91. Ash-Shams

By the sun and its brightness

By the sun and its rising brightness

Witness is the Sun and its radiant splendor

And [by] the moon when it follows it

and by the moon as it follows it

And the Moon that borrows its light

And [by] the day when it displays it1

and by the day as it reveals its glory

Witness is the day as it brightens the world

And [by] the night when it covers [i.e., conceals] it

and by the night when it draws a veil over it

And the night that cloaks it

And [by] the sky and He who constructed it

by the sky and how He built it

And the sky and its wondrous design

And [by] the earth and He who spread it

and by the earth and how He spread it

And the earth and its vast expanse

And [by] the soul and He who proportioned it1

by the soul and how He formed it

Consider the human 'Self, and how it is capable for being balanced out

And inspired it [with discernment of] its wickedness and its righteousness,

then inspired it to understand what was right and wrong for it

And how it is instilled with the capacity to disintegrate or become secure

He has succeeded who purifies it,

He who purifies it will indeed be successful

Successful indeed is he who grows the 'Self

And he has failed who instills it [with corruption].

and he who corrupts it is sure to fail

And failure is indeed he who keeps it buried (under ignorance and superstition)

Thamūd denied [their prophet] by reason of their transgression,

The Thamud tribe rejected the truth because of their arrogance

(Disregarding this principle) Thamud rejected (Saleh) while playing God. ('Tagha' = Being 'Taghut' = Becoming a false god = Playing God = Transgressing = Rebelling = Crossing bounds of decency = Extreme arrogance)

When the most wretched of them was sent forth.1

when the most wicked man among them rose up

Behold, the most forward among them was picked up for defiance

And the messenger of Allāh [i.e., Ṣāliḥ] said to them, "[Do not harm] the she-camel of Allāh or [prevent her from] her drink."

Then the messenger of God said to them, "This is God's she-camel. Let her drink

Although Allah's Messenger had told them, "It is a she-camel belonging to Allah, so let her drink!" (The land belongs to Allah, and this she-camel represents the weak among you (7:)

But they denied him and hamstrung1 her. So their Lord brought down upon them destruction for their sin and made it equal [upon all of them].

But they gave him the lie, and hamstrung the she-camel. So their Lord destroyed them for their crime and razed their city to the ground

But they denied him and they killed her. Their Lord then doomed them all alike for their lagging behind in compliance

And He does not fear the consequence thereof.1

He did not fear the consequences

For none of them had any fear of what might befall them