Home > Library > New > Yusuf Ali > The Holy Quran > Sura Xxiii. Mu Minun

Sura Xxiii. Mu Minun

*
"The Holy Quran", tr. by Yusuf Ali, [1934],

p. 873

p. 874

Sra Xxiii.

Mu-minn, Or The Believers.

In the name of God, Most Gracious,

Most Merciful.

1.
The Believers must

(Eventually) win through,--

2.
Those who humble themselves

In their prayers;

3.
Who avoid vain talk;

4.
Who are active in deeds

Of charity;

5.
Who abstain from sex,

6.
Except with those joined

To them in the marriage bond,

Or (the captives) whom

Their right hands possess,--

For (in their case) they are

Free from blame,

7.
But those whose desires exceed

Those limits are transgressors;--

p. 875

8.
Those who faithfully observe

Their trusts and their covenants;

9.
And who (strictly) guard

Their prayers;--

10.
These will be the heirs,

11. Who will inherit Paradise:


They will dwell therein

(For ever).

12.
Man We did create

From a quintessence (of clay);

13.
Then We placed him

As (a drop of) sperm

p. 876

In a place of rest,

Firmly fixed;

14.
Then We made the sperm

Into a clot of congealed blood;

Then of that clot We made

A (ftus) lump; then We

Made out of that lump

Bones and clothed the bones

With flesh; then We developed

Out of it another creature.

So blessed be God,

The Best to create!

15.
After that, at length

Ye will die.

16.
Again, on the Day

Of Judgment, will ye be

Raised up.

17.
And We have made, above you,

Seven tracts; and We

Are never unmindful

Of (Our) Creation,

p. 877

18.
And We send down water

From the sky according to

(Due) measure, and We cause it

To soak in the soil;

And We certainly are able

To drain it off (with ease).

19.
With it We grow for you

Gardens of date-palms

And vines: in them have ye

Abundant fruits: and of them

Ye eat (and have enjoyment),--

20.
Also a tree springing

Out of Mount Sinai,

Which produces oil,

And relish for those

Who use it for food.

21.
And in cattle (too) ye

Have an instructive example:

From within their bodies

We produce (milk) for you

p. 878

To drink; there art, in them,

(Besides), numerous (other)

Benefits for you;

And of their (meat) ye eat;

22.
And on them, as well as

In ships, ye ride.

Section 2.

23.
(Further, We sent a long line

Of prophets for your instruction).

We sent Noah to his people:

He said, "O my people!

Worship God! Ye have

No other god but Him.

Will ye not fear (Him)?"

24.
The chiefs of the Unbelievers

Among his people said:

"He is no more than a man

Like yourselves: his wish is

To assert his superiority

Over you: if God had wished

(To send messengers),

He could have sent down

Angels: never did we hear

Such a thing (as he says),

Among our ancestors of old."

25. (And some said): "He is

Only a man possessed:


Wait (and have patience)

With him for a time.
"

p. 879

26.
(Noah) said: "O my Lord!

Help me: for that they

Accuse me of falsehood!"

27.
So We inspired him

(With this message): "Construct

The Ark within Our sight

And under Our guidance: then

When comes Our command,

And the fountains of the earth

Gush forth, take thou on board

Pairs of every species, male

And female, and thy family--

Except those of them

Against whom the Word

Has already gone forth:


And address Me not

In favour of the wrong-doers;

For they shall be drowned

(In the Flood).

28.
And when thou hast embarked

On the Ark--thou and those

With thee,--say: "Praise be

To God, Who has saved us

From the people who do wrong."

29.
And say: "O my Lord!

Enable me to disembark

With Thy blessing: for Thou

Art the Best to enable (us)

To disembark."

30.
Verily in this there are

Signs (for men to understand);

(Thus) do We try (men)."

p. 880

31.
Then We raised after them

Another generation.

32.
And We sent to them

An apostle from among themselves,

(Saying), "Worship God!

Ye have no other god

But Him. Will ye not

Fear (Him)?"

Section 3.

33.
And the chiefs

Of his people, who disbelieved

And denied the Meeting

In the Hereafter, and on whom

We had bestowed the good things

Of this life, said: "He is

No more than a man

Like yourselves: he eats

Of that of which ye eat,

And drinks of what ye drink.

34.
\"If ye obey a man

Like yourselves, behold,

It is certain ye will be lost.

35.
\"Does he promise that

When ye die and become dust

And bones, ye shall be

Brought forth (again)?

36.
\"Far, very far is that

Which ye are promised!

p. 881

37.
\"There is nothing but

Our life in this world!

We shall die and we live!

But we shall never

Be raised up again!

38.
\"He is only a man

Who invents a lie

Against God, but we

Are not the ones

To believe in him!"

39.
(The prophet) said:


"O my Lord! help me:

For that they accuse me

Of falsehood."

40.
(God) said: "In but

A little while, they

Are sure to be sorry!"

41.
Then the Blast overtook them

With justice, and We made them

As rubbish of dead leaves

(Floating on the stream of Time)!

So away with the people

Who do wrong!

42.
Then We raised after them

Other generations.

43.
No people can hasten

Their term, nor can they

Delay (it).

p. 882

44.
Then sent We Our apostles

In succession: every time

There came to a people

Their apostle, they accused him

Of falsehood: so We made

Them follow each other

(In punishment): We made them

As a tale (that is told):

So away with a people

That will not believe!

45.
When We sent Moses

And his brother Aaron,

With Our Signs and

Authority manifest,

46. To Pharaoh and his Chiefs:


But these behaved insolently:

They were an arrogant people.

47.
They said: "Shall we believe

In two men like ourselves?

And their people are subject

To us!"

48.
So they accused them

Of falsehood, and they became

Of those who were destroyed.

49.
And We gave Moses

The Book, in order that

They might receive guidance.

p. 883

50.
And We made

The son of Mary

And his mother

As a Sign:


We gave them both

Shelter on high ground,

Affording rest and security

And furnished with springs.

Section 4.

51. O
ye apostles! enjoy

(All) things good and pure,

And work righteousness:

For I am well-acquainted

With (all) that ye do.

52.
And verily this Brotherhood

Of yours is a single Brotherhood,

And I am your Lord

And Cherisher: therefore

Fear Me (and no other).

p. 884

53.
But people have cut off

Their affair (of unity),

Between them, into sects:


Each party rejoices in that

Which is with itself.

54.
But leave them

In their confused ignorance

For a time.

55.
Do they think that because

We have granted them abundance

Of wealth and sons,

56.
We would hasten them

On in every good? Nay,

They do not understand.

57.
Verily those who live

In awe for fear of their Lord;

58.
Those who believe

In the Signs of their Lord;

59.
Those who join not (in worship)

Partners with their Lord;

60.
And those who dispense

Their charity with their hearts

Full of fear, because

They will return to their Lord;--

61.
It is these who hasten

In every good work,

And these who are

Foremost in them.

p. 885

62.
On no soul do We

Place a burden greater

Than it can bear:


Before Us is a record

Which clearly shows the truth:

They will never be wronged.

63.
But their hearts are

In confused ignorance

Of this; and there are,

Besides that, deeds of theirs,

Which they will (continue)

To do,--

64.
Until, when We seize

In Punishment those of them

Who received the good things

Of this world, behold,

They will groan in supplication!

65. (It will be said):


"Groan not in supplication

This day; for ye shall

Certainly not be helped by Us.

66.
\"My Signs used to be

Rehearsed to you, but ye

Used to turn back

On your heels--

67.
\"In arrogance: talking nonsense

About the (Qur-n), like one

Telling fables by night."

p. 886

68.
Do they not ponder over

The Word (of God), or

Has anything (new) come

To them that did not

Come to their fathers of old?

69.
Or do they not recognise

Their Apostle, that they

Deny him?

70.
Or do they say, "he is

Possessed"? Nay, he has

Brought them the Truth,

But most of them

Hate the Truth.

71.
If the Truth had been

In accord with their desires,

Truly the heavens and the earth,

And all beings therein

Would have been in confusion

And corruption! Nay, We

Have sent them their admonition,

But they turn away

From their admonition.

72.
Or is it that thou

Askest them for some

Recompense? But the recompense

Of thy Lord is best:


He is the Best of those

Who give sustenance.

73.
But verily thou callest them

To the Straight Way;

p. 887

74.
And verily those who

Believe not in the Hereafter

Are deviating from that Way.

75.
If We had mercy on them

And removed the distress

Which is on them, they

Would obstinately persist

In their transgression,

Wandering in distraction

To and fro.

76.
We inflicted Punishment

On them, but they

Humbled not themselves

To their Lord, nor do they

Submissively entreat (Him)!--

77.
Until We open on them

A gate leading to

A severe Punishment: then

Lo! they will be plunged

In despair therein!

Section 5.

78.
It is He Who has created

For you (the faculties of)

Hearing, sight, feeling

And understanding: little thanks

It is ye give!

p. 888

79.
And He Has multiplied you

Through the earth, and to Him

Shall ye be gathered back.

80.
It is He Who gives

Life and death, and to Him

(Is due) the alternation

Of Night and Day:

Will ye not then understand?

81.
On the contrary they say

Things similar to what

The ancients said.

82.
They say: "What! When we

Die and become dust and bones,

Could we really be

Raised up again?

83.
\"Such things have been promised

To us and to our fathers

Before! They are nothing

But tales of the ancients!"

84.
Say: "To whom belong

The earth and all beings therein?

(Say) if ye know!"

85.
They will say, "To God!"

Say: "Yet will ye not

Receive admonition?"

86.
Say: "Who is the Lord

Of the seven heavens,

And the Lord of the Throne

(Of Glory) Supreme?
"

p. 889

87.
They will say, "(They belong)

To God.
" Say: "Will ye not

Then be filled with awe?"

88.
Say: "Who is it in whose

Hands is the governance

Of all things,--who protects

(All), but is not protected

(Of any)? (Say) if ye know."

89.
They will say, "(It belongs)

To God.
" Say: "Then how

Are ye deluded?"

90. We have sent them the Truth:


But they indeed practise Falsehood!

91.
No son did God beget,

Nor is there any god

Along with Him: (if there were

Many gods
), behold, each god

Would have taken away

What he had created,

And some would have

Lorded it over others!

Glory to God! (He is free)

From the (sort of) things

They attribute to Him!

92.
He knows what is hidden

And what is open: too high

Is He for the partners

They attribute to Him!

p. 890

Section 6.

93.
Say: "O my Lord!

If Thou wilt show me

(In my lifetime) that which

They are warned against,--

94.
\"Then, O my Lord! put me not

Amongst the people

Who do wrong!"

95.
And We are certainly able

To show thee (in fulfilment)

That against which they are warned.

96.
Repel evil with that'

Which is best: We are

Well acquainted with

The things they say.

97.
And say "O my Lord!

I seek refuge with Thee

p. 891

From the suggestions

Of the Evil Ones.

98.
\"And I seek refuge with Thee

O my Lord! lest they

Should come near me."

99.
(In Falsehood will they be)

Until, when death comes

To one of them, he says:


"O my Lord! send me back

(To life),--

100.
\"In order that I may

Work righteousness in the things

I neglected."--"By no means!

It is but a word he says."--

Before them is a Partition

Till the Day they are

Raised up.

101.
When the Trumpet

Is blown, there will be

No more relationships

Between them that day,

Nor will one ask after another!

p. 892

102.
Then those whose balance

(Of good deeds) is heavy,--

They will attain salvation:

103.
But those whose balance

Is light, will be those

Who have lost their souls;

In Hell will they abide.

104.
The Fire will burn their faces,

And they will therein

Grin, with their lips displaced.

105.
\"Were not My Signs rehearsed

To you, and ye did but

Treat them as falsehoods?"

106.
They will say: "Our Lord!

Our misfortune overwhelmed us,

And we became a people

Astray!

107.
\"Our Lord! Bring us out

Of this: if ever we return

(To evil), then shall we be

Wrong-doers indeed!"

108.
He will say: "Be ye

Driven into it (with ignominy)!

And speak ye not to Me!

109.
\"A part of My servants

There was, who used to pray,

p. 893

'Our Lord! we believe;

Then do Thou forgive us,

And have mercy upon us:


For Thou art the Best

Of those who show mercy!'

110.
\"But ye treated them

With ridicule, so much so

That (ridicule of) them made you

Forget My Message while

Ye were laughing at them!

111.
\"I have rewarded them

This day for their patience

And constancy: they are indeed

The ones that have achieved Bliss:.."

112.
He will say: "What number

Of years did ye stay

On earth?"

113.
They will say: "We stayed

A day or part of a day:

But ask those who

Keep account."

114.
He will say: "Ye stayed

Not but a little,--

If ye had only known!

115.
\"Did ye then think

That We had created you

p. 894

In jest, and that ye

Would not be brought back

To Us (for account)?"

116.
Therefore exalted be God,

The King, the Reality:

There is no god but He,

The Lord of the Throne

Of Honour!

117.
If anyone invokes, besides God,

Any other god, he has

No authority therefor;

And his reckoning will be

Only with his Lord!

And verily the Unbelievers

Will fail to win through

118.
So say: "O my Lord!

Grant Thou forgiveness and mercy!

For Thou art the Best

Of those who show mercy!"

api manual chapter 8| manual of hadith
Home > Library > New > Yusuf Ali > The Holy Quran > Sura Xxiii. Mu Minun