Surah 29. Al-'Ankabut

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Verses [Section]: 1-13[1], 14-22 [2], 23-30 [3], 31-44 [4], 45-51 [5], 52-63 [6], 64-69 [7]

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Quran Text of Verse 52-63قُلْSayكَفٰیSufficient isبِاللّٰهِAllahبَیْنِیْbetween meوَ بَیْنَكُمْand between youشَهِیْدًا ۚ(as) WitnessیَعْلَمُHe knowsمَاwhatفِی(is) inالسَّمٰوٰتِthe heavensوَ الْاَرْضِ ؕand the earthوَ الَّذِیْنَAnd those whoاٰمَنُوْاbelieveبِالْبَاطِلِin [the] falsehoodوَ كَفَرُوْاand disbelieveبِاللّٰهِ ۙin Allahاُولٰٓىِٕكَthoseهُمُtheyالْخٰسِرُوْنَ (are) the losers 29. Al-'Ankabut Page 403وَ یَسْتَعْجِلُوْنَكَAnd they ask you to hastenبِالْعَذَابِ ؕ[with] the punishmentوَ لَوْ لَاۤAnd if notاَجَلٌ(for) a termمُّسَمًّیappointedلَّجَآءَهُمُsurely (would) have come to themالْعَذَابُ ؕthe punishmentوَ لَیَاْتِیَنَّهُمْBut it will surely come to themبَغْتَةًsuddenlyوَّ هُمْwhile theyلَا(do) notیَشْعُرُوْنَ perceive یَسْتَعْجِلُوْنَكَThey ask you to hastenبِالْعَذَابِ ؕthe punishmentوَ اِنَّAnd indeedجَهَنَّمَHellلَمُحِیْطَةٌۢwill surely encompassبِالْكٰفِرِیْنَۙthe disbelievers یَوْمَOn (the) Dayیَغْشٰىهُمُwill cover themالْعَذَابُthe punishmentمِنْfromفَوْقِهِمْabove themوَ مِنْand fromتَحْتِbelowاَرْجُلِهِمْtheir feetوَ یَقُوْلُand He will sayذُوْقُوْاTasteمَاwhatكُنْتُمْyou usedتَعْمَلُوْنَ (to) do یٰعِبَادِیَO My servantsالَّذِیْنَwhoاٰمَنُوْۤاbelieve!اِنَّIndeedاَرْضِیْMy earthوَاسِعَةٌ(is) spaciousفَاِیَّایَso onlyفَاعْبُدُوْنِ worship Me كُلُّEveryنَفْسٍsoulذَآىِٕقَةُ(will) tasteالْمَوْتِ ۫the deathثُمَّThenاِلَیْنَاto Usتُرْجَعُوْنَ you will be returned وَ الَّذِیْنَAnd those whoاٰمَنُوْاbelieveوَ عَمِلُواand doالصّٰلِحٰتِ[the] righteous deedsلَنُبَوِّئَنَّهُمْsurely We will give them a placeمِّنَinالْجَنَّةِParadiseغُرَفًاlofty dwellingsتَجْرِیْflowمِنْfromتَحْتِهَاunderneath itالْاَنْهٰرُthe riversخٰلِدِیْنَwill abide foreverفِیْهَا ؕin itنِعْمَExcellent isاَجْرُ(the) rewardالْعٰمِلِیْنَۗۖ(of) the workers الَّذِیْنَThose whoصَبَرُوْا(are) patientوَ عَلٰیand uponرَبِّهِمْtheir Lordیَتَوَكَّلُوْنَ put their trust وَ كَاَیِّنْAnd how manyمِّنْofدَآبَّةٍa creatureلَّا(does) notتَحْمِلُcarryرِزْقَهَا ۗۖits provisionاَللّٰهُAllahیَرْزُقُهَاprovides (for) itوَ اِیَّاكُمْ ۖؗand (for) youوَ هُوَAnd Heالسَّمِیْعُ(is) the All-Hearerالْعَلِیْمُ the All-Knower وَ لَىِٕنْAnd ifسَاَلْتَهُمْyou ask themمَّنْWhoخَلَقَcreatedالسَّمٰوٰتِthe heavensوَ الْاَرْضَand the earthوَ سَخَّرَand subjectedالشَّمْسَthe sunوَ الْقَمَرَand the moonلَیَقُوْلُنَّSurely they would sayاللّٰهُ ۚAllahفَاَنّٰیThen howیُؤْفَكُوْنَ are they deluded اَللّٰهُAllahیَبْسُطُextendsالرِّزْقَthe provisionلِمَنْfor whomیَّشَآءُHe willsمِنْofعِبَادِهٖHis slavesوَ یَقْدِرُand restrictsلَهٗ ؕfor himاِنَّIndeedاللّٰهَAllahبِكُلِّof everyشَیْءٍthingعَلِیْمٌ (is) All-Knower وَ لَىِٕنْAnd ifسَاَلْتَهُمْyou ask themمَّنْWhoنَّزَّلَsends downمِنَfromالسَّمَآءِthe skyمَآءًwaterفَاَحْیَاand gives lifeبِهِtherebyالْاَرْضَ(to) the earthمِنْۢafterبَعْدِafterمَوْتِهَاits deathلَیَقُوْلُنَّSurely, they would sayاللّٰهُ ؕAllahقُلِSayالْحَمْدُAll Praisesلِلّٰهِ ؕ(are) for AllahبَلْButاَكْثَرُهُمْmost of themلَا(do) notیَعْقِلُوْنَ۠use reason

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Translation of Verse 52-63

52. ( O Prophet ! ) Say: “Allah suffices for witness between me and you.⁹⁵ He knows what is in the heavens and the earth. Those who believe in falsehood and deny Allah they will be the losers.”⁹⁶

53. They demand of you to hasten the punishment. Had it not been for the appointed term, they would have been overtaken by the punishment; ⁹⁷ and it will overtake them suddenly, and they will not perceive it⁹⁸ (coming).

54. They demand of you to hasten the punishment, although the Hell is (already) encompassing the disbelievers.⁹⁹

55. On the day the punishment will cover them from above and underneath their feet and He will say: “Taste (the reward of) what you had been doing.”

56. O my slaves, who believe! My earth is vast, so worship Me only.¹⁰⁰

57. Every soul will taste death.¹⁰¹ Then to us you will be returned.

58. Those who believe and do good acts, verily We will house them in lofty mansions¹⁰² of Paradise underneath which rivers flow; therein they will abide forever. How sweet is the reward for righteous workers,

59. Who persevere patiently and put their trust in their Lord!¹⁰³

60. How many an animal that does not bear its own provision! Allah provides for it and for you too.¹⁰⁴ He is the Hearer, the Knower.¹⁰⁵

61. If you ask them who has created the heavens and the earth and made subservient the sun and the moon, they would say: “Allah.” How can they turn away from Him?¹⁰⁶

62. Allah gives provision abundantly to whom He will and sparingly to whom He will. Verily Allah is Aware of all things.¹⁰⁷

63. If you ask them who sent water from the sky and revived the earth when it was dead, they would say: “Allah.” Say: “Praise¹⁰⁸ then be to Allah:” But most of them have no sense. ¹⁰⁹

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Commentary

95. After conveying the arguments of the Qur’an, there does not remain any need for presenting any argument for prophethood. By revealing this Book, the evidence which Allah has provided is sufficient for his prophethood.

96.’Batil’ or falsehood means opposed to truth. Allah is the greatest reality of this universe, whose real recognition can be gained through His messenger and His Book. Any belief of theory that a man would hold against this reality will be false and its result will be nothing else but doom.

97. That is: The punishment will not come until the term of performing good or bad acts, fixed by Allah, is over. If it were not the rule of Allah that the denier of His messenger were not to be given time to reform then the punishment would have descended on them much before.

98. That is: If they stuck to their disbelief, then punishment will surely come, and it will come in such a way that they will not even know when and how it came.

Subsequently however people continued to embrace Islam and the number of the Prophet’s followers went on increasing. Therefore, the few disbelievers that were left, for them Allah’s wisdom did not consider it necessary to send down punishment from the heavens, and instead He caused the swords of Muslims to fall on their heads as His punishment. Accordingly battles between Islam and disbelief were fought and the disbelievers were eliminated in a way they hardly imagined.

99.That is: This was the case of punishment in this world. As for the punishment in the next world, then the Hell is not far away from the disbelievers. It is encompassing them from all sides, i.e. they are in the grip of the Hell in every way.

For further explanation, please see Surah Kahf, Note No.47.

100. At the time of the revelation of this Surah, Muslims in Makkah were handful only. On their embracing Islam the disbelievers let loose a reign of terror against them. In view of these circumstances, they were directed to migrate to some other country, If they had no freedom of worship in their own land. Accordingly the migration to Abyssinia started.

It is the basic teaching of Islam that if the conditions in their country become intolerable, even in the holy city of Makkah also, that they cannot express their faith openly and cannot worship the only God, then they should leave their land and go to some other country where it is possible for them to follow the basic tenets of their religion; on such occasions love for the country and the nation should not be an obstruction, for one’s religion and faith the nation, the country and the home can be given up, but for the nation, the country and the home the religion and the faith cannot be sacrificed.

“The country’s love is part of the faith” is an invented hadith, which is presented by the people without any research, and the purpose is to prove that Islam supports nationalism, although in the Qur’an migration has been presented as demand of faith, which is quite opposed to nationalism.

101. That is: When everybody has to die, then the worry should be for the life after death. The remembrance of death prepares man to face the sufferings that come in the way of following the religion, and it keeps him away from the luxuries of the world. The hadith says:

“Remember often the thing which ends the pleasures i.e. the death.” -(Tirmizi-Abwabuzzuhd).

102. In the foregoing ayah there was a mention of giving up native places and homes for the sake of religion, here in that context a mention is made, particularly of rewarding them with lofty mansions in the Paradise.

For further explanation, please see Surah Furqan Note No.109.

103. Here two attributes of the people of faith have been stated: patience and trust in God. With reference to context it means to be patient while enduring sufferings in the cause of the faith, and to undergo all trials and tribulation that come in the way of following the religion. As for the trust in God, the people of faith do not put their trust in material things, but always in Allah who is the Original Causative Force, and changes the circumstances according to His will. Trust is that condition of heart which is created as a result of earnest belief in God’s ability to rule the world.

104. In the event of migration the question of livelihood arises, therefore, attention is being drawn to this reality, that to provide food and livelihood is Allah’s responsibility. He provides food to the animals, so why would He not provide food for you. You see that countless animals, birds and creatures living in water do not carry food with them, but Allah provides them food wherever they go. Similarly He is providing food regularly to the humans, therefore, they should worry only about worshipping Allah and not about what they would eat.

Such a guarantee from Allah of providing food does not mean that man should not at all adopt right methods of livelihood and obtaining food. Even animals have to make some efforts to obtain their food, or else the spider would not have made its cobwebs, and the ants would not have formed long queues, nor the birds would have flown away from their nests in search of food every morning. A hadith has it:

“If you had put trust in Allah as is the right way of doing it, then you would be given food as birds are given their food, that in the morning they set out hungry and in the evening return belly full.”

(Tirmizi-Abwabuz- Zuhd).

However, this teaching of trust in God saves Muslims from becoming bread-worshippers, which is the product of the communist mentality nowadays.

105. Hints at the fact that Allah hears your appeals and knows your conditions.

106. The polytheists of Makkah knew that Allah had created the heavens and the earth and He had made the sun and the moon subservient to man, but inspite of this admission of the reality they deviated from its demands and indulged in polytheism. Here such a fact has been quoted as an amazing practice, that is when they admit the reality then what makes them deviate from faith ? And how is it that they go astray? Allah gives provision abundantly to whom He will and sparingly to whom He will. Verily Allah is Aware of all things. (Al-Quran)

107. That is: If they invoke someone other than Allah for their food, then they should know that the problem of providing food is Allah’s concern alone, all his methods are wise, He knows what is good for His slaves, and it is His wise method that to some one He provides abundant food and means and to some others He provides sparingly and in measured quantities.

108. Allah be praised and thanked that you have admitted that Allah has created all this, and when you admit this, then you should sing His praises and thank Him always.

109. If they had used their intelligence, then they would not have indulged in contradictory talk. On the one hand they admit this great reality and on the other hand they deviate from its logical demands.