Surah Al-Kahf 18:64
سُورَةُ الكَهۡفِ · Meccan · Verse 64 of 110
قَالَ ذَٰلِكَ مَا كُنَّا نَبْغِ ۚ فَٱرْتَدَّا عَلَىٰٓ ءَاثَارِهِمَا قَصَصًۭا
Translation
Moses said, ‘Then that was the place we were looking for.’ So the two turned back, retraced their footsteps,
English translation: M.A.S. Abdel Haleem.
Meaning and reflection
'He said: That is what we were seeking. So they returned, retracing their footsteps.' al-Saadi and Ibn Kathir note Musa's response to discovering he had overshot, no despair, no pressing stubbornly forward, but a willingness to turn back and retrace his steps to the point he had missed. Ask yourself: realising he had gone past the mark, Musa's move is humble and immediate, go back. I resist retracing my steps; admitting I've overshot, that I need to return to a point I passed, feels like failure or wasted effort, so I push on rather than double back. But sometimes the only way forward is backward, returning to the place where I last had it right. Where have I gone past my 'junction', a principle, a relationship, a practice I abandoned, and where honesty would mean not pressing on, but retracing my footsteps to recover it?
Grounded in classical tafsir: al-Saadi, Ibn Kathir, Ibn Ashur.
Topics that discuss this verse
Surah Al-Kahf 18:64 is discussed in 7 study guides on Maani. Each guide gathers the key verses, Arabic words and lessons of one Quranic topic.
Reflect on this verse
Open Surah Al-Kahf 18:64 in Maani to reflect on it through the Five Lenses: its wording, its context, what it means for you, its connections across the Quran and its lessons, grounded in classical tafsir.