They ask you about menstruation. "Tell them: This is adiscomfort; therefore, keep away from women (do not have sexualintercourse) during their menstrual periods and do not approachthem until they are clean again. When they have cleansedthemselves then you may approach them in the manner Allah hasenjoined for you. Surely Allah loves those who turn to Him inrepentance and keep themselves clean.

yet they deny him, saying: "He is a madman, taught by others!"

Allah has made your homes the place for your rest, and animalskins for tents like houses so that you may find them light whenyou travel and easy to pitch when you stop; while from theirwool, fur, and hair He provides you household items and articlesof convenience for your prescribed term of life.

Allah has provided you shades from the sun out of what He hascreated. He has granted you resorts in the mountains, has grantedyou garments to protect yourselves from heat; and coats of armorto protect you during your wars. Thus He completes his favors toyou, so that you may become Muslims.

Surely, In the creation of the heavens and the earth; in thealternation of the night and the day, in the sailing of the shipsthrough the ocean for the profit of mankind; in the rain whichAllah sends down from the skies, with which He revives the earthafter its death and spreads in it all kinds of animals, in thechange of the winds and the clouds between the sky and the earththat are made subservient, there are signs for rational people.

In fact the sadaqat (Zakah) collection is for the poor, thehelpless, those employed to administer the funds, those whosehearts need to be won over to the truth, ransoming the captives,helping the destitute, in the Way of Allah and for the wayfarer.That is a duty enjoined by Allah; and Allah is All-Knowledgeable,Wise.

Likewise men, beasts and cattle have their different colors. Infact, only those among His servants who possess knowledge fearAllah; surely Allah is All-Mighty, All-Forgiving.

Likewise men, beasts and cattle have their different colors. Infact, only those among His servants who possess knowledge fearAllah; surely Allah is All-Mighty, All-Forgiving.

Likewise men, beasts and cattle have their different colors. Infact, only those among His servants who possess knowledge fearAllah; surely Allah is All-Mighty, All-Forgiving.

and declare, "The Truth has come and falsehood has vanished, forfalsehood by its nature is bound to perish."

O mankind, you have been distracted by the rivalry of piling upworldly gains against one another.

You will never be satisfied until you get into the grave.

Nevertheless, soon you shall come to know.

Again, nevertheless, soon you shall come to know.

Nay! Would that you knew through the real knowledge provided toyou in this Qur'an and care about your life in the Hereafter.

Because on the Day of Judgement when you shall see the hell,

and see it with the certainty of your own eyes

- you shall believe it, but that belief is going to do you nogood because - on that Day, you shall be questioned about theblessings (faculties and resources that you were given in theworldly life - as to how you used them?)

And were it not that all mankind might become one nation ofunbelievers, We would have given those who disbelieve in theCompassionate (Allah), such houses whose roofs, stairways bywhich they go to upper chambers all made with silver,

and also the doors of their houses and couches on which theyrecline,

along with ornaments of gold - for all these are nothing butmerely comforts of this worldly life. It is the life of thehereafter which your Rabb has reserved for the righteous.

Who pray: "Our Rabb! Make our wives and our children to be thecomfort of our eyes, and make us leaders of the righteous."

O Prophet, tell them: If your fathers, your sons, your brothers,your spouses, your relatives, the wealth that you have acquired,the business in which you fear a loss, and the homes which youlike are dearer to you than Allah, His Rasool, and making Jihad(struggle) in His Way, then wait until Allah brings about Hisdecision. Allah does not guide the transgressors.

Have you not seen those who were told to restrain their handsfrom fighting, establish Salah (regular prayers) and pay Zakah(regular charity). Now when at length they are commanded tofight, lo! A group of them fear people as they should have fearedAllah, or even more than that, and say: "Our Rabb! Why have Youordered us to fight? Could you delay its implementation for awhile?" Tell them: "The enjoyment of this worldly life is short,life of the hereafter is much better for those who fear Allah,and rest assured that you will not be wronged equal to the fiberof a date-stone.

O believers! What is the matter with you that when you are askedto march forth in the way of Allah, you cling to the earth? Doyou prefer the life of this world to the life of the hereafter?If it is so, then you should know that the comforts of this lifeare little compared to the life of the hereafter.

Do not look at the worldly wealth which We have given todifferent people among them, nor grieve at their condition. Leavethem alone, attend to the believers in kindness,

Do not strain your eyes with envy regarding the worldly benefitsWe have bestowed on some among them, for with these We seek totest them, the lawful provision of your Rabb is better and morelasting.

Just think! If We let them enjoy this life for many years,

and then the scourge with which they are threatened falls uponthem,

of what avail will their past enjoyments be to them?

And were it not that all mankind might become one nation ofunbelievers, We would have given those who disbelieve in theCompassionate (Allah), such houses whose roofs, stairways bywhich they go to upper chambers all made with silver,

and also the doors of their houses and couches on which theyrecline,

along with ornaments of gold - for all these are nothing butmerely comforts of this worldly life. It is the life of thehereafter which your Rabb has reserved for the righteous.

On that Day when the disbelievers will be brought before thefire, they will be told: "You squandered away your good things inyour earthly life and you enjoyed them for a while. Today youshall be recompensed with a punishment of humiliation because youbehaved with arrogance for which you had no right during yourlife on earth and because of the transgressions you committed."

Let me deal with rejecters who are enjoying the comforts of thislife, so put up with them for a while.

We have in store for them heavy fetters and a blazing fire,

choking food and a painful punishment.

On the day when the earth with all it's mountains will be in aviolent commotion, and the mountains will crumble into heaps ofshifting sand.

And of His signs are the firmly standing heaven and earth by Hiscommand; then as soon as He will summon you out of the earth, youshall come forth at one call.

To Him belongs everything that is in the heavens and the earth;all are obedient to Him.

Woe to man! What a disbeliever he is!

Out of what Allah has created him?

Out of a semen-drop! Allah created him and then fashioned him indue proportion,

then makes his way of life smooth for him,

then causes him to die and stows him in a grave.

Then He will surely bring him back to life when He pleases.

By no means has he fulfilled the duty that Allah had assignedhim.

Allah's commandment has come, so do not seek to hurry it on.Glory be to Him and Exalted be He above the shirk (associatingother gods with Allah) that they practice!

On their tongues is the promise of obedience and good talk, so ifthey would have proved their promise with Allah when the finalcommand was given, it would have been better for them.

Now what can be expected of you if you are put in authority,other than to do evil in the land and violate the ties of blood.

Such are those whom Allah has cursed and made them deaf andblinded their sight.

Will they not ponder upon the Qur'an? Are there locks upon theirhearts?

As for those who break their covenant with Allah after confirmingit and cut asunder what Allah has commanded to be joined andcreate mischief in the land, they are the ones on whom thereshall be a curse and they are the ones who will have a terriblehome.

And mention Our devotees Ibrahim (Abraham), Ishaq (Isaac) andYa'qoob (Jacob): men of power and vision.

Surely We chose them for their special quality of keeping in mindthe abode of hereafter.

Certainly they are with Us; among the best chosen.

Also mention Isma'il, Al-Yas'a (Elisha) and Zul-Kifl; all of themwere among the best.

Also mention Isma'il, Al-Yas'a (Elisha) and Zul-Kifl; all of themwere among the best.

Mention Our devotee Ayub (Job), when he called upon his Rabbsaying: "Shaitan has afflicted me with distress and suffering,"

and We asked him: "Strike your foot on the ground. A cool springwill gush forth. Wash and drink to refresh yourself."

And We restored to him his family and many more with them as agrace from Ourselves and a reminder for the people ofunderstanding.

Then, to fulfill his oath of giving his wife one hundred strikeswhich he made during his sickness, We said: "Take a bunch oftwigs and strike with it and do not break your oath." CertainlyWe found him full of patience. He was an excellent devotee, whoturned to Us over and over again.

O believers! When you deal with each other in lending for a fixedperiod of time, put it in writing. Let a scribe write it downwith justice between the parties. The scribe, who is given thegift of literacy by Allah, should not refuse to write; he isunder obligation to write. Let him who incurs the liability(debtor) dictate, fearing Allah his Rabb and not diminishinganything from the settlement. If the borrower is mentally unsoundor weak or is unable to dictate himself, let the guardian of hisinterests dictate for him with justice. Let two witnesses fromamong you bear witness to all such documents, if two men cannotbe found, then one man and two women of your choice should bearwitness, so that if one of the women forgets anything the othermay remind her. The witnesses must not refuse when they arecalled upon to do so. You must not be averse to writing (yourcontract) for a future period, whether it is a small matter orbig. This action is more just for you in the sight of Allah,because it facilitates the establishment of evidence and is thebest way to remove all doubts; but if it is a common commercialtransaction concluded on the spot among yourselves, there is noblame on you if you do not put it in writing. You should havewitnesses when you make commercial transactions. Let no harm bedone to the scribe or witnesses; and if you do so, you shall beguilty of transgression. Fear Allah; it is Allah that teaches youand Allah has knowledge of everything.

O believers! When you deal with each other in lending for a fixedperiod of time, put it in writing. Let a scribe write it downwith justice between the parties. The scribe, who is given thegift of literacy by Allah, should not refuse to write; he isunder obligation to write. Let him who incurs the liability(debtor) dictate, fearing Allah his Rabb and not diminishinganything from the settlement. If the borrower is mentally unsoundor weak or is unable to dictate himself, let the guardian of hisinterests dictate for him with justice. Let two witnesses fromamong you bear witness to all such documents, if two men cannotbe found, then one man and two women of your choice should bearwitness, so that if one of the women forgets anything the othermay remind her. The witnesses must not refuse when they arecalled upon to do so. You must not be averse to writing (yourcontract) for a future period, whether it is a small matter orbig. This action is more just for you in the sight of Allah,because it facilitates the establishment of evidence and is thebest way to remove all doubts; but if it is a common commercialtransaction concluded on the spot among yourselves, there is noblame on you if you do not put it in writing. You should havewitnesses when you make commercial transactions. Let no harm bedone to the scribe or witnesses; and if you do so, you shall beguilty of transgression. Fear Allah; it is Allah that teaches youand Allah has knowledge of everything.

Why were there not among the generations before you, good personswho could forbid the people from making mischief in the land,except a few of those whom We delivered from among them? Thewrongdoers, however, pursued the worldly pleasure they wereprovided, and became confirmed criminals.

It is not possible that your Rabb would destroy the townsunjustly while their habitants were to mend their ways.

Some say they stayed in their cave three hundred years and some add another nine.

O Prophet, say: "Allah knows best how long they stayed; He is the One Who knows the secrets of the heavens and the earth; sharp is His sight and keen His hearing! They have no protector besides Him and He does not let anyone share in His command.

As for those of the left hand - how unfortunate will be thepeople of the left hand!

They will be in the midst of scorching winds and in boilingwater:

in the shade of a pitch-black smoke,

neither cool nor refreshing.

For they lived in comfort before meeting this fate.

They persisted in heinous sins

and used to say: "When we are dead and turned to dust and bones,shall we then be raised to life again?

And our forefathers, too?"

Tell them: "Surely those of old and those of present age

shall certainly be brought together on an appointed time of aknown Day.

Then, "O the mistaken rejecters,

you shall eat of the Zaqqum tree,

and fill your bellies with it;

and drink on top of it scalding water;

yet you shall drink it like a thirsty camel."

Such will be their entertainment on the Day of Reckoning.

And if he is one of the mistaken rejecters,

he is welcomed with scalding water,

and burning in hellfire.

Surely this is an absolute truth.

Do you think that the Companions of the Cave and of Ar-Raqeem (this may refer to the name of their dog, or the tablet on which their names are inscribed or the mountain in which the cave is situated) were among Our wonderful signs?

If you could look at them in the cave, it would appear to you that the rising sun declines to the right of their cavern, and as it sets, passes them on the left, while they lay in an open space in between. This is from the signs of Allah. He whom Allah guides is rightly guided; but he whom He lets go astray, you will find no guardian to lead him to the Right Way.

He who turns away from the remembrance (Reminder) of theCompassionate (Allah), We assign a shaitan for him, who becomeshis intimate companion.

- and turns such people away from the Right Path, while theythink that they are guided aright.

- Ultimately, when that person will come to Us on the Day ofJudgement, he will say to his shaitan companion: "I wish that Iwas far apart from you as the east is from the west: you turnedout to be an evil companion."

Then it will be said to them: "Well, you have already done wrong,realizing this fact today will avail you nothing, as you both arepartners in the same punishment.

Rest assured that Allah does not wrong anyone even by an atom'sweight. If someone does a good deed He increases it many fold andalso gives an extra great reward on His own.