لا تبدیل لخلق الله

Persian

Etymology

Borrowed from Arabic لَا تَبْدِيلَ لِ‍خَلْقِ ٱللَّٰهِ (lā tabdīla li‍ḵalqi llāhi, literally there is no altering for God's creation), a Quranic phrase in the so-called "verse of Fitrat" (30:24).

Pronunciation

 
  • (Dari, formal) IPA(key): [lɑː t̪ʰäb.d̪iː.lä lɪ.xäl.qɪ llɑːʱ]
    • (Kabuli) IPA(key): [lɑː t̪ʰäb.d̪iː.lä lɪ.xäl.qɪ llɑː]
    • (Hazaragi) IPA(key): [lɔː t̪ʰäb.d̪i.lä li.xäl.qi llɔː]
  • (Iran, formal) IPA(key): [lɒː t̪ʰæb.d̪iː.le le.xæl.ɢe llɒːʱ]
  • (Tajik, formal) IPA(key): [lɔ t̪ʰäb.d̪i.lä li.χäl.qi llɔʱ]

Readings
Classical reading? lā tabdīla lixalqi llāh
Dari reading? lā tabdīla lixalqi llāh
Iranian reading? lâ tabdile lexalġe llâh
Tajik reading? lo tabdila lixalqi lloh

Phrase

لا تبدیل لخلق الله • (lâ tabdila lexalqe-llah)

  1. (rare) a leopard cannot change its spots
    • 11th century, Abul-Fazl Bayhaqi, Tarikh-e Beyhaqi[1][2]
      این بوسهل مردی بود امامزاده و محتشم و فاضل و ادیب اما شرارت و زعارتی در طبع وی مؤکد شد و لا تبدیل لخلق الله و بآن شرارت دلسوزی نداشت.
      in bu-sahl mardi bud emâmzâde o mohtašam o fâzel o adib, ammâ šerârat o ze'ârati dar tab'-e vey mo'akkad šod—va la tabdila lexalqe-llah—va be-ân šerârat delsuzi nadâšt.
      This Bu Sahl was a man of noble birth, dignitary, scholar, and literary, but there was a [kind of] villainy and bad temper fixated in his nature—and "there is no altering for God's creation"—and with that villainy, he had no mercy ...