What are they asking about

The momentous announcement

about which they differ

They will find out

In the end they will find out

Did We not make the earth smooth

and make the mountains to keep it stable

Did We not create you in pairs

give you sleep for rest

the night as a cover

and the day for your livelihood

Did We not build seven strong [heavens] above you

and make a blazing lamp

Did We not send water pouring down from the clouds

to bring forth with it grain, plants

and luxuriant gardens

A time has been appointed for the Day of Decision

a Day when the Trumpet will sound and you will come forward in crowds

when the sky will open up like wide portals

when the mountains will vanish like a mirage

Hell lies in wait

a home for oppressors

to stay in for a long, long time

where they will taste no coolness nor drink

except one that is scalding and dark––

a fitting requital

for they did not fear a reckoning

and they rejected Our messages as lies

We have recorded everything in a Record

‘Taste this: all you will get from Us is more torment.’

For those who were aware of God there is supreme fulfilment

private gardens, vineyards

nubile, well-matched companions

and an overflowing cup

There they will hear no vain or lying talk

a reward from your Lord, a fitting gift

from the Lord of the heavens and earth and everything between, the Lord of Mercy. They will have no authority from Him to speak

On the Day when the Spirit and the angels stand in rows, they will not speak except for those to whom the Lord of Mercy gives permission, who will say only what is right

That is the Day of Truth. So whoever wishes to do so should take the path that leads to his Lord

We have warned you of imminent torment, on the Day when every person will see what their own hands have sent ahead for them, when the disbeliever will say, ‘If only I were dust!’

By the forceful chargers

raring to go

sweeping ahead at full stretch

overtaking swiftly

to bring the matter to an end

on the Day when the blast reverberates

and the second blast follows

hearts will tremble

and eyes will be downcast

They say, ‘What? shall we be brought back to life

after we have turned into decayed bones?’ and they say

‘Such a return is impossible!’

But all it will take is a single blast

and they will be back above ground

Have you [Prophet] heard the story of Moses

His Lord called out to him in the sacred valley of Tuwa

‘Go to Pharaoh, for he has exceeded all bounds

and ask him, “Do you want to purify yourself [of sin]

Do you want me to guide you to your Lord, so that you may hold Him in awe?” ’

Moses showed him the great sign

but he denied it and refused [the faith]

He turned away and hastily

gathered his people, proclaiming

‘I am your supreme lord,’

so God condemned him to punishment in the life to come as well as in this life

there truly is a lesson in this for anyone who stands in awe of God

Which is harder to create: you people or the sky that He built

raising it high and perfecting it

giving darkness to its night and bringing out its morning brightness

and the earth, too, He spread out

bringing waters and pastures out of it

and setting firm mountains [in it]

for you and your animals to enjoy

When the great overwhelming event arrives

on the Day that man remembers what he has done

and Hell is there for all to see

for anyone who has transgressed

and preferred the present life

Hell will be home

for anyone who feared the meeting with his Lord and restrained himself from base desires

Paradise will be home

They ask you [Prophet] about the Hour

saying, ‘When will it arrive?’, but how can you tell [them that]

Its time is known only to your Lord

you are only sent to warn those who fear it

On the Day they see it, it will seem they lingered [in this life] an evening [at most,] or its morning

He frowned and turned away

when the blind man came to him––

for all you know, he might have grown in spirit

or taken note of something useful to him

For the self-satisfied one

you go out of your way––

though you are not to be blamed for his lack of spiritual growth––

but from the one who has come to you full of eagerness

and awe

you allow yourself to be distracted

No indeed! This [Quran] is a lesson

from which those who wish to be taught should learn

[written] on honoured

exalted, pure pages

by the hands of

noble and virtuous scribes

Woe to man! How ungrateful he is

From what thing does God create him

He creates him from a droplet, He proportions him

He makes the way easy for him

then He causes him to die and be buried

When He wills, He will raise him up again

Yet mandoes not fulfil God’s commands

Let man consider the food he eats

We pour down abundant water

and cause the soil to split open

We make grain grow

and vines, fresh vegetation

olive trees, date palms

luscious gardens

fruits, and fodder

all for you and your livestock to enjoy

When the Deafening Blast comes––

the Day man will flee from his own brother

his mother, his father

his wife, his children

each of them will be absorbed in concerns of their own on that Day

on that Day some faces will be beaming

laughing, and rejoicing

but some faces will be dust-stained

and covered in darkness

those are the disbelievers, the licentious

When the sun is shrouded in darkness

when the stars are dimmed

when the mountains are set in motion

when pregnant camels are abandoned

when wild beasts are herded together

when the seas boil over

when souls are sorted into classes

when the baby girl buried alive is asked

for what sin she was killed

when the records of deeds are spread open

when the sky is stripped away

when Hell is made to blaze

and Paradise brought near

then every soul will know what it has brought about

I swear by the planets

that recede, move, and hide

by the night that descends

by the dawn that softly breathes

this is the speech of a noble messenger

who possesses great strength and is held in honour by the Lord of the Throne––

he is obeyed there and worthy of trust

Your companion is not mad

he did see him on the clear horizon

He does not withhold what is revealed to him from beyond

This is not the word of an outcast devil

So where are you [people] going

This is a message for all people

for those who wish to take the straight path

But you will only wish to do so by the will of God, the Lord of all people

When the sky is torn apart

when the stars are scattered

when the seas burst forth

when graves turn inside out

each soul will know what it has done and what it has left undone

Mankind, what has lured you away from God

your generous Lord, who created you, shaped you, proportioned you

in whatever form He chose

Yet you still take the Judgement to be a lie

Over you stand

watchers, noble recorders

who know what you do

the good will live in bliss

and the wicked will burn in the Fire

They will enter it on the Day of Judgement

and they will find no escape

What will explain to you what the Day of Judgement is

Yes! What will explain to you what the Day of Judgement is

The Day when no soul will be able to do anything for another; on that Day, command will belong to God

Woe to those who give short measure

who demand of other people full measure for themselves

but give less than they should when it is they who weigh or measure for others

Do these people not realize that they will be raised up

on a mighty Day

a Day when everyone will stand before the Lord of the Worlds

No indeed! The list of the wicked is in Sijjin––

what will explain to you what Sijjin is?––

a clearly numbered list

Woe on that day to the deniers

those who deny the Day of Judgement

Only the evil aggressor denies it

when Our revelations are recited to him, he says, ‘Ancient fables!’

No indeed! Their hearts are encrusted with what they have done

No indeed! On that Day they will be screened offfrom their Lord

they will burn in Hell

and they will be told, ‘This is what you called a lie.’

No indeed! The list of the truly good is in 'Illiyyin––

what will explain to you what 'Illiyyin is?––

a clearly written list

witnessed by those brought near

The truly good will live in bliss

seated on couches, gazing around

You will recognize on their faces the radiance of bliss

They will be served a sealed nectar

its seal [perfumed with] a fragrant herb––let those who strive, strive for this––

mixed with the water of Tasnim

a spring from which those brought near will drink

The wicked used to laugh at the believers––

they would wink at one another when the believers passed by them

joke about them when they got back to their own people

and say, when they saw them, ‘These people are misguided,’

though they were not sent to be their keepers

so today the believers are laughing at the disbelievers

as they sit on couches, gazing around

Have the disbelievers [not] been repaid for their deeds

When the sky is ripped apart

obeying its Lord as it rightly must

when the earth is levelled out

casts out its contents, and becomes empty

obeying its Lord as it rightly must

you humans, toiling laboriously towards your Lord, will meet Him

whoever is given his record in his right hand

will have an easy reckoning

and return to his people well pleased

but whoever is given his record from behind his back

will cry out for destruction––

he will burn in the blazing Fire

He used to live among his people well pleased

He thought he would never return [to his Lord]––

indeed he will! His Lord was watching him

I swear by the glow of sunset

by the night and what it covers

by the full moon

you will progress from stage to stage

So why do they not believe

Why, when the Quran is read to them, do they not prostrate themselves [to God]

No! The disbelievers reject the Quran––

God knows best what they keep hidden inside––

so give them news of a painful torment

But those who believe and do good deeds will have a never-ending reward

By the sky with its towering constellations

by the promised Day

by the Witness and that which is witnessed

damned were the makers of the trench

the makers of the fuel-stoked fire

They sat down

to watch what they were doing to the believers

Their only grievance against them was their faith in God, the Mighty, the Praiseworthy

to whom all control over the heavens and earth belongs: God is witness over all things

For those who persecute believing men and women, and do not repent afterwards, there will be the torment of Hell and burning

But for those who believe and do good deeds there will be Gardens graced with flowing streams: that is the great triumph

[Prophet], your Lord’s punishment is truly stern––

it is He who brings people to life, and will restore them to life again––

and He is the Most Forgiving, the Most Loving

The Glorious Lord of the Throne

He does whatever He will

Have you [not] heard the stories of the forces

of Pharaoh and Thamud

Yet still the disbelievers persist in denial

God surrounds them all

This is truly a glorious Quran

[written] on a preserved Tablet

By the sky and the night-comer––

What will explain to you what the night-comer is

The piercing star––

there is a watcher over every soul

Man should reflect on what he was created from

He is created from spurting fluid

then he emerges from between the backbone and breastbone

God is certainly able to bring him back to life

On the Day when secrets are laid bare

he will have no power and no one to help him

By the sky and its recurring rain

by the earth that cracks open

This is truly a decisive statement

it is not something to be taken lightly

They plot and scheme

but so do I

[Prophet], let the disbelievers be, let them be for a while

[Prophet], glorify the name of your Lord the Most High

who created [all things] in due proportion

who determined their destinies and guided them

who brought out the green pasture

then made it dark debris

[Prophet], We shall teach you [the Quran] and you will not forget––

unless God wishes; He knows both what is open and what is hidden––

We shall show you the easy way

So remind, if reminding will help

Those who stand in awe of God will heed the reminder

but it will be ignored by the most wicked

who will enter the Great Fire

where they will neither die nor live

Prosperous are those who purify themselves

remember the name of their Lord, and pray

Yet you [people] prefer the life of this world

even though the Hereafter is better and more lasting

All this is in the earlier scriptures

the scriptures of Abraham and Moses

Have you heard tell [Prophet] about the Overwhelming Event

On that Day, there will be downcast faces

toiling and weary

as they enter the blazing Fire

and are forced to drink from a boiling spring

with no food for them except bitter dry thorns

that neither nourish nor satisfy hunger

On that Day there will also be faces radiant with bliss

well pleased with their labour

in a lofty garden

where they will hear no idle talk

with a flowing spring

raised couches

goblets placed before them

cushions set in rows

and carpets spread

Do the disbelievers not see how rain clouds are formed

how the heavens are lifted

how the mountains are raised high

how the earth is spread out

So [Prophet] warn them: your only task is to give warning

you are not there to control them

As for those who turn away and disbelieve

God will inflict the greatest torment upon them

It is to Us they will return

and then it is for Us to call them to account

By the Daybreak

by the Ten Nights

by the even and the odd

by the passing night––

is this oath strong enough for a rational person

Have you [Prophet] considered how your Lord dealt with [the people] of 'Ad

of Iram, [the city] of lofty pillars

whose like has never been made in any land

and the Thamud, who hewed into the rocks in the valley

and the mighty and powerful Pharaoh

All of them committed excesses in their lands

and spread corruption there

your Lord let a scourge of punishment loose on them

Your Lord is always watchful

[The nature of] man is that, when his Lord tries him through honour and blessings, he says, ‘My Lord has honoured me,’

but when He tries him through the restriction of his provision, he says, ‘My Lord has humiliated me.’

No indeed! You [people] do not honour orphans

you do not urge one another to feed the poor

you consume inheritance greedily

and you love wealth with a passion

No indeed! When the earth is pounded to dust, pounded and pounded

when your Lord comes with the angels, rank upon rank

when Hell is that Day brought near- on that Day man will take heed, but what good will that be to him then

He will say, ‘Would that I had provided for this life to come!’

On that Day, no one will punish as He punishes

and no one will bind as He binds

‘[But] you, soul at peace

return to your Lord well pleased and well pleasing

go in among My servants

and into My Garden.’

I swear by this city––

and you [Prophet] are an inhabitant of this city––

[I swear] by parent and offspring

that We have created man for toil and trial

Does he think that no one will have power over him

‘I have squandered great wealth,’ he says

Does he think no one observes him

Did We not give him eyes

a tongue, lips

and point out to him the two clear ways [of good and evil]

Yet he has not attempted the steep path

What will explain to you what the steep path is

It is to free a slave

to feed at a time of hunger

an orphaned relative

or a poor person in distress

and to be one of those who believe and urge one another to steadfastness and compassion

Those who do this will be on the right-hand side

but those who disbelieve in Our revelations will be on the left-hand side

and the Fire will close in on them

By the sun in its morning brightness

and by the moon as it follows it

by the day as it displays the sun’s glory

and by the night as it conceals it

by the sky and how He built it

and by the earth and how He spread it

by the soul and how He formed it

and inspired it [to know] its own rebellion and piety

The one who purifies his soul succeeds

and the one who corrupts it fails

In their arrogant cruelty, the people of Thamud called [their messenger] a liar

when the most wicked man among them rose [against him]

The messenger of God said to them, ‘[Leave] God’s camel to drink,’

but they called him a liar and hamstrung her. Their Lord destroyed them for their crime and levelled them

He did not hesitate to punish them

By the enshrouding night

by the radiant day

by His creation of male and female

The ways you take differ greatly

There is the one who gives, who is mindful of God

who testifies to goodness––

We shall smooth his way towards ease

There is the one who is miserly, who is self-satisfied

who denies goodness––

We shall smooth his way towards hardship

and his wealth will not help him as he falls

Our part is to provide guidance––

this world and the next belong to Us––

so I warn you about the raging Fire

in which none but the most wicked one will burn

who denied [the truth], and turned away

The most pious one will be spared this––

who gives his wealth away as self-purification

not to return a favour to anyone

but for the sake of his Lord the Most High––

and he will be well pleased

By the morning brightness

and by the night when it grows still

your Lord has not forsaken you [Prophet], nor does He hate you

and the future will be better for you than the past

your Lord is sure to give you so much that you will be well satisfied

Did He not find you an orphan and shelter you

Did He not find you lost and guide you

Did He not find you in need and make you self-sufficient

So do not be harsh with the orphan

and do not chide the one who asks for help

talk about the blessings of your Lord

Did We not relieve your heart for you [Prophet]

and remove the burden

that weighed so heavily on your back

and raise your reputation high

So truly where there is hardship there is also ease

truly where there is hardship there is also ease

The moment you are freed [of one task] work on

and turn to your Lord for everything

By the fig, by the olive

by Mount Sinai

by this safe town

We create man in the finest state

then reduce him to the lowest of the low

except those who believe and do good deeds––

they will have an unfailing reward. After this, what makes you [man] deny the Judgement

Is God not the most decisive of judges

Read! In the name of your Lord who created

He created manfrom a clinging form

Read! Your Lord is the Most Bountiful One

who taught by [means of] the pen

who taught man what he did not know

But man exceeds all bounds

when he thinks he is self-sufficient

[Prophet], all will return to your Lord

Have you seen the man who forbids

[Our] servant to pray

Have you seen whether he is rightly guided

or encourages true piety

Have you seen whether he denies the truth and turns away from it

Does he not realize that God sees all

No! If he does not stop, We shall drag him by his forehead––

his lying, sinful forehead

Let him summon his comrades

We shall summon the guards of Hell

No! Do not obey him [Prophet]: bow down in worship and draw close

We sent it down on the Night of Glory

What will explain to you what that Night of Glory is

The Night of Glory is better than a thousand months

on that night the angels and the Spirit descend again and again with their Lord’s permission on every task

[there is] peace that night until the break of dawn

Those who disbelieve among the People of the Book and the idolaters were not about to change their ways until they were sent clear evidence

a messenger from God, reading out pages [blessed with] purity

containing true scriptures

[Yet] those who were given the Scripture became divided only after they were sent [such] clear evi-dence

though all they are ordered to do is worship God alone, sincerely devoting their religion to Him as people of true faith, keep up the prayer, and pay the prescribed alms, for that is the true religion

Those who disbelieve among the People of the Book and the idolaters will have the Fire of Hell, there to remain. They are the worst of creation

Those who believe and do good deeds are the best of creation

Their reward with their Lord is everlasting Gardens graced with flowing streams, where they will stay forever. God is well pleased with them and they with Him. All this is for those who stand in awe of their Lord

When the earth is shaken violently in its [last] quaking

when the earth throws out its burdens

when man cries, ‘What is happening to it?’

on that Day, it will tell all

because your Lord will inspire it [to do so]

On that Day, people will come forward in separate groups to be shown their deeds

whoever has done an atom’s-weight of good will see it

but whoever has done an atom’s-weight of evil will see that

By the charging steeds that pant

and strike sparks with their hooves

who make dawn raids

raising a cloud of dust

and plunging into the midst of the enemy

man is ungrateful to his Lord––

and He is witness to this––

he is truly excessive in his love of wealth

Does he not know that when the contents of graves burst forth

when the secrets of hearts are uncovered, on that Day

their Lord will be fully aware of them all

The Crashing Blow

What is the Crashing Blow

What will explain to you what the Crashing Blow is

On a Day when people will be like scattered moths

and the mountains like tufts of wool

the one whose good deeds are heavy on the scales

will have a pleasant life

but the one whose good deeds are light

will have the Bottomless Pit for his home––

what will explain to you what that is?––

a blazing fire

Striving for more distracts you

until you go into your graves

No indeed! You will come to know

No indeed! In the end you will come to know

No indeed! If only you knew for certain

You will most definitely see Hellfire

you will see it with the eye of certainty

On that Day, you will be asked about your pleasures

By the declining day

man is [deep] in loss

except for those who believe, do good deeds, urge one another to the truth, and urge one another to steadfastness

Woe to every fault-finding backbiter

who amasses riches, counting them over

thinking they will make him live for ever

No indeed! He will be thrust into the Crusher

What will explain to you what the Crusher is

It is God’s Fire, made to blaze

which rises over people’s hearts

It closes in on them

in towering columns

Do you [Prophet] not see how your Lord dealt with the army of the elephant

Did He not utterly confound their plans

He sent ranks of birds against them

pelting them with pellets of hard-baked clay

He made them [like] cropped stubble

[He did this] to make the Quraysh feel secure

secure in their winter and summer journeys

So let them worship the Lord of this House

who provides them with food to ward off hunger, safety to ward off fear

[Prophet], have you considered the person who denies the Judgement

It is he who pushes aside the orphan

and does not urge others to feed the needy

So woe to those who pray

but are heedless of their prayer

those who are all show

and forbid common kindnesses

We have truly given abundance to you [Prophet]––

so pray to your Lord and make your sacrifice to Him alone––

it is the one who hates you who has been cut off

Say [Prophet], ‘Disbelievers

I do not worship what you worship

you do not worship what I worship

I will never worship what you worship

you will never worship what I worship

you have your religion and I have mine.’

When God’s help comes and He opens up your way [Prophet]

when you see people embracing God’s faith in crowds

celebrate the praise of your Lord and ask His forgiveness: He is always ready to accept repentance

May the hands of Abu Lahab be ruined! May he be ruined too

Neither his wealth nor his gains will help him

he will burn in the Flaming Fire––

and so will his wife, the firewood-carrier

with a palm-fibre rope around her neck

Say, ‘He is God the One

God the eternal

He begot no one nor was He begotten

No one is comparable to Him.’

Say [Prophet], ‘I seek refuge with the Lord of daybreak

against the harm in what He has created

the harm in the night when darkness gathers

the harm in witches when they blow on knots

the harm in the envier when he envies.’

Say, ‘I seek refuge with the Lord of people

the Controller of people

the God of people

against the harm of the slinking whisperer––

who whispers into the hearts of people––

whether they be jinn or people.’