166إِذ تَبَرَّأَ الَّذينَ اتُّبِعوا مِنَ الَّذينَ اتَّبَعوا وَرَأَوُا العَذابَ وَتَقَطَّعَت بِهِمُ الأَسبابُMuhammad Asad[On that Day] it will come to pass that those who had been [falsely] adored1 shall disown their followers, and the latter shall see the suffering [that awaits them], with all their hopes2 cut to pieces!Lit., "followed" - i.e., as saints or alleged "divine personalities".Asbab (sing. sabab) denotes, in its primary meaning, "ties" or "attachments", and in a tropical sense, "means [towards any end]" (cf. Lisan al-'Arab, and Lane IV, 1285). In the above context, asbab obviously refers to means of salvation, and may thus be rendered as "hopes".