Chapter 26: Surah Ash Shuara - Sheikh Omar Al Kazabri

In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful.
26:1 Ta Sin Mim.
26:2 These are the verses of the Book that makes (things) clear.
26:3 Perhaps you will kill yourself with grief because they do not believe.
26:4 If We please, We should send down upon them a sign from the heaven so that their necks should stoop to it.
26:5 And there does not come to them a new reminder from the Beneficent God but they turn aside from it.
26:6 So they have indeed rejected (the truth), therefore the news of that which they mock shall soon come to them.
26:7 Do they not see the earth, how many of every noble kind We have caused to grow in it?
26:8 Most surely there is a sign in that, but most of them will not believe.
26:9 And most surely your Lord is the Mighty, the Merciful.
26:10 And when your Lord called out to Musa, saying: Go to the unjust people,
26:11 The people of Firon: Will they not guard (against evil)?
26:12 He said: O my Lord! surely I fear that they will reject me;
26:13 And by breast straitens, and my tongue is not eloquent, therefore send Thou to Haroun (to help me);
26:14 And they have a crime against me, therefore I fear that they may slay me.
26:15 He said: By no means, so go you both with Our signs; surely We are with you, hearing;
26:16 Then come to Firon and say: Surely we are the messengers of the Lord of the worlds:
26:17 Then send with us the children of Israel.
26:18 (Firon) said: Did we not bring you up as a child among us, and you tarried among us for (many) years of your life?
26:19 And you did (that) deed of yours which you did, and you are one of the ungrateful.
26:20 He said: I did it then while I was of those unable to see the right course;
26:21 So I fled from you when I feared you, then my Lord granted me wisdom and made me of the apostles;
26:22 And is it a favor of which you remind me that you have enslaved the children of Israel?
26:23 Firon said: And what is the Lord of the worlds?
26:24 He said: The Lord of the heavens and the earth and what is between them, if you would be sure.
26:25 (Firon) said to those around him: Do you not hear?
26:26 He said: Your Lord and the Lord of your fathers of old.
26:27 Said he: Most surely your Apostle who is sent to you is mad.
26:28 He said: The Lord of the east and the west and what is between them, if you understand.
26:29 Said he: If you will take a god besides me, I will most certainly make you one of the imprisoned.
26:30 He said: What! even if I bring to you something manifest?
26:31 Said he: Bring it then, if you are of the truthful ones.
26:32 So he cast down his rod, and lo! it was an obvious serpent,
26:33 And he drew forth his hand, and lo! it appeared white to the onlookers.
26:34 (Firon) said to the chiefs around him: Most surely this is a skillful magician,
26:35 Who desires to turn you out of your land with his magic; what is it then that you advise?
26:36 They said: Give him and his brother respite and send heralds into the cities
26:37 That they should bring to you every skillful magician.
26:38 So the magicians were gathered together at the appointed time on the fixed day,
26:39 And it was said to the people: Will you gather together?
26:40 Haply we may follow the magicians, if they are the vanquishers.
26:41 And when the magicians came, they said to Firon: Shall we get a reward if we are the vanquishers?
26:42 He said: Yes, and surely you will then be of those who are made near.
26:43 Musa said to them: Cast what you are going to cast.
26:44 So they cast down their cords and their rods and said: By Firon's power, we shall most surely be victorious.
26:45 Then Musa cast down his staff and lo! it swallowed up the lies they told.
26:46 And the magicians were thrown down prostrate;
26:47 They said: We believe in the Lord of the worlds:
26:48 The Lord of Musa and Haroun.
26:49 Said he: You believe in him before I give you permission; most surely he is the chief of you who taught you the magic, so you shall know: certainly I will cut off your hands and your feet on opposite sides, and certainly I will crucify you all.
26:50 They said: No harm; surely to our Lord we go back;
26:51 Surely we hope that our Lord will forgive us our wrongs because we are the first of the believers.
26:52 And We revealed to Musa, saying: Go away with My servants travelling by night, surely you will be pursued.
26:53 So Firon sent heralds into the cities;
26:54 Most surely these are a small company;
26:55 And most surely they have enraged us;
26:56 And most surely we are a vigilant multitude.
26:57 So We turned them out of gardens and springs,
26:58 And treasures and goodly dwellings,
26:59 Even so. And We gave them as a heritage to the children of Israel.
26:60 Then they pursued them at sunrise.
26:61 So when the two hosts saw each other, the companions of Musa cried out: Most surely we are being overtaken.
26:62 He said: By no means; surely my Lord is with me: He will show me a way out.
26:63 Then We revealed to Musa: Strike the sea with your staff. So it had cloven asunder, and each part was like a huge mound.
26:64 And We brought near, there, the others.
26:65 And We saved Musa and those with him, all of them.
26:66 Then We drowned the others.
26:67 Most surely there is a sign in this, but most of them do not believe.
26:68 And most surely your Lord is the Mighty, the Merciful.
26:69 And recite to them the story of Ibrahim.
26:70 When he said to his father and his people: What do you worship?
26:71 They said: We worship idols, so we shall be their votaries.
26:72 He said: Do they hear you when you call?
26:73 Or do they profit you or cause you harm?
26:74 They said: Nay, we found our fathers doing so.
26:75 He said: Have you then considered what you have been worshipping:
26:76 You and your ancient sires.
26:77 Surely they are enemies to me, but not (so) the Lord of the worlds;
26:78 Who created me, then He has shown me the way:
26:79 And He Who gives me to eat and gives me to drink:
26:80 And when I am sick, then He restores me to health
26:81 And He Who will cause me to die, then give me life;
26:82 And Who, I hope, will forgive me my mistakes on the day of judgment.
26:83 My Lord: Grant me wisdom, and join me with the good
26:84 And ordain for me a goodly mention among posterity
26:85 And make me of the heirs of the garden of bliss
26:86 And forgive my father, for surely he is of those who have gone astray;
26:87 And disgrace me not on the day when they are raised
26:88 The day on which property will not avail, nor sons
26:89 Except him who comes to Allah with a heart free (from evil).
26:90 And the garden shall be brought near for those who guard (against evil),
26:91 And the hell shall be made manifest to the erring ones,
26:92 And it shall be said to them: Where are those that you used to worship;
26:93 Besides Allah? Can they help you or yet help themselves?
26:94 So they shall be thrown down into it, they and the erring ones,
26:95 And the hosts of the Shaitan, all.
26:96 They shall say while they contend therein:
26:97 By Allah! we were certainly in manifest error,
26:98 When we made you equal to the Lord of the worlds;
26:99 And none but the guilty led us astray;
26:100 So we have no intercessors,
26:101 Nor a true friend;
26:102 But if we could but once return, we would be of the believers.
26:103 Most surely there is a sign in this, but most of them do not believe.
26:104 And most surely your Lord is the Mighty, the Merciful.
26:105 The people of Nuh rejected the apostles.
26:106 When their brother Nuh said to them: Will you not guard (against evil)?
26:107 Surely I am a faithful apostle to you;
26:108 Therefore guard against (the punishment of) Allah and obey me
26:109 And I do not ask you any reward for it; my reward is only with the Lord of the worlds:
26:110 So guard against (the punishment of) Allah and obey me.
26:111 They said: Shall we believe in you while the meanest follow you?
26:112 He said: And what knowledge have I of what they do?
26:113 Their account is only with my Lord, if you could perceive
26:114 And I am not going to drive away the believers;
26:115 I am naught but a plain warner.
26:116 They said: If you desist not, O Nuh, you shall most certainly be of those stoned to death.
26:117 He said: My Lord! Surely my people give me the lie!
26:118 Therefore judge Thou between me and them with a (just) judgment, and deliver me and those who are with me of the believers.
26:119 So We delivered him and those with him in the laden ark.
26:120 Then We drowned the rest afterwards
26:121 Most surely there is a sign in this, but most of them do not believe.
26:122 And most surely your Lord is the Mighty, the Merciful.
26:123 Ad gave the lie to the apostles.
26:124 When their brother Hud said to them: Will you not guard (against evil)?
26:125 Surely I am a faithful apostle to you;
26:126 Therefore guard against (the punishment of) Allah and obey me:
26:127 And I do not ask you any reward for it; surely my reward is only with the Lord of the worlds
26:128 Do you build on every height a monument? Vain is it that you do:
26:129 And you make strong fortresses that perhaps you may
26:130 And when you lay hands (on men) you lay hands (like) tyrants;
26:131 So guard against (the punishment of) Allah and obey me
26:132 And be careful of (your duty to) Him Who has given you abundance of what you know.
26:133 He has given you abundance of cattle and children
26:134 And gardens and fountains;
26:135 Surely I fear for you the chastisement of a grievous day
26:136 They said: It is the same to us whether you admonish or are not one of the admonishers
26:137 This is naught but a custom of the ancients;
26:138 And we are not going to be punished.
26:139 So they gave him the lie, then We destroyed them. Most surely there is a sign in this, but most of them do not believe.
26:140 And most surely your Lord is the Mighty, the Merciful.
26:141 Samood gave the lie to the apostles
26:142 When their brother Salih said to them: Will you not guard (against evil)?
26:143 Surely I am a faithful apostle to you
26:144 Therefore guard against (the punishment of) Allah and obey me:
26:145 And I do not ask you any reward for it; my reward is only with the Lord of the worlds:
26:146 Will you be left secure in what is here;
26:147 In gardens and fountains,
26:148 And cornfields and palm-trees having fine spadices?
26:149 And you hew houses out of the mountains exultingly; 150 Therefore guard against (the punishment of) Allah and obey me;
26:150
26:151 And do not obey the bidding of the extravagant,
26:152 Who make mischief in the land and do not act aright.
26:153 They said: You are only of the deluded ones;
26:154 You are naught but a mortal like ourselves; so bring a sign if you are one of the truthful.
26:155 He said: This is a she-camel; she shall have her portion of water, and you have your portion of water on an appointed time;
26:156 And do not touch her with evil, lest the punishment of a grievous day should overtake you.
26:157 But they hamstrung her, then regretted;
26:158 So the punishment overtook them. Most surely there is a sign in this, but most of them do not believe.
26:159 And most surely your Lord is the Mighty, the Merciful.
26:160 The people of Lut gave the lie to the apostles.
26:161 When their brother Lut said to them: Will you not guard (against evil)?
26:162 Surely I am a faithful apostle to you;
26:163 Therefore guard against (the punishment of) Allah and obey me:
26:164 And I do not ask you any reward for it; my reward is only with the Lord of the worlds;
26:165 What! do you come to the males from among the creatures
26:166 And leave what your Lord has created for you of your wives? Nay, you are a people exceeding limits.
26:167 They said: If you desist not, O Lut! you shall surely be of those who are expelled.
26:168 He said: Surely I am of those who utterly abhor your
26:169 My Lord ! deliver me and my followers from what they do.
26:170 So We delivered him and his followers all,
26:171 Except an old woman, among those who remained behind.
26:172 Then We utterly destroyed the others.
26:173 And We rained down upon them a rain, and evil was the rain on those warned.
26:174 Most surely there is a sign in this, but most of them do not believe.
26:175 And most surely your Lord is the Mighty, the Merciful.
26:176 The dwellers of the thicket gave the lie to the apostles.
26:177 When Shu'aib said to them: Will you not guard (against evil)?
26:178 Surely I am a faithful apostle to you;
26:179 Therefore guard against (the punishment of) Allah and obey me:
26:180 And I do not ask you any reward for it, my reward is only with the Lord of the worlds;
26:181 Give a full measure and be not of those who diminish;
26:182 And weigh (things) with a right balance,
26:183 And do not wrong men of their things, and do not act corruptly in the earth, making mischief.
26:184 And guard against (the punishment of) Him who created you and the former nations.
26:185 They said: You are only of those deluded;
26:186 And you are naught but a mortal like ourselves, and we know you to be certainly of the liars.
26:187 Therefore cause a portion of the heaven to come down upon us, if you are one of the truthful.
26:188 He said: My Lord knows best what you do.
26:189 But they called him a liar, so the punishment of the day of covering overtook them; surely it was the punishment of a grievous day.
26:190 Most surely there is a sign in this, but most of them do not believe.
26:191 And most surely your Lord is Mighty, the Merciful.
26:192 And most surely this is a revelation from the Lord of the worlds.
26:193 The Faithful Spirit has descended with it,
26:194 Upon your heart that you may be of the warners
26:195 In plain Arabic language.
26:196 And most surely the same is in the scriptures of the ancients.
26:197 Is it not a sign to them that the learned men of the Israelites know it?
26:198 And if we had revealed it to any of the foreigners
26:199 So that he should have recited it to them, they would not have believed therein.
26:200 Thus have We caused it to enter into the hearts of the guilty.
26:201 They will not believe in it until they see the painful punishment.
26:202 And it shall come to them all of a sudden, while they shall not perceive;
26:203 Then they will say: Shall we be respited?
26:204 What! do they still seek to hasten on Our punishment?
26:205 Have you then considered if We let them enjoy themselves for years,
26:206 Then there comes to them that with which they are threatened,
26:207 That which they were made to enjoy shall not avail them?
26:208 And We did not destroy any town but it had (its) warners,
26:209 To remind, and We are never unjust.
26:210 And the Shaitans have not come down with it.
26:211 And it behoves them not, and they have not the power to do (it).
26:212 Most surely they are far removed from the hearing of it.
26:213 So call not upon another god with Allah, lest you be of those who are punished.
26:214 And warn your nearest relations,
26:215 And be kind to him who follows you of the believers.
26:216 But if they disobey you, then say: Surely I am clear of what you do.
26:217 And rely on the Mighty, the Merciful,
26:218 Who sees you when you stand up.
26:219 And your turning over and over among those who prostrate themselves before Allah.
26:220 Surely He is the Hearing, the Knowing.
26:221 Shall I inform you (of him) upon whom the Shaitans descend?
26:222 They descend upon every lying, sinful one,
26:223 They incline their ears, and most of them are liars.
26:224 And as to the poets, those who go astray follow them.
26:225 Do you not see that they wander about bewildered in every valley?
26:226 And that they say that which they do not do,
26:227 Except those who believe and do good and remember Allah much, and defend themselves after they are oppressed; and they who act unjustly shall know to what final place of turning they shall turn back.

Chapter 13: Surah Ar Ra'd (The Thunder) - Sheikh Ali Al Hudhaifi

In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful.
13:1 Alif Lam Mim Ra. These are the verses of the Book; and that which is revealed to you from your Lord is the truth, but most people do not believe.
13:2 Allah is He Who raised the heavens without any pillars that you see, and He is firm in power and He made the sun and the moon subservient (to you); each one pursues its course to an appointed time; He regulates the affair, making clear the signs that you may be certain of meeting your Lord.
13:3 And He it is Who spread the earth and made in it firm mountains and rivers, and of all fruits He has made in it two kinds; He makes the night cover the day; most surely there are signs in this for a people who reflect.
13:4 And in the earth there are tracts side by side and gardens of grapes and corn and palm trees having one root and (others) having distinct roots-- they are watered with one water, and We make some of them excel others in fruit; most surely there are signs in this for a people who understand.
13:5 And if you would wonder, then wondrous is their saying: What! when we are dust, shall we then certainly be in a new creation? These are they who disbelieve in their Lord, and these have chains on their necks, and they are the inmates of the fire; in it they shall abide.
13:6 And they ask you to hasten on the evil before the good, and indeed there have been exemplary punishments before them; and most surely your Lord is the Lord of forgiveness to people, notwithstanding their injustice; and most surely your Lord is severe in requiting (evil).
13:7 And those who disbelieve say: Why has not a sign been sent down upon him from his Lord? You are only a warner and (there is) a guide for every people.
13:8 Allah knows what every female bears, and that of which the wombs fall short of completion and that in which they increase; and there is a measure with Him of everything.
13:9 The knower of the unseen and the seen, the Great, the Most High.
13:10 Alike (to Him) among you is he who conceals (his) words and he who speaks them openly, and he who hides himself by night and (who) goes forth by day.
13:11 For his sake there are angels following one another, before him and behind him, who guard him by Allah's commandment; surely Allah does not change the condition of a people until they change their own condition; and when Allah intends evil to a people, there is no averting it, and besides Him they have no protector.
13:12 He it is Who shows you the lightning causing fear and hope and (Who) brings up the heavy cloud.
13:13 And the thunder declares His glory with His praise, and the angels too for awe of Him; and He sends the thunderbolts and smites with them whom He pleases, yet they dispute concerning Allah, and He is mighty in prowess.
13:14 To Him is due the true prayer; and those whom they pray to besides Allah give them no answer, but (they are) like one who stretches forth his two hands towards water that it may reach his mouth, but it will not reach it; and the prayer of the unbelievers is only in error.
13:15 And whoever is in the heavens and the earth makes obeisance to Allah only, willingly and unwillingly, and their shadows too at morn and eve.
13:16 Say: Who is the Lord of the heavens and the earth?-- Say: Allah. Say: Do you take then besides Him guardians who do not control any profit or harm for themselves? Say: Are the blind and the seeing alike? Or can the darkness and the light be equal? Or have they set up with Allah associates who have created creation like His, so that what is created became confused to them? Say: Allah is the Creator of all things, and He is the One, the Supreme.
13:17 He sends down water from the cloud, then watercourses flow (with water) according to their measure, and the torrent bears along the swelling foam, and from what they melt in the fire for the sake of making ornaments or apparatus arises a scum like it; thus does Allah compare truth and falsehood; then as for the scum, it passes away as a worthless thing; and as for that which profits the people, it tarries in the earth; thus does Allah set forth parables.
13:18 For those who respond to their Lord is good; and (as for) those who do not respond to Him, had they all that is in the earth and the like thereof with it they would certainly offer it for a ransom. (As for) those, an evil reckoning shall be theirs and their abode is hell, and evil is the resting-place.
13:19 Is he then who knows that what has been revealed to you from your Lord is the truth like him who is blind? Only those possessed of understanding will mind,
13:20 Those who fulfil the promise of Allah and do not break the covenant,
13:21 And those who join that which Allah has bidden to be joined and have awe of their Lord and fear the evil reckoning.
13:22 And those who are constant, seeking the pleasure of their Lord, and keep up prayer and spend (benevolently) out of what We have given them secretly and openly and repel evil with good; as for those, they shall have the (happy) issue of the abode
13:23 The gardens of perpetual abode which they will enter along with those who do good from among their parents and their spouses and their offspring; and the angels will enter in upon them from every gate:
13:24 Peace be on you because you were constant, how excellent, is then, the issue of the abode.
13:25 And those who break the covenant of Allah after its confirmation and cut asunder that which Allah has ordered to be joined and make mischief in the land; (as for) those, upon them shall be curse and they shall have the evil (issue) of the abode.
13:26 Allah amplifies and straitens the means of subsistence for whom He pleases; and they rejoice in this world's life, and this world's life is nothing compared with the hereafter but a temporary enjoyment.
13:27 And those who disbelieve say: Why is not a sign sent down upon him by his Lord? Say: Surely Allah makes him who will go astray, and guides to Himself those who turn (to Him).
13:28 Those who believe and whose hearts are set at rest by the remembrance of Allah; now surely by Allah's remembrance are the hearts set at rest.
13:29 (As for) those who believe and do good, a good final state shall be theirs and a goodly return.
13:30 And thus We have sent you among a nation before which other nations have passed away, that you might recite to them what We have revealed to you and (still) they deny the Beneficent God. Say: He is my Lord, there is no god but He; on Him do I rely and to Him is my return.
13:31 And even if there were a Quran with which the mountains were made to pass away, or the earth were travelled over with it, or the dead were made to speak thereby; nay! the commandment is wholly Allah's, Have not yet those who believe known that if Allah please He would certainly guide all the people? And (as for) those who disbelieve, there will not cease to afflict them because of what they do a repelling calamity, or it will alight close by their abodes, until the promise of Allah comes about; surely Allah will not fail in (His) promise.
13:32 And apostles before you were certainly mocked at, but I gave respite to those who disbelieved, then I destroyed them; how then was My requital (of evil)?
13:33 Is He then Who watches every soul as to what it earns? And yet they give associates to Allah! Say: Give them a name; nay, do you mean to inform Him of what He does not know in the earth, or (do you affirm this) by an outward saying? Rather, their plans are made to appear fair-seeming to those who disbelieve, and they are kept back from the path; and whom Allah makes err, he shall have no guide.
13:34 They shall have chastisement in this world's life, and the chastisement of the hereafter is certainly more grievous, and they shall have no protector against Allah.
13:35 A likeness of the garden which the righteous are promised; there now beneath it rivers, its food and shades are perpetual; this is the requital of those who guarded (against evil), and the requital of the unbelievers is the fire.
13:36 And those to whom We have given the Book rejoice in that which has been revealed to you, and of the confederates are some who deny a part of it. Say: I am only commanded that I should serve Allah and not associate anything with Him, to Him do I invite (you) and to Him is my return.
13:37 And thus have We revealed it, a true judgment in Arabic, and if you follow their low desires after what has come to you of knowledge, you shall not have against Allah any guardian or a protector.
13:38 And certainly We sent apostles before you and gave them wives and children, and it is not in (the power of) an apostle to bring a sign except by Allah's permission; for every term there is an appointment.
13:39 Allah makes to pass away and establishes what He pleases, and with Him is the basis of the Book.
13:40 And We will either let you see part of what We threaten them with or cause you to die, for only the delivery of the message is (incumbent) on you, while calling (them) to account is Our (business).
13:41 Do they not see that We are bringing destruction upon the land by curtailing it of its sides? And Allah pronounces a doom-- there is no repeller of His decree, and He is swift to take account.
13:42 And those before them did indeed make plans, but all planning is Allah's; He knows what every soul earns, and the unbelievers shall come to know for whom is the (better) issue of the abode.
13:43 And those who disbelieve say: You are not a messenger. Say: Allah is sufficient as a witness between me and you and whoever has knowledge of the Book.

The categories of Tawheed - according to Quran and Sunnah

Gulf Times, Qatar, 2 Nov 07

Tawheed is traditionally divided into three major categories. Here is a brief explanation of them for the purpose of clarification. We will attempt to use clear expression as much as possible although the use of certain “technical” terms is unavoidable.
The division of tawheed into several components was not done by the Prophet (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) or his noble companions, radiallahu ‘anhum. There was no necessity to analyse such a basic principle in that manner at that time. That is, the Prophet (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) and his companions (radiallahu ‘anhum) did not sit in circles of learning and begin teaching tawheed by saying, “Category one of tawheed is such and such...”
Nonetheless, each of the foundations and components of the categories of tawheed are clearly based in the Qur’an and the authentic statements of the Prophet (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) as will become clear in the coming explanations of each category.

Tawheed Ar-Ruboobiyyah (The Unity of Lordship)

This is the fundamental understanding that Allah is Ar-Rabb (commonly translated as the Lord). That is, He is the maintainer and sustainer of all things without Whom nothing would exist. The word Rabb in itself refers to a relationship of dominance and control. He created and sustains all of the creation, without any need of it nor does He need any assistance to maintain or provide for His creatures. Nothing occurs unless He allows it to occur, and it is He who gives any power at all to His creation.
Allah states (which means):
“Allah created all things and He is the Wakeel (Trustee, Disposer of affairs, Guardian)” [Al-Qur’an 2: 62]
And Allah created you all and whatever you do. [Al-Qur’an 37: 96]
It was not you who threw when you threw, but it was Allah Who threw. [Al-Qur’an 8: 17]
And no calamity strikes except by Allah’s permission. [Al-Qur’an 64:11]
The Prophet Muhammad (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) stated: “Be aware that if the whole of mankind gathered together in order to do something to help you, they would not be able to do anything for you unless Allah had already written it for you. Likewise, if the whole of humanity gathered to harm you they would only be able to harm you if Allah had already written that for you.” [Reported by Ibn Abbaas and collected by At-Tirmidhee]
His is verily all creation and commandment, blessed is Allah the Lord of all the worlds. [Soorah Al-’Araaf Aayah 54]
The belief in predestination, or Qadr, is incorporated in this aspect of tawheed. Qadr is the belief that everything that happens is from the knowledge, will and power of Allah. It also incorporates the belief that Allah Alone has the right to legislate and judge (Al-Haakimiyyah). Ar-Ruboobiyyah is found in virtually every chapter of the Qur’an and is a type of foundation for all other aspects of tawheed. Because of His status as Ar-Rabb, He alone merits worship, reverence, submission, praise, remembrance, supplication, hope and fear. He alone possesses the power to create and command and He is the Creator, Master and Controller who must necessarily possess the perfect qualities and attributes in order to be Ar-Rabb.
The Qur’an mentions Ar-Ruboobiyyah in the context of praising, worshipping, surrendering, submitting and supplicating to Allah. Even the polytheists of old and most people today recognise this aspect of tawheed although they may have denied the others or have an incorrect understanding of each.
If you ask them (i.e. the disbelievers) ‘Who created the heavens and the earth?’ they will surely say ‘Allah’. [Soorah Az-Zukhruf 87]

Tawheed Al-Uloohiyyah or Tawheed Al-’Ibaadah [The Unity of Deity (Godhood) or Worship]

This means to single out Allah as the object of all worship (‘ibaadah) such that a person does not take anything or anyone else besides Allah as an object of worship nor do acts of devotion as he does for Allah. Neither prayer, fasting, pilgrimage, total obedience, complete trust, absolute love or hope is to be given to other than Allah because He alone is the true deity (ilaah).
The pagan polytheists in the time of the Prophet (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) believed that Allah was their Rabb, yet that alone did not make them Muslims. They used to devote various types of worship to Him and even claimed to be followers of the religion of Ibrahim (‘alaihi salaam). Some even believed in the Resurrection and a Final Judgment and others in divine decree (Al-Qadr). Despite all this they were still classified by Allah in the Qur’an as disbelievers (kuffaar) and polytheists (mushrikoon) because of their disbelief in this most important of the categories of Tawheed. They joined other gods with Allah and did not accept the unity of Allah.
The unity of worship – that is, that worship is to and for Allah Alone – must be maintained because He alone deserves to be worshipped and He alone can benefit man as a result. No intercessor or intermediary such as a priest or holy man is needed between any person and Allah. The importance of directing all forms of worship to Allah Alone is emphasised time and again in the Qur’an. It is the purpose and goal of creation and the message that was the central to the mission of all the Prophets (anbiyaa’) and messengers (rusul) of Allah.
Allah states: I did not create the Jinn nor Mankind except for My worship. [Soorah Adh-Dhaariyaat 56]
Verily We have sent to every nation a messenger (saying), ‘Worship Allah and stay away from false gods’. [Soorah An-Nahl 36]
You alone do we worship and from You alone do we seek help. [Soorah Al-Faatihah]
The Prophet (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) said, If you ask in prayer, ask only Allah, and if you seek help, seek it only from Allah. [Reported by Ibn Abbaas and collected by At-Tirmidhee]
The confirmation and belief in Tawheed Al-Uloohiyyah necessitates the denial of all forms of intercession or association of partners with Allah such as praying or making any supplication to a dead or living person, or to an inanimate object for any reason. The Prophet (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) said, Duaa (prayer or supplication) is worship.
Asking a righteous living person to supplicate on one’s behalf is permitted because one is not asking them to grant the blessing, favour or help but rather asking them to ask Allah on one’s behalf. As for the dead, they are unable to hear, nor are they able to help themselves! And those whom you invoke or call upon instead of Him, own not even the thin membrane over the date-stone.
If you invoke or call upon them, they hear not your call and if in case they were to hear you they could not grant your request and on the Day of Resurrection they will disown your worshipping them. [Soorah Al-Fatir 13-14]
Verily you cannot make the dead to hear, nor can you make the deaf to hear the call when they flee turning their backs. Nor can you lead the blind out of their error. You can only make to hear those who believe in Our Ayaat and who have submitted themselves as Muslims. [Soorah An-Naml Aayah 80-81]
The Qur’an mentions the excuse of those who would rationalise their worship of idols. They said, “We only worship them so that they may bring us closer to Allah.” [Soorah Az-Zumar 3]
Their idols were used only as intermediaries yet Allah nonetheless condemned them for their practices. Many Christians direct their prayer to Jesus or his mother. The Catholics have numerous saints to whom they direct their prayers for various occasions. Catholics use priests as intercessors. Some deviated Muslim sects devote certain hours of the day for prayer to members of the family of the Prophet (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam). Many visit the grave of the Prophet (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) in hopes that he would answer their prayers and he specifically condemned this practice so much so that it was among his last words...Do not make my tomb a worshipped idol. [Muwatta Imam Malik]. The curse of Allah falls upon the Jews and Christians for they have made their prophets’ tombs places of worship. [Al-Bukhari and Muwatta Imam Malik].
A significant part of belief in Tawheed Al-Uloohiyyah involves implementation of Shari’ah (Islamic Law) because to do so is recognition of Allah as the ultimate Law-giver who is to be obeyed absolutely. To do otherwise is an act of disbelief in divine law and an expression of belief in the correctness of systems other than Allah’s system. In this point we can clearly recognise the relationship with Ar-Ruboobiyyah and Allah’s right to judge, legislate and be obeyed.

Tawheed Al-Asmaa wa Sifaat – The Tawheed of Allah’s names and attributes

And Allah has the most excellent and perfect names, so call on Him by them, and abandon the company of those who deviate and commit shirk with regard to them – they will be punished for what they used to do. [Soorah Al-A’raaf (7): 180]
His is the highest and most perfect description (none has the right to be worshipped but him, and nothing is like Him) in the heavens and the earth, and He is the All-Mighty, the All-Wise. [Soorah Ar-Room (30): 27]
There is nothing like Him, and He is the All-Seeing, the All-Hearing. [Soorah Ash-Shoorah (42):11]
In general, the unification of Allah’s names and attributes (Tawheed Al-Asmaa wa Sifaat) means the firm conviction that Allah, the Glorious and Mighty, is characterised by all the attributes of perfection, is above all defects and deficiencies, and that He alone is distinguished from His creation by these characteristics. This Tawheed is achieved by:
1. Attesting to all the names and attributes of Allah reported about Himself and those confirmed by His Prophet (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) in the Qur’an and Sunnah. This is called ithbaat.
2. Not altering their expression or meaning. This alteration is called tahreef
3. Not nullifying them by denying all or some of them. To nullify called ta’teel
4. Not modifying them by attempting to determine their essence and assigning a certain form to them. To modify is called takyeef
5. Not comparing them to any human characteristic such as assigning to Him the qualities that are not suiting His majesty but rather belong to His creation or assigning qualities that befit Allah alone to His creation. Such similitudes are called tamtheel and tashbeeh respectively.
Guidelines For Understanding Allah’s Attributes (Sifaat)
We emphasise that the only way to know Allah’s attributes is by learning what He says about Himself and what His Messenger (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) says about Him. The Qur’an and the authentic Sunnah are sufficient, and must be taken as the only sources for this knowledge. We should restrict ourselves to them, without trying to improve on them by referring to earlier scriptures or books of wisdom, or by relying on our limited power of reason.
Some of the reasons for this are as follows:
1) Allah’s attributes and qualities are part of the knowledge of the ghayb (that which is unseen and beyond human capability to perceive), which cannot be subjected to our human senses. Revelation is the only channel through which we can acquire true knowledge of the ghayb.
2) Allah is the one who knows what we need to learn about Him in order to conduct our lives in a successful way. Had we needed more knowledge, He would definitely have provided us with it.
3) A quality of the pious, for which they are praised in the Qur’an, is that they believe in the ghayb without questioning or doubting it, as long as it comes from the Qur’an or the authentic Sunnah.
4) Allah the Creator cannot be subjected to the limited faculties of His creatures. No matter how intelligent a human being is, he can never be a match for Allah in knowledge, nor can he ever overstep the bounds that his Creator set for him.
The Foundations of Tawheed of Names and Attributes
The Tawheed of Allah’s names and attributes is based upon three foundations. Whoever deviates from them does not attest to the Tawheed of Allah’s names and attributes.
First: Placing Allah, the Glorious and Exalted, above any likeness to human beings, and beyond any imperfections. The attributes of Allah, the Glorious and Exalted, bear no resemblance whatsoever to any human attribute.
This principle is clearly stated in the following verses: There is nothing like unto Him. [Soorah Ash-Shoorah (42):11]
And there is none coequal or comparable unto Him. [Soorah Al-Ikhlaas (114):4]
So put not forward similitudes for Allah (as there is nothing similar to Him, nor does He resemble anything). In his interpretation of the aayah, “There is nothing like unto Him”, the great Islamic scholar Al-Qurtubi (rahimahullah) said: “It is believed, in this subject, that Allah in His Greatness, Glory, Sovereignty, beauty of names and venerable of attributes, is unlike any of His creation, and nothing could be described through likeness to Him.
The terms the Shari’ah (Islam) employs to describe both the Creator and His creation might be similar in appearance, but they indicate no resemblance between them in reality. The attributes of The Eternal, Exalted and Glorious is He, are incomparable to those of His creation.” Al-Waasiti (rahimahullah) said: “Allah’s self is not like any other self, nor are His names like any other names, nor are His actions like any other actions, nor are His attributes like any other attributes, except in the sense that the same terms are employed to describe Him and His creation. The Eternal is above having the attributes of the newly created, and the newly created cannot possibly have any of His Eternal attributes. This is the creed of the people of Truth, the Sunnah and jama’ah.” (Tafseer Al-Qurtubi, Vol. 16, pg. 8)
Another component of this principle is placing Allah above anything that contradicts His description of Himself; or the descriptions by the Prophet (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) of Him.
The Tawheed of the attributes of Allah means that the Muslim should believe his Creator to be above having a spouse, partner, child, assistant, intercessor (without Allah’s permission) or protector. In addition, he should also place Allah above all imperfections, such as sleep, exhaustion, fatigue, mortality, ignorance, injustice, absent-mindedness, forgetfulness, prejudice, and so on.
Second: Belief in the names and attributes established in the Qur’an and the Sunnah, without detracting from them, expanding upon them, altering or nullifying them.
This principle stipulates that the only names and attributes to be ascribed to Allah are those mentioned in the Qur’an or in the Sunnah; they are directly communicated to us and are not the products of opinion and interpretation. Allah is to be described only by the attributes with which He had described Himself or with which His Prophet (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) had described Him. And He is to be named only by the names with which He had named Himself or with which His Prophet (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) had named Him.
Allah surely knows best about Himself, His names and His attributes. Allah says: Do you know better, or does Allah? [Soorah Al-Baqarah (2): 140] As He knows best about Himself, and His Messengers were truthful and believed, only telling their people what Allah had revealed to them, then His names and attributes should be derived solely from the Qur’an and the Sunnah. Ahmad Ibn Hanbal (may Allah have mercy upon his soul), said: “Allah should only be attributed with those characteristics He described Himself with or was described by His Prophet (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam). His names and attributes should not extend beyond the Qur’an and Sunnah.” (Sharh Al-’Aqeedah Al-Waasitiyyah, pg. 21)
Naim ibn Hamood, the teacher of Al-Bukhari, said: “A person who compares Allah to His creation becomes disbeliever (Kaafir), and a person who denies the attributes Allah ascribed to Himself, or that the Prophet (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam) ascribed to Him, has become a disbeliever. None of those attributes bear any likeness or comparison.” (Sharh Al-’Aqeedah Al-Waasitiyyah and Athaaf Al-Kaa’inaat)
This principle requires everyone to believe in the names and attributes mentioned in the Qur’an and Sunnah of His Prophet (sallallaahu ‘alaihi wa sallam). The believer should comprehend them by the clear and common meanings they have in the Arabic language, with no amendments (through rejecting them or denying some of them) or alteration of their evident, direct meaning.
Third: Abandoning any desire to ascertain the form of those attributes.
This requires a person to believe in these names and attributes mentioned in the Qur’an and the Sunnah without inquiring after their nature and manner or investigating their essence. As attributes vary according to the self they characterise, finding out how they manifest themselves depends upon knowing that self and how it acts. As we cannot inquire into the nature of Allah, His essence and into how His actions take place, we cannot then ask about the way in which His attributes are manifested.
For this reason, it was reported from many scholars such as Imam Malik the great scholar and founder of the Maliki school who, when asked about the manner in which Allah ascended the throne as mentioned in the Qur’an, said: “The sitting (Istiwaa) is known, the manner is unknown, believing in it is an obligation, inquiring about it is a heresy.” (Ar-Rowdah An-Niddiyyah, pg. 29)
If someone were to ask: ‘How does Allah descend to the lower heavens?’ We would reply by asking: ‘What is His nature?’ If the questioner says: ‘I do not know Allah’s nature.’ We say: ‘And we know not how He descends.’ To determine how an attribute is manifested, we should know the nature of whom the attribute belongs. The attribute is but an aspect of its owner, dependent upon him. How could you expect us to explain the manner in which Allah descends, hears, sees, speaks, or sits upon the Throne, when you do not know what His nature is? If you attest that Allah is a constant, absolute reality, incorporating all the attributes of perfection, dissimilar from any other existing thing or being, you must accept that His hearing, seeing, speaking, descending, sitting and others are perpetual and real, and that He is characterised by the attributes of perfection which are not like the hearing, seeing, speaking, descending and sitting of the created beings.

Chapter 8: Surah Al Anfal - Sheikh Ibrahim Jibreen

In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful.
8:1 They ask you about the windfalls. Say: The windfalls are for Allah and the Apostle. So be careful of (your duty to) Allah and set aright matters of your difference, and obey Allah and His Apostle if you are believers.
8:2 Those only are believers whose hearts become full of fear when Allah is mentioned, and when His communications are recited to them they increase them in faith, and in their Lord do they trust.
8:3 Those who keep up prayer and spend (benevolently) out of what We have given them.
8:4 These are the believers in truth; they shall have from their Lord exalted grades and forgiveness and an honorable sustenance.
8:5 Even as your Lord caused you to go forth from your house with the truth, though a party of the believers were surely averse;
8:6 They disputed with you about the truth after it had become clear, (and they went forth) as if they were being driven to death while they saw (it).
8:7 And when.Allah promised you one of the two parties that it shall be yours and you loved that the one not armed should he yours and Allah desired to manifest the truth of what was true by His words and to cut off the root of the unbelievers.
8:8 That He may manifest the truth of what was true and show the falsehood of what was false, though the guilty disliked.
8:9 When you sought aid from your Lord, so He answered you: I will assist you with a thousand of the angels following one another.
8:10 And Allah only gave it as a good news and that your hearts might be at ease thereby; and victory is only from Allah; surely Allah is Mighty, Wise.
8:11 When He caused calm to fall on you as a security from Him and sent down upon you water from the cloud that He might thereby purify you, and take away from you the uncleanness of the Shaitan, and that He might fortify your hearts and steady (your) footsteps thereby.
8:12 When your Lord revealed to the angels: I am with you, therefore make firm those who believe. I will cast terror into the hearts of those who disbelieve. Therefore strike off their heads and strike off every fingertip of them.
8:13 This is because they acted adversely to Allah and His Apostle; and whoever acts adversely to Allah and His Apostle-- then surely Allah is severe in requiting (evil).
8:14 This-- taste it, and (know) that for the unbelievers is the chastisement of fire.
8:15 O you who believe! when you meet those who disbelieve marching for war, then turn not your backs to them.
8:16 And whoever shall turn his back to them on that day-- unless he turn aside for the sake of fighting or withdraws to a company-- then he, indeed, becomes deserving of Allah's wrath, and his abode is hell; and an evil destination shall it be.
8:17 So you did not slay them, but it was Allah Who slew them, and you did not smite when you smote (the enemy), but it was Allah Who smote, and that He might confer upon the believers a good gift from Himself; surely Allah is Hearing, Knowing.
8:18 This, and that Allah is the weakener of the struggle of the unbelievers.
8:19 If you demanded a judgment, the judgment has then indeed come to you; and if you desist, it will be better for you; and if you turn back (to fight), We (too) shall turn back, and your forces shall avail you nothing, though they may be many, and (know) that Allah is with the believers.
8:20 O you who believe! obey Allah and His Apostle and do not turn back from Him while you hear.
8:21 And be not like those who said, We hear, and they did not obey.
8:22 Surely the vilest of animals, in Allah's sight, are the deaf, the dumb, who do not understand.
8:23 And if Allah had known any good in them He would have made them hear, and if He makes them hear they would turn back while they withdraw.
8:24 O you who believe! answer (the call of) Allah and His Apostle when he calls you to that which gives you life; and know that Allah intervenes between man and his heart, and that to Him you shall be gathered.
8:25 And fear an affliction which may not smite those of you in particular who are unjust; and know that Allah is severe in requiting (evil).
8:26 And remember when you were few, deemed weak in the land, fearing lest people might carry you off by force, but He sheltered you and strengthened you with His aid and gave you of the good things that you may give thanks.
8:27 O you who believe! be not unfaithful to Allah and the Apostle, nor be unfaithful to your trusts while you know.
8:28 And know that your property and your children are a temptation, and that Allah is He with Whom there is a mighty reward.
8:29 O you who believe! If you are careful of (your duty to) Allah, He will grant you a distinction and do away with your evils and forgive you; and Allah is the Lord of mighty grace.
8:30 And when those who disbelieved devised plans against you that they might confine you or slay you or drive you away; and they devised plans and Allah too had arranged a plan; and Allah is the best of planners.
8:31 And when Our communications are recited to them, they say: We have heard indeed; if we pleased we could say the like of it; this is nothing but the stories of the ancients.
8:32 And when they said: O Allah! if this is the truth from Thee, then rain upon us stones from heaven or inflict on us a painful punishment.
8:33 But Allah was not going to chastise them while you were among them, nor is Allah going to chastise them while yet they ask for forgiveness.
8:34 And what (excuse) have they that Allah should not chastise them while they hinder (men) from the Sacred Mosque and they are not (fit to be) guardians of it; its guardians are only those who guard (against evil), but most of them do not know.
8:35 And their prayer before the House is nothing but whistling and clapping of hands; taste then the chastisement, for you disbelieved.
8:36 Surely those who disbelieve spend their wealth to hinder (people) from the way of Allah; so they shall spend it, then it shall be to them an intense regret, then they shall be overcome; and those who disbelieve shall be driven together to hell.
8:37 That Allah might separate the impure from the good, and put the impure, some of it upon the other, and pile it up together, then cast it into hell; these it is that are the losers.
8:38 Say to those who disbelieve, if they desist, that which is past shall be forgiven to them; and if they return, then what happened to the ancients has already passed.
8:39 And fight with them until there is no more persecution and religion should be only for Allah; but if they desist, then surely Allah sees what they do.
8:40 And if they turn back, then know that Allah is your Patron; most excellent is the Patron and most excellent the Helper.
8:41 And know that whatever thing you gain, a fifth of it is for Allah and for the Apostle and for the near of kin and the orphans and the needy and the wayfarer, if you believe in Allah and in that which We revealed to Our servant, on the day of distinction, the day on which the two parties met; and Allah has power over all things.
8:42 When you were on the nearer side (of the valley) and they were on the farthest side, while the caravan was in a lower place than you; and if you had mutually made an appointment, you would certainly have broken away from the appointment, but-- in order that Allah might bring about a matter which was to be done, that he who would perish might perish by clear proof, and he who would live might live by clear proof; and most surely Allah is Hearing, Knowing;
8:43 When Allah showed them to you in your dream as few; and if He had shown them to you as many you would certainly have become weak-hearted and you would have disputed about the matter, but Allah saved (you); surely He is the Knower of what is in the breasts.
8:44 And when He showed them to you, when you met, as few in your eyes and He made you to appear little in their eyes, in order that Allah might bring about a matter which was to be done, and to Allah are all affairs returned.
8:45 O you who believe! when you meet a party, then be firm, and remember Allah much, that you may be successful.
8:46 And obey Allah and His Apostle and do not quarrel for then you will be weak in hearts and your power will depart, and be patient; surely Allah is with the patient.
8:47 And be not like those who came forth from their homes in great exultation and to be seen of men, and (who) turn away from the way of Allah, and Allah comprehends what they do.
8:48 And when the Shaitan made their works fair seeming to them, and said: No one can overcome you this day, and surely I am your protector: but when the two parties came in sight of each other he turned upon his heels, and said: Surely I am clear of you, surely I see what you do not see, surely I fear Allah; and Allah is severe in requiting (evil).
8:49 When the hypocrites and those in whose hearts was disease said: Their religion has deceived them; and whoever trusts in Allah, then surely Allah is Mighty, Wise.
8:50 And had you seen when the angels will cause to die those who disbelieve, smiting their faces and their backs, and (saying): Taste the punishment of burning.
8:51 This is for what your own hands have sent on before, and because Allah is not in the least unjust to the servants;
8:52 In the manner of the people of Firon and those before them; they disbelieved in Allah's communications, therefore Allah destroyed them on account of their faults; surely Allah is strong, severe in requiting (evil).
8:53 This is because Allah has never changed a favor which He has conferred upon a people until they change their own condition; and because Allah is Hearing, Knowing;
8:54 In the manner of the people of Firon and those before them; they rejected the communications of their Lord, therefore We destroyed them on account of their faults and We drowned Firon's people, and they were all unjust.
8:55 Surely the vilest of animals in Allah's sight are those who disbelieve, then they would not believe.
8:56 Those with whom you make an agreement, then they break their agreement every time and they do not guard (against punishment).
8:57 Therefore if you overtake them in fighting, then scatter by (making an example of) them those who are in their rear, that they may be mindful.
8:58 And if you fear treachery on the part of a people, then throw back to them on terms of equality; surely Allah does not love the treacherous.
8:59 And let not those who disbelieve think that they shall come in first; surely they will not escape.
8:60 And prepare against them what force you can and horses tied at the frontier, to frighten thereby the enemy of Allah and your enemy and others besides them, whom you do not know (but) Allah knows them; and whatever thing you will spend in Allah's way, it will be paid back to you fully and you shall not be dealt with unjustly.
8:61 And if they incline to peace, then incline to it and trust in Allah; surely He is the Hearing, the Knowing.
8:62 And if they intend to deceive you-- then surely Allah is sufficient for you; He it is Who strengthened you with His help and with the believers
8:63 And united their hearts; had you spent all that is in the earth, you could not have united their hearts, but Allah united them; surely He is Mighty, Wise.
8:64 O Prophet! Allah is sufficient for you and (for) such of the believers as follow you.
8:65 O Prophet! urge the believers to war; if there are twenty patient ones of you they shall overcome two hundred, and if there are a hundred of you they shall overcome a thousand of those who disbelieve, because they are a people who do not understand.
8:66 For the present Allah has made light your burden, and He knows that there is weakness in you; so if there are a hundred patient ones of you they shall overcome two hundred, and if there are a thousand they shall overcome two thousand by Allah's permission, and Allah is with the patient.
8:67 It is not fit for a prophet that he should take captives unless he has fought and triumphed in the land; you desire the frail goods of this world, while Allah desires (for you) the hereafter; and Allah is Mighty, Wise.
8:68 Were it not for an ordinance from Allah that had already gone forth, surely there would have befallen you a great chastisement for what you had taken to.
8:69 Eat then of the lawful and good (things) which you have acquired in war, and be careful of (your duty to) Allah; surely Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.
8:70 O Prophet! say to those of the captives who are in your hands: If Allah knows anything good in your hearts, He will give to you better than that which has been taken away from you and will forgive you, and Allah is Forgiving, Merciful.
8:71 And if they intend to act unfaithfully towards you, so indeed they acted unfaithfully towards Allah before, but He gave (you) mastery over them; and Allah is Knowing, Wise.
8:72 Surely those who believed and fled (their homes) and struggled hard in Allah's way with their property and their souls, and those who gave shelter and helped-- these are guardians of each other; and (as for) those who believed and did not fly, not yours is their guardianship until they fly; and if they seek aid from you in the matter of religion, aid is incumbent on you except against a people between whom and you there is a treaty, and Allah sees what you do.
8:73 And (as for) those who disbelieve, some of them are the guardians of others; if you will not do it, there will be in the land persecution and great mischief.
8:74 And (as for) those who believed and fled and struggled hard in Allah's way, and those who gave shelter and helped, these are the believers truly; they shall have forgiveness and honorable provision.
8:75 And (as for) those who believed afterwards and fled and struggled hard along with you, they are of you; and the possessors of relationships are nearer to each other in the ordinance of Allah; surely Allah knows all things.

Chapter 18: Surah Al Kahfi - Sheikh Omar Al Kazabri

In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful.
18:1 (All) praise is due to Allah, Who revealed the Book to His servant and did not make in it any crookedness.
18:2 Rightly directing, that he might give warning of severe punishment from Him and give good news to the believers who do good that they shall have a goodly reward,
18:3 Staying in it for ever;
18:4 And warn those who say: Allah has taken a son.
18:5 They have no knowledge of it, nor had their fathers; a grievous word it is that comes out of their mouths; they speak nothing but a lie.
18:6 Then maybe you will kill yourself with grief, sorrowing after them, if they do not believe in this announcement.
18:7 Surely We have made whatever is on the earth an embellishment for it, so that We may try them (as to) which of them is best in works.
18:8 And most surely We will make what is on it bare ground without herbage.
18:9 Or, do you think that the Fellows of the Cave and the Inscription were of Our wonderful signs?
18:10 When the youths sought refuge in the cave, they said: Our Lord! grant us mercy from Thee, and provide for us a right course in our affair.
18:11 So We prevented them from hearing in the cave for a number of years.
18:12 Then We raised them up that We might know which of the two parties was best able to compute the time for which they remained.
18:13 We relate to you their story with the truth; surely they were youths who believed in their Lord and We increased them in guidance.
18:14 And We strengthened their hearts with patience, when they stood up and said: Our Lord is the Lord of the heavens and the earth; we will by no means call upon any god besides Him, for then indeed we should have said an extravagant thing.
18:15 These our people have taken gods besides Him; why do they not produce any clear authority in their support? Who is then more unjust than he who forges a lie against Allah?
18:16 And when you forsake them and what they worship save Allah, betake yourselves for refuge to the cave; your Lord will extend to you largely of His mercy and provide for you a profitable course in your affair.
18:17 And you might see the sun when it rose, decline from their cave towards the right hand, and when it set, leave them behind on the left while they were in a wide space thereof. This is of the signs of Allah; whomsoever Allah guides, he is the rightly guided one, and whomsoever He causes to err, you shall not find for him any friend to lead (him) aright.
18:18 And you might think them awake while they were asleep and We turned them about to the right and to the left, while their dog (lay) outstretching its paws at the entrance; if you looked at them you would certainly turn back from them in flight, and you would certainly be filled with awe because of them.
18:19 And thus did We rouse them that they might question each other. A speaker among them said: How long have you tarried? They said: We have tarried for a day or a part of a day. (Others) said: Your Lord knows best how long you have tarried. Now send one of you with this silver (coin) of yours to the city, then let him see which of them has purest food, so let him bring you provision from it, and let him behave with gentleness, and by no means make your case known to any one:
18:20 For surely if they prevail against you they would stone you to death or force you back to their religion, and then you will never succeed.
18:21 And thus did We make (men) to get knowledge of them that they might know that Allah's promise is true and that as for the hour there is no doubt about it. When they disputed among themselves about their affair and said: Erect an edifice over them-- their Lord best knows them. Those who prevailed in their affair said: We will certainly raise a masjid over them.
18:22 (Some) say: (They are) three, the fourth of them being their dog; and (others) say: Five, the sixth of them being their dog, making conjectures at what is unknown; and (others yet) say: Seven, and the eighth of them is their dog. Say: My Lord best knows their number, none knows them but a few; therefore contend not in the matter of them but with an outward contention, and do not question concerning them any of them.
18:23 And do not say of anything: Surely I will do it tomorrow,
18:24 Unless Allah pleases; and remember your Lord when you forget and say: Maybe my Lord will guide me to a nearer course to the right than this.
18:25 And they remained in their cave three hundred years and (some) add (another) nine.
18:26 Say: Allah knows best how long they remained; to Him are (known) the unseen things of the heavens and the earth; how clear His sight and how clear His hearing! There is none to be a guardian for them besides Him, and He does not make any one His associate in His Judgment.
18:27 And recite what has been revealed to you of the Book of your Lord, there is none who can alter His words; and you shall not find any refuge besides Him.
18:28 And withhold yourself with those who call on their Lord morning and evening desiring His goodwill, and let not your eyes pass from them, desiring the beauties of this world's life; and do not follow him whose heart We have made unmindful to Our remembrance, and he follows his low desires and his case is one in which due bounds are exceeded.
18:29 And say: The truth is from your Lord, so let him who please believe, and let him who please disbelieve; surely We have prepared for the iniquitous a fire, the curtains of which shall encompass them about; and if they cry for water, they shall be given water like molten brass which will scald their faces; evil the drink and ill the resting-place.
18:30 Surely (as for) those who believe and do good, We do not waste the reward of him who does a good work.
18:31 These it is for whom are gardens of perpetuity beneath which rivers flow, ornaments shall be given to them therein of bracelets of gold, and they shall wear green robes of fine silk and thick silk brocade interwoven with gold, reclining therein on raised couches; excellent the recompense and goodly the resting place.
18:32 And set forth to them a parable of two men; for one of them We made two gardens of grape vines, and We surrounded them both with palms, and in the midst of them We made cornfields.
18:33 Both these gardens yielded their fruits, and failed not aught thereof, and We caused a river to gush forth in their midst,
18:34 And he possessed much wealth; so he said to his companion, while he disputed with him: I have greater wealth than you, and am mightier in followers.
18:35 And he entered his garden while he was unjust to himself. He said: I do not think that this will ever perish
18:36 And I do not think the hour will come, and even if I am returned to my Lord I will most certainly find a returning place better than this.
18:37 His companion said to him while disputing with him: Do you disbelieve in Him Who created you from dust, then from a small seed, then He made you a perfect man?
18:38 But as for me, He, Allah, is my Lord, and I do not associate anyone with my Lord.
18:39 And wherefore did you not say when you entered your garden: It is as Allah has pleased, there is no power save in Allah? If you consider me to be inferior to you in wealth and children,
18:40 Then maybe my Lord will give me what is better than your garden, and send on it a thunderbolt from heaven so that it shall become even ground without plant,
18:41 Or its waters should sink down into the ground so that you are unable to find it.
18:42 And his wealth was destroyed; so he began to wring his hands for what he had spent on it, while it lay, having fallen down upon its roofs, and he said: Ah me! would that I had not associated anyone with my Lord.
18:43 And he had no host to help him besides Allah nor could he defend himself.
18:44 Here is protection only Allah's, the True One; He is best in (the giving of) reward and best in requiting.
18:45 And set forth to them parable of the life of this world: like water which We send down from the cloud so the herbage of the earth becomes tangled on account of it, then it becomes dry broken into pieces which the winds scatter; and Allah is the holder of power over all things.
18:46 Wealth and children are an adornment of the life of this world; and the ever-abiding, the good works, are better with your Lord in reward and better in expectation.
18:47 And the day on which We will cause the mountains to pass away and you will see the earth a levelled plain and We will gather them and leave not any one of them behind.
18:48 And they shall be brought before your Lord, standing in ranks: Now certainly you have come to Us as We created you at first. Nay, you thought that We had not appointed to you a time of the fulfillment of the promise.
18:49 And the Book shall be placed, then you will see the guilty fearing from what is in it, and they will say: Ah! woe to us! what a book is this! it does not omit a small one nor a great one, but numbers them (all); and what they had done they shall find present (there); and your Lord does not deal unjustly with anyone.
18:50 And when We said to the angels: Make obeisance to Adam; they made obeisance but Iblis (did it not). He was of the jinn, so he transgressed the commandment of his Lord. What! would you then take him and his offspring for friends rather than Me, and they are your enemies? Evil is (this) change for the unjust.
18:51 I did not make them witnesses of the creation of the heavens and the earth, nor of the creation of their own souls; nor could I take those who lead (others) astray for aiders.
18:52 And on the day when He shall say: Call on those whom you considered to be My associates. So they shall call on them, but they shall not answer them, and We will cause a separation between them.
18:53 And the guilty shall see the fire, then they shall know that they are going to fall into it, and they shall not find a place to which to turn away from it.
18:54 And certainly We have explained in this Quran every kind of example, and man is most of all given to contention.
18:55 And nothing prevents men from believing when the guidance comes to them, and from asking forgiveness of their Lord, except that what happened to the ancients should overtake them, or that the chastisement should come face to face with them.
18:56 And We do not send apostles but as givers of good news and warning, and those who disbelieve make a false contention that they may render null thereby the truth, and they take My communications and that with which they are warned for a mockery.
18:57 And who is more unjust than he who is reminded of the communications of his Lord, then he turns away from them and forgets what his two hands have sent before? Surely We have placed veils over their hearts lest they should understand it and a heaviness in their ears; and if you call them to the guidance, they will not ever follow the right course in that case.
18:58 And your Lord is Forgiving, the Lord of Mercy; were He to punish them for what they earn, He would certainly have hastened the chastisement for them; but for them there is an appointed time from which they shall not find a refuge.
18:59 And (as for) these towns, We destroyed them when they acted unjustly, and We have appointed a time for their destruction.
18:60 And when Musa said to his servant: I will not cease until I reach the junction of the two rivers or I will go on for years.
18:61 So when they had reached the junction of the two (rivers) they forgot their fish, and it took its way into the sea, going away.
18:62 But when they had gone farther, he said to his servant: Bring to us our morning meal, certainly we have met with fatigue from this our journey.
18:63 He said: Did you see when we took refuge on the rock then I forgot the fish, and nothing made me forget to speak of it but the Shaitan, and it took its way into the river; what a wonder!
18:64 He said: This is what we sought for; so they returned retracing their footsteps.
18:65 Then they found one from among Our servants whom We had granted mercy from Us and whom We had taught knowledge from Ourselves.
18:66 Musa said to him: Shall I follow you on condition that you should teach me right knowledge of what you have been taught?
18:67 He said: Surely you cannot have patience with me
18:68 And how can you have patience in that of which you have not got a comprehensive knowledge?
18:69 He said: If Allah pleases, you will find me patient and I shall not disobey you in any matter.
18:70 He said: If you would follow me, then do not question me about any thing until I myself speak to you about it
18:71 So they went (their way) until when they embarked in the boat he made a hole in it. (Musa) said: Have you made a hole in it to drown its inmates? Certainly you have done a grievous thing.
18:72 He said: Did I not say that you will not be able to have patience with me?
18:73 He said: Blame me not for what I forgot, and do not constrain me to a difficult thing in my affair.
18:74 So they went on until, when they met a boy, he slew him. (Musa) said: Have you slain an innocent person otherwise than for manslaughter? Certainly you have done an evil thing.
18:75 He said: Did I not say to you that you will not be able to have patience with me?
18:76 He said: If I ask you about anything after this, keep me not in your company; indeed you shall have (then) found an excuse in my case.
18:77 So they went on until when they came to the people of a town, they asked them for food, but they refused to entertain them as guests. Then they found in it a wall which was on the point of falling, so he put it into a right state. (Musa) said: If you had pleased, you might certainly have taken a recompense for it.
18:78 He said: This shall be separation between me and you; now I will inform you of the significance of that with which you could not have patience.
18:79 As for the boat, it belonged to (some) poor men who worked on the river and I wished that I should damage it, and there was behind them a king who seized every boat by force.
18:80 And as for the boy, his parents were believers and we feared lest he should make disobedience and ingratitude to come upon them:
18:81 So we desired that their Lord might give them in his place one better than him in purity and nearer to having compassion.
18:82 And as for the wall, it belonged to two orphan boys in the city, and there was beneath it a treasure belonging to them, and their father was a righteous man; so your Lord desired that they should attain their maturity and take out their treasure, a mercy from your Lord, and I did not do it of my own accord. This is the significance of that with which you could not have patience.
18:83 And they ask you about Zulqarnain. Say: I will recite to you an account of him.
18:84 Surely We established him in the land and granted him means of access to every thing.
18:85 So he followed a course.
18:86 Until when he reached the place where the sun set, he found it going down into a black sea, and found by it a people. We said: O Zulqarnain! either give them a chastisement or do them a benefit.
18:87 He said: As to him who is injust, we will chastise him, then shall he be returned to his Lord, and He will chastise him with an exemplary chastisement:
18:88 And as for him who believes and does good, he shall have goodly reward, and We will speak to him an easy word of Our command.
18:89 Then he followed (another) course.
18:90 Until when he reached the land of the rising of the sun, he found it rising on a people to whom We had given no shelter from It;
18:91 Even so! and We had a full knowledge of what he had.
18:92 Then he followed (another) course.
18:93 Until when he reached (a place) between the two mountains, he found on that side of them a people who could hardly understand a word.
18:94 They said: O Zulqarnain! surely Gog and Magog make mischief in the land. Shall we then pay you a tribute on condition that you should raise a barrier between us and them
18:95 He said: That in which my Lord has established me is better, therefore you only help me with workers, I will make a fortified barrier between you and them;
18:96 Bring me blocks of iron; until when he had filled up the space between the two mountain sides, he said: Blow, until when he had made it (as) fire, he said: Bring me molten brass which I may pour over it.
18:97 So they were not able to scale it nor could they make a hole in it.
18:98 He said: This is a mercy from my Lord, but when the promise of my Lord comes to pass He will make it level with the ground, and the promise of my Lord is ever true.
18:99 And on that day We will leave a part of them in conflict with another part, and the trumpet will be blown, so We will gather them all together;
18:100 And We will bring forth hell, exposed to view, on that day before the unbelievers.
18:101 They whose eyes were under a cover from My reminder and they could not even hear.
18:102 What! do then those who disbelieve think that they can take My servants to be guardians besides Me? Surely We have prepared hell for the entertainment of the unbelievers.
18:103 Say: Shall We inform you of the greatest losers in (their) deeds?
18:104 (These are) they whose labor is lost in this world's life and they think that they are well versed in skill of the work of hands.
18:105 These are they who disbelieve in the communications of their Lord and His meeting, so their deeds become null, and therefore We will not set up a balance for them on the day of resurrection.
18:106 Thus it is that their recompense is hell, because they disbelieved and held My communications and My apostles in mockery.
18:107 Surely (as for) those who believe and do good deeds, their place of entertainment shall be the gardens of paradise,
18:108 Abiding therein; they shall not desire removal from them.
18:109 Say: If the sea were ink for the words of my Lord, the sea would surely be consumed before the words of my Lord are exhausted, though We were to bring the like of that (sea) to add
18:110 Say: I am only a mortal like you; it is revealed to me that your god is one God, therefore whoever hopes to meet his Lord, he should do good deeds, and not join any one in the service of his Lord.

Chapter 28: Surah Al Qasas (the Narration) - Sheikh Mishari Rashid Efasy

In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful.
28:1 Ta sin Mim.
28:2 These are the verses of the Book that makes (things) clear.
28:3 We recite to you from the account of Musa and Firon with truth for people who believe.
28:4 Surely Firon exalted himself in the land and made its people into parties, weakening one party from among them; he slaughtered their sons and let their women live; surely he was one of the mischiefmakers.
28:5 And We desired to bestow a favor upon those who were deemed weak in the land, and to make them the Imams, and to make them the heirs,
28:6 And to grant them power in the land, and to make Firon and Haman and their hosts see from them what they feared.
28:7 And We revealed to Musa's mothers, saying: Give him suck, then when you fear for him, cast him into the river and do not fear nor grieve; surely We wi!l bring him back to you and make him one of the apostles.
28:8 And Firon's family took him up that he might be an enemy and a grief for them; surely Firon and Haman and their hosts were wrongdoers.
28:9 And Firon's wife said: A refreshment of the eye to me and to you; do not slay him; maybe he will be useful to us, or we may take him for a son; and they did not perceive.
28:10 And the heart of Musa's mother was free (from anxiety) she would have almost disclosed it had We not strengthened her heart so that she might be of the believers.
28:11 And she said to his sister: Follow him up. So she watched him from a distance while they did not perceive,
28:12 And We ordained that he refused to suck any foster mother before, so she said: Shall I point out to you the people of a house who will take care of him for you, and they will be benevolent to him?
28:13 So We gave him back to his mother that her eye might be refreshed, and that she might no grieve, and that she might know that the promise of Allah is true, but most of them do not know.
28:14 And when he attained his maturity and became full grown, We granted him wisdom and knowledge; and thus do We reward those who do good (to others).
28:15 And he went into the city at a time of unvigilance on the part of its people, so he found therein two men fighting, one being of his party and the other of his foes, and he who was of his party cried out to him for help against him who was of his enemies, so Musa struck him with his fist and killed him. He said: This is on account of the Shaitan's doing; surely he is an enemy, openly leading astray.
28:16 He said: My Lord! surely I have done harm to myself, so do Thou protect me. So He protected him; surely He is the Forgiving, the Merciful.
28:17 He said: My Lord! because Thou hast bestowed a favor on me, I shall never be a backer of the guilty.
28:18 And he was in the city, fearing, awaiting, when lo! he who had asked his assistance the day before was crying out to him for aid. Musa said to him: You are most surely one erring manifestly.
28:19 So when he desired to seize him who was an enemy to them both, he said: O Musa! do you intend to kill me as you killed a person yesterday? You desire nothing but that you should be a tyrant in the land, and you do not desire to be of those who act aright.
28:20 And a man came running from the remotest part of the city. He said: O Musa! surely the chiefs are consulting together to slay you, therefore depart (at once); surely I am of those who wish well to you.
28:21 So he went forth therefrom, fearing, awaiting, (and) he said: My Lord! deliver me from the unjust people.
28:22 And when he turned his face towards Madyan, he said: Maybe my Lord will guide me in the right path.
28:23 And when he came to the water of Madyan, he found on it a group of men watering, and he found besides them two women keeping back (their flocks). He said: What is the matter with you? They said: We cannot water until the shepherds take away (their sheep) from the water, and our father is a very old man.
28:24 So he watered (their sheep) for them, then went back to the shade and said: My Lord! surely I stand in need of whatever good Thou mayest send down to me.
28:25 Then one of the two women came to him walking bashfully. She said: My father invites you that he may give you the reward of your having watered for us. So when he came to him and gave to him the account, he said: Fear not, you are secure from the unjust people.
28:26 Said one of them: O my father! employ him, surely the best of those that you can employ is the strong man, the faithful one.
28:27 He said: I desire to marry one of these two daughters of mine to you on condition that you should serve me for eight years; but if you complete ten, it will be of your own free will, and I do not wish to be hard to you; if Allah please, you will find me one of the good.
28:28 He said: This shall be (an agreement) between me and you; whichever of the two terms I fulfill, there shall be no wrongdoing to me; and Allah is a witness of what we say.
28:29 So when Musa had fulfilled the term, and he journeyed with his family, he perceived on this side of the mountain a fire. He said to his family: Wait, I have seen a fire, maybe I will bring to you from it some news or a brand of fire, so that you may warm yourselves.
28:30 And when he came to it, a voice was uttered from the right side of the valley in the blessed spot of the bush, saying: O Musa! surely I am Allah, the Lord of the worlds.
28:31 And saying: Cast down you staff. So when he saw it in motion as if it were a serpent, he turned back retreating, and did not return. O Musa! come forward and fear not; surely you are of those who are secure;
28:32 Enter your hand into the opening of your bosom, it will come forth white without evil, and draw your hand to yourself to ward off fear: so these two shall be two arguments from your Lord to Firon and his chiefs, surely they are a transgressing people.
28:33 He said: My Lord! surely I killed one of them, so I fear lest they should slay me;
28:34 And my brother, Haroun, he is more eloquent of tongue than 1, therefore send him with me as an aider, verifying me: surely I fear that they would reject me.
28:35 He said: We will strengthen your arm with your brother, and We will give you both an authority, so that they shall not reach you; (go) with Our signs; you two and those who follow you shall be uppermost.
28:36 So when Musa came to them with Our clear signs, they said: This is nothing but forged enchantment, and we never heard of it amongst our fathers of old.
28:37 And Musa said: My Lord knows best who comes with guidance from Him, and whose shall be the good end of the abode; surely the unjust shall not be successful.
28:38 And Firon said: O chiefs! I do not know of any god for you besides myself; therefore kindle a fire for me, O Haman, for brick, then prepare for me a lofty building so that I may obtain knowledge of Musa's God, and most surely I think him to be one of the liars.
28:39 And he was unjustly proud in the land, he and his hosts, and they deemed that they would not be brought back to Us.
28:40 So We caught hold of him and his hosts, then We cast them into the sea, and see how was the end of the unjust.
28:41 And We made them Imams who call to the fire, and on the day of resurrection they shall not be assisted.
28:42 And We caused a curse to follow them in this world, and on the day of resurrection they shall be of those made to appear hideous.
28:43 And certainly We gave Musa the Book after We had destroyed the former generations, clear arguments for men and a guidance and a mercy, that they may be mindful.
28:44 And you were not on the western side when We revealed to Musa the commandment, and you were not among the witnesses;
28:45 But We raised up generations, then life became prolonged to them; and you were not dwelling among the people of Madyan, reciting to them Our communications, but We were the senders.
28:46 And you were not on this side of the mountain when We called, but a mercy from your Lord that you may warn a people to whom no warner came before you, that they may be mindful.
28:47 And were it not that there should befall them a disaster for what their hands have sent before, then they should say: Our Lord! why didst Thou not send to us an apostle so that we should have followed Thy communications and been of the believers !
28:48 But (now) when the truth has come to them from Us, they say: Why is he not given the like of what was given to Musa? What! did they not disbelieve in what Musa was given before? They say: Two magicians backing up each other; and they say: Surely we are unbelievers in all.
28:49 Say: Then bring some (other) book from Allah which is a better guide than both of them, (that) I may follow it, if you are truthful.
28:50 But if they do not answer you, then know that they only follow their low desires; and who is more erring than he who follows his low desires without any guidance from Allah? Surely Allah does not guide the unjust people.
28:51 And certainly We have made the word to reach them so that they may be mindful.
28:52 (As to) those whom We gave the Book before it, they are believers in it.
28:53 And when it is recited to them they say: We believe in it surely it is the truth from our Lord; surely we were submitters before this.
28:54 These shall be granted their reward twice, because they are steadfast and they repel evil with good and spend out of what We have given them.
28:55 And when they hear idle talk they turn aside from it and say: We shall have our deeds and you shall have your deeds; peace be on you, we do not desire the ignorant.
28:56 Surely you cannot guide whom you love, but Allah guides whom He pleases, and He knows best the followers of the right way.
28:57 And they say: If we follow the guidance with you, we shall be carried off from our country. What ! have We not settled them in a safe, sacred territory to which fruits of every kind shall be drawn?-- a sustenance from Us; but most of them do not know.
28:58 And how many a town have We destroyed which exulted in its means of subsistence, so these are their abodes, they have not been dwelt in after them except a little, and We are the inheritors,
28:59 And your Lord never destroyed the towns until He raised in their metropolis an apostle, reciting to them Our communications, and We never destroyed the towns except when their people were unjust.
28:60 And whatever things you have been given are only a provision of this world's life and its adornment, and whatever is with Allah is better and more lasting; do you not then understand?
28:61 Is he to whom We have promised a goodly promise which he shall meet with like him whom We have provided with the provisions of this world's life, then on the day of resurrection he shall be of those who are brought up?
28:62 And on the day when He will call them and say: Where are those whom you deemed to be My associates?
28:63 Those against whom the sentence has become confirmed will say: Our Lord! these are they whom we caused to err; we caused them to err as we ourselves did err; to Thee we declare ourselves to be clear (of them); they never served Us.
28:64 And it will be said: Call your associate-gods. So they will call upon them, but they will not answer them, and they shall see the punishment; would that they had followed the right way!
28:65 And on the day when He shall call them and say: What was the answer you gave to the apostles?
28:66 Then the pleas shall become obscure to them on that day, so they shall not ask each other.
28:67 But as to him who repents and believes and does good, maybe he will be among the successful:
28:68 And your Lord creates and chooses whom He pleases; to choose is not theirs; glory be to Allah, and exalted be He above what they associate (with Him).
28:69 And your Lord knows what their breasts conceal and what they manifest.
28:70 And He is Allah, there is no god but He! All praise is due to Him in this (life) and the hereafter, and His is the judgment, and to Him you shall be brought back.
28:71 Say: Tell me, if Allah were to make the night to continue incessantly on you till the day of resurrection, who is the god besides Allah that could bring you light? Do you not then hear?
28:72 Say: Tell me, if Allah were to make the day to continue incessantly on you till the day of resurrection, who is the god besides Allah that could bring you the night in which you take rest? Do you not then see?
28:73 And out of His mercy He has made for you the night and the day, that you may rest therein, and that you may seek of His grace, and that you may give thanks.
28:74 And on the day when He shall call them and say: Where are those whom you deemed to be My associates?
28:75 And We will draw forth from among every nation a witness and say: Bring your proof; then shall they know that the truth is Allah's, and that which they forged shall depart from them.
28:76 Surely Qaroun was of the people of Musa, but he rebelled against them, and We had given him of the treasures, so much so that his hoards of wealth would certainly weigh down a company of men possessed of great strength. When his people said to him: Do not exult, surely Allah does not love the exultant;
28:77 And seek by means of what Allah has given you the future abode, and do not neglect your portion of this world, and do good (to others) as Allah has done good to you, and do not seek to make mischief in the land, surely Allah does not love the mischief-makers.
28:78 He said: I have been given this only on account of the knowledge I have. Did he not know that Allah had destroyed before him of the generations those who were mightier in strength than he and greater in assemblage? And the guilty shall not be asked about their faults.
28:79 So he went forth to his people in his finery. Those who desire this world's life said: O would that we had the like of what Qaroun is given; most surely he is possessed of mighty good fortune.
28:80 And those who were given the knowledge said: Woe to you! Allah's reward is better for him who believes and does good, and none is made to receive this except the patient.
28:81 Thus We made the earth to swallow up him and his abode; so he had no body of helpers to assist him against Allah nor was he of those who can defend themselves.
28:82 And those who yearned for his place only the day before began to say: Ah! (know) that Allah amplifies and straitens the means of subsistence for whom He pleases of His servants; had not Allah been gracious to us, He would most surely have abased us; ah! (know) that the ungrateful are never successful.
28:83 (As for) that future abode, We assign it to those who have no desire to exalt themselves in the earth nor to make mischief and the good end is for those who guard (against evil)
28:84 Whoever brings good, he shall have better than it, and whoever brings evil, those who do evil shall not be rewarded (for) aught except what they did.
28:85 Most surely He Who has made the Quran binding on you will bring you back to the destination. Say: My Lord knows best him who has brought the guidance and him who is in manifest error.
28:86 And you did not expect that the Book would be inspired to you, but it is a mercy from your Lord, therefore be not a backer-up of the unbelievers.
28:87 And let them not turn you aside from the communications of Allah after they have been revealed to you, and call (men) to your Lord and be not of the polytheists.
28:88 And call not with Allah any other god; there is no god but He, every thing is perishable but He; His is the judgment, and to Him you shall be brought back.

The Quran and the west

By Dr Muzaffar Iqbal
11/2/2007


Paths to the Quran have become restricted for Muslims but they are totally blocked for a vast majority of human beings who have grown up in the contemporary western world. This is a calamity not only for those whose hearts have become sealed to the last and the final message from the Creator, but for the entire humanity because it creates a fundamental divide between 1.6 billion Muslims who constitute one fourth of humanity and roughly the same number of other human beings who live in the large geographical region now home to the modern western civilization. This includes Europe, North America, the New Zealand, Australia and parts of South America. What creates this block is a complex mix. It is made up of numerous old and new historical events, general perceptions of the Quran created by three centuries of western scholarship, many deep-seated biases against Muslims, and a number of other factors arising from within western civilization. Whatever its make up, this block against the Quran is so solid that very few western seekers of truth are able to break it and get to the first stage of actually reading a translation of the Quran. A large majority of those who do so, find it absolutely impossible to understand, for they encounter a narration unlike any they have ever read: there is no apparent logical flow in the text, a stylistic element so essential for the Western mind. In addition, even in the best of translations, the imagery of the Quran remains utterly foreign for the western mind not to speak of its vocabulary and its historical sweep. The result is total incomprehensibility.All that a sincere western reader of the Quran gets out of his or her first encounter with the Quran is an overall sense of its awesome alienation. Thereafter, most westerns stop their further quest of understanding the message of the Quran. Those who persist, attempt to read various books on the Quran (such as the Major Themes of the Quran by Fazlur Rahman), and this helps to some extent, but does not really open direct paths to the Quran.This dilemma of the western mind is not only due to the inherent linguistic difficulties or the foreignness of the Quranic vocabulary and imagery, but also due to certain fundamental assumptions and presuppositions which have become ingrained in the western civilization. One of these fundamental aspects of the modern western civilization is its loss of understanding of the phenomenon of revelation. Modern western civilization is built on humanism and its pivotal belief in rationalism. Anything beyond reason is, by definition, unreasonable, hence not worthy of serious attention. Thus it is very difficult for a western mind to grasp that there might be worlds upon worlds beyond the realm of reason and rationality. Not only revelation, but even ‘intellect’, which in Islamic thought is called aql-e kulli, is not fully understood in the west as an inner human faculty distinct from ‘reason’. (called aql-e juzwi).As a result, the phenomena of revelation is often confused with inspiration. For most contemporary Westerns, there is no such thing possible as a direct revelation from the Creator, all that is humanly possible is inspiration under which a human being writes. This can be poetic inspiration or religious inspiration. Shakespeare and Dante are considered great poets because they were truly inspired in a poetic sense. The four gospels, which make up the New Testament, are great books because of the greatness of the religious inspiration, which produced them. The Prophets of the Old Testament were human beings who wrote accounts of their truly heroic and great spiritual journeys. This understanding, emerging out of a historical past going back to the Renaissance, has so colored the Western understanding of revelation, and hence that of religion itself, that it is well-nigh impossible for most Westerns to grasp even the basic Quranic claim that it is actually the Word of God Himself, sent down through the agency of a Noble Messenger (Rasulun Kareem, meaning the Angel Jibril) to the heart of the Prophet (SAW).In the absence of this basic understanding, a western reader sincerely trying to understand the Quran approaches it in the same manner in which he or she approaches the Bible. This approach blocks are paths to the Quran immediately, for it is a living Book and when those who do not believe in its Divine origin approach it, it puts a veil between itself and such readers: We have laid veils which prevent them from understanding it and into their ears, deafness. And so, whenever, you mention your Sustainer, the one and only, they turn their backs in aversion. (al-Isra: 46)No doubt, there are individuals in the west who have surpassed this difficulty. These exceptional men and women have left behind certain testaments of their spiritual journeys and their encounters with the Quran which might be useful for those who sincerely seek guidance from the Quran. But in general, western readers of the Quran will not be facilitated in their attempts unless there is a much greater support from Muslim scholars who can make a major effort to open certain paths to the Quran for the contemporary seekers of truth. This effort needs to remain rooted in the Quranic worldview, but made in a style and language that is accessible to Western readers. Of course, there is no substitute for a living source and therefore, the best option for a Western seeker of truth is a person who has already successfully opened paths to the Noble Quran for him or herself. - (ITN, 2 Nov 07)