English Translation and Commentary of the Holy Quran (2010)
by Maulana Muhammad Ali
Chapter 35: Al-Fatir — The Originator (Revealed at Makkah: 5 sections, 45 verses)
Section 3 (Verses 35:15–35:26): A New Generation will be Raised
Translation:
یٰۤاَیُّہَا النَّاسُ اَنۡتُمُ الۡفُقَرَآءُ اِلَی اللّٰہِ ۚ وَ اللّٰہُ ہُوَ الۡغَنِیُّ الۡحَمِیۡدُ ﴿۱۵﴾
35:15 O people, it is you that have need of Allah, and Allah is the Self-Sufficient, the Praised.
اِنۡ یَّشَاۡ یُذۡہِبۡکُمۡ وَ یَاۡتِ بِخَلۡقٍ جَدِیۡدٍ ﴿ۚ۱۶﴾
35:16 If He please, He will remove you and bring a new creation.
وَ مَا ذٰلِکَ عَلَی اللّٰہِ بِعَزِیۡزٍ ﴿۱۷﴾
35:17 And this is not hard to Allah.
وَ لَا تَزِرُ وَازِرَۃٌ وِّزۡرَ اُخۡرٰی ؕ وَ اِنۡ تَدۡعُ مُثۡقَلَۃٌ اِلٰی حِمۡلِہَا لَا یُحۡمَلۡ مِنۡہُ شَیۡءٌ وَّ لَوۡ کَانَ ذَا قُرۡبٰی ؕ اِنَّمَا تُنۡذِرُ الَّذِیۡنَ یَخۡشَوۡنَ رَبَّہُمۡ بِالۡغَیۡبِ وَ اَقَامُوا الصَّلٰوۃَ ؕ وَ مَنۡ تَزَکّٰی فَاِنَّمَا یَتَزَکّٰی لِنَفۡسِہٖ ؕ وَ اِلَی اللّٰہِ الۡمَصِیۡرُ ﴿۱۸﴾
35:18 And no bearer of a burden can bear another’s burden. And if one weighed down by a burden calls another to carry his load, nothing of it will be carried, even though he be near of kin. You can only warn those who fear their Lord in secret and keep up prayer. And whoever purifies himself, purifies himself only for his own good. And to Allah is the eventual coming.
وَ مَا یَسۡتَوِی الۡاَعۡمٰی وَ الۡبَصِیۡرُ ﴿ۙ۱۹﴾
35:19 And the blind and the seeing are not alike,
وَ لَا الظُّلُمٰتُ وَ لَا النُّوۡرُ ﴿ۙ۲۰﴾
35:20 nor the darkness and the light,
وَ لَا الظِّلُّ وَ لَا الۡحَرُوۡرُ ﴿ۚ۲۱﴾
35:21 nor the shade and the heat.
وَ مَا یَسۡتَوِی الۡاَحۡیَآءُ وَ لَا الۡاَمۡوَاتُ ؕ اِنَّ اللّٰہَ یُسۡمِعُ مَنۡ یَّشَآءُ ۚ وَ مَاۤ اَنۡتَ بِمُسۡمِعٍ مَّنۡ فِی الۡقُبُوۡرِ ﴿۲۲﴾
35:22 Neither are the living and the dead alike. Surely Allah makes whom He pleases hear, and you cannot make those hear who are in the graves.1
اِنۡ اَنۡتَ اِلَّا نَذِیۡرٌ ﴿۲۳﴾
35:23 You are only a warner.
اِنَّاۤ اَرۡسَلۡنٰکَ بِالۡحَقِّ بَشِیۡرًا وَّ نَذِیۡرًا ؕ وَ اِنۡ مِّنۡ اُمَّۃٍ اِلَّا خَلَا فِیۡہَا نَذِیۡرٌ ﴿۲۴﴾
35:24 Surely We have sent you with the Truth as a bearer of good news and a warner. And there is not a people but a warner has gone among them.2
وَ اِنۡ یُّکَذِّبُوۡکَ فَقَدۡ کَذَّبَ الَّذِیۡنَ مِنۡ قَبۡلِہِمۡ ۚ جَآءَتۡہُمۡ رُسُلُہُمۡ بِالۡبَیِّنٰتِ وَ بِالزُّبُرِ وَ بِالۡکِتٰبِ الۡمُنِیۡرِ ﴿۲۵﴾
35:25 And if they reject you, those before them also rejected — their messengers came to them with clear arguments, and with scriptures, and with the illuminating Book.3
ثُمَّ اَخَذۡتُ الَّذِیۡنَ کَفَرُوۡا فَکَیۡفَ کَانَ نَکِیۡرِ ﴿٪۲۶﴾
35:26 Then I seized those who disbelieved, so how (terrible) was My disapproval!
Commentary:
- Note how spiritual truths are conveyed in words relating to physical life. Those in the graves are the very people who were actively engaged in opposition to the Prophet. The seeing are those who have their eyes opened spiritually, the light is the spiritual light, the living are those alive in spirit, and so on. ↩
- This broad doctrine that a prophet was raised among every nation is taught repeatedly in the Quran and it is met with in the earlier revelation at Makkah as well as the later revelation at Madinah. This great truth, which had remained hidden for thousands of years from the wisest men of the world, had shone upon the mind of an Arabian who could neither read nor write, who did not even know what nations then existed and what scriptures they possessed. This broad doctrine alone could form the basis of the universality of a Divine message to the whole of mankind. Only he who had the breadth of mind to recognize truth in all could unite all mankind. ↩
- See 3:184. ↩