O MANKIND! Partake of what is lawful and good on earth, and follow not Satan's footsteps: for, verily, he is your open foe, 168 He only commandeth you to evil and indecency, and that ye should say against Allah that which ye know not 169 And when it said unto them: follow that which Allah hath sent down, they say: nay, we shall follow that way whereon we found our fathers - even though their fathers understood not aught, nor were they guided aright? 170 The mental condition of those who rejected the way of Allah may be likened to that of the cattle whom the shepherd calls but they hear nothing except the sound of shouts and cries. They are deaf, they are dumb, they are blind; therefore they do not understand anything. 171 Believers, eat from the good things that We have given you and give thanks to God if you worship only Him. 172 Allah has only forbidden you to eat what dies of itself, and blood and swine flesh and what has been consecrated to any other name than of Allah. But one will incur no sin if, forced by absolute necessity, he eats of any of these forbidden things, provided he has no intention of transgressing the law and does not take more than what is absolutely indispensable: for Allah is very Forgiving and very Merciful. 173 Those who conceal any part of the Scriptures which God has revealed in order to gain some paltry end, simply fill their bellies with Fire. On the Day of Resurrection, God will neither speak to them nor purify them. They will have a painful punishment. 174 It is they who take error in exchange for guidance, and suffering in exchange for forgiveness: yet how little do they seem to fear the fire! 175 This is because Allah has sent down the Book with the truth; and indeed those who caused disagreement in the Book are, surely, disputants in the extreme. 176