Surah Al-A'raaf: Verse 131 - فإذا جاءتهم الحسنة قالوا لنا... - English
Tafsir of Verse 131, Surah Al-A'raaf
English Translation
But when good came to them, they said, "This is ours [by right]." And if a bad [condition] struck them, they saw an evil omen in Moses and those with him. Unquestionably, their fortune is with Allah, but most of them do not know.English Transliteration
Faitha jaathumu alhasanatu qaloo lana hathihi wain tusibhum sayyiatun yattayyaroo bimoosa waman maAAahu ala innama tairuhum AAinda Allahi walakinna aktharahum la yaAAlamoonaTafsir of Verse 131
When a people are stamped with the wrath of Allah they lose their faculty of distin-guishing right from wrong. Pharaoh and his people too, had lost their understanding. They did not take lesson from this warning. On the contrary, they ascribed the calamity to be a bad presage from the prophet Musa (علیہ السلام) and his people. The verse said, 'So when something good came to them they said, 'This is our right.' And if they suffered from something evil, they ascribed it as an ill omen to Musa (علیہ السلام) and those with him. Listen, their omen lies with Allah only, but most of them do not know."
The Arabic word: طَائِرٍ 'T-a'ir' used for omen signifies a bird. The Arabs had a superstition that a bird coming down to their right or left meant a good or bad fate. The verse implies that good or bad fate comes from Allah. Everything in this world happens under the will of Allah. No one is there to bring good or bad fate to anyone. It is sheer ignorance to believe in such things and base their activities on such baseless assumptions. The last verse describes their rejection of the truth in these words:
