تَنْزِيلُ الْكِتَابِ مِنَ اللَّهِ الْعَزِيزِ الْحَكِيمِ
THE BESTOWAL from on high of this divine writ issues from God, the Almighty, the Wise: (1)
إِنَّا أَنْزَلْنَا إِلَيْكَ الْكِتَابَ بِالْحَقِّ فَاعْبُدِ اللَّهَ مُخْلِصًا لَهُ الدِّينَ
for, behold, it is We who have bestowed this revelation upon thee from on high, setting forth the truth: so worship God, sincere in thy faith in Him alone! (2)
أَلَا لِلَّهِ الدِّينُ الْخَالِصُ وَالَّذِينَ اتَّخَذُوا مِنْ دُونِهِ أَوْلِيَاءَ مَا نَعْبُدُهُمْ إِلَّا لِيُقَرِّبُونَا إِلَى اللَّهِ زُلْفَىٰ إِنَّ اللَّهَ يَحْكُمُ بَيْنَهُمْ فِي مَا هُمْ فِيهِ يَخْتَلِفُونَ إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَا يَهْدِي مَنْ هُوَ كَاذِبٌ كَفَّارٌ
Is it not to God alone that all sincere faith is due? And yet, they who take for their protectors aught beside Him [are wont to say], "We worship them for no other reason than that they bring us nearer to God." Behold, God will judge between them [on Resurrection Day] with regard to all wherein they differ [from the truth]: for, verily, God does not grace with His guidance anyone who is bent on lying [to himself and is] stubbornly ingrate! (3)
لَوْ أَرَادَ اللَّهُ أَنْ يَتَّخِذَ وَلَدًا لَاصْطَفَىٰ مِمَّا يَخْلُقُ مَا يَشَاءُ سُبْحَانَهُ هُوَ اللَّهُ الْوَاحِدُ الْقَهَّارُ
Had God willed to take unto Himself a son, He could have chosen anyone that He wanted out of whatever He has created – [but] limitless is He in His glory! He is the One God, the One who holds absolute sway over all that exists! (4)
خَلَقَ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضَ بِالْحَقِّ يُكَوِّرُ اللَّيْلَ عَلَى النَّهَارِ وَيُكَوِّرُ النَّهَارَ عَلَى اللَّيْلِ وَسَخَّرَ الشَّمْسَ وَالْقَمَرَ كُلٌّ يَجْرِي لِأَجَلٍ مُسَمًّى أَلَا هُوَ الْعَزِيزُ الْغَفَّارُ
He it is who has created the heavens and the earth in accordance with [an inner] truth. He causes the night to flow into the day, and causes the day to flow into the night; and He has made the sun and the moon subservient [to His laws], each running its course for a term set [by Him]. Is not He the Almighty, the All-Forgiving? (5)
خَلَقَكُمْ مِنْ نَفْسٍ وَاحِدَةٍ ثُمَّ جَعَلَ مِنْهَا زَوْجَهَا وَأَنْزَلَ لَكُمْ مِنَ الْأَنْعَامِ ثَمَانِيَةَ أَزْوَاجٍ يَخْلُقُكُمْ فِي بُطُونِ أُمَّهَاتِكُمْ خَلْقًا مِنْ بَعْدِ خَلْقٍ فِي ظُلُمَاتٍ ثَلَاثٍ ذَٰلِكُمُ اللَّهُ رَبُّكُمْ لَهُ الْمُلْكُ لَا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ فَأَنَّىٰ تُصْرَفُونَ
He has created you [all] out of one living entity, and out of it fashioned its mate; and he has bestowed upon you four kinds of cattle of either sex; [and] He creates you in your mothers' wombs, one act of creation after another, in threefold depths of darkness. Thus is God, your Sustainer: unto Him belongs all dominion: there is no deity save Him: how, then, can you lose sight of the truth? (6)
إِنْ تَكْفُرُوا فَإِنَّ اللَّهَ غَنِيٌّ عَنْكُمْ وَلَا يَرْضَىٰ لِعِبَادِهِ الْكُفْرَ وَإِنْ تَشْكُرُوا يَرْضَهُ لَكُمْ وَلَا تَزِرُ وَازِرَةٌ وِزْرَ أُخْرَىٰ ثُمَّ إِلَىٰ رَبِّكُمْ مَرْجِعُكُمْ فَيُنَبِّئُكُمْ بِمَا كُنْتُمْ تَعْمَلُونَ إِنَّهُ عَلِيمٌ بِذَاتِ الصُّدُورِ
If you are ingrate – behold, God has no need of you; none the less, He does not approve of ingratitude in His servants: whereas, if you show gratitude, He approves it in you. And no bearer of burdens shall be made to bear another's burden. In time, unto your Sustainer you all must return, and then He will make you [truly] understand all that you were doing [in life]: for, verily, He has full knowledge of what is in the hearts [of men]. (7)
وَإِذَا مَسَّ الْإِنْسَانَ ضُرٌّ دَعَا رَبَّهُ مُنِيبًا إِلَيْهِ ثُمَّ إِذَا خَوَّلَهُ نِعْمَةً مِنْهُ نَسِيَ مَا كَانَ يَدْعُو إِلَيْهِ مِنْ قَبْلُ وَجَعَلَ لِلَّهِ أَنْدَادًا لِيُضِلَّ عَنْ سَبِيلِهِ قُلْ تَمَتَّعْ بِكُفْرِكَ قَلِيلًا إِنَّكَ مِنْ أَصْحَابِ النَّارِ
NOW [thus it is:] when affliction befalls man, he is likely to cry out to his Sustainer, turning unto Him [for help]; but as soon as He has bestowed upon him a boon by His grace, he forgets Him whom he invoked before, and claims that there are other powers that could rival God – and thus leads [others] astray from His path. Say [unto him who sins in this way]: "Enjoy thyself for a while in this thy denial of the truth; [yet,] verily, thou art of those who are destined for the fire! (8)
أَمَّنْ هُوَ قَانِتٌ آنَاءَ اللَّيْلِ سَاجِدًا وَقَائِمًا يَحْذَرُ الْآخِرَةَ وَيَرْجُو رَحْمَةَ رَبِّهِ قُلْ هَلْ يَسْتَوِي الَّذِينَ يَعْلَمُونَ وَالَّذِينَ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ إِنَّمَا يَتَذَكَّرُ أُولُو الْأَلْبَابِ
Or [dost thou deem thyself equal to] one who devoutly worships [God] throughout the night, prostrating himself or standing [in prayer], ever-mindful of the life to come, and hoping for his Sustainer's grace?" Say: "Can they who know and they who do not know be deemed equal?" [But] only they who are endowed with insight keep this in mind! (9)
- He has created you [all] out of one living entity, and out of it fashioned its mate;7 and he has bestowed upon you four kinds of cattle of either sex;8 [and] He creates you in your mothers' wombs, one act of creation after another, in threefold depths of darkness.9 Thus is God, your Sustainer: unto Him belongs all dominion: there is no deity save Him: how, then, can you lose sight of the truth?10
- 7 See 4:1 and the corresponding note 1.
- 8 Lit., "eight [in] pairs", i.e., the male and the female of four kinds of cattle (sheep, goats, camels and bovine cattle). For an explanation of my rendering, see note 130 on 6:143-144, where the same kinds of domesticated cattle are spoken of in connection with certain meaningless, superstitious taboos of pre-Islamic times, whereas here they are mentioned as "bestowed upon you" by God, and therefore lawful. Beyond this, the mention of cattle in this context is meant to remind man that it is God who provides his sustenance and that, therefore, man is utterly dependent on Him.
- 9 Lit., "by creation after creation, in three darknesses": an allusion to the successive stages of embryonic development, repeatedly spoken of in the Qur'an (cf. 22:5 and 23:12-14), and to the darkness of the womb, the membrane enveloping the embryo, and its pre-natal blindness.
- 10 Lit., "how, then, are you turned away?" - i.e., from the truth.
- He created you (all) from a single Person:4249 then created, of like nature, his mate; and he sent down for you eight head4250 of cattle in pairs: He makes you, in the wombs of your mothers, in stages, one after another,4251 in three veils of darkness.4252 such is Allah, your Lord and Cherisher: to Him belongs (all) dominion. There is no god but He: then how are ye turned away4253 (from your true Centre)?
- 4249 Cf. 4:1, and n. 504.
- 4250 See 6:143-144, where four kinds of cattle are mentioned in pairs in connection with certain Arab superstitions which are there condemned. Here the same four kinds are mentioned as representative of domesticated cattle given by Allah as useful to man. These are sheep, goats, camels, and oxen. In Arab idiom the horse is not included among "cattle".<br/>For the wisdom and goodness of Allah in granting man dominion over cattle, see 36:71-73.
- 4251 See 22:5, where the gradual physical growth of man in several successive stages is mentioned as one of the Signs of Allah's creative Power and cherishing care.
- 4252 The three veils of darkness which cover the unborn child are: the caul or membrane, the womb, and the hollow in which the womb is enclosed. But we might understand "three" in a cumulative rather than a numerical sense.
- 4253 It is clear that you owe your very existence and your maintenance, growth, and preservation, to Allah; how is it that you are turned away by chance things from Him? (R).
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He created you (all) from a single person: then created, of like nature, his mate; and he sent down for you eight head of cattle in pairs: He makes you, in the wombs of your mothers, in stages, one after another, in three veils of darkness. such is Allah, your Lord and Cherisher: to Him belongs (all) dominion. There is no god but He: then how are ye turned away (from your true Centre)?
— Abdullah Yusuf Ali -
He created you from one being, then from that (being) He made its mate; and He hath provided for you of cattle eight kinds. He created you in the wombs of your mothers, creation after creation, in a threefold gloom. Such is Allah, your Lord. His is the Sovereignty. There is no Allah save Him. How then are ye turned away?
— Marmaduke Pickthall -
He has created you from a single being, then made its mate of the same (kind), and He has made for you eight of the cattle in pairs. He creates you in the wombs of your mothers-- a creation after a creation-- in triple darkness; that is Allah your Lord, His is the kingdom; there is no god but He; whence are you then turned away?
— M. Habib Shakir -
He created you (all) from a single person (Adam); then made from him his wife [Hawwa' (Eve)]. And He has sent down for you of cattle eight pairs (of the sheep, two, male and female; of the goats, two, male and female; of the oxen, two, male and female; and of the camels, two, male and female). He creates you in the wombs of your mothers, creation after creation in three veils of darkness, such is Allah your Lord. His is the kingdom, La ilaha illa Huwa (none has the right to be worshipped but He). How then are you turned away?
— Taqiuddin Hilali and M. Mohsin Khan -
He created you Of a Single soul, and made his spouse therefrom; and of the cattle He sent down Unto you eight pairs. He createth you in the bellies of your mothers, one creation after creation, in a threefold darkness. Such is Allah, your Lord. His is the dominion, there is no god but He. Whither then turn ye away?
— Abdul-Majid Daryabadi -
He created you from a single soul, then from it He created its spouse. And He sent down to you eight pairs of the cattle. He creates you in your mothers' womb, creation after creation, in three (stages of) darkness. Such then is Allah, your Lord. For Him is the Kingdom. There is no god except Him. How, then, can you turn away?
— Hasan Qaribullah and Ahmed Darwish -
He created you of one soul, then, from it, He made its mate, and He sent down for you eight kinds of cattle. He creates you in your mothers' wombs, creation after creation, in three sets of darkness. That is God your Lord, to whom belongs the kingdom. There is no god but He; how are you then turned about?
— Ayub Khan -
He created you from a single being; then from that He made its mate; and He has sent down for you of the cattle eight pairs. He creates you in the wombs of your mothers, creation after creation, through three stages of darkness. This is God, your Lord. His is the Kingdom. There is no god but He. Wither then are you being turned away?
— Sher Ali -
He has created you [all] out of one living entity, and out of it fashioned its mate; and he has bestowed upon you four kinds of cattle of either sex; [and] He creates you in your mothers' wombs, one act of creation after another, in threefold depths of darkness.
Thus is God, your Sustainer: unto Him belongs all dominion: there is no deity save Him: how, then, can you lose sight of the truth?
— Muhammad Asad -
He created you of a single soul, then from it He appointed its mate; and He sent down to you of the cattle eight couples. He creates you in your mothers wombs creation after creation in threefold shadows. That then is God, your Lord; to Him belongs the Kingdom; there is no god but He; so how are you turned about?
— Arthur Arberry -
He it is Who created you from a single being, and He it is Who made from it its mate.{{12}} He it is Who created for you eight heads of cattle in pairs.{{13}} He creates you in your mothers' wombs, giving you one form after another in threefold depths of darkness.{{14}} That, then, is Allah, your Lord.{{15}} His is the kingdom.{{16}} There is no god but He.{{17}} So, whence are you being turned astray?{{18}}
— Abu'l Ala Maududi