هَلْ أَتَاكَ حَدِيثُ الْغَاشِيَةِ
﴿88:1﴾
(88:1) Has the news of the overwhelming
event reached you? *1
*1 "The over-shadowing calamity": the
Resurrection which will overshadow the
whole world. One should know that here
the Hereafter as a whole is being
depicted, which comprehends aII the
stages from the upsetting of the present
system to the resurrection of all human
beings and the dispensation of rewards
and punishments from the Divine Court.
وُجُوهٌ يَوْمَئِذٍ خَاشِعَةٌ
﴿88:2﴾
(88:2) Some faces *2
that Day shall be downcast with fear,
*2 Some faces : some persons, so said
for the face is the most conspicuous
part of the human body by which man s
personality is judged and which reflects
the good or bad states through which man
passes.
عَامِلَةٌ نَاصِبَةٌ
﴿88:3﴾
(88:3) be toiling and worn-out;
تَصْلَى نَارًا حَامِيَةً
﴿88:4﴾
(88:4) they shall burn in a Scorching
Fire;
تُسْقَى مِنْ عَيْنٍ آَنِيَةٍ
﴿88:5﴾
(88:5) their drink shall be from a
boiling spring.
لَيْسَ لَهُمْ طَعَامٌ إِلَّا مِنْ
ضَرِيعٍ
﴿88:6﴾
(88:6) They shall have no food except
bitter dry thorns *3
*3 At some places in the Qur'an it has
been stated that the dwellers of Hell
will be given zaqqum to eat; at another
place it has been said that they will
have no other food but glhislin (washing
from wounds), and here that "their only
food will he thorny, dry grass." There
is, in fact, no contradiction between
these statements. This may as welt mean
that Hell will have many different
compartment in which different
categories of the criminals will be
lodged according to their crimes, and
subjected to different punishments. This
may also mean that if they try to avoid
zaqqum they will be given ghislin, and
if they try to avoid even that, they
will only get thorny grass. In short,
they would get nothing to suit their
taste.
لَا يُسْمِنُ وَلَا يُغْنِي مِنْ جُوعٍ
﴿88:7﴾
(88:7) that will neither nourish nor
satisfy their hunger.
وُجُوهٌ يَوْمَئِذٍ نَاعِمَةٌ
﴿88:8﴾
(88:8) On that very Day some faces shall
be radiant with joy,
لِسَعْيِهَا رَاضِيَةٌ
﴿88:9﴾
(88:9) well-pleased with their striving. *4
*4 That is. they will be overjoyed to
see the best results in the Hereafter of
their endeavours and deeds in the world;
they will be satisfied to see that they
had, in fact, made a profitable bargain
in that they had adopted a life of
faith, virtue and piety, by sacrificing
the desires of the flesh, undergone
hardships in carrying out their
obligations, endured afflictions in
obeying the Divine Commands, incurred
losses and suffered deprivation of
benefits and pleasures while trying to
avoid sins and acts of disobedience.
فِي جَنَّةٍ عَالِيَةٍ
﴿88:10﴾
(88:10) They will be in a lofty Garden
لَا تَسْمَعُ فِيهَا لَاغِيَةً
﴿88:11﴾
(88:11) wherein they shall hear no vain
talk. *5
*5 This thing has been mentioned at
several places in the Qur'an as a major
blessing of Paradise. (For explanation,
see E.N. 38 of Maryam, E.N. 18 of
At-Tur, E.N. 13 of Al-Wiiqi`ah, E.N. 21
of An-Naba).
فِيهَا عَيْنٌ جَارِيَةٌ
﴿88:12﴾
(88:12) In it there shall be a flowing
spring,
فِيهَا سُرُرٌ مَرْفُوعَةٌ
﴿88:13﴾
(88:13) and couches raised high,
وَأَكْوَابٌ مَوْضُوعَةٌ
﴿88:14﴾
(88:14) and goblets laid out, *6
*6 That is, filled goblets already
supplied so that they do not have to ask
for them.
وَنَمَارِقُ مَصْفُوفَةٌ
﴿88:15﴾
(88:15) and cushions arrayed in rows,
وَزَرَابِيُّ مَبْثُوثَةٌ
﴿88:16﴾
(88:16) and rich carpets levelled out.
أَفَلَا يَنْظُرُونَ إِلَى الْإِبِلِ
كَيْفَ خُلِقَتْ
﴿88:17﴾
(88:17) Do (these unbelievers) not
observe the camels: how they were
created?
وَإِلَى السَّمَاءِ كَيْفَ رُفِعَتْ
﴿88:18﴾
(88:18) And the sky: how it was raised
high?
وَإِلَى الْجِبَالِ كَيْفَ نُصِبَتْ
﴿88:19﴾
(88:19) And the mountains: how they were
fixed?
وَإِلَى الْأَرْضِ كَيْفَ سُطِحَتْ
﴿88:20﴾
(88:20) And the earth: how it was spread
out? *7
*7 That is, "If they deny the
possibility of the Hereafter, have they
never looked around themselves and
considered how the camels were created,
how the heaven was raised high, how the
mountains were firmly set and how the
earth was spread out? When aII these
things could be created, and exist
before them in their finished form, why
can the Resurrection not take place? Why
cannot a new world come about, and why
cannot .Hell and Heaven be possible'?
Only a foolish and thoughtless person
would think that the coming into
existing of only those things which he
has found existing on opening his eyes
in the world, is possible. bacause they
already exist. As for the things, which
he has not yet observed and experienced,
he should thoughtlessly pass the
judgement that their coming into being
is impossible. If he has any common
sense, he should think as to how he
things which already exist, carne into
being? How did the camel possessing
precisely the same Characteristics as
needed for the beast required by the
desert dwellers of Arabia come into
being'' How did the sky whose atmosphere
is filled with air to breathe in, whose
clouds bring rain, whose sun provides
light and warmth in the day, whose moon
and stars shine at night, come into
being'' How did the earth spread out on
which man lives and passes his life,
whose products fulfil aII his needs and
requirements on whose springs and wells
his life depends? How did the mountains
rise up from the surface of the earth,
which stand fixed with earth and stones
of different colours and a variety of
minerals in them '? Has all this
happened without the artistic skill of
an AlI-Powerful, AI-Wise Designer No
thinking and intellingent mind can
answer this question in the negative.
Unless it is stubborn and obstinate, it
will have to acknowledge that each one
of these things was impossible, had an
Omnipotent; Wise Being not made it
possible. And when an All-Powerful, Wise
Being created these things, there is no
reason why the Hereafter should be
regarded as remote from reason and
impossible."
فَذَكِّرْ إِنَّمَا أَنْتَ مُذَكِّرٌ
﴿88:21﴾
(88:21) So render good counsel, for you
are simply required to counsel,
لَسْتَ عَلَيْهِمْ بِمُصيْطِرٍ
﴿88:22﴾
(88:22) and are not invested with the
authority to compel them. *8
*8 That is, "If a person does not listen
to reason, he may not. You have not been
appointed to force the will of the
deniers: your only task is to
distinguish the right from the wrong for
the people and warn them of the
consequences of following the wrong way;
so this is the task you should continue
to perform."
إِلَّا مَنْ تَوَلَّى وَكَفَرَ
﴿88:23﴾
(88:23) But whoever will turn away (from
the Truth),
فَيُعَذِّبُهُ اللَّهُ الْعَذَابَ
الْأَكْبَرَ
﴿88:24﴾
(88:24) Allah will chastise him with the
most terrible chastisement.
إِنَّ إِلَيْنَا إِيَابَهُمْ
﴿88:25﴾
(88:25) Surely to Us is their return;
ثُمَّ إِنَّ عَلَيْنَا حِسَابَهُمْ
﴿88:26﴾
(88:26) and then it is for Us to call
them to account.
