Surah Al-An’am Ayat 104 (6:104 Quran) With Tafsir

Ala-Maududi

(6:104) The lights of clear perception have now come to you from your Lord. Then, he who chooses to see clearly, does so for his own good; and he who chooses to remain blind, does so to his own harm. I am not your keeper.^[69]

69. Even though this statement is from God, it is expressed through the mouth of the Prophet (peace be on him). We observe that in the Qur’an the speaker frequently changes – sometimes it is God Who is speaking, sometimes it is the angel who carries the revelation, and sometimes a group of angels; on some occasions it is the Prophet (peace be on him) who is speaking, while on others it is the men of faith. Likewise, those addressed by the Qur’an also change – sometimes it is the Prophet (peace be’ on him); sometimes it is the men of faith; sometimes it is the People of the Book; sometimes it is the unbelievers and the polytheists; sometimes it is the Quraysh; sometimes it is the Arabs; and sometimes, mankind as a whole. Regardless of these changes, however, the content of the message always remains the same – it consists of God’s guidance to mankind.
The statement ‘I am not your keeper’ signifies that the task of the Prophet is confined to carrying the light of true guidance to others, it is then up to them either to use it to perceive Reality for themselves or to keep their eyes closed. The Prophet (peace he on him) is not asked to compel those who deliberately kept their eyes shut to open them, forcing them to see what they did not wish to see.

Ibn-Kathir

104. Verily, Basa’ir (proofs) have come to you from your Lord, so whosoever sees, will do so for (the good of) himself, and whosoever blinds himself, will do so against himself, and I am not a Hafiz over you. 105. Thus We explain variously the verses so that they (the disbelievers) may say: “You have Darasta (studied)” and that We may make the matter clear for the people who have knowledge.

Basa’ir are the proofs and evidences in the Qur’an and the Message of Allah’s Messenger . The Ayah,

(so whosoever sees, will do so for (the good of) himself.) is similar to,

(So whosoever receives guidance, he does so for the good of himself, and whosoever goes astray, he does so at his own loss.) ﴿10:108﴾ After Allah mentioned the Basa’ir, He said,

(And whosoever blinds himself, will do so against himself,) meaning, he will only harm himself. Allah said,

(Verily, it is not the eyes that grow blind, but it is the hearts which are in the breasts that grow blind.) ﴿22:46﴾

(And I (Muhammad) am not a Hafiz over you. ) neither responsible, nor a watcher over you. Rather, I only convey, Allah guides whom He wills and misguides whom He wills. Allah said,

(Thus We explain variously the verses…)﴿6:105﴾, meaning, just as We explained the Ayat in this Surah, such as explaining Tawhid and that there is no deity worthy of worship except Allah. This is how We explain the Ayat and make them plain and clear in all circumstances, to suffice the ignorance of the ignorant; and so that the idolators and disbelievers who deny you say, `O Muhammad! You have Darasta with those who were before you from among the People of the Book and learned with them’. Ibn `Abbas, Mujahid, Sa`id bin Jubayr and Ad-Dahhak said similarly. At-Tabarani narrated that `Amr bin Kaysan said that he heard Ibn `Abbas saying, “Darasta, means, `recited, argued and debated.”’ This is similar to Allah’s statement about the denial and rebellion of the disbelievers, e

(Those who disbelieve say, “This (the Qur’an) is nothing but a lie that he has invented, and others have helped him at it, so that they have produced an unjust wrong (thing) and a lie.” And they say, “Tales of the ancients, which he has written down, and they are dictated to him morning and afternoon.”) ﴿25:4-5﴾ Allah described the chief liar of the disbelievers ﴿Al-Walid bin Al-Mughirah Al-Makhzumi﴾,

(Verily, he thought and plotted. So let him be cursed! How he plotted! And once more let him be cursed, how he plotted! Then he thought. Then he frowned and he looked in a bad tempered way. Then he turned back and was proud. Then he said, “This is nothing but magic from that of old. This is nothing but the word of a human being!”) ﴿74:18-25﴾ Allah said next,

(And that We may make the matter clear for the people who have knowledge.) The Ayah means, so that We explain the matter to a people who know truth, and thus follow it, and know falsehood, and thus avoid it. Allah’s wisdom is perfect, He allows the disbelievers to stray, and He guides the people who have knowledge. Allah said in other Ayat,

(By it He misleads many, and many He guides thereby.) ﴿2:26﴾, and;

(That He (Allah) may make what is thrown in by Shaytan a trial for those in whose hearts is a disease and whose hearts are hardened. ) ﴿22:53﴾ and,

(And verily, Allah is the Guide of those who believe, to the straight path.) ﴿22:54﴾,

(And We have set none but angels as guardians of the Fire, and We have fixed their number only as a trial for the disbelievers, in order that the People of the Scripture may arrive at a certainty and the believers may increase in faith, and that no doubts may be left for the People of the Scripture and the believers, and that those in whose hearts is a disease (of hypocrisy) and the disbelievers may say, “What does Allah intend by this example” Thus Allah leads astray whom He wills and guides whom He wills. And none can know the hosts of your Lord but He.) ﴿74:31﴾, and;

(And We send down in the Qur’an that which is a healing and a mercy to the believers, and it increases the wrongdoers in nothing but loss.) ﴿17:82﴾, and,

(Say, “It is for those who believe, a guide and a healing. And as for those who disbelieve, there is heaviness in their ears, and it is blindness for them. They are those who are called from a place far away.”) ﴿41:44﴾ There are similar Ayat that testify that Allah sent down the Qur’an as guidance to those who fear Him and that He guides or misguides whom He wills by the Qur’an.