English - Chapter 22 - Al-Hajj

O mankind! Have fear of your Lord; the catastrophic quaking of the Hour of Doom will be terrible indeed

On that Day you shall see that every nursing mother will forget her nursing-babe and every pregnant female will miscarry, and you will see people as if they are intoxicated, though they will not be drunk: such will be the horror of Allah’s chastisement

Yet there are some among people, who in their ignorance, argue about Allah and follow every rebellious devil

though they are doomed to seduce whoever takes them as their friends and lead him to the punishment of burning fire

O mankind! If you doubt that there is life after death remember that We first created you from dust, then from a sperm, then from a leech- like mass, then from a morsel of flesh, partly formed and partly unformed, so that We may manifest to you Our power. We cause to remain in the womb whom We wish for an appointed term, and then We bring you forth as infants; then We nourish you so that you may reach your age of full strength. There are some of you who die young and some who live on to their abject old age when all that they once knew they know no more. You sometimes see the land dry and barren; but no sooner do We pour down rain upon it then it begins to stir and swell, putting forth every kind of beautiful growth in pairs

and this is a proof that the Hour of Doom is sure to come there is no doubt about it; and that Allah will raise up those who are in the graves

Yet there are others among people who wrangle about Allah, though they neither have knowledge nor guidance, nor an enlightening Book

twisting things around in order to lead others astray from the Path of Allah - for such persons there is disgrace in this life, and on the Day of Judgment we shall make them taste the punishment of burning fire

saying: "This is what you prepared and sent forth with your own hands." Rest assured that Allah is not unjust to His worshippers

There are some people who worship Allah standing on the verge of faith (half faith and half disbelief). When such a person is blessed with good fortune he is content; but if he encounters a trial he turns back headlong; thus losing both this world and the Hereafter, which is a clear-cut loss

Then instead of Allah, he starts calling those deities who can neither harm nor help him; now that is going too far off in deviation from the Right Way

He is calling upon those who are more likely to harm than help; what an evil master and what an evil friend he chooses for help

As for those who believe and do good deeds, Allah will admit them to gardens beneath which the rivers flow. Surely Allah does what He wants

If anyone thinks that Allah will not help His Messenger in this world and in the Hereafter, let him stretch out a rope to the sky if he can and cut a hole to peep through and see for himself whether his device can avert that which irritates him

Thus have We revealed this The Qur’an in clear verses; and verily Allah gives guidance to whom He wants

Surely as for those who are true believers (the Muslims), the Jews, the Sabians, the Christians, the Magians and the ones who commit shirk (polytheists) - Allah will judge between them on the Day of Resurrection; for Allah is a witness over everything

Do you not see how all who dwell in the heavens and the earth bow down in worship to Allah, including the sun, the moon, the stars, the mountains, the trees, the animals, and a large number of people, even a large number of those deserving the punishment. He who is humbled by Allah has none who can raise him to honor; surely Allah does what He pleases

These are the two adversaries (the believers and disbelievers) who dispute with each other about their Lord: as for the disbelievers, garments of Fire will be cut out for them, boiling water will be poured over their heads

which will not only melt their skins but also the inner parts of their bellies

and there will be maces of iron to lash them

Whenever, in their anguish, they try to escape therefrom, they will be forced back therein, and will be told: "Taste the punishment of conflagration

As for those who have faith and do good deeds, Allah will certainly admit them to gardens beneath which rivers flow. They shall be decked with pearls and bracelets of gold, and their garments will be of silk

This is because during their life on earth, they were guided to accept the pure words of Allah and they were shown the Way of the All-Praiseworthy

As for those who are unbelievers and debar others from the Way of Allah and from the Masjid-al-Haram, to which We have assigned all mankind with equal rights whether they are natives or foreigners, and whoever intends to deviate from righteousness to wrongdoing in its vicinity, We will make him taste a painful punishment

Remember! We identified the site of the Sacred House to Abraham, saying, "Worship none besides Me, sanctify My House for those worshippers who make Tawaf (walking counterclockwise around it as a part of the Hajj rituals), and stand in prayer, bow, and prostrate themselves

and make a proclamation of Hajj (Pilgrimage) to mankind: they will come to you on foot and on lean camels from every distant quarter

so that they may witness the benefits which are made available here for them, and pronounce the name of Allah over the cattle which We have provided as food for them, on the appointed days, then eat meat themselves and feed the indigent and needy

Then they should accomplish their needful acts of shaving or cutting their hair and taking a bath, fulfill their vows and go for Tawaf-e-Ziyarah to the Ancient House

This was the object for which the Ka’bah was built, and whoever honors the sacred rites of Allah, it is good for him in the sight of his Lord. The meat of cattle is lawful to you, except what has already been mentioned to you; therefore, shun the abomination of idols and shun all false statements

Dedicate yourselves to Allah and do not commit shirk with Him: for anyone who commits shirk, it is as though he had fallen from the sky; then his body is either snatched away by birds or carried away by the wind to some far-off place

so it is, and he who respects the Symbols of Allah, surely shows the piety of his heart

You may benefit (by using their milk) from the cattle dedicated for sacrifice, until the time of their slaughter, then their place of sacrifice is near the Ancient House

For every nation We prescribed a way of sacrifice so that they may pronounce the name of Allah over the cattle which He has given them for food, your God is one God; so submit yourselves to Him as a Muslim, and give good news to the humble

whose hearts tremble at the mention of Allah; who endure adversity with patience, who establish Salah and spend in charity out of what we have given them

We have included the sacrificial camels among the Symbols of Allah, for there is much good for you in them. Therefore, pronounce the name of Allah over them while standing, and when they fall down on their sides after slaughter, then eat of their meat, feed the contented (poor who do not ask) and the beggars (poor who ask). Thus We have subjected these animals to you so that you may be grateful

It is neither their meat nor their blood that reaches Allah; it is your piety that reaches Him. Thus, He has subjected these animals to you so that you may glorify Allah for giving you guidance, and O Prophet, give good news to those who do good to others

Surely Allah wards off evil from those who are true believers: for certainly Allah does not love anyone who is treacherous, ungrateful

Permission to fight back is hereby granted to the believers against whom war is waged and because they are oppressed; certainly Allah has power to grant them victory

those who have been unjustly expelled from their homes only because they said, "Our Lord is Allah." Had not Allah repelled some people by the might of others, the monasteries, churches, synagogues, and mosques in which Allah’s praise is daily celebra

These are the people who, if We establish them in the land, will establish Salah and pay Zakah, enjoin justice and forbid evil; the final decision of all affairs is in the hands of Allah

If they deny you O Muhammad, remember that before them the people of Noah, ‘Ad and Thamud

the people of Abraham and Lot

as well as the residents of Madyan had denied their Prophets, likewise Moses was also denied. Initially, I gave respite to all those unbelievers and then I seized them: see how terrible was My disapproval

How many townships, teaming with wrong doings, have We utterly destroyed! Today they lie with their roofs fallen in, their wells abandoned, and their lofty castles deserted

Have they not traveled through the land? Have they no hearts to learn wisdom, or ears to hear the Truth? Certainly it is not their eyes which are blind, but it is the hearts in their breasts which are blind

These people ask you to hasten the threatened punishment. Well, Allah will never go back on His promise. In fact a day of your Lord (time period in which Allah's decision is executed) is equal to a thousand years of your calculation

There have been many townships teeming with wrong doings, to whom at first I gave respite and at the end I smote them. Towards Me is the destination of all

O Muhammad, tell them: "O mankind! I am merely a plain Warner to you

Those who accept the true faith and do good deeds shall be forgiven and provided honorable sustenance

but those who strive against Our revelations, shall be the inmates of flaming fire

Never have We sent a Messenger or a prophet before you, O Muhammad, with whose wishes Satan did not tamper; but Allah abrogates the interjections of Satan and confirms His own revelations, for Allah is All-Knowing, All-Wise

He makes Satan’s interjections a temptation for those whose hearts suffer from the disease of hypocrisy and whose hearts are hardened - that’s why the wrongdoers are in such an extreme dissension

so that those who are endowed with knowledge may realize that this (Qur’an) is the Truth from your Lord and thus believe in it and humble their hearts towards Him, and surely Allah will guide the believers to the Straight Way

As for the unbelievers, they will never cease to doubt the revelation, until the Hour of Doom overtakes them suddenly or there comes on them the punishment of the Day of Disaster

On that Day the Kingdom will be that of Allah’s; He will judge between them; so those who have embraced the true faith and done good deeds shall enter the gardens of delight

but the unbelievers who have denied Our revelations shall receive a disgraceful punishment

As for those who migrated for the sake of Allah and afterwards were killed or died, Allah will make a generous provision for them; certainly Allah is the One Who is the best Provider

He will admit them to a place with which they shall be well pleased; for Allah is All-Knowing, Most Lenient

Thus shall it be! He that retaliates equal to the infliction he received and then is wronged again, will most certainly be helped by Allah; surely Allah is the One Who is All-Forbearing, Most Forgiving

That is because it is Allah Who causes the night to pass into the day, and the day into the night, Allah is indeed All-Hearing, Most Observing

That is because Allah is the One Who is Real; and all those deities besides Him, whom they invoke, are false; indeed it is Allah Who is the Supreme, the Great

Do you not see that Allah sends down water from the sky so the land becomes green? Surely Allah is the Benignant, Aware

To Him belongs all that is in the heavens and the earth; surely Allah is the One Who is the Self-sufficient, the Praiseworthy

Do you not see that Allah has subdued to you all that is in the earth and the ships that sail through the sea by His command? He is withholding the sky in a way that it cannot fall down on the earth without His permission; surely Allah is very kind and merciful to mankind

He is the One Who has given you life, will cause you to die and then will bring you back to life again - yet man is indeed very ungrateful

To every nation We have prescribed the rites of worship which they observe, therefore, let them not dispute with you concerning this matter - keep calling them to the Way of your Lord; for most surely you are rightly guided

If they argue with you, say: "Allah knows best all that you do

Allah will judge between you on the Day of Resurrection concerning the matters in which you differ

Do you not know that Allah is aware of all that is in heaven and the earth? Certainly all of this is recorded in a Book and it is very easy for Allah to do so

Yet they worship besides Allah those deities for which He has revealed no sanction, nor they themselves have any knowledge about them; certainly the wrongdoers shall have no helper

When Our revelations are recited to them with all their clarity, you can notice a denial on the faces of the unbelievers. They can barely restrain themselves from assaulting those who recite Our revelations. Say to them: "Shall I tell you something which is far worse than that? It is the fire of hell, which Allah has promised to those who reject the truth; what an evil abode it will be

O mankind! Here is an example for your understanding, so listen to it carefully. Those deities whom you call besides Allah, cannot create a single fly, even if they all combined their forces, rather, if a fly snatches away anything from them they cannot even get it back; how feebleminded are the suppliants and how powerless are those whom they supplicate

They do not render to Allah the homage due to Him; in fact, Allah is the One Who is All-Powerful, All-Mighty

Allah chooses His messengers from among the angels and from among the human beings, for surely Allah is All-Hearing, All-Seeing

He knows what is before them and what is behind them, and to Allah shall all matters return for decision

O believers! Bow down, prostrate yourselves, worship your Lord and do good deeds so that you may attain salvation

Strive in the Way of Allah as you ought to strive with sincerity and discipline; He has chosen you and has not laid upon you any hardship in the observance of your faith - the faith of your father Abraham. He named you Muslims before in prior scriptures and in this (The Qur’an), so that His Messenger may testify against you and you yourselves may testify against rest of the mankind. Therefore, establish Salah, pay Zakah and hold fast to Allah, Who is your Protector - so what an excellent Protector and what a splendid Supporter