The Pen (Al-Qalam)
In the name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
۞ Noon. I swear by the pen and what the angels write, 1 Thou art not, by the Grace of thy Lord, mad or possessed. 2 There is surely reward unending for you, 3 And indeed, you are of a great moral character. 4 Anon thou wilt see and they will see. 5 #NAME? 6 Verily thy Lord! He is the best Knower of him who strayeth from His path, and He is the best Knower of the guided one. 7 Then do not obey the deniers. 8 Who would have had thee compromise, that they may compromise. 9 Do not heed a contemptible swearer, 10 The excessively insulting one, spreader of spite. 11 One who excessively forbids the good, transgressor, sinner. 12 Crude, and above all, mean and infamous, 13 because he has wealth and sons. 14 When Our verses are recited to him, he says: 'They are but fairytales of the ancients' 15 We shall brand him on his nose. 16 Lo! We have tried them as We tried the owners of the garden when they vowed that they would pluck its fruit next morning, 17 without making any allowance (for the will of Allah). 18 Wherefore an encircling visitation visited it even as they slept on. 19 and the garden was turned into a barren desert. 20 And they called out to each other in the morning, 21 Saying: "Go to your tilth in the morning, if you would pluck the fruits." 22 So off they went, whispering to one another: 23 "Let no beggar come to the garden". 24 And they left at early morn, assuming they were in control of their purpose. 25 But when they saw it they said: 'We have surely gone astray. 26 nay, rather we have been robbed!' 27 A reasonable one among them said, "Did I not tell you that you should glorify God?" 28 They said, 'Glory be to God, our Lord; truly, we were evildoers.' 29 and then they turned upon one another with mutual reproaches. 30 They said: "Woe to us! Verily, we were Taghun (transgressors and disobedient, etc.) 31 Maybe our Lord will give us a better orchard in its place; to our Lord do we penitently turn.” 32 Such was their punishment, [in this life]. But the punishment of the life to come is much more severe, if only they knew it! 33