The Qur'an (Oxford World's Classics)

a
Saying that nothing is wrong with meat sacri
ficed to an idol.
b
Devotion to God (see 
2: 131–2).
Livestock
89
6: 125

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126[Prophet], this is the path of your Lord, made perfectly
straight. We have explained Our revelations to those who take heed.
127They shall have the Home of Peace with their Lord, and He will
take care of them as a reward for their deeds.
128On the day He gathers everyone together [saying], ‘Company
of jinn! You have seduced a great many humans,’ their adherents
among mankind will say, ‘Lord, we have pro
fited from one another,
but now we have reached the appointed time You decreed for us.’
He will say, ‘Your home is the Fire, and there you shall remain’–
–
unless God wills otherwise: [Prophet], your Lord is all wise, all
knowing. 
129In this way, We make some evildoers have power over
others through their misdeeds. 
130‘Company of jinn and mankind!
Did messengers not come from among you to recite My revelations
to you and warn that you would meet this Day?’ They will say, ‘We
testify against ourselves.’ The life of this world seduced them, but
they will testify against themselves that they rejected the truth:
131your Lord would not destroy towns for their wrongdoing if they
had not been warned. 
132Everyone is assigned a rank according to
their deeds; your Lord is not unaware of anything they do. 
133Your
Lord is self-su
fficient and full of mercy. If He pleased, He could
remove you and put others in your place, just as He produced you
from the o
ffspring of other people. 134What you are promised is sure
to come, and you cannot escape. 
135[Prophet], say, ‘My people, you
carry on as you are, and so will I: you will come to realize who will
have a happy homecoming in the Hereafter.’ The evildoers will not
prosper.
136They apportion to God a share of the produce and the livestock
He created, saying, ‘This is for God’–
– so they claim! –
–‘ and this is
for our idols.’ Their idols’ share does not reach God, but God’s share
does reach their idols: how badly they judge! 
137In the same way,
their idols have induced many of the pagans to kill their own chil-
dren,
a
bringing them ruin and confusion in their faith: if God had
willed otherwise they would not have done this, so [Prophet] leave
them to their own devices. 
138They also say, ‘These cattle and crops
are reserved, and only those we allow may eat them’–
– so they claim!
There are some animals they exempt from labour and some over
a
Razi explains that either the jinn or servants of the idols appointed by the pagans
suggested this infanticide.
The Qur
an
6: 126
90

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which they do not pronounce God’s name [during slaughter], falsely
attributing these [regulations] to Him: He will repay them for the
falsehoods they invent. 
139They also say, ‘The contents of these ani-
mals’ wombs will be reserved solely for our men and forbidden to
our women, though if the o
ffspring is stillborn they may have a share
of it.’ He will punish them for what they attribute to Him: He is all
wise, all aware. 
140Lost indeed are those who kill their own children
out of folly, with no basis in knowledge,
a
forbidding what God has
provided for them, fabricating lies against Him: they have gone far
astray and have heeded no guidance.
141It is He who produces both trellised and untrellised gardens,
date palms, crops of diverse 
flavours, the olive, the pomegranate,
alike yet di
fferent. So when they bear fruit, eat some of it, paying
what is due on the day of harvest, but do not be wasteful: God does
not like wasteful people. 
142[He gave you] livestock, as beasts of
burden and as food. So eat what God has provided for you and do
not follow in Satan’s footsteps: he is your sworn enemy. 
143[God gave
you] eight animals, in [four] pairs: a pair of sheep and a pair of
goats –
– ask them [Prophet], ‘Has He forbidden the two males, the
two females, or the young in the wombs of the two females? Tell me
based on knowledge if you are telling the truth.’
144And a pair of
camels and a pair of cattle –
– ask them [Prophet], ‘Has He forbidden
the two males, the two females, or the young in the wombs of the two
females? Were you present when God gave you these commands?’ So
who is more wicked than he who fabricates lies against God with no
basis in knowledge in order to lead people astray? God does not
guide the evildoers.
145[Prophet], say, ‘In all that has been revealed to me, I find noth-
ing forbidden for people to eat, except for carrion, 
flowing blood,
pig’s meat –
– it is loathsome –
– or a sinful o
ffering over which any
name other than God’s has been invoked.’ But if someone is forced
by hunger, rather than desire or excess, then God is most forgiving
and most merciful. 
146We forbade for the Jews every animal with
claws, and the fat of cattle and sheep, except what is on their backs
and in their intestines, or that which sticks to their bones. This is
how We penalized them for their disobedience: We are true to Our
word. 
147If they [the disbelievers] accuse you [Prophet] of lying, say,