Surah Al-Baqara 2:83 — Meaning, Translation & Reflection
سُورَةُ البَقَرَةِ · Medinan · Verse 83 of 286
وَإِذْ أَخَذْنَا مِيثَٰقَ بَنِىٓ إِسْرَٰٓءِيلَ لَا تَعْبُدُونَ إِلَّا ٱللَّهَ وَبِٱلْوَٰلِدَيْنِ إِحْسَانًۭا وَذِى ٱلْقُرْبَىٰ وَٱلْيَتَٰمَىٰ وَٱلْمَسَٰكِينِ وَقُولُوا۟ لِلنَّاسِ حُسْنًۭا وَأَقِيمُوا۟ ٱلصَّلَوٰةَ وَءَاتُوا۟ ٱلزَّكَوٰةَ ثُمَّ تَوَلَّيْتُمْ إِلَّا قَلِيلًۭا مِّنكُمْ وَأَنتُم مُّعْرِضُونَ
English: Remember when We took a pledge from the Children of Israel: ‘Worship none but God; be good to your parents and kinsfolk, to orphans and the poor; speak good words to all people; keep up the prayer and pay the prescribed alms.’ Then all but a few of you turned away and paid no heed.
Bengali: যখন আমি বনী-ইসরাঈলের কাছ থেকে অঙ্গীকার নিলাম যে, তোমরা আল্লাহ ছাড়া কারও উপাসনা করবে না, পিতা-মাতা, আত্নীয়-স্বজন, এতীম ও দীন-দরিদ্রদের সাথে সদ্ব্যবহার করবে, মানুষকে সৎ কথাবার্তা বলবে, নামায প্রতিষ্ঠা করবে এবং যাকাত দেবে, তখন সামান্য কয়েকজন ছাড়া তোমরা মুখ ফিরিয়ে নিলে, তোমরাই অগ্রাহ্যকারী।
Reflect with the Five Lenses
Maani's framework for Tadabbur (heart-centred reflection) on Surah Al-Baqara 2:83:
- Wording. Look closely at the specific words and structure. Which word stands out, and why might Allah have chosen it here?
- Quranic Worlds. Place the verse in its context — what is happening around it, and what world does it open up?
- Personal Experience. Ask not just what this means, but what it means TO me and FOR me, right now in my life.
- Connections. How does this verse connect to other verses, to the Sunnah, or to themes across the Quran?
- General Lessons. What timeless lesson or action point can I carry away and live by?