Surah 13. Ar-Ra'd

Alif. Lam. Mim. Ra.¹ THESE ARE MESSAGES of revelation:² and what has been bestowed upon thee from on high by thy Sustainer is the truth - yet most people will not believe [in it].³

  - Mohammad Asad

See Appendix II.

Although some commentators are of the opinion that the term kitab ("divine writ" or "revelation") refers here to this particular surah, Ibn'Abbas states emphatically that it denotes the Qur'an as a whole (Baghawi).

This passage connects with the concluding verses (102-111) of the preceding surah, and particularly with verse {103}, all of which stress the divine origin of the Qur'an.

Alif L'am M'im Ra. These are the Verses of the Book; that have been revealed to you, O Muhammad, from your Rabb are the very Truth, but most of the people do not believe in this.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Alif. Lam. Mim. Ra. These are verses of the Scripture. That which is revealed unto thee from thy Lord is the Truth, but most of mankind believe not.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

It is God who has raised the heavens without any supports that you could see, and is established on the throne of His almightiness;⁴ and He [it is who] has made the sun and the moon subservient [to His laws], each running its course for a term set [by Him].⁵ He governs all that exists. Clearly does He spell out these messages, so that you might be certain in your innermost that you are destined to meet your Sustainer [on Judgment Day].⁶

  - Mohammad Asad

For an explanation of this phrase, see surah {7}, note [43]. As regards the "raising of the heavens without any supports" visible to man, it should be borne in mind that the noun sama' denotes, primarily, "something that is above [another thing]", and is used - mostly in its plural form samawat - to describe (a) the visible skies (as well as, occasionally, the clouds), (b) the cosmic space in which the stars, the solar systems (including our own) and the galaxies pursue their course. and (c) the abstract concept of the forces emanating from God (since He is, in the metonymical sense of this word, "above" all that exists]. To my mind, it is the second of these three meanings of samawat to which the above verse refers: namely, to the spatial universe in which all aggregations of matter - be they planets, stars, nebulae or galaxies - are, as it were, "suspended" in space within a system of unceasing motion determined by centrifugal forces and mutual, gravitational attraction.

This may refer either to the end of the world as we know it - thus indicating the finality of all creation - or, according to 'Abd Allah ibn 'Abbas (as quoted by Baghawi and Razi), to the "mansions" or stages through which the sun and the moon, like all other celestial bodies, move in time as well as in space.

I.e., "so that you might realize that He who has created the universe and governs all that exists is equally able to resurrect the dead, and to judge you in the life to come in accordance with what you did when you were alive on earth".

Allah is the One Who raised the heavens without any pillars that you can see, then firmly established Himself on the throne of authority and subjected the sun and the moon to His law - each one pursuing its course for an appointed time. He regulates all affairs. He has spelled out His revelations so that you may believe in meeting your Rabb.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Allah it is who raised up the heavens without visible supports, then mounted the Throne, and compelled the sun and the moon to be of service, each runneth unto an appointed term; He ordereth the course; He detaileth the revelations, that haply ye may be certain of the meeting with your Lord.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

And it is He who has spread the earth wide and placed on it firm mountains and running waters, and created thereon two sexes of every [kind of] plant;⁷ [and it is He who] causes the night to cover the day. Verily, in all this there are messages indeed for people who think!

  - Mohammad Asad

Lit., "and out of all [kinds of] fruits He made thereon [i.e., on earth] pairs (zawjayn ithnayn)". The term zawj denotes, according to the context, either "a pair" or "one of a pair". Whenever the dual form zawjan is followed by the additional numerical definition ithnan ("two"), it invariably signifies "a pair comprising both sexes". Thus, the above phrase states that there are two sexes to every kind of plant: a statement fully in accord with botanical science. (Usually. the male and female organs of reproduction exist together in one and the same flower of a particular plant, e.g., cotton; alternatively, they are placed in separate flowers of one and the same plant, e.g., in most of the cucurbitaceae; and, in some rare cases, e.g., the date-palm, in entirely separate, uni-sexual plants of the same species.)

He is the One Who spread out the earth and placed thereon mountains and rivers, created fruits of every kind in pairs, two and two and makes the night cover the day. Certainly in these things there are signs for those who use their common sense.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And He it is who spread out the earth and placed therein firm hills and flowing streams, and of all fruits be placed therein two spouses (male and female). He covereth the night with the day. Lo! herein verily are portents for people who take thought.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

And there are on earth [many] tracts of land close by one another [and yet widely differing from one another⁸ ]; and [there are on it] vinyards, end fields of grain, and date-palms growing in clusters from one root or standing alone,⁹ [all] watered with the same water: and yet, some of them have We favoured above others by way of the food [which they provide for man and beast].¹⁰ Verily, in all this there are messages indeed for people who use their reason!

  - Mohammad Asad

I.e., regarding the nature of the soil, fertility and kind of vegetation. The necessity of this interpolation - which, in the consensus of all commentators, conveys the meaning of the above phrase - becomes apparent from the subsequent clauses.

Lit., "non-clustered" (ghayr sinwan) - i.e., each tree having separate roots.

Cf. 6:99 and {141}, where a similar stress is laid on the multiformity of plants - and their varying beneficence to man and animal - as some of the signs of God's purposeful, creative activity.

In the earth there are tracts side by side: gardens of grapes, cornfields and palm trees with single and double trunks - they are all watered with the same water, yet We make some of them excel others in taste. Surely in this, there are signs for people who use their common sense.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And in the Earth are neighboring tracts, vineyards and ploughed lands, and date palms, like and unlike, which are watered with one water. And We have made some of them to excel others in fruit. Lo! herein verily are portents for people who have sense.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

BUT IF thou art amazed [at the marvels of God's creation], amazing, too, is their saying, "What! After we have become dust, shall we indeed be [restored to life] in a new act of creation?"¹¹ It is they who [thus show that they] are bent on denying their Sustainer;¹² and it is they who carry the shackles [of their own making] around their necks;¹³ and it is they who are destined for the fire, therein to abide.

  - Mohammad Asad

I.e., while it is amazing that one can refuse to believe in God despite all the evidence, accessible to human observation, of the existence of a definite purpose in all life-phenomena, and thus of the existence of a conscious Creative Power, it is no less amazing to see people who, while vaguely believing in God, can yet refuse to believe in individual resurrection: for, if God has created the universe and the phenomenon of life as such, He obviously has the power to re-create life - and its requisite physical vehicle - in a new act of creation.

By denying the possibility of resurrection, they implicitly deny God's almightiness, and thus, in effect, His reality.

A metaphor of man's wilful self-abandonment to false values and evil ways, and of the resulting enslavement of the spirit (cf. Zamakhshari, Razi, Baydawi). See also surah {34}, note [44].

Now, if there is anything that feels strange, then strange is their saying: "What! When we will become dust, could we then be raised to a new life again?" They are the people who have denied their Rabb, they are the ones who will have yokes around their necks and they are the ones who will be the inmates of hellfire to live therein forever.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And if thou wonderest, then wondrous is their saying: When we are dust, are we then forsooth (to be raised) in a new creation? Such are they who disbelieve in their Lord; such have carcans on their necks; such are rightful owners of the Fire, they will abide therein.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

And [since, O Prophet, they are bent on denying the truth,] they challenge thee to hasten the coming upon them of evil instead of [hoping for] good¹⁴ - although [they ought to know that] the exemplary punishments [which they now deride] have indeed come to pass before their time. Now, behold, thy Sustainer is full of forgiveness unto men despite all their evildoing:¹⁵ but, behold, thy Sustainer is [also] truly severe in retribution!

  - Mohammad Asad

Lit., "they ask thee to hasten the evil before the good": i.e., instead of willingly accepting the guidance offered them by the Prophet, they mockingly challenge him to bring about the exemplary punishment with which, according to him, God threatens them. (For a fuller explanation of this "challenge", referred to here and in several other places in the Qur'an, see {6:57-58} and 8:32 , as well as the corresponding notes.)

Cf. the first sentence of 10:11 and the corresponding note [17].

They ask you to hasten on the evil (Allah's scourge) rather than the good, although there have been instances of exemplary punishments before them. In fact your Rabb is the Lord of Forgiveness to the people, notwithstanding their wrongdoing; and it is also the fact that your Rabb is stern in retribution.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

And they bid thee hasten on the evil rather than the good, when exemplary punishments have indeed occurred before them. But lo! thy Lord is rich in pardon for mankind despite their wrong, and lo! thy Lord is strong in punishment!

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

However, they who are bent on denying the truth [refuse to believe and] say, "Why has no miraculous sign ever been bestowed on him from on high by his Sustainer?"¹⁶ [But] thou art only a warner; and [in God] all people have a guide.¹⁷

  - Mohammad Asad

I.e., to prove that he (Muhammad) is really a prophet inspired by God. But the Qur'an makes it clear in several places (e.g., 6:7 and {111}, {10:96-97} or 13:31 ) that even a miracle would not convince those who are "bent on denying the truth".

According to the classical commentators, this sentence lends itself to several interpretations: (1) "Thou art only a warner; and every nation has had a guide like thee (i.e., a prophet)" - which would be in consonance with the Qur'anic doctrine of the continuity of prophetic guidance; or (2) "Thou art only a warner - but [at the same time] also a guide unto all people" - which would stress the universality of the Qur'anic message as contrasted with the time-bound and ethnically limited missions of the earlier prophets; or (3) "Thou art only a warner bound to do no more than deliver the message entrusted to thee, while it is God alone who can truly guide men's hearts towards faith". Since the last of the above three interpretations is the most plausible and has, moreover the support of 'Abd Allah ibn'Abbas, Sa'id ibn Jubayr, Mujahid and Ad-Dahhak, I have adopted it in my rendering. According to Zamakhshari, this interpretation is further strengthened by the subsequent reference to God's omniscience.

The unbelievers say: "Why is not a sign sent down to him (Muhammad) from his Rabb?" You are nothing but a Warner and every nation was assigned a guide.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Those who disbelieve say: If only some portent were sent down upon him from his Lord! Thou art a warner only, and for every folk a guide.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

God knows what any female bears [in her womb], and by how much the wombs may fall short [in gestation], and by how much they may increase [the average period]:¹⁸ for with Him everything is [created] in accordance with its scope and purpose.¹⁹

  - Mohammad Asad

The term untha denotes any female being, whether human or animal. The "falling short" may refer either to a shortening of the usual period of gestation (e.g., to seven months in human beings) or to a falling short of the completion of pregnancy, i.e., a miscarriage; it is to be noted that the noun ghayd signifies "an abortive foetus" (Taj al-'Arus), i.e., in human beings, a foetus less than seven months old. The "increase", on the other hand, may mean either the completion of gestation or its being in excess of the average period (as, for instance, the occasional lengthening of human pregnancy from the usual period of about 280 days to 305 or, according to some medical authorities, even 307 days). In addition to this, God's knowledge of "what any female bears [in her womb]" obviously relates also to the sex of the unborn embryo as well as to the number of offspring involved in one pregnancy. - As the sequence shows, this reference to the mysteries of gestation, fully known only to God, is meant to bring out the idea that He who knows what is in the wombs knows also the innermost disposition of every human being and the direction in which that human being will develop.

Lit., "according to a measure" (bi-miqdar) - i.e., in accordance with the particular purpose for which it has been created, the exigencies of its existence and the role which it is destined to play within God's plan of creation.

Allah knows what every female bears in her womb. He is fully aware of what decrease or increase (miscarriage or a long wait) takes place in the womb. Everything has a due measure with Him.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Allah knoweth that which every female beareth and that which the wombs absorb and that which they grow. And everything with Him is measured.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

He knows all that is beyond the reach of a created being's perception as well as all that can be witnessed by a creature's senses or mind²⁰ - the Great One, the One far above anything that is or could ever be!²¹

  - Mohammad Asad

See surah {6}, note [65].

God's attribute al-muta'al, which occurs in the Qur'an only in this one instance, denotes His infinite exaltedness above anything existing or potential; also, according to Zamakhshari, above anything that could be circumscribed by human definitions. (See in this connection the last sentence of 6:100 and the corresponding note [88].)

He has perfect knowledge of both the visible and the invisible. He is the Great, the Most High.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

He is the Knower of the invisible and the visible, the Great, the High Exalted.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall

It is all alike [to Him] whether any of you conceals his thought²² or brings it into the open, and whether he seeks to hide [his evil deeds] under the cover of night or walks [boldly] in the light of day,²³

  - Mohammad Asad

The term qawl denotes, primarily, "a saying" or "an utterance", but it is also used tropically in the sense of "an idea", irrespective of whether it is expressed in actual words (as a statement an assertion, a formulated doctrine, etc.) or merely conceived in the mind (e.g., an opinion, a view, or a connected set of ideas). Since in the above verse this term obviously refers to unspoken thoughts, I have rendered it accordingly.

Lit., "and goes forth by day" - i.e., commits evil deeds openly (Ibn 'Abbas, as quoted by Baghawi and Razi). In the Arabic construction, the sentence reads thus: "All alike [to Him] is he from among you who conceals his thought (al-qawl) and he who brings it into the open, as well as he who...," etc.

It is the same to Him whether any of you speak in secret or aloud, whether anyone hides under the darkness of night or walks about in broad daylight.

  - Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik

Alike of you is he who hideth the saying and he who noiseth it abroad, he who lurketh in the night and he who goeth freely in the daytime.

  - Marmaduke Pickthall