The Holy Quran with Five Volume Commentary (Vol 3) — Page 361
PT. 14 AL-HIJR CH. 15 ذَرْهُمْ يَأْكُلُوا وَيَتَمَتَّعُوا وَيُلْهِهِمُ Leave them alone that they. 4 may eat and enjoy themselves and that vain hope may beguile them; but they will soon know. 1711 "47:13. الْأَمَلُ فَسَوْفَ يَعْلَمُوْنَ desire was actually expressed by religion had also laid down some disbelievers in the time of the Holy Prophet. non- Even among present-day Muslims there are some who entertain such a desire, for they are often confronted with problems for which their own religions provide no true solution and they have perforce to adopt the remedies and measures prescribed by the Quran in order to meet them. For instance, when a Christian people have to pass laws permitting divorce for reasons other than adultery, or when they have to enact laws intended to put an end to the evil of drinking alcohol, they must feel how good it would have been if their own religion had given them the same teachings regarding these matters as Islam had done. In India, too, Hindus are adopting some of the social laws of Islam. This adoption of the Islamic laws by non- Muslims constitutes an irrefutable testimony to the truth of the statement made in the verse under comment. It is also worthy of note that the Quran uses the word (wish) and not (say), thus hinting that though disbelievers might not confess to such a desire, yet in their heart of hearts they not unoften wish that their 1569 institutions like those of Islam. The use of the word or (often or sometimes) also indicates that owing to their biased mentality disbelievers would not feel such a desire with regard to all the teachings of Islam but only with regard to some of them. 1711. Commentary: This verse supplies the answer to the question which naturally arises from the claim made by the Quran in the preceding verse. If, as has been claimed, disbelievers really feel an admiration for the teachings of Islam, what prevents them from accepting it and entering its fold? The answer is that it is only social obligations and the pursuit of materialistic benefits that stand in the way of their accepting Islam. This is what is hinted at in the words, Leave them alone that they may eat and enjoy themselves. The verse incidentally hints that simple living and curtailment of worldly ambitions materially help a man to understand and accept the truth. The words, Leave them alone that they may eat and enjoy themselves and that vain hope may beguile them, also contain the hint that disbelievers in their struggle against the Holy Prophet would strive