Surah Luqman Tafseer

وَإِن جَاهَدَاكَ عَلى أَن تُشْرِكَ بِي مَا لَيْسَ لَكَ بِهِ عِلْمٌ فَلَإ تُطِعْهُمَا

But if they strive with you to make you join in worship with Me others that of which you have no knowledge, then obey them not;

means, if they try hard to make you follow them in their religion, then do not accept that from them, but do not let that stop you from behaving with them in the world kindly, i.e. treating them with respect.

وَصَاحِبْهُمَا فِي الدُّنْيَا مَعْرُوفًا

but behave with them in the world kindly,

وَاتَّبِعْ سَبِيلَ مَنْ أَنَابَ إِلَيَّ

and follow the path of him who turns to Me in repentance and in obedience.

means, the believers.

ثُمَّ إِلَيَّ مَرْجِعُكُمْ فَأُنَبِّيُكُم بِمَا كُنتُمْ تَعْمَلُونَ

Then to Me will be your return, and I shall tell you what you used to do.

At-Tabarani recorded in Al-Ishrah that Sa`d bin Malik said,

"This Ayah,

وَإِن جَاهَدَاكَ عَلى أَن تُشْرِكَ بِي مَا لَيْسَ لَكَ بِهِ عِلْمٌ فَلَإ تُطِعْهُمَا

(But if they strive with you to make you join in worship with Me others that of which you have no knowledge, then obey them not;) was revealed concerning me.

I was a man who honored his mother, but when I became Muslim, she said:

`O Sa`d! What is this new thing I see you doing Leave this religion of yours, or I will not eat or drink until I die, and people will say:Shame on you, for what you have done to me, and they will say that you have killed your mother.'

I said, `Do not do that, O mother, for I will not give up this religion of mine for anything.'

She stayed without eating for one day and one night, and she became exhausted; then she stayed for another day and night without eating, and she became utterly exhausted.

When I saw that, I said:`O my mother, by Allah, even if you had one hundred souls and they were to depart one by one, I would not give up this religion of mine for anything, so if you want to, eat, and if you want to, do not eat.'

So she ate.