| | Shabbir Ahmed rendition of Surah The Pen(al-Qalam)
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| 68:1 | | N. Nuon. The Inkpot. And the Pen, and all that they write, stand witness. (The high domain of knowledge will bear out that) |
| 68:2 | | You (O Messenger), by the Grace of your Lord, are not a madman |
| 68:3 | | And, behold, yours will be an everlasting reward |
| 68:4 | | For, verily, you are of the noblest moral character |
| 68:5 | | And soon you will see and they will see |
| 68:6 | | Which of you is the demented. (Outstanding knowledge plus sublime character can only be compatible with a great mind) |
| 68:7 | | Verily, your Lord knows best him who strays from His Way, and He knows best those who are rightly guided |
| 68:8 | | Hence, pay no heed to the rejecters |
| 68:9 | | They wish that you strike a deal with them so that they can strike a deal (and compromise on a middle grounds between Truth and Falsehood (10:15), (11:113), (17:74)) |
| 68:10 | | - And yield not to any petty oath-monger. (Repetitious swearing hurts the credibility of a person) |
| 68:11 | | - Or to a defamer that goes about spreading slander |
| 68:12 | | - Or to a withholder of the good and of wealth, trespasser of values, low in virtue |
| 68:13 | | - Or to one greedy to the extent of insensitivity, and, in addition, worthless to the society |
| 68:14 | | - Or he who because of his riches and party |
| 68:15 | | - Says, "Fables of ancient times", whenever Our Messages are conveyed to him |
| 68:16 | | - We shall brand such a person with manifest disgrace! ('Branding the snout' alludes to bringing to visible disgrace a person who chooses to live at the subhuman level) |
| 68:17 | | Behold, We have tried such people as We tried the owners of the garden who swore that they would pluck its fruit in the morning. (18:32-44) |
| 68:18 | | And made no exception (for the needy poor) |
| 68:19 | | Then a tornado from your Lord struck it while they slept |
| 68:20 | | So that by the morning it was barren, bleak |
| 68:21 | | Now, in the morning, they called out unto one another |
| 68:22 | | "Go early to your field if you want to pick the fruit." |
| 68:23 | | So they went off whispering unto one another |
| 68:24 | | "Let not a single poor come near you today." |
| 68:25 | | And early they went strong in their resolve (to keep the poor away) |
| 68:26 | | But when they saw it, they said, "Behold, we have lost our way." |
| 68:27 | | (Then they realized), "Ah! Now we are destitute." |
| 68:28 | | Said the most balanced among them, "Did I not tell you - why did you not work aright (thinking of the poor)?" ('Sabh' = Swim in strides = Work hard = Labor for a noble cause) |
| 68:29 | | They said, "Glorified is our Lord! Verily, it is we who have been offenders." (Refusing the Divine Right of the needy) |
| 68:30 | | And then they confronted one another, blaming |
| 68:31 | | They said, "Oh, woe unto us! We were trespassers of goodness." |
| 68:32 | | It may be that our Lord grants us something better than this. Behold, we turn to our Lord affectionately |
| 68:33 | | Such is the suffering! But far greater is the suffering of the Hereafter - if they knew it |
| 68:34 | | Behold, for those who walk aright are Gardens of Bliss with their Lord |
| 68:35 | | Shall We, then, treat those who submit (to Our Laws) like the guilty |
| 68:36 | | What is the matter with you? How do you judge (the right and wrong and their logical consequence) |
| 68:37 | | Or do you have a scripture wherein you learn |
| 68:38 | | That you shall indeed get the outcome of your choosing |
| 68:39 | | Or have you a solemn oath, binding on Us till Resurrection Day, that yours shall be all that you order |
| 68:40 | | Ask them which of them guarantees it |
| 68:41 | | Do they have 'partners'? Then let them bring their 'partners' if they are truthful |
| 68:42 | | On the Day when they are confronted with the stark reality and they are summoned to prostrate, they shall not be able to prostrate. (It will be too late to submit) |
| 68:43 | | Their eyes drooping, humiliation will overwhelm them! And they had been repeatedly invited to prostrate when they were able |
| 68:44 | | So leave unto Me him who denied this Message (39:23). We shall lead them step by step to a reprisal from directions they had never conceived |
| 68:45 | | Though I give them respite, behold, unwavering is My Plan |
| 68:46 | | Or is it that you ask them any reward so that they are burdened |
| 68:47 | | Or is it that theirs is the future that they have written down |
| 68:48 | | (O Prophet) Go ahead steadfastly in establishing your Lord's Command. And be not like him (Jonah) of the fish who cried out in distress. (21:87), (37:139) |
| 68:49 | | If it were not for the Bliss of his Lord, he would have been cast into the wilderness and in the wilderness of thought. (37:146) |
| 68:50 | | But his Lord had elected him and included him among those who have worked for reform and to actualize their 'Self' |
| 68:51 | | And behold, those who deny the Truth, offend you (O Prophet) with their eyes when they hear the Reminder. And they say, "Behold, he is a madman." |
| 68:52 | | Nay, this Reminder is a giver of eminence to all nations |
