Al-Kahf 29

5 min read

This verse appears in Shahrur’s project as one of the clearest texts indicating human freedom in belief and choice. It is central for him because it underpins his conception of individual responsibility and separates a person’s conviction from any external compulsion.

The verse as quoted

And say, “The truth is from your Lord. So whoever wills—let him believe; and whoever wills—let him disbelieve.” Indeed, We have prepared for the wrongdoers a Fire… and evil is the resting place.

Brief reading

Shahrur understands the verse as a declaration of freedom in belief and disbelief, and that judgment ultimately belongs to God. He therefore makes it a foundation for constructing the human relationship to belief, and uses it to affirm that faith is not valid unless it is chosen.

Axes

  • Faith-related
  • Human and ethical
  • choice: 4
  • freedom: 3
  • freedom of religion: 2
  • freedom of belief: 2
  • freedom of choice: 2

Its place in the network of concepts

The verse is connected to freedom, choice, freedom of religion, and freedom of belief. It is central because it gives him a basis for rejecting coercion and for linking reward and punishment to free responsibility.

The verse’s role in the argument

  • Support: 7
  • Foundational: 2

Summary of its presence in the atlas

  • It establishes freedom in belief and disbelief.
  • It is linked to choice and responsibility.
  • It is used to reject religious coercion.

Places of use

  • State and Society, p. 297: He cites the verse to state that belief and disbelief are two options left to human beings, and that punishment for disbelief belongs to God, not to human beings.
    • Concept: freedom of religion
    • Function of the verse here: Foundational
    • Textual citation: “Whoever wishes to believe may do so, and whoever wishes to remain in his religion may do so… and this is in His—Most High—saying: {AND SAY, “THE TRUTH IS FROM YOUR LORD. SO WHOEVER WILLS—LET HIM BELIEVE; AND WHOEVER WILLS—LET HIM DISBELIEVE”} (Al-Kahf 29). Here we note how God—Glorified be He—has granted freedom of belief and disbelief to all people alike”
  • The Prophetic Sunna and the Messengerly Sunna, p. 52: He cites it as evidence for human freedom of choice, then builds on it to argue that a bequest may not be invalidated or a person deprived of the right to dispose of property.
    • Concept: freedom
    • Function of the verse here: Support
    • Textual citation: “What preserved for the human being his right of choice in the matter of disbelief and belief is His saying, Exalted is He: {AND SAY, “THE TRUTH IS FROM YOUR LORD. SO WHOEVER WILLS—LET HIM BELIEVE; AND WHOEVER WILLS—LET HIM DISBELIEVE…} Al-Kahf 29”
  • The Book and the Qur’an, p. 91: He cites it to show that the human stance toward the Qur’an is belief or disbelief, not altering its laws.
    • Concept: freedom of belief
    • Function of the verse here: Support
    • Textual citation: “Therefore He, Exalted is He, said: {AND SAY, “THE TRUTH IS FROM YOUR LORD. SO WHOEVER WILLS—LET HIM BELIEVE; AND WHOEVER WILLS—LET HIM DISBELIEVE…”}”
  • The Book and the Qur’an, p. 276: He employs it to affirm the principle of freedom of choice, which he sees as consistent with the creation of humans for worship.
    • Concept: freedom
    • Function of the verse here: Support
    • Textual citation: “God created jinn and humans free… and this verse gives us the purpose of creating the human being, namely freedom, and it is in harmony with His saying, Exalted is He: {AND SAY, “THE TRUTH IS FROM YOUR LORD. SO WHOEVER WILLS—LET HIM BELIEVE; AND WHOEVER WILLS—LET HIM DISBELIEVE…”} (Al-Kahf 29).”
  • The Book and the Qur’an, p. 330: He makes it the Qur’anic basis for human freedom of choice and, consequently, for deserving reward and punishment.
    • Concept: choice
    • Function of the verse here: Foundational
    • Textual citation: “{AND SAY, “THE TRUTH IS FROM YOUR LORD. SO WHOEVER WILLS—LET HIM BELIEVE; AND WHOEVER WILLS—LET HIM DISBELIEVE…”} (Al-Kahf 29).”
  • Drying Up the Sources of Terrorism, p. 50: He cites it to affirm human freedom in belief and that it is incompatible with coercion and offensive fighting.
    • Concept: choice
    • Function of the verse here: Support
    • Textual citation: “And His—Exalted be He—saying: {AND SAY, “THE TRUTH IS FROM YOUR LORD. SO WHOEVER WILLS—LET HIM BELIEVE; AND WHOEVER WILLS—LET HIM DISBELIEVE”} (Al-Kahf 29)”
  • Drying Up the Sources of Terrorism, p. 225: He cites it to rebut deterministic hadiths that deny the effect of action and turn the human being into one who is driven without choice.
    • Concept: freedom of choice
    • Function of the verse here: Support
    • Textual citation: “This stands in stark contradiction to His—Exalted be He—saying: {AND SAY, “THE TRUTH IS FROM YOUR LORD…”} (Al-Kahf 29)”
  • Drying Up the Sources of Terrorism, p. 245: He uses it to affirm that belief and disbelief fall within the sphere of human choice, not coercion, as part of his construction of the objective of preserving religion.
    • Concept: freedom of choice
    • Function of the verse here: Support
    • Textual citation: “And he says: {AND SAY, “THE TRUTH IS FROM YOUR LORD. SO WHOEVER WILLS—LET HIM BELIEVE; AND WHOEVER WILLS—LET HIM DISBELIEVE”} (Al-Kahf 29)”
  • Toward New Foundations for Islamic Jurisprudence, pp. 127-128: He cites it to affirm freedom of belief and that faith cannot be compelled.
    • Concept: choice
    • Function of the verse here: Support
    • Textual citation: “{AND SAY, “THE TRUTH IS FROM YOUR LORD. SO WHOEVER WILLS—LET HIM BELIEVE; AND WHOEVER WILLS—LET HIM DISBELIEVE”} (Al-Kahf 29),”

This page is presented within the general method of building the atlas.

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Muhammad Shahrur Atlas