The Holy Quran with Five Volume Commentary (Vol 1) — Page 273
PT. 2 AL-BAQARAH CH. 2 وَإِذَا قِيلَ لَهُمُ اتَّبِعُوا مَا أَنْزَلَ اللهُ قَالُوا 171. And when it is said to them, 'Follow that which Allah , بَلْ نَتَّبِعُ مَا الْفَيْنَا عَلَيْهِ آبَاءَنَا أَوَلَوْ كَانَ has sent down, they say: Nay we will follow that wherein we found our fathers. ' What! even if their fathers had no sense at all and no guidance?177 ابَاؤُهُمْ لَا يَعْقِلُونَ شَيْئًا وَلَا يَهْتَدُونَ وَمَثَلُ الَّذِيْنَ كَفَرُ وا كَمَثَلِ الَّذِي يَنْعِقُ And the case of those who. 172 بِمَا لَا يَسْمَعُ إِلَّا دُعَاءَ وَنِدَاءَ صُمٌّ بُكْمٌ عُيٌّ فَهُمْ لَا يَعْقِلُونَ disbelieve is like the case of one who shouts to that which hears nothing but a call and a cry. "They are deaf, dumb, and blind-so they do not understand. 178 "5:105; 10:79; 21:53, 54; 31:22. "See 2:19. so doing. Their theories are based on ignorance and not on knowledge. In fact, all knowledge is based on close observation, and close observation 178. Important Words: نعق shouts is derived from) ينعق which means, he cried aloud. They say i. e. the shepherd cannot be had, unless one enjoys nearness of a thing. So it is futile to expect true knowledge of God from those who are away from Him. 177. Commentary: It is indeed strange, but nevertheless a hard fact, that in shouted to his flock. means, the (Mu'adhdhin) raised his voice to call people to Prayer (Aqrab). means, he called a دعاه. (call) دعاء person by addressing him (Aqrab). slo (cry) means: (1) a loud voice or matters of religion which so deeply cry; (2) a general call without any specific person being addressed (Aqrab & Lane). concern man, he is often content to follow blindly the footsteps of his forefathers and does not even care to satisfy himself that his forefathers were wise and well-guided people. On the other hand, in worldly matters where only the interests of this life are at stake, and that too partially, he often takes meticulous care to see that he adopts the right course and does not blindly follow others. 273 Commentary: In this verse the Holy Prophet has been likened to a herdsman who shouts to his flock but they hear nothing except the sound, being unable to understand the meaning of the words uttered by him. Similarly, the people whom the Prophet addresses are like a herd of animals