Thursday, 2 May 2019

The Time



Chapter 103: Al-Asr (The Time)
In the Name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful
1. WaalAAasri

103:1. By the time!

2. Inna al-insana lafee khusrin

103:2. Indeed, mankind is surely in loss,

3. Illa allatheena amanoo waAAamiloo alssalihati watawasaw bialhaqqi watawasaw bialssabri

103:3. But not those among them who believe and do good deeds, and exhort one another to Truth, and exhort one another to patience.1

1. The fundamental truth laid down in Verses 2 and 3 here is preceded, for emphasis, by the divine oath taken on Time as in Verse 1 above. Time is of critical essence for mankind. They have been allotted a fixed time on this earth to prove themselves eligible for Paradise. And they have not been given the knowledge as to the quantum of the fixed time. They do not know when that fixed time will come to an end. So, they cannot afford to waste any time at their disposal. And yet most people remain blissfully unaware of the precious time ticking away. For them is Paradise Lost! Paradise Gained is only for those few who satisfy all the four criteria mentioned in this 3rd Verse of the Chapter. It is not enough that one believes and does good deeds; one has also to spell out the truth even if it hurts one’s own self or one’s own kith and kin. One has necessarily therefore to exercise patience.

Friday, the 3rd of May 2019.

No comments:

Post a Comment