The Pen (Al-Qalam)
In the name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
۞ Nun. By the pen and by what you write, 1 Thou art not, for thy Lord's favour unto thee, a madman. 2 And verily, for you (O Muhammad SAW) will be an endless reward. 3 Surely, you (Prophet Muhammad) are of a great morality. 4 So you shall see, and they (too) shall see, 5 which of you is the demented. 6 Your Lord knows best who has fallen by the wayside, and who has remained on the true path. 7 So obey thou not those who cry lies. 8 They wish that you should compromise (in religion out of courtesy) with them, so they (too) would compromise with you. 9 And obey not everyone who swears much, and is considered worthless, 10 The excessively insulting one, spreader of spite. 11 Hinderer of the good, transgressor, sinful, 12 [or] one who is cruel, by greed possessed, and in addition to all this, utterly useless [to his fellow-men]. 13 It is because he is possessed of wealth and children 14 When to him are rehearsed Our Signs, "Tales of the ancients", he cries! 15 Anon We shall brand him on snout. 16 Surely We will try them as We tried the owners of the garden, when they swore that they would certainly cut off the produce in the morning, 17 and they added not the saving words. 18 whereupon a visitation for thy Sustainer came upon that [garden] while they were asleep, 19 and in the morning it was if the garden had been reaped. 20 Then they called out one to another as soon as the morning broke, 21 'Come forth betimes upon your tillage, if you would pluck!' 22 So they departed, conversing in secret low tones, (saying)- 23 "Let no beggar come to the garden". 24 They left early in the morning bent on this purpose. 25 But when they saw the (garden), they said: "Verily, we have gone astray," 26 [and then,] "Nay, but we have been rendered destitute!" 27 The most moderate of them said: said I not unto you, wherefore hallow him ye not! 28 They said: Glorified be our Lord! Lo! we have been wrong-doers. 29 Then they turned, one against another, in reproach. 30 They said: "Alas for us! We have indeed transgressed! 31 "It may be that our Lord will give us in exchange a better (garden) than this: for we do turn to Him (in repentance)!" 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