“You Came Running to Us!” – A Qur’anic Warning Against Blind Following

 “You Came Running to Us!” – A Qur’anic Warning Against Blind Following

🕒 Reading Time: 3 Minutes

“When Satan will say: ‘I only invited you—and you responded to me. So do not blame me; blame yourselves.”— Surah Ibrahim (14:22)

Across the Muslim world today, countless rituals are practiced in the name of religion—many inherited, few understood. Whether in Sunni or Shia circles, Sufi orders or reformist sects, followers often cling to traditions more than revelation. This blind attachment—justified in the name of piety—can be spiritually dangerous.

The Qur’an repeatedly warns us against surrendering our reasoning and moral responsibility to leaders, scholars, and ancestral customs.

🔥 The Day of Judgment: A Scene of Regret

The Qur’an presents a chilling scene from the Day of Judgment:

“They will say, ‘Our Lord! We obeyed our leaders and elite, and they led us astray from the path.’” — Surah Al-Ahzab (33:67)

“Their misleaders will say: ‘We never forced you. You came running toward us!”— Echoing Surah Qaf (50:27) & Surah Ibrahim (14:22)

The message is clear: blind obedience will not be an excuse on that Day. Each soul will be held accountable for its own choices, even if it followed the most revered figures. Each one of us has to stand alone in front of God Almighty on the Day of Judgement. That ‘final’ presentation of our life should not be compromised at any cost.

“Each of them shall come forth before Him alone in the Hereafter.” - Surah Maryam (19:95)

🧬 Rituals vs. Revelation

For many, religion becomes a matter of heritage rather than guidance. The Qur’an exposes this mindset:

“No! We found our forefathers following a religion, and we are simply following in their footsteps.”— Surah Az-Zukhruf (43:22)

“Even though their forefathers understood nothing, nor were they guided?”— Surah Az-Zukhruf (43:24)

And again:

“When it is said to them, ‘Follow what Allah has revealed,’ they say, ‘No, we follow what we found our fathers upon.’”— Surah Al-Baqarah (2:170)

“Even if their forefathers had no understanding or guidance?”— ibid.

These verses apply not just to ancient pagans, but to us—Muslims who cling to inherited sectarian practices without investigating whether they align with divine guidance.

🪞 A False Sense of Security

Ritualistic Islam can create a false confidence: we fast, we recite, we participate in events—so we must be rightly guided. But the Qur’an warns:

“When it is said to them, ‘Come to what Allah has revealed and to the Messenger,’ they say, ‘Sufficient for us is what we found our forefathers doing.’”— Surah Al-Ma’idah (5:104)

This stagnant mindset prevents revival, reform, and return to the Qur’an.

🕊 The Qur’an Calls Us Muslims — Nothing More

Amid divisions—Sunni, Shia, Salafi, Sufi, Barelvi, Deobandi—the Qur’an reminds us of our true identity:

“Strive for Allah as He deserves… He has chosen you and named you Muslims in this Scripture and in prior revelations…”— Surah Al-Hajj (22:78)

Not Sunni. Not Shia. Not Hanafi or Ja’fari. Just Muslims—those who submit to Allah’s word and follow the Messenger with understanding, not imitation.

📌 Final Reflection

Let us not be the people who will beg our religious leaders on Judgment Day, only to hear:

“We didn’t compel you… You came running toward us!”

Let us return to the Qur’an—its light, its reason, its truth. Let us reclaim our name: Muslims.

 

Aamir Yazdani

MPhil Islamic Thought & Civilization

 

🔖 Tags:

#Quran #IslamicReflection #BlindFollowing #Sectarianism #Unity #MuslimIdentity #IslamicReform #DayOfJudgment #Accountability #TrueIslam