The Pen (Al-Qalam)
In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful
۞ Nun. By the Pen, and what they inscribe, 1 You are not demented by the grace of your Lord. 2 Nay, verily for thee is a Reward unfailing: 3 surely thou art upon a mighty morality. 4 You shall see and they will 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 (O Muhammad SAW) obey not the deniers [(of Islamic Monotheism those who belie the Verses of Allah), the Oneness of Allah, and the Messenger of Allah (Muhammad SAW), etc.] 8 They wish that you should be pliant so they (too) would be pliant. 9 And yield not to any mean swearer 10 the backbiter who goes about slandering, 11 obstructing virtues, a sinful transgressor, 12 the coarse-grained, and above all mean and ignoble; 13 Simply because he possesses wealth and children. 14 When Our revelations are rehearsed unto him, he saith: fables of the ancients. 15 We shall brand him over the nose! 16 We have tried you as We tried the owners of the garden when they vowed to gather the fruits in the morning 17 But made no reservation, ("If it be Allah's Will"). 18 Thereupon a calamity from your Lord passed over it while they were asleep, 19 So the (garden) became, by the morning, like a dark and desolate spot, (whose fruit had been gathered). 20 So they called out to each other at the break of dawn, 21 "Go early to your farms, if you want to pluck the fruits". 22 So they went off, saying one unto another in low tones: 23 "Indeed, no needy person shall enter it today [and come] upon you [unawares,]" 24 They went forth early, believing that they had the power (to gather the fruit). 25 But when they saw it, they said, "We must have lost our way. 26 No. In fact we have been deprived of it." 27 Said the most right-minded among them: "Did I not tell you, 'Will you not extol God's limitless glory?'" 28 'Exaltations to Allah, our Lord' they said, 'We were truly harmdoers' 29 Then they turned, one against another, in blaming. 30 They said: Alas for us! In truth we were outrageous. 31 [But] it may be that our Sustainer will grant us something better instead: for, verily, unto our Sustainer do we turn with hope!" 32 Such is the Punishment (in this life); but greater is the Punishment in the Hereafter,- if only they knew! 33