Surah 70, Ma'Arij (The Ways Of Ascent), Mecca Period
The Quranic Text & Ali’s Translation:
70: 22. Not so those devoted to Prayer --
الَّذِينَ
هُمْ عَلَى
صَلَاتِهِمْ
دَائِمُونَ ﴿٢٣﴾
70: 23. Those who remain steadfast to their prayer;
وَالَّذِينَ
فِي أَمْوَالِهِمْ
حَقٌّ مَّعْلُومٌ ﴿٢٤﴾
70: 24. And those in whose wealth is a recognized right
لِّلسَّائِلِ
وَالْمَحْرُومِ ﴿٢٥﴾
70: 25. For the (needy) who asks and him who is prevented (for some reason from asking);
وَالَّذِينَ
يُصَدِّقُونَ
بِيَوْمِ
الدِّينِ ﴿٢٦﴾
70: 26. And those who hold to the truth of the Day of Judgment;
وَالَّذِينَ
هُم مِّنْ عَذَابِ
رَبِّهِم
مُّشْفِقُونَ ﴿٢٧﴾
70: 27. And those who fear the displeasure of their Lord --
إِنَّ
عَذَابَ رَبِّهِمْ
غَيْرُ مَأْمُونٍ ﴿٢٨﴾
70: 28. For their Lord's displeasure is the opposite of Peace and Tranquility --
وَالَّذِينَ
هُمْ لِفُرُوجِهِمْ
حَافِظُونَ ﴿٢٩﴾
70: 29. And those who guard their chastity,
إِلَّا
عَلَى أَزْوَاجِهِمْ
أَوْ مَا مَلَكَتْ
أَيْمَانُهُمْ
فَإِنَّهُمْ
غَيْرُ مَلُومِينَ ﴿٣٠﴾
70: 30. Except with their wives and the (captives) whom their right hands possess -- for (then) they are not to be blamed,
فَمَنِ
ابْتَغَى وَرَاء
ذَلِكَ فَأُوْلَئِكَ
هُمُ الْعَادُونَ ﴿٣١﴾
70: 31. But those who trespass beyond this are transgressors --
وَالَّذِينَ
هُمْ لِأَمَانَاتِهِمْ
وَعَهْدِهِمْ
رَاعُونَ ﴿٣٢﴾
70: 32. And those who respect their trusts and covenants;
وَالَّذِينَ
هُم بِشَهَادَاتِهِمْ
قَائِمُونَ ﴿٣٣﴾
70: 33. And those who stand firm in their testimonies;
وَالَّذِينَ
هُمْ عَلَى
صَلَاتِهِمْ
يُحَافِظُونَ ﴿٣٤﴾
70: 34. And those who guard (the sacredness) of their worship --
أُوْلَئِكَ
فِي جَنَّاتٍ
مُّكْرَمُونَ ﴿٣٥﴾
70: 35. Such will be the honored ones in the Gardens of (Bliss).
Asad’s Translation:
70:22 Not so, however, those who consciously turn towards God in prayer.'
70:23 [and] who incessantly persevere in their prayer
(70:24) and in whose possessions there is a due share, acknowledged [by them],
(70:25) for such as ask [for help] and such as are deprived [of what is good in life]; 10
(70:26) and who accept as true the [coming of the] Day of Judgment;
(70:27) and who stand in dread of their Sustainer's chastisement
(70:28) for, behold, of their Sustainer's chastisement none may ever feel [wholly] secure; 11
(70:29) and who are mindful of their chastity, 12
(70:30) [not giving way to their desires] with any but their spouses - that is, those whom they rightfully possess [through wedlock] - : 15 for then, behold, they are free of all blame,
(70:31) whereas such as seek to go beyond that [limit] are truly transgressors;
(70:32) and who are faithful to their trusts and to their pledges:
(70:33) and who stand firm whenever they bear witness;
(70:34) and who guard their prayers [from all worldly intent].
70:35 These it is who in the gardens [of paradise] shall be honoured
Yuksel’s translation:
Attributes of Muslims
70:22 Except for those who are supportive.
70:23 Who are always maintaining their support/contact prayers.
70:24 Those who set aside part of their wealth.
70:25 For the seeker and the deprived.
70:26 Those who acknowledge the day of Judgment.
70:27 Those who are fearful of their Lord's retribution.
70:28 The retribution of their Lord is not to be taken for granted.
70:29 Those who conceal their private parts.
70:30 Except around their spouses or those committed to by oath, there is no blame.* [See 4:25 and 23:6.]
70:31 Then, whoever seeks anything beyond this, they are the transgressors.
70:32 Those who are trustworthy and keep their pledges.
70:33 Those who uphold their testimonies.
70:34 Those who are dedicated to their support/contact prayer.
70:35 They will be honored in paradises
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Ali’s comments:
5690. The description of those devoted to Prayer is given in a number of clauses that follow, introduced by the words "Those who ......"
"Devoted to Prayer" is here but another aspect of what is described elsewhere as the Faithful and the Righteous.
Devotion to prayer does not mean merely a certain number of formal rites or prostrations. It means a complete surrender of one's being to Allah. This means;
• an earnest approach to and realisation of Allah's Presence ("steadfastness in Prayer");
• acts of practical and real charity;
• and attempt to read this life in terms of the Hereafter;
• the seeking of the Peace of Allah and avoidance of His displeasure;
• chastity;
• probity true and firm witness; and
• guarding the prayer. (verse 34).
5691. See n. 5001 to 51:19.
True charity consists in finding out those in real need, whether they ask or not. Most frequently those who ask are idle men who insolently wish to live upon others. But all cases of those who ask should be duly investigated, in case a little timely help may set the erring on the way. But the man with wealth or talent or opportunity has the further responsibility of searching out those in need of his assistance, in order to show that he holds all gifts in trust for the service of his fellow- creatures.
5692. A true fear of Allah is the fear of offending against His holy Will and Law, and is therefore akin to the love of Allah. It proceeds from the realisation that all true peace and tranquility comes from attuning our will to the universal Will and that sin causes discord, disharmony, and displeasure,-another name for the Wrath of Allah.
5693. Some would construe this verse:
"And their Lord's displeasure is one against which there is no security";
meaning that the punishment of sin may come suddenly at any time, when you least expect it.
5694. Captives of war may be married as such: see 4:25:
but their status is interior to that of free wives they are free. This institution of the captives of war is now obsolete.
Such inferiority of status as there was, was in the status of captivity, not in the status of marriage as such, in which there are no degrees except by local customs, which Islam does not recognize.
5695. For obligations of trusts and covenants, express or implied, see n. 682 to 5:1.
They are just as sacred in ordinary everyday life as they are in special spiritual relationships. In addition, our life itself, and such reason and talents as we possess, as well as our wealth and possessions are trusts, of which we must fulfil the duties punctiliously.
5696. If we know any truth of any kind, to that we must bear witness, as affecting the lives or interests of our fellow-beings,-firmly, not half-heartedly, without fear or favour, even if it causes loss or trouble to us, or if it loses us friends or associates.
5697. Worship or prayer includes honest work, and every good deed. To guard the sacredness of this ideal is to sum up the whole duty of man.
We began with "steadfastness in prayer" in verse 23 above, and after a review of various aspects of the good man's fife, close with the guarding of worship, ie, living as in the sight of Allah.
Asad’s comments:
10 Sc, "but do not or cannot beg": see Razi's comments on a similar phrase in 51:19, quoted in my corresponding note 12.
1 1 This warning against pharisaic self-righteousness implies that however "good" a person may be, there is always a possibility of his or her having done a moral wrong (e.g., an injury to a fellow-being) and then conveniently "forgotten" this sin. Elliptically, this warning contains a call to increasing consciousness in all one's doings - for, "temptation to evil (fitnah) does not befall only those who are bent on denying the truth" (8:25), but may also befall people who are otherwise righteous.
12 Lit., "who guard their private parts".
13 See the identical passage in 23 : 5-7, as well as the corresponding note 3, in which I have fully explained the reasons for my rendering of the phrase aw ma malakat aymanuhum as "that is, those whom they rightfully possess [through wedlock]". As regards this interpretation, see al Razi's comments on 4:24, as well as one of the alternative interpretations of that verse advanced by Tabari on the authority of lbn Abbas and Mujahid.
14 This, again, connects with the statement in verse 19, "man is born with a restless disposition (see note 7 above). People who do not want to see the truth of God's existence and have, therefore, no solid basis on which to build their world-view, are, by the same token, unable to conceive any definite standards of personal and social ethics. Hence, whenever they are confronted with anyone's positive assertion of faith, they "run about to and fro" in spiritual confusion, trying, in order to justify themselves intellectually, to demolish the premises of that faith by means of many-sided, contradictory arguments - an endeavour depicted in the metaphor, "coming upon thee from the right and from the left"; and since they derive all their strength from a conformity with shallow mass- opinions, they can do this only "in crowds".
15 I.e., "Do they hope to achieve inner peace and fulfilment by 'disproving' another person's faith?" The corresponding notes.)