80 - He Frowned

While Muhammad was preaching to Qurayshi disbelievers, the blind Ibn Shurayh came

But Muhammad turned away and frowned when this Muslim man called out his name.

Muhammed’s hope was to make those notable Meccans, embrace the religion of Islam

But Muhammad, for all you know, you could have raised the spirits of your brother, the blind man

You could have given benefit; he blindly searched for you to listen to what you say

And you ignored him for the self satisfied ones, turned your attention their way.

You were sent only to warn, so do not be concerned whether or not they accept this faith

But from the eager ones in search of the truth, never turn your face!

No Indeed – Never turn from the believers to those ignorant of your Lord

This Qur’an is the best of lessons, those who wish to learn it, will be taught

It is written on honoured pages, by the hands of truthful scribes

Offering mankind divine knowledge on how to live their lives.

Woe to men like Abu Lahab – the ungrateful – the ignorant sycophant

Was he not created from something tiny? Yet he forgets and becomes arrogant

Man was a drop of sperm, then proportioned then released from the womb

To life, then to death and onto next life he will go through

Yet the disbelievers doubt this, and do not follow their Lord’s command

They should consider the development and growth, of their food from within the land

We pour down the water, which We cause the soil to absorb

From that grown all kinds of food you and your animals adore

And even if disbelievers ignore this, know there will come a Day when they believe

The Day with the Deafening blast, the Day when, from his family, man will turn and flee

As they will come to him begging ‘oh so and so... from your good deeds give me a share’

And he will respond ‘No, in this place it is just myself of who I will take care’

And even the Prophet’s families will come to them, in desperate search of aid

But Abraham’s father, Adam’s son and Lot’s wife will all be turned away

On that day some faces will show signs of rejoicing true believers

But on knowing God’s promises were true, others will be down cast, such is the fate of liars and deceivers.

The Format of the Chapters

The Qur’an cannot be translated and should be taught one to one by a teacher with ijaza to do so for a full understanding as one without knowledge may miss or misinterpret the meanings of the verses.

In Islam there is a whole science behind this that includes hadeeth exploration, reasons for Qur’anic revelation, the rules and intricacies of Arabic language and grammar, knowledge of abrogated verses, etc etc. This list could go on.

Most laymen do not have the time to engage fully in all of the above and so ‘translations’ have been deemed the best way to convey the meaning of the Arabic to an English reading audience.

In trying to make this clearer and more detailed than other English versions, this poetic rendition is colour coded for the reader, to offer a clear understanding of where the information is coming from and what is behind a verse.

Key:

Items written in black are a rendition of the qur’anic text – this is to say the meaning has been turned into English in what is hopefully easy to read and follow as well as being memorable through rhyme. The rhyme is attempted as a respectful attempt at replicating the way of Islamic teachers of the past who would sometimes advise and teach rules of Islam through poetry as it was better remembered.

Example:       Abu Lahab's hands will be destroyed and so will he
Nothing he has in wealth will make what's to come easy.

Explanation: This meaning is conveyed even if it is laboured to fit the rhyme scheme

Items in blue are hadeeth inclusions – this is done in the hope of providing first hand reference material for a specific verse. The majority of hadeeth are used from the direct explanation from Ibn Abaas (R.A) and the tafsir of the Jalalayin (R.A). On occasion a hadeeth may also be used from Bukhari (R.A) and Muslim (R.A) as it is understood to support the section being rendered. I will try to maximize use of the hadeeth where appropriate to facilitate a better understanding for readers.

Example:         We have blessed you with plenty
  And you'll have a river in Heaven by that name

Explanation:   The double meaning of ‘Kawthar’ is noted by the scholars and an important addition to understanding the favours given by Allah to his Prophet (pbuh)

Items in red are qur’anic additions from other parts of the Qur’an that help to explain the meaning or link the meaning from another section. This is very common practice as the Qur’an often revisits topics and material to shed new light on them and to reinforce their importance.

Example:        There will be no nourishment in either, or hunger relief

An ample reward for those who wallowed in disbelief

Explanation: The reference to the punishment of the disbelievers is often mentioned and therefore here it is referenced: namely they will be punished for their disbelief.

Items in green are stylistic additions to generally make the transitions between sections smoother and if needs be to provide a few words, to complete a rhyme set, but the words chosen MUST be in keeping with the qur’anic verse and will be in line with general Islamic understanding.

Example:         It is written on honoured pages, by the hands of truthful scribes

Offering mankind divine knowledge on how to live their lives

Explanation: The ending a topic in a chapter would ideally be at the end of a couplet, however this is dictated by the text that is being reflected. As such, sometimes such lines are needed to complete one section before moving to the next one. In the example above the addition is in keeping with Islamic understanding but is not, to my knowledge, directly referencable from one source; it is an understanding gathered from several sources and therefore not easy to label as an isolated piece of hadeeth or Qur’an. For this reason I have labeled it green. I will try and minimize any use of this.  

The Intention of this Project

If it is in accordance with God's will, I intend to complete a rendition of the meaning of all the chapters of the Qur'an through a poetic English format. 

The body of work undertaken is not meant as a translation (the Qur’an cannot be translated) but as a contemporary understanding, in simple language, of the thrust of the Qur'an. It is meant for younger viewers and converts, but I hope it will be of use to a wider audience too.

I have put this together after years of teaching in secondary schools and colleges with the intention of making the Qur'an more accessible to a generation who I’ve found do not access the Qur’an much.

God willing, this will be a stepping stone for them and others on the way towards a full appreciation and desire to learn the inimitable, mesmeric Qur’an in Arabic. 

I plan to complete this project and will provide various versions of the chapters, firstly by producing the English rendition and then a reference version which demonstrates where the hadeeth and other sources were taken from so that they are fully understood.

I go through all I have written with a Sheikh of the Hanbali Math'hab and hope that this is beneficial to all interested in Islam and the Qur'an, whatever background and understanding they have.

As is the case with some people, they will want to know what my 'angle' is and what my aqueeda is etc and in a separate post I have attached an introductory text on Hanbali fiqh, that I compiled with my Sheikh which I believe, affirm and hold to as the Imam who wrote it did as it is what he understood from his Imam, who understood it from his Imam etc etc, in a continuous line back to the teachings of the Prophet Muhammad (SAS) through Ali (RA).


In summarising my stance I hope it suffices that when the angels in the grave ask me the questions in the grave, I pray with all my heart that Allah allows me to be one of those who responds: My Lord is Allah, My religion is Islam and Muhammad (SAS) is my prophet.


I can only answer questions on choices I have made in my rendition. I am not qualified in ANY WAY to answer questions on Islam, so please refer questions to the proper authorities. 


I hope I am qualified to attempt this as I have worked with young Muslims as an ISOC president while at university and over the last 5 years in London as a Teacher, Head of Department and most recently an AST in secondary schools. I have an MA in English and have had various writing published.  


I have only commenced this with permission from Sheiks I learn from / with. Please be assured this is not a spur of the moment scheme, but a serious endeavor in preparation of the life to come. I hope all the above is information that will ease the minds of those who are interested in why this project was undertaken.

If there is any good in it Allah is to be praised, for its flaws I am responsible.

And with Allah is every success.

Layout of the Videos

Each video's layout is intended to be simple and clear. The poetic, colour coded rendition is on the left of the screen and the popular English translation by Yusuf Ali is on the right.

This translation is used as it is one of the most popular, widely read and longest serving English versions of the Qur’an and it is hoped that the audience will be able to see how close the meaning of the poetic version is to other translations, even though the style is very different.

It was suggested that Arabic text be placed on the right rather than another English version, so people could assess the proximity of the rendition to the Magisterial, Inimitable, Divine, Original, Qur’an but my personal opinion is that anyone who is blessed with the ability and knowledge of reading and understanding the Qur’an in Arabic would not be viewing such a video. Alhamdulilah they will have passed the station where this version would be of benefit in the understanding. For the rest on the way towards such an understanding, I hope the videos are of use.

The explanation videos will be more fluid, dictated by the need to switch windows to discuss different qur’anic ayat, tafseer interpretations and hadeeth collections that support  the colour coded poetic version in question.

And with Allah is every success

Please, sincerely, make du’a for us all.