وَإِذْ قَالَ لُقْمَـٰنُ لِٱبْنِهِۦ وَهُوَ يَعِظُهُۥ يَـٰبُنَىَّ لَا تُشْرِكْ بِٱللَّهِ ۖ إِنَّ ٱلشِّرْكَ لَظُلْمٌ عَظِيمٌ 13
Translations
And [mention, O Muḥammad], when Luqmān said to his son while he was instructing him, "O my son, do not associate [anything] with Allāh. Indeed, association [with Him] is great injustice."
Transliteration
Wa-idh qala Luqman-u li-ibnihi wa-huwa ya'izuhu ya-bunayya la tushrik bi-Allah; inna al-shirka la-zulm-un 'azim
Tafsir (Explanation)
Luqman advises his son against associating partners with Allah (shirk), describing it as the greatest injustice. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir emphasize that this verse establishes the foundational principle of monotheism (tawhid) as the first and most essential teaching a parent should impart to their child. Al-Qurtubi notes that shirk is termed 'great injustice' because it wrongs Allah by denying His uniqueness and wrongs the soul by leading it to destruction.
Revelation Context
Surah Luqman is Meccan and presents Luqman's moral teachings to his son as an exemplary model of Islamic guidance and parental wisdom. This opening instruction sets the thematic foundation for all the ethical and spiritual advice that follows in the surah, making tawhid the prerequisite for all righteous conduct.
Related Hadiths
The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) said: 'The greatest sin is to associate partners with Allah (shirk)' (Sahih Bukhari 2654). Additionally, 'Whoever dies without associating anything with Allah enters Paradise' (Sahih Muslim 93), emphasizing the paramount importance of this teaching.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches that the foundation of all religious and moral education must be sincere belief in the oneness of Allah, and that parents bear a sacred responsibility to instill this principle in their children before all else. For modern believers, it reminds us that safeguarding our faith from shirk—whether in its obvious forms or subtle manifestations like placing trust in other than Allah—is the most critical aspect of spiritual integrity.
Related Ayahs
قَالَ رَبُّ ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضِ وَمَا بَيْنَهُمَآ ۖ إِن كُنتُم مُّوقِنِينَ
[Moses] said, "The Lord of the heavens and earth and that between them, if you should be convinced."
أَمْ كُنتُمْ شُهَدَآءَ إِذْ حَضَرَ يَعْقُوبَ ٱلْمَوْتُ إِذْ قَالَ لِبَنِيهِ مَا تَعْبُدُونَ مِنۢ بَعْدِى قَالُوا۟ نَعْبُدُ إِلَـٰهَكَ وَإِلَـٰهَ ءَابَآئِكَ إِبْرَٰهِـۧمَ وَإِسْمَـٰعِيلَ وَإِسْحَـٰقَ إِلَـٰهًا وَٰحِدًا وَنَحْنُ لَهُۥ مُسْلِمُونَ
Or were you witnesses when death approached Jacob, when he said to his sons, "What will you worship after me?" They said, "We will worship your God and the God of your fathers, Abraham and Ishmael and Isaac - one God. And we are Muslims [in submission] to Him."
وَٱلصُّبْحِ إِذَآ أَسْفَرَ
And [by] the morning when it brightens,
ٱلَّذِى جَعَلَ لَكُمُ ٱلْأَرْضَ مَهْدًا وَسَلَكَ لَكُمْ فِيهَا سُبُلًا وَأَنزَلَ مِنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ مَآءً فَأَخْرَجْنَا بِهِۦٓ أَزْوَٰجًا مِّن نَّبَاتٍ شَتَّىٰ
[It is He] who has made for you the earth as a bed [spread out] and inserted therein for you roadways and sent down from the sky, rain and produced thereby categories of various plants.