Sura-3 [Al-Imran, Medina 89 ]

The Quranic Text & Ali’s version:

تُولِجُ اللَّيْلَ فِي الْنَّهَارِ وَتُولِجُ النَّهَارَ فِي اللَّيْلِ...

3:27. "Thou causest the Night to gain on the Day, and Thou causest the Day to gain on the Night;

C370. True in many senses.

In every twenty-four hours, night merges into day, and day into night, and there is no clear boundary between them.

In every solar year, the night gains on the day after the summer solstice, and the day gains on the night after the winter solstice.

But further, if light and darkness are viewed as symbols of;

a. knowledge and ignorance,

b. happiness and misery,

c. spiritual insight and spiritual blindness,

Allah's Plan or Will works here too as in the physical world, and in His hand is all Good.

...وَتُخْرِجُ الْحَيَّ مِنَ الْمَيِّتِ وَتُخْرِجُ الَمَيَّتَ مِنَ الْحَيِّ...

Thou bringest the Living out of the Dead, and thou bringest the Dead out of the Living;

C371. We can interpret Dead and Living in even more senses than Day and Night: death physical, intellectual, emotional, spiritual.

Life and Death may also apply to collective, group, or national life. And who has ever solved the mystery of Life? But Faith refers it to Allah's Will and Plan.

...وَتَرْزُقُ مَن تَشَاء بِغَيْرِ حِسَابٍ ﴿٢٧﴾

and Thou givest sustenance to whom Thou pleasest without measure."

C372. Again true in all the senses suggested in the two previous notes. The only Eternal Reality is Allah. All else has its basis and sustenance in Him. Lest our little minds create fear out of "nicely calculated less or more", we are told at once that Allah's bounty is without measure or account.

Other versions:

3: 27

Yusuf Ali "Thou causest the Night to gain on the Day and Thou causest the Day to gain on the Night; Thou bringest the Living out of the Dead and thou bringest the Dead out of the Living; and Thou givest sustenance to whom Thou pleasest without measure."

Pickthall Thou causest the night to pass into the day, and Thou causest the day to pass into the night. And Thou bringest forth the living from the dead, and Thou bringest forth the dead from the living. And Thou givest sustenance to whom Thou choosest, without stint.

Transliteration Tu_lijul laila fin naha_ri wa tu_lijun naha_ra fil laili wa tukhrijul hayya minal mayyiti wa tukhrijul mayyita minal hayyi wa tarzuqu man tasya_'u bi gairi hisa_b(in).

[ Ali’s notes - 370 True in many senses. In every twenty-four hours, night merges into day, and day into night, and there is no clear boundary between them. In every solar year, the night gains on the day after the summer solstice, and the day gains on the night after the winter solstice. But further, if light and darkness are viewed as symbols of (a) knowledge and ignorance, (b) happiness and misery, (c) spiritual insight and spiritual blindness, Allah's Plan or Will works here too as in the physical world, and in His hand is all Good. (3.27)

371 We can interpret Dead and Living in even more senses than Day and Night: death physical, intellectual, emotional, spiritual. Life and Death may also apply to collective, group, or national life. And who has ever solved the mystery of Life? But Faith refers it to Allah's Will and Plan. (3.27)

Verses 238-39 are parenthetical, introducing the subject of prayer in danger. This is more fully dealt with in iv. 101-03.

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