The Pen (Al-Qalam)
In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful
۞ Nun. By the pen and by that which they inscribe. 1 By the grace of your Lord you are not mad. 2 There is surely reward unending for you, 3 And most surely you conform (yourself) to sublime morality. 4 So very soon, you will see and they too will realise – 5 Which of you is afflicted with madness. 6 Verily it is thy Lord that knoweth best, which (among men) hath strayed from His Path: and He knoweth best those who receive (true) Guidance. 7 Wherefore obey not thou the beliers. 8 Who would have had thee compromise, that they may compromise. 9 And obey not thou any swearer ignominous. 10 The excessively insulting one, spreader of spite. 11 hinderer of good, guilty aggressor, coarse-grained, 12 who is ignoble and besides all that, base-born; 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 Soon We will brand him on the nose. 16 Verily, We have tried them as We tried the people of the garden, when they swore to pluck the fruits of the (garden) in the morning, 17 without adding to their swearing, (Allah willing, InshaAllah). 18 Then a visitation from thy Lord visited it, while they were sleeping, 19 And in the morning it was as if plucked. 20 In the morning they called out to one another, 21 Saying: "Go to your tilth in the morning, if you would pluck the fruits." 22 So they went off speaking to each other in a low voice. 23 "Let not a single indigent person break in upon you into the (garden) this day." 24 And they opened the morning, strong in an (unjust) resolve. 25 But when they saw it, they said, "Indeed, we are lost; 26 rather, we are utterly ruined.” 27 (Whereupon) the best among them said: 'Did I not say to you to exalt (Allah)' 28 They said: "Glory to Our Lord! Verily, we have been Zalimun (wrong-doers, etc.)." 29 Some of them started to blame others. 30 They said: woe unto us! verily we! we have been arrogant. 31 It may be that our Lord will give us better than this in place thereof. Lo! we beseech our Lord. 32 Such is the chastisement, and certainly the chastisement of the hereafter is greater, did they but know! 33