Taraweeh Tonight: Connect With The Quran – Twenty First Night of Ramadan

Ramadan 2013 Posts

Twenty First Night of Ramaḍān

Sura al-Qasas – The Story (028)

In the name of God, the Lord of Mercy, the Giver of Mercy

14. When Moses reached full maturity and manhood, We gave him wisdom and knowledge: this is how We reward those who do good.

15. He entered the city, unnoticed by its people, and found two men fighting: one from his own people, the other an enemy. The one from his own people cried out to him for help against the enemy. Moses struck him with his fist and killed him. He said, ‘This must be Satan’s work: clearly he is a misleading enemy.’

16. He said, ‘Lord, I have wronged myself. Forgive me,’ so He forgave him; He is truly the Most Forgiving, the Most Merciful.

17. He said, ‘My Lord, because of the blessings You have bestowed upon me, I shall never support those who do evil.’

18. Next morning he was walking in the city, fearful and vigilant, when suddenly the man he had helped the day before cried out to him for help. Moses said, ‘You are clearly a troublemaker.’

19. As he was about to attack the man who was an enemy to both of them, the man said, ‘Moses, are you going to kill me as you killed that person yesterday? You clearly want to be a tyrant in the land; you do not intend to put things right.’

20. Then a man came running from the furthest part of the city and said, ‘Moses, the authorities are talking about killing you, so leave– this is my sincere advice.’

21. So Moses left the city, fearful and wary, and prayed, ‘My Lord, save me from people who do wrong.’

Further on Allah, the Al-Mighty, says what can be interpreted to mean:

76. Qarun was one of Moses’ people, but he oppressed them. We had given him such treasures that even their keys would have weighed down a whole company of strong men. His people said to him, ‘Do not gloat, for God does not like people who gloat.

77. Seek the life to come by means of what God has granted you, but do not neglect your rightful share in this world. Do good to others as God has done good to you. Do not seek to spread corruption in the land, for God does not love those who do this.’

78. But he answered, ‘This wealth was given to me on account of the knowledge I possess.’ Did he not know that God had destroyed many generations before him, who had greater power than him and built up greater wealth? The guilty will not be questioned about their sins.

79. He went out among his people in all his pomp, and those whose aim was the life of this world said, ‘If only we had been given something like what Qarun has been given; he really is a very fortunate man.’

80. But those who were given knowledge said, ‘Alas for you! God’s reward is better for those who believe and do good deeds; only those who are steadfast will attain this.’

81. We caused the earth to swallow him and his home –  he had no one to help him against God, nor could he defend himself.

82. The next day, those who had, the day before, wished to be in his place exclaimed, ‘Alas [for you, Qarun]! It is God alone who gives what He will, abundantly or sparingly, to whichever He will of His creatures: if God had not been gracious to us, He would have caused the earth to swallow us too.’ Alas indeed! Those who deny the truth will never prosper.

83. We grant the Home in the Hereafter to those who do not seek superiority on earth or spread corruption; the happy ending is awarded to those who are mindful of God.

84. Whoever comes before God with a good deed will receive a better reward; whoever comes with an evil deed will be punished only for what he has done.

85. He who has made the Qur’an binding on you [Prophet] will bring you back home. So say, ‘My Lord knows best who has brought true guidance and who is blatantly astray.’

86. You yourself could not have expected the Scripture to be sent to you; it came only as a mercy from your Lord. So give no help to the disbelievers.

87. Do not let them turn you away from God’s revelations after they have been revealed to you. Call people to your Lord. Never become one of those who ascribe partners to God.

88. Do not call out to any other god beside God, for there is no God but Him. Everything will perish except His Face. His is the Judgement and to Him you shall all be brought back.

Sura al-‘Ankabut – The Spider (029)

In the name of God, the Lord of Mercy, the Giver of Mercy

1. Alif Lam Mim

2. Do people think they will be left alone after saying ‘We believe’ without being put to the test?

3. We tested those who went before them: God will certainly mark out which ones are truthful and which are lying.

4. Do the evildoers think they can escape us? How ill they judge!

5. But as for those who strive for their meeting with God, God’s appointed time is bound to come; He is the All Seeing, the All Knowing.

6. Those who exert themselves do so for their own benefit – God does not need His creatures –

7. We shall certainly blot out the misdeeds of those who believe and do good deeds, and We shall reward them according to the best of their actions.

8. We have commanded people to be good to their parents, but do not obey them if they strive to make you serve, beside Me, anything of which you have no knowledge; you will all return to Me, and I shall inform you of what you have done.

9. We shall be sure to admit those who believe and do good deeds to the ranks of the righteous.

Further on Allah, the Al-Mighty, says what can be interpreted to mean:

40. And We punished each one of them for their sins: some We struck with a violent storm; some were overcome by a sudden blast; some We made the earth swallow; and some We drowned. It was not God who wronged them; they wronged themselves.

41. Those who take protectors other than God can be compared to spiders building themselves houses –the spider’s is the frailest of all houses–  if only they could understand.

42. God knows what things they call upon beside Him: He is the Mighty, the Wise.

43. Such are the comparisons We draw for people, though only the wise can grasp them.

44. God has created the heavens and earth for a true purpose. There truly is a sign in this for those who believe.

45. [Prophet], recite what has been revealed to you of the Scripture; keep up the prayer: prayer restrains outrageous and unacceptable behaviour. Remembering God is greater: God knows everything you are doing.

46. [Believers], argue only in the best way with the People of the Book, except with those of them who act unjustly. Say, ‘We believe in what was revealed to us and in what was revealed to you; our God and your God are one [and the same]; we are devoted to Him.’

47. This is the way We sent the Scripture to you [Muhammad]. Those to whom We had already given Scripture believe in [the Qur’an] and so do some of these people. No one refuses to acknowledge Our revelations but the defiant.

Sura ar-Rum – The Byzantines (030)

In the name of God, the Lord of Mercy, the Giver of Mercy

12. On the Day the Hour arrives, the guilty will despair

13. And they will have no intercessors among those partners they ascribed to God– they will deny these partners.

14. When the Hour arrives, on that Day people will be separated:

15. Those who believed and did good deeds will delight in a Garden,

16. While those who disbelieved and denied Our messages and the meeting of the Hereafter will be brought for punishment.

17. So celebrate God’s glory in the evening, in the morning–

18. Praise is due to Him in the heavens and the earth– in the late afternoon, and at midday.

19. He brings the living out of the dead and the dead out of the living. He gives life to the earth after death, and you will be brought out in the same way.

20. One of His signs is that He created you from dust and– lo and behold!– you became human and scattered far and wide.

21. Another of His signs is that He created spouses from among yourselves for you to live with in tranquility; He ordained love and kindness between you. There truly are signs in this for those who reflect.

22. Another of His signs is the creation of the heavens and earth, and the diversity of your languages and colours. There truly are signs in this for those who know.

23. Among His signs are your sleep, by night and by day, and your seeking His bounty. There truly are signs in this for those who can hear.

24. Among His signs, too, are that He shows you the lightning that terrifies and inspires hope; that He sends water down from the sky to restore the earth to life after death. There truly are signs in this for those who use their reason.

25. Among His signs too, is the fact that the heavens and the earth stand firm by His command. In the end, you will all emerge when He calls you from the earth.

26. Everyone in the heavens and earth belongs to Him, and all are obedient to Him.

27. He is the One who originates creation and will do it again– this is even easier for Him. He is above all comparison in the heavens and earth; He is the Almighty, the All Wise.

36. When We give people a taste of Our blessing, they rejoice, but when something bad happens to them –because of their own actions– they fall into utter despair.

37. Do they not see that God gives abundantly to whoever He will and sparingly [to whoever He will]? There truly are signs in this for those who believe.

38. So give their due to the near relative, the needy, and the wayfarer– that is best for those whose goal is God’s approval: these are the ones who will prosper.

39. Whatever you lend out in usury to gain value through other people’s wealth will not increase in God’s eyes, but whatever you give in charity, in your desire for God’s approval, will earn multiple rewards.

40. It is God who created you and provided for you, who will cause you to die and then give you life again. Which of your ‘partners’ can do any one of these things? Glory be to God, and exalted be He above the partners they attribute to Him.

41. Corruption has flourished on land and sea as a result of people’s actions and He will make them taste the consequences of some of their own actions so that they may turn back.

42. Say, ‘Travel through the land, and see how those before you met their end– most of them were idolaters.’

43. [Prophet], stand firm in your devotion to the upright religion, before an irresistible Day comes from God. On that Day, mankind will be divided:

44. Those who rejected the truth will bear the burden of that rejection, and those who did good deeds will have made good provision for themselves.

45. From His bounty God will reward those who believe and do good deeds; He does not like those who reject the truth.

Surah Luqman (031)

In the name of God, the Lord of Mercy, the Giver of Mercy

12. We endowed Luqman with wisdom: ‘Be thankful to God: whoever gives thanks benefits his own soul, and as for those who are thankless – God is self-sufficient, worthy of all praise.’

13. Luqman counselled his son, ‘My son, do not attribute any partners to God: attributing partners to Him is a terrible wrong.’

14. We have commanded people to be good to their parents: their mothers carried them, with strain upon strain, and it takes two years to wean them. Give thanks to Me and to your parents– all will return to Me.

15. If they strive to make you associate with Me anything about which you have no knowledge, then do not obey them. Yet keep their company in this life according to what is right, and follow the path of those who turn to Me. You will all return to Me in the end, and I will tell you everything that you have done.

16. [And Luqman continued] ‘My son, if even the weight of a mustard seed were hidden in a rock or anywhere in the heavens or earth, God would bring it [to light], for He is all subtle and all aware.

17. Keep up the prayer, my son; command what is right; forbid what is wrong; bear anything that happens to you steadfastly: these are things to be aspired to.

18. Do not turn your nose up at people, nor walk about the place arrogantly, for God does not love arrogant or boastful people.

19. Go at a moderate pace and lower your voice, for the ugliest of all voices is the braying of asses.’