20 TA HA (94 – 124)

Moses said, ‘What prevented thee, Aaron, when thou sawest them in error, so that thou didst not follow after me? Didst thou then disobey my commandment?’ 95‘Son of my mother,’ Aaron said, ‘take me not by the beard, or the head! I was fearful that thou wouldst say, “Thou hast divided the Children of Israel, and thou hast not observed my word.”’ Moses said, ‘And thou, Samaritan, what was thy business?’ ‘I beheld what they beheld not,’ he said, ‘and I seized a handful of dust from the messenger's track, and cast it into the thing. So my soul prompted me.’ ‘Depart!’ said Moses. ‘It shall be thine all this life to cry “Untouchable!” And thereafter a tryst awaits thee thou canst not fail to keep. Behold thy god, to whom all the day thou wast cleaving! We will surely burn it and scatter its ashes into the sea. Your God is only the One God; there is no god, but He alone who in His knowledge embraces everything.’

So We relate to thee stories of what has gone before, and We have given thee a remembrance from Us. 100Whosoever turns away from it, upon the Day of Resurrection he shall bear a fardel, therein abiding forever; how evil upon the Day of Resurrection that burden for them!

On the day the Trumpet is blown; and We shall muster the sinners upon that day with eyes staring, whispering one to another, ‘You have tarried only ten nights.’ We know very well what they will say, when the justest of them in the way will say, ‘You have tarried only a day.’

105They will question thee concerning the mountains. Say: ‘My Lord will scatter them as ashes; then He will leave them a level hollow wherein thou wilt see no crookedness neither any curving.’

On that day they will follow the Summoner in whom is no crookedness; voices will be hushed to the All-merciful, so that thou hearest naught but a murmuring. Upon that day the intercession will not profit, save for him to whom the All-merciful gives leave, and whose speech He approves. He knows what is before them and behind them, and they comprehend Him not 110in knowledge. And faces shall be humbled unto the Living, the Eternal. He will have failed whose burden is of evildoing; but whosoever does deeds of righteousness, being a believer, shall fear neither wrong nor injustice.

Even so We have sent it down as an Arabic Koran, and We have turned about in it something of threats, that haply they may be godfearing, or it may arouse in them remembrance. So high exalted be God, the true King! And hasten not with the Koran ere its revelation is accomplished unto thee; and say, ‘O my Lord, increase me in knowledge.’

And We made covenant with Adam before, but he forgot, and We found in him no constancy. 115And when We said to the angels, ‘Bow yourselves to Adam’; so they bowed themselves, save Iblis; he refused. Then We said, ‘Adam, surely this is an enemy to thee and thy wife. So let him not expel you both from the Garden, so that thou art unprosperous. It is assuredly given to thee neither to hunger therein, nor to go naked, neither to thirst therein, nor to suffer the sun.’ Then Satan whispered to him saying, ‘Adam, shall I point thee to the Tree of Eternity, and a Kingdom that decays not?’ So the two of them ate of it, and their shameful parts revealed to them, and they took to stitching upon themselves leaves of the Garden. And Adam disobeyed his Lord, and so he erred. 120Thereafter his Lord chose him, and turned again unto him, and He guided him. Said He, ‘Get you down, both of you together, out of it, each of you an enemy to each; but if there comes to you from Me guidance, then whosoever follows My guidance shall not go astray, neither shall he be unprosperous; but whosoever turns away from My remembrance, his shall be a life of narrowness, and on the Resurrection Day We shall raise him blind.’