34.

Sura Saba (or The City of Saba)

In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful

All the praise is for God, to whom belong everything whatever is in the
heavens and on earth. To Him is praise in the Hereafter and He is Wise, Aware
of the things, whatsoever. He is aware of those which goes into the earth and
that comes out of it. He is also well aware what comes down from the sky and
all that which ascends thereto. He is Most Merciful, the Oft-Forgiving.

The disbelievers say that the Day of Judgement will not come to them. Tell
them (O Muhammad), it will surely come to them also; and no one knows the
unseen, except Him. Not an atom’s weight, or less than that or greater, escapes
him in the heavens or in the earth, but it is in the Clear Record. That He may
reward those who believe in the Revelation sent down by their Lord; and are
righteous in their deeds. For them is forgiveness and a rich sustenance in the
Hereafter. But for those, who reject the Signs of their Lord and try to baffle
and ridicule the Truth, will be humiliating Penalty awaiting in the Hereafter.
They just wonder at the truth of resurrection any say that how could be
possible to be raised again when they are once disintegrated and scattered here
and their. For them it is an invented falsehood in the name of God, from a
man (Mohammad AS) who seemed to be seized by a spirit. The unbelievers
have clearly a devastating erroneous ideology and will certainly be put in a
terrible Penalty. The men who walk in spiritual darkness and laugh at the
impending Hereafter, should just observe the Might of God in the nature
around him. He Who created the heavens and the earth and sustains them can
surely make a new Creation! Who are these puny creatures – skeptics that
question the might and majesty of God? If God wishes, He can cause a piece
of the sky to fall upon them (this was actually a challenge hurled at Shu’aib
A.S. and a shower of ashes and cinders came from above and overwhelmed
the challengers!). Certainly, in this is a Sign for every devotee that turns to
God in repentance.

God bestowed gace on David A S. and made hills and birds to sing
back his Psalms of praise. Further, We made iron soft for him to make coats of
chain armour with proper measure. But he and his people were to be careful to
see that they did not deviate from the paths of righteousness: be sure God sees
clearly all that you do. To Solomon, God made the wind obedient to him and
took morning’s or evening’s stride the distances which otherwise took a whole
month’s journey. Further, God made a Font (bowl type or may be a lake) of
molten brass to flow for him and made Jinns (spirits) to work for him as he
desired. They made arches, images, basons as large as reservoirs, cooking
cauldrons fixed at their places. If any one lagged behind God’s Command, to
work for Solomon, He made him to taste the penalty of the Blazing Fire. Says
the Lord: “Work you sons of David, with thanks! But few of My servants are
grateful!” (without work literally, and figuratively for “righteous deeds”, all
the glory and power would be out of place and it fell away in a few
generations, with the decline of the moral spirit which was at its back). And
when God decreed death for Solomon, nothing showed his death to them save
a creeping creature of the earth which worn away his staff. When he fell down
the Jinns saw clearly how, if they had known the unseen, they would not have
continued in despised toil. Some time later Saba (territory in ancient Yemen)
was a prosperous land with two garden rows on the right and two on the left
side of the land. God gave them abundance of sustenance and happiness and
were expected to be grateful of their Lord. But, they turned away from their
Lord, and were ungrateful to Him. God flooded their garden from their own
built water dams. God converted their luscious gardens into wastelands. This
misfortune happened to them as a requital from their Lord and God never
gives such requital except to such who are ungrateful and rejector of Faith.
Further, We set, between them and the towns which We had blessed, towns
easy to be seen, and We made the stage between them easy, (saying): “Travel
in them safely both by night and day” But Satan turned them and they
followed him, except a few faithful. They said,: “Our Lord! Make the stage
between our journeys longer.” They wronged themselves. As such, He
dispersed them all in scattered fragments; and left them just a tale that is told.
Certainly in this are Signs for every soul that is patiently constant and grateful.
As a matter of fact the Satan had no authority over them, – except that your
Lord might test the man who believes in the Hereafter from the other who is in
doubt about it. And He watches over all things.

Say to them (O Muhammad): Call upon your objects of worship. They

possess no power or any share, even that of an atom’s weight whatsoever,
either in the heavens or the earth, nor has He an auxiliary among them. Each
soul is individually and personally responsible of its deeds. And if there is any
intercession, it can only be by the gracious permission of God. For the Day of
Judgement will be a terrible Day, or “Day of Wrath”. Even the purest of the
souls will be stupefied at the manifestation of God’s Power, Might and
Greatness. Nevertheless, even the angels will be stunt and scarcely realize
what is happening! They will question each other, and only then they will
realize that God’s Judgement, as always, is right and just. Indeed, He is Most
High, Most Great. Say to them (O Muhammad): “Who gives you sustenance
from the sky and the earth? Certainly, it is God. That either we or you are on a
right guidance or in error. You are not going to be questioned as to our sins,
nor shall we be questioned as to what you do. Our Lord on the Day will decide
the matter with truth and justice. He is the only One to decide, and the only
One Who knows everything. “Show me those whom you have joined with
God as partners?” Certainly, He is God, the Exalted in Power, The Wise. God
has sent you (O Muhammad) as a universal Messenger, a deliver of good news
and a warner to all the mankind. But most of the people do not understand.
They ask as when this promise is to be fulfilled. Tell them (O Muhammad)
that when that Day arrives they shall not be able to advance or postpone it
even for an hour!

The Unbelievers (Pagans) say that they neither believe Qur-an, nor any
of the ancient so called, heavenly Revelations. If you (O Muhammad) could
only see them when the wrong-doers will be brought before their Lord. They
will be blaming each other for their miserable plight on the Day. The despised
ones on earth will tell the proud ones (their leaders) that because of them they
were not among the believers. The arrogant will reject their contention and
solely blame them for their own transgression. As they see their Penalty, they
will declare their repentance. Nothing will be heard from them and they will
face the requital for their evil deeds. The wealthy ones, among the populations,
have always rejected Our Messengers saying that they had more riches and
sons than them. Say to them (O Muhammad): Certainly my Lord enlarges or
restricts the provision to whom He pleases but most men do not understand
this.

It is neither your wealth nor your sons brings you nearer to your Lord.
But those who believe and are righteous in their deeds are entitled to be
infinitely rewarded by their Lord. And as for those who work against God’s
revelations, will be brought to their doom. Say (O Muhammad): My Lord
enlarges or narrows the sustenance among His servants whom He wishes and
replaces that which they spend in His Cause. For He is The best of those who
Grant Sustenance. One Day He will gather the angels and ask them as where
are they whom these people used to worship? The angels will say: “Glory to
You. You are our Protector. They were worshipping the Jinns, – the devils
hidden within themselves or in the life around them.” So, on the Day they will
have no power over each other for the profit or harm and they will be told to
taste the Penalty of the Fire. On the rehearsal of Our Clear Signs, they say that
he (Muhammad AS) is the man who hinders you from worshipping which
your forefathers practiced and what he says is falsehood, nothing more than a
magic. And We have not given them (the Pagans) any Scripture in the past nor
any warner before you (Muhammad AS). This should be reason for them
welcoming a prophet among them, not for rejecting, new truth. In ancient,
people also rejected the Truth. These people (Pagan Quraish) have not one –
tenth of what those earlier were bestowed by the Lord. Yet, when they rejected
the Messengers of God, sent for their guidance, He rejected them with a severe
punishment. Say to them (O Muhammad) that you do admonish them on one
point only: Stand up before God and reflect within yourselves – be in pairs or
singularly (as you like it) – Your Companion (Muhammad AS) is not
possessed: he is a Warner to you of a terrible Penalty. Say to them (O
Muhammad) that you do not ask for any reward from them What you are
telling them is in their own interest and it is all the Truth. God is Witness to all
the things, be them hidden or visible and He is, Who hears all things, and is
every near. Say to them (O Muhammad) that if you are astray, it is only for
your own soul but, the guidance you (Muhammad AS) receive is the
inspiration from the Lord. If you (O Muhammad) could only see them, they
will be struck with terror and will wish to get away from it, but that will be
impossible for them. They will now profess their faith in Truth, but it shall be
too late for them. Not only they rejected the truth of the Unseen – the true
Reality – but they spread sorts of false and malicious insinuations at the
preachers of Truth. They behaved like cowards taking up a sneaking position.
What they desire is to suppress Truth and to indulged in the satisfaction of
their own evil selfish motives. They shall be baulked in both of their aims, and
that itself will be their anguish and punishment. That has always been the law
in eternal struggle between Right and Wrong.