A Meccan sura, the central theme of which is purifying or corrupting the soul, with the tribe of Thamud given as an example of corruption.
In the name of God, the Lord of Mercy, the Giver of Mercy
1 By the sun in its morning brightness 2 and by the moon as it follows it, 3 by the day as it displays the sun’s glory 4 and by the night as it conceals it, 5 by the sky and how He built it 6 and by the earth and how He spread it, 7 by the soul and how He formed it 8 and inspired it [to know] its own rebellion and piety! 9 The one who purifies his soul succeeds 10 and the one who corrupts it fails. 11 In their arrogant cruelty, the people of Thamud [a] called [their messenger] a liar, 12 when the most wicked man among them rose [against him]. [b] 13 The messenger of God said to them, ‘[Leave] God’s camel to drink,’ 14 but they called him a liar and hamstrung her. Their Lord destroyed them for their crime and levelled them. 15 He did not hesitate [c] to punish [d] them.
Footnotes
a. See e.g. 7: 73–9 (on the tribe of Thamud).
b. Cf. 54: 29.
c. Literally ‘he does not fear’.
d. One of the lexical meanings of 'uqba is jaza', here ‘to punish’; or ‘does not fear the consequences’.
The Qur'an (Oxford World's Classics)
The Qur'an / a new translation by M. A. S. Abdel Haleem, copyright © 2004 Oxford World's Classics (Oxford University Press). Used by permission. All rights reserved.