7 Preface وَوَجَدَكَ ضالًّا فَهَدىٰYusuf AliAnd He found thee wandering, and He gave thee guidance.1(2) The holy Prophet was born in the midst of the idolatry and polytheism of Mecca, in a family which was the custodian of this false worship. He wandered in quest of Unity and found it by the guidance of God. There is no implication whatever of sin or error on his part. But we may err and find ourselves wandering in mazes of error, in thought, motive, or understanding: we must pray for God’s grace ever to give us guidance. The Arabic root dhalla has various shades of meaning. In 1:7, I have translated it by the verb “stray”. In 53:2 the Prophet is defended from the charge of being “astray” or straying in mind. In 12:8 and 12:95 Jacob’s sons use the word for their aged father, to suggest that he was senile and wandering in mind. In 32:10 it is used of the dead, and I have translated it “hidden and lost” (in the earth).