18. Al-Kahf سُورَةُ الكَهۡفِ

Yusuf AliPraise be to God, Who hath sent to His Servant the Book, and hath allowed therein no Crookedness

Yusuf Ali(He hath made it) Straight (and Clear) in order that He may warn (the godless) of a terrible Punishment from Him, and that He may give Glad Tidings to the Believers who work righteous deeds, that they shall have a goodly Reward

Yusuf AliWherein they shall remain for ever

Yusuf AliFurther, that He may warn those (also) who say, "God hath begotten a son

Yusuf AliNo knowledge have they of such a thing, nor had their fathers. It is a grievous thing that issues from their mouths as a saying what they say is nothing but falsehood

Yusuf AliThou wouldst only, perchance, fret thyself to death, following after them, in grief, if they believe not in this Message

Yusuf AliThat which is on earth we have made but as a glittering show for the earth, in order that We may test them - as to which of them are best in conduct

Yusuf AliVerily what is on earth we shall make but as dust and dry soil (without growth or herbage)

Yusuf AliOr dost thou reflect that the Companions of the Cave and of the Inscription were wonders among Our Sign

Yusuf AliBehold, the youths betook themselves to the Cave: they said, "Our Lord! bestow on us Mercy from Thyself, and dispose of our affair for us in the right way

Yusuf AliThen We draw (a veil) over their ears, for a number of years, in the Cave, (so that they heard not)

Yusuf AliThen We roused them, in order to test which of the two parties was best at calculating the term of years they had tarried

Yusuf AliWe relate to thee their story in truth: they were youths who believed in their Lord, and We advanced them in guidance

Yusuf AliWe gave strength to their hearts: Behold, they stood up and said: "Our Lord is the Lord of the heavens and of the earth: never shall we call upon any god other than Him: if we did, we should indeed have uttered an enormity

Yusuf AliThese our people have taken for worship gods other than Him: why do they not bring forward an authority clear (and convincing) for what they do? Who doth more wrong than such as invent a falsehood against God

Yusuf AliWhen ye turn away from them and the things they worship other than God, betake yourselves to the Cave: Your Lord will shower His mercies on you and disposes of your affair towards comfort and ease

Yusuf AliThou wouldst have seen the sun, when it rose, declining to the right from their Cave, and when it set, turning away from them to the left, while they lay in the open space in the midst of the Cave. Such are among the Signs of God: He whom God, guides is rightly guided; but he whom God leaves to stray,- for him wilt thou find no protector to lead him to the Right Way

Yusuf AliThou wouldst have deemed them awake, whilst they were asleep, and We turned them on their right and on their left sides: their dog stretching forth his two fore-legs on the threshold: if thou hadst come up on to them, thou wouldst have certain ly turned back from them in flight, and wouldst certainly have been filled with terror of them

Yusuf AliSuch (being their state), we raised them up (from sleep), that they might question each other. Said one of them, "How long have ye stayed (here)?" They said, "We have stayed (perhaps) a day, or part of a day." (At length) they (all) said, "God (alone) knows best how long ye have stayed here.... Now send ye then one of you with this money of yours to the town: let him find out which is the best food (to be had) and bring some to you, that (ye may) satisfy your hunger therewith: And let him b ehave with care and courtesy, and let him not inform any one about you

Yusuf AliFor if they should come upon you, they would stone you or force you to return to their cult, and in that case ye would never attain prosperity

Yusuf AliThus did We make their case known to the people, that they might know that the promise of God is true, and that there can be no doubt about the Hour of Judgment. Behold, they dispute among themselves as to their affair. (Some) said, "Construct a building over them": Their Lord knows best about them: those who prevailed over their affair said, "Let us surely build a place of worship over them

Yusuf Ali(Some) say they were three, the dog being the fourth among them; (others) say they were five, the dog being the sixth,- doubtfully guessing at the unknown; (yet others) say they were seven, the dog being the eighth. Say thou: "My Lord knoweth best their number; It is but few that know their (real case)." Enter not, therefore, into controversies concerning them, except on a matter that is clear, nor consult any of them about (the affair of) the Sleepers

Yusuf AliNor say of anything, "I shall be sure to do so and so tomorrow

Yusuf AliWithout adding, "So please God!" and call thy Lord to mind when thou forgettest, and say, "I hope that my Lord will guide me ever closer (even) than this to the right road

Yusuf AliSo they stayed in their Cave three hundred years, and (some) add nine (more)

Yusuf AliSay: "God knows best how long they stayed: with Him is (the knowledge of) the secrets of the heavens and the earth: how clearly He sees, how finely He hears (everything)! They have no protector other than Him; nor does He share His Command wit h any person whatsoever

Yusuf AliAnd recite (and teach) what has been revealed to thee of the Book of thy Lord: none can change His Words, and none wilt thou find as a refuge other than Him

Yusuf AliAnd keep thy soul content with those who call on their Lord morning and evening, seeking His Face; and let not thine eyes pass beyond them, seeking the pomp and glitter of this Life; no obey any whose heart We have permitted to neglect the rem embrance of Us, one who follows his own desires, whose case has gone beyond all bounds

Yusuf AliSay, "The truth is from your Lord": Let him who will believe, and let him who will, reject (it): for the wrong-doers We have prepared a Fire whose (smoke and flames), like the walls and roof of a tent, will hem them in: if they implore relief t hey will be granted water like melted brass, that will scald their faces, how dreadful the drink! How uncomfortable a couch to recline on

Yusuf AliAs to those who believe and work righteousness, verily We shall not suffer to perish the reward of any who do a (single) righteous deed

Yusuf AliFor them will be Gardens of Eternity; beneath them rivers will flow; they will be adorned therein with bracelets of gold, and they will wear green garments of fine silk and heavy brocade: They will recline therein on raised thrones. How good t he recompense! How beautiful a couch to recline on

Yusuf AliSet forth to them the parable of two men: for one of them We provided two gardens of grape-vines and surrounded them with date palms; in between the two We placed corn-fields

Yusuf AliEach of those gardens brought forth its produce, and failed not in the least therein: in the midst of them We caused a river to flow

Yusuf Ali(Abundant) was the produce this man had : he said to his companion, in the course of a mutual argument: "more wealth have I than you, and more honour and power in (my following of) men

Yusuf AliHe went into his garden in a state (of mind) unjust to his soul: He said, "I deem not that this will ever perish

Yusuf AliNor do I deem that the Hour (of Judgment) will (ever) come: Even if I am brought back to my Lord, I shall surely find (there) something better in exchange

Yusuf AliHis companion said to him, in the course of the argument with him: "Dost thou deny Him Who created thee out of dust, then out of a sperm-drop, then fashioned thee into a man

Yusuf AliBut (I think) for my part that He is God, My Lord, and none shall I associate with my Lord

Yusuf AliWhy didst thou not, as thou wentest into thy garden, say: 'God's will (be done)! There is no power but with God!' If thou dost see me less than thee in wealth and sons

Yusuf AliIt may be that my Lord will give me something better than thy garden, and that He will send on thy garden thunderbolts (by way of reckoning) from heaven, making it (but) slippery sand

Yusuf AliOr the water of the garden will run off underground so that thou wilt never be able to find it

Yusuf AliSo his fruits (and enjoyment) were encompassed (with ruin), and he remained twisting and turning his hands over what he had spent on his property, which had (now) tumbled to pieces to its very foundations, and he could only say, "Woe is me! Wo uld I had never ascribed partners to my Lord and Cherisher

Yusuf AliNor had he numbers to help him against God, nor was he able to deliver himself

Yusuf AliThere, the (only) protection comes from God, the True One. He is the Best to reward, and the Best to give success

Yusuf AliSet forth to them the similitude of the life of this world: It is like the rain which we send down from the skies: the earth's vegetation absorbs it, but soon it becomes dry stubble, which the winds do scatter: it is (only) God who prevails ove r all things

Yusuf AliWealth and sons are allurements of the life of this world: But the things that endure, good deeds, are best in the sight of thy Lord, as rewards, and best as (the foundation for) hopes

Yusuf AliOne Day We shall remove the mountains, and thou wilt see the earth as a level stretch, and We shall gather them, all together, nor shall We leave out any one of them

Yusuf AliAnd they will be marshalled before thy Lord in ranks, (with the announcement), "Now have ye come to Us (bare) as We created you first: aye, ye thought We shall not fulfil the appointment made to you to meet (Us)

Yusuf AliAnd the Book (of Deeds) will be placed (before you); and thou wilt see the sinful in great terror because of what is (recorded) therein; they will say, "Ah! woe to us! what a Book is this! It leaves out nothing small or great, but takes account thereof!" They will find all that they did, placed before them: And not one will thy Lord treat with injustice

Yusuf AliBehold! We said to the angels, "Bow down to Adam": They bowed down except Iblis. He was one of the Jinns, and he broke the Command of his Lord. Will ye then take him and his progeny as protectors rather than Me? And they are enemies to you! Ev il would be the exchange for the wrong-doers

Yusuf AliI called them not to witness the creation of the heavens and the earth, nor (even) their own creation: nor is it for helpers such as Me to take as lead (men) astray

Yusuf AliOne Day He will say, "Call on those whom ye thought to be My partners," and they will call on them, but they will not listen to them; and We shall make for them a place of common perdition

Yusuf AliAnd the Sinful shall see the fire and apprehend that they have to fall therein: no means will they find to turn away therefrom

Yusuf AliWe have explained in detail in this Qur'an, for the benefit of mankind, every kind of similitude: but man is, in most things, contentious

Yusuf AliAnd what is there to keep back men from believing, now that Guidance has come to them, nor from praying for forgiveness from their Lord, but that (they ask that) the ways of the ancients be repeated with them, or the Wrath be brought to them f ace to face

Yusuf AliWe only send the apostles to give Glad Tidings and to give warnings: But the unbelievers dispute with vain argument, in order therewith to weaken the truth, and they treat My Signs as a jest, as also the fact that they are warned

Yusuf AliAnd who doth more wrong than one who is reminded of the Signs of his Lord, but turns away from them, forgetting the (deeds) which his hands have sent forth? Verily We have set veils over their hearts lest they should understand this, and over their ears, deafness, if thou callest them to guidance, even then will they never accept guidance

Yusuf AliBut your Lord is Most forgiving, full of Mercy. If He were to call them (at once) to account for what they have earned, then surely He would have earned, then surely He would have hastened their punishment: but they have their appointed time, beyond which they will find no refuge

Yusuf AliSuch were the populations we destroyed when they committed iniquities; but we fixed an appointed time for their destruction

Yusuf AliBehold, Moses said to his attendant, "I will not give up until I reach the junction of the two seas or (until) I spend years and years in travel

Yusuf AliBut when they reached the Junction, they forgot (about) their Fish, which took its course through the sea (straight) as in a tunnel

Yusuf AliWhen they had passed on (some distance), Moses said to his attendant: "Bring us our early meal; truly we have suffered much fatigue at this (stage of) our journey

Yusuf AliHe replied: "Sawest thou (what happened) when we betook ourselves to the rock? I did indeed forget (about) the Fish: none but Satan made me forget to tell (you) about it: it took its course through the sea in a marvellous way

Yusuf AliMoses said: "That was what we were seeking after:" So they went back on their footsteps, following (the path they had come)

Yusuf AliSo they found one of Our servants, on whom We had bestowed Mercy from Ourselves and whom We had taught knowledge from Our own Presence

Yusuf AliMoses said to him: "May I follow thee, on the footing that thou teach me something of the (Higher) Truth which thou hast been taught

Yusuf Ali(The other) said: "Verily thou wilt not be able to have patience with me

Yusuf AliAnd how canst thou have patience about things about which thy understanding is not complete

Yusuf AliMoses said: "Thou wilt find me, if God so will, (truly) patient: nor shall I disobey thee in aught

Yusuf AliThe other said: "If then thou wouldst follow me, ask me no questions about anything until I myself speak to thee concerning it

Yusuf AliSo they both proceeded: until, when they were in the boat, he scuttled it. Said Moses: "Hast thou scuttled it in order to drown those in it? Truly a strange thing hast thou done

Yusuf AliHe answered: "Did I not tell thee that thou canst have no patience with me

Yusuf AliMoses said: "Rebuke me not for forgetting, nor grieve me by raising difficulties in my case

Yusuf AliThen they proceeded: until, when they met a young man, he slew him. Moses said: "Hast thou slain an innocent person who had slain none? Truly a foul (unheard of) thing hast thou done

Yusuf AliHe answered: "Did I not tell thee that thou canst have no patience with me

Yusuf Ali(Moses) said: "If ever I ask thee about anything after this, keep me not in thy company: then wouldst thou have received (full) excuse from my side

Yusuf AliThen they proceeded: until, when they came to the inhabitants of a town, they asked them for food, but they refused them hospitality. They found there a wall on the point of falling down, but he set it up straight. (Moses) said: "If thou hadst wished, surely thou couldst have exacted some recompense for it

Yusuf AliHe answered: "This is the parting between me and thee: now will I tell thee the interpretation of (those things) over which thou wast unable to hold patience

Yusuf AliAs for the boat, it belonged to certain men in dire want: they plied on the water: I but wished to render it unserviceable, for there was after them a certain king who seized on every boat by force

Yusuf AliAs for the youth, his parents were people of Faith, and we feared that he would grieve them by obstinate rebellion and ingratitude (to God and man)

Yusuf AliSo we desired that their Lord would give them in exchange (a son) better in purity (of conduct) and closer in affection

Yusuf AliAs for the wall, it belonged to two youths, orphans, in the Town; there was, beneath it, a buried treasure, to which they were entitled: their father had been a righteous man: So thy Lord desired that they should attain their age of full stren gth and get out their treasure - a mercy (and favour) from thy Lord. I did it not of my own accord. Such is the interpretation of (those things) over which thou wast unable to hold patience

Yusuf AliThey ask thee concerning Zul-qarnain. Say, "I will rehearse to you something of his story

Yusuf AliVerily We established his power on earth, and We gave him the ways and the means to all ends

Yusuf AliOne (such) way he followed

Yusuf AliUntil, when he reached the setting of the sun, he found it set in a spring of murky water: Near it he found a People: We said: "O Zul-qarnain! (thou hast authority,) either to punish them, or to treat them with kindness

Yusuf AliHe said: "Whoever doth wrong, him shall we punish; then shall he be sent back to his Lord; and He will punish him with a punishment unheard-of (before)

Yusuf AliBut whoever believes, and works righteousness,- he shall have a goodly reward, and easy will be his task as We order it by our Command

Yusuf AliThen followed he (another) way

Yusuf AliUntil, when he came to the rising of the sun, he found it rising on a people for whom We had provided no covering protection against the sun

Yusuf Ali(He left them) as they were: We completely understood what was before him

Yusuf AliThen followed he (another) way

Yusuf AliUntil, when he reached (a tract) between two mountains, he found, beneath them, a people who scarcely understood a word

Yusuf AliThey said: "O Zul-qarnain! the Gog and Magog (People) do great mischief on earth: shall we then render thee tribute in order that thou mightest erect a barrier between us and them

Yusuf AliHe said: "(The power) in which my Lord has established me is better (than tribute): Help me therefore with strength (and labour): I will erect a strong barrier between you and them

Yusuf AliBring me blocks of iron." At length, when he had filled up the space between the two steep mountain-sides, He said, "Blow (with your bellows)" Then, when he had made it (red) as fire, he said: "Bring me, that I may pour over it, molten lead

Yusuf AliThus were they made powerless to scale it or to dig through it

Yusuf AliHe said: "This is a mercy from my Lord: But when the promise of my Lord comes to pass, He will make it into dust; and the promise of my Lord is true

Yusuf AliOn that day We shall leave them to surge like waves on one another: the trumpet will be blown, and We shall collect them all together

Yusuf AliAnd We shall present Hell that day for Unbelievers to see, all spread out

Yusuf Ali(Unbelievers) whose eyes had been under a veil from remembrance of Me, and who had been unable even to hear

Yusuf AliDo the Unbelievers think that they can take My servants as protectors besides Me? Verily We have prepared Hell for the Unbelievers for (their) entertainment

Yusuf AliSay: "Shall we tell you of those who lose most in respect of their deeds

Yusuf AliThose whose efforts have been wasted in this life, while they thought that they were acquiring good by their works

Yusuf AliThey are those who deny the Signs of their Lord and the fact of their having to meet Him (in the Hereafter): vain will be their works, nor shall We, on the Day of Judgment, give them any weight

Yusuf AliThat is their reward, Hell, because they rejected Faith, and took My Signs and My Messengers by way of jest

Yusuf AliAs to those who believe and work righteous deeds, they have, for their entertainment, the Gardens of Paradise

Yusuf AliWherein they shall dwell (for aye): no change will they wish for from them

Yusuf AliSay: "If the ocean were ink (wherewith to write out) the words of my Lord, sooner would the ocean be exhausted than would the words of my Lord, even if we added another ocean like it, for its aid

Yusuf AliSay: "I am but a man like yourselves, (but) the inspiration has come to me, that your God is one God: whoever expects to meet his Lord, let him work righteousness, and, in the worship of his Lord, admit no one as partner