6:56

Salaam all,

Qul innee nuheetu an aAAbuda allatheena tadAAoona min dooni Allahi qul la attabiAAu ahwaakum qad dalaltu ithan wama ana mina almuhtadeena

The Aya says:
Say (O Muhammad): I was forbidden from worshipping those whom you (plural) call upon, short of Allah. Say (O Muhammad): I will not join and follow your desires, I would have gone astray then and not amongst the guided.

My personal note:
I have translated the term AHWA as desires in this section and that covers the meaning. However, the meaning of the term goes beyond desires to any form of bias that we stick to but has no basis to stand on.


The term hawa then carries with it all sorts of considerations where we are always asked, through Taqwwa (consciousness), to question why and what are the basis upon which we hold onto something so dearly? The basis for the Muslims have to be anchored deeply and strongly in the teachings of Allah to us and in the teachings of His messenger (pbuh).

Translation of the transliterated words:
Qul: Say/ communicate/respond
Note: the root is Qaf-W-L and it means saying or communicating. QUL is an order or a request addressed to a singular. It means: say or communicate.

Innee: I
Nuheetu: was forbidden/ was ordered to desist
Note: the root is N-H-Y and it means stopping or ending or desisting. This then takes different form according to the plane of thought of the sentence. NUHEETU is an action that is being completed. It means: the action of asking the object (first person singular) desist or cease what they are doing happenedby the subject (undeclared).

An: that/ to
aAAbuda: worship
Note: the root is Ain-B-D and it means slave or servant. aAABUDA is an action that is being completed or will be completed. It means: the action of making oneself slave is happening or will be happening by the subject. Conceptually, the term of “making oneself a slave” suggests becoming a slave voluntarily to an entity and that is the term used for worship since the main way for a person to make himself or herself a slave of an entity voluntarily is through love of that entity and through being in awe of that entity.
Allatheena: those whom
tadAAoona: you (plural) call upon
Note: the root is D-Ain-Y and it means calling as in calling someone for help or otherwise. TADAAooNA is an action that is being completed or will be completed. It means that the action of calling or calling upon is happening or will be happening by the subject (second person plural) of the object (Aghayra Allah= other than Allah?) .

Min: from
Dooni: short of/ below of
Note: The root is D-W-N and it means short of someone or something. It can also mean lower than at times depending on the plane of thought of the sentence. DOONI means short of or below of. Allahi: Allah
Qul: Say/ communicate/respond
Note: the root is Qaf-W-L and it means saying or communicating. QUL is an order or a request addressed to a singular. It means: say or communicate.
la attabiAAu: I do not/ will not join and follow
Note: La is for negation of the action to come. ATTABiAAu is derived from the root T-B-Ain and it means following footsteps or join and follow footsteps. ATTABiAAu is an action that is being completed or will be completed. It means: the action of making oneself follow footsteps or join and follow footsteps of the object AHWAAKUM= your desires/ biases) is happening or will be happening by the subject (first person singular).

Ahwaakum: your biases/ airas/ desires
Note: the root is H-W-Y and it means what is between the earth and the sky and that is air and emptiness for the Arabs. Conceptually, it stands for desire because that is associated with air for Arabs. It also can apply to any entity that is not supported by a firm base, including ideas and unsupported biases. AHWAA means airs or biases or desires of. KUM is plural you.

Qad: indeed
Dalaltu: I became lost
Note: the root is Dhad-L-L and it means getting lost as in lost the path or road in concrete terminology. Conceptually, it is used for any form of loosing the path, whether it is the path to a location or to the truth, or to be correct spiritually and so on. The imagery is very strong since loosing the path in the desert can mean near certain death. DALALTU is an action that is completed. It means: the actions of loosing the path, or becoming misguided happened by the subject (first person singular).

Ithan: then
Note: the term QAD DALALTU ITHAN carries the meaning: “Then I would have become lost”
Wama: and not
Ana: I
Mina: of/ from/ amongst
Almuhtadeena: the guided ones
Note: ALMUHTADEENA is derived from the root H-D-Y and it means gift in all it’s forms and it carries the meaning of guidance since guidance is a gift. ALMUHTADEENA are the guided ones.

Salaam all and have a great day.

Hussein