"And indeed We gave Luqman wisdom: 'Give thanks to God!' And whosoever gives thanks, he gives thanks for his own sake. And whosoever is ungrateful, truly God is Self-Sufficient, Praised. And behold, Luqman said to his son, admonishing him, 'O my son! Do not ascribe partners unto God. Truly ascribing partners is a tremendous wrong.'"
Quran 31:12-13
Today we're following up on yesterday's discussion of the 31st surah, Luqman. Yesterday we introduced Luqman, while also recognizing that we're not quite certain who he was. Today we're going to get into the advice that he gave his son. It's fascinating that even though we don't know who Luqman is today, he was clearly so well known that God, via Gabriel and Muhammad, would reference his story. We know that there are only rarely complete stories in the Quran, rather, familiar stories are referenced and used as seeds for reflection and commentary; Luqman's story is obviously very much in this tradition. This also brings us back to the difficult story of whether it was God who referenced Luqman's story, or rather it was Muhammad who consciously or unconsciously chose this story as the appropriate metaphor for making the point. However, as we've also discussed, most Muslims would rather not proceed down that slippery slope. No matter how you read that notion, the key is that Luqman had given advice to his son that was so well known - and so profoundly true - that it was held up as a shining example of how to lead a righteous life.
Quran 31:12-13
Today we're following up on yesterday's discussion of the 31st surah, Luqman. Yesterday we introduced Luqman, while also recognizing that we're not quite certain who he was. Today we're going to get into the advice that he gave his son. It's fascinating that even though we don't know who Luqman is today, he was clearly so well known that God, via Gabriel and Muhammad, would reference his story. We know that there are only rarely complete stories in the Quran, rather, familiar stories are referenced and used as seeds for reflection and commentary; Luqman's story is obviously very much in this tradition. This also brings us back to the difficult story of whether it was God who referenced Luqman's story, or rather it was Muhammad who consciously or unconsciously chose this story as the appropriate metaphor for making the point. However, as we've also discussed, most Muslims would rather not proceed down that slippery slope. No matter how you read that notion, the key is that Luqman had given advice to his son that was so well known - and so profoundly true - that it was held up as a shining example of how to lead a righteous life.
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