The limits set by Allah
Allah Almighty has not left us without guidance. He did not leave us to decide for ourselves what is right and wrong according to changing moods, pressure, or convenience. He laid down obligations, set boundaries, prohibited what is harmful, and out of His mercy remained silent on certain matters. The believer therefore lives within divine guidance, not personal whim.
Abu Tha‘labah al Khushani (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
إنَّ اللهَ تعالى فَرَضَ فرائِضَ فلا تُضَيِّعوها، وحَدَّ حُدودًا فلا تَعْتَدوها، وحرَّم أشياءَ فلا تَنْتَهكوها، وسَكَتَ عن أشياءَ رَحْمةً لكم غيرَ نِسيانٍ، فلا تَبْحَثوا عنها
“Indeed Allah Most High has prescribed obligations, so do not neglect them. He has set limits, so do not transgress them. He has forbidden matters, so do not violate them. And He has remained silent about certain matters as a mercy for you, not out of forgetfulness, so do not pursue them”. (Daraqutni)
This hadith gives us a complete framework. There are duties which must not be neglected, prohibitions which must not be violated, and limits which must not be crossed. Once these limits are ignored, dhulm begins. Wrongdoing starts when people no longer honour the boundaries Allah has set.
Allah says:
تلك حدود الله فلا تقربوها
“These are the limits set by Allah, so do not go near them”. (Surat al Baqarah, 2:187)
And He says:
تلك حدود الله فلا تعتدوها ومن يتعد حدود الله فأولئك هم الظالمون
“These are the limits set by Allah, so do not transgress them. And whoever transgresses the limits of Allah, then they are the wrongdoers”. (Surat al Baqarah, 2:229)
And He says:
ومن يتعد حدود الله فقد ظلم نفسه
“Whoever transgresses the limits of Allah has indeed wronged himself”. (Surat al Talaq, 65:1)
The meaning of dhulm
Dhulm is not a small matter. In the Qur’an and Sunnah it is treated as one of the gravest matters, because it destroys balance, corrupts relationships, and darkens the heart. The greatest dhulm is shirk, associating partners with Allah. There is also dhulm against oneself, when a person disobeys Allah and leads himself towards ruin. And there is dhulm against others, when people are denied their rights, harmed, humiliated, exploited, or treated unjustly.
In the hadith qudsi, Allah says:
يا عبادي إني حرمت الظلم على نفسي وجعلته بينكم محرماً فلا تظالموا
“O My servants, I have forbidden dhulm for Myself, and I have made it forbidden among you, so do not wrong one another”. (Muslim)
This shows the seriousness of dhulm is forbidden to commit it. It is forbidden to support it. It is forbidden to excuse it. And it is forbidden to become inwardly content with it.
The warning in Surat Hud
One of the strongest warnings in this regard comes in Surat Hud. Allah says:
وَلَا تَرْكَنُوا إِلَى الَّذِينَ ظَلَمُوا فَتَمَسَّكُمُ النَّارُ وَمَا لَكُمْ مِنْ دُونِ اللَّهِ مِنْ أَوْلِيَاءَ ثُمَّ لَا تُنْصَرُونَ
“And do not incline towards those who do wrong, lest the Fire should touch you. And you have no protectors besides Allah, then you will not be helped”. (Surat Hud, 11:113)
This ayah is deep because it goes beyond forbidding dhulm itself. It forbids inclining towards those who commit dhulm. The warning is not only against being the oppressor, but also against leaning towards the oppressor, feeling comfortable with him, approving of him, or becoming settled with what he does.
Al Qurtubi mentioned that the reality of الركون in the Arabic language is السكون إلى الشيء والرضا به, to settle towards something and to be pleased with it. This is the heart of the matter. The danger begins in the heart before it appears in speech and action. A person may not be the one carrying out the injustice, but once his heart becomes comfortable with it, excuses it, or no longer feels disturbed by it, he has entered a dangerous state.
This is why the Qur’an is so precise. Allah did not merely say, do not commit dhulm. He said, do not incline towards those who do dhulm. Do not move in their direction. Do not soften your heart towards falsehood. Do not become accustomed to what should still pain you.
The root meaning of wrongdoing
Ibn Faris explained that the root of dhulm carries the meaning of putting something in other than its proper place. This is exactly what dhulm is. It is a disturbance of the order Allah created. Rights are displaced. Truth is pushed aside. Justice is weakened. What should be honoured is violated, and what should be restrained is given strength.
When people become silent in the face of this, or emotionally reconcile themselves to it, they are no longer standing fully with truth.
The scholars of tafsir explained this verse clearly. Ibn Abbas (may Allah be pleased with him) said: “Do not lean towards them.” Abu al Aliyah said: “Do not approve of their actions.” Al Suddi said: “Do not flatter the wrongdoers.” Ikrimah said: “Do not obey them.” Others said: “Do not feel settled with them.”
These are not separate meanings in conflict with one another. They are all different ways in which الركون can happen. It can happen through the heart, by inward approval. It can happen through the tongue, by defending or beautifying falsehood. It can happen through behaviour, by obeying wrongdoers in what displeases Allah. It can also happen through silence when silence becomes a form of comfort rather than a form of wisdom.
Silence is not always neutral
This is especially important, because many people imagine that as long as they did not personally commit the wrongdoing, they are safe. But the ayah teaches us that merely avoiding direct dhulm is not enough. The believer must also guard himself from becoming a supporter, admirer, apologist, or silent ally of dhulm.
Al Tafsir al Wasit mentions that “those who do wrong” includes not only the mushrikin, but all wrongdoers who transgress against the rights of others and violate what Allah has made sacred. The meaning is that believers must beware of inclining towards such people, because doing so strengthens their position and weakens the side of truth and justice.
This is how corruption spreads. It rarely survives by the strength of the oppressor alone. More often, it survives because others make room for it. Some flatter it. Some fear confronting it. Some remain quiet because they do not want discomfort. Some call their silence neutrality, when in reality it has become a form of surrender. The Qur’an pulls the veil away from this false neutrality. Silence is not innocent when the heart has become pleased with wrongdoing.
A living heart cannot make peace with dhulm. It may not always have the power to remove every wrong, but it does not stop recognising it as wrong. It does not become numb. It does not stop feeling uneasy when the limits of Allah are violated and the rights of people are trampled.
The religion between two prohibitions
Ibn Ashur pointed to a beautiful meaning here. He explained that after Allah prohibited tughyan, transgression against His commands, He then prohibited الركون إلى الذين ظلموا, inclining towards those who do wrong. This means that the believer is being protected from both ends. He is not allowed to become a source of corruption, and he is not allowed to become comfortable with those who spread corruption.
Al Hasan al Basri captured this with a powerful statement:
جعل الله الدين بين لاءين: ولا تطغوا ولا تركنوا
“Allah has placed the religion between two prohibitions: do not transgress, and do not incline.”
This is a profound summary of the path of the believer. Do not be the oppressor. And do not be the one who leans towards the oppressor. Do not cross the line yourself. And do not stand beside those who cross it.
The fire touches more than the oppressor
The warning in the ayah is severe:
فتمسكم النار
“Lest the Fire should touch you.”
Allah warns that even inclining towards wrongdoing exposes a person to punishment. This should shake the heart. It should make every believer ask himself difficult questions. Have I become too comfortable with what is wrong? Have I justified what Allah condemned? Have I remained silent, not because I lacked ability, but because I preferred ease? Have I called compromise wisdom when it was really cowardice?
Some scholars mentioned that the warning in this verse includes consequences in this world before the Hereafter. This is often how societies deteriorate. People imagine that injustice only harms its direct victims, but the fire spreads. Once truth is weakened and wrongdoing is tolerated, everyone is touched by its consequences sooner or later. Trust collapses, hearts harden, justice is eroded, and people lose their moral clarity.
This is why the ayah is not confined to grand political oppression alone. It applies in every sphere of life. It applies in families when someone is mistreated and others look away. It applies in communities when people protect status over truth. It applies in business when money is pursued at the expense of fairness. It applies in leadership when power is used without accountability. It applies wherever people are harmed and others become comfortable with that harm.
Protecting the heart
The scholars did mention that necessity has its own rulings. There may be situations in which a person is forced to exercise caution outwardly while keeping his heart firm inwardly. But even then, the heart must never approve of falsehood. It must never admire dhulm. It must never become pleased with what Allah hates.
That is the decisive matter. The believer must protect his heart. This also includes dhulm against oneself. Allah says regarding the sacred months:
فلا تظلموا فيهن أنفسكم
“So do not wrong yourselves therein”. (Surat al Tawbah, 9:36)
A person wrongs himself when he sins, neglects obligations, crosses boundaries, and treats the commands of Allah lightly. He thinks he is doing as he pleases, but in reality he is harming his own soul. Every sin that distances a person from Allah is a form of self dhulm.
As for dhulm against others, it includes every violation of rights, whether in wealth, dignity, honour, body, or trust. It includes causing harm, taking what is not yours, withholding what is due, or misusing authority. Islam came to preserve rights, establish justice, and close the doors that lead to corruption. That is why even inclining towards oppressors is forbidden, because corruption does not begin only in the hand. It begins in the heart, and then it spreads.
A warning for every age
The lesson of this ayah is therefore both personal and communal. Personally, the believer must examine his own heart and not allow it to become soft towards falsehood. Communally, the Ummah must not normalise wrongdoing, excuse it, or make peace with it. Once dhulm is tolerated, it does not remain contained. It expands.
Allah’s warning is clear:
ولا تركنوا إلى الذين ظلموا فتمسكم النار
“And do not incline towards those who do wrong, lest the Fire should touch you”. (Surat Hud, 11:113)
So whoever commits dhulm, supports it, beautifies it, excuses it, obeys it, or remains content with it is in danger. The fire may reach such people in this world through humiliation, corruption, disorder, and consequence. And if they do not repent, then there is the punishment of the Hereafter.
We ask Allah to keep our hearts alive, sensitive to truth, and firm upon justice. We ask Him to protect us from committing dhulm, from supporting it, and from becoming inwardly content with it. And we ask Him to make us people who honour His limits, stand for what is right, and do not incline towards those who do wrong.
Ameen.
Based on the khutbah of Shaykh Haytham Tamim on 10th April 2026.