Chapter 69, 52 verses
The Sure Reality!
The sure calamity!
In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. The Inevitable (i.e. the Day of Resurrection)!
What is the Sure Reality?
What is the sure calamity!
What is the Inevitable?
And what will make thee realise what the Sure Reality is?
And what would make you realize what the sure calamity is!
And what will make you know what the Inevitable is?
The Thamud and the 'Ad People (branded) as false the Stunning Calamity!
Samood and Ad called the striking calamity a lie.
Thamud and 'Ad people denied the Qari'ah (the striking Hour of Judgement)!
But the Thamud, - they were destroyed by a terrible Storm of thunder and lightning!
Then as to Samood, they were destroyed by an excessively severe punishment.
As for Thamud, they were destroyed by the awful cry!
And the 'Ad, they were destroyed by a furious Wind, exceedingly violent;
And as to Ad, they were destroyed by a roaring, violent blast.
And as for 'Ad, they were destroyed by a furious violent wind!
He made it rage against them seven nights and eight days in succession: so that thou couldst see the (whole) people lying prostrate in its (path), as they had been roots of hollow palm - trees tumbled down!
Which He made to prevail against them for seven nights and eight days unremittingly, so that you might have seen the people therein prostrate as if they were the trunks of hollow palms.
Which Allah imposed on them for seven nights and eight days in succession, so that you could see men lying overthrown (destroyed), as if they were hollow trunks of date-palms!
Then seest thou any of them left surviving?
Do you then see of them one remaining?
Do you see any remnants of them?
And Pharaoh, and those before him, and the Cities Overthrown, committed habitual Sin.
And Firon and those before him and the overthrown cities continuously committed sins.
And Fir'aun (Pharaoh), and those before him, and the cities overthrown [the towns of the people of [Lut (Lot)] committed sin.
And disobeyed (each) the messenger of their Lord; so He punished them with an abundant Penalty.
And they disobeyed the Apostle of their Lord, so He punished them with a vehement punishment.
And they disobeyed their Lord's Messenger, so He seized them with a strong punishment.
We, when the water (of Noah's Flood) overflowed beyond its limits, carried you (mankind), in the floating (Ark),
Surely We bore you up in the ship when the water rose high,
Verily, when the water rose beyond its limits [Nuh's (Noah) Flood], We carried you (mankind) in the floating [ship that was constructed by Nuh (Noah)]
That We might make it a Message unto you, and that ears (that should hear the tale and) retain its memory should bear its (lessons) in remembrance.
So that We may make it a reminder to you, and that the retaining ear might retain it.
That We might make it (Noah's ship) an admonition for you and that it might be retained by the retaining ears.
Then, when one blast is sounded on the Trumpet,
And when the trumpet is blown with a single blast,
Then when the Trumpet will be blown with one blowing (the first one).
And the earth is moved, and its mountains, and they are crushed to powder at one stroke, -
And the earth and the mountains are borne away and crushed with a single crushing.
And the earth and the mountains shall be removed from their places, and crushed with a single crushing.
On that Day shall the (Great) Event come to pass.
On that day shall the great event come to pass,
Then on that Day shall the (Great) Event befall.
And the sky will be rent asunder, for it will that Day be flimsy,
And the heaven shall cleave asunder, so that on that day it shall be frail,
And the heaven will be rent asunder, for that Day it (the heaven) will be frail and torn up.
And the angels will be on its sides, and eight will, that Day, bear the Throne of thy Lord above them.
And the angels shall be on the sides thereof; and above them eight shall bear on that day your Lord's power.
And the angels will be on its sides, and eight angels will, that Day, bear the Throne of your Lord above them.
That Day shall ye be brought to Judgment: not an act of yours that ye hide will be hidden.
On that day you shall be exposed to view - - no secret of yours shall remain hidden.
That Day shall you be brought to Judgement, not a secret of you will be hidden.
Then he that will be given his Record in his right hand will say: "Ah here! Read ye my Record!
Then as for him who is given his book in his right hand, he will say: Lo! read my book:
Then as for him who will be given his Record in his right hand will say: "Here! read my Record!
"I did really understand that my Account would (One Day) reach me!"
Surely I knew that I shall meet my account.
"Surely, I did believe that I shall meet my Account!"
And he will be in a life of Bliss,
So he shall be in a life of pleasure,
So he shall be in a life, well-pleasing.
In a Garden on high,
In a lofty garden,
In a lofty Paradise,
The Fruits whereof (will hang in bunches) low and near.
The fruits of which are near at hand:
The fruits in bunches whereof will be low and near at hand.
"Eat ye and drink ye, with full satisfaction; because of the (good) that ye sent before you, in the days that are gone!"
Eat and drink pleasantly for what you did beforehand in the days gone by.
Eat and drink at ease for that which you have sent on before you in days past!
And he that will be given his Record in his left hand, will say: "Ah! Would that my Record had not been given to me!
And as for him who is given his book in his left hand he shall say: O would that my book had never been given me:
But as for him who will be given his Record in his left hand, will say: "I wish that I had not been given my Record!
"And that I had never realised how my account (stood)!
And I had not known what my account was:
"And that I had never known how my Account is!
"Ah! Would that (Death) had made an end of me!
O would that it had made an end (of me):
"Would that it had been my end (death)!
"Of no profit to me has been my wealth!
My wealth has availed me nothing:
"My wealth has not availed me;
"My power has perished from me!"...
My authority is gone away from me.
"My power (and arguments to defend myself) have gone from me!"
(The stern command will say): "Seize ye him, and bind ye him,
Lay hold on him, then put a chain on him,
(It will be said): "Seize him and fetter him;
"And burn ye him in the Blazing Fire.
Then cast him into the burning fire,
Then throw him in the blazing Fire.
"Further, make him march in a chain, whereof the length is seventy cubits!
Then thrust him into a chain the length of which is seventy cubits.
"Then fasten him with a chain whereof the length is seventy cubits!"
"This was he that would not believe in Allah Most High.
Surely he did not believe in Allah, the Great,
Verily, he used not to believe in Allah, the Most Great,
"And would not encourage the feeding of the indigent!
Nor did he urge the feeding of the poor.
And urged not on the feeding of Al-Miskin (the poor).
"So no friend hath he here this Day.
Therefore he has not here today a true friend,
So no friend has he here this Day,
"Nor hath he any food except the corruption from the washing of wounds,
Nor any food except refuse,
Nor any food except filth from the washing of wounds.
"Which none do eat but those in sin."
Which none but the wrongdoers eat.
None will eat it except the Khati'un (sinners, disbelievers, polytheists).
So I do call to witness what ye see,
But nay! I swear by that which you see,
So I swear by whatsoever you see,
And what ye see not,
And that which you do not see.
And by whatsoever you see not,
That this is verily the word of an honoured messenger;
Most surely, it is the Word brought by an honored Apostle,
That this is verily, the word of an honoured Messenger [i.e. Jibril (Gabriel) or Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم which he has brought from Allah].
It is not the word of a poet: little it is ye believe!
And it is not the word of a poet; little is it that you believe;
It is not the word of a poet: little is that you believe!
Nor is it the word of a soothsayer: little admonition it is ye receive.
Nor the word of a soothsayer; little is it that you mind.
Nor is it the word of a soothsayer (or a foreteller): little is that you remember!
(This is) a Message sent down from the Lord of the Worlds.
It is a revelation from the Lord of the worlds.
This is the Revelation sent down from the Lord of the 'Alamin (mankind, jinn and all that exists).
And if the messenger were to invent any sayings in Our name,
And if he had fabricated against Us some of the sayings,
And if he (Muhammad صلى الله عليه وسلم) had forged a false saying concerning Us (Allah جل جلاله),
We should certainly seize him by his right hand,
We would certainly have seized him by the right hand,
We surely would have seized him by his right hand (or with power and might),
And We should certainly then cut off the artery of his heart:
Then We would certainly have cut off his aorta.
And then We certainly would have cut off his life artery (aorta),
Nor could any of you withhold him (from Our wrath).
And not one of you could have withheld Us from him.
And none of you could have withheld Us from (punishing) him.
But verily this is a Message for the Allah - fearing.
And most surely it is a reminder for those who guard (against evil).
And verily, this (Qur'an) is a Reminder for the Muttaqun (the pious. See V.2:2).
And We certainly know that there are amongst you those that reject (it).
And most surely We know that some of you are rejecters.
And verily, We know that there are some among you that belie (this Qur'an). (Tafsir At-Tabari)
But truly (Revelation) is a cause of sorrow for the Unbelievers.
And most surely it is a great grief to the unbelievers.
And indeed it (this Qur'an) will be an anguish for the disbelievers (on the Day of Resurrection).
But verily it is Truth of assured certainty.
And most surely it is the true certainty
And verily, it (this Qur'an) is an absolute truth with certainty.
So glorify the name of thy Lord Most High.
Therefore - glorify the name of your Lord, the Great.
So glorify the Name of your Lord, the Most Great.