The Mount (At-Tûr)

In the name of Allah, Gracious, Merciful.

¹By the mount of revelation;¹

²And by a decree inscribed

³In a scroll unfolded;

⁴And by the much frequented house;

⁵And by the canopy raised high;

⁶And by the ocean filled with swell

⁷Verily, the doom of your Lord will indeed come to pass.

⁸There is none to avert it,

⁹On the day when the firmament will be in dreadful commotion.

¹⁰And the mountain will fly hither and thither.

¹¹Then woe that day to those that treat truth as falsehood

¹²That play and paddle in shallow trifles.

¹³That day shall they be thrust down to the fire of hell irresistibly.

Bismillahi Rahmani Rahim

¹Watur

²Wa kitabim masur

³Firaqqim mansur

⁴Wal baitil ma mur

⁵Wa saqfil marfu

⁶Wal bahril masjur

⁷Inna azaba rabbika lawaqi

⁸Ma lahu min dafi

⁹Yauma tamurus samau maura

¹⁰Wa tasirul jibalu saira

¹¹Fawailu yauma izil lilmuka zibun

¹²Allazina hum fi haudi yalabun

¹³Yauma yudauna ila nari jahannama da a

1. As if Allah had not exerted enough command over the people yet. Now he goes on a swearing rampage to make his case. He swears by Mt. Sinai, where Moses received the decalogue and other laws. Yusuf Ali makes mentions of three mountains, Sinai for Moses, Olives for Jesus and Hira for Muhammad. If Allah was not able to convince the people, how would his swearing fare. To me, it bespeaks of a desperate man who want to be believed. After swearing by the mountain, the book, the house, the heaven and the ocean, he a hits home run in verse 7. The Doomsday will indeed come to pass.

The Bible says that man’s words should be simple yes or no. And that we should not swear by anything else. When one swears, it is normally by one that is greater and never the lesser. Since Allah swears by creation, does that indicate that after all Allah is not the greatest?

¹⁴“This,” it will be said, “is the fire which you were known to deny!

¹⁵“Is this then a fake or is it you that do not see?

¹⁶“Burn you therein: the same is it to you whether you bear it with patience or not: You but receive the recompense of your own deeds.”

¹⁷As to the righteous, they will be in gardens and in happiness

¹⁸Enjoying the bliss which their Lord has bestowed on them, and their Lord shall deliver them from the penalty of the fire.

¹⁹“Eat and drink with profit and health because of your deeds.”

²⁰They will recline with ease on thrones arranged in ranks; and We shall join them to companions with beautiful big and lustrous eyes.

¹⁴Hazihin narul lati kuntum biha tuka zibun

¹⁵Afasihrun naza am antum la tubsirun

¹⁶Islauha fasbiru au la tasbiru sawaun alaikum innama tujzauna ma kuntum tamalun

¹⁷Innal mutaqina fi jannati wa naim

¹⁸Fakihina bima atahum rabbuhum wa waqahum rabbuhum azabal jahim

¹⁹Kulu wasrabu hanian bima kuntum tamalun

²⁰Mutakina ala sururim masfufah wa zaw wajnahum bihurinin

[Commentary continues below.]

²¹And those who believe and whose families follow them in faith to them shall We join their families: nor shall We deprive them of aught of their works: Yet is each individual in pledge for his deeds.

²²And We shall bestow on them of fruit and meat anything they shall desire.

²³They shall there exchange one with another a cup free of frivolity, free of all taint of ill.

²⁴Round about them will serve devoted to them youths handsome as pearls well guarded.

²⁵They will advance to each other engaging in mutual enquiry.

²⁶They will say: “Before, We were not without fear for the sake of our people.

²⁷“But Allah has been good to us and has delivered us from the penalty of the scorching wind.

²¹Wallazina amanu watabaat humzur riyatuhum bi imanin alhaqna bihim zur riyatahum wa ma alatnahum min amalihim min sai ikulum riin bima kasaba rahin

²²Wa amdadnahum bifakihati wa lah mimmim ma yastahun

²³Yatanazauna fiha kasal lalagwun fiha wa la tasim

²⁴Wa yatufu alihim gilmanul lahum ka an nahum lulum maknun

²⁵Wa aqbala baduhum ala badiy yatasa alun

²⁶Qalu inna kunna qablu fi ahlina musyfiqin

²⁷Faman nal lahu alaina wa waqana azabas samum

[Commentary continues below.]

²⁸“Truly, we did call unto Him from of old: truly it is He, the beneficent, the merciful”

²⁹Therefore proclaim the praises of your Lord: For by the grace of your Lord you are no vulgar soothsayer nor are you one possessed.²

³⁰Or do they say “A poet! we await for him some calamity hatched by time!”

³¹Say: “Await you! I too will wait along with you!”

³²Is it that their faculties of understanding urge them to this or are they but a people transgressing beyond bounds?

³³Or do they say “He fabricated the message”? No, they have no faith!³

³⁴Let them then produce a recital like unto it if they speak the truth!

³⁵Were they created of nothing or were they themselves the creators?

²⁸Inna kunna min qablu naduh innahu huwal barurahim

²⁹Fazakir fama anta binimati rabbika bikahini wa la majnun

³⁰Am yaquluna sairun natarab basu bihi raibal manun

³¹Qul tarab basu fa inni maakum minal mutarab bisin

³²Am tamuruhum ahlamuhum bihaza amhum qaumun taghun

³³Am yaquluna tawaq walahu bal la yuminun

³⁴Falyatu bihadisim mitslihi inkanu sadiqin

³⁵Am huliqu min gairi saiin amhumul haliqun

2. The messenger of a god who swears by the creation of God Almighty, and still want people to believe that he is speaking about the God of the world is definitely a vulgar soothsayer and one possessed by other spirits,, Who spoke to Muhammad, was the angel Gabriel or the Holy Spirit who appeared to Muhammad? You be the judge.

³⁶Or did they create the heavens and the earth? No, they have no firm belief.

³⁷Or are the treasures of your Lord with them or are they the managers of affairs?

³⁸Or have they a ladder by which they can climb up to heaven and listen to its secrets? Then let listener of theirs produce a manifest proof.

³⁹Or has He only daughters and you have sons?

⁴⁰Or is it that you do ask for a reward so that they are burdened with a load of debt?

⁴¹Or that the unseen is in their hands and they write it down?

⁴²Or do they intend a plot against you? But those who defy Allah are themselves involved in a plot!

⁴³Or have they a god other than Allah? Exalted is Allah far above the things they associate with Him!

³⁶Am halaqus samawati walarda bal la yuqinun

³⁷Am indahum kaza inu rabbika amhumul mushaitirun

³⁸Am lahum sul lamu yastamiuna fihi falyati mustamiuhum bisultanim mubin

³⁹Am lahul banatu wa lakumul banun

⁴⁰Am tasaluhum ajran fahum mim magramim mutsqalun

⁴¹Am indahumul gaibu fahum yaktubun

⁴²Am yuriduna kaida fallazina kafaru humul makidun

⁴³Am lahum ilahun gairul lah subhanal lahi amma yusrikun

⁴⁴Were they to see a piece of the sky falling on them they would only say: “clouds gathered in heaps!”

⁴⁵So leave them alone until they encounter that day of theirs wherein they shall swoon

⁴⁶The day when their plotting will avail them nothing and no help shall be given them.

⁴⁷And verily, for those who do wrong there is another punishment besides this: but most of them understand not.

⁴⁸Now await in patience the command of your Lord: for verily, you are in our eyes: and celebrate the praises of your Lord, while you stand forth.

⁴⁹And for part of the night also praise Him and at the retreat of the stars!

⁴⁴Wa iyyarau kisfam mina samai saqita yaqulu sahabum markum

⁴⁵Fazarhum hata yulaqu yauma humul lazi fihi yusaqun

⁴⁶Yauma la yughni anhum kaiduhum sai aw wa lahum yunsarun

⁴⁷Wa inna lillazina zalamu azaban duna zalika wa lakin na aksarahum la yalamun

⁴⁸Wasbir lihukmi rabbika fa innaka bi ayunina wa sabbih bihamdi rabbika hina taqum

⁴⁹Wa minal laili fasabihu wa idbaran nujum