Surah Al-Ankbut

Surah Al-Ankabut is the twenty-ninth chapter of the Quran, revealed to Prophet Muhammad (SAW) during the most critical period of his ministry when the trials of his  followers by the Meccan chiefs were at their extremes, approximately in 613 – 616 AD. It represents the purest light in the wake of struggle against utmost darkness a comforting guidance to his companions during a difficult time, it contains the very essence of Islamic teachings and the style of the stories related in this chapter are also of metaphorical significance.

From the spiritual point of view, a spider’s house is the most fragile of all houses. It is deprived of notions of love and mercy; the core foundation for any happy family. In some species, the female spider kills the male immediately after the fertilisation process and the female then devours the male’s body, since the former is larger and fiercer than the latter. In some cases, the female mercilessly eats its offspring. In other cases, the female dies after the complete fertilisation of the eggs that it usually carried in a silk sac. When the eggs hatch, the spiderlings come out to find themselves in an extremely crowded place. The siblings then start fighting over food and/or space, until the battle ends with the survival of the fittest whereby only a few spiderlings survive. Allah the Almighty has set the spider’s house as an example of fragility and frailty of the web as the lack of strong family ties and lack of notions of mercy among members of the family will eventually break.

The verse below is a clear imagery of how the web is described:

The parable of those who take protectors other than Allah is that of the spider, who builds (to itself) a house; but truly the flimsiest of houses is the spider's house; if they but knew.” (Surah Al-Ankabut, 29:41)

Spider silk is incredibly strong and even stronger than steel by weight but in the Qu’ran when Allah calls the spider’s web “the weakest of houses” its not about the silk’s tensile strength. It’s about its function as a home. A web is not protected by the rain, heat, cold, enemies as one touch can cause it to collapse. This verse illustrates that anything besides Allah may appear intricate and strong but in reality it is fragile and deceptive. Similarly, when worshipping other idols, often made by hand, they appear very complex and intricate, but in reality they cannot offer real protection and on judgement day hold no real power. What do flies pursue?  Waste, decaying food, garbage, etc., right?  So perhaps a further level of the parable is suggesting that pursuing anything material—except for the sake of Allah—is akin to pursuing trash, and/or that which will decay even as you seek it;  i.e.  worthless. 

The first ayat begins with:

Do people think once they say, “We believe,” that they will be left without being put to the test?

We certainly tested those before them. And ˹in this way˺ Allah will clearly distinguish between those who are truthful and those who are liars.

When Allah says, "Do people think once they say, “We believe,” that they will be left without being put to the test?", He is saying that He will test everyone. Just because you are Muslim, and you pray five times a day, pay Zakah, are a good person etc does not mean that He will not excuse you. Absolutely EVERYONE must go through trials and tribulations before their death, whether they believe it or not. Some turn impatient with their tests, For example some may say, "Ugh, I pray, I do everything, and I've still all these problems, why isn't Allah helping me?" . The wisdom is that Allah forgives us of some sins, for any calamity that would befall upon us, so He'd test more those whom He loves more, so they are more forgiven, thus they'd enter a higher rank in Paradise. Allah revealed this to the Prophet (SAW) when he let some people stay behind and not have to partake in the battles. Allah knows who are the hypocrites, but wanted to expose them to the people. Those who weren't going to partake in the wars would be hypocrites, and those who go, would be the believers.

And verily we sent Noah (as Our messenger) unto his folk, and he continued with them for a thousand years save fifty years; and the flood engulfed them, for they were wrong- doers. (14) And We rescued him and those with him in the ship, and made of it a portent for the peoples. (15) - Verse 41 chapter 29

According to the Muslim lore narrated by Ibn Kathir (a Syrian rab Islamic exegete, historian and scholar), Noah had admonished his people from the worship of Idols, but they refused to heed his warnings. So Noah made a ship in the midst of land, where alongside the passengers he gathered all sorts of animals and plants. His predictions of flood came true and that destroyed everything on the land, except those on board at his ship. 

Verses 16—27 in the chapter refers to the story of Abraham. Hereby only snippeting two of these verses for the purpose of explanation:

And Abraham! (Remember) when he said unto his folk: Serve Allah, and keep your duty unto Him; that is better for you if ye did but know. (16) But the answer of his folk was only that they said: “Kill him” or “Burn him.” Then Allah saved him from the Fire. Lo! herein verily are portents for folk who believe. (24) 

Abraham also contended with his people against their practice of idol worship . Abraham refused to worship the idols, and overcame his people by using diplomatic arguments. Now Abraham's people still tested him against the ‘fire’, and withstood the trial of fire without any hurt. 

Verses 28-35 in the chapter refer to the story of Sodom where people in the town of Sodom commonly associated with homosexual acts. The Quran says, and here I quote only selected verses from the story. 

And Lot! (Remember) when he said unto his folk: Lo! ye commit lewdness such as no creature did before you. (28) For come ye not in unto males, and cut ye not the road (for travellers), and commit ye not abomination in your meetings ? But the answer of his folk was only that they said: Bring Allah’s doom upon us if thou art a truthteller! (29) He said: My Lord! Give me victory over folk who work corruption. (30) Lo! We are about to bring down upon the folk of this township a fury from the sky because they are evil-livers. (34) 

Appropriately dealing with ones sexuality was a common trait. People of Sodom failed in that, and therefore they were punished by the showers of stone pellets falling from the sky, and also the land of their town was turned upside down.

Verses 36-37 in the chapter refer to the story of Midian. The people of Midian were very greedy, and therefore used to cheat or embezzle others in business deals. The messenger Shu’eyb asked them to keep the balance straight while weighing merchandise, but they refused. The Quran says in the chapter 37:

And unto Midian We sent Shu’eyb, their brother. He said: O my people! Serve Allah, and look forward to the Last Day, and do not evil, making mischief, in the earth. (36) But they denied him, and the dreadful earthquake took them, and morning found them prostrate in their dwelling place. (37) 

Midian people were wealthy, but still stingy and greedy. As a result, the element earth gave away from beneath them, and the town got destroyed due to the earthquake. Hereby referencing that no matter how grounded, material-focused one is, Earth energy can easier be destroyed with with intense, transformative energy if it does not have a strong foundation.

Verse 38 in the chapter refers to the stories of A’ad and Thamud. They were two tribes of excellent craftsmen. Those people were strong, tall, and used to hue their houses out of mountains and rocks. They eventually also used their strength and skills to carve idols to worship them. The Quran says, 

And (the tribes of) A’ad and Thamud! (Their fate) is manifest unto you from their (ruined and deserted) dwellings. Satan made their deeds seem fair unto them and so debarred them from the Way, though they were keen observers. (38) 

It is mentioned in Ibn Kathir that when people of A’ad refused the warnings of Prophet Hud (AS), they initially suffered from a severe drought (absent of the water element), followed by a hurricane (element of air) that utterly destroyed them. People of Thamud when denied the Prophet Salih (SAW), were destroyed by thunderbolts and followed by earthquakes (the element of earth). 

Verse 39 in the chapter refers to the story of Pharaoh. Ibn Kathir deals with the stories of Pharaoh and his cronies at considerable lengths, but the following verse mentions two of his ministers alongside Pharaoh. The verse also says that Pharaoh was proud and egotist and he misused his powers which eventually resulted in the fall of Pharaoh. 

And Korah, Pharaoh and Haman! Moses came unto them with clear proofs (of Allah’s 

Sovereignty), but they were boastful in the land. And they were not winners (in the race). (29:39)

Korah was the finance minister of Pharaoh, and therefore got swallowed by the earth. The Pharaoh and his secretary Haman were drowned by the water element.

Verse 40 of the chapter relates the consequences of disturbing the elemental balance in  nature. It says:

So We took each one in his sin; of them was he on whom We sent a hurricane, and of them was he who was overtaken by the (Awful) Cry, and of them was he whom We caused the earth to swallow, and of them was he whom We drowned. It was not for Allah to wrong them, but they wronged themselves. (40) 

Here, the hurricane represents the disturbance in the element ‘air’; the ‘awful cry’ can also be translated as a strong blast or explosion, which is akin to the element ‘fire’; earthquakes represent trouble in the element ‘earth’, and floods or deluges represent turbulence in the element ‘water’. The verse ends by saying that people only cause trouble for themselves by not living with wisdom, and because the function of human intelligence is to keep themselves psychologically in balance alongside their physical environments. 

The mention of the prophets in each of the stories, and the importance to follow their guidance is symbolic of the element ‘spirit’. When spirit rules the material elements then there exists the harmony, balance, peace in the world, and humanity stays away from all forms of corruptions such as vanity (idol worship), greed, lust, and pride. But once spirituality is abandoned in human existence, it leaves a fertile ground for vices to breed. Therefore, it is extremely necessary to guard against iniquitous behaviours.

Overview of the Surah

This Surah tells the stories of the following:

1. Prophet Nuh/Noah for his long, patient struggle of 950 years in preaching against idolatry before the Flood. (29:14)

2. Prophet Musa/Moses along with references to Pharaoh and Haman. (29:39-40)

3. Ibrahim/Abraham for his debate against idol worship, his survival from the fire, and his migration for the sake of Allah. (29:16)

4. Prophet Lot/ Lut for believing in Ibrahim and for his struggle against his people's corruption. (29:26)

5. Prophet Shu'ayb/Shuaib mentioned as a messenger sent to the people of Madyan. (29:36)

6. Prophet Hud for the destruction of the people of 'Ad (29:38-40)

7. Prophet Salih is referred to address the destruction of the people of Thamud (29:38-40)

8. Prophet Muhammad implied directly as the recipient of the message and the stories in the context of the Surah's revelation, and through mentions of "the Messenger" (29:18)

All eight Prophets (AS, including Prophet Muhammad (SAW)) suffered great hardships over their lives and as a general observation the Surah was revealed when the Quraish were actively trying to break the resolve of the new reverts. Notice that all Surahs starting with “alif laam meem” are as follows:

1. Surah Al-Baqarah (2) guide for the newly formed Muslim state.

2. Surah Aal ‘Imran (3) addresses the young Muslim community's external theological challenges from Christians and internal struggles following the Battle of Uhud

3. Surah Al-Ankabut (29) as above

4. Surah Ar-Rum (30) Quraish (polytheistic pagans of Makkah) rejoiced at this, as they felt an affinity with the Persian idol-worshippers over the monotheistic Christians.

5. Surah Luqman (31) - The Surah directs humanity to look at the signs of creation (heavens, mountains, rain) as evidence of the oneness of God, countering the illogical nature of polytheism.

6. Surah As-Sajdah (32) -addresses the core intellectual challenges posed by the polytheists of Makkah, particularly their denial of the Hereafter.

All the above Surah’s start off with “alif laam meem” because they are giving birth to an idea and ensuring that the Ummah grow, in an environment whereby three was a strong divide between the believers and non-believers. So this Surah in particular is guiding us the light, guiding us the way and attempting in showing the disbelievers the light. For this very reason there could be a possibility, from a revert perspective of the number eight being significant amongst the disbelievers so that they, too can see the light, for example disbelievers do not believe in God they rely on other ways to validate their faith by way of something tangible for example numerology and the planets as they cannot comprehend otherwise. The spider has eight legs and the number eight denotes the planet Saturn is associated in overcoming natural limits through faith, representing self-discipline, restriction, self control, rebirth and eternal life according to Christian contexts. It is worth noting that before receiving revelations at forty years old, the Prophet (SAW) did not engage in the idol worship in Mecca, often meditating in solitude, following a monotheistic disposition (Hanif) rather than converting from polytheism. However, he maintain social, familial, and economic ties with non-Muslims throughout his life, treating them with kindness and respect. Notwithstanding the fact that this Surah was significant to all religions during that specific time period in an attempt to portray Islam in a positive light especially during this time when the disbelievers were opposing and fighting Islam vehemently, and new reverts were being subjected to severe oppression. Furthermore in verse/ayah it commands kindness to parents but forbids obeying them if they urge associating partners with Allah (shirk). It emphasises that the ultimate return is to Allah, who will inform everyone of their deeds. It was revealed regarding companions whose parents pressured them to leave Islam. Supporting the idea of needing to have self discipline and self control if one’s parents are behaving in such a way as the ultimate reward would be return to Allah.

Modern Day

Animals don’t think like humans but they do understand death, in E.B. White's novel in 'Charlotte's Web.' the evidence and exploration of the themes of friendship, sacrifice, and the circle of life shed new light on this beloved classic. Charlotte, the common spider who understands human psychology has the ability to write words in English in her webs. With just a few well placed words she easily manipulates every human in the story into not eating Wilbur and helps him in a grand way without the need for any recognition. Similarly, at a critical moment in the Prophet’s life , too, the leaders of his town had just decided that his habit of calling for social justice and monotheism was no longer tolerable, and planned to assassinate him. He and his friend began the migration, but were pursued by bounty hunters who wanted the prize Mecca had put on his head. They hid in a cave to rest. The Meccans, upon reaching the area, searched but never entered the cave; as one narration goes, a spider had spun its web across the entrance just after the fugitives had entered, and a dove built a nest there, so the Meccans thought no one could have entered. Some scholars who study the Prophetic narrations have deemed the story weak in authenticity, others have deemed it authentic. But regardless, the spider has entered the Muslim conscience as a creature who, out of love of him or from the command of God, protected our Prophet (SAW) in a dangerous hour. So out of gratitude and/or respect, there is a notion to try to avoid killing spiders. Generally, killing pests is not objectionable in Islam.

Conclusion

Surah Al-Ankabut teaches us resilience, patience and reliance on Allah. It’s overall message is a reminder that faith is not just rooted in words, but about action and steadfastness. May we all take inspiration from its lessons and apply them in our daily lives.