are subjugators over them."