Texts of Islam

The Meaning of the Glorious Qur'ân,: 7. al-A`raf: T...

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This is a partial translation of Surah Al-A'raf (Chapter 7) from the Qur'an, rendered by M.M. Pickthall in his landmark English translation *The Meaning of the Glorious Qur'ân* (1930), a work in the tradition of classical Islamic scriptural translation that prioritizes fidelity to theological meaning over literary paraphrase. The surah opens by establishing the Qur'an as a divine warning, then moves through interconnected narratives: the cosmic drama of Iblis's refusal to bow before Adam, the expulsion from the Garden, and the ongoing enmity of Satan toward humanity. It proceeds to a vivid eschatological tableau depicting the Day of Judgment—scales weighing deeds, the inhabitants of Heaven and Hell calling to one another, and a liminal space called "the Heights" occupied by those whose fate is suspended. The surah then shifts into a series of prophetic histories, presenting Noah, Hud, and other messengers who each warned their people and were rejected, establishing a recurring pattern of divine offer, human rejection, and collective punishment. Pickthall's distinctively archaic English diction (thee/thou, "Lo!") aims to convey the rhetorical gravity and rhythmic solemnity of the Arabic original. Readers drawn to Islamic scripture, comparative religion, or the history of Qur'anic translation into English will find this a foundational and influential rendering.

The Meaning of the Glorious Qur'ân,: 7. al-A`raf: T...

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