The Pen (Al-Qalam)
Allah - beginning with the name of - the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful
۞ Nun. CONSIDER the pen, and all that they write [therewith]! 1 Thou art not, by the Grace of thy Lord, mad or possessed. 2 Nay, verily for thee is a Reward unfailing: 3 And verily, you (O Muhammad SAW) are on an exalted standard of character. 4 You shall see and they will see 5 which of you has been afflicted by insanity. 6 Surely thy Lord knows very well those who have gone astray from His way, and He knows very well those who are guided. 7 So do not yield to the rejecters. 8 Fain would they that thou shouldst be pliant, so that they will be pliant. 9 And yield not to any mean swearer 10 Or backbiter, calumniator, slanderer, 11 (Habitually) hindering (all) good, transgressing beyond bounds, deep in sin, 12 who is ignoble and besides all that, base-born; 13 because he has wealth and sons. 14 and whenever Our verses are rehearsed to him, he says: “These are fairy- tales of times gone by.” 15 Soon shall We brand him on his snout. 16 Verily We! We have proved them even as We proved the fellows of a garden when they sware that they would surely reap it in the morning. 17 and made no allowance [for the will of God]: 18 Thereupon a calamity from your Lord passed over it while they were asleep, 19 So in the morning it became as if harvested. 20 And they cried out one unto another in the morning, 21 saying, "Be quick to reach your orchard, if you want to gather all your fruits." 22 Thus they launched forth, whispering unto one another, 23 'No needy man shall enter it today against your will.' 24 And they went out betimes determined in purpose. 25 But when they saw it, they said, "Indeed, we are lost; 26 No. In fact we have been deprived of it." 27 The best of them said: Did I not say to you, Why do you not glorify (Allah)? 28 They said, "Exalted is our Lord! Indeed, we were wrongdoers." 29 Then they approached one another, blaming each other. 30 They said: "Woe to us! Verily, we were Taghun (transgressors and disobedient, etc.) 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 punishment; and indeed the punishment of the Hereafter is the greatest, if only they knew! 33