Sura 20, Ta ha (O Man). Mecca 45

The Quranic Text & Ali’s Version:

يَا بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ قَدْ أَنجَيْنَاكُم مِّنْ عَدُوِّكُمْ...   

20: 80.  O ye Children of Israel!

We delivered you from your enemy,

...وَوَاعَدْنَاكُمْ جَانِبَ الطُّورِ الْأَيْمَنَ...

and We made a Covenant with you on the right side of Mount (Sinai),

C2601. Right side: Cf. 19:52, and n. 2504, towards the end.

The Arabian side of Sinai (Jabal Musa) was the place where Moses first received his commission before going to Egypt, and also where he received the Torah after the Exodus from Egypt.

...وَنَزَّلْنَا عَلَيْكُمُ الْمَنَّ وَالسَّلْوَى ﴿٨٠﴾

and We sent down to you Manna and quails:

كُلُوا مِن طَيِّبَاتِ مَا رَزَقْنَاكُمْ...   

20: 81.  (Saying):

"Eat of the good things We have provided for your sustenance,

C2602. Cf. 2:57 and n. 71; and 7:160.

1 should like to construe this not only literally but also metaphorically.

'Allah has looked after you and saved you. He has given you ethical and spiritual guidance. Enjoy the fruits of all this, but do not become puffed up and rebellious (another meaning in the root Taga); otherwise the Wrath of Allah is sure to descend on you.'

...وَلَا تَطْغَوْا فِيهِ فَيَحِلَّ عَلَيْكُمْ غَضَبِي...

but commit no excess therein, lest My Wrath should justly descend on you:

...وَمَن يَحْلِلْ عَلَيْهِ غَضَبِي فَقَدْ هَوَى ﴿٨١﴾

and those on whom descends My Wrath do perish indeed!

C2603. This gives the key-note to Moses' constant tussle with his own people, and introduces immediately afterwards the incident of the golden calf.

وَإِنِّي لَغَفَّارٌ لِّمَن تَابَ وَآمَنَ وَعَمِلَ صَالِحًا ثُمَّ اهْتَدَى ﴿٨٢﴾

20: 82.  "But, without doubt, I am (also) He that forgives again and again, to those who repent, believe, and do right -- who, in fine are ready to receive true guidance."

وَمَا أَعْجَلَكَ عَن قَوْمِكَ يَا مُوسَى ﴿٨٣﴾

20: 83.  (When Moses was up on the mount, Allah said:)

"What made thee hasten in advance of thy people, O Moses?"

C2604. This was when Moses was up on the Mount for forty days and forty nights: 2:51, and n. 66.

Moses had left the elders of Israel with Aaron behind him: Exod. 24:14.

While he was in a state of ecstatic honour on the Mount, his people were enacting strange scenes down below. They were tested and tried, and they failed in the trial. They made a golden calf for worship, as described below.

See also 7:148-150 and notes 1112-1114 and 1115-1118.

قَالَ هُمْ أُولَاء عَلَى أَثَرِي وَعَجِلْتُ إِلَيْكَ رَبِّ لِتَرْضَى ﴿٨٤﴾

20: 84.  He replied:

"Behold, they are close on my footsteps:

I hastened to Thee, O my Lord, to please Thee."

قَالَ فَإِنَّا قَدْ فَتَنَّا قَوْمَكَ مِن بَعْدِكَ وَأَضَلَّهُمُ السَّامِرِيُّ ﴿٨٥﴾

20: 85.  (Allah) said:

"We have tested thy people in thy absence: the Samiri has led them astray."

C2605. Who was this Samiri?

If it was his personal name, it was sufficiently near the meaning of the original root-word to have the definite article attached to it:

Cf. the name of the Khalifa Mu'tasim (Al-Mu'tasim).

What was the root for "Samiri"?

If we look to old Egyptian, we have Shemer: A stranger, foreigner (Sir E.A. Wallis Budge's Egyptian Hieroglyphic Dictionary, 1920,p. 815 b).

As the Israelites had just left Egypt, they might quite well have among them an Egyptianised Hebrew bearing that nickname. That the name Shemer was subsequently not unknown among the Hebrews is clear from the Old Testament.

In 3 Kings, 16:24 we read that Omri, king of Israel, the northern portion of the divided kingdom, who reigned about 903-896 B.C., built a new city, Samaria, on a hill which he bought from Shemer, the owner of the hill, for two talents of silver.

See also Renan: History of Israel, 2:210.

For a further discussion of the word, see n. 2608 below.

فَرَجَعَ مُوسَى إِلَى قَوْمِهِ غَضْبَانَ أَسِفًا...   

20: 86.  So Moses returned to his people in state of indignation and sorrow.

...قَالَ يَا قَوْمِ أَلَمْ يَعِدْكُمْ رَبُّكُمْ وَعْدًا حَسَنًا...

He said:

"O my people! did not your Lord make a handsome promise to you?

C2606. There are two promises referred to in this verse, the promise of Allah and the promise of the people ofIsrael.

They form one Covenant, which was entered into through their leader Moses. See 20:80, and 2:63, n. 78.

Allah's promise was to protect them and lead them to the Promised Land, and their promise was to obey Allah's Law and His commandments.

...أَفَطَالَ عَلَيْكُمُ الْعَهْدُ...

Did then the promise seem to you long (in coming)?

...أَمْ أَرَدتُّمْ أَن يَحِلَّ عَلَيْكُمْ غَضَبٌ مِّن رَّبِّكُمْ فَأَخْلَفْتُم مَّوْعِدِي ﴿٨٦﴾

Or did ye desire that Wrath should descend from your Lord on you, and so ye broke your promise to me?"

قَالُوا مَا أَخْلَفْنَا مَوْعِدَكَ بِمَلْكِنَا...   

20: 87.  They said:

"We broke not the promise to thee, as far as lay in our power:

...وَلَكِنَّا حُمِّلْنَا أَوْزَارًا مِّن زِينَةِ الْقَوْمِ فَقَذَفْنَاهَا...

but we were made to carry the weight of the ornaments of the (whole) people, and we threw them (into the fire),

C2607. Cf. Exod. 12:35-36: the Israelites, before they left Egypt, borrowed from the Egyptians 'jewels of silver and jewels of gold, and raiment'; and 'they spoiled the Egyptians"' i.e., stripped them of all their valuable jewelry.

Note that the answer of the backsliders is disingenuous in various ways.

1.     The Samiri was no doubt responsible for suggesting the making of the golden calf, but they could not on that account disclaim responsibility for themselves: the burden of the sin is on him who commits it, and he cannot pretend that he was powerless to avoid it.

2.     At most the weight of the gold they carried could not have been heavy even if one or two men carried it, but would have been negligible if distributed.

3.     Gold is valuable, and it is not likely that if they wanted to disburden themselves of it, they had any need to light a furnace, melt it, and cast it into the shape of a calf.

...فَكَذَلِكَ أَلْقَى السَّامِرِيُّ ﴿٨٧﴾

and that was what the Samiri suggested.

C2608. See n. 2605 about the Samiri.

If the Egyptian origin of the root is not accepted we have a Hebrew origin in "Shomer" a guard, watchman, sentinel. The Samiri may have been a watchman, in fact or by nickname.

فَأَخْرَجَ لَهُمْ عِجْلًا جَسَدًا ...   

20: 88.  "Then he brought out (of the fire) before the (people) the image of a calf:

C2609. See. n. 1113 to 7:148, where the same words are used and explained.

... لَهُ خُوَارٌ...

it seemed to low:

C2610. See n. 1114 to 7:148.

...فَقَالُوا هَذَا إِلَهُكُمْ وَإِلَهُ مُوسَى فَنَسِيَ ﴿٨٨﴾

so they said: 'This is your god, and the god of Moses, but (Moses) has forgotten!'"

C2611. Moses has forgotten: i.e., 'forgotten both us and his god. He has been gone for so many days. He is searching for a god on the Mount when his god is really here!'

This is spoken by the Samiri and his partisans, but the people as a whole accepted it, and it therefore, becomes their speech.

أَفَلَا يَرَوْنَ أَلَّا يَرْجِعُ إِلَيْهِمْ قَوْلًا وَلَا يَمْلِكُ لَهُمْ ضَرًّا وَلَا نَفْعًا ﴿٨٩﴾

20: 89.  Could they not see that it could not return them a word (for answer), and that it had no power either to harm them or to do them good?

C2612. This is a parenthetical comment.

How blind the people were!

They had seen Signs of the true living God, and yet they were willing to worship this dead image!

The true living God had spoken in definite words of command, while this calf could only emit some sounds of lowing, which were themselves contrived by the fraud of the priests. This image could do neither good nor harm, while Allah was the Cherisher and Sustainer of the Universe, Whose Mercy was unbounded and Whose Wrath was terrible.

وَلَقَدْ قَالَ لَهُمْ هَارُونُ مِن قَبْلُ يَا قَوْمِ إِنَّمَا فُتِنتُم بِهِ...   

20: 90.  Aaron had already, before this, said to them:

"O my people! ye are being tested in this:

C2613. "Resist this temptation: you are being tested in this. Do not follow after the semi-Egyptian Samiri, but obey me."

...وَإِنَّ رَبَّكُمُ الرَّحْمَنُ فَاتَّبِعُونِي وَأَطِيعُوا أَمْرِي ﴿٩٠﴾

for verily your Lord is (Allah) Most Gracious:

so follow me and obey my command."

C2614. The Bible story makes Aaron the culprit, which is inconsistent with his office as the high priest of Allah and the right hand of Moses. See n. 1116 to 7:150.

Our version is more consistent, and explains, through the example of the Samiri, the lingering influences of the Egyptian cult of Osiris the bull-god.

قَالُوا ...

20: 91.  They had said:

C2615. Obviously Aaron's speech in the last verse, and the rebels' defiance in this verse, were spoken before the return of Moses from the Mount.

... لَن نَّبْرَحَ عَلَيْهِ عَاكِفِينَ حَتَّى يَرْجِعَ إِلَيْنَا مُوسَى ﴿٩١﴾

"We will not abandon this cult, but we will devote ourselves to it until Moses returns to us."

C2616. The rebels had so little faith that they had given Moses up for lost, and never expected to see him again.

قَالَ يَا هَارُونُ مَا مَنَعَكَ إِذْ رَأَيْتَهُمْ ضَلُّوا ﴿٩٢﴾

20: 92.  (Moses) said: "O Aaron! what kept thee back, when thou sawest them going wrong

أَلَّا تَتَّبِعَنِ أَفَعَصَيْتَ أَمْرِي ﴿٩٣﴾

20: 93.  "From following me?

Didst thou then disobey my order?"

C2617. Moses, when he came back, was full of anger and grief. His speech to Aaron is one of rebuke, and he was also inclined to handle him roughly:

see next verse.

The order he refers to is that stated in 7:142, "Act for me amongst my people: do right, and follow not the way of those who do mischief."

قَالَ يَبْنَؤُُمَّ لَا تَأْخُذْ بِلِحْيَتِي وَلَا بِرَأْسِي...   

20: 94.  (Aaron) replied:

"O son of my mother! seize (me not) by my beard nor by (the hair of) my head!

C2618. Cf. 7:150.

...إِنِّي خَشِيتُ أَن تَقُولَ فَرَّقْتَ بَيْنَ بَنِي إِسْرَائِيلَ وَلَمْ تَرْقُبْ قَوْلِي ﴿٩٤﴾

Truly I feared lest thou shouldst say,

'Thou hast caused a division among the Children of Israel, and thou didst not respect my word!'"

C2619. This reply of Aaron's is in no way inconsistent with the reply as noted in 7:150.

On the contrary there is a dramatic aptness in the different points emphasised on each occasion. In Surah 7, we were discussing the Ummah of Israel, and Aaron rightly says, "The people did indeed reckon me as naught, and went near to slay me!" In addition, "Let not the enemies rejoice over my misfortune" he is referring by implication to his brother's wish to maintain unity among the people.

Here the unity is the chief point to emphasize: we are dealing with the Samiri as mischief-monger, and he could best be dealt with by Moses, who proceeds to do so.

قَالَ فَمَا خَطْبُكَ يَا سَامِرِيُّ ﴿٩٥﴾

20: 95.  (Moses) said: "What then is thy case, O Samiri?"

C2620. Moses now turns to the Samiri, and the Samiri's reply in the next verse sums up his character in a few wonderful strokes of character-painting.

The lesson of the whole of this episode is the fall of a human soul that nominally comes to Allah's Truth in a humble position but makes mischief when and as it finds occasion. It is no less dangerous and culpable than the arrogant soul, typified by Pharaoh, which gets into high places and makes its leadership the cause of ruin of a whole nation.

قَالَ بَصُرْتُ بِمَا لَمْ يَبْصُرُوا بِهِ...   

20: 96.  He replied:

"I saw what they saw not:

فَقَبَضْتُ قَبْضَةً مِّنْ أَثَرِ الرَّسُولِ...

so I took a handful (of dust) from the footprint of the Messenger,

...فَنَبَذْتُهَا وَكَذَلِكَ سَوَّلَتْ لِي نَفْسِي ﴿٩٦﴾

and threw it (into the calf): thus did my soul suggest to me."

C2621. This answer of the Samiri is a fine example of unblushing effrontery, careful evasion of issues, and invented falsehoods.

He takes upon himself to pretend that he had far more insight than anybody else: he saw what the crowd did not see. He saw something supernatural.

"The Messenger" is construed by many Commentators to mean the angel Gabriel. Rasul (plural, rusul) is used in several places for "angels" e.g., in 11:69, 77; 19:19; and 35:1.

But if we take it to mean the Messenger Moses, it means that the Samiri saw something sacred or supernatural in his footprints: perhaps he thinks a little flattery would make Moses forgive him. The dust became sacred, and his throwing it into the calf made the calf utter a lowing sound! As if that was the point at issue!

He does not answer the charge of making an image for worship. But finally, with arrogant effrontery, he says, "Well, that is what my soul suggested to me, and that should be enough!"

قَالَ فَاذْهَبْ فَإِنَّ لَكَ فِي الْحَيَاةِ أَن تَقُولَ لَا مِسَاسَ...   

20: 97.  (Moses) said:

"Get thee gone! but thy (punishment) in this life will be that thou wilt say, 'Touch me not';

C2622. He and his kind were to become social lepers, untouchables; perhaps also sufficiently arrogant to hold others at arm's length, and say "Noli me tangere" (touch me not) .

...وَإِنَّ لَكَ مَوْعِدًا لَّنْ تُخْلَفَهُ...

and moreover (for a future penalty) thou hast a promise that will not fail:

C2623. Namely, the promised Wrath of Allah:

see 20:81. 89:25.

...وَانظُرْ إِلَى إِلَهِكَ الَّذِي ظَلْتَ عَلَيْهِ عَاكِفًا...

now look at thy god, of whom thou hast become a devoted worshipper:

...لَّنُحَرِّقَنَّهُ ثُمَّ لَنَنسِفَنَّهُ فِي الْيَمِّ نَسْفًا ﴿٩٧﴾

we will certainly (melt) it in a blazing fire and scatter it broadcast in the sea!"

C2624. The cast effigy was destroyed. Thus ends the Samiri's story, of which the lessons are indicated in n. 2620 above.

It may be interesting to pursue the transformations of the word Samiri in later times. For its origin see notes2605 and 2608 above.

Whether the root of Samiri was originally Egyptian or Hebrew does not affect the later history. Four facts may be noted.

1.     There was a man bearing a name of that kind at the time of Moses, and he led a revolt against Moses and was cursed by Moses.

2.     In the time of King Omri (903-896 B.C.) of the northern kingdom of Israel, there was a man called Shemer, from whom, according to the Bible, was bought a hill on which was built the new capital of the kingdom, the town of Samaria.

3.     The name of the hill was Shomer (watchman, vigilant guardian), and that form of the name also appears as the name of a man (see 3 Kings 16:24);

some authorities think the town was called after the hill and not after the man (Hastings's Encyclopedia of Religion and Ethics), but this is for our present purposes immaterial.

4. There was and is a dissenting community of Israelites called Samaritans, who have their own separate Pentateuch and Targum, who claim to be the true Children of Israel, and who hold the Orthodox Jews in contempt as the latter hold them in contempt; they claim to be the true guardians (Shomerim) of the Law, and that is probably the true origin of the name Samaritan, which may go further back in time than the foundation of the town of Samaria. I think it probable that the schism originated from the time of Moses, and that the curse of Moses on the Samiri explains the position.

إِنَّمَا إِلَهُكُمُ اللَّهُ الَّذِي لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا هُوَ...   

20: 98.  But the God of you all is the One Allah:

there is no god but He:

...وَسِعَ كُلَّ شَيْءٍ عِلْمًا ﴿٩٨﴾

all things He comprehends in His knowledge.

كَذَلِكَ نَقُصُّ عَلَيْكَ مِنْ أَنبَاء مَا قَدْ سَبَقَ...   

99. for We have sent thee a Message from Our own Presence.

...وَقَدْ آتَيْنَاكَ مِن لَّدُنَّا ذِكْرًا ﴿٩٩﴾

for We have sent thee a Message from Our own Presence.

C2625. Thus superseding previous revelations; for this (the Quran) is direct from Allah, and is not a second-hand exposition on other men's authority.

Asad’s Version:

20:80 O children of Israel! [Thus] We saved you from your enemy, and [then] We made a covenant with you on the right-hand slope of Mount Sinai, 63 and repeatedly sent down manna and quails unto you, [saying,]

(20:81)

[[Asad’s note -

66 There is almost complete unanimity among the classical commentators in that God's "condemnation" (ghadab, lit., "wrath") is a metonym for the inescapable retribution which man brings upon himself if he deliberately rejects God's guidance and "transgresses the bounds of equity".]]

20:82

Yet withal, behold, I forgive all sins unto any who repents and attains to faith and does righteous deeds, and thereafter keeps to the right path.

[[ Asad’s notes - 63 See note 38 on 19:52. As regards God's "covenant" with the children of Israel, see 2:63 and 83.

64 The reference to God's bestowal of "manna (mann) and quails (salwa)" upon the Israelites during their wanderings in the Sinai Desert after their exodus from Egypt is found in the Qur'an in two other places as well (namely, in 2:57 and 7:160). According to Arab philologists, the term mann denotes not only the sweet, resinous substance exuded by certain plants of the desert, but also everything that is "bestowed as a favour", i.e., without any effort on the part of the recipient. Similarly, the term salwa signifies not merely "a quail" or "quails", but also "all that makes man content and happy after privation" (Qamus). Hence the combination of these two terms denotes, metonymically, the gift of sustenance freely bestowed by God upon the followers of Moses.

65 Or: "do not behave in an overweening manner" - i.e., "do not attribute these favours to your own supposed excellence on account of your descent from Abraham".]]

20:83 Asad [AND GOD SAID: 67 ] "Now what has caused thee, O Moses, to leave thy people behind in so great a haste?" 68

20:84 Asad He answered: "They are treading in my footsteps 69 ' while I have hastened unto Thee, O my Sustainer, so that Thou might be well-pleased [with me].”

20:85 Said He: "Then [know that], verily, in thy absence We have put thy people to a test, and the Samaritan has led them astray." 70

[[ Ruby’s comment – What was the test? Was it that Moses was gone for 40 days and they were confused and did not know what to do? Or any other thing? ]]

[[ Asad’s notes:

67 This passage relates to the time of Moses' ascent of Mount Sinai, mentioned in 2:51 and 7:142.

68 Lit., "what has hastened thee ahead of thy people?" - implying that he should not have left them alone, without his personal guidance, at so early a stage in their freedom. In this inimitable elliptic manner the Qur'an alludes to the psychological fact that a community which attains to political and social freedom after centuries of bondage remains for a long time subject to the demoralizing influences of its past, and cannot all at once develop a spiritual and social discipline of its own.

69 The classical commentators understand this phrase in its physical sense, i.e.. "they are coming up behind me and are now close by". Since, however. Moses was obviously meant to be alone on liis ascent of Mount Sinai, I am of the opinion that his answer has a tropical sense, expressing his assumption that the children of Israel would follow his guidance even in his absence: an assumption which proved erroneous, as shown in the sequence.

70 The designation as-samiri is undoubtedly an adjectival noun denoting the person's descent or origin. According to one of the explanations advanced by Tabari and Zamakhshari, it signifies "a man of the Jewish clan of the Samirah", i.e., the ethnic and religious group designated in later times as the Samaritans (a small remnant of whom is still living in Nablus, in Palestine). Since that sect as such did not yet exist at the time of Moses, it is possible that - as Ibn 'Abbas maintained (Razi) - the person in question was one of the many Egyptians who had been converted to the faith of Moses and joined the Israelites on their exodus from Egypt (cf note 92 on 7:124): in which case the designation samiri might be connected with the ancient Egyptian shemer, "a foreigner" or "stranger". This surmise is strengthened by his introduction of the worship of the golden calf, undoubtedly an echo of the Egyptian cult of Apis (see note 1 1 3 on 7:148). In any case, it is not impossible that the latter-day Samaritans descended - or were reputed to descend - from this personality, whether of Hebrew or of Egyptian origin; this might

partly explain the persistent antagonism between them and the rest of the Israelite community. ]]

20:86

Thereupon Moses returned to his people full of wrath and sorrow, [and] exclaimed: "O my people! Did not your Sustainer hold out [many] a goodly promise to you? Did, then, [the fulfilment of] this promise seem to you too long in coming?" Or are you, perchance, determined to see your Sustainer's condemnation fall upon you, 72 and so you broke your promise to me?"

20:87

They answered: "We did not break our promise to thee of our own free will, but [this is what happened:] we were loaded with the [sinful] burdens of the [Egyptian] people's ornaments, and so we threw them [into the fire], 75 and likewise did this Samaritan cast [his into it]."

20:88

[[ Asad’s notes:

71 Or, according to Zamakhshari: "Did, then, the time [of my absence] seem too long to you?" (It is to be noted that the term 'ahd signifies a "time" or "period" as well as a "covenant" or "promise".)

72 Lit., "Or have you decided that condemnation by your Sustainer should fall due upon you?"- ie.,"are you determined to disregard the consequences of your doings?"

73 It is mentioned in Exodus xii, 35 that, immediately before their departure from Egypt, the Israelites "borrowed of the Egyptians jewels of silver and jewels of gold". This "borrowing" was obviously done under false pretences, without any intention on the part of the Israelites to return the jewellery to its rightful owners: for, according to the Biblical statement (ibid., verse 36), "they spoiled [i.e., robbed] the Egyptians" by doing so. While it is noteworthy that the Old Testament, in its present, corrupted form, does not condemn this behaviour, its iniquity seems to have gradually dawned upon the Israelites, and so they decided to get rid of those sinfully acquired ornaments

(Baghawi, Zamakhshari and - in one of his alternative interpretations - Razi).

74 This interpolation is necessary in view of the change from the direct speech in the preceding verse to the indirect in this one and in the sequence.

75 See surah 7, note 113.

76 An allusion to the fact that Moses had been brought up - obviously as an Egyptian - at Pharaoh's court. ]]

20:89

Why - did they not see that [the thing] could not give them any response, and had no power to harm or to benefit them?

(20:90) And, indeed, even before [the return of Moses] had Aaron said unto them: "O my people! You are but being tempted to evil by this [idol] - for, behold, your [only] Sustainer is the Most Gracious! Follow me, then, and obey my bidding!" 77

20:91

[But] they answered: "By no means shall we cease to worship it until Moses comes back to

us!" (20:92) [And now that he had come back, Moses] said: "O Aaron! What has prevented

thee, when thou didst see that they had gone astray, (20:93) from [abandoning them and]

following me? Hast thou, then, [deliberately] disobeyed my commandment?" 78

20:94 Answered [Aaron]: "O my mother's son! Seize me not by my beard, nor by my head! 79 ' Behold, I was afraid lest [on thy return] thou say, 'Thou hast caused a split among the children of Israel, and hast paid no heed to my bidding!" 80

20:95 Said [Moses]: "What, then, didst thou have in view, O Samaritan?"

(20:96) He answered: "I have gained insight into something which they were unable to see: 81 and so I took hold of a handful of the Apostle's teachings and cast it away: for thus has my mind prompted me [to act]." 82

[[ Asad’s notes:

77 Sc, "and do not follow the Samaritan". This is in sharp contrast to the Bible (Exodus xxxii, 1- 5),

which declares Aaron guilty of making and worshipping the golden calf.

78 Cf. the last sentence of 7:142, where Moses, before leaving for Mount Sinai, exhorts Aaron to

"act righteously" (islih). In this connection see also Aaron's reply to Moses in 7:150, as well

as the corresponding note 117.

79 See 7:150.

80 Lit., "to my word" or "to what I had said" - evidently, about the importance of keeping the people united (Zamakhshari).

81 It is to be noted that the verb basura (lit., "he became seeing") has the tropical significance of "he perceived [something] mentally", or "he gained insight" or "he understood". Hence, Abu Muslim al-Isfahani (whose interpretation of the whole of this verse Razi analyzes and finds most convincing) explains the above phrase as meaning, "I realized what they [i.e., the rest of the people] did not realize - namely, that some of thy beliefs, O Moses, were wrong". It would seem that the samaritan objected to the idea of a transcendental, imperceivable God, and thought that the people ought to have something more "tangible" to believe in. (See also next note.)

82 Contrary to the fanciful interpretations advanced by some of the other commentators, Abu Muslim (as quoted by Razi) explains the term athar (lit., "vestige" or "trace") in its tropical sense of the "practices and sayings" or - collectively - the "teachings" of any person, and particularly of a prophet; thus, he makes it clear that the phrase gabadtu gabdatan min athari 'r-rasul fa-nabadhtuha signifies "I took hold of a handful [i.e., "something"] of the teachings of the Apostle, and discarded it" : it being understood that "the Apostle" referred to by the Samaritan in the third person is Moses himself. (As already mentioned in the preceding note, Razi unreservedly subscribes to Abu Muslim's interpretation of this passage.) In my opinion, the Samaritan's rejection of a part of Moses' teachings is meant to explain the subconscious tendency underlying all forms

of idolatry and of the attribution of divine qualities to things or beings other than God: a futile, self-deceiving hope of bringing the Unperceivable closer to one's limited perception by creating a tangible "image" of the Divine Being or, at least, of something that could be conceived as His "emanation". Inasmuch as all such endeavours obscure rather than illuminate man's understanding of God, they defeat their own purpose and destroy the misguided devotee's spiritual potential: and this is undoubtedly the purport of the story of the golden calf as given in the Qur'an. ]]

[[Ali’s notes - 2620 Moses now turns to the Samiri, and the Samiri's reply in the next verse sums up his character in a few wonderful strokes of character-painting. The lesson of the whole of this episode is the fall of a human soul that nominally comes to Allah's Truth in a humble position but makes mischief when and as it finds occasion. It is no less dangerous and culpable than the arrogant soul, typified by Pharaoh, which gets into high places and makes its leadership the cause of ruin of a whole nation. (20.95)

2621 This answer of the Samiri is a fine example of unblushing effrontery, careful evasion of issues, and invented falsehoods. He takes upon himself to pretend that he had far more insight than anybody else: he saw what the crowd did not see. He saw something supernatural. "The Messenger" is construed by many Commentators to mean the angel Gabriel. Rasul (plural, rusul) is used in several places for "angels" e.g., in xi. 69, 77; xix. 19; and xxxv. 1. But if we take it to mean the Messenger Moses, it means that the Samiri saw something sacred or supernatural in his footprints: perhaps he thinks a little flattery would make Moses forgive him. The dust became sacred, and his throwing it into the calf made the calf utter a lowing sound! As if that was the point at issue! He does not answer the charge of making an image for worship. But finally, with arrogant effrontery, he says, "Well, that is what my soul suggested to me, and that should be enough!" (20.96) ]]

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20:97 [Ta’Ha (O Man), Mecca 45]

(20:98) [Ta’ha, Mecca 45]

20:99

THUS DO WE relate unto thee some of the stories of what happened in the past; and [thus] have We vouchsafed unto thee, out of Our grace, a reminder. 85