8 Luqman Quotes That Teach Timeless Wisdom on Life, Faith, and Character
The sage's words have outlasted empires. Here's why they still cut deep.
Luqman quotes carry a weight that few ancient sources can match. Luqman al-Hakim, the wise man whose counsel fills Surah Luqman (Chapter 31) of the Quran, spoke in plain sentences that landed like stones in still water. His wisdom literature addressed his son directly, covering gratitude and humility without flinching, and every line still reads as if written for this morning. Eight of his most enduring words are below.
O my son, do not associate anything with God. Associating others with Him is a tremendous wrong.
Quran, Surah Luqman 31:13
O my son, even if a deed were the weight of a mustard seed and hidden inside a rock or anywhere in the heavens or earth, God would bring it forth. God is all-subtle, all-aware.
Quran, Surah Luqman 31:16
A verse about accountability, but framed with extraordinary precision. The mustard seed, the rock, the depths of the earth: Luqman isn't being abstract. He's making sure his son understands there is nowhere small enough to hide a wrong.
The Quran (Oxford World's Classics translation by M. A. S. Abdel Haleem)
O my son, keep up the prayer, command what is right, forbid what is wrong, and bear with patience whatever befalls you. These are matters of great determination.
Quran, Surah Luqman 31:17
Four instructions in one breath. What's striking is that patience comes last, paired directly with difficulty. Luqman doesn't promise the path will be easy. He just says bear it anyway.
Do not turn your nose up at people, nor walk about the place arrogantly, for God does not love arrogant or boastful people.
Quran, Surah Luqman 31:18
The image of turning one's nose up is as vivid today as it was then. Luqman is specific about the gesture, not just the attitude, because arrogance always shows up in the body first.
Islamic Wisdom: Sayings of the Prophet Muhammad (Penguin Classics)
Be modest in your bearing and lower your voice, for the ugliest of all voices is the braying of asses.
Quran, Surah Luqman 31:19
One of the most memorably blunt lines in any wisdom text. Luqman could have said 'speak softly and humbly.' Instead he picked the donkey. It works precisely because it stings a little.
We commanded man to be good to his parents. His mother carried him with increasing weakness, and his weaning takes 2 years. Be grateful to Me and to your parents.
Quran, Surah Luqman 31:14
This verse appears in Luqman's surah as context for his teachings. The specificity of '2 years' and 'increasing weakness' makes it feel less like scripture and more like someone who has actually watched a mother raise a child.
In the Shade of the Quran by Sayyid Qutb
Silence is wisdom, yet few practice it.
Widely attributed in classical Arabic wisdom literature
Short enough to be dismissed, heavy enough to stay with you. Luqman's classical sayings frequently circle back to restraint, and this one is probably the most quoted of them all outside the Quran.
Do not grieve over what has passed, and do not be overjoyed by what has come to you.
Attributed in classical Arabic wisdom literature
A steady-handed take on equanimity that predates Stoic philosophy in the Western sense by centuries. Luqman isn't asking for emotional numbness. He's asking for proportion, which is harder and more useful.
Luqman's advice was given to one son in one conversation. Somehow it reached every generation since. That's what true wisdom does.
Frequently asked questions
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