Quran verse about walking with arrogance

SESSION 027 • LUQMAN 31:18 • THEMATIC/NON-LINEAR

Do Not Walk in Arrogance

Humility, arrogance, social manners.

🌙 Today's Key Verse

وَلَا تُصَعِّرْ خَدَّكَ لِلنَّاسِ وَلَا تَمْشِ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ مَرَحًا ۖ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ لَا يُحِبُّ كُلَّ مُخْتَالٍۢ فَخُورٍۢ
Wa lā tuṣa‘‘ir khaddaka lin-nāsi wa lā tamsyi fil-arḍi maraḥā. Innallāha lā yuḥibbu kulla mukhtālin fakhūr.
LUQMAN 31:18 — M. Pickthall: Turn not thy cheek in scorn toward folk, nor walk with pertness in the land. Lo! Allah loveth not each braggart boaster.
English Qur'an translation reference: M. Pickthall (public-domain translation). Arabic text and transliteration are identical to the Indonesian edition. Transliteration is a reading aid and does not replace tajwid or talaqqi.

📚 Tafsir Notes

Do not look down on people

Ibn Kathir explains the turning of the face as contemptuous arrogance; advantages do not grant permission to belittle others.

Arrogance in conduct

Al-Tabari relates walking with maraḥ to boastful, self-exalting behaviour.

Boundary

Humility does not erase firmness, competence, or legitimate authority. What is condemned is rejecting truth and looking down on people.

🤲 Authentic Hadith

Sahih Muslim 91 defines arrogance as rejecting truth and looking down on people.

🌍 Factual Context

Fact from revelation: the verse prohibits contemptuous and arrogant conduct.

Lesson/analogy: status, knowledge, experience, and wealth can test character when correction becomes hard to hear.

Boundary: one gesture cannot reveal a person's heart; this is primarily a mirror for self-examination.

🪞 Reflection

What do my face and tone communicate to someone with less status?

If correction comes from someone I dislike, can I still assess whether it is true?

Has any advantage made me feel I no longer need to listen?

💡 Main Wisdom

Humility is not making oneself small; it is accepting truth and protecting another person's dignity even when we possess advantages.

✅ Practical Action Today

In one conversation today, practice humility: listen fully and do not use position, knowledge, wealth, or experience to diminish the other person.

🔗 Connection to the Journey

Session 026 is the previous step; this session opens a new theme with a verse not previously used as a main verse.

Finished reading and reflecting on this session?

Open Session 027 in the interactive reader →