“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.”
Luqman · Quran, Surah Luqman 31:16
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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.
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About this quote
Meaning
In this verse Luqman moves from theology to practice, giving his son four interconnected instructions: maintain regular prayer, encourage what is good, discourage what is wrong, and meet hardship with patience. The final sentence lifts these beyond mere rules by calling them matters of great determination, suggesting they require not only knowledge but sustained will and courage. The combination of personal devotion, communal responsibility, and inner resilience forms a compact portrait of how a person of faith is meant to live.
Context
This verse is the third in a sequence within Surah Luqman where a father speaks directly and tenderly to his son. After addressing the foundations of belief and the reality of divine accountability, Luqman here turns to lived conduct. The progression is deliberate: faith is grounded first, then expressed outward through action and character. This verse is often cited in Islamic scholarship and teaching as a summary of the active dimensions of a Muslim's responsibility, both inward through prayer and outward through engagement with the community around them.
About the author
Luqman is the wise figure named in and giving his title to the thirty-first chapter of the Quran. He is described in the text as having been granted wisdom by God, and his advice to his son is presented as an example worth following. Islamic tradition has long venerated these verses as a guide for parents and educators. The precise historical details of Luqman's life and identity are not definitively known, and responsible discussion of the figure stays close to what the Quranic text itself affirms.
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“I am the most unpleasant, rude, ignorant, and all-round obnoxious arsehole that anyone could possibly have the misfortune to meet. I am dismissive of the virtuous, unaware of the beautiful, and uncomprehending in the face of the happy. So if I didn't understand I was being asked to be best man, it is because I never expected to be anybody's best friend.”
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