Arguments from the Quran

prescribed for them a religion that Allah has not permitted?”(Quran, 42:21) Commentator Alusi of Baghdad interprets the deen of shirk (the religion of those who associated partners with God) here as specifically referring to these three aspects: associating partners with Allah, denying the resurrection, and working solely for worldly gains. (Ruh al-Ma’ani, Vol. 3, p. 28) These fundamental elements of the false religion emphasize what the key components of the true religion are, which the polytheists are being invited to embrace instead: monotheism, belief in the afterlife, and actions for the Hereafter. These three core elements are also highlighted in the verses defining the true religion, as seen in verses 4, 7, and 12 of this Chapter: 42. This interpretation is based on the wording of the verse itself. When looking at the entire verse, it becomes clear that the command is to establish a deen that was revealed to all the prophets, from Noah to the final Messenger. Since the teachings revealed to different prophets were not exactly the same—though their core beliefs and principles were—the part of deen being referred to here must be the one that stayed consistent across all of them. Imam Razi comments on this as follows: Prophet Noah is mentioned first, with all the