The Koran
CHAPTER XVII.
ENTITLED, THE NIGHT-JOURNEY; REVEALED AT MECCA.
IN THE NAME OF THE MOST MERCIFUL GOD
(XV.) Praise be unto him, who transported his servant by night, from the
sacred temple of Mecca to the father temple of Jerusalem, the circuit of
which we have blessed, that we might show him some of our signs; for God
is he who heareth, and seeth. And we gave unto Moses the book of the law,
and appointed the same to be a direction unto the children of Israel, commanding
them, saying, Beware that ye take not any other patron besides me. O posterity
of those whom we carried in the ark with Noah: verily he was a grateful
servant. And we expressly declared unto the children of Israel in the book
of the law, saying, Ye will surely commit evil in the earth twice, and
ye will be elated with great insolence. And when the punishment threatened
for the first of those transgressions came to be executed, we sent against
you our servants, endued with exceeding strength in war, and they searched
the inner apartments of your houses; and the prediction became accomplished.
Afterwards we gave you the victory over them, in your turn, and we granted
you increase of wealth and children, and we made you a more numerous people,
saying, If ye do well, ye will do well to your own souls; and if ye do
evil, ye will do it unto the same. And when the punishment threatened for
your latter transgression come to be executed, we sent enemies against
you, to afflict you, and to enter the temple, as they entered it the first
time, and utterly to destroy that which they had conquered. Peradventure
your Lord will have mercy on you hereafter: but if ye return to transgress
a third time, we also will return to chastise you; and we have appointed
hell to be the prison of the unbelievers. Verily this Koran directeth unto
the way which is most right, and declareth unto the faithful, who do good
works, that they shall receive a great reward; and that for those who believe
not in the life to come, we have prepared a grievous punishment. Man prayeth
for evil, as he prayeth for good; for man is hasty. We have ordained the
night and the day for two signs of our power: afterwards we blot out the
sign of the night, and we cause the sign of the day to shine forth, that
ye may endeavor to obtain plenty from your Lord by doing your business
therein, and that ye may know the number of years, and the computation
of time; and everything necessary have we explained by a perspicuous explication.
The fate of every man have we bound about his neck; and we will produce
unto him, on the day of resurrection, a book where in his actions shall
be recorded: it shall be offered him open, and the angels shall say unto
him, Read thy book; thine own soul will be a sufficient accountant against
thee, this day. He who shall be rightly directed, shall be directed to
the advantage only of his own soul; and he who shall err, shall err only
against the same: neither shall any laden soul be charged with the burthen
of another. We did not punish any people, until we had first sent an apostle
to warn them. And when we resolved to destroy a city, we commanded the
inhabitants thereof, who lived in affluence, to obey our apostle; but they
acted corruptly therein: wherefore the sentence was justly pronounced against
that city; and we destroyed it with an utter destruction. And how many
generations have we consumed since Noah? for thy Lord sufficiently knoweth
and seeth the sins of his servants. Whosoever chooseth this transitory
life, we will bestow on him therein beforehand that which we please; on
him, namely, whom we please: afterwards will we appoint him hell for his
abode; he shall be thrown into the same to be scorched, covered with ignominy,
and utterly rejected from mercy. But whosoever chooseth the life to come,
and directeth his endeavor towards the same, being also a true believer;
the endeavor of these shall be acceptable unto God. On all will we bestow
the blessings of this life, both on these and on those, of the gift of
thy Lord; for the gift of thy Lord shall not be denied unto any. Behold,
how we have caused some of them to surpass others in wealth and dignity:
but the next life shall be more considerable in degrees of honor, and greater
in excellence. Set not up another God with the true God, lest thou sit
down in disgrace, and destitute. Thy Lord hath commanded that ye worship
none, besides him; and that ye show kindness unto your parents, whether
the one of them, or both of them attain to old age with thee. Wherefore
say not unto them, Fie on you! neither reproach them, but speak respectfully
unto them; and submit to behave humbly towards them, out of tender affection,
and say, O Lord, have mercy on them both, as they nursed me when I was
little. Your Lord well knoweth that which is in your souls; whether ye
be men of integrity: and he will be gracious unto those who sincerely return
unto him. And give unto him who is of kin to you his due, and also unto
the poor, and the traveller. And waste not thy substance profusely: for
the profuse are brethren of the devils: and the devil was ungrateful unto
his Lord. But if thou turn from them, in expectation of the mercy which
thou hopest from thy Lord; at least, speak kindly unto them. And let not
thy hand be tied up to thy neck; neither open it with an unbounded expansion,
lest thou become worthy of reprehension, and be reduced to poverty. Verity
thy Lord will enlarge the store of whom he pleaseth; and will be sparing
unto whom he pleaseth; for he knoweth and regardeth his servants. Kill
not your children for fear of being brought to want; we will provide for
them and for you: verily the killing them is a great sin. Draw not near
unto fornication; for it is wickedness, and an evil way. Neither slay the
soul which God hath forbidden you to slay, unless for a just cause; and
whosoever shall be slain unjustly, we have given his heir power to demand
satisfaction; but let him not exceed the bounds of moderation in putting
to death the murderer in too cruel a manner, or by revenging his friend’s
blood on any other than the person who killed him; since he is assisted
by this law. And meddle not with the substance of the orphan, unless it
be to improve it, until lie attain his age of strength: and perform your
covenant; for the performance of your covenant shall be inquired into hereafter.
And give full measure, when you measure ought; and weigh with a just balance.
This will be better, and more easy for determining every man’s due. And
follow not that whereof thou hast no knowledge; for the hearing, and the
sight, and the heart, every of these shall be examined at the last day.
Walk not proudly in the land, for thou canst not cleave the earth, neither
shalt thou equal the mountains in stature. All this is evil, and abominable
in the sight of thy Lord. These precepts are a part of the wisdom which
thy Lord hath revealed unto thee. Set not up any other god as equal unto
God, lest thou be cast into hell, reproved and rejected. Hath your Lord
preferably granted unto you sons, and taken for himself daughters from
among the angels? Verily in asserting this ye utter a grievous saying.
And now have we used various arguments and repetitions in this Koran, that
they may he warned; yet it only rendereth them more disposed to fly from
the truth. Say unto the idolaters, If there were other gods with him, as
ye say, they would surely seek an occasion of making some attempt against
the possessor of the throne: God forbid! and far, very far, be that from
him which they utter! The seven heavens praise him, and the earth, and
all who are therein: neither is there anything which doth not celebrate
his praise; but ye understand not their celebration thereof: he is gracious
and merciful. When thou readest the Koran, we place between thee and those
who believe not in the life to come, a dark veil; and we put coverings
over their hearts, lest they should understand it, and in their ears thickness
of hearing. And when thou makest mention, in repeating the Koran, of thy
Lord only, they turn their backs, flying the doctrine of his unity. We
well know with what design they hearken, when they hearken unto thee, and
when they privately discourse together: when the ungodly say, Ye follow
no other than a madman. Behold! what epithets they bestow on thee. But
they are deceived; neither can they find any just occasion to reproach
thee. They also say, After we shall have become bones and dust, shall we
surely be raised a new creature? Answer, Be ye stones, or iron, or some
creature more improbable in your opinions to be raised to life. But they
will say, Who shall restore us to life? Answer, He who created you the
first time; and they will wag their heads at thee, saying, When shall this
be? Answer. Peradventure it is nigh. On that day shall God call you forth
from your sepulchres, and ye shall obey, with celebration of his praise;
and ye shall think that ye tarried but a little while. Speak unto my servants,
that they speak mildly unto the unbelievers, lest ye exasperate them; for
Satan soweth discord among them, and Satan is a declared enemy unto man.
Your Lord well knoweth you; if he pleaseth, he will have mercy on you,
or, if he pleaseth, he will punish you: and we have not sent thee to be
a steward over them. Thy Lord well knoweth all persons in heaven and on
earth. We have bestowed peculiar favors on some of the prophets, preferably
to others; and we gave unto David the psalms. Say, Call upon those whom
ye imagine to be gods besides him; yet they will not be able to free you
from harm, or to turn it on others. Those whom ye invoke, do themselves
desire to be admitted to a near conjunction with their Lord; striving which
of them shall approach nearest unto him: they also hope for his mercy,
and dread his punishment; for the punishment of thy Lord is terrible. There
is no city but we will destroy the same before the day of resurrection,
or we will punish it with a grievous punishment. This is written in the
book of our eternal decrees. Nothing hindered us from sending thee with
miracles, except that the former nations have charged them with imposture.
We gave unto the tribe of Thamud, at their demand, the she-camel visible
to their sight; yet they dealt unjustly with her: and we send not a prophet
with miracles, but to strike terror. Remember when we said unto thee, Verily
thy Lord encompasseth men by his knowledge and power. We have appointed
the vision which we showed thee, and also the tree cursed in the Koran,
only for an occasion of dispute unto men, and to strike them with terror;
but it shall cause them to transgress only the more enormously. And remember
when we said unto the angels, Worship Adam; and they all worshipped him
except Eblis, who said, Shall I worship him whom thou hast created of clay?
And he said, What thinkest thou, as to this man whom thou hast honored
above me? verily, if thou grant me respite until the day of resurrection,
I will extirpate his offspring, except a few. God answered, Begone, I grant
thee respite: but whosoever of them shall follow thee, hell shall surely
be your reward; an ample reward for your demerits! And entice to vanity
such of them as thou canst, by thy voice; and assault them on all sides
with thy horsemen and thy footmen; and partake with them in their riches,
and their children; and make them promises; (but the devil shall make them
no other than deceitful promises:) as to my servants, thou shalt have no
power over them; for thy Lord is a sufficient protector of those who trust
in him. It is your Lord who driveth forward the ships for you in the sea,
that ye may seek to enrich yourselves of his abundance by commerce; for
he is merciful towards you. When a misfortune befalleth you at sea, the
false deities whom ye invoke are forgotten by you, except him alone: yet
when he bringeth you safe to dry land, ye retire afar off from him, and
return to your idols; for man is ungrateful. Are ye therefore secure that
he will not cause the dry land to swallow you up, or that he will not send
against you a whirlwind driving the sands to overwhelm you? then shall
ye find none to protect you. Or are ye secure that he will not cause you
again to commit yourselves to the sea another time, and send against you
a tempestuous wind, and drown you for that ye have been ungrateful? then
shall ye find none to defend you against us, in that distress. And now
have we honored the children of Adam by sundry peculiar privileges and
endowments; and we have given them conveniences of carriage by land and
by sea, and have provided food for them of good things; and we have preferred
them before many of our creatures which we have created, by granting them
great prerogatives. On a certain day we will call all men to judgment with
their respective leader: and whosoever shall have his book given him into
his right hand, they shall read their book with joy and satisfaction; and
they shall not be wronged a hair. And whoever hath been blind in this life,
shall be also blind in the next, and shall wander more widely from the
path of salvation. It wanted little but the unbelievers had tempted thee
to swerve from the instructions which we had revealed unto thee, that thou
shouldest devise concerning us a different thing: and then would they have
taken thee for their friend: and unless we had confirmed thee, thou hadst
certainly been very near inclining unto them a little. Then would we surely
have caused thee to taste the punishment of life, and the punishment of
death; and thou shouldest not have found any to protect thee against us.
The unbelievers had likewise almost caused thee to depart the land, that
they might have expelled thee thence; but then should they not have tarried
therein after thee, except a little while. This is the method of dealing
which we have prescribed ourselves in respect to our apostles, whom we
have already sent before thee: and thou shalt not find any change in our
prescribed method. Regularly perform thy prayer at the declension of the
sun, at the first darkness of the night, and the prayer of daybreak; for
the prayer of daybreak is borne witness unto by the angels. And watch some
part of the night in the same exercise, as a work of supererogation for
thee; peradventure thy Lord will raise thee to an honorable station. And
say, O Lord, cause me to enter with a favorable entry, and cause me to
come forth with a favorable coming forth; and grant me from thee an assisting
power. And say, Truth is come, and falsehood is vanished: for falsehood
is of short continuance. We send down of the Koran that which is a medicine
and a mercy unto the true believers, but it shall only increase the perdition
of the unjust. When we bestow favors on man, he retireth and withdraweth
himself ungratefully from us: but when evil toucheth him, he despaireth
of our mercy. Say, Every one acteth after his own manner: but your Lord
best knoweth who is most truly directed in his way. They will ask thee
concerning the spirit: answer, The spirit was created at the command of
my Lord: but ye have no knowledge given unto you, except a little. If we
pleased, we should certainly take away that which we have revealed unto
thee; in such case thou couldest not find any to assist thee therein against
us, unless through mercy from thy Lord; for his favor towards thee hath
been great. Say, Verily if men and genii were purposely assembled, that
they might produce a book like this Koran, they could not produce one like
unto it, although the one of them assisted the other. And we have variously
propounded unto men in this Koran, every kind of figurative argument; but
the greater part of men refuse to receive it, merely out of infidelity.
And they say, We will by no means believe on thee, until thou cause a spring
of water to gush forth for us out of the earth; or thou have a garden of
palm-trees and vines, and thou cause rivers to spring forth from the midst
thereof in abundance; or thou cause the heaven to fall down upon us, as
thou hast given out, in pieces: or thou bring down God and the angels to
vouch for thee; or thou have a house of gold; or thou ascend by a ladder
to heaven: neither will we believe thy ascending thither alone, until thou
cause a book to descend unto us, bearing witness of thee, which we may
read. Answer, My Lord be praised! Am I other than a man, sent as an apostle?
And nothing hindereth men from believing, when a direction is come unto
them, except that they say, Hath God sent a man for his apostle? Answer,
If the angels had walked on earth as familiar inhabitants thereof, we had
surely sent down unto them from heaven an angel for our apostle. Say, God
is a sufficient witness between me and you for he knoweth and regardeth
his servants. Whom God shall direct, he shall be the rightly directed,
and whom he shall cause to err, thou shalt find none to assist, besides
him. And we will gather them together on the day of resurrection, creeping
on their faces, blind, and dumb, and deaf: their abode shall be hell; so
often as the fire thereof shall be extinguished, we will rekindle a burning
flame to torment them. This shall be their reward, because they disbelieve
in our signs, and say, When we shall have been reduced to bones and dust,
shall we surely be raised new creatures? Do they not perceive that God,
who created the heavens and the earth, is able to create other bodies,
like their present? And he hath appointed them a limited term, there is
no doubt thereof: but the ungodly reject the truth, merely out of unbelief.
Say, If ye possessed the treasures of the mercy of my Lord, ye would surely
refrain from using them, for fear of spending them, for man is covetous.
We heretofore gave unto Moses the power of working nine evident signs.
And do thou ask the children of Israel as to the story of Moses; when he
came unto them, and Pharaoh said unto him, Verily I esteem thee, O Moses,
to be deluded by sorcery. Moses answered, Thou well knowest that none hath
sent down these evident signs except the Lord of heaven and earth; and
I surely esteem thee, O Pharaoh, a lost man. Wherefore Pharaoh sought to
drive them out of the land; but we drowned him, and all those who were
with him. And we said unto the children of Israel, after his destruction,
Dwell ye in the land: and when the promise of the next life shall come
to be fulfilled, we will bring you both promiscuously to judgment. We have
sent down the Koran with truth, and it hath descended with truth: and we
have not sent thee otherwise than to be a bearer of good tidings, and a
denouncer of threats. And we have divided the Koran, revealing it by parcels,
that thou mightest read it unto men with deliberation; and we have sent
it down, causing it to descend as occasion required. Say, Whether ye believe
therein, or do not believe, verily those who have been favored with the
knowledge of the scriptures which were revealed before it, when the same
is rehearsed unto them, fall down on their faces, worshipping, and say,
Our Lord be praised, for that the promise of our Lord is surely fulfilled!
And they fall down on their faces, weeping; and the hearing thereof increaseth
their humility. Call upon God, or call on the Merciful: by whichsoever
of the two names ye invoke him, it is equal; for he hath most excellent
names. Pronounce not thy prayer aloud, neither pronounce it with too low
a voice, but follow a middle way between these: and say, Praise be unto
God, who hath not begotten any child; who hath no partner in the kingdom,
nor hath any to protect him from contempt: and magnify him by proclaiming
his greatness.
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