Gems from the Holy Qur’an
From the translation by Muhammad Asad (Leopold Weiss)
About the translator:
Muhammad Asad, Leopold Weiss, was born of Jewish parents in Livow, Austria (later Poland) in 1900, and at the age of 22 made his first visit to the Middle East. He later became an outstanding foreign correspondent for the Franfurter Zeitung, and after years of devoted study became one of the leading Muslim scholars of our age. His translation of the Holy Qur'an is one of the most lucid and well-referenced works in this category, dedicated to “li-qawmin yatafakkaroon” (people who think). Forwarded by Dr Ismat Kamal.
Chapter 14, Verses 35-41
And [remember the time] when Abraham spoke [thus]: “O my Sustainer! Make this land secure, and preserve me and my children from ever worshipping idols – for, verily, O my Sustainer, these [false objects of worship] have led many people astray!
“Hence [only] he who follows me [in this my faith] is truly of me; and as for him who disobeys me - Thou art, verily, much-forgiving, a dispenser of grace!
“O our Sustainer! Behold, I have settled some of my offspring in a valley in which there is no arable land [ 1 ], close to thy sanctified Temple, so that, O our Sustainer, they might devote themselves to prayer: cause Thou, therefore, people’s hearts to incline towards them, and grant them fruitful sustenance, so that they might have cause to be grateful!
“O our Sustainer! Thou truly knowest all that we may hide [in our hearts] as well as all that we bring into the open: for nothing whatever, be it on earth or in heaven, remains hidden from God.
“All praise is due to God, who has bestowed upon me, in my old age, Ishmael and Isaac! Behold, my Sustainer hears indeed all prayer: [hence,] O my Sustainer, cause me and [some] of my offspring to remain constant in prayer!
“And, O our Sustainer, accept this my prayer: Grant thy forgiveness unto me, and my parents, and all the believers, on the Day on which the [last] reckoning will come to pass!”
Chapter 15, Verses 4-5
And never have We destroyed any community [for its wrongdoing] unless a divine writ had [previously] been made known to it; [but remember that no community can ever forestall [the end of] its term – and neither can they delay [it].
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Translator’s Notes
[ 1 ] I.e., the narrow desert valley of Mecca, which is enclosed by barren, rocky hills. By “some of my offspring” Abraham refers to Ishmael and his descendants who settled at Mecca.
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