English Translation and Commentary of the Holy Quran (2010)
by Maulana Muhammad Ali
Chapter 79: An-Naziat — Those Who Yearn (Revealed at Makkah: 2 sections, 46 verses)
Section 2 (Verses 79:27–79:46): The Great Calamity
Translation:
ءَاَنۡتُمۡ اَشَدُّ خَلۡقًا اَمِ السَّمَآءُ ؕ بَنٰہَا ﴿ٝ۲۷﴾
79:27 Are you the stronger in creation or the heaven? He made it.
رَفَعَ سَمۡکَہَا فَسَوّٰىہَا ﴿ۙ۲۸﴾
79:28 He raised high its height,1 and made it perfect,
وَ اَغۡطَشَ لَیۡلَہَا وَ اَخۡرَجَ ضُحٰہَا ﴿۪۲۹﴾
79:29 and He made dark its night and brought out its light.
وَ الۡاَرۡضَ بَعۡدَ ذٰلِکَ دَحٰىہَا ﴿ؕ۳۰﴾
79:30 And the earth, He cast it after that.2
اَخۡرَجَ مِنۡہَا مَآءَہَا وَ مَرۡعٰہَا ﴿۪۳۱﴾
79:31 He brought forth from it its water and its pasture.
وَ الۡجِبَالَ اَرۡسٰہَا ﴿ۙ۳۲﴾
79:32 And the mountains, He made them firm,
مَتَاعًا لَّکُمۡ وَ لِاَنۡعَامِکُمۡ ﴿ؕ۳۳﴾
79:33 a provision for you and for your cattle.3
فَاِذَا جَآءَتِ الطَّآمَّۃُ الۡکُبۡرٰی ﴿۫ۖ۳۴﴾
79:34 So when the great Calamity comes4 —
یَوۡمَ یَتَذَکَّرُ الۡاِنۡسَانُ مَا سَعٰی ﴿ۙ۳۵﴾
79:35 the day when man remembers all that he strove for,
وَ بُرِّزَتِ الۡجَحِیۡمُ لِمَنۡ یَّرٰی ﴿۳۶﴾
79:36 and hell is made manifest to him who sees.
فَاَمَّا مَنۡ طَغٰی ﴿ۙ۳۷﴾
79:37 Then as for him who is inordinate,
وَ اٰثَرَ الۡحَیٰوۃَ الدُّنۡیَا ﴿ۙ۳۸﴾
79:38 and prefers the life of this world,
فَاِنَّ الۡجَحِیۡمَ ہِیَ الۡمَاۡوٰی ﴿ؕ۳۹﴾
79:39 hell is surely the abode.
وَ اَمَّا مَنۡ خَافَ مَقَامَ رَبِّہٖ وَ نَہَی النَّفۡسَ عَنِ الۡہَوٰی ﴿ۙ۴۰﴾
79:40 And as for him who fears to stand before his Lord and restrains himself from low desires,5
فَاِنَّ الۡجَنَّۃَ ہِیَ الۡمَاۡوٰی ﴿ؕ۴۱﴾
79:41 the Garden is surely the abode.
یَسۡـَٔلُوۡنَکَ عَنِ السَّاعَۃِ اَیَّانَ مُرۡسٰہَا ﴿ؕ۴۲﴾
79:42 They ask you about the Hour, when will that take place,
فِیۡمَ اَنۡتَ مِنۡ ذِکۡرٰىہَا ﴿ؕ۴۳﴾
79:43 about which you remind (them)?
اِلٰی رَبِّکَ مُنۡتَہٰىہَا ﴿ؕ۴۴﴾
79:44 To your Lord is the goal of it.6
اِنَّمَاۤ اَنۡتَ مُنۡذِرُ مَنۡ یَّخۡشٰہَا ﴿ؕ۴۵﴾
79:45 You are only a warner to him who fears it.
کَاَنَّہُمۡ یَوۡمَ یَرَوۡنَہَا لَمۡ یَلۡبَثُوۡۤا اِلَّا عَشِیَّۃً اَوۡ ضُحٰہَا ﴿٪۴۶﴾
79:46 On the day when they see it, it will be as if they had remained (in this world) only for an evening or a morning.
Commentary:
- The raising high of the height is an allusion to its extremely great height. There is a reference here to the great distances of the heavenly bodies, which stagger human imagination. ↩
- Two things are made clear in this brief statement. (1) The earth was brought into existence after the heaven, or the starry creation; and (2) it was cast away, as a stone is cast away, from a bigger creation. ↩
- How the earth was made fit for living on is next made clear. Its water, which is the source of all its life, was brought forth from it, and water made possible the growth of vegetation. The mountains were raised so that they might serve as a provision for you and your cattle. The mountains are the sources of rivers and through these all living things on earth are provided with sustenance. ↩
- By the great calamity here is generally understood only the Resurrection, but the words of v. 25 make it clear that the reference is as much to the calamity of this life as to the Resurrection. The making of hell manifest to him who sees in v. 36 is a clear indication of the same; the hell of the next life is spoken of in v. 39. ↩
- Refraining from low desires is the chief source from which grows a paradise. This further shows that the description given in the first five verses is really a description of the spiritual advancement of the faithful. ↩
- The Hour is in itself a manifestation of Divine purpose. The destruction or punishment of the disbelievers is not an end in itself. The great goal of this punishment is the Lord — Rabb — Who brings everything to perfection, and the real goal of human life is thus the Lord or the meeting with the Lord. ↩