'In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful' His saying, exalted and glorified is He: "Say, 'Is there any of your partners who begins creation and then returns it?' Say, 'Allah begins creation and then returns it. So how are you turned away?'" "Say, 'Is there any of your partners who guides to the truth?' Say, 'Allah guides to the truth. Is he who guides to the truth more worthy to be followed or he who does not guide unless he is guided? So what is wrong with you? How do you judge?" "And most of them do not follow except assumption. Indeed, assumption avails not against the truth at all. Indeed, Allah is Knowing of what they do." This is a pause also on the inability of the idols and their impotence. It is a reminder of the power of Allah, exalted and glorified is He. The beginning of creation refers to the creation of man at the very first. And its return is the resurrection from the graves. And "you are turned away" means: you are diverted and deprived. The Arabs say: "A land that is 'ma'fuqa'" if it has not received rain, meaning it is in a state of disappointment and desolation, as He said: "And the overturned cities He hurled down" [An-Najm: 53]. And His saying, exalted is He: "Say, 'Is there any of your partners who guides..." The verse, "guides to the truth" means: clarifies the paths of righteousness, calls to justice, and explains the signs and the like. He described the idols as not guiding except when they are guided. And we find that they do not guide even if they are guided. The reason for this is that He dealt with them in describing them with the attributes of those who have understanding. This is a metaphor and is found in many parts of the Qur'an. Abu Ali Al-Farisi mentioned this. And what I say is that the reading of Hamzah and Al-Kisai allows for the meaning: "Or he who does not guide anyone except that he is guided by guidance from Allah." As for the other readings, which imply: "Or he who does not guide except that he is guided," the meaning aligns with what has been previously mentioned by Abu Ali Al-Farisi, and in it is much metaphor. Some of them said: it is an expression that it does not move except that it is moved. And it is possible that what Allah, exalted is He, mentioned of the glorification of inanimate objects is their guidance. And it is possible that the exception in their guidance refers to the denial of the disbelievers on the Day of Resurrection, as has been mentioned in this surah. And the reading of Hamzah and Al-Kisai is "yahdi" with the opening of the 'ya' and the sukoon on the 'ha'. And Nafi', Abu Amr, Shaiba, Al-A'raj, and Abu Ja'far read: "yahdi" with the sukoon on the 'ha' and the emphasis on the 'dal'. And Ibn Kathir and Ibn Amir read: "yahdi" with the opening of the 'ya' and the 'ha'. And this is the most eloquent of the readings. The movement of the 'ta' of "yahtadi" was transferred to the 'ha' and the 'ta' was assimilated into the 'dal'. And this is the narration of Warsh from Nafi'. And Asim read in the narration of Hafs: "yahdi" with the opening of the 'ya', the kasra on the 'ha', and the emphasis on the 'dal', following the kasra with a kasra. And Asim read in the narration of Abu Bakr: "yihdi" with the kasra on the 'ya' and 'ha' and the emphasis on the 'dal'. And this is also following. Mujahid said: Allah guides from the idols and others whom He wills. The judge Abu Muhammad, may Allah have mercy on him, said: This is weak. And Yahya ibn Al-Harith Al-Zamari read: "except that he guides" with the opening of the 'ha' and the emphasis on the 'dal'. And the readers paused at: "So what is wrong with you?" Then he begins: "How do you judge?"

And His saying, exalted is He: "And most of them do not follow" is news about the corruption of their ways and the weakness of their understanding. It is a conjecture. Then He clarified the status of conjecture among the types of knowledge and its distance from the truth. Conjecture - in this verse - is in its essence that it is the belief in one of two possibilities, but there is a leaning towards one of them without evidence that invalidates the other. The permissibility of what these people believe is merely by their claim, not in itself. Rather, their conjecture is impossible in its essence. The truth, too, is in its essence that it is the knowledge of the known as it is. With these conditions, conjecture does not avail anything from the truth. As for in the path of the rulings that people are bound by their apparent meanings, conjecture suffices in those realities and is diverted from one path to another. The testimony is merely presumed. Likewise, accusations in testimonies suffice. And this type is not what is intended in this verse. The majority of people read: "They do". And Abdullah ibn Mas'ud read: "You do" with the 'ta' addressing the present audience.