27An-NamlالنملVerse 1 of 93

The Ant27. An-Namlالنمل

An-Naml

Al Naml

The Ants

Meccan93 verses27 / 114

27

Page 377

ṭ-s (ṭā sīn) tilka ʾāyātu l-qurʾāni wa-kitābin mubīnin

Ta, Seen. These are the signs of the Quran and a manifest Book,

— Ali Quli Qarai

hudan wa-bushrā li-l-muʾminīna

a guidance and good news for the faithful

— Ali Quli Qarai

alladhīna yuqīmūna ṣ-ṣalāta wa-yuʾtūna z-zakāta wa-hum bi-l-ʾākhirati hum yūqinūna

—those who maintain the prayer and pay the zakat, and who are certain of the Hereafter.

— Ali Quli Qarai

ʾinna lladhīna lā yuʾminūna bi-l-ʾākhirati zayyannā lahum ʾaʿmālahum fa-hum yaʿmahūna

As for those who do not believe in the Hereafter, We have made their deeds seem decorous to them, and so they are bewildered.

— Ali Quli Qarai

ʾulāʾika lladhīna lahum sūʾu l-ʿadhābi wa-hum fī l-ʾākhirati humu l-ʾakhsarūna

They are the ones for whom there is a terrible punishment, and they are the ones who will be the biggest losers in the Hereafter.

— Ali Quli Qarai

wa-ʾinnaka la-tulaqqā l-qurʾāna min ladun ḥakīmin ʿalīmin

Indeed you receive the Quran from One who is all-wise, all-knowing.

— Ali Quli Qarai

ʾidh qāla mūsā li-ʾahlihī ʾinnī ʾānastu nāran sa-ʾātīkum minhā bi-khabarin ʾaw ʾātīkum bi-shihābin qabasin laʿallakum taṣṭalūna

When Moses said to his family, ‘Indeed I descry a fire! I will bring you some news from it, or bring you a firebrand so that you may warm yourselves.’

— Ali Quli Qarai

fa-lammā jāʾahā nūdiya ʾan būrika man fī n-nāri wa-man ḥawlahā wa-subḥāna llāhi rabbi l-ʿālamīna

When he came to it, he was called: ‘Blessed is He who is in the fire and who is [as well] around it, and immaculate is Allah, the Lord of all the worlds!’

— Ali Quli Qarai

yā-mūsā ʾinnahū ʾana llāhu l-ʿazīzu l-ḥakīmu

‘O Moses! Indeed I am Allah, the All-mighty, the All-wise.’

— Ali Quli Qarai

wa-ʾalqi ʿaṣāka fa-lammā raʾāhā tahtazzu ka-ʾannahā jānnun wallā mudbiran wa-lam yuʿaqqib yā-mūsā lā takhaf ʾinnī lā yakhāfu ladayya l-mursalūna

‘Throw down your staff!’ When he saw it wriggling, as if it were a snake, he turned his back [to flee], without looking back. ‘O Moses! ‘Do not be afraid. Indeed the apostles are not afraid before Me,

— Ali Quli Qarai

ʾillā man ẓalama thumma baddala ḥusnan baʿda sūʾin fa-ʾinnī ghafūrun raḥīmun

nor those who do wrong and then make up for [their] fault with goodness, for indeed I am all-forgiving, all-merciful.’

— Ali Quli Qarai

wa-ʾadkhil yadaka fī jaybika takhruj bayḍāʾa min ghayri sūʾin fī tisʿi ʾāyātin ʾilā firʿawna wa-qawmihī ʾinnahum kānū qawman fāsiqīna

‘Insert your hand into your shirt. It will emerge white and bright, without any fault—among nine signs meant for Pharaoh and his people. Indeed they are a transgressing lot.’

— Ali Quli Qarai

fa-lammā jāʾathum ʾāyātunā mubṣiratan qālū hādhā siḥrun mubīnun

But when Our signs came to them, as eye-openers, they said, ‘This is plain magic.’

— Ali Quli Qarai

Page 378

wa-jaḥadū bihā wa-stayqanathā ʾanfusuhum ẓulman wa-ʿuluwwan fa-nẓur kayfa kāna ʿāqibatu l-mufsidīna

They impugned them, wrongfully and out of arrogance, though they were convinced in their hearts [of their veracity]. So observe how the fate of the agents of corruption was!

— Ali Quli Qarai

wa-la-qad ʾātaynā dāwūda wa-sulaymāna ʿilman wa-qālā l-ḥamdu li-llāhi lladhī faḍḍalanā ʿalā kathīrin min ʿibādihi l-muʾminīna

Certainly, We gave knowledge to David and Solomon, and they said, ‘All praise belongs to Allah, who granted us an advantage over many of His faithful servants.’

— Ali Quli Qarai

wa-waritha sulaymānu dāwūda wa-qāla yā-ʾayyuhā n-nāsu ʿullimnā manṭiqa ṭ-ṭayri wa-ʾūtīnā min kulli shayʾin ʾinna hādhā la-huwa l-faḍlu l-mubīnu

Solomon inherited from David, and he said, ‘O people! We have been taught the speech of the birds, and we have been given out of everything. Indeed this is a manifest advantage.’

— Ali Quli Qarai

wa-ḥushira li-sulaymāna junūduhū mina l-jinni wa-l-ʾinsi wa-ṭ-ṭayri fa-hum yūzaʿūna

[Once] Solomon’s hosts were marched out for him, comprising jinn, humans and birds, and they were held in check.

— Ali Quli Qarai

ḥattā ʾidhā ʾataw ʿalā wādi n-namli qālat namlatun yā-ʾayyuhā n-namlu dkhulū masākinakum lā yaḥṭimannakum sulaymānu wa-junūduhū wa-hum lā yashʿurūna

When they came to the Valley of Ants, an ant said, ‘O ants! Enter your dwellings, lest Solomon and his hosts should trample on you while they are unaware.’

— Ali Quli Qarai

fa-tabassama ḍāḥikan min qawlihā wa-qāla rabbi ʾawziʿnī ʾan ʾashkura niʿmataka llatī ʾanʿamta ʿalayya wa-ʿalā wālidayya wa-ʾan ʾaʿmala ṣāliḥan tarḍāhu wa-ʾadkhilnī bi-raḥmatika fī ʿibādika ṣ-ṣāliḥīna

Whereat he smiled, amused at its words, and he said, ‘My Lord! Inspire me to give thanks for Your blessing with which You have blessed me and my parents, and that I may do righteous deeds which please You, and admit me, by Your mercy, among Your righteous servants.’

— Ali Quli Qarai

wa-tafaqqada ṭ-ṭayra fa-qāla mā liya lā ʾarā l-hudhuda ʾam kāna mina l-ghāʾibīna

[One day] he reviewed the birds, and said, ‘Why do I not see the hoopoe? Or is he absent?’

— Ali Quli Qarai

la-ʾuʿadhdhibannahū ʿadhāban shadīdan ʾaw la-ʾadhbaḥannahū ʾaw la-yaʾtiyannī bi-sulṭānin mubīnin

‘I will punish him with a severe punishment, or I will behead him, unless he brings me a credible excuse.’

— Ali Quli Qarai

fa-makatha ghayra baʿīdin fa-qāla ʾaḥaṭtu bi-mā lam tuḥiṭ bihī wa-jiʾtuka min sabaʾin bi-nabaʾin yaqīnin

He did not stay for long [before he turned up] and said, ‘I have alighted on something which you have not alighted on, and I have brought you from Sheba a definite report.

— Ali Quli Qarai

Page 379

ʾinnī wajadtu mraʾatan tamlikuhum wa-ʾūtiyat min kulli shayʾin wa-lahā ʿarshun ʿaẓīmun

I found a woman ruling over them, and she has been given everything, and she has a great throne.

— Ali Quli Qarai

wajadtuhā wa-qawmahā yasjudūna li-sh-shamsi min dūni llāhi wa-zayyana lahumu sh-shayṭānu ʾaʿmālahum fa-ṣaddahum ʿani s-sabīli fa-hum lā yahtadūna

I found her and her people prostrating to the sun instead of Allah, and Satan has made their deeds seem decorous to them—thus he has barred them from the way [of Allah], so they are not guided—

— Ali Quli Qarai

ʾallā yasjudū li-llāhi lladhī yukhriju l-khabʾa fī s-samāwāti wa-l-ʾarḍi wa-yaʿlamu mā tukhfūna wa-mā tuʿlinūna

so that they do not prostrate themselves to Allah, who brings forth the hidden in the heavens and the earth, and He knows whatever you hide and whatever you disclose.

— Ali Quli Qarai

allāhu lā ʾilāha ʾillā huwa rabbu l-ʿarshi l-ʿaẓīmi

Allah—there is no god except Him—is the Lord of the Great Throne.’

— Ali Quli Qarai

qāla sa-nanẓuru ʾa-ṣadaqta ʾam kunta mina l-kādhibīna

He said, ‘We shall see whether you are truthful, or if you are one of the liars.

— Ali Quli Qarai

idhhab bi-kitābī hādhā fa-ʾalqih ʾilayhim thumma tawalla ʿanhum fa-nẓur mādhā yarjiʿūna

Take this letter of mine and deliver it to them. Then draw away from them and observe what [response] they return.’

— Ali Quli Qarai

qālat yā-ʾayyuhā l-malaʾu ʾinnī ʾulqiya ʾilayya kitābun karīmun

She said, ‘O [members of the] elite! Indeed a noble letter has been delivered to me.

— Ali Quli Qarai

ʾinnahū min sulaymāna wa-ʾinnahū bi-smi llāhi r-raḥmāni r-raḥīmi

It is from Solomon, and it begins in the name of Allah, the All-beneficent, the All-merciful.

— Ali Quli Qarai

ʾallā taʿlū ʿalayya wa-ʾtūnī muslimīna

[It states,] ‘‘Do not defy me, and come to me in submission.’’ ’

— Ali Quli Qarai

qālat yā-ʾayyuhā l-malaʾu ʾaftūnī fī ʾamrī mā kuntu qāṭiʿatan ʾamran ḥattā tashhadūni

She said, ‘O [members of the] elite! Give me your opinion concerning my matter. I do not decide any matter until you are present.’

— Ali Quli Qarai

qālū naḥnu ʾulū quwwatin wa-ʾulū baʾsin shadīdin wa-l-ʾamru ʾilayki fa-nẓurī mādhā taʾmurīna

They said, ‘We are powerful and possess a great might. But it is up to you to command. So consider what orders you will give.’

— Ali Quli Qarai

qālat ʾinna l-mulūka ʾidhā dakhalū qaryatan ʾafsadūhā wa-jaʿalū ʾaʿizzata ʾahlihā ʾadhillatan wa-ka-dhālika yafʿalūna

She said, ‘Indeed when kings enter a town, they devastate it, and make the mightiest of its people the weakest. That is how they act.

— Ali Quli Qarai

wa-ʾinnī mursilatun ʾilayhim bi-hadiyyatin fa-nāẓiratun bi-ma yarjiʿu l-mursalūna

I will send them a gift, and see what the envoys bring back.’

— Ali Quli Qarai

Page 380

fa-lammā jāʾa sulaymāna qāla ʾa-tumiddūnani bi-mālin fa-mā ʾātāniya llāhu khayrun mimmā ʾātākum bal ʾantum bi-hadiyyatikum tafraḥūna

So when he came to Solomon, he said, ‘Are you aiding me with wealth? What Allah has given me is better than what He has given you. Indeed, you are proud of your gift!

— Ali Quli Qarai

irjiʿ ʾilayhim fa-la-naʾtiyannahum bi-junūdin lā qibala lahum bihā wa-la-nukhrijannahum minhā ʾadhillatan wa-hum ṣāghirūna

Go back to them, for we will come at them with hosts which they cannot face, and we will expel them from it, abased and degraded.’

— Ali Quli Qarai

qāla yā-ʾayyuhā l-malaʾu ʾayyukum yaʾtīnī bi-ʿarshihā qabla ʾan yaʾtūnī muslimīna

He said, ‘O [members of the] elite! Which of you will bring me her throne before they come to me in submission?’

— Ali Quli Qarai

qāla ʿifrītun mina l-jinni ʾana ʾātīka bihī qabla ʾan taqūma min maqāmika wa-ʾinnī ʿalayhi la-qawiyyun ʾamīnun

An afreet from among the jinn said, ‘I will bring it to you before you rise from your place. I have the power to do it and am trustworthy.’

— Ali Quli Qarai

qāla lladhī ʿindahū ʿilmun mina l-kitābi ʾana ʾātīka bihī qabla ʾan yartadda ʾilayka ṭarfuka fa-lammā raʾāhu mustaqirran ʿindahū qāla hādhā min faḍli rabbī li-yabluwanī ʾa-ʾashkuru ʾam ʾakfuru wa-man shakara fa-ʾinnamā yashkuru li-nafsihī wa-man kafara fa-ʾinna rabbī ghaniyyun karīmun

The one who had knowledge of the Book said, ‘I will bring it to you in the twinkling of an eye.’ So when he saw it set near him, he said, ‘This is by the grace of my Lord, to test me if I will give thanks or be ungrateful. Whoever gives thanks, gives thanks only for his own sake. And whoever is ungrateful [should know that] my Lord is indeed all-sufficient, all-generous.’

— Ali Quli Qarai

qāla nakkirū lahā ʿarshahā nanẓur ʾa-tahtadī ʾam takūnu mina lladhīna lā yahtadūna

He said, ‘Disguise her throne for her, so that we may see whether she is discerning or if she is one of the undiscerning ones.’

— Ali Quli Qarai

fa-lammā jāʾat qīla ʾa-hākadhā ʿarshuki qālat ka-ʾannahū huwa wa-ʾūtīnā l-ʿilma min qablihā wa-kunnā muslimīna

So when she came, it was said [to her], ‘Is your throne like this one?’ She said, ‘It seems to be the same, and we were informed before it, and we had submitted.’

— Ali Quli Qarai

wa-ṣaddahā mā kānat taʿbudu min dūni llāhi ʾinnahā kānat min qawmin kāfirīna

She had been barred [from the way of Allah] by what she used to worship besides Allah, for she belonged to a faithless people.

— Ali Quli Qarai

qīla lahā dkhulī ṣ-ṣarḥa fa-lammā raʾathu ḥasibathu lujjatan wa-kashafat ʿan sāqayhā qāla ʾinnahū ṣarḥun mumarradun min qawārīra qālat rabbi ʾinnī ẓalamtu nafsī wa-ʾaslamtu maʿa sulaymāna li-llāhi rabbi l-ʿālamīna

It was said to her, ‘Enter the palace.’ So when she saw it, she supposed it to be a pool of water, and she bared her shanks. He said, ‘It is a palace paved with crystal.’ She said, ‘My Lord! Indeed I have wronged myself, and I submit with Solomon to Allah, the Lord of all the worlds.’

— Ali Quli Qarai

Page 381

wa-la-qad ʾarsalnā ʾilā thamūda ʾakhāhum ṣāliḥan ʾani ʿbudū llāha fa-ʾidhā hum farīqāni yakhtaṣimūna

Certainly We sent to Thamud Salih, their brother, [with the summons:] ‘Worship Allah!’ But thereat they became two groups contending with each other.

— Ali Quli Qarai

qāla yā-qawmi li-ma tastaʿjilūna bi-s-sayyiʾati qabla l-ḥasanati law-lā tastaghfirūna llāha laʿallakum turḥamūna

He said, ‘O My people! Why do you press for evil sooner than for good? Why do you not plead to Allah for forgiveness so that you may receive His mercy?’

— Ali Quli Qarai

qālū ṭṭayyarnā bika wa-bi-man maʿaka qāla ṭāʾirukum ʿinda llāhi bal ʾantum qawmun tuftanūna

They said, ‘We take you and those who are with you for a bad omen.’ He said, ‘Your bad omens are from Allah. Indeed, you are a people being tested.’

— Ali Quli Qarai

wa-kāna fī l-madīnati tisʿatu rahṭin yufsidūna fī l-ʾarḍi wa-lā yuṣliḥūna

There were nine persons in the city who caused corruption in the land and did not set things right.

— Ali Quli Qarai

qālū taqāsamū bi-llāhi la-nubayyitannahū wa-ʾahlahū thumma la-naqūlanna li-waliyyihī mā shahidnā mahlika ʾahlihī wa-ʾinnā la-ṣādiqūna

They said, ‘Swear by Allah that we will attack him and his family by night. Then we will tell his heir that we were not present at the murder of his family and that we speak the truth.’

— Ali Quli Qarai

wa-makarū makran wa-makarnā makran wa-hum lā yashʿurūna

They devised a plot, and We [too] devised a plan, but they were not aware.

— Ali Quli Qarai

fa-nẓur kayfa kāna ʿāqibatu makrihim ʾannā dammarnāhum wa-qawmahum ʾajmaʿīna

So observe how was the outcome of their plotting, as We destroyed them and all their people.

— Ali Quli Qarai

fa-tilka buyūtuhum khāwiyatan bi-mā ẓalamū ʾinna fī dhālika la-ʾāyatan li-qawmin yaʿlamūna

So there lay their houses, fallen in ruin because of their wrongdoing. There is indeed a sign in that for a people who have knowledge.

— Ali Quli Qarai

wa-ʾanjaynā lladhīna ʾāmanū wa-kānū yattaqūna

And We delivered those who had faith and were Godwary.

— Ali Quli Qarai

wa-lūṭan ʾidh qāla li-qawmihī ʾa-taʾtūna l-fāḥishata wa-ʾantum tubṣirūna

[We also sent] Lot, when he said to his people, ‘What! Do you commit this indecency while you look on?

— Ali Quli Qarai

ʾa-ʾinnakum la-taʾtūna r-rijāla shahwatan min dūni n-nisāʾi bal ʾantum qawmun tajhalūna

Do you approach men with [sexual] desire instead of women?! Indeed, you are a senseless lot!’

— Ali Quli Qarai

Page 382

fa-mā kāna jawāba qawmihī ʾillā ʾan qālū ʾakhrijū ʾāla lūṭin min qaryatikum ʾinnahum ʾunāsun yataṭahharūna

But the only answer of his people was that they said, ‘Expel Lot’s family from your town! They are indeed a puritanical lot.’

— Ali Quli Qarai

fa-ʾanjaynāhu wa-ʾahlahū ʾillā mraʾatahū qaddarnāhā mina l-ghābirīna

So We delivered him and his family, except his wife. We ordained her to be among those who remained behind.

— Ali Quli Qarai

wa-ʾamṭarnā ʿalayhim maṭaran fa-sāʾa maṭaru l-mundharīna

Then We poured down upon them a rain [of stones]. Evil was that rain for those who had been warned!

— Ali Quli Qarai

quli l-ḥamdu li-llāhi wa-salāmun ʿalā ʿibādihi lladhīna ṣṭafā ʾāllāhu khayrun ʾammā yushrikūna

Say, ‘All praise belongs to Allah, and Peace be to the servants whom He has chosen.’ Is Allah better, or the partners they ascribe [to Him]?

— Ali Quli Qarai

ʾam-man khalaqa s-samāwāti wa-l-ʾarḍa wa-ʾanzala lakum mina s-samāʾi māʾan fa-ʾanbatnā bihī ḥadāʾiqa dhāta bahjatin mā kāna lakum ʾan tunbitū shajarahā ʾa-ʾilāhun maʿa llāhi bal hum qawmun yaʿdilūna

Is He who created the heavens and the earth, and sends down for you water from the sky, whereby We grow delightful gardens, whose trees you could never cause to grow...? What! Is there a god besides Allah? Indeed, they are a lot who equate [others with Allah].

— Ali Quli Qarai

ʾam-man jaʿala l-ʾarḍa qarāran wa-jaʿala khilālahā ʾanhāran wa-jaʿala lahā rawāsiya wa-jaʿala bayna l-baḥrayni ḥājizan ʾa-ʾilāhun maʿa llāhi bal ʾaktharuhum lā yaʿlamūna

Is He who made the earth an abode [for you], and made rivers [flowing] through it, and set firm mountains for it [’s stability], and set a barrier between the two seas...? What! Is there a god besides Allah? Indeed, most of them do not know.

— Ali Quli Qarai

ʾam-man yujību l-muḍṭarra ʾidhā daʿāhu wa-yakshifu s-sūʾa wa-yajʿalukum khulafāʾa l-ʾarḍi ʾa-ʾilāhun maʿa llāhi qalīlan mā tadhakkarūna

Is He who answers the call of the distressed [person] when he invokes Him and removes his distress, and makes you successors on the earth...? What! Is there a god besides Allah? Little is the admonition that you take.

— Ali Quli Qarai

ʾam-man yahdīkum fī ẓulumāti l-barri wa-l-baḥri wa-man yursilu r-riyāḥa bushran bayna yaday raḥmatihī ʾa-ʾilāhun maʿa llāhi taʿālā llāhu ʿammā yushrikūna

Is He who guides you in the darkness of land and sea and who sends the winds as harbingers of His mercy...? What! Is there a god besides Allah? Exalted is Allah above [having] any partners that they ascribe [to Him].

— Ali Quli Qarai

Page 383

ʾam-man yabdaʾu l-khalqa thumma yuʿīduhū wa-man yarzuqukum mina s-samāʾi wa-l-ʾarḍi ʾa-ʾilāhun maʿa llāhi qul hātū burhānakum ʾin kuntum ṣādiqīna

Is He who originates the creation, then He will bring it back, and who provides for you from the sky and the earth...? What! Is there a god besides Allah? Say, ‘Produce your evidence, if you are truthful.’

— Ali Quli Qarai

qul lā yaʿlamu man fī s-samāwāti wa-l-ʾarḍi l-ghayba ʾillā llāhu wa-mā yashʿurūna ʾayyāna yubʿathūna

Say, ‘No one in the heavens or the earth knows the Unseen except Allah, and they are not aware when they will be resurrected.’

— Ali Quli Qarai

bali ddāraka ʿilmuhum fī l-ʾākhirati bal hum fī shakkin minhā bal hum minhā ʿamūna

Do they comprehend the knowledge of the Hereafter? No, they are in doubt about it. Indeed, they are blind to it.

— Ali Quli Qarai

wa-qāla lladhīna kafarū ʾa-ʾidhā kunnā turāban wa-ʾābāʾunā ʾa-ʾinnā la-mukhrajūna

The faithless say, ‘What! When we and our fathers have become dust shall we be raised [from the dead]?

— Ali Quli Qarai

la-qad wuʿidnā hādhā naḥnu wa-ʾābāʾunā min qablu ʾin hādhā ʾillā ʾasāṭīru l-ʾawwalīna

We and our fathers were promised this before. [But] these are just myths of the ancients.’

— Ali Quli Qarai

qul sīrū fī l-ʾarḍi fa-nẓurū kayfa kāna ʿāqibatu l-mujrimīna

Say, ‘Travel over the land and observe how was the fate of the guilty.’

— Ali Quli Qarai

wa-lā taḥzan ʿalayhim wa-lā takun fī ḍayqin mimmā yamkurūna

Do not grieve for them, and do not be upset by their guile.

— Ali Quli Qarai

wa-yaqūlūna matā hādhā l-waʿdu ʾin kuntum ṣādiqīna

They say, ‘When will this promise be fulfilled, if you are truthful?’

— Ali Quli Qarai

qul ʿasā ʾan yakūna radifa lakum baʿḍu lladhī tastaʿjilūna

Say, ‘Perhaps there is right behind you some of what you seek to hasten.’

— Ali Quli Qarai

wa-ʾinna rabbaka la-dhū faḍlin ʿalā n-nāsi wa-lākinna ʾaktharahum lā yashkurūna

Indeed your Lord is gracious to mankind, but most of them do not give thanks.

— Ali Quli Qarai

wa-ʾinna rabbaka la-yaʿlamu mā tukinnu ṣudūruhum wa-mā yuʿlinūna

Your Lord knows whatever their breasts conceal, and whatever they disclose.

— Ali Quli Qarai

wa-mā min ghāʾibatin fī s-samāʾi wa-l-ʾarḍi ʾillā fī kitābin mubīnin

There is no invisible thing in the heaven and the earth but it is in a manifest Book.

— Ali Quli Qarai

ʾinna hādhā l-qurʾāna yaquṣṣu ʿalā banī ʾisrāʾīla ʾakthara lladhī hum fīhi yakhtalifūna

This Quran recounts for the Children of Israel most of what they differ about,

— Ali Quli Qarai

Page 384

wa-ʾinnahū la-hudan wa-raḥmatun li-l-muʾminīna

and it is indeed a guidance and mercy for the faithful.

— Ali Quli Qarai

ʾinna rabbaka yaqḍī baynahum bi-ḥukmihī wa-huwa l-ʿazīzu l-ʿalīmu

Your Lord will decide between them by His judgement, and He is the All-mighty, the All-knowing.

— Ali Quli Qarai

fa-tawakkal ʿalā llāhi ʾinnaka ʿalā l-ḥaqqi l-mubīni

So put your trust in Allah, for you indeed stand on the manifest truth.

— Ali Quli Qarai

ʾinnaka lā tusmiʿu l-mawtā wa-lā tusmiʿu ṣ-ṣumma d-duʿāʾa ʾidhā wallaw mudbirīna

You cannot make the dead hear, nor can you make the deaf listen to your call when they turn their backs,

— Ali Quli Qarai

wa-mā ʾanta bi-hādī l-ʿumyi ʿan ḍalālatihim ʾin tusmiʿu ʾillā man yuʾminu bi-ʾāyātinā fa-hum muslimūna

nor can you lead the blind out of their error. You can make only those hear you who believe in Our signs and have submitted.

— Ali Quli Qarai

wa-ʾidhā waqaʿa l-qawlu ʿalayhim ʾakhrajnā lahum dābbatan mina l-ʾarḍi tukallimuhum ʾanna n-nāsa kānū bi-ʾāyātinā lā yūqinūna

When the word [of judgement] falls upon them, We shall bring out for them an Animal from the earth who shall tell them that the people had no faith in Our signs.

— Ali Quli Qarai

wa-yawma naḥshuru min kulli ʾummatin fawjan mimman yukadhdhibu bi-ʾāyātinā fa-hum yūzaʿūna

On that day We shall resurrect from every nation a group of those who denied Our signs, and they will be held in check.

— Ali Quli Qarai

ḥattā ʾidhā jāʾū qāla ʾa-kadhdhabtum bi-ʾāyātī wa-lam tuḥīṭū bihā ʿilman ʾammādhā kuntum taʿmalūna

When they come, He will say, ‘Did you deny My signs without comprehending them in knowledge? What was it that you used to do?’

— Ali Quli Qarai

wa-waqaʿa l-qawlu ʿalayhim bi-mā ẓalamū fa-hum lā yanṭiqūna

And the word [of judgement] shall fall upon them for their wrongdoing, and they will not speak.

— Ali Quli Qarai

ʾa-lam yaraw ʾannā jaʿalnā l-layla li-yaskunū fīhi wa-n-nahāra mubṣiran ʾinna fī dhālika la-ʾāyātin li-qawmin yuʾminūna

Do they not see that We made the night that they may rest in it, and the day to provide visibility. There are indeed signs in that for a people who have faith.

— Ali Quli Qarai

wa-yawma yunfakhu fī ṣ-ṣūri fa-faziʿa man fī s-samāwāti wa-man fī l-ʾarḍi ʾillā man shāʾa llāhu wa-kullun ʾatawhu dākhirīna

The day when the trumpet is blown, whoever is in the heavens and whoever is on the earth will be terrified, except such as Allah wishes, and all will come to Him in utter humility.

— Ali Quli Qarai

wa-tarā l-jibāla taḥsabuhā jāmidatan wa-hiya tamurru marra s-saḥābi ṣunʿa llāhi lladhī ʾatqana kulla shayʾin ʾinnahū khabīrun bi-mā tafʿalūna

You see the mountains, which you suppose, to be stationary, while they drift like passing clouds—the handiwork of Allah who has made everything faultless. He is indeed well aware of what you do.

— Ali Quli Qarai

Page 385

man jāʾa bi-l-ḥasanati fa-lahū khayrun minhā wa-hum min fazaʿin yawmaʾidhin ʾāminūna

Whoever brings virtue shall receive [a reward] better than it; and on that day they will be secure from terror.

— Ali Quli Qarai

wa-man jāʾa bi-s-sayyiʾati fa-kubbat wujūhuhum fī n-nāri hal tujzawna ʾillā mā kuntum taʿmalūna

But whoever brings vice—they shall be cast on their faces into the Fire [and told:] ‘Shall you not be requited for what you used to do?’

— Ali Quli Qarai

ʾinnamā ʾumirtu ʾan ʾaʿbuda rabba hādhihi l-baldati lladhī ḥarramahā wa-lahū kullu shayʾin wa-ʾumirtu ʾan ʾakūna mina l-muslimīna

[Say], ‘I have been commanded to worship the Lord of this city who has made it inviolable and to whom all things belong, and I have been commanded to be among those who submit [to Allah],

— Ali Quli Qarai

wa-ʾan ʾatluwa l-qurʾāna fa-mani htadā fa-ʾinnamā yahtadī li-nafsihī wa-man ḍalla fa-qul ʾinnamā ʾana mina l-mundhirīna

and to recite the Quran.’ Whoever is guided is guided only for his own good, and as for him who goes astray, say, ‘I am just one of the warners.’

— Ali Quli Qarai

wa-quli l-ḥamdu li-llāhi sa-yurīkum ʾāyātihī fa-taʿrifūnahā wa-mā rabbuka bi-ghāfilin ʿammā taʿmalūna

And say, ‘All praise belongs to Allah. Soon He will show you His signs, and you will recognize them.’ Your Lord is not oblivious of what you do.

— Ali Quli Qarai