The Pen (Al-Qalam)
In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful
۞ Nun. By the pen and that which they write (therewith), 1 You are not, [O Muhammad], by the favor of your Lord, a madman. 2 And verily thine shall be a hire unending. 3 And indeed, you are of a great moral character. 4 And thou wilt see and they will see 5 which of you is the demented. 6 Surely your Lord best knows him who errs from His way, and He best knows the followers of the right course. 7 Hence, defer not to [the likes and dislikes of] those who give the lie to the truth: 8 they would wish you to be pliant so that they too may be pliant. 9 Nor ever listen to any excessive oath maker, ignoble person. 10 A slanderer, going about with calumnies, 11 hinderer of good, guilty aggressor, coarse-grained, 12 who is ignoble and besides all that, base-born; 13 Because he possesses wealth and sons. 14 When Our verses are recited to him, he says, "Legends of the former peoples." 15 Soon shall We brand him on his snout. 16 Indeed, We have tried them as We tried the companions of the garden, when they swore to cut its fruit in the [early] morning 17 and they added not the saving words. 18 Then, a visitation from your Lord came down upon it while they slept, 19 So the (garden) became black by the morning, like a pitch dark night (in complete ruins). 20 At daybreak they called to each other: 21 That, “Go to your fields at early morn, if you want to harvest.” 22 And so they departed, whispering to one another: 23 Saying: No poor man shall enter it today upon you. 24 And they went early in determination, [assuming themselves] able. 25 But when they saw it they said: 'We have surely gone astray. 26 No. In fact we have been deprived of it." 27 The best of them said: Did I not say to you, Why do you not glorify (Allah)? 28 They said, “Purity is to our Lord – we have indeed been unjust.” 29 and then they turned upon one another with mutual reproaches. 30 They said, "Woe to us. We have been arrogant. 31 Maybe our Lord will give us better than this. We turn to our Lord in supplication." 32 Such is the torment if only they knew that the torment in the life hereafter will certainly be greater. 33