038 - Sūrat Sād

In the name of Allah (who is) Rahmān (and) Rahīm.

[For explanation, see Sūrat al-Fātiha: 1]

1

Sād: Allahu ta’ālā knows best what He means by this [letter]. By the Qur'ān bearing the Remembrance, that is, [bearing] the Pronouncement; or [what is meant is that the Qur'ān is a Book] of renown (the response to this oath has been omitted, in other words: 'It is not as the Meccan disbelievers say, that there are many gods').

2

Nay, but those who disbelieve, from among the people of Mecca, dwell in conceit, in self-glory and [in] disdain of faith, and defiance, disagreement with, and enmity towards, the Prophet "sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam".

3

How many - in other words, many - a generation, a community of past communities, We have destroyed before them, and they cried out, when the chastisement was sent down on them, when it was no longer the time for escape, that is to say, the time was not one for fleeing (the [suffixed] tā' [of wa-lāta] is extra; the sentence is a circumstantial qualifier referring to the subject of [the verb] nādaw, 'they cried out') in other words, they called for help but the situation was such that there could be no escape or deliverance; but still the Meccan disbelievers have not taken heed from their example.

4

And they marvel that a warner has come to them from among themselves, a Messenger (rasūl) from among their number, to warn them and to threaten them with [the punishment of] the Fire after resurrection - and this [warner] is the Prophet "sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam". And those who disbelieve (the overt noun [al-kāfirūnā] has replaced the [third person] pronominalisation) say, 'This is a sorcerer, a liar.

5

Has he made the gods One God? - for he had said to them, 'Say: there is no god except Allahu ta’ālā' - in other words [they objected]: how could one god suffice for all of creation? Lo! that is indeed a curious thing'.

6

And the council from among them go about, from the place of their assembly at the house of Abū Tālib and [the place] where they heard the Prophet "sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam" say, 'Say: there is no god except Allahu ta’ālā', saying, 'Go!, they say to one another, go, and stand by your gods, adhere firmly to worship of them; lo! this, that has been mentioned concerning the Oneness of Allahu ta’ālā, is indeed a thing sought, from us.

7

We never heard of this in the latter-day creed, namely, the creed of Jesus. This is surely [nothing] but an invention, [mere] lies.

8

Has the Remembrance, the Qur'ān, been revealed to him, Muhammad "sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam", out of [all of] us', when he is neither the elder nor the noblest among us? In other words, it could not have been revealed to him (read a-unzila pronouncing both hamzas, or not pronouncing the second one, but in both cases inserting an intervening alif or without [this insertion]). Allahu ta’ālā, exalted be He, says: Nay, but they are in doubt concerning My Remembrance, My revelation, that is, the Qur'ān, for they deny the one who has brought it. Nay, but they have not yet tasted My chastisement, and if they were to taste it, they would certainly believe the Prophet "sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam" in what he has brought - but then [in such a case] their belief [in the Prophet] would be of no benefit to them.

9

Or do they possess the treasuries of your Rabb's mercy, the Mighty, the Victor, the Bestower?, [treasuries] such as prophethood and otherwise, so that they might give it to whomever they want?

10

Or do they possess the sovereignty of the heavens and the earth and whatever is between them? If this is what they claim: Then let them ascend by the means, [of ascension] that lead to the heaven and bring [down] some revelation (wahy) and then assign it exclusively to whomever they wish (am in both verses represents the [rhetorical] hamza of denial).

11

A routed (mahzūmun is an adjectival qualification of jundun, 'host') host [is all that they are], in other words, they are [nothing but] a despicable host, nothing more - in their denial of you - from among the factions (mina'l-ahzābi, also an adjectival qualification of jundun) in other words, [they are] like those hosts of factions who were in confederation against prophets before you: these were defeated and destroyed, and likewise We shall destroy these [people].

12

Before them the people of Noah denied (the inflection of [the verb kadhdabat, 'denied', that is governed by] qawmu, 'people', is in the feminine person because of the [implicit] sense), and [so did those of] 'ād and Pharaoh, he of the stakes - he used to fix four stakes for the person who incurred his wrath and tie to these [stakes] that person's hands and feet and then torture him –

13

and Thamūd and the people of Lot and the dwellers in the wood, a small forest, namely, the people of Shu'ayb, peace be upon him - those were the factions.

14

Each one, of the factions, did not but deny the messengers (rusul), for when they deny one, they have [in effect] denied them all, since their call [to Allahu ta’ālā] is [the same] one, namely, the call to [affirmation of] His Oneness. So My retribution was justified, [it was] necessary.

15

And these, that is, the disbelievers of Mecca, do not await but a single Cry, namely, the Blast of the Resurrection that will herald chastisement for them, for which there will be no revoking (read fawāq or fuwāq).

16

And they said - after the following [verse] was revealed, As for him who is given his book in his right hand … to the end [of the verse, [Q. 69:19] - 'Our Rabb, hasten on for us the record of our deeds before the Day of Reckoning' - they said this mockingly.

17

Allahu ta’ālā, exalted be He, says: Bear patiently what they say and remember Our servant David, the one of fortitude, that is to say, [the one] of fortitude in worship: he used to fast every other day and keep vigil for half the night, sleep for a third and then keep vigil for the [last] sixth. Indeed he was a penitent [soul], always returning to what pleases Allahu ta’ālā.

18

Truly We disposed the mountains to glorify [Allahu ta’ālā] with him, with the same glorification, at evening, at the time of the night prayer, and at sunrise, at the time of the morning prayer, which is when the sun has fully risen with its light extending everywhere.

19

And, We disposed, the birds, mustered [in flocks], gathered before him, glorifying with him; each, of the mountains and birds, turning to him, reverting to obedience of him by glorifying [Allahu ta’ālā with him].

20

And We strengthened his sovereignty, We reinforced it with guards and hosts: every night there thirty thousand men would be standing guard at his sanctuary; and gave him wisdom, prophethood and sound judgement in [all] matters, and decisive speech, [the ability to formulate] a satisfactory statement [for a decision] in any endeavour.

21

And has there come to you, O Muhammad "sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam" (the purpose of the interrogative [indicated by hal] here is to provoke curiosity and a desire to listen to what will follow) the tale of the disputants, when they scaled the sanctuary?, David's sanctuary, that is, his place of prayer, for they had been prohibited from entering by the [front] gates because of his being engaged in worship, in other words, [has it come to you] their tale and their account?

22

When they entered upon David, and he was frightened by them. And they said, 'Do not fear; we are, two disputants (some say that this means 'two groups', in order to agree with the plural person [of the verb dakhalū, 'they entered']; others say, 'two individuals' with the plural person actually denoting these two; al-khasm may refer to a one or more individuals. These two were angels who had come in the form of two disputants, between whom there [was supposed to have] occurred the situation mentioned - [but] only hypothetically - in order to alert David, peace be upon him, to what he had done: he had ninety nine women but desired the woman of a man who had only her and no other. He [David] had married her and consummated the marriage. One of us has infringed upon the [rights of the] other, so judge justly between us and do not transgress, [do not] be unjust, and guide us, direct us, to the right path', the correct way.

23

'Behold, this brother of mine, in other words, my fellow co-religionist, has ninety-nine ewes - here used to represent the women - while I have a single ewe; yet he said, “Entrust it to me”, in other words, make me in charge of it, and he overcame me in speech', in other words, in the argument; so the latter conceded charge of it to him.

24

He said, 'He has certainly wronged you by asking for your ewe that he may add it to his sheep. And indeed many associates infringe upon [the rights of] one other, except such as believe and perform righteous deeds, but few are they!' (mā emphasises the 'fewness'). As the two angels were ascending to the heaven one said to the other, 'He has certainly passed judgement on himself!' David was thus alerted [to his deed]. Allahu ta’ālā, exalted be He, says: And David thought, in other words, he became certain, that We had indeed tried him, that We had caused him to fall into a trial, that is, a test, through his love for that woman. So he sought forgiveness of his Rabb and fell down bowing, in other words, prostrate, and repented.

25

So We forgave him that and indeed he has [a station of] nearness with Us, that is, [even] more good [things] in this world, and a fair return, in the Hereafter.

26

'O David! We have indeed made you a vicegerent on the earth, managing the affairs of people; so judge justly between people and do not follow desire, that is, the desires of the soul, that it then lead you astray from the way of Allahu ta’ālā, that is to say, from the proofs that indicate [the truth of] His Oneness. Truly those who go astray from the way of Allahu ta’ālā, in other words, from belief in Allahu ta’ālā - for them there will be a severe chastisement because of their forgetting the Day of Reckoning', as a result of their having neglected faith. For had they been certain of [the truth of] the Day of Reckoning, they would have [first] been believers in this world.

27

And We did not create the heavens and the earth and all that is between them in vain, frivolously. That, namely, the creation of what has been mentioned as being for no [particular] purpose, is the supposition of those who disbelieve, from among the people of Mecca. So woe - a valley [in hell-fire]² - to the disbelievers from the Fire!

28

Or shall We treat those who believe and perform righteous deeds like those who cause corruption in the earth; or shall We treat the Allahu ta’ālā-fearing like the profligate? This was revealed when the Meccan disbelievers said to the believers, 'In the Hereafter we will receive the same [reward] as that which you will receive' (am, 'or', contains the [rhetorical] hamza of denial).

29

A Book (kitābun, the predicate of a missing subject, namely, hādhā, 'this is') that We have revealed to you, full of blessing, that they may contemplate (yaddabbarū is actually yatadabbarū, but the tā' has been assimilated with the dāl) its signs, [that] they may reflect upon its meanings and become believers, and that they may remember, that they may be admonished - those people of pith, those possessors of intellect.

30

And We bestowed on David, Solomon, his son - what an excellent servant!, that is, Solomon. Truly he was a penitent [soul], always returning [to Allahu ta’ālā] with glorification and remembrance at all times.

31

When one evening - which is the period after midday - there were displayed before him the prancing steeds (al-sāfināt, 'horses', is the plural of sāfina, which denotes [a horse] standing on three legs with the fourth supported on the edge of the hoof, and derives from [the verb] safana, yasfinu sufūnan; al-jiyād is the plural of jawād, which is a 'racer'; the meaning is that these [horses] are such that when they are halted they stand still and when they run they surpass [others] in speed). One thousand horses were displayed before him after he had performed the midday prayer, for he had wanted to use them in a holy struggle (jihād) against an enemy. But when the display reached the nine-hundredth [horse], the sun set and he had not performed the afternoon prayer. So he was greatly distressed.

32

He said, 'Lo! I have loved, I have desired, the love of [worldly] good things, that is, [of] horses, over the remembrance of my Rabb', that is, [over] the afternoon prayer, until it, that is, the sun, disappeared behind the [night's] veil, [until] it was concealed by that which veils it from sight.

33

Bring them back to me!, that is, the horses that were displayed; and they so brought them back. Then he set about slashing, with his sword, [their] legs (al-sūq is the plural of sāq) and necks, in other words, he slaughtered them and cut off their legs as an offering [of atonement] to Allahu ta’ālā, exalted be He, for having been distracted by them from the prayer. He gave all the meat thereof as voluntary alms and so Allahu ta’ālā compensated him what was better and faster that these [horses], and this was the wind, which blew at his command as he wished.

34

And We certainly tried Solomon: We tested him by wresting his sovereignty from him, because he had married a woman [solely] out of his desire for her. She used to worship idols in his [own] home without his knowledge. Now, [control of] his sovereignty lay in his ring. On one occasion, needing to withdraw [to relieve himself], he took it off and left it with this woman of his, whose name was al-Amīna, as was his custom; but a jinn, [desguised] in the form of Solomon, came to her and seized it from her. And We cast upon his throne a [lifeless] body, which was that [very] jinn, and he was [the one known as] Sakhr - or it was some other [jinn]; he sat upon Solomon's throne and so [as was the case with Solomon] the birds and other [creatures] devoted themselves to him [in service]. When Solomon came out [of his palace], having seen him [the jinn] upon his throne, he said to the people, 'I am Solomon [not him]!' But they did not recognise him. Then he repented - Solomon returned to his sovereignty, many days later, after he had managed to acquire the ring. He wore it and sat upon his throne [again].

35

He said, 'My Rabb! Forgive me and grant me a sovereignty that shall not belong to anyone after me, in other words, other than me (this [use of min ba'dī to mean 'other than me'] is similar to [Q. 45:23] fa-man yahdīh min ba'di'llāh, 'who will guide him other than Allahu ta’ālā?'). Truly You are the Bestower'.

36

So We disposed for him the wind, which blew softly, gently, at his command wherever he intended.

37

And the devils [also We disposed], every builder, building marvellous edifices, and diver, in the sea, bringing up pearls,

38

and others too, from among them, bounded together in fetters, in shackles with their hands tied to their necks.

39

And We said to him: 'This is Our gift. So bestow, grant thereof to whomever you wish, or withhold, from giving, without any reckoning', in other words, without your being called to account for any of this.

40

And indeed he has [a station of] nearness with Us and a fair resort - a similar [statement] has already appeared [in another verse above].

41

And mention also Our servant Job, when he called out to his Rabb, [saying], 'Lo! Satan has afflicted me with hardship, harm, and suffering', pain: he attributes all this to Satan, even though all things are from Allahu ta’ālā, to show reverence [in his call] to Him, exalted be He.

42

And it was said to him: 'Stamp your foot, on the ground - and he stamped [it] and a spring of water gushed forth, and it was said: This is a cool bath, [cool] water for you to wash with, and a drink', for you to drink of. So he washed himself and drank [from it] whereat every ailment that had affected him internally and externally disappeared.

43

And We gave him [back] his family along with others like them, that is, Allahu ta’ālā brought back to life all the children of his that had died and provided him with as many [in addition to them], as a mercy, a grace, from us, and a reminder, an admonition, to people of pith, possessors of intellect.

44

And [We said to him], 'Take in your hand a bunch of twigs, or some blades of grass, and smite therewith, your wife - for he had sworn to smite her a hundred times on one occasion when she was late in coming to him - and do not break [your] oath', by not smiting her: so he took a hundred rushes and smote her with them once [and that sufficed to fulfil his oath]. Truly We found him to be steadfast. What an excellent servant!, [was] Job. Indeed he was a penitent [soul], always returning to Allahu ta’ālā, exalted be He.

45

And mention [also] Our servants Abraham, and Isaac and Jacob - men of fortitude, vigorous in their worship, and insight, deep understanding of religion (a variant reading [for 'ibādanā, 'Our servants'] has [singular] 'abdanā, 'Our servant', with Ibrāhīma as the explication thereof, and what follows as being a supplement to 'abdanā, 'Our servant').

46

Assuredly We purified them with an exclusive [thought], namely, the remembrance of the Abode, of the Hereafter: in other words to [always] remember it and to work for it (a variant reading [for bi-khālisatin dhikrā'l-dār] has the genitive construction [bi-khālisati dhikrā'l-dār], making this [dhikrā al-dār, 'remembrance of the Abode'] the explicative thereof).

47

And indeed in Our sight they are of the elect, the excellent (akhyār is the plural of khayyir).

48

And mention [also] Our servants Ishmael, and Elisha, who was a prophet (the lām [here in al-Yasa'] is extra) and Dhū'l-Kifl - there is disagreement over whether he was a prophet; it is said that [he was so called because] he looked after (kafala) a hundred prophets who had sought refuge with him from being killed. Each, that is, every one of them, was among the excellent (akhyār is the plural of khayyir).

49

This is a remembrance, of them, [made] by [the mention of] fair praise [of them] here; and indeed for the Allahu ta’ālā-fearing, who comprise them, there will truly be a fair return, in the Hereafter –

50

Gardens of Eden (jannāti 'Adnin is either a substitution for, or an explicative supplement to, husna ma'ābin, 'a fair return') whose gates are [flung] open for them;

51

reclining therein, on couches; therein they call for plenteous fruit and drink.

52

And with them [there] will be maidens of restrained glances, restricting their eyes to their spouses, of a like age, of the same age, girls who are thirty three years of age (atrāb is the plural of tirb).

53

'This, that is mentioned, is what you are promised, by way of the unseen (there is a shift in the address away from the third [to the second] person]) for the Day of Reckoning.

54

This is indeed Our provision, which will never be exhausted', in other words, one which will never cease (this [last] sentence [mā lahu min nafādin] is a circumstantial qualifier referring to rizqunā, 'Our provision'; or it is a second predicate of inna, 'indeed', meaning that it will be 'everlasting'.

55

That, which is mentioned, will be [the reward] for the believers [is so]; but for the insolent (this is a new sentence) there will surely be an evil [place of] return –

56

Hell, which they will enter - an evil resting place!

57

This, chastisement - inferred [as so] by what follows - let them then taste it: burning hot water and pus (read ghasāq or ghassāq), the festering matter excreted by the inhabitants of the Fire;

58

and other (ākhar may be plural or singular) kinds [of torment] resembling it, in other words, like the boiling water and pus mentioned, in pairs, of all sorts, in other words, their chastisement will consist of various kinds.

59

And it will be said to them as they enter the Fire with their followers: 'This is a horde about to plunge, to enter, with you, into the Fire violently - at which point those who used to be followed say: no welcome [is there] for them [here]!, in other words, [they will find] no comfort for them [here]. They will indeed roast in the Fire'.

60

They, the followers, say, 'Nay, but for you [there is] no welcome! You prepared this, that is, disbelief, for us. So what an evil abode!', for us and for you, is the Fire.

61

They, also, say, 'Our Rabb, whoever prepared this for us, give him double his chastisement, that is, [give him in addition] the like of his chastisement, for his disbelief, in the Fire!'

62

And they, the disbelievers of Mecca, say, while they are in the Fire: 'What is the matter with us that we do not see [here] men whom we used to count, in the world, among the wicked?

63

Did we treat them mockingly? (read sukhriyyan, or sikhriyyan), did we use to deride them in [the life of] the world (the [final] yā' [in sikhriyyā] is attributive). In other words, are they missing? Or have [our] eyes missed them [here]?', so that we have not caught sight of them. Such [men] were the poor among the Muslims, like 'Ammār [b. Yāsir], Bilāl [al-Habashī], Suhayb [al-Rūmī] and Salmān [al-Fārisī].

64

Assuredly that is true: such [a scene] will necessarily take place, which is, the wrangling of the inhabitants of the Fire - as shown above.

65

Say, O Muhammad "sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam", to the disbelievers of Mecca: 'I am only a warner, to threaten [disbelievers] with [punishment in] the Fire. And there is no god except Allahu ta’ālā, the One, the All-Compelling, of [all] His creatures;

66

Rabb of the heavens and the earth and all that is between them, the Mighty, Whose way [always] prevails, the [ever] Forgiving', of His friends.

67

Say, to them: 'It is a tremendous tiding

68

from which you are turning away, namely, the Qur'ān, of which I have informed you and in which I have brought you what can only be known by revelation, and that is Allah’s saying:

69

I had no knowledge of the High Council, that is to say, [of] the angels, when they disputed, in the matter of Adam, when Allahu ta’ālā, exalted be He, said [to them]: 'I am appointing on earth a vicegerent', to the end [of the verse, Q. 2:30].

70

All that is revealed to me is that I am just a plain warner', one whose warning is clear.

71

Mention, when your Rabb said to the angels, 'Indeed I am about to create a human being out of clay, and this was Adam.

72

So when I have proportioned him, completed him, and breathed in him, [when I have] caused to flow [therein], My spirit, so that he becomes a living [being] - the addition of 'the spirit' to Adam is an honour for him; the 'spirit' is a subtle body that gives life to a human being by permeating him - then fall down in prostration before him!' - a prostration of salutation [that is actually] a bow.

73

Thereat the angels prostrated, all of them together (there are two emphases here [kulluhum and ajma'ūn]);

74

except Iblīs, the father of the jinn, who was among the [audience of] angels; he was disdainful and he was one of the disbelievers, according to Allah’s knowledge, exalted be He.

75

He said, 'O Iblīs! What prevents you from prostrating before that which I have created with My own hands?, in other words, whose creation I [Myself] have undertaken. This [in itself] is an honour for Adam, as Allahu ta’ālā has [Himself] undertaken the [unmediated] creation of all creatures. Are you being arrogant, now, in refraining from prostrating (an interrogative meant as a rebuke); or are you of the exalted?', of the proud, and have therefore disdained to prostrate yourself, because you are one of them?

76

He said, 'I am better than him. You created me from fire and You created him from clay'.

77

He said, 'Then begone hence, that is, from Paradise - or, it is said, [begone] from the heavens - for you are indeed accursed, outcast.

78

And indeed My curse shall be on you until the Day of Judgement', [the Day] of Requital.

79

He said, 'My Rabb, then reprieve me until the day when they, mankind, will be raised'.

80

He said, 'Then you will indeed be among the reprieved

81

until the day of the known time', the time of the First Blast.

82

He said, 'Now, by Your might, I shall surely pervert them all,

83

except those servants of Yours among them who will be saved', namely, the believers.

84

He said, 'So the truth is - and the truth I [always] speak (read both [words] in the accusative [fa'l-haqqa wa'l-haqqa]; or with the first in the nominative and the second in the accusative because of the verb [aqūlu, 'I speak'] that follows. As for reading the first one in the accusative, this would be on account of the mentioned verb [qāla, 'he said']; but it is also said to be on account of its being a verbal noun, the sense being uhiqqu l-haqqa, 'I establish the truth'; or [it is in the accusative by implication] if the particle for the oath [fa] is removed. It [the first haqq] could also be in the nominative because of its being the subject of a missing predicate, as in fa'l-haqqu minnī, 'truth [comes] from Me'. It is also said that [the sentence means] fa'l-haqqu qasamī, 'the truth is [this] oath from Me', the response to which is the following [la-amla'anna …]) –

85

I shall assuredly fill Hell with you, by way of [filling it with] your progeny, and with whoever of them follows you, that is, of mankind, all together'

86

Say: 'I do not ask of you, in return for this, for delivering the Message [to you], any reward, any fee; nor am I an impostor, so as to make up the Qur'ān myself.

87

It is only, in other words, the Qur'ān is only, a reminder, an admonition, for all worlds, [those of] humans, jinn and [other] rational beings, [but] excluding the angels.

88

And you will assuredly come to know, O disbelievers of Mecca, its tiding, the news of its truth, in [due] time', that is to say, on the Day of Resurrection ('ilm, 'knowing', is here being used in the sense of 'urf, 'experience'; the prefixed lām [in la-ta'lamunna, 'you will assuredly know'] is for an implicit oath, in other words [what is meant is] wa'llāhi [la-ta'lamunna, 'By Allahu ta’ālā you will assuredly know']).