68Al-Qalam

بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ ن ۚ وَالْقَلَمِ وَمَا يَسْطُرُونَ

Nun. By the Pen, and what they inscribe,

مَا أَنْتَ بِنِعْمَةِ رَبِّكَ بِمَجْنُونٍ

thou art not, by the blessing of thy Lord, a man possessed.

وَإِنَّ لَكَ لَأَجْرًا غَيْرَ مَمْنُونٍ

Surely thou shalt have a wage unfailing;

وَإِنَّكَ لَعَلَىٰ خُلُقٍ عَظِيمٍ

surely thou art upon a mighty morality.

فَسَتُبْصِرُ وَيُبْصِرُونَ

So thou shalt see, and they will see,

بِأَيْيِكُمُ الْمَفْتُونُ

which of you is the demented.

إِنَّ رَبَّكَ هُوَ أَعْلَمُ بِمَنْ ضَلَّ عَنْ سَبِيلِهِ وَهُوَ أَعْلَمُ بِالْمُهْتَدِينَ

Surely thy Lord knows very well those who have gone astray from His way, and He knows very well those who are guided.

فَلَا تُطِعِ الْمُكَذِّبِينَ

So obey thou not those who cry lies.

وَدُّوا لَوْ تُدْهِنُ فَيُدْهِنُونَ

They wish that thou shouldst compromise, then they would compromise.

وَلَا تُطِعْ كُلَّ حَلَّافٍ مَهِينٍ

And obey thou not every mean swearer,

هَمَّازٍ مَشَّاءٍ بِنَمِيمٍ

backbiter, going about with slander,

مَنَّاعٍ لِلْخَيْرِ مُعْتَدٍ أَثِيمٍ

hinderer of good, guilty aggressor, coarse-grained,

عُتُلٍّ بَعْدَ ذَٰلِكَ زَنِيمٍ

moreover ignoble,

أَنْ كَانَ ذَا مَالٍ وَبَنِينَ

because he has wealth and sons.

إِذَا تُتْلَىٰ عَلَيْهِ آيَاتُنَا قَالَ أَسَاطِيرُ الْأَوَّلِينَ

When Our signs are recited to him, he says, 'Fairy-tales of the ancients!'

سَنَسِمُهُ عَلَى الْخُرْطُومِ

We shall brand him upon the muzzle!

إِنَّا بَلَوْنَاهُمْ كَمَا بَلَوْنَا أَصْحَابَ الْجَنَّةِ إِذْ أَقْسَمُوا لَيَصْرِمُنَّهَا مُصْبِحِينَ

Now We have tried them, even as We tried the owners of the garden when they swore they would pluck in the morning

وَلَا يَسْتَثْنُونَ

and they added not the saving words.

فَطَافَ عَلَيْهَا طَائِفٌ مِنْ رَبِّكَ وَهُمْ نَائِمُونَ

Then a visitation from thy Lord visited it, while they were sleeping,

فَأَصْبَحَتْ كَالصَّرِيمِ

and in the morning it was as if it were a garden plucked.

فَتَنَادَوْا مُصْبِحِينَ

In the morning they called to one another,

أَنِ اغْدُوا عَلَىٰ حَرْثِكُمْ إِنْ كُنْتُمْ صَارِمِينَ

'Come forth betimes upon your tillage, if you would pluck!'

فَانْطَلَقُوا وَهُمْ يَتَخَافَتُونَ

So they departed, whispering together,

أَنْ لَا يَدْخُلَنَّهَا الْيَوْمَ عَلَيْكُمْ مِسْكِينٌ

'No needy man shall enter it today against your will.'

وَغَدَوْا عَلَىٰ حَرْدٍ قَادِرِينَ

And they went forth early, determined upon their purpose.

فَلَمَّا رَأَوْهَا قَالُوا إِنَّا لَضَالُّونَ

But when they saw it, they said, 'Surely we are gone astray;

بَلْ نَحْنُ مَحْرُومُونَ

nay, rather we have been robbed!'

قَالَ أَوْسَطُهُمْ أَلَمْ أَقُلْ لَكُمْ لَوْلَا تُسَبِّحُونَ

Said the most moderate of them, 'Did I not say to you, "Why do you not give glory?"'

قَالُوا سُبْحَانَ رَبِّنَا إِنَّا كُنَّا ظَالِمِينَ

They said, 'Glory be to God, our Lord; truly, we were evildoers.'

فَأَقْبَلَ بَعْضُهُمْ عَلَىٰ بَعْضٍ يَتَلَاوَمُونَ

And they advanced one upon another, blaming each other.

قَالُوا يَا وَيْلَنَا إِنَّا كُنَّا طَاغِينَ

They said, 'Woe, alas for us! Truly, we were insolent.

عَسَىٰ رَبُّنَا أَنْ يُبْدِلَنَا خَيْرًا مِنْهَا إِنَّا إِلَىٰ رَبِّنَا رَاغِبُونَ

It may be that our Lord will give us in exchange a better than it; to our Lord we humbly turn.'

كَذَٰلِكَ الْعَذَابُ ۖ وَلَعَذَابُ الْآخِرَةِ أَكْبَرُ ۚ لَوْ كَانُوا يَعْلَمُونَ

Such is the chastisement; and the chastisement of the world to come, is assuredly greater, did they but know.

إِنَّ لِلْمُتَّقِينَ عِنْدَ رَبِّهِمْ جَنَّاتِ النَّعِيمِ

Surely for the godfearing shall be Gardens of Bliss with their Lord.

أَفَنَجْعَلُ الْمُسْلِمِينَ كَالْمُجْرِمِينَ

What, shall we make those who have surrendered like to the sinners?

مَا لَكُمْ كَيْفَ تَحْكُمُونَ

What ails you then, how you judge?

أَمْ لَكُمْ كِتَابٌ فِيهِ تَدْرُسُونَ

Or have you a Book wherein you study?

إِنَّ لَكُمْ فِيهِ لَمَا تَخَيَّرُونَ

Surely therein you shall have whatever you choose!

أَمْ لَكُمْ أَيْمَانٌ عَلَيْنَا بَالِغَةٌ إِلَىٰ يَوْمِ الْقِيَامَةِ ۙ إِنَّ لَكُمْ لَمَا تَحْكُمُونَ

Or have you oaths from Us, reaching to the Day of Resurrection? Surely you shall have whatever you judge!

سَلْهُمْ أَيُّهُمْ بِذَٰلِكَ زَعِيمٌ

Ask them, which of them will guarantee that!

أَمْ لَهُمْ شُرَكَاءُ فَلْيَأْتُوا بِشُرَكَائِهِمْ إِنْ كَانُوا صَادِقِينَ

Or do they have associates? Then let them bring their associates, if they speak truly.

يَوْمَ يُكْشَفُ عَنْ سَاقٍ وَيُدْعَوْنَ إِلَى السُّجُودِ فَلَا يَسْتَطِيعُونَ

Upon the day when the leg shall be bared, and they shall be summoned to bow themselves, but they cannot;

خَاشِعَةً أَبْصَارُهُمْ تَرْهَقُهُمْ ذِلَّةٌ ۖ وَقَدْ كَانُوا يُدْعَوْنَ إِلَى السُّجُودِ وَهُمْ سَالِمُونَ

humbled shall be their eyes, and abasement shall overspread them, for they had been summoned to bow themselves while they were whole.

فَذَرْنِي وَمَنْ يُكَذِّبُ بِهَٰذَا الْحَدِيثِ ۖ سَنَسْتَدْرِجُهُمْ مِنْ حَيْثُ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ

So leave Me with him who cries lies to this discourse! We will draw them on little by little whence they know not;

وَأُمْلِي لَهُمْ ۚ إِنَّ كَيْدِي مَتِينٌ

and I shall respite them -- assuredly My guile is sure.

أَمْ تَسْأَلُهُمْ أَجْرًا فَهُمْ مِنْ مَغْرَمٍ مُثْقَلُونَ

Or askest thou them for a wage, and so they are weighed down with debt?

أَمْ عِنْدَهُمُ الْغَيْبُ فَهُمْ يَكْتُبُونَ

Or is the Unseen in their keeping, and so they are writing it down?

فَاصْبِرْ لِحُكْمِ رَبِّكَ وَلَا تَكُنْ كَصَاحِبِ الْحُوتِ إِذْ نَادَىٰ وَهُوَ مَكْظُومٌ

So be thou patient under the judgment of thy Lord, and be not as the Man of the Fish, when he called, choking inwardly.

لَوْلَا أَنْ تَدَارَكَهُ نِعْمَةٌ مِنْ رَبِّهِ لَنُبِذَ بِالْعَرَاءِ وَهُوَ مَذْمُومٌ

Had there not overtaken him a blessing from his Lord he would have been cast upon the wilderness, being condemned.

فَاجْتَبَاهُ رَبُّهُ فَجَعَلَهُ مِنَ الصَّالِحِينَ

But his Lord had chosen him, and He placed him among the righteous.

وَإِنْ يَكَادُ الَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا لَيُزْلِقُونَكَ بِأَبْصَارِهِمْ لَمَّا سَمِعُوا الذِّكْرَ وَيَقُولُونَ إِنَّهُ لَمَجْنُونٌ

The unbelievers wellnigh strike thee down with their glances, when they hear the Reminder, and they say, 'Surely he is a man possessed!'

وَمَا هُوَ إِلَّا ذِكْرٌ لِلْعَالَمِينَ

And it is nothing but a Reminder unto all beings.