Surah Taa-Haa (سُورَةُ طه)

Ta-Ha.* (O dear Prophet Mohammed – peace and blessings be upon him) (Alphabets of the Arabic language – Allah and to whomever He reveals know their precise meanings.)

We have not sent down this Qur’an upon you (O dear Prophet Mohammed – peace and blessings be upon him) for you to fall into hardship! (Either because he used to pray at length during the night or because he was distressed due to the disbelievers not accepting faith.)

Except as a reminder for one who fears.

Sent down by One Who created the earth and the lofty heavens.

The Most Gracious Who, befitting His Majesty, took to the Throne (of control).

To Him only belongs all whatever is in the heavens and all whatever is in the earth, and all whatever is between them, and all whatever is beneath this wet soil.

And if you speak aloud – so He surely knows the secret and that which is more concealed.

Allah – there is no worship except for Him; His only are the best names.

And did the news of Moosa reach you?

When he saw a fire and said to his wife, “Wait – I have seen a fire – perhaps I may bring you an ember from it or find a way upon the fire.”

So when he came near the fire, it was announced, “O Moosa!”

“Indeed I am your Lord, therefore take off your shoes; indeed you are in the holy valley of Tuwa!”

“And I have chosen you, therefore listen carefully to what is divinely revealed to you.”

“Indeed it is Me, Allah – there is no God except I – therefore worship Me and keep the prayer established for My remembrance.”

“The Last Day will surely come – it was close that I hide it from all – in order that every soul may get the reward of its effort.” (He revealed it to His Prophets, so that people may fear and get ready. The exact time is not revealed to the people.)

“Therefore never let one, who does not accept faith in it and follows his own desires, prevent you from accepting this, so then you become ruined.”

“And what is this in your right hand, O Moosa?”

He said, “This is my staff; I support myself on it, and I knock down leaves for my sheep with it, and there are other uses for me in it.”

He said, “Put it down, O Moosa!

So Moosa put it down – thereupon it became a fast moving serpent.

He said, “Pick it up and do not fear; We shall restore it to its former state.”

“And put your hand inside your armpit – it will come out shining white, not due to any illness – one more sign.”

“In order that We may show you Our great signs.”

“Go to Firaun, he has rebelled.”

Said Moosa, “My Lord, open up my breast for me.”

“And make my task easy for me.”

“And untie the knot of my tongue.”

“In order that they may understand my speech.”

“And appoint for me a viceroy from among my family.”

“That is Haroon, my brother.”

“Back me up with him.”

“And make him a partner in my task.”

“In order that we may profusely proclaim Your Purity.”

“And profusely remember You.”

“Indeed You see us.”

He said, “O Moosa, you have been granted your prayer.”

“And indeed We had bestowed upon you a favour one more time.”

“When We inspired in your mother’s heart whatever was to be inspired.”

“That, ‘Put him into a chest and cast it into the river, so the river shall deposit it on to a shore – therefore one who is an enemy to Me and you, shall pick him up’; and I bestowed upon you love from Myself; and for you to be brought up in My sight.”

“When your sister went, then said, ‘Shall I show you the people who may nurse him?’ And We brought you back to your mother in order to soothe her eyes and that she may not grieve; and you killed a man, so We freed you from sorrow, and tested you to the maximum; you therefore stayed for several years among the people of Madyan; then you came (here) at an appointed time, O Moosa.”

“And I created you especially for Myself.”

“You and your brother, both go with My signs, and do not slacken in My remembrance.”

“Both of you go to Firaun; he has indeed rebelled.”

“And speak to him courteously, that perhaps he may ponder or have some fear.”

They both submitted, “Our Lord – indeed we fear that he may oppress us or deal mischievously.”

He said, “Do not fear – I am with you, All Hearing and All Seeing.”

“Therefore go to him and say, ‘We are the sent ones of your Lord, therefore let the Descendants of Israel go with us, and do not trouble them; we have indeed brought to you a sign from your Lord; and peace be upon him who follows the guidance.’

‘It has indeed been revealed to us that the punishment is upon the one who denies and turns away.’”

Said Firaun, “So who is the Lord of you both, O Moosa?”

He said, “Our Lord is One Who gave everything its proper shape, then showed the path.”

Said Firaun, “What is the state of the former generations?”

He said, “Their knowledge is with my Lord, (recorded) in a Book; my Lord neither strays nor forgets.”

The One Who has made the earth a bed for you and kept operative roads for you in it and sent down water from the sky; so with it We produced different pairs of vegetation.

Eat, and graze your cattle; indeed in this are signs for people of intellect.

From the earth We have created you, and to it We shall return you, and from it We shall raise you again.

And indeed We showed him all Our signs – so he denied them and did not accept.

He said, “Have you come to us in order to expel us from our land by your magic, O Moosa?”

“So we will also produce before you a similar magic, therefore set up an agreed time between us and you, from which neither we nor you shall turn away, at a level place.”

Said Moosa, “Your meeting is the day of the festival, and that the people be assembled at late morning.”

So Firaun went away and gathered his schemes,* then came. (* 72000 magicians and their materials.)

Moosa said to them, “Ruin is to you – do not fabricate a lie against Allah, that He may destroy you by a punishment; and indeed one who fabricates lies has failed.”

So they differed with one another in their task, and secretly conferred.

They said, “Undoubtedly these two are magicians for sure, who wish to expel you from your land by the strength of their magic, and destroy your exemplary religion!”

“Therefore strengthen your scheme, and come forth in rows; indeed whoever dominates this day has succeeded.”

They said, “O Moosa, either you throw first – or shall we throw first?”

He said, “Rather, you may throw”; thereupon their cords and their staves, by the strength of their magic, appeared to him as if they were (serpents) moving fast.

And Moosa sensed fear in his heart.

We said, “Do not fear – it is you who is dominant.”

“And cast down which is in your right hand – it will devour all that they have fabricated; what they have made is only a magician’s deceit; and a magician is never successful, wherever he comes.”

Therefore all the magicians were thrown down prostrate – they said, “We accept faith in the One Who is the Lord of Haroon and Moosa.”

Said Firaun, “You accepted faith in him before I permitted you! He is indeed your leader who taught you magic; I therefore swear, I will cut off your hands and your legs from alternate sides, and crucify you on the trunks of palm-trees, and you will surely come to know among us two, whose punishment is more severe and more lasting.”

They said, “We shall never prefer you above the clear proofs that have come to us from the One Who has created us – therefore carry out what you want to; only in the life of this world will you be able to!”

“Indeed we have accepted faith in our Lord, so that He may forgive us our sins and the magic which you forced us to perform; and Allah is Better, and the Most Lasting.”

Indeed the one who comes guilty to his Lord – so undoubtedly for him is hell; neither dying nor living in it.

And the one who presents himself as a believer before Him, having done good deeds – so for them are the high ranks.

Everlasting Gardens of Eden beneath which rivers flow, abiding in them for ever; and this is the reward of one who became pure.

And We divinely inspired Moosa that, “Journey with My bondmen in a part of the night and strike a dry path in the sea for them, you shall have no fear of Firaun getting to you, nor any danger.”

So Firaun went after them with his army – therefore the sea enveloped them, the way it did.

And Firaun led his people astray, and did not guide them.

O Descendants of Israel, indeed We rescued you from your enemy, and We made a covenant with you on the right side of Mount Tur, and sent down Manna and Salwa upon you.

“Eat the good clean things We have provided you, and do not exceed the limits in respect of it causing My wrath to descend upon you; and indeed the one on whom My wrath descended, has fallen.”

And indeed I am Most Oft Forgiving for him who repented and accepted faith and did good deeds, and then remained upon guidance.

“And why did you come in haste ahead of your people, O Moosa?”

He submitted, “They are here, just behind me – and O my Lord, I hastened towards You, in order to please You.”

He said, “We have therefore tried your people after you came, and Samri has led them astray.”

So Moosa turned back to his people, angry and grieving; he said, “O my people, had not your Lord given you a good promise? Did a long time pass away for you, or did you wish that your Lord’s wrath come upon you, therefore you broke your promise with me?”

They said, “We did not renege on our promise to you on our own will, but we were made to carry the burdens of ornaments of the people, so we cast them – and similarly did Samri cast.”

He therefore made a calf for them – a lifeless body, making sounds like a cow – so they said, “This is your God and the God of Moosa; whereas Moosa has forgotten.”

So do they not see that it does not answer to any of their speech? And has no power to cause them any harm or benefit?

And undoubtedly Haroon had told them before it that, “O my people – you have needlessly fallen into trial because of this; and indeed your Lord is the Most Gracious, therefore follow me and obey my command.”

They said, “We will continue to squat* before it, till Moosa returns to us.” (* Continue worshipping it.)

Said Moosa, “O Haroon – what prevented you when you saw them going astray?”

“That you did not come after me? So did you disobey my order?”

He said, “O son of my mother, do not clutch my beard nor the hair on my head; I feared that you may say, ‘You have caused a division among the Descendants of Israel and did not wait for my advice.’”

Said Moosa, “And what is your explanation, O Samri?”

He said, “I witnessed what the people did not witness – I therefore took a handful from the tracks* of the angel, then threw it** – and this is what seemed pleasing to my soul.” (* The marks left behind by the mount of Angel Jibreel. ** Into the mouth of the calf.)

Said Moosa, “Therefore go away, for in this life your punishment is that you exclaim ‘Do not touch!’* And indeed for you is a time appointed, which you cannot break; and look at your deity, in front of which you remained squatting the whole day; we swear we will surely burn it and, smashing it into bits, discharge it into the river.” (* He was cursed with a disease.)

“Your God is only Allah – other than for Whom there is no worship; His knowledge encompasses all things.”

This is how We relate the former tidings to you (O dear Prophet Mohammed – peace and blessings be upon him); and We have given you a Remembrance* from Ourselves. (*The Holy Qur’an.)

Whoever turns away from it, will bear a burden on the Day of Resurrection.

They will remain in it forever – what an evil burden it will be for them on the Day of Resurrection!

On the day when the Trumpet is blown and We shall assemble the guilty on that day, blue -eyed.

Whispering secretly among themselves, “You have not stayed on earth but for ten days.”

We know well what they will utter, whereas the wisest among them will say, “You have stayed just for a day.”

They ask you regarding the mountains; proclaim, “My Lord will blow them into bits and scatter them.”

“Therefore leaving the earth just as an empty plain.”

“In which you shall neither see ups nor downs.”

On that day they will run after a caller, there will be no deviation in it; and voices shall become hushed before the Most Gracious, so you will not hear except a faint sound.

On that day no one’s intercession shall benefit except his to whom the Most Gracious has given permission and whose word He has liked. (The Holy Prophets and virtuous people will be given the permission to intercede. Prophet Mohammed – peace and blessings be upon him – will be the first to intercede.)

He knows all that is before them and all that is behind them, whereas their knowledge cannot encompass it.

And all faces shall bow before the Living, the All Sustaining; and the one who bore the burden of injustice, has failed.

And the one who does some good deeds, and is a Muslim – he shall have no fear of injustice, nor suffer any loss.

And this is how We revealed it as an Arabic Qur’an, and in different ways gave promises of punishment, that they may fear or it may create some pondering in their hearts.

Therefore Supreme is Allah, the True King; and do not hasten in the Qur’an (O dear Prophet Mohammed – peace and blessings be upon him) until its divine revelation has been completed to you; and pray, “My Lord, bestow me more knowledge.”

And indeed before this We made a covenant with Adam, so he forgot, and We did not find its intention (in him).

And when We commanded the angels, “Prostrate before Adam” – so they all prostrated, except Iblis; he refused.

We therefore said, “O Adam, he is your and your wife’s enemy, so may he not get you both out from heaven, so you then fall into hardship.”

“Indeed for you in heaven is that you may never be hungry nor be unclothed.”

“And that you never feel thirsty nor hot sunshine hurt you.”

So the devil incited him, saying, “O Adam, shall I show you the tree of immortality and a kingdom that does not erode?”

So they both ate from it – thereupon their shame became manifest to them, and they started applying on themselves the leaves of heaven; and Adam lapsed in obeying his Lord, so did not reach his goal. (Of achieving immortality)

Then his Lord chose him, and inclined towards him with His mercy, and guided him.

He said, “Both of you go down from heaven, one of you is an enemy to the other; then if the guidance from Me comes to you – then whoever follows My guidance, will not go astray nor be ill-fated.”

“And the one who turned away from My remembrance – for him is a confined existence, and We shall raise him blind on the Day of Resurrection.”

He will say, “O my Lord, why have You raised me blind, whereas I was sighted?”

He will say, “Similarly did Our signs come to you but you forgot them; and in the same way, nobody will heed you today.”

And this is how We reward him who transgresses and does not accept faith in the signs of his Lord; and indeed the punishment of the Hereafter is the most severe and more lasting.

So did they not gain guidance from (knowing) how many generations We have destroyed before them, among whose dwellings they walk? Indeed in it are signs for men of intellect.

And had not a command of your Lord been passed, then the punishment would have gripped them – and had a term not been appointed.

Therefore (O dear Prophet Mohammed – peace and blessings be upon him), patiently forbear upon their speech, and praising your Lord proclaim His Purity, before the sun rises and before it sets; and proclaim His Purity at some times of the night and at the two ends of the day, in the hope that you be pleased. (*With the great reward from your Lord)

And O listener, do not extend your eyes towards what We have given to disbelieving couples to enjoy – the bloom of the worldly life – so that We may test them with it; and the sustenance of your Lord is the best, and more lasting.

And command your household to establish prayer, and yourself be steadfast in it; We do not ask any sustenance from you; We will provide you sustenance; and the excellent result is for piety.

And the disbelievers said, “Why does he not bring to us a sign from his Lord?”; did not the explanation of what is in the former Books, come to them?

And had We destroyed them with some punishment before the advent of a Noble Messenger, they would have certainly said, “Our Lord, why did You not send a Noble Messenger to us, so we would have followed Your signs, before being humiliated and disgraced?”

Proclaim, “Each one is waiting; so you too wait; very soon you will come to know who are the people of the right path, and who has attained guidance.”