Section 24 of 27 - Table of Contents
SURA LXIII.1-THE HYPOCRITES [CIV.] MEDINA.-11 Verses In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful WHEN the Hypocrites come to thee, they say, "We bear witness that thou art the Sent One of God." God knoweth that thou art His Sent One: but God beareth witness that the HYPOCRITES do surely lie. Their faith2 have they used as a cloak, and they turn aside others from the way of God! Evil are all their doings. This, for that they believed, then became unbelievers!Therefore hath a seal been set upon their hearts, and they understand not. When thou seest them, their persons make thee marvel; and if they speak, thou listenest with pleasure to their discourse. Like timbers are they leaning against a wall!3 They think that every shout is against them. They are enemies-Beware of them then-God do battle with them! How false are they! And when it is said to them, "Come, the Apostle of God will ask pardon for you," they turn their heads aside, and thou seest them withdraw in their pride. Alike shall it be to them whether thou ask forgiveness for them, or ask it not. By no means will God forgive them: God hath no guidance for a perverse people. These are they who say to you of Medina, "Spend not aught upon those who are with the Apostle of God, and they will be forced to quit him." Yet the treasures of the Heavens and of the Earth are God's! But the Hypocrites have no understanding. They say: "If we return to the city, the mightier will assuredly drive out the weaker from it." But might is with God, and with the Apostle, and with the Faithful! Yet the Hypocrites understand not. O ye who believe! let not your wealth and your children delude you into forgetfulness of God. Whoever shall act thus, shall surely suffer loss. And expend in the cause of God out of that with which we have supplied you, ere death surprise each one of you, and he say, "O Lord! wilt thou not respite me to a term not far distant, that I may give alms, and become one of the just?" And by no means will God respite a soul when its hour hath come! And God is fully cognisant of what ye do. _______________________ 1 Revealed shortly after the expedition against the Banu 'l Mustaliq in Hej. 6. See Nöld. p. 156 n. The "Hypocrites" mentioned in the later Suras are the disaffected portion of the population of Medina, who covertly opposed the claims of Muhammad to temporal authority over that city. They were gradually absorbed, as the authority of Islam increased. 2 Or, in accordance with another reading, oaths. Comp. Ps. cix. 18. 3 Like timbers or joists supported in a wall or leaned against it, i.e., their persons are bulky, but their hearts so hypocritical and cowardly that they are afraid of the slightest noise. In the original, saďkat is perhaps an allusion to the shout of Gabriel, that is to exterminate the wicked. SURA XXIV.-LIGHT [CV.] MEDINA.-64 Verses In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful A SURA which we have sent down and sanctioned! Clear signs have we sent down therein, that ye may take warning. The whore and the whoremonger-scourge each of them with an hundred stripes; and let not compassion keep you from carrying out the sentence of God, if ye believe in God and the last day: And let some of the faithful witness their chastisement.1 The whoremonger shall not marry other than a whore or an idolatress; and the whore shall not marry other than a whoremonger or an idolater. Such alliances are forbidden to the faithful. They who defame virtuous women,2 and bring not four witnesses, scourge them with fourscore stripes, and receive ye not their testimony for ever, for these are perverse persons- Save those who afterwards repent and live virtuously; for truly God is Lenient, Merciful! And they who shall accuse their wives, and have no witnesses but themselves, the testimony of each of them shall be a testimony by God four times repeated, that he is indeed of them that speak the truth.3 And the fifth time that the malison of God be upon him, if he be of them that lie. But it shall avert the chastisement from her if she testify a testimony four times repeated, by God, that he is of them that lie; And a fifth time to call down the wrath of God on her, if he have spoken the truth. And but for the goodness and mercy of God towards you, and that God is He who loveth to turn, Wise . . . . ! Of a truth, they who advanced that lie4 were a large number of you; but regard it not as an evil to you. No, it is an advantage to you.5 To every man among them shall it be done according to the offence he hath committed; and as to that person6 among them who took on himself to aggravate it, a sore punishment doth await him. Did not the faithful of both sexes, when ye heard of this, form a favourable judgment in their own minds, and say, "This is a manifest lie?" Have they brought four witnesses of the fact? If they cannot produce the witnesses, they are the liars in the sight of God. And but for the goodness of God towards you, and His mercy in this world and in the next, a severe punishment had come upon you for that which ye spread abroad, when ye uttered with your tongues, and spake with your mouths that of which ye had no knowledge. Ye deemed it to be a light matter, but with God it was a grave one. And did ye say when ye heard it, "It is not for us to talk of this affair! O God! By thy Glory, this is a gross calumny?" God hath warned you that ye go not back to the like of this for ever, if ye be believers: And God maketh His signs clear to you: for God is Knowing, Wise. But as for those who love that foul calumnies should go forth against those who believe, a grievous chastisement awaits them In this world and in the next. And God hath knowledge, but ye have not. And but for the goodness of God towards you and His Mercy, and that God is Kind, Merciful . . . ! O ye who believe! follow not the steps of Satan, for whosoever shall follow the steps of Satan, he will enjoin on him what is base and blameworthy; and but for the goodness of God towards you,7 and His mercy, no one of you had been cleansed for ever: but God maketh whom He will to be clean, and God Heareth, Knoweth. And let not persons of wealth and means among you swear that they will not give to their kindred, to the poor, and to those who have fled their homes in the cause of God; let them rather pardon and pass over the offence.8 Desire ye not that God should forgive you? And God is Gracious, Merciful! Verily, they who throw out charges against virtuous but careless women, who yet are believers, shall be cursed in this world and in the world to come; and a terrible punishment doth await them. Their own tongues, and hands, and feet, shall one day bear witness against them of their own doings.9 On that day will God pay them their just due, and they shall know that God is the clear Truth itself. Bad women for bad men, and bad men for bad women; but virtuous women for virtuous men, and virtuous men for virtuous women! These shall be cleared from calumnies; theirs shall be forgiveness and an honourable provision. O ye who believe! enter not into other houses10 than your own, until ye have asked leave, and have saluted its inmates. This will be best for you: haply ye will bear this in mind. And if ye find no one therein, then enter it not till leave be given you; and if it be said to you, "Go ye back," then go ye back. This will be more blameless in you, and God knoweth what ye do. There shall be no harm in your entering houses in which no one dwelleth, for the supply of your needs: and God knoweth what ye do openly and what ye hide. Speak unto the believers that they restrain their eyes and observe continence. Thus will they be more pure. God is well aware of what they do. And speak to the believing women that they refrain their eyes, and observe continence; and that they display not their ornaments, except those which are external; and that they throw their veils over their bosoms, and display not their ornaments, except to their husbands or their fathers, or their husbands' fathers, or their sons, or their husbands' sons, or their brothers, or their brothers' sons, or their sisters' sons, or their women, or their slaves, or male domestics who have no natural force, or to children who note not women's nakedness. And let them not strike their feet together, so as to discover their hidden ornaments.11 And be ye all turned to God, O ye Believers! that it may be well with you. And marry those among you who are single, and your good servants, and the handmaidens. If they are poor, God of His bounty will enrich them. God is all-bounteous, Knowing. And let those who cannot find a match12 live in continence till God of His bounty shall enrich them. And to those of your slaves who desire a deed of manumission, execute it for them, if ye know good in them, and give them a portion of the wealth of God which He hath given you.13 Force not your female slaves into sin, in order that ye may gain the casual fruitions of this world, if they wish to preserve their modesty. Yet if any one compel them, then Verily to them, after their compulsion, will God be Forgiving, Merciful. And now have we sent down to you clear signs, and an instance from among those who flourished before you, and a caution for the God-fearing.14 God is the LIGHT of the Heavens and of the Earth. His Light is like a niche in which is a lamp-the lamp encased in glass-the glass, as it were, a glistening star. From a blessed tree is it lighted, the olive neither of the East nor of the West, whose oil would well nigh shine out, even though fire touched it not! It is light upon light. God guideth whom He will to His light, and God setteth forth parables to men, for God knoweth all things. In the temples which God hath allowed to be reared, that His name may therein be remembered, do men praise Him morn and even. Men whom neither merchandise nor traffic beguile from the remembrance of God, and from the observance of prayer, and the payment of the stated alms, through fear of the day when hearts shall throb and eyes shall roll: That for their most excellent works may God recompense them, and of His bounty increase it to them more and more: for God maketh provision for whom He pleaseth without measure. But as to the infidels, their works are like the vapour in a plain which the thirsty dreameth to be water, until when he cometh unto it, he findeth it not aught, but findeth that God is with him; and He fully payeth him his account: for swift to take account is God: Or like the darkness on the deep sea when covered by billows riding upon billows, above which are clouds: darkness upon darkness. When a man reacheth forth his hand, he cannot nearly see it! He to whom God shall not give light, no light at all hath he! Hast thou not seen how all in the Heavens and in the Earth uttereth the praise of God?-the very birds as they spread their wings? Every creature knoweth its prayer and its praise! and God knoweth what they do. God's, the Kingdom of the Heavens and of the Earth: and unto God the final return! Hast thou not seen that God driveth clouds lightly forward, then gathereth them together, then pileth them in masses? And then thou seest the rain forthcoming from their midst; and He causeth clouds like mountains charged with hail, to descend from the heaven, and He maketh it to fall on whom He will, and from whom He will He turneth it aside.-The brightness of His lightning all but taketh away the sight! God causeth the day and the night to take their turn. Verily in this is teaching for men of insight. And God hath created every animal of water.15 Some go upon the belly; some go upon two feet; some go upon four feet. God hath created what He pleased. Aye, God hath power over all things. Now have we sent down distinct signs.-And God guideth whom He will into the right path: For there are who say "We believe on God and on the Apostle, and we obey;" yet, after this, a part of them turn back.16 But these are not of the faithful. And when they are summoned before God and His Apostle that He may judge between them, lo! a part of them withdraw: But had the truth been on their side, they would have come to Him, obedient. What! are they diseased of heart? Do they doubt? Are they afraid that God and His Apostles will deal unfairly with them? Nay, themselves are the unjust doers. The words of the believers, when called to God and His Apostle that He may judge between them, are only to say, "We have heard, and we obey:" these are they with whom it shall be well. And whoso shall obey God, and His Apostle, and shall dread God and fear Him, these are they that shall be the blissful. And they have sworn by God, with a most solemn oath, that if thou give them the word, they will certainly march forth. Say: swear ye not: of more worth is obedience. Verily, God is well aware of what ye do. SAY: Obey God and obey the Apostle. Suppose that ye turn back, still the burden of his duty is on him only, and the burden of your duty rests on you. If ye obey Him, ye shall have guidance: but plain preaching is all that devolves upon the Apostle. God hath promised to those of you who believe and do the things that are right, that He will cause them to succeed others in the land, as He gave succession to those who were before them, and that He will establish for them that religion which they delight in, and that after their fears He will give them security in exchange. They shall worship Me: nought shall they join with Me: And whoso, after this, believe not, they will be the impious. But observe prayer, and pay the stated alms, and obey the Apostle, that haply ye may find mercy. Let not the Infidels think that they can weaken God on His own Earth: their dwelling place shall be the Fire! and right wretched the journey! O ye who believe! let your slaves, and those of you who have not come of age, ask leave of you, three times a day, ere they come into your presence;-before the morning prayer, and when ye lay aside your garments at mid-day, and after the evening prayer. These are your three times of privacy. No blame shall attach to you or to them, if after these times, when ye go your rounds of attendance on one another, they come in without permission. Thus doth God make clear to you His signs: and God is Knowing, Wise! And when your children come of age, let them ask leave to come into your presence, as they who were before them asked it. Thus doth God make clear to you his signs: and God is Knowing, Wise. As to women who are past childbearing, and have no hope of marriage, no blame shall attach to them if they lay aside their outer garments, but so as not to shew their ornaments. Yet if they abstain from this, it will be better for them: and God Heareth, Knoweth. No crime17 shall it be in the blind, or in the lame, or in the sick, to eat at your tables: or in yourselves, if ye eat in your own houses, or in the houses of your fathers, or of your mothers, or of your brothers, or of your sisters, or of your uncles on the father's side, or of your aunts on the father's side, or of your uncles on the mother's side, or of your aunts on the mother's side, or in those of which ye possess the keys, or in the house of your friend. No blame shall attach to you whether ye eat together or apart. And when ye enter houses, salute one another with a good and blessed greeting as from God. Thus doth God make clear to you His signs, that haply ye may comprehend them. Verily, they only are believers who believe in God and His Apostle, and who, when they are with him upon any affair of common interest, depart not until they have sought his leave. Yes, they who ask leave of thee, are those who believe in God and His Apostle. And when they ask leave of Thee on account of any affairs of their own, then grant it to those of them whom thou wilt, and ask indulgence for them of God: for God is Indulgent, Merciful. Address not the Apostle as ye address one another.18 God knoweth those of you who withdraw quietly from the assemblies, screening themselves behind others. And let those who transgress his command beware, lest some present trouble befall them, or a grievous chastisement befall them, hereafter. Is not whatever is in the Heavens and the Earth God's? He knoweth your state; and one day shall men be assembled before Him, and He will tell them of what they have done: for God knoweth all things. _______________________ 1 With this verse commences the reference to the scandal against Ayesha, to which verses 6-9 read like a later addition. See His. 731 ff. Albuhari, passim. Muslim ii. 628 ff. Tirm. 524. Tabari and Weil, p. 151. 2 Said to refer to Hilal ben Umaiya (Muslim i. 886. Tirm. 523. Annasai, 409 f. Assamarq.) who had accused his wife of adultery. Two of these commentators, however, give the name of another Muslim as the person intended. 3 Comp. Numb. v. ii, 31, with which Muhammad must have been acquainted. 4 The rumour of improper intimacy between Ayesha and Safwan Ibn El Moattal, during Muhammad's return from the expedition against the tribe of Mostaliq (an. Hej. 9), in which he was separated from her for an entire day, which she passed in the company of Safwan, who had found her when accidentally left behind. Verses 4-26 were revealed shortly after the return. 5 Whose characters are cleared. 6 Abdallah Ibn Obba. (Abulf. p. 83.) 7 Comp. verse 10, 11 (n.). 8 Abubekr had been desirous to punish one of his relatives, Mestah, who had propagated the scandal against Ayesha, by refusing him gifts or alms. 9 "The very members of a man shall testify against him, for thus we read (Jer. xliii. 12), Ye are yourselves my witnesses saith the Lord." Chagiga, 16. Thaanith, 11a. 10 It was the custom in Arabia, before Islam, to enter houses without permission. Freyt. Einl. p. 216. 11 That is, the anklets. Comp. Isai. iii. 16, 18 12 On account of poverty. 13 Comp. Deut. xv. 12 15. 14 The meaning probably is, that the scandal raised against Ayesha resembled the scandal in the case of Joseph in Egypt, and of the Virgin Mary, detailed in previous suras. 15 An idea perhaps derived from Gen. i. 20, 21. Comp. Tr. Cholin, fol. 27a. 16 Verses 46-56 obviously refer to a period, perhaps that between the battle of Ohod and the end of the war of the Ditch, when Muhammad's prospects were overclouded and the confidence of his followers shaken. 17 This verse was intended to relieve the scruples of the Muslims, who. following the superstitious customs of the Arabs, thought that they ought not to admit the blind, etc. to their tables, to eat alone, or in a house of which they were entrusted with the key, etc. 18 Lit. make not the calling of the Apostle among you, like the calling of some of you to others, i.e., address him by some respectful and honourable title. Thus in the Talmud, "It is forbidden to a disciple to call his Rabbi by name even when he is not in his presence;" and again: "Neither is he to salute his Rabbi, nor to return his salutation, in the same way that salutations are given and returned among friends." "Whoever despises the wise men hath no portion in the world to come." See Hilchoth Torah, c.5. SURA LVIII.-SHE WHO PLEADED [CVI.] MEDINA.-22 Verses In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful God hath heard the words of HER1 WHO PLEADED with thee against her husband, and made her plaint to God; and God hath heard your mutual intercourse: for God Heareth, Beholdeth. As to those of you who put away their wives by saying, "Be thou to me as my mother's back" their mothers2 they are not; they only are their mothers who gave them birth! they certainly say a blameworthy thing and an untruth: But truly, God is Forgiving, Indulgent. And those who thus put away their wives, and afterwards would recall their words, must free a captive before they can come together again. To this are ye warned to conform: and God is aware of what ye do. And he who findeth not a captive to set free, shall fast two months in succession before they two come together. And he who shall not be able to do so, shall feed sixty poor men. This, that he may believe in God and His Apostle. These are the statutes of God: and for the unbelievers is an afflictive chastisement! Truly they who oppose God and His Apostle shall be brought low, as those who were before them were brought low. And now have we sent down demonstrative signs: and, for the Infidels is a shameful chastisement. On the day when God shall raise them all to life, and shall tell them of their doings. God hath taken count of them, though they have forgotten them! and God is witness over all things. Dost thou not see that God knoweth all that is in the Heavens and all that is in the Earth? Three persons speak not privately together, but He is their fourth; nor five, but He is their sixth; nor fewer nor more, but wherever they be He is with them. Then on the day of resurrection He will tell them of their deeds: for God knoweth all things. Hast thou not marked those who have been forbidden secret talk, and return to what they have been forbidden, and talk privately together with wickedness, and hate, and disobedience towards the Apostle? And when they come to thee, they greet thee not as God greeteth thee:3 and they say among themselves, "Why doth not God punish us for what we say?" Hell shall be their meed:4 they shall be burned at its fire: and a wretched passage thither! O Believers! when ye hold private converse together, let it not be with wickedness, and hate, and disobedience towards the Apostle; but let your private talk be with justice and the fear of God: aye, fear ye God unto whom ye shall be gathered! Only of Satan is this clandestine talk, that he may bring the faithful to grief: but, unless by God's permission, not aught shall he harm them! in God then let the faithful trust. O ye who believe! when it is said to you, "Make room in your assemblies," then make ye room. God will make room for you in Paradise! And when it is said to you, "Rise up," then rise ye up. God will uplift those of you who believe, and those to whom "the Knowledge" is given, to lofty grades! and God is cognisant of your actions. O ye who believe! when ye go to confer in private with the Apostle, give alms before such conference. Better will this be for you, and more pure. But if ye have not the means, then truly God is Lenient, Merciful. Do ye hesitate to give alms previously to your private conference? Then if ye do it not (and God will excuse it in you), at least observe prayer, and pay the stated impost, and obey God and His Apostle: for God is cognisant of your actions. Hast thou not remarked those who make friends of that people with whom God is angered? They are neither of your party nor of theirs; and they swear to a lie,5 knowing it to be such. God hath got ready for them a severe torment: for, evil is that they do. They make a cloak of their faith, and turn others aside from the way of God: wherefore a shameful torment awaiteth them. Not at all shall their wealth or their children avail them aught against God. Companions shall they be of the fire: they shall abide therein for ever. On the day when God shall raise them all, they will swear to Him as they now swear to you, deeming that it will avail them. Are they not-yes they-the liars? Satan hath gotten mastery over them, and made them forget the remembrance of God. These are Satan's party. What! shall not verily the party of Satan be for ever lost. Verily, they who oppose God and His Apostle shall be among the most vile. God hath written this decree: "I will surely prevail, and my Apostles also." Truly God is Strong, Mighty. Thou shalt not find that any of those who believe in God, and in the last day, love him who opposeth God and His Apostle, even though they be their fathers, or their sons, or their brethren, or their nearest kin. On the hearts of these hath God graven the Faith, and with His own Spirit hath He strengthened them; and He will bring them into gardens, beneath whose shades the rivers flow, to remain therein eternally. God is well pleased in them, and they in Him. These are God's party! Shall not, of a truth, a party of God be for ever blessed? _______________________ 1 Khaula, daughter of Thalaba, who had been divorced by the formula in verse 2, which was understood among the Arabs to imply perpetual separation. This Muhammad had asserted in her case; but in consequence of the woman's prayers, etc., a relaxation of the law, on fulfilment of the conditions mentioned in verses 4, 5, was hereby allowed. None of the earlier traditions fix any date for this Sura, though later authorities (Weil, 184) fix the end of Hej. 6, or the beginning of Hej. 7.-The subject matter is in part similar to that of Sura xxiv. 2 See Sura [ciii.] xxxiii. 4. 3 Instead of saying, Es-salam aleika, "Peace be on thee," the Infidels and Jews said, Es-sam aleika, "a plague, or poison on thee." See Geiger, p. 18. 4 Lit. sufficiency. 5 The Jews swear that they are Muslims. SURA XXII.-THE PILGRIMAGE [CVII.] MEDINA.1-78 Verses In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful O MEN of Mecca, fear your Lord. Verily, the earthquake of the last Hour will be a tremendous thing! On the day when ye shall behold it, every suckling woman shall forsake her sucking babe; and every woman that hath a burden in her womb shall cast her burden; and thou shalt see men drunken, yet are they not drunken: but it is the mighty chastisement of God! There is a man2 who, without knowledge, wrangleth about God, and followeth every rebellious Satan; Concerning whom it is decreed, that he shall surely beguile and guide into the torment of the Flame, whoever shall take him for his Lord. O men! if ye doubt as to the resurrection, yet, of a truth, have We created you of dust, then of the moist germs of life, then of clots of blood, then of pieces of flesh shapen and unshapen, that We might give you proofs of our power! And We cause one sex or the other, at our pleasure, to abide in the womb until the appointed time; then We bring you forth infants; then permit you to reach your age of strength; and one of you dieth, and another of you liveth on to an age so abject that all his former knowledge is clean forgotten!3 And thou hast seen the earth dried up and barren: but when We send down the rain upon it, it stirreth and swelleth, and groweth every kind of luxuriant herb. This, for that God is the Truth, and that it is He who quickeneth the dead,- and that He hath power over everything: And that "the Hour" will indeed come-there is no doubt of it-and that God will wake up to life those who are in the tombs. A man there is who disputeth about God without knowledge or guidance or enlightening Book, Turning aside in scorn to mislead others from the way of God! Disgrace shall be his in this world; and on the day of the resurrection, We will make him taste the torment of the burning:- "This, for thy handywork of old! for God is not unjust to His servants." There are some who serve God in a single point. If good come upon one of them, he resteth in it; but if trial come upon him, he turneth him round (to infidelity) with the loss both of this world and of the next! This same is the clear ruin! He calleth upon that beside God which can neither hurt him nor profit him. This same is the far-gone error! He calleth on him who would sooner hurt than profit him. Surely, bad the lord, and, surely, bad the vassal! But God will bring in those who shall believe and do the things that are right, into gardens 'neath which the rivers flow: for God doth that which He pleaseth. Let him who thinketh that God will not help His Apostle in this world and in the next, stretch a cord aloft as if to destroy himself; then let him cut it, and see whether his devices can bring that4 to nought at which he was angry! Thus send we down the Koran with its clear signs (verses): and because God guideth whom He pleaseth. As to those who believe, and the Jews, and the Sabeites,5 and the Christians, and the Magians, and those who join other gods with God, of a truth, God shall decide between them on the day of resurrection: for God is witness of all things. Seest thou not that all in the Heavens and all on the Earth adoreth God? the sun and the moon and the stars, and the mountains, and the trees, and the beasts, and many men? But of many is chastisement the due: And whom God shall disgrace there shall be none to honour: God doth that which pleaseth Him. These, the Faithful and the Infidels, are the two disputants who dispute concerning their Lord: but for those who have disbelieved, garments of fire shall be cut out; the boiling water shall be poured down upon their heads: All that is in their bowels, and their skins, shall be dissolved: and there are maces of iron for them! So oft as they, for very anguish, would fain come forth thence, back shall they be turned into it: and-"Taste ye the torment of the burning." But God will bring in those who shall have believed, and done the things that are right, into gardens 'neath which the rivers flow. Adorned shall they be therein with golden bracelets and with pearls, and their raiment therein shall be of silk; For they were guided to the best of words; guided to the glorious path! But those who believe not, and seduce others from the way of God, and from the Holy Mosque which we have appointed to all men, alike for those who abide therein, and for the stranger; And those who seek impiously to profane it, we will cause to taste a grievous punishment. And call to mind when we assigned the site of the House6 to Abraham and said: "Unite not aught with Me in worship, and cleanse My House for those who go in procession round it, and who stand or bow in worship:"- And proclaim to the peoples a PILGRIMAGE: Let them come to thee on foot and on every fleet7 camel, arriving by every deep defile: That they may bear witness of its benefits to them, and may make mention of God's name on the appointed days,8 over the brute beasts with which He hath supplied them for sustenance: Therefore eat thereof yourselves, and feed the needy, the poor: Then let them bring the neglect of their persons to a close,9 and let them pay their vows, and circuit the ancient House. This do. And he that respecteth the sacred ordinances of God, this will be best for him with his Lord. The flesh of cattle is allowed you, save of those already specified to you. Shun ye, therefore, the pollutions of idols; and shun ye the word of falsehood; Sound in faith Godward, uniting no god with Him; for whoever uniteth gods with God, is like that which falleth from on high, and the birds snatch it away, or the wind wafteth it to a distant place. This do. And they who respect the rites of God, perform an action which proceedeth from piety of heart. Ye may obtain advantages from the cattle up to the set time for slaying them: then, the place for sacrificing them is at the ancient House. And to every people have we appointed rites, that they may commemorate the name of God over the brute beasts which He hath provided for them. And your God is the one God. To Him, therefore, surrender yourselves: and bear thou good tidings to those who humble them,- Whose hearts, when mention is made of God, thrill with awe; and to those who remain steadfast under all that be-falleth them, and observe prayer, and give alms of that with which we have supplied them. And the camels have we appointed you for the sacrifice to God: much good have ye in them. Make mention, therefore, of the name of God over them when ye slay them, as they stand in a row; and when they are fallen over on their sides, eat of them, and feed him who is content and asketh not, and him who asketh. Thus have We subjected them to you, to the intent ye should be thankful.10 By no means can their flesh reach unto God, neither their blood; but piety on your part reacheth Him. Thus hath He subjected them to you, that ye might magnify God for His guidance: moreover, announce to those who do good deeds- That God will ward off mischief from believers: for God loveth not the false, the Infidel. A sanction is given to those who, because they have suffered outrages, have taken up arms; and verily, God is well able to succour them: Those who have been driven forth from their homes wrongfully, only because they say "Our Lord is the God." And if God had not repelled some men by others, cloisters, and churches, and oratories, and mosques, wherein the name of God is ever commemorated, would surely have been destroyed. And him who helpeth God will God surely help:11 for God is right Strong, Mighty:- Those who, if we establish them in this land, will observe prayer, and pay the alms of obligation, and enjoin what is right, and forbid what is evil. And the final issue of all things is unto God. Moreover, if they charge thee with imposture, then already, before them, the people of Noah, and Ad and Themoud, and the people of Abraham, and the people of Lot, and the dwellers in Madian, have charged their prophets with imposture! Moses, too, was charged with imposture! And I bore long with the unbelievers; then seize on them: and how great was the change I wrought! And how many cities which had been ungodly, and whose roofs are now laid low in ruin, have We destroyed! And wells have been abandoned and lofty castles! Have they not journeyed through the land? Have they not hearts to understand with, or ears to hear with? It is not that to these sights their eyes are blind, but the hearts in their breasts are blind! And they will bid thee to hasten the chastisement. But God cannot fail His threat. And verily, a day with thy Lord is as a thousand years,12 as ye reckon them! How many cities have I long borne with, wicked though they were, yet then laid hold on them to chastise them! Unto Me shall all return. SAY: O men! I am only your open warner: And they who believe and do the things that are right, shall have forgiveness and an honourable provision; But those who strive to invalidate our signs shall be inmates of Hell. We have not sent any apostle or prophet before thee, among whose desires Satan injected not some wrong desire, but God shall bring to nought that which Satan had suggested. Thus shall God affirm His revelations13 for God is Knowing, Wise! That He may make that which Satan hath injected, a trial to those in whose hearts is a disease, and whose hearts are hardened.-Verily, the wicked are in a far-gone severance from the truth!- And that they to whom "the Knowledge" hath been given, may know that the Koran is the truth from thy Lord, and may believe in it, and their hearts may acquiesce in it: for God is surely the guider of those who believe, into the straight path. But the Infidels will not cease to doubt concerning it, until "the Hour" come suddenly upon them, or until the chastisement of the day of desolation come upon them. On that day the Kingdom shall be God's: He shall judge between them: and they who shall have believed and done the things that are right, shall be in gardens of delight: But they who were Infidels and treated our signs as lies-these then-their's a shameful chastisement! And as to those who fled their country for the cause of God, and were afterwards slain, or died, surely with goodly provision will God provide for them! for verily, God! He, surely, is the best of providers! He will assuredly bring them in with an in-bringing that shall please them well: for verily, God is right Knowing, Gracious. So shall it be. And whoever in making exact reprisal for injury done him, shall again be wronged, God will assuredly aid him: for God is most Merciful, Gracious. So shall it be; for that God causeth the night to enter in upon the day, and He causeth the day to enter in upon the night: and for that God Heareth, Seeth. So shall it be, for that God is the truth; and because what they call on beside Him is vanity: and because God is the Lofty, the Mighty! Seest thou not that God sendeth down water from Heaven, and that on the morrow the earth is clad with verdure? for God is benignant, cognisant of all. His, all in the Heavens and all on Earth: and verily, God! He assuredly is the Rich, the Praiseworthy! Seest thou not that God hath put under you whatever is in the earth; and the ships which traverse the sea at His bidding? And He holdeth back the heaven that it fall not on the earth, unless He permit it! for God is right Gracious to mankind, Merciful. And He it is who hath given you life, then will cause you to die, then will give you life-of a truth man is all ungrateful. To every people have we appointed observances which they observe. Therefore, let them not dispute this matter with thee, but bid them to thy Lord, for thou art on the right way: But if they debate with thee, then Say: God best knoweth what ye do! God will judge between you on the day of resurrection, as to the matters wherein ye differ. Knowest thou not that God knoweth whatever is in the Heaven and on the Earth? This truly is written in the Book: this truly is easy for God. They worship beside God, that for which He hath sent down no warranty, and that of which they have no knowledge: but for those who commit this wrong, no helper! And when our clear signs are rehearsed to them, thou mayst perceive disdain in the countenances of the Infidels. Scarce can they refrain from rushing to attack those who rehearse our signs to them! SAY: Shall I tell you of worse than this? The fire which God hath threatened to those who believe not! Wretched the passage thither! O men! a parable is set forth to you, wherefore hearken to it. Verily, they on whom ye call beside God, cannot create a fly, though they assemble for it; and if the fly carry off aught from them, they cannot take it away from it! Weak the suppliant and the supplicated! Unworthy the estimate they form of God!14 for God is right Powerful, Mighty! God chooseth messengers from among the angels and from among men: verily, God Heareth, Seeth. He knoweth what is before them and what is behind them; and unto God shall all things return. Believers! bow down and prostrate yourselves and worship your Lord, and work righteousness that you may fare well. And do valiantly in the cause of God as it behoveth you to do for Him. He hath elected you, and hath not laid on you any hardship in religion, the Faith of your father Abraham. He hath named you the Muslims Heretofore and in this Book, that the Apostles may be a witness against you, and that ye may be witnesses against the rest of mankind. Therefore observe prayer, and pay the legal impost, and cleave fast to God. He is your liege Lord-a goodly Lord, and a goodly Helper! _______________________ 1 This Sura is generally said to have been revealed at Mecca,-but this is probably only the case with verses 1-24; 43-56; 60-65; 67-75. Mr. Muir places it at the close of the Meccan Suras of the fifth period. See Nöld, p. 158. 2 Said to be Abu Jahl. See Sura xcvi. p. 20, n. 2. 3 Lit. so that after knowledge he knoweth not aught. 4 The teachings and progress of Islam. 5 See Sura [xci.] ii. 59. The Sabeites were probably Hanyfs. See Pref. 6 The Kaaba. Sharastani informs us that there was an opinion prevalent among the Arabs, that the walking round the Kaaba, and other ceremonies, were symbolic of the motion of the planets and of other astronomical facts. Watwat, Mabahij al Fikr., Lib. i., c. 2, says that "most Arabic tribes were originally star-worshippers, Sabeans. The people of Saba worshipped the Sun, the tribes of Asad and Kaninah the Moon, etc. etc. At a later period they all sunk into idolatry, and in the time of Muhammad, the idols round the Kaaba amounted to 360." 7 Lit. thin, with the implied sense of fleet. 8 The ten first days of the Dhu'lhajja. For the ceremonies, see Freytag's Einleitung, p. 418; Burton's Pilgrimage, vol. iii.; Sale's Notes and Prelim. Disc. 9 That is, the uncut beards, nails, etc. 10 Offerings of animals are by no means confined to Mecca and the Pilgrimage. "It is not uncommon," says Mr. Lane, "without any definite view but that of obtaining general blessings, to make vows (of animals): and sometimes a peasant vows that he will sacrifice, for the sake of a saint, a calf which he possesses, as soon as it is grown and fatted. It is let loose, by consent of all his neighbours, to pasture where it will, even in fields of young wheat; and at last, after it has been sacrificed, a public feast is made of its meat. Many a large bull is thus given away." Modern Egyptians, i. 307. Compare Dr. Gobat's Abyssinia, p. 294, 7, for similar customs among Christians of probably Arabian extraction. Five or six thousand animals are said to have been slain in the valley of Mina by the pilgrims of the year 1854. (See Lieut. Burton's Pilgrimage, iii. p. 313.) The victim is considered by the devout as an expression of their conviction that death is their desert at the hands of God. 11 See Ibn Batoutah, iv. 106. (Par. ed.) 12 Comp. Sur. xxxii. 4, p. 190. 13 The ayats, signs or verses of the Koran. It is said by tradition that Muhammad was consoled by this revelation for the Satanic suggestion mentioned Sur. liii. 20, p. 70 (n.). But in this view of the text, for among whose desires, or affections, we should render when he recited. 14 Lit. they measure not God with truth of His measurement. SURA XLVIII.-THE VICTORY [CVIII.] MEDINA.-29 Verses In the Name of God, the Compassionate, the Merciful Verily, We have won for thee an undoubted VICTORY1- In token that God forgiveth thy earlier and later faults, and fulfilleth His goodness to thee, and guideth thee on the right way, And that God succoureth thee with a mighty succour. He it is who sendeth down a spirit of secure repose into the hearts of the faithful that they might add faith to their faith; (for God's are the armies of the Heavens and of the Earth: and God is Knowing, Wise:) And that He may bring the believing men and the believing women into gardens 'neath whose trees the rivers flow, to dwell therein for ever, and that He may cancel their evil deeds: for this is the great bliss with God: And that He may punish the hypocritical men and the hypocritical women, and the men and women who join other gods with God, and think evil thoughts of Him. Theirs shall be a round of evil; and God is angry with them and curseth them, and hath prepared Hell for them: and, an evil journey thither! The armies of the Heavens and of the Earth are God's, and God is Mighty, Wise! Verily, we have sent thee to be a witness and a herald of good (an announcer), and a warner, That ye may believe on God and on His Apostle; and may assist Him, and honour Him, and praise him, morning and evening. In truth, they who plighted fealty to thee, really plighted that fealty to God: the hand of God was over their hands! Whoever, therefore, shall break his oath shall only break it to his own hurt; but whoever shall be true to his engagement with God, He will give him a great reward. The Arabs who took not the field with you,2 will say to thee,3 "We were engaged with our property and our families; therefore ask thou pardon for us." They speak with their tongues what is not in their hearts. SAY: And who can have any power over God in your behalf, whether he will you some loss, or whether he will you an advantage? Yes, God is acquainted with your doings. But ye thought that the Apostle and the faithful could never more come back to their families; and your hearts were pleased at this; and ye thought an evil thought of this expedition, and ye became an undone people: For, whoso believeth not in God, and His Apostle. . . . Verily, we have got ready the flame for the Infidels! And God's is the kingdom of the Heavens and of the Earth: Whom He will He forgiveth, and whom He will He punisheth: and God is Gracious, Merciful! They who took not the field with you will say, when ye go forth to the spoil to take it, "Let us follow you." Fain would they change the word of God.4 SAY: Ye shall by no means follow us: thus hath God said already. They will say, "Nay, ye are jealous of us." Nay! they are men of little understanding. SAY to those Arabs of the desert, who took not the field, ye shall be called forth against a people of mighty valour. Ye shall do battle with them, or they shall profess Islam. If ye obey, a goodly recompense will God give you; but if ye turn back, as ye turned back aforetime, He will chastise you with a sore chastisement. It shall be no crime on the part of the blind, the lame, or the sick, if they go not to the fight. But whoso shall obey God and His Apostle, he shall bring him into the gardens 'neath which the rivers flow: but whoso shall turn back, He will punish him with a sore punishment. Well pleased now hath God been with the believers when they plighted fealty to thee under the tree;5 and He knew what was in their hearts: therefore did He send down upon them a spirit of secure repose, and rewarded them with a speedy victory, And with the rich booty which they took: for God is Mighty, Wise! God promised you the taking of a rich booty6 and sped it to you; and He withheld men's hands from you, for a sign to the faithful, and that He might guide you along the right way:- And other booty, over which ye have not yet had power: but now hath God compassed them for you; for God is over all things Potent. If the Infidels shall fight against you, they shall assuredly turn their backs; then, neither protector nor helper shall they find! Such is God's method carried into effect of old; no change canst thou find in God's mode of dealing. And He it was who held their hands from you and your hands from them in the valley of Mecca,7 after that He had given you the victory over them: for God saw what ye did. These are they who believed not, and kept you away from the sacred Mosque, as well as the offering which was prevented from reaching the place of sacrifice. And had it not been that ye would have trodden down believers, both men and women, whom ye knew not, so that a crime might have lighted on you without your knowledge on their account, and that God would bring whom He will within His mercy, this would have been otherwise ordered. Had they been apart,8 we had surely punished such of them as believed not, with a sore punishment. When the unbelievers had fostered rage in their hearts-the rage of ignorance (of heathens)-God sent down His peace on His Apostle and on the faithful, and stablished in them the word of piety, for they were most worthy and deserving of it: and God knoweth all things. Now hath God in truth made good to His Apostle the dream9 in which he said, "Ye shall surely enter the sacred Mosque, if God will, in full security, having your heads shaved and your hair cut: ye shall not fear; for He knoweth what ye know not; and He hath ordained you, beside this, a speedy victory." It is He who hath sent His Apostle with "the Guidance," and the religion of truth, that He may exalt it above every religion. And enough for thee is this testimony on the part of God. Muhammad is the Apostle of God; and his comrades are vehement against the infidels, but full of tenderness among themselves. Thou mayst see them bowing down, prostrating themselves, imploring favours from God, and His acceptance. Their tokens10 are on their faces, the marks of their prostrations. This is their picture in the Law, and their picture in the Evangel:11 they are as the seed which putteth forth its stalk; then strengtheneth it, and it groweth stout, and riseth upon its stem,12 rejoicing the husbandman-that the infidels may be wrathful at them. To such of them as believe and do the things that are right, hath God promised forgiveness and a noble recompense. _______________________ 1 This Sura was probably revealed shortly after the peace of Hudaibiya. Ann. Hej. 6. Some commentators, however, understand the Victory of the taking of Mecca two years-later the preterite being used in the prophetic style for the future-others of the taking of Chaibar, or Muta (?), a town of the Roman empire. 2 Lit. were left behind. 3 On the return to Medina. See Weil's Leben M. p. 173 (n.). 4 The law relative to booty, viz. that those who were not at Hudaibiya should have no share in the booty to be obtained from the Jews at Chaibar. Muhammad marched against them in Hej. 7. 5 When the rumour reached Muhammad at Hudaibiya that Othman Ibn Affan, whom he had sent to inform the Meccans that he was merely coming to visit their temple, and with peaceable intentions, had been slain by them. 6 At Chaibar. 7 The valley of Mecca may mean Hudaibiya. But the commentators explain this verse of different events. It probably, however, refers to the 50 (according to Djalalein 80) prisoners whom Muhammad dismissed freely at Hudaibiya. 8 Had the believers been separate from the infidels. 9 This dream Muhammad had at Medina, before he set out for al Hudaibiya. His followers expected its fulfilment within the year, but when the truce frustrated their hopes, this verse was revealed to pacify them. 10 Dust from the pavement. The Muhammadans who say their prayers on carpets often place little bricks before them which they touch in prostration with their forehead. 11 Comp. Mark iv. 28. 12 Lit. legs.Prev Next All
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