54. Sura al-Qamar(The Moon)
Mecca Period 37
The Quranic Text & Ali’s Version:
فَكَيْفَ
كَانَ عَذَابِي
وَنُذُرِ
﴿١٦﴾
54: 16. But how (terrible) was My Penalty and My Warning?
C5142. While the Mercy of Allah is always prominently mentioned, we must not forget or minimize the existence of Evil, and the terrible Penalty it incurs if the Grace of Allah and His Warning are deliberately rejected.
وَلَقَدْ
يَسَّرْنَا
الْقُرْآنَ
لِلذِّكْرِ
...
54: 17. And We have indeed made the Qur'án easy to understand and remember:
C5143. While the Quran sums up the highest philosophy of the inner life, its simple directions for conduct are plain and easy to understand and act upon.
Is this not in itself a part of the Grace of Allah?
And what excuse is there for any one to fail in receiving admonition?
...فَهَلْ مِن مُّدَّكِرٍ ﴿١٧﴾
then is there any that will receive admonition?
كَذَّبَتْ
عَادٌ فَكَيْفَ
كَانَ عَذَابِي
وَنُذُرِ
﴿١٨﴾
54: 18. The 'Ad (people) (too) rejected (Truth):
then how terrible was my Penalty and my Warning!
إِنَّا
أَرْسَلْنَا
عَلَيْهِمْ
رِيحًا صَرْصَرًا
فِي يَوْمِ
نَحْسٍ مُّسْتَمِرٍّ
﴿١٩﴾
54: 19. For We sent against them a furious wind, on a Day of violent Disaster,
C5144. Cf. 41:16.
How graphic is the description of the tornado that uprooted them! It must indeed be a dreadful tornado that plucks up the palm-trees by their deep tap- roots.
The "Day" is an indefinite period of time.
The wind that destroyed the 'Ad people lasted seven nights and eight days: 69:7.
تَنزِعُ
النَّاسَ كَأَنَّهُمْ
أَعْجَازُ
نَخْلٍ مُّنقَعِرٍ
﴿٢٠﴾
54: 20. Plucking out men as if they were roots of palm-trees torn up (from the ground).
فَكَيْفَ
كَانَ عَذَابِي
وَنُذُرِ
﴿٢١﴾
54: 21. Yea, how (terrible) was my Penalty and my Warning!
C5145. Repeated from verse 18 to heighten the description of the sin, the penalty, and the criminal negligence of the sinners in refusing the warnings on account of their self-complacent confidence in their own strength and stability! It is repeated again as a secondary refrain in 54:30 and (with slight modification) in 54:32 and 39.
وَلَقَدْ
يَسَّرْنَا
الْقُرْآنَ
لِلذِّكْرِ
فَهَلْ مِن
مُّدَّكِرٍ
﴿٢٢﴾
54: 22. But We have indeed made the Qur'án easy to understand and remember:
then is there any that will receive admonition?
Asad’s Version:
54:16 And how severe is the suffering which I inflict when My warnings are disregarded! 10
(54:17) Hence, indeed, We made this Qur'an easy to bear in mind:11 who, then, is willing to take it to heart?
54:18 TO THE TRUTH gave the lie [the tribe of] 'Ad: and how severe was the suffering which I inflicted when My warnings were disregarded!
(54:19) Behold, We let loose upon them a raging stormwind on a day of bitter misfortune:
(54:20) it swept the people away as though they were palm-trunks uprooted: 12
(54:21) for, how severe is the suffering which I inflict when My warnings are disregarded!
54:22 Hence, indeed,; We made this Qur'an easy to bear in mind: who, then, is willing to take it to heart?
[[Asad’s notes - 10 Lit., "how was My [causing] suffering (-adhabr) and My warnings" - i.e., after the warnings. Although this sentence is phrased in the past tense, its purport is evidently timeless.
1 1 The noun dhikr primarily denotes "remembrance", or - as defined by Raghib - the "presence [of something] in the mind". Conceptually, and as used in the above context as well as in verses 22, 32 and 40, this term comprises the twin notions of understanding and remembering, i.e., bearing something in mind.
12 As mentioned in 69:6-8, this wind - obviously an exceptionally violent sandstorm - raged without break for seven nights and eight days. For particulars of the tribe of 'Ad, see second half of note 48 on 7:65. ]]