يا أَيُّهَا الَّذينَ آمَنوا لا تُلهِكُم أَموالُكُم وَلا أَولادُكُم عَن ذِكرِ اللَّهِ ۚ وَمَن يَفعَل ذٰلِكَ فَأُولٰئِكَ هُمُ الخاسِرونَ

O you who have faith! Do not let your possessions and children distract you from the remembrance of Allah, and whoever does that – it is they who are the losers.

EXEGESIS

Tulhi is the second person, singular, imperfect tense of form 4 of the root verb lahā, which lexically means to amuse oneself, to play, or to divert oneself.^{‎[1]Hans Wehr, under the root l-h-w and l-h-y.} Lahw in the Arabic language denotes something that keeps man preoccupied from what concerns him.^{‎[2]Raghib, under l-h-y.} In form 4, ilhāʾ signifies to distract someone and to divert his attention from something.^{‎[3]Hans Wehr, under the root l-h-w and l-h-y.} It has occurred here in the jussive mood (majzūm) and it has been preceded by the negative particle lā.

However, some researchers are of the opinion that lahw actually implies something towards which one is inclined and in which one takes pleasure, but without having any particular objective in mind. Hence, ilhāʾ means to make someone inclined towards something and take delight in it.^{‎[4]Tahqiq, under l-h-w.}

Khāsirūn is the active participle of the infinitive noun khusr or khusrān meaning loss^{‎[5]Ayn, under kh-s-r.} or to lose one’s way.^{‎[6]Lisan, under kh-s-r.} According to Rāghib, it connotes a decrease in capital.^{‎[7]Raghib, under kh-s-r.} Khusr has a wide spectrum of instances that includes material loss as well as spiritual.^{‎[8]Tahqiq, under kh-s-r.}

EXPOSITION

After providing a description of the hypocrites, the Holy Quran is now alerting the believers not to be distracted from the path of God as has been the case with the hypocrites. It also alerts them that the affair of the hypocrites should not lead them to forget their own souls. This set of verses are meant to awaken the soul of a believer and persuade him to remember God and to ponder over death, so that he is able to balance his position on the right path, purify his faith, and prepare himself for life after death.^{‎[9]Fadlallah, 22/244.}    

This set of verses also cautions the believers to refrain from the factors that lead to hypocrisy, namely preoccupation with wealth and children, and negligence in remembering God.^{‎[10]Ahsan al-Hadith, 11/181-182.} Accordingly, the verse under discussion serves as a preamble for the forthcoming divine command in the next verse to spend from one’s possessions in the way of God.^{‎[11]Alusi, 14/312.}    

Wealth and children are a blessing from God as long as one utilises them to obey God and attain eternal felicity. However, if attachment to them hinders one from reaching God then it is undoubtedly a misfortune.^{‎[12]Nemuneh, 24/172.} Similarly, the Quran refers to wealth in a positive way and terms it as good (khayr): Prescribed for you, when death approaches any of you and he leaves behind any good … (2:180). And so does the Holy Prophet refer to it: ‘The best helper to achieve God-consciousness is the wealth acquired through correct means.’^{‎[13]Ghazālī, Iḥyāʾ ʿUlūm al-Dīn, 4/106.}

The same applies to might and worldly position. However, they have been condemned in the Islamic narrations more than they have been acclaimed, due to the fact that most people are ignorant of how to correctly handle these blessings, and hence they are accompanied with caution. If wealth, children, position, and governance were evil in essence and in relation to all human beings, then the Prophet of Islam would not have been endowed with governance, and affluence should not have been conferred upon Prophet Solomon (a). Therefore, with respect to all worldly bounties, the good of it is always blended with the bad of it, and the constructive of it is mixed with its destructive. 

Therefore, a believer ought not to aspire for this world as the goal of his life; rather, he should look at it as a prelude to attain the hereafter. In this case, the world turns into a powerful instrument for achieving God’s pleasure and for securing the hereafter. Illustrating this instrumental aspect of this worldly life, Imam Ali (a) says: ‘It is the prostrating spot of the lovers of God and the prayer place of the angels of God; it is a place wherein descends the divine revelation, and it is the trading zone for the friends of God who acquired His mercy therein and attained paradise.’^{‎[14]Nahj, saying 121.}

Coming back to our discussion, the verse in question is particularly calling upon those who have faith in God and His Messenger to self-evaluation against the core Islamic tenet of God-consciousness and His remembrance, and to gauge the degree to which they remember God by fulfilling their diverse religious duties and responsibilities. Unlike the hypocrites, the love of wealth and children ought not to distract a believer from Islamic duties such as giving charity in the way of God and helping fellow Muslims, as he should not be immersed in the pleasures of earthly life such that he becomes negligent of the hereafter and of the everlasting reward that God has promised the faithful therein.^{‎[15]Khatib, 14/966.}

The specific mention of wealth and children in the verse is due to the fact that these two elements are the strongest factors that could pose a spiritual threat even to the faithful, if they fail to remain vigilant.^{‎[16]Qaraati, 10/62.} Reference to them by the Quran in 18:46 as an adornment of the earthly life implies their alluring nature. History attests that those Muslims in Medina who disclosed to the enemies of Islam the plan of the Muslims to confiscate the trade caravan of the Quraysh, were amongst the Muhājirūn who were apprehensive of the loss of their possessions and children in Mecca.^{‎[17]Qaraati, 4/307.} Hence, the Quran reminds the believers not to be deluded from the right path as a result of love for their wealth and children: O you who have faith! Do not betray Allah and the Apostle, and do not betray your trusts knowingly. Know that your possessions and children are only a test (8:27-28).

Moreover, there is also an indication in the verse that the secret of man’s eternal felicity lies in the degree of his remembrance of God, just as his eternal damnation is the direct outcome of his being negligent of God: and whoever does that – it is they who are the losers. This phrase also alludes to the fact that if the acquisition of wealth and being busy with children does not distract one from God’s obedience, then not only are they not blameworthy, but rather, in such a case, they would be subject to God’s pleasure.^{‎[18]Tantawi, 14/414.} It is worthy of note here that according to the Quran, the negative consequences of forgetting God affect man even in his worldly life: But whoever disregards My remembrance, his shall be a wretched life, and on the Day of Resurrection We shall raise him blind (20:124).

The concept of the remembrance of God is central in the Quran: O you who have faith! Remember Allah with frequent remembrance (33:41). The emphasis laid upon the Islamic practices in the Quran is also due to the fact that they lead to the remembrance of God: So worship Me, and maintain the prayer for My remembrance (20:14). Thus, it is of vital importance that the life of a Muslim in all its avenues should be accompanied by God-consciousness. Put differently, the realisation that one is responsible to his Creator and answerable to Him is the most important factor in remaining on the path of guidance and truth and in attaining eternal felicity.

However, frequent remembrance of God would have strong impact on the human soul only if it is accompanied with purity of intention (ikhlāṣ); rather, remembering God sincerely is the very reality of frequent remembrance mentioned in 33:41, as remembering Him much without pure intention is basically insignificant. 4:142 describes the hypocrites: When they stand up for prayer, they stand up lazily, showing off to the people and not remembering Allah except a little. Explaining this verse, Imam Ali (a) says: ‘He who remembers God in secret has indeed remembered Him frequently. The hypocrites used to remember God in public, but they did not remember Him in secret.’^{‎[19]Kafi, 2/501; Wasail, 7/164.} Those afflicted with hypocrisy look at the remembrance of God as a means to attain the earthly life, not as a way to free their souls from it; and since the enjoyment of this world is little, their remembrance of God would be trivial as well, though it may apparently seem to be significant.^{‎[20]Tasnīm, 10/198.}

A variety of factors are decisive in distracting one from the remembrance of God. Alcohol and gambling,^{‎[21]Quran, 5:91.} trade and bargain,^{‎[22]Quran, 24:37.} rivalry in worldly gain and increase,^{‎[23]Quran, 102:1.} desires and longing,^{‎[24]Quran, 15:3.} and material comfort^{‎[25]Quran, 25:18.} are among the things mentioned by the Quran that could potentially lead one to be negligent about God.

INSIGHTS FROM HADITH

1. The Holy Prophet said regarding the verse, O you who have faith! Do not let your possessions and children distract you from the remembrance of Allah: ‘They are the righteous from amongst my nation; amidst them are those whom neither trading nor bargaining distracts from the remembrance of Allah and the five daily prayers.’^{‎[26]Suyuti, 6/226.}
2. The Holy Prophet says: ‘Love of wealth and position causes hypocrisy in the same manner that water causes the growth of vegetation.’^{‎[27]Narāqī, Jāmiʿ al-Saʿādāt, 2/48.}
3. The Holy Prophet has said: ‘As man gets older, two things get younger in him: [false] hope and love of wealth.’^{‎[28]Ibn Abī Firās, Majmūʿat Warrām, 1/163.}
4. In a narration reported by Imam Ali (a), the Holy Prophet said: ‘Verily the dinar and the dirham led those before you to destruction, and so they will destroy you [as well].’^{‎[29]Bihar, 70/23.}
5. Imam Ali (a) said: ‘Love of wealth and praising [God] do not meet.’^{‎[30]Ghurar, p. 142, h. 2528.}
6. Imam Ali (a) said: ‘Love of wealth fortifies [false] hopes and pollutes actions.’^{‎[31]Ghurar, p. 368, h. 8315.}
7. Imam Ali (a) said: ‘Love of wealth weakens the faith and defiles conviction (yaqīn).’^{‎[32]Ghurar, p. 368, h. 8316.}
8. Imam Ali (a) said: ‘Wealth is the fountain-head of [lowly] desires.’^{‎[33]Ghurar, p. 368, h. 8317.}
9. Imam Ali (a) said: ‘Amplitude of wealth defiles the hearts and leads to sins.’^{‎[34]Ghurar, p. 368, h. 8322.}
10. Imam Ali (a) said: ‘The worst of all wealth is that from which nothing is spent in the way of God, and whose zakat is not paid.’^{‎[35]Ghurar, p. 369, h. 8354.}
11. Imam al-Ṣādiq (a) said: ‘The harm caused by two ferocious wolves attacking a flock of sheep without a shepherd, one of them from one end and the other from the other end, is less than the harm inflicted by the love of wealth and position on the religion of a Muslim.’^{‎[36]Kafi, 2/315.}
12. Imam al-Ṣādiq (a) said: ‘Possession and children are the tillage of this world, whilst the righteous deed is the tillage of the hereafter; and it could be that God brings these two together in a people.’^{‎[37]Bihar, 67/225.}
13. In a narration, God addresses Prophet David (a): ‘O David! Tell the Children of Israel not to acquire wealth through illegal ways, for I shall not accept their prayer (ṣalāh).’^{‎[38]Bihar, 14/45.}

Note: Love of wealth could lead man to disremember God, and to acquire it through ways disapproved by Him. The narration also alludes to the fact that the spirit of prayer – which is God-consciousness if truly maintained – reverberates in other arenas of human life.  

REVIEW OF TAFSĪR LITERATURE

According to Rāzī, there is difference of opinion amongst the exegetes with regard to the addressee of this verse. Some maintain that the verse addresses the believers, whilst others believe that it refers to the hypocrites.^{‎[39]Razi, 30/549-550.}

Do not let your possessions and children distract you: 1. Wealth and children should not occupy a person such that he ceases to perform his duties towards God.^{‎[40]Tibyan, 10/15; Ahsan al-Hadith, 11/182; Tantawi, 14/413; Fadlallah, 22/244.} 2. One should not be deluded by wealth by becoming preoccupied with the pleasure of acquiring it and trying to multiply it. Children should not distract you by your delight in them and concern for them during your lifetime and after.^{‎[41]Safi, 5/180; Alusi, 14/311; Zamakhshari, 4/544; Muhit, 10/184; Ibn Ashur, 28/224.}

A number of explanations have been offered as to the meaning of remembrance of Allah in the verse:

1. It includes a wide range of acts such as prayer, praising God and glorifying Him, exalting Him through His beautiful names, supplication, and the like.^{‎[42]Tibyan, 10/15; Thaalabi, 5/436-437; Safi, 5/180; Alusi, 14/311; Razi, 30/550; Muhit, 10/184; Sabzawari, 7/166-167.}
2. All the obligatory acts.^{‎[43]Tibyan, 10/16; Tantawi, 14/413; Shawkani, 5/278; Razi, 30/550.}
3. The mandatory five daily prayers.^{‎[44]Tabrisi, 10/445; Suyuti, 6/226.}
4. Remembrance of God is of two types: real, like prayer and the recitation of the Quran; and figurative, such as contemplation on the divine attributes and pondering over obedience to Him.^{‎[45]Ibn Ashur, 28/225.}
5. It implies fighting in the way of God; ‘loss’ in the verse means disgrace and humiliation in this world and the hereafter; and this is the outcome of love for this world and fear of being killed in His way.^{‎[46]Kashif, 7/333.}

As to what makes them to be losers, the following explanations have been advanced by the exegetes:

1. Those who have been distracted by their wealth and children are losers in that they have lost divine reward and mercy, and shall be subjected to God’s punishment.^{‎[47]Tibyan, 10/16; Tabrisi, 10/445.}
2. They are losers since they have given up the great and everlasting reward in return for the inferior and transient life.^{‎[48]Safi, 5/180; Alusi, 14/312; Zamakhshari, 4/544; Razi, 30/550.}
3. They are the ones who ruin themselves and their families on the Day of Resurrection (39:15).^{‎[49]Ibn Kathir, 8/157.}
4. They have reached the heights of loss.^{‎[50]Shawkani, 5/278.}
5. The reciprocal effect of man forgetting his Lord is that God disremembers him: They have forgotten Allah, so He has forgotten them (9:67). This is indeed the greatest loss, for referring to the hypocrites, God says: They are the ones who bought error for guidance, so their trade did not profit them, nor were they guided (2:16).^{‎[51]Mizan, 19/291.}

[1] Hans Wehr, under the root l-h-w and l-h-y.
[2] Raghib, under l-h-y.
[3] Hans Wehr, under the root l-h-w and l-h-y.
[4] Tahqiq, under l-h-w.
[5] Ayn, under kh-s-r.
[6] Lisan, under kh-s-r.
[7] Raghib, under kh-s-r.
[8] Tahqiq, under kh-s-r.
[9] Fadlallah, 22/244.
[10] Ahsan al-Hadith, 11/181-182.
[11] Alusi, 14/312.
[12] Nemuneh, 24/172.
[13] Ghazālī, Iḥyāʾ ʿUlūm al-Dīn, 4/106.
[14] Nahj, saying 121.
[15] Khatib, 14/966.
[16] Qaraati, 10/62.
[17] Qaraati, 4/307.
[18] Tantawi, 14/414.
[19] Kafi, 2/501; Wasail, 7/164.
[20] Tasnīm, 10/198.
[21] Quran, 5:91.
[22] Quran, 24:37.
[23] Quran, 102:1.
[24] Quran, 15:3.
[25] Quran, 25:18.
[26] Suyuti, 6/226.
[27] Narāqī, Jāmiʿ al-Saʿādāt, 2/48.
[28] Ibn Abī Firās, Majmūʿat Warrām, 1/163.
[29] Bihar, 70/23.
[30] Ghurar, p. 142, h. 2528.
[31] Ghurar, p. 368, h. 8315.
[32] Ghurar, p. 368, h. 8316.
[33] Ghurar, p. 368, h. 8317.
[34] Ghurar, p. 368, h. 8322.
[35] Ghurar, p. 369, h. 8354.
[36] Kafi, 2/315.
[37] Bihar, 67/225.
[38] Bihar, 14/45.
[39] Razi, 30/549-550.
[40] Tibyan, 10/15; Ahsan al-Hadith, 11/182; Tantawi, 14/413; Fadlallah, 22/244.
[41] Safi, 5/180; Alusi, 14/311; Zamakhshari, 4/544; Muhit, 10/184; Ibn Ashur, 28/224.
[42] Tibyan, 10/15; Thaalabi, 5/436-437; Safi, 5/180; Alusi, 14/311; Razi, 30/550; Muhit, 10/184; Sabzawari, 7/166-167.
[43] Tibyan, 10/16; Tantawi, 14/413; Shawkani, 5/278; Razi, 30/550.
[44] Tabrisi, 10/445; Suyuti, 6/226.
[45] Ibn Ashur, 28/225.
[46] Kashif, 7/333.
[47] Tibyan, 10/16; Tabrisi, 10/445.
[48] Safi, 5/180; Alusi, 14/312; Zamakhshari, 4/544; Razi, 30/550.
[49] Ibn Kathir, 8/157.
[50] Shawkani, 5/278.
[51] Mizan, 19/291.