The Pen (Al-Qalam)
In the name of God, The Most Gracious, The Dispenser of Grace
۞ NUN. I CALL to witness the pen and what they inscribe, 1 Thou art not, for thy Lord's favour unto thee, a madman. 2 You will certainly receive a never-ending reward. 3 surely thou art upon a mighty morality. 4 So you will soon see, and they too will see, 5 which of you has been afflicted by insanity. 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 So obey thou not those who cry lies. 8 They wish that in some way you may yield, so they too might soften their stand. 9 And obey thou not every mean swearer, 10 Or backbiter, calumniator, slanderer, 11 those who hinder good, the guilty aggressor, 12 who is ignoble and besides all that, base-born; 13 because he has wealth and sons. 14 When Our verses are recited to him, he says, "Legends of the former peoples." 15 We will soon singe his pig-nose. 16 Now We have tried them, even as We tried the owners of the garden when they swore they would pluck in the morning 17 and made no allowance [for the will of God]: 18 Then there came on the (garden) a visitation from thy Lord, (which swept away) all around, while they were asleep. 19 Then in the morning it became as though it had been reaped. 20 And they called out to each other in the morning, 21 "Go early to your farms, if you want to pluck the fruits". 22 And so they departed, whispering to one another: 23 No Miskin (poor man) shall enter upon you into it today. 24 They went forth early, believing that they had the power (to gather the fruit). 25 But when they saw it, they said: Lo! we are in error! 26 "Indeed we are shut out (of the fruits of our labour)!" 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 doing wrong!" 29 Then they started blaming one another, 30 Said they: O woe to us! surely we were inordinate: 31 We hope that our Lord will give us in exchange a better (garden) than this. Truly, we turn to our Lord (wishing for good that He may forgive our sins, and reward us in the Hereafter)." 32 SUCH is the suffering [with which We try some people in this world]; but greater by far will be the suffering [which sinners shall have to bear] in the life to come - if they but knew it! 33