The Pen (Al-Qalam)
In the name of God, The Most Gracious, The Dispenser of Grace
۞ Nun. By the pen and by that which they inscribe. 1 You are not demented by the grace of your Lord. 2 And verily, thine shall be a reward neverending 3 You have attained a high moral standard. 4 So thou shalt see, and they will see, 5 Which of you is afflicted with madness. 6 Surely your Lord best knows him who errs from His way, and He best knows the followers of the right course. 7 So do not yield to the rejecters. 8 they would wish you to be pliant so that they too may be pliant. 9 And do not obey every worthless habitual swearer 10 the fault-finder who goes around slandering, 11 Hinderer of the good, transgressor, sinful, 12 moreover ignoble, 13 Is it because he is possessed of worldly goods and children 14 When Our verses are recited to him, he says: 'They are but fairytales of the ancients' 15 We will brand him on the nose. 16 Now We have tried them, even as We tried the owners of the garden when they swore they would pluck in the morning 17 Without saying: Insha' Allah (If Allah will). 18 Wherefore an encircling visitation visited it even as they slept on. 19 so that by the morrow it became barren and bleak. 20 As the morning broke, they called out, one to another,- 21 [Saying], "Go early to your crop if you would cut the fruit." 22 So off they went, whispering to one another: 23 "Let no beggar come to the garden". 24 – and early they went, strongly bent upon their purpose. 25 But as soon as they beheld [the garden and could not recognize] it, they exclaimed, "Surely we have lost our way!" 26 No. In fact we have been deprived of it." 27 Said one of them, more just (than the rest): "Did I not say to you, 'Why not glorify (Allah)?'" 28 They answered: "Limitless in His glory is our Sustainer! Verily, we were doing wrong!" 29 Then they turned, one against another, in blaming. 30 Saying: "Alas the woe, we were iniquitous. 31 May be our Lord will give us a better orchard in its stead; we turn to Him." 32 SUCH is the suffering [with which We try some people in this world]; but greater by far will be the suffering [which sinners shall have to bear] in the life to come - if they but knew it! 33