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سُورَةُ سَبَإٍ · 34:46
MeccanRevelation order ٥٨Juzʾ ٢٢Page ٤٣٣

۞ قُلْ إِنَّمَآ أَعِظُكُم بِوَٰحِدَةٍ ۖ أَن تَقُومُوا۟ لِلَّهِ مَثْنَىٰ وَفُرَٰدَىٰ ثُمَّ تَتَفَكَّرُوا۟ ۚ مَا بِصَاحِبِكُم مِّن جِنَّةٍ ۚ إِنْ هُوَ إِلَّا نَذِيرٌۭ لَّكُم بَيْنَ يَدَىْ عَذَابٍۢ شَدِيدٍۢ

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Saheeh International · EN

Say, "I only advise you of one [thing] - that you stand for Allah, [seeking truth] in pairs and individually, and then give thought." There is not in your companion any madness. He is only a warner to you before a severe punishment.

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Introduction

This is āyah 46 of Sūrat Saba (Sheba), the 58th sūrah in the traditional order of revelation. It was revealed in the Meccan period and sits within Juzʾ 22. Meccan verses tend to address faith, the oneness of God, and the hereafter.

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Revelation & occasion

Asbāb al-Nuzūl
Period
Meccan
Order revealed
58 of 114
Surah
Saba (34)
Occasion of revelation · Al-Wahidi

Say: “I admonish you in but one thing: that you stand up for God.” It is said that standing up for God is the center point of the compass of the Tariqah and the pivot of the secrets of the Haqiqah. Whoever leaves self-governance behind and places his work with the Real will reap the fruit of the goodly life [16:97]. Do you not see that the chevaliers who were the Companions of the Cave left themselves behind, put aside self-governance, and turned their faces toward the threshold of lordhood, as the Exalted Lord says: “We placed a tie on their hearts when they stood up” [18:14]. Look how He gave them a place in the cave of jealousy with the shade of kind favor and the embrace of friendship. The sunlight of form and its shining had not the gall to circle around their cave of jealousy. The light of the sun was incapable in relation to the lights of their secret cores, for the light of the sun is for brightening creation, and the lights of their secret cores were for recognizing the Real. Let go of the moons, dimming or brightening- we have a full moon to which all full moons are abased. The light of the sun is the light of form, and the light of their hearts was the light of the secret core. When the radiance of the sunlight of form reached them, it pulled back its skirt from the shining radiance of their secret core's light. The Lord of the Worlds says, “Thou wouldst have thought them awake, but they were sleeping” [18:18]. This is the attribute of the Folk of the Tariqah. When you look at their outwardness, you see them busy in the playing fields of deeds. When you look at their secret cores, you see them detached in the gardens of the gentleness of the Possessor of Majesty. Outwardly active, inwardly they gaze on the gentleness of the Beginningless. With Thee alone we worship [1:5] they have bound the belt of struggle. With and Thee alone we ask for help [1:5] they have placed the crown of contemplation on their heads. On the inside they wear the undershirt of surrender, and on the outside they have covered themselves with the caftan of deeds.

Commentary

Tafsir

4 works

Hafiz Ibn Kathir

Say: "I exhort you to one (thing) only, that you stand up for Allah's sake in pairs and singly, and reflect, there is no madness in your companion. He is only a warner to you in face of a severe torment. (46) Refutation of Their Accusation that the Prophet (صلی اللہ علیہ وسلم) was Insane Allah says: 'Say, O Muhammad, to these disbelievers who claim that you are crazy,' إِنَّمَا أَعِظُكُمْ بِوَاحِدَةٍ (I exhort you to one (thing) only,) meaning, 'I am only telling you to one thing,' and that is: أَنْ تَقُومُوا لِلَّهِ مَثْنَىٰ وَفُرَادَىٰ ثُمَّ تَتَفَكَّرُوا ۚ مَا بِصَاحِبِكُمْ مِنْ جِنَّةٍ ۚ (that you stand up for Allah's sake in pairs and singly, and reflect, there is no madness in your companion.) meaning, 'stand sincerely before Allah, without being influenced by your own desires or tribal feelings, and ask one another, is Muhammad crazy? Advise one another,' ثُمَّ تَتَفَكَّرُو…
Provenance

Chains of transmission

Oral — isnād

  1. ~610–632 CERevelation & memorisation

    Received by the Prophet ﷺ and preserved by the ḥuffāẓ (memorisers) among the Companions.

  2. 1st century AHMutawātir transmissionawaiting curation

    Carried by mass-transmission through the generations of qurrāʾ.

  3. TodayLiving chainsawaiting curation

    Continuous ijāzah chains link reciters today back to the Prophet ﷺ.

Verified isnād chains for this āyah will be added by curators.

Written — the manuscript record

  1. ~650 CEʿUthmānic codicesawaiting curation

    The standardised muṣḥaf sent to the great cities (e.g. the Topkapı and Samarqand codices).

  2. 8th–10th c.Early Ḥijāzī & Kūfic foliosawaiting curation

    Surviving leaves in Birmingham, Sanaa, Paris (BnF) and beyond.

  3. Modern printModern printawaiting curation

    The 1924 Cairo edition → today: the standard printed muṣḥaf used worldwide.

A curated chain of manuscript images for this exact āyah — roughly one per century — is coming. Help us source and verify them.

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Provenance

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