20 Sura Taha
The Quranic Text & Ali’s Version:
كَذَلِكَ نَقُصُّ
عَلَيْكَ مِنْ
أَنبَاء مَا
قَدْ سَبَقَ...
20: 99. for We have sent thee a Message from Our own Presence.
...وَقَدْ آتَيْنَاكَ مِن لَّدُنَّا ذِكْرًا ﴿٩٩﴾
for We have sent thee a Message from Our own Presence.
C2625. Thus superseding previous revelations; for this (the Quran) is direct from Allah, and is not a second-hand exposition on other men's authority.
مَنْ
أَعْرَضَ عَنْهُ
فَإِنَّهُ
يَحْمِلُ يَوْمَ
الْقِيَامَةِ
وِزْرًا ﴿١٠٠﴾
20: 100. If any do turn away therefrom, verily they will bear a burden on the Day of Judgement;
20: 101. They will abide in this (state):
...وَسَاء لَهُمْ يَوْمَ الْقِيَامَةِ حِمْلًا ﴿١٠١﴾
and grievous will the burden be to them on that Day --
C2626. Cf. 6:31.
If people are so immersed in the evanescent falsehoods of this life as to turn away from the True and the Eternal, they will have a rude awakening when the Judgment comes. These very things that they thought so enjoyable here;-
- taking advantage of others,
- material self-indulgence,
- nursing grievances instead of doing good, etc., -
will be a grievous burden to them that day, which they will not be able to escape or lighten.
يَوْمَ يُنفَخُ
فِي الصُّورِ...
20: 102. The Day when the Trumpet will be sounded:
...وَنَحْشُرُ الْمُجْرِمِينَ يَوْمَئِذٍ زُرْقًا ﴿١٠٢﴾
that Day, We shall gather the sinful, blear-eyed (with terror),
C2627. Zurqa:
- having eyes different from the normal colour, which in the East is black and white;
- having blue eyes,
- or eyes afflicted with dimness or blindness, or squint;
hence metaphorically, blear-eyed (with terror).
يَتَخَافَتُونَ
بَيْنَهُمْ
إِن لَّبِثْتُمْ
إِلَّا عَشْرًا ﴿١٠٣﴾
20: 103. In whispers will they consult each other:
"Ye tarried not longer than ten (Days);"
C2628. Faced with eternity they will realise that their life on this earth, or the interval between their sin and their punishment, had a duration which practically amounted to nothing.
They express this by the phrase "ten days", but their wiser heads think that even this is an over-estimate. It was but a brief day!
نَحْنُ
أَعْلَمُ بِمَا
يَقُولُونَ...
20: 104. We know best what they will say,
...إِذْ يَقُولُ أَمْثَلُهُمْ طَرِيقَةً إِن لَّبِثْتُمْ إِلَّا يَوْمًا ﴿١٠٤﴾
when their leader most eminent in Conduct will say: "Ye tarried not longer than a day!"
Note that it is the shrewdest and most versed in Life who will say this, because they will be the first to see the true situation.
Others version:
20:99
THUS DO WE relate unto thee some of the stories of what happened in the past; and [thus]
have We vouchsafed unto thee, out of Our grace, a reminder. 85
20:100
All who shall turn away from it will, verily, bear a [heavy] burden on the Day of Resurrection:
(20:101) they will abide in this [state], and grievous for them will be the weight [of that burden] on the Day of Resurrection –
(20:102) on the Day when the trumpet is blown: for on that Day We will assemble all such as had been lost in sin, their eyes dimmed 86 [by terror],
(20:103) whispering unto one another, "You have spent but ten [days on earth]...." 87
(20:104)
[But] We know best 88 what they will be saying when the most perceptive of them shall say,
"You have spent [there] but one day!"
[[ Asad’s notes –
[[Asad’s notes:
85 Lhe adverb kadhalika ("thus") which introduces this verse is meant to stress the purpose of all
Qur'anic references to past events - be they historical or legendary - as well as the manner in
which the relevant stories are treated. Since the purpose underlying every Qur'anic narrative is,
invariably, the illustration of certain fundamental truths, the narrative as such is often condensed
and elliptic, omitting all that has no direct bearing on the point or points which the Qur'an means
to bring out. The term "reminder" alludes to the unceasing guidance which God offers to man
through His revelations.
86 Lit., "blue [of eye]" - i.e., as if their eyes were covered with a bluish, opaque film.
87 As in several other places in the Qur'an (e.g., in 2:259, 17:52, 18:19, 23:112-113, 30:55,
79:46, etc.), this and the next verse touch upon the illusory character of maris consciousness of "time" and, thus, upon the relativity of the concept of "time" as such. The number "ten" is
often used in Arabic to denote "a few" (Razi).
88 Signifying, in this context, "We alone understand fully". ]]
99 Thus do We relate to thee some stories of what happened before: for We have sent thee a Message from Our own Presence. 2625
100 If any do turn away therefrom verily they will bear a burden on the Day of Judgement;
101 They will abide in this (state): and grievous will the burden be to them on that Day 2626
102 The Day when the Trumpet will be sounded: that Day We shall gather the sinful blear-eyed (with terror) 2627
103 In whispers will they consult each other: "Ye tarried not longer than ten (Days)"; 2628
104 We know best what they will say when their leader most eminent in Conduct will say: "Ye tarried not longer than a day!" 2629
[[Ali’s notes –
2625 Thus superseding previous revelations; for this (the Qur-an) is direct from Allah, and is not a second-hand exposition on other men's authority. (20.99)
2626 Cf. vi. 31. If people are so immersed in the evanescent falsehoods of this life as to turn away from the True and the Eternal, they will have a rude awakening when the Judgment comes. These very things that they thought so enjoyable here-taking advantage of others, material self-indulgence, nursing grievances instead of doing good, etc., etc.,-will be a grievous burden to them that day, which they will not be able to escape or lighten. (20.101)
2627 Zurq=having eyes different from the normal colour, which in the East is black and white; having blue eyes, or eyes afflicted with dimness or blindness, or squint; hence mataphorically, blear-eyed (with terror). (20.102)
2628 Faced with eternity they will realise that their life on this earth, or the interval between their sin and their punishment, had a duration which practically amounted to nothing. They express this by the phrase "ten days", but their wiser heads think that even this is an over-estimate. It was but a brief day! (20.103)
2629 Cf. xx. 63 and n. 2587. Note that it is the shrewdest and most versed in Life who will say this, because they will be the first to see the true situation. (20.104)]]