2 Akana lilnnasi AAajaban an awhayna ila rajulin minhum an anthiri alnnasa wabashshiri allatheena amanoo anna lahum qadama sidqin AAinda rabbihim qala alkafiroona inna hatha lasahirun mubeenun

2. Is it a matter to wonder at for the people that We revealed to a man from among themselves, “Warn the people and give good news to those who believe that they have a secure foothold with their Lord.” The suppressors of the Truth say, “This indeed is a manifest sorcerer.”

3 Inna rabbakumu Allahu allathee khalaqa alssamawati waalarda fee sittati ayyamin thumma istawa AAala alAAarshi yudabbiru alamra ma min shafeeAAin illa min baAAdi ithnihi thalikumu Allahu rabbukum faoAAbudoohu afala tathakkaroona

3. Indeed, your Lord is Allah, Who created the heavens and the earth in six periods in time², then ascended to the Throne³, regulating the affairs. No intercessor can dare intercede except after His permission.⁴ That is Allah, your Lord, so worship Him! Won’t you then remember?

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2. The Arabic word used here is ayyaam, plural of yawm. The English equivalent of yawm is ‘day’. Normally, a ‘day’ means a ‘perioid of time’ during which the Sun shines on any particular part of the earth. In the Arabic language too, yawm has exactly the same meaning normally. But just as the English day is also used to denote a 24-hour period of time which includes night, the Arabic yawm is used in the Qur’aan to denote other periods of time too extending to thousands of years. In Verses 22.47 and 32.5, yawm is taken to mean a thousand years, while in Verse 70.4, it is taken to mean fifty thousand years. So, the ‘six ayyaam’ mentioned in Verse 10.3 here is translated as ‘six periods of time’, every period of which may constitute an unspecified time of thousands and thousands of years or eons.

3. See study note 55 on Verse 9.129.

4. In the Hereafter, there is no question of any intercession – not even by any Prophet. This is clear from Verses 2.254 and 2.255 (also see study notes 482 and 483 on Verse 255). But here, in the context of this Verse 10.3, Allah Almighty may, if He wills, concede the prayer of a living person in this world for another living person in respect of any action in this world.

4 Ilayhi marjiAAukum jameeAAan waAAda Allahi haqqan innahu yabdao alkhalqa thumma yuAAeeduhu liyajziya allatheena amanoo waAAamiloo alssalihati bialqisti waallatheena kafaroo lahum sharabun min hameemin waAAathabun aleemun bima kanoo yakfuroona

4. To Him is your return, all together a promise of Allah in truth. He does indeed originate creation, and then He reproduces it that He may justly recompense those who believe and do good deeds. And as for those who suppress the Truth, they shall have hot water to drink and shall suffer a painful punishment for their suppression of the Truth.

5 Huwa allathee jaAAala alshshamsa diyaan waalqamara nooran waqaddarahu manazila litaAAlamoo AAadada alssineena waalhisaba ma khalaqa Allahu thalika illa bialhaqqi yufassilu alayati liqawmin yaAAlamoona

5. He it is Who made the sun a source of light and the moon a light, and ordained for it phases that you might count years and keep accounts. Allah did not create all that but on purpose. He explains the Verses/signs for people who know.⁵

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5. People who do believe in the existence of Allah as the One Creator of all things, big or small, do know that all His creations serve some purpose. The things are not created in vain. Allah Almighty informs us here that the phases of the moon serve the purpose of enabling mankind to keep account of time. The phase of the new moon marks the end of one month and the start of the next. Elsewhere in the Qur’aan it is mentioned that 12 such months constitute a year. The divinely ordained measurement of time is therefore based on the lunar year. The lunar system, if implemented properly, ought to be more accurate than the solar system wherein adjustments have to be made every now and then to keep the time accurate. No such adjustments need be made in the lunar system. Also please note here that the sun has been described as a source of light, and the moon as just a light. This description is perfectly in tune with the scientifically verified fact that the moon just reflects the light of the sun on to the earth. It is by itself not the source of that light.

6 Inna fee ikhtilafi allayli waalnnahari wama khalaqa Allahu fee alssamawati waalardi laayatin liqawmin yattaqoona

7 Inna allatheena la yarjoona liqaana waradoo bialhayati alddunya waitmaannoo biha waallatheena hum AAan ayatina ghafiloona

7. Indeed, those who do not expect to meet Us and are pleased with this world's life and are content with it, and those who are heedless of Our Verses/signs,

8 Olaika mawahumu alnnaru bima kanoo yaksiboona

8. Their abode is the Fire because of what they earned.⁷

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7. Verses 7 and 8 constitute one sentence. Modern-day Muslims are heedless of the the divine commandments in the Qur’aan. This is a clear warning to them.

9 Inna allatheena amanoo waAAamiloo alssalihati yahdeehim rabbuhum bieemanihim tajree min tahtihimu alanharu fee jannati alnnaAAeemi

9. Indeed, those who believe and do good deeds, their Lord shall guide them by their faith. There shall flow from beneath them, rivers in gardens of bliss.

10 DaAAwahum feeha subhanaka allahumma watahiyyatuhum feeha salamun waakhiru daAAwahum ani alhamdu lillahi rabbi alAAalameena

10. Their call in it shall be, ‘Glory to You, O Allah!’ and their greeting in it shall be, ‘Peace.’ And their call shall end with, ‘Praise is to Allah, the Lord of the worlds.’

11 Walaw yuAAajjilu Allahu lilnnasi alshsharra istiAAjalahum bialkhayri laqudiya ilayhim ajaluhum fanatharu allatheena la yarjoona liqaana fee tughyanihim yaAAmahoona

11. And if Allah should hasten bad things to happen to men as they desire the good things to hasten to them, their doom should certainly have been decreed for them. But We leave them to wander blindly in their inordinateness those who expect not to meet Us.

12 Waitha massa alinsana alddurru daAAana lijanbihi aw qaAAidan aw qaiman falamma kashafna AAanhu durrahu marra kaan lam yadAAuna ila durrin massahu kathalika zuyyina lilmusrifeena ma kanoo yaAAmaloona

12. And when any bad thing afflicts man, he calls Us, lying on his side, sitting or standing. But when We remove his affliction from him, he goes on as if he had never called to Us regarding the bad thing that afflicted him. Their deeds are thus made to look good to the transgressors.

13 Walaqad ahlakna alquroona min qablikum lamma thalamoo wajaathum rusuluhum bialbayyinati wama kanoo liyuminoo kathalika najzee alqawma almujrimeena

13. And certainly We did destroy generations before you when they became unjust. And their Messengers had come to them with clear signs, but they would not believe. We did thus give the sinning people their dues.

14 Thumma jaAAalnakum khalaifa fee alardi min baAAdihim linanthura kayfa taAAmaloona

14. Then We made you their successors on the earth to see how you act.

15 Waitha tutla AAalayhim ayatuna bayyinatin qala allatheena la yarjoona liqaana iti biquranin ghayri hatha aw baddilhu qul ma yakoonu lee an obaddilahu min tilqai nafsee in attabiAAu illa ma yooha ilayya innee akhafu in AAasaytu rabbee AAathaba yawmin AAatheemin

15. And when Our clear Verses are recited to them, those who expect not to meet Us, say, “Bring a Qur’aan other than this, or change it.” Say, “I cannot change it on my own initiative. I follow naught but what is revealed to me. I do indeed fear the punishment of a great Day, if I disobey my Lord.”

16 Qul law shaa Allahu ma talawtuhu AAalaykum wala adrakum bihi faqad labithtu feekum AAumuran min qablihi afala taAAqiloona

16. Say, “If Allah had so willed, I would not have recited it to you, nor would you have known anything about it. I did live a lifetime among you before it.⁸ Don’t you then understand?”

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8. The Prophet had lived for 40 long years amnong his people before Verses of the Qur’aan started being revealed to him.

17 Faman athlamu mimmani iftara AAala Allahi kathiban aw kaththaba biayatihi innahu la yuflihu almujrimoona

17. Who is then more unjust than he who forges a lie against Allah or denies His Verses/signs? Never shall the sinners succeed.

18 WayaAAbudoona min dooni Allahi ma la yadurruhum wala yanfaAAuhum wayaqooloona haolai shufaAAaona AAinda Allahi qul atunabbioona Allaha bima la yaAAlamu fee alssamawati wala fee alardi subhanahu wataAAala AAamma yushrikoona

18. And they worship, besides Allah, what can neither harm them nor profit them, and they say, “These are our intercessors with Allah.” Say, “Do you inform Allah of what He knows not in the heavens and the earth!? Glory to Him, and supremely exalted is He above what they worship besides Him.

19 Wama kana alnnasu illa ommatan wahidatan faikhtalafoo walawla kalimatun sabaqat min rabbika laqudiya baynahum feema feehi yakhtalifoona

19. And mankind is naught but a single community, and yet they differ. Had it not been for a word already gone forth from your Lord, the issues, on which they differ, would have certainly been decided among them.⁹

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9. Whether one is an Indian, African, American, Chinese or Japanese, the same basic rules of existence are applicable to all the human beings living or have been living on this planet. That single fact of life makes them a single community, irrespective of their colour, race or region. If they would all abide by the same divine laws enunciated in the Qur’aan, there could be no fundamental differences cropping up among them. But, barring the infinitesimal few, the overwhelming majority does not abide by the divine laws. That is why there is hostility and discord all around, fuelled by man’s undue pride and prejudice. Allah Almighty could, if He would, give them instant punishment, but, in that case, all, except a few, on this earth would perish. HE has therefore reserved His final judgment for the Hereafter, giving mankind ample scope for reform or further slide into the pit of crime. HE does however intervene decisively whenever man oversteps his Allah-given bounds of freedom on this earth.

20 Wayaqooloona lawla onzila AAalayhi ayatun min rabbihi faqul innama alghaybu lillahi faintathiroo innee maAAakum mina almuntathireena

20. And they say, “Why is no sign sent to him from his Lord?” Say, “The knowledge of the unseen is only with Allah. Well, wait! I am indeed with you among those who wait.”¹⁰

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10. Refer study note 8 on Verse 6.37 in this context. When the polytheists of Mecca repeatedly insisted on a divne sign for them to recognize Muhammad as a duly accredited Messenger of Allah, the matter was thus made clear to them that it is for Allah alone to give or not to give them the sign they demanded. The Messenger cannot, of his own volition, produce it for them. Why Allah did or did not do a certain thing is entirely in the realm of the unseen, which Allah alone knows.

21 Waitha athaqna alnnasa rahmatan min baAAdi darraa massathum itha lahum makrun fee ayatina quli Allahu asraAAu makran inna rusulana yaktuboona ma tamkuroona

21. And when We make people taste mercy after a bad thing afflicts them, then it is that they plan to subvert Our Verses/signs.¹¹ Say, “Allah is quicker in planning. Our messengers¹² do indeed write down what you plan.”

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11. It is in times of well-being and prosperity that man tends to delude himself that he would continue to remain in that happy state of affairs for ever. He ignores the divine signs abounding around him. He sees death suddenly striking every now and then among his kith and kin and neighbourhood. But he brushes aside the disturbing thought that he himself could be its victim anytime. He often sees prosperity change to adversity, but tends to forget that the same thing could happen to him himself. He may pay lip-service to Islam and say that it is the finest way of life, but when it comes to implementing the Qur’aanic code of life, he flinches and thinks that it is not practical to abide by everything that the Qur’aan says. When a Qur’aanic edict does not suit his lifestyle, he tries to undermine the divine meaning of the relevant Qur’aanic Verse with the help of man-made and error-prone ahaadeeth and fatwas.

12. Angels assigned to keep records of all things done and said.

22 Huwa allathee yusayyirukum fee albarri waalbahri hatta itha kuntum fee alfulki wajarayna bihim bireehin tayyibatin wafarihoo biha jaatha reehun AAasifun wajaahumu almawju min kulli makanin wathannoo annahum oheeta bihim daAAawoo Allaha mukhliseena lahu alddeena lain anjaytana min hathihi lanakoonanna mina alshshakireena

22. He it is Who makes you travel by land and sea. And when you are in the ships, and they sail on with them with a pleasant breeze blowing, and they rejoice, a violent wind overtakes them and the billows surge in on them from all sides, and they become certain that they are engulfed therein, they pray to Allah in all sincerity and obedience to Him, “If You do deliver us from this, we will most certainly be of the grateful ones.”

23 Falamma anjahum itha hum yabghoona fee alardi bighayri alhaqqi ya ayyuha alnnasu innama baghyukum AAala anfusikum mataAAa alhayati alddunya thumma ilayna marjiAAukum fanunabbiokum bima kuntum taAAmaloona

23. But when He delivers them, behold! They become unduly rebellious on earth. O mankind! Your rebellion will affect you yourselves. These here are the provisions only of this temporal life. To Us is your return thereafter. Then We will relate to you what you did.

24 Innama mathalu alhayati alddunya kamain anzalnahu mina alssamai faikhtalata bihi nabatu alardi mimma yakulu alnnasu waalanAAamu hatta itha akhathati alardu zukhrufaha waizzayyanat wathanna ahluha annahum qadiroona AAalayha ataha amruna laylan aw naharan fajaAAalnaha haseedan kaan lam taghna bialamsi kathalika nufassilu alayati liqawmin yatafakkaroona

24. This life is but like water which We send down from the cloud. Spring forth therewith all kinds of vegetation on the earth, of which men and cattle eat. Until, when the earth puts on its golden raiment and it becomes adorned, and its people think that they have mastery over it, Our command comes to it, by night or by day, and We make it barren, as though it had not flourished anytime in the recent past. Thus do We explain the Verses/signs for a people who reflect.

25 WaAllahu yadAAoo ila dari alssalami wayahdee man yashao ila siratin mustaqeemin

25. And Allah invites to the abode of peace and guides, whom He pleases, to the Straight Path.

26 Lillatheena ahsanoo alhusna waziyadatun wala yarhaqu wujoohahum qatarun wala thillatun olaika ashabu aljannati hum feeha khalidoona

26. For those who do good there is the Good, and more besides. And darkness or ignominy shall not cover their faces. These shall be the inmates of the Garden. They shall abide therein.

27 Waallatheena kasaboo alssayyiati jazao sayyiatin bimithliha watarhaquhum thillatun ma lahum mina Allahi min AAasimin kaannama oghshiyat wujoohuhum qitaAAan mina allayli muthliman olaika ashabu alnnari hum feeha khalidoona

27. And as for those who have earned evil, the punishment for an evil is the like of it, and ignominy shall come over them - they shall have none to protect them from Allah - as if their faces were covered with slices of the dense darkness of night. These shall be the inmates of the Fire. They shall abide therein.

28 Wayawma nahshuruhum jameeAAan thumma naqoolu lillatheena ashrakoo makanakum antum washurakaokum fazayyalna baynahum waqala shurakaohum ma kuntum iyyana taAAbudoona

28. And on the day We gather them all together, We will say to those who worshipped others besides Allah, “Be where you are, you and your gods other than Allah!” We shall then separate them, one from another. And their gods would say, “It was not us that you worshipped.”

29 Fakafa biAllahi shaheedan baynana wabaynakum in kunna AAan AAibadatikum laghafileena

29. “And Allah is sufficient as a witness, between us and you, that we were quite unaware of your worship.”