Chapter 74, 56 verses
O thou wrapped up (in the mantle)!
بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم يا أيها المدثر
In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. O you (Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم) enveloped in garments!
Arise and deliver thy warning!
قم فأنذر
Arise and warn!
And thy Lord do thou magnify!
وربك فكبر
And magnify your Lord (Allah)!
And thy garments keep free from stain!
وثيابك فطهر
And purify your garments!
And all abomination shun!
والرجز فاهجر
And keep away from Ar-Rujz (the idols)!
Nor expect, in giving, any increase (for thyself)!
ولا تمنن تستكثر
And give not a thing in order to have more (or consider not your deeds of obedience to Allah as a favour to Him).
But, for thy Lord's (Cause), be patient and constant!
ولربك فاصبر
And be patient for the sake of your Lord (i.e. perform your duty to Allah)!
Finally, when the Trumpet is sounded,
فإذا نقر في الناقور
Then, when the Trumpet is sounded (i.e. the second blowing of the horn).
That will be - that Day - a Day of Distress, -
فذلك يومئذ يوم عسير
Truly, that Day will be a Hard Day -
Far from easy for those without Faith.
على الكافرين غير يسير
Far from easy for the disbelievers.
Leave Me alone, (to deal) with the (creature) whom I created (bare and) alone! -
ذرني ومن خلقت وحيدا
Leave Me Alone (to deal) with whom I created lonely (without any wealth or children etc, i.e. Al-Walid bin Al-Mughirah Al-Makhzumi)!
To whom I granted resources in abundance,
وجعلت له مالا ممدودا
And then granted him resources in abundance.
And sons to be by his side! -
وبنين شهودا
And children to be by his side.
To whom I made (life) smooth and comfortable!
ومهدت له تمهيدا
And made life smooth and comfortable for him.
Yet is he greedy - that I should add (yet more); -
ثم يطمع أن أزيد
After all that he desires that I should give more;
By no means! For to Our Signs he has been refractory!
كلا ۖ إنه كان لآياتنا عنيدا
Nay! Verily, he has been opposing Our Ayat (proofs, evidence, verses, lessons, signs, revelations).
Soon will I visit him with a mount of calamities!
سأرهقه صعودا
I shall oblige him to (climb a slippery mountain in the Hell-fire called As-Sa'ud, or) face a severe torment!
For he thought and he plotted; -
إنه فكر وقدر
Verily, he thought and plotted.
And woe to him! How he plotted! -
فقتل كيف قدر
So let him be cursed: how he plotted!
Yea, Woe to him; How he plotted! -
ثم قتل كيف قدر
And once more let him be cursed: how he plotted!
Then he looked round;
ثم نظر
Then he thought.
Then he frowned and he scowled;
ثم عبس وبسر
Then he frowned and he looked in a bad tempered way;
Then he turned back and was haughty;
ثم أدبر واستكبر
Then he turned back, and was proud.
Then said he: "This is nothing but magic, derived from of old;
فقال إن هذا إلا سحر يؤثر
Then he said: "This is nothing but magic from that of old,
"This is nothing but the word of a mortal!"
إن هذا إلا قول البشر
"This is nothing but the word of a human being!"
Soon will I cast him into Hell - Fire!
سأصليه سقر
I will cast him into Hell-fire.
And what will explain to thee what Hell - Fire is?
وما أدراك ما سقر
And what will make you know (exactly) what Hell-fire is?
Naught doth it permit to endure, and naught doth it leave alone! -
لا تبقي ولا تذر
It spares not (any sinner), nor does it leave (anything unburnt)!
Darkening and changing the colour of man!
لواحة للبشر
Burning and blackening the skins!
Over it are Nineteen.
عليها تسعة عشر
Over it are nineteen (angels as guardians and keepers of Hell).
And We have set none but angels as Guardians of the Fire; and We have fixed their number only as a trial for Unbelievers, - in order that the People of the Book may arrive at certainty, and the Believers may increase in Faith, - and that no doubts may be left for the People of the Book and the Believers, and that those in whose hearts is a disease and the Unbelievers may say, "What symbol doth Allah intend by this?" Thus doth Allah leave to stray whom He pleaseth, and guide whom He pleaseth: and none can know the forces of thy Lord, except He and this is no other than a warning to mankind.
وما جعلنا أصحاب النار إلا ملائكة ۙ وما جعلنا عدتهم إلا فتنة للذين كفروا ليستيقن الذين أوتوا الكتاب ويزداد الذين آمنوا إيمانا ۙ ولا يرتاب الذين أوتوا الكتاب والمؤمنون ۙ وليقول الذين في قلوبهم مرض والكافرون ماذا أراد الله بهذا مثلا ۚ كذلك يضل الله من يشاء ويهدي من يشاء ۚ وما يعلم جنود ربك إلا هو ۚ وما هي إلا ذكرى للبشر
And We have set none but angels as guardians of the Fire. And We have fixed their number (19) only as a trial for the disbelievers, in order that the people of the Scripture (Jews and Christians) may arrive at a certainty [that this Qur'an is the truth as it agrees with their Books regarding the number (19) which is written in the Taurat (Torah) and the Injeel (Gospel)] and that the believers may increase in Faith (as this Qur'an is the truth), and that no doubt may be left for the people of the Scripture and the believers, and that those in whose hearts is a disease (of hypocrisy) and the disbelievers may say: "What Allah intends by this (curious) example ?" Thus Allah leads astray whom He wills and guides whom He wills. And none can know the hosts of your Lord but He. And this (Hell) is nothing else than a (warning) reminder to mankind.
Nay, verily: By the Moon,
كلا والقمر
Nay! And by the moon
And by the Night as it retreateth,
والليل إذ أدبر
And by the night when it withdraws.
And by the Dawn as it shineth forth, -
والصبح إذا أسفر
And by the dawn when it brightens.
This is but one of the mighty (portents),
إنها لإحدى الكبر
Verily, it (Hell, or their denial of Prophet Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم, or the Day of Resurrection) is but one of the greatest (signs).
A warning to mankind, -
نذيرا للبشر
A warning to mankind -
To any of you that chooses to press forward, or to follow behind; -
لمن شاء منكم أن يتقدم أو يتأخر
To any of you that chooses to go forward (by working righteous deeds), or to remain behind (by committing sins).
Every soul will be (held) in pledge for its deeds.
كل نفس بما كسبت رهينة
Every person is a pledge for what he has earned,
Except the Companions of the Right Hand.
إلا أصحاب اليمين
Except those on the Right, (i.e. the pious true believers of Islamic Monotheism).
(They will be) in Gardens (of Delight): they will question each other,
في جنات يتساءلون
In Gardens (Paradise) they will ask one another,
And (ask) of the Sinners:
عن المجرمين
About Al-Mujrimun (polytheists, criminals, disbelievers), (And they will say to them):
"What led you into Hell Fire?"
ما سلككم في سقر
"What has caused you to enter Hell?"
They will say: "We were not of those who prayed;
قالوا لم نك من المصلين
They will say: "We were not of those who used to offer the Salat (prayers),
"Nor were we of those who fed the indigent;
ولم نك نطعم المسكين
"Nor we used to feed Al-Miskin (the poor);
"But we used to talk vanities with vain talkers;
وكنا نخوض مع الخائضين
"And we used to talk falsehood (all that which Allah hated) with vain talkers.
"And we used to deny the Day of Judgment,
وكنا نكذب بيوم الدين
And we used to belie the Day of Recompense,
"Until there came to us (the Hour) that is certain."
حتى أتانا اليقين
"Until there came to us (the death) that is certain."
Then will no intercession of (any) intercessors profit them.
فما تنفعهم شفاعة الشافعين
So no intercession of intercessors will be of any use to them.
Then what is the matter with them that they turn away from admonition? -
فما لهم عن التذكرة معرضين
Then what is wrong with them (i.e. the polytheists, the disbelievers) that they turn away from (receiving) admonition?
As if they were affrighted asses,
كأنهم حمر مستنفرة
As if they were (frightened) wild donkeys.
Fleeing from a lion!
فرت من قسورة
Fleeing from a hunter, or a lion, or a beast of prey.
Forsooth, each one of them wants to be given scrolls (of revelation) spread out!
بل يريد كل امرئ منهم أن يؤتى صحفا منشرة
Nay, everyone of them desires that he should be given pages spread out (coming from Allah with a writing that Islam is the right religion, and Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم has come with the truth from Allah, the Lord of the heavens and earth).
By no means! But they fear not the Hereafter,
كلا ۖ بل لا يخافون الآخرة
Nay! But they fear not the Hereafter (from Allah's punishment).
Nay, this surely is an admonition:
كلا إنه تذكرة
Nay, verily, this (Qur'an) is an admonition,
Let any who will, keep it in remembrance!
فمن شاء ذكره
So whosoever will (let him read it), and receive admonition (from it)!
But none will keep it in remembrance except as Allah wills: He is the Lord of Righteousness, and the Lord of Forgiveness.
وما يذكرون إلا أن يشاء الله ۚ هو أهل التقوى وأهل المغفرة
And they will not receive admonition unless Allah wills; He (Allah) is the One, deserving that mankind should be afraid of, and should be dutiful to Him, and should not take any Ilah (god) along with Him, and He is the One Who forgives (sins).