Short answer
Yes, in meaning, though the Qur'an never names Hindus or Buddhists. Kafir is its word for a person who rejects God's (﷾) message. Classical Islam uses it for everyone who does not accept Islam, and that includes them. The word names a belief, not a race or a caste. The Qur'an uses the same root for a believer rejecting false gods (2:256). It is still a serious word, because the Qur'an warns those who die rejecting the truth. But it gives no licence to insult or harm. Muslims may not revile what others worship (6:108) or force anyone (2:256). They may show kindness and justice to all who do not fight them (60:8). The final verdict belongs to God (﷾) alone (22:17). And the door stays open. Whoever accepts Islam has the sins before it forgiven (8:38), though anything taken from people by force must still be given back.
A word about beliefIt names what a person rejects.
A serious warningThe Qur'an warns those who die rejecting the truth.
A race, nation or casteIt ends the moment a person accepts Islam.
A licence to insultMuslims may not revile what others worship.
A licence to harmThere is no compulsion in religion.
A final verdict on a personThat belongs to God (﷾) alone.
Full explanation
What the word means
Kafir comes from an Arabic root, k-f-r, that means to cover. Lane's Arabic dictionary gives the plain sense first. A kafir is a sower or tiller, because he covers the seed with earth. Night is called kafir too, because it covers everything in darkness. In 57:20 the Qur'an uses the plural, kuffar, and Ibn Kathir explains it there as farmers. From covering comes the religious sense: a person who covers a truth or a favour instead of acknowledging it. The same root gives the Qur'an's word for ingratitude in 14:7. Solomon (pbuh) uses it of himself when he says God (﷾) is testing whether he will be grateful or ungrateful (27:40). So the word is no curse in itself. It names an act: covering what should be acknowledged.
Gathers the classical Arabic dictionaries. Under the root k-f-r it gives kafir first as a sower or tiller, because he covers the seed with earth, and as night, because it conceals everything by its darkness. It then gives one who denies the favours of God, ungrateful, and one who denies the unity of God and the office of the prophets. Kufr is ingratitude, and in particular denial of favours, and unbelief.
“Know ye (all), that the life of this world is but play and amusement, pomp and mutual boasting and multiplying, (in rivalry) among yourselves, riches and children. Here is a similitude: How rain and the growth which it brings forth, delight (the hearts of) the tillers; soon it withers; thou wilt see it grow yellow; then it becomes dry and crumbles away. But in the Hereafter is a Penalty severe (for the devotees of wrong). And Forgiveness from Allah and (His) Good Pleasure (for the devotees of Allah). And what is the life of this world, but goods and chattels of deception?”
On the word kuffar in this verse, Ibn Kathir explains it as the farmers, who are pleased by the crop that grows after rain.
“And remember! your Lord caused to be declared (publicly): "If ye are grateful, I will add more (favours) unto you; But if ye show ingratitude, truly My punishment is terrible indeed."”
“Said one who had knowledge of the Book: "I will bring it to thee within the twinkling of an eye!" Then when (Solomon) saw it placed firmly before him, he said: "This is by the Grace of my Lord!- to test me whether I am grateful or ungrateful! and if any is grateful, truly his gratitude is (a gain) for his own soul; but if any is ungrateful, truly my Lord is Free of all Needs, Supreme in Honour!"”
The same word for rejecting false gods
The root is not used only of people outside Islam. The Qur'an also uses it for what a believer must do. In 2:256, the one who "rejects evil and believes in Allah" has the firmest hold there is. The Arabic word for "rejects" is yakfur, from the same root. What is rejected is taghut, which Ibn Kathir explains as rival gods, idols and all that is worshipped besides God (﷾). In 4:60 people are reminded that they were ordered to reject the Evil One, with the same verb. So a Muslim is a rejecter too, of false gods. Everyone rejects something. The word asks only what you reject, and that makes it a word about belief.
“Let there be no compulsion in religion: Truth stands out clear from Error: whoever rejects evil and believes in Allah hath grasped the most trustworthy hand-hold, that never breaks. And Allah heareth and knoweth all things.”
On "whoever rejects evil and believes in Allah", Ibn Kathir explains the one who rejects taghut as a person who throws off rival gods, idols and everything Satan calls people to worship besides Allah, and who worships Allah alone.
“Hast thou not turned Thy vision to those who declare that they believe in the revelations that have come to thee and to those before thee? Their (real) wish is to resort together for judgment (in their disputes) to the Evil One, though they were ordered to reject him. But Satan's wish is to lead them astray far away (from the right).”
| Verse | Who | What the word means there |
|---|---|---|
| Qur'an 57:20 | Farmers | Covering the seed with earth |
| Qur'an 14:7 | Anyone given a favour | Ingratitude |
| Qur'an 2:256 | A believer | Rejecting false gods |
| Qur'an 98:6 | Those who reject the truth | Rejecting God's (﷾) message |
Who the word covers
The Qur'an never mentions Hindus or Buddhists by name. Its words are general. In 98:6 those who reject the truth include both the People of the Book (Jews and Christians) and the polytheists. In 4:150-151 those who deny God (﷾) or His messengers, or accept some and reject others, are "in truth (equally) unbelievers". The Prophet (ﷺ) spoke of the Jew or Christian who hears of him and dies without believing in his message. An-Nawawi, a scholar of the thirteenth century, explains that these two are named to point to everyone else. They were given a scripture, he says, so the same holds all the more for those who were not. So classical Islam counts everyone who does not accept Islam under this word. That includes Hindus and Buddhists, as it includes Jews, Christians and atheists. Muslims do not hide this. A second word, mushrik, is narrower, and it is the word in 9:28. It names a person who gives worship to anyone beside God (﷾), such as prayer to many gods or to images. Neither word is a race, a nation or a caste. The Prophet (ﷺ) said every child is born on the fitra, the natural disposition God (﷾) gave mankind. And the word ends the moment a person accepts Islam. So it describes where a person stands, not what a person is.
“Those who reject (Truth), among the People of the Book and among the Polytheists, will be in Hell-Fire, to dwell therein (for aye). They are the worst of creatures.”
“Those who deny Allah and His messengers, and (those who) wish to separate Allah from His messengers, saying: "We believe in some but reject others": And (those who) wish to take a course midway,- They are in truth (equally) unbelievers; and we have prepared for unbelievers a humiliating punishment.”
Abu Huraira reports that the Prophet (ﷺ) swore that any Jew or Christian of his community who hears of him, then dies without believing in the message he was sent with, will be among the people of the Fire.
An-Nawawi says the hadith shows that the message of the Prophet (ﷺ) replaces every earlier religion, and that everyone alive in his time or after it, until the Day of Resurrection, must follow him. He says its wording also shows that a person the call of Islam has not reached is excused. The Jew and the Christian are named, he explains, to point to everyone else: they have a scripture, so if this is their case, it applies all the more to those who have none.
Abu Hurayra reports that the Prophet (ﷺ) said every child is born upon the fitra (the natural disposition God gave mankind), and it is his parents who make him a Jew, a Christian or a Magian, just as an animal is born whole. Abu Hurayra then recited Qur'an 30:30.
“Say to the Unbelievers, if (now) they desist (from Unbelief), their past would be forgiven them; but if they persist, the punishment of those before them is already (a matter of warning for them).”
Why it is a serious word
The Qur'an does not treat this rejection lightly. It says those who reject the truth "will be in Hell-Fire", and calls them "the worst of creatures" (98:6). It speaks of those who "reject Faith, and die rejecting". From them not even "as much gold as the earth contains" would be accepted as ransom (3:91). The reason lies in the word itself. Islam holds that God (﷾) made every person and gave them every gift they have. To cover that over is ingratitude to the One who gave everything. Muslims treat the word as heavy for themselves too. The Prophet (ﷺ) warned that if a man calls his fellow Muslim an unbeliever, the charge falls on one of the two. So kafir is not a word for casual use. It is a warning about where a belief leads, and a warning is given so that a person can act on it.
“Those who reject (Truth), among the People of the Book and among the Polytheists, will be in Hell-Fire, to dwell therein (for aye). They are the worst of creatures.”
“As to those who reject Faith, and die rejecting,- never would be accepted from any such as much gold as the earth contains, though they should offer it for ransom. For such is (in store) a penalty grievous, and they will find no helpers.”
Abdullah ibn Umar reports that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said: if a man says to his brother, "O unbeliever", then the charge falls on one of the two.
The final verdict belongs to God (﷾)
Saying where a belief leads is one thing. Naming a person's end is another. Qur'an 22:17 lists the believers, Jews, Sabians, Christians, Magians (Zoroastrians) and polytheists. It says God (﷾) will judge between them on the Day of Judgement. In 88:25-26 He says the return is to Him and the account is His. The warning in 3:91 is for those who die rejecting, and no one knows even where he will die (31:34). So a Muslim cannot say how a living person will end. God (﷾) also punishes no one before a messenger has come (17:15). The Prophet (ﷺ) tied his warning to hearing, when he spoke of the one who hears of him. An-Nawawi says this shows that a person the call of Islam has not reached is excused. Al-Ghazali, a scholar who died in 1111, wrote about the far-off Byzantine Christians and Turks of his day. He put them in three groups. Those who never heard the Prophet's (ﷺ) name are excused. Those who heard of him only as a liar are, in his view, like the first group. What they heard, he says, moves no one to look into it. Those who knew his name, his character and his miracles, and lived beside Muslims, he calls unbelievers. He adds that whoever hears of these signs must look into them, and that turning away is itself unbelief. One who searches without slackening, and dies before he has finished, is forgiven, he says. So hearing brings a duty to look. In this life a person is counted by what he believes. What becomes of him is for God (﷾) alone.
“Those who believe (in the Qur'an), those who follow the Jewish (scriptures), and the Sabians, Christians, Magians, and Polytheists,- Allah will judge between them on the Day of Judgment: for Allah is witness of all things.”
“For to Us will be their return; Then it will be for Us to call them to account.”
“As to those who reject Faith, and die rejecting,- never would be accepted from any such as much gold as the earth contains, though they should offer it for ransom. For such is (in store) a penalty grievous, and they will find no helpers.”
“Verily the knowledge of the Hour is with Allah (alone). It is He Who sends down rain, and He Who knows what is in the wombs. Nor does any one know what it is that he will earn on the morrow: Nor does any one know in what land he is to die. Verily with Allah is full knowledge and He is acquainted (with all things).”
“Who receiveth guidance, receiveth it for his own benefit: who goeth astray doth so to his own loss: No bearer of burdens can bear the burden of another: nor would We visit with Our Wrath until We had sent a messenger (to give warning).”
Abu Huraira reports that the Prophet (ﷺ) swore that any Jew or Christian of his community who hears of him, then dies without believing in the message he was sent with, will be among the people of the Fire.
An-Nawawi says the hadith shows that the message of the Prophet (ﷺ) replaces every earlier religion, and that everyone alive in his time or after it, until the Day of Resurrection, must follow him. He says its wording also shows that a person the call of Islam has not reached is excused. The Jew and the Christian are named, he explains, to point to everyone else: they have a scripture, so if this is their case, it applies all the more to those who have none.
Al-Ghazali writes that God's (﷾) mercy will, God willing, take in most of the Byzantine Christians and Turks of his time, meaning those in far lands whom the call has not reached. He sorts them into three groups. Those who never heard the name of Muhammad (ﷺ) at all are excused. Those who heard his name, his character and the miracles that appeared at his hands, who live beside the Muslims and mix with them, are the unbelievers. Those in between heard his name but not his character: from childhood they heard only that a liar and deceiver called Muhammad claimed to be a prophet. In his view they are like the first group, because what they heard is the opposite of his qualities, and that does not stir a person to look into it. He adds that whoever hears of the Prophet's (ﷺ) coming, character and miracles must be moved to seek the truth. To turn away, or to slacken in the search, is unbelief. One who takes up the search without slackening, and dies before he has finished, is forgiven and has God's wide mercy.
A person does not accept Islam.
Did the message ever reach them?
If not, an-Nawawi says they are excused. God (﷾) punishes no one before a messenger has come.
Did they hear of the Prophet (ﷺ) only as a liar?
Al-Ghazali held they are like those who never heard.
Did they hear of his character and his signs?
Then they must look into them, al-Ghazali says. Whoever searches without slackening, and dies before finishing, is forgiven.
Did they know, and turn away?
The Qur'an warns those who die rejecting.
Who decides?
God (﷾) alone. A Muslim cannot say how a living person will end.
No licence to insult
The word gives no one the right to abuse a person. The Qur'an forbids Muslims to revile the gods others call on (6:108). God (﷾) told Moses (pbuh) and Aaron (pbuh) to speak mildly even to Pharaoh, who had "transgressed all bounds" (20:43-44). Muslims are told to invite with wisdom and to argue in the best way (16:125). When someone asked the Prophet (ﷺ) to curse the polytheists, he said he had been sent as a mercy, not as one who curses. When some men greeted him with "death be upon you", Aisha cursed them back. He told her to be gentle and to avoid harsh and foul words. So a Muslim who throws kafir at a neighbour as an insult goes against his own Prophet (ﷺ).
“Revile not ye those whom they call upon besides Allah, lest they out of spite revile Allah in their ignorance. Thus have We made alluring to each people its own doings. In the end will they return to their Lord, and We shall then tell them the truth of all that they did.”
“"Go, both of you, to Pharaoh, for he has indeed transgressed all bounds; "But speak to him mildly; perchance he may take warning or fear (Allah)."”
“Invite (all) to the Way of thy Lord with wisdom and beautiful preaching; and argue with them in ways that are best and most gracious: for thy Lord knoweth best, who have strayed from His Path, and who receive guidance.”
Abu Hurayra reports that someone asked the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) to curse the polytheists. He answered that he had not been sent as one who curses, but as a mercy.
Aisha reports that some men greeted the Prophet (ﷺ) with "death be upon you" in place of "peace be upon you". She cursed them back. The Prophet told her to be calm, to be gentle and to avoid harshness and foul words. He had answered them only with "and upon you".
No licence to harm
Nor does the word give anyone the right to harm. There is no compulsion in religion (2:256). The Qur'an allows kindness and justice to all who do not fight Muslims for their faith or drive them from their homes (60:8). It says that even hatred must not turn a Muslim away from justice (5:8). The Prophet (ﷺ) warned that whoever kills a person under treaty will not smell the fragrance of Paradise. Asma, daughter of Abu Bakr, had a mother who was still a polytheist. When her mother came to see her, the Prophet (ﷺ) told Asma to keep good relations with her. A narrator of the report says 60:8 came down about this. So the Qur'an's word for a polytheist did not stop a daughter being kind to her mother. A person's belief changes what Muslims say about that belief, not the justice they owe that person.
“Let there be no compulsion in religion: Truth stands out clear from Error: whoever rejects evil and believes in Allah hath grasped the most trustworthy hand-hold, that never breaks. And Allah heareth and knoweth all things.”
“Allah forbids you not, with regard to those who fight you not for (your) Faith nor drive you out of your homes, from dealing kindly and justly with them: for Allah loveth those who are just.”
“O ye who believe! stand out firmly for Allah, as witnesses to fair dealing, and let not the hatred of others to you make you swerve to wrong and depart from justice. Be just: that is next to piety: and fear Allah. For Allah is well-acquainted with all that ye do.”
Abdullah ibn Amr reports that the Prophet (ﷺ) said that whoever kills a person who has a treaty with the Muslims will not smell the fragrance of Paradise, though its fragrance reaches a distance of forty years.
Asma, daughter of Abu Bakr, reports that her mother, who was still a polytheist (mushrika), came to visit her in the Prophet's (ﷺ) lifetime, hoping for her daughter's kindness. Asma asked the Prophet (ﷺ) whether she should keep good relations with her mother. He said yes: keep good relations with your mother.
Asma, daughter of Abu Bakr, reports that her mother came to her, hoping for her kindness, in the Prophet's (ﷺ) lifetime. She asked the Prophet (ﷺ) whether she might treat her kindly, and he said yes. Ibn Uyayna, a narrator of the report, adds that Allah then revealed Qur'an 60:8 about this.
Reviling the gods others call on
Forcing anyone in religion
Turning from justice out of hatred
Killing a person under treaty
Speaking mildly, even to Pharaoh
Kindness and justice to all who do not fight Muslims
Good relations with a polytheist mother
What "unclean" means in 9:28
Qur'an 9:28 calls the polytheists unclean and closes the Sacred Mosque in Mecca to them. Ibn Kathir explains this as uncleanness in religion. He records that the majority of scholars hold their bodies are not unclean. Their reason is that God (﷾) made the food of the People of the Book lawful. An-Nawawi says the same. The verse, he writes, means uncleanness of belief, not that their bodies are unclean. He says the sweat, saliva and tears of a human being are pure, Muslim or not. He gives this as the view of his own Shafi'i school and of the great majority of early and later scholars. So the verse speaks of belief, not of the body. A report about the Prophet's (ﷺ) own mosque shows it. Thumama ibn Uthal, a chief of Yamama, was still a polytheist when Muslim horsemen captured him. He was a prisoner, not a guest, and he was tied to a pillar of the mosque in Medina. Al-Bukhari puts this report under the heading "A polytheist entering the mosque". The Prophet (ﷺ) went to him on three days and spoke with him. Then he ordered him released, and the report names no price or condition. Thumama bathed, came back and accepted Islam. He said no face, religion or town had been more hated by him, and now they were the most beloved. So the word described where he stood, not what he was, and three days changed it.
“O ye who believe! Truly the Pagans are unclean; so let them not, after this year of theirs, approach the Sacred Mosque. And if ye fear poverty, soon will Allah enrich you, if He wills, out of His bounty, for Allah is All-knowing, All-wise.”
Explains that the idolaters are unclean in their religion, and are to be kept from the Sacred Mosque from the ninth year, when the verse came down. He records that the majority of scholars hold that their bodies are not unclean, since God made the food of the People of the Book lawful, while some Zahiris held that they are; and that Ata took the whole sacred precinct of Mecca to be meant.
On the hadith that a Muslim does not become impure, an-Nawawi says a non-Muslim is the same as a Muslim in purity and impurity. He gives this as the position of his own Shafi'i school and of the great majority of the early and later scholars. He says the words of Qur'an 9:28 mean uncleanness of belief and of being held repugnant, not that their limbs are unclean as urine and the like are. So the sweat, saliva and tears of a human being, Muslim or not, are pure.
Abu Hurayra reports that horsemen sent by the Prophet (ﷺ) towards Najd brought back Thumama ibn Uthal and tied him to a pillar of the mosque. Al-Bukhari places this report under the chapter heading "A polytheist entering the mosque".
Abu Hurayra reports that Thumama ibn Uthal was captured and tied to a pillar of the mosque. On three days the Prophet (ﷺ) went to him and asked what he had to say. Thumama answered that killing him would be killing a man with blood on his hands, that freeing him would be a favour to a grateful man, and that wealth could be asked for. On the third day the Prophet (ﷺ) said to release him. Thumama went to a garden of date palms near the mosque, bathed, came back and testified that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is His Messenger. He said no face, no religion and no town had been more hated by him, and now they were the most beloved to him.
Captured
Muslim horsemen capture Thumama, a chief of Yamama and still a polytheist.
Held in the mosque
He is tied to a pillar of the mosque, a prisoner and not a guest.
Spoken to on three days
The Prophet (ﷺ) goes to him and speaks with him.
Released
The Prophet (ﷺ) orders him released. The report names no price or condition.
Accepts Islam
He bathes, comes back and accepts Islam.
Hindu and Buddhist texts have such words
Hindu and Buddhist texts also name and judge those who reject what they teach. Manusmriti 2.11 speaks of a twice-born man, one of the three upper classes, who treats the Veda and the law books with contempt. It says he must be cast out "as an atheist and a scorner of the Veda". The word for atheist there is nastika. Medhatithi, a commentator on Manu, took the verse to mean the reasoning of the Buddhists and the Charvakas (materialists). In the Gita, Krishna speaks of "enemies, ferocious, meanest of men, and unholy", and says he hurls them down into demoniac wombs (16:19-20). Telang, the translator, explains them as enemies of God (﷾). The Buddha says he sees no single thing that sends beings to hell as wrong view does (Anguttara Nikaya 1.312). The Dhammapada says those who uphold wrong view go to a bad place (318). So these faiths draw a line too. Anyone who objects to the word kafir should know that these texts do the same thing. The fair question is what a faith tells its followers to do about that line. The Qur'an's answer is no compulsion, no reviling, and the verdict left to God (﷾).
“Every twice-born man, who, relying on the Institutes of dialectics, treats with contempt those two sources (of the law), must be cast out by the virtuous, as an atheist and a scorner of the Veda.”
“These enemies, ferocious, meanest of men, and unholy, I continually hurl down to these worlds, only into demoniac wombs. Coming into demoniac wombs, deluded in every birth, they go down to the vilest state, O son of Kuntî! without ever coming to me.”
“Mendicants, I do not see a single thing that causes sentient beings to be reborn, when their body breaks up, after death, in a place of loss, a bad place, the underworld, hell like wrong view.”
“Seeing fault where there is none, and blind to the actual fault, beings who uphold wrong view go to a bad place.”
“Let there be no compulsion in religion: Truth stands out clear from Error: whoever rejects evil and believes in Allah hath grasped the most trustworthy hand-hold, that never breaks. And Allah heareth and knoweth all things.”
“Revile not ye those whom they call upon besides Allah, lest they out of spite revile Allah in their ignorance. Thus have We made alluring to each people its own doings. In the end will they return to their Lord, and We shall then tell them the truth of all that they did.”
“Those who believe (in the Qur'an), those who follow the Jewish (scriptures), and the Sabians, Christians, Magians, and Polytheists,- Allah will judge between them on the Day of Judgment: for Allah is witness of all things.”
| Text | Word | What it says |
|---|---|---|
| Manusmriti 2.11 | Atheist (nastika) | A twice-born man who treats the Veda with contempt must be cast out. |
| Anguttara Nikaya 1.312 | Wrong view | No single thing sends beings to hell as wrong view does. |
| Qur'an 98:6 | Kafir | Those who reject the truth will be in the Fire. |
The question that matters
The word matters only as much as the message behind it. Islam says that message is from God (﷾). So the warning in it is a mercy, and a way out comes with it. The Qur'an tells those who reject that if they stop, their past will be forgiven (8:38). The Prophet (ﷺ) told a man who came to accept Islam that Islam wipes out what came before it. Ibn Uthaymin adds that anything taken from people by force must still be given back. The Qur'an tells all who have wronged themselves not to despair of God's (﷾) mercy, and to turn to Him (39:53-54). It asks for no race or caste. It asks a person to worship God (﷾) alone and to believe in His messengers. It says truth stands out clear from error, and that no one may be forced (2:256). The surah named after the kafirs ends with "To you be your Way, and to me mine" (109:6). So the real question is not how the word feels. It is whether the message is true, and Islam invites you to weigh it for yourself.
“Say to the Unbelievers, if (now) they desist (from Unbelief), their past would be forgiven them; but if they persist, the punishment of those before them is already (a matter of warning for them).”
Amr ibn al-As, near death, said that before Islam no one was more hateful to him than the Prophet (ﷺ), and he had wished to kill him. He told how he came to the Prophet to accept Islam. He asked the Prophet to stretch out his right hand so he could pledge, then drew his own hand back. Asked why, he said he wanted a condition: that he be forgiven. The Prophet asked whether he did not know that Islam wipes out everything that came before it.
Says that when a non-Muslim becomes Muslim, Allah forgives what he did before, citing Qur'an 8:38 and Sahih Muslim 121, with an-Nawawi's explanation that Islam erases the sins before it and wipes them out. It quotes Ibn Uthaymin that property taken from its owner by force must still be returned to him.
“Say: "O my Servants who have transgressed against their souls! Despair not of the Mercy of Allah: for Allah forgives all sins: for He is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.”
“"Turn ye to our Lord (in repentance) and bow to His (Will), before the Penalty comes on you: after that ye shall not be helped.”
“Let there be no compulsion in religion: Truth stands out clear from Error: whoever rejects evil and believes in Allah hath grasped the most trustworthy hand-hold, that never breaks. And Allah heareth and knoweth all things.”
“Say: O ye that reject Faith! I worship not that which ye worship, Nor will ye worship that which I worship. And I will not worship that which ye have been wont to worship, Nor will ye worship that which I worship. To you be your Way, and to me mine.”
Verse by verse
Qur'an 9:28 — Surat al-Tawba (The Repentance), verse 28
“O ye who believe! Truly the Pagans are unclean; so let them not, after this year of theirs, approach the Sacred Mosque. And if ye fear poverty, soon will Allah enrich you, if He wills, out of His bounty, for Allah is All-knowing, All-wise.”
Cited for
Critics say this verse teaches Muslims to see Hindus as dirty people.
The response
The verse closes one place, the Sacred Mosque. Ibn Kathir and an-Nawawi both explain the uncleanness as uncleanness of belief, not of the body. An-Nawawi says a human being's sweat, saliva and tears are pure, Muslim or not. Thumama was held in the Prophet's (ﷺ) own mosque while still a polytheist. Asma was told to keep good relations with her polytheist mother.
Where it lands — The verse judges a belief. It does not call anyone's body dirty.
Qur'an 98:6 — Surat al-Bayyina (The Evidence), verse 6
“Those who reject (Truth), among the People of the Book and among the Polytheists, will be in Hell-Fire, to dwell therein (for aye). They are the worst of creatures.”
Cited for
Critics say the Qur'an calls Hindus and Buddhists the worst of creatures, so Muslims may treat them as worthless.
The response
The verse gives God's (﷾) verdict on rejecting the truth, and the next verse says those who believe and do good are the best of creatures. So the line is drawn by belief and deeds, and anyone may cross it. How Muslims must treat people is set elsewhere: no reviling (6:108), no compulsion (2:256), and justice even towards those they dislike (5:8).
Where it lands — The verse is God's (﷾) warning about a choice. It gives Muslims no permission to look down on anyone or wrong them.
Qur'an 9:5 — Surat al-Tawba (The Repentance), verse 5
“But when the forbidden months are past, then fight and slay the Pagans wherever ye find them, an seize them, beleaguer them, and lie in wait for them in every stratagem (of war); but if they repent, and establish regular prayers and practise regular charity, then open the way for them: for Allah is Oft-forgiving, Most Merciful.”
Cited for
Critics say the Qur'an commands Muslims to kill kafirs.
The response
Qur'an 9:5 was revealed about the idol-worshipping tribes of Arabia at war with the Prophet (ﷺ). Many of them had broken their treaties and attacked first. The very next verse says any of them who asks for safety must be given it, and escorted to a safe place. The page on the sword verse explains the setting in full. It gives no individual or group today a right to fight anyone.
Where it lands — The verse is a ruling for one war in the Prophet's (ﷺ) time. It is not a command about non-Muslims in general.
Perspectives
The critic's reading
Critics say kafir is a word of hate. They say a book that uses it teaches Muslims to despise Hindus and Buddhists.
Kafir is a slur, in the same way that a racial insult is a slur.
Rebuttal
A racial insult attacks what a person was born as. Kafir names what a person believes, and it ends when the belief ends (8:38). The Qur'an uses the same root for a believer rejecting false gods (2:256). And the Prophet (ﷺ) refused to curse the polytheists, so a Muslim who uses the word to wound goes against him.
If the Qur'an says only Islam is accepted, Muslims cannot truly respect Hindus and Buddhists.
Rebuttal
Holding your own faith to be true is not the same as mistreating people who disagree. Hindu and Buddhist texts draw their own lines too (Manusmriti 2.11; Anguttara Nikaya 1.312). The Prophet (ﷺ) told Asma to keep good relations with her polytheist mother, and the Qur'an allows kindness and justice to all who do not fight Muslims (60:8).
Hindu: we reject no one
Many Hindus say they do not reject God. They hold that they worship the one God in many forms, and that every path leads to Him. So, they say, the word does not fit them.
Krishna says in the Gita that in every way men follow in his path, so sincere worship of any kind is not rejection.
Rebuttal
The Qur'an's test is not only belief in God (﷾), but worship of Him alone. It speaks of people who believe in Allah (﷾) while setting up partners with Him (12:106). The people of Mecca also said their idols would bring them nearer to God (﷾) (39:3). And accepting some of God's (﷾) messengers while rejecting others is still rejection (4:150-151).
Buddhist: we reject nothing
Many Buddhists say the Buddha set such questions aside and taught only a path out of suffering. So, they say, they are not rejecting anything.
The Buddha left some questions undeclared, because they do not lead to the end of suffering.
Rebuttal
The question of a Creator is not on that list, and the Pali texts do argue against a God Almighty behind every act (Anguttara Nikaya 3.61). A message from your Maker calls for an answer, and leaving it aside is not accepting it. Those it has not reached are in God's (﷾) hands (17:15).
The Islamic perspective
Kafir is the Qur'an's word for a person who rejects God's (﷾) message. Islam holds that rejection is a grave matter. But the word describes a belief. It gives no one a licence to insult or harm, and the final verdict belongs to God (﷾).
The root k-f-r means to cover, and the Qur'an uses it for farmers, for ingratitude and for a believer rejecting false gods.
The Qur'an's word covers all who reject its message, among the People of the Book and the polytheists alike.
The Qur'an warns those who die rejecting the truth of the Fire.
God (﷾) alone judges between the faiths, and He punishes no one before a messenger has come.
An-Nawawi says a person the call of Islam has not reached is excused. Al-Ghazali says whoever hears of the Prophet's (ﷺ) signs must look into them.
The Qur'an forbids reviling the gods others call on, and the Prophet (ﷺ) refused to curse the polytheists.
The Qur'an forbids compulsion in religion and allows kindness and justice to all who do not fight Muslims.
Ibn Kathir and an-Nawawi explain the uncleanness in 9:28 as uncleanness of belief, not of the body. A polytheist was held in the Prophet's (ﷺ) own mosque.
Islam wipes out the sins that came before it, though anything taken from people by force must still be given back. So the word never closes a door.