The Pen (Al-Qalam)
In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful
۞ Noon. I swear by the pen and what the angels write, 1 Thou art not, by thy Sustainer's grace, a madman! 2 Indeed, there is an unfailing wage for you. 3 surely thou art upon a mighty morality. 4 Soon you will see, as will they, 5 which of you is a prey to madness. 6 Lo! thy Lord is Best Aware of him who strayeth from His way, and He is Best Aware of those who walk aright. 7 Do not, then, yield to those who reject the Truth, decrying it as false; 8 they would wish you to be pliant so that they too may be pliant. 9 And obey not thou any swearer ignominous. 10 Defamer, going about with slander 11 Hinderer of the good, transgressor, sinful, 12 Gross, and therewithal ignoble. 13 or that because he may possess wealth and children. 14 When to him are rehearsed Our Signs, "Tales of the ancients", he cries! 15 We shall mark him upon his nose! 16 We have indeed tested them the way We had tested the owners of the garden when they swore that they would reap its harvest the next morning. 17 without saying, "If it be God's will." 18 Then a calamity from your Lord fell upon it, but they remained fast asleep. 19 and in the morning it was if the garden had been reaped. 20 At daybreak they called to each other: 21 Saying: go out betimes to your tilth if ye would reap. 22 They all left, whispering to one another, 23 [Saying], "There will surely not enter it today upon you [any] poor person." 24 They went forth early, believing that they had the power (to gather the fruit). 25 But when they saw the (garden), they said: "We have surely lost our way: 26 rather, we are utterly ruined.” 27 The best among them said: Said I not unto you: Why glorify ye not (Allah)? 28 They said, "All glory belongs to God. We have certainly been unjust". 29 Then they began to heap reproaches on each other. 30 [In the end] they said: "Oh, woe unto us! Verily, we did behave outrageously! 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 is the Punishment (in this life); but greater is the Punishment in the Hereafter,- if only they knew! 33