Page 164
qāla ʾalqū fa-lammā ʾalqaw saḥarū ʾaʿyuna n-nāsi wa-starhabūhum wa-jāʾū bi-siḥrin ʿaẓīmin
He said, ‘Throw [yours].’ So when they threw, they bewitched the people’s eyes and overawed them, producing a tremendous magic.
— Ali Quli Qarai
7Al-A'rāfالأعرافVerse 116 of 206
The Heights7. Al-A'rāfالأعراف
Al A‘rāf
The Heights
MeccanVerse 116 of 206
Surah al-‘Araf – Verses 115-116
115 . “They (the sorcerers) said: ‘O’ Moses! Will you throw, or shall we be the (first) throwers?’”
116 . “He (Moses) said: ‘Throw (yours) !’ So when they threw, they bewitched the people’s eyes and terrified them and produced a great magic.”
Finally, a proper time was appointed for the meeting of Moses (as) and the sorcerers to have their attempts. So all people were invited to come and see the event. When the appointed day came, the sorcerers were completely ready with all their tools for the action. They had supplied some ropes and staffs which, it seemed, they had been filled with some special chemical materials. These materials could be changed into the form of some light gases before sunshine which could move those ropes and hollow staffs.
It was a wonderful scene. Moses, standing before people and the sorcerers, was alone. Only his brother, Aaron, was with him. The sorcerers told Moses either he would begin the action and cast his means first, or they might start and cast their own means. The verse in this regard says:
Moses, with a particular coolness, answered them that they could begin first. The verse says:
When the sorcerers threw down their ropes and other means on the ground, they fascinated people and, by their deceitful deeds and exaggerative statements, they cast a sudden fear and terror upon people, and caused a great sorcery to be produced before them. The verse says:
The Arabic term /sihr/ means: ‘deceit, imposture, dexterity, and jugglery’. Sometimes it also means: ‘whatever the cause and motive of which is invisible’. The verse says: