The Quran, considered the literal word of Allah by Muslims, contains verses that explicitly degrade non-Muslims. One such verse is Quran 25:44, which states:
“Or do you think that most of them listen or understand? They are only like cattle—no, more than that, they are astray from the Right Way!” (Quran 25:44)
In this verse, Allah directly compares non-Muslims to cattle, implying they lack the ability to listen or understand. However, the insult goes further—Allah states they are even worse than cattle, as they are “astray from the Right Way.” This is a clear and unambiguous degradation, reducing non-believers to less than animals in terms of their capacity for reason and guidance.
The Explicit Degradation
Let’s break down the verse:
- “They are only like cattle”:
Cattle are livestock, often viewed as mindless and driven by instinct rather than intellect. By likening non-Muslims to cattle, Allah strips them of their humanity, suggesting they are incapable of rational thought or moral understanding. - “No, more than that, they are astray”:
Not content with the cattle comparison, Allah adds that non-Muslims are even worse—they are lost, misguided, and deviant. This intensifies the insult, portraying them as not just mindless but actively wrong.
This is not a subtle metaphor or a call for introspection. It is a direct insult, dehumanizing non-Muslims and positioning them as inferior beings. The verse does not offer a path to redemption or understanding; it simply condemns.
Why This Matters
Such verses fuel a narrative of supremacy, where Muslims are elevated as the enlightened, while non-Muslims are reduced to subhuman status. This rhetoric has real-world consequences—it can justify exclusion, discrimination, and even violence against those outside the faith. When a holy text calls people “cattle,” it is not just words; it is a mandate for disdain.