“When it is said to them, ‘Follow what Allah has sent down,’ they say, ‘Rather, we follow what we found our forefathers following.’ Even though their forefathers understood nothing and were not guided?”

Allah Most High then describes the condition of the polytheists when they are commanded to follow what Allah sent down to His Messenger, as described above. They turn away from it and say, “Rather, we follow what we found our forefathers following.” They content themselves with blindly imitating their forefathers and have no desire to believe in the prophets, even though their forefathers were the most ignorant of people and the furthest astray. This specious argument by which they reject the truth is utterly flimsy. It demonstrates their aversion to the truth, their unwillingness to accept it, and their lack of fairness. Had they been guided to sound judgment and been sincere in their intent, truth itself would have been their aim. Whoever makes truth his aim and weighs it against all else will certainly recognize it and follow it, provided that he is fair-minded.

Then [the Exalted] said: “The likeness of those who disbelieve is that of one who shouts to creatures that hear nothing but a call and a cry. Deaf, dumb, and blind—they do not understand.”

When Allah Most High made clear their refusal to submit to what the messengers brought and their rejection of it through blind imitation, it became evident that they were neither receptive nor responsive to the truth. Indeed, it was clear to everyone that they would never abandon their obstinacy. Allah Most High therefore states that, when someone calls them to faith, their likeness is that of livestock whose shepherd shouts at them, though they have no understanding of what their shepherd and caller is saying. They hear only the bare sound, by which the proof is established against them, but they do not comprehend it in a way that benefits them. Thus, they are deaf: they do not hear the truth with understanding and acceptance; blind: they do not look with reflection and heedfulness; and dumb: they do not utter anything that would benefit them.

The reason for all of this is that they possess no sound reason. Rather, they are the most foolish of fools and the most ignorant of the ignorant.

Can any rational person doubt that one who is called to right guidance, kept away from corruption, forbidden to plunge into punishment, and commanded to pursue what will bring him well-being, prosperity, triumph, and bliss—yet disobeys the one who sincerely counsels him, turns away from his Lord’s command, knowingly plunges into the Fire, follows falsehood, and casts the truth aside—has not the slightest trace of reason, and that even if he is cunning, deceitful, and shrewd, he remains among the most foolish of fools?