Surah Ar-Room
Chapter 30 · Verse 33 · Revealed in Makkah
“And when adversity touches the people, they call upon their Lord, turning in repentance to Him. Then when He lets them taste mercy from Him, at once a party of them associate others with their Lord,”
Translation: Saheeh International
Listen to recitation
Mishary Rashid Alafasy
Reflection — Ibn Kathir
How man sways between Tawhid and Shirk, and between Joy and Despair, according to His Circumstances
Allah tells us that when man is in dire straits, he calls upon Allah alone with no partner or associate, then when times of ease come and they have the choice, some people associate others with Allah and worship others alongside Him.
لِيَكْفُرُواْ بِمَآ ءاتَيْنَـهُمْ
Reflection — Maarif ul Quran
مِنَ الَّذِينَ فَرَّقُوا دِينَهُمْ وَكَانُوا شِيَعًا (Among those who split up religion and became sects - 30:32) that is, these disbelievers are those who have created a difference between Natural Faith and the true religion, or they have alienated themselves from the Natural Faith, as a result of which they are divided into different sects. شِيَعًا :Shiya'an is the plural of شِیعۃ shi` ah. A group of people following a leader is called shi ah. The fact is that the Natural Faith was based on the Oneness of Allah, by following which the entire human kind should have been one solid unit and one party. But it so happened that people split out from this unity and started following the personal views of their own leaders. Since the personal views and opinions of different people may always vary from person to person, different groups of people invented their own beliefs and religion. As a consequence, people were divided into various groups and sects, and the Shaitan made them believe that they were the only people on the right path كُلُّ حِزْبٍ بِمَا لَدَيْهِمْ فَرِحُونَ (Each group is happy with what it has before it - 30:32). That is, each group is happy and contended in its own beliefs and declare others being wrong, although they all are astray and treading the wrong path.
What does this verse bring up for you today?