Surah 18
الكهف
بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ
al-ḥamdu lillahi alladhī anzala ʿalā ʿabdihi l-kitāba walam yajʿal lahu ʿiwajā
[All] praise is [due] to Allāh, who has sent down upon His Servant [Muḥammad (ﷺ)] the Book and has not made therein any deviance.
qayyiman liyundhira basan shadīdan min ladun'hu wayubashira l-mu'minīna alladhīna yaʿmalūna l-ṣāliḥāti anna lahum ajran ḥasanan
[He has made it] straight, to warn of severe punishment from Him and to give good tidings to the believers who do righteous deeds that they will have a good reward [i.e., Paradise].
mākithīna fīhi abadan
In which they will remain forever
wayundhira alladhīna qālū ittakhadha l-lahu waladan
And to warn those who say, "Allāh has taken a son".
mā lahum bihi min ʿil'min walā liābāihim kaburat kalimatan takhruju min afwāhihim in yaqūlūna illā kadhiban
They have no knowledge of it, nor had their fathers. Grave is the word that comes out of their mouths; they speak not except a lie.
falaʿallaka bākhiʿun nafsaka ʿalā āthārihim in lam yu'minū bihādhā l-ḥadīthi asafan
Then perhaps you would kill yourself through grief over them, [O Muḥammad], if they do not believe in this message, [and] out of sorrow.
innā jaʿalnā mā ʿalā l-arḍi zīnatan lahā linabluwahum ayyuhum aḥsanu ʿamalan
Indeed, We have made that which is on the earth adornment for it that We may test them [as to] which of them is best in deed.
wa-innā lajāʿilūna mā ʿalayhā ṣaʿīdan juruzan
And indeed, We will make that which is upon it [into] a barren ground.
am ḥasib'ta anna aṣḥāba l-kahfi wal-raqīmi kānū min āyātinā ʿajaban
Or have you thought that the companions of the cave and the inscription were, among Our signs, a wonder?
idh awā l-fit'yatu ilā l-kahfi faqālū rabbanā ātinā min ladunka raḥmatan wahayyi lanā min amrinā rashadan
[Mention] when the youths retreated to the cave and said, "Our Lord, grant us from Yourself mercy and prepare for us from our affair right guidance."
faḍarabnā ʿalā ādhānihim fī l-kahfi sinīna ʿadadan
So We cast [a cover of sleep] over their ears within the cave for a number of years.
thumma baʿathnāhum linaʿlama ayyu l-ḥiz'bayni aḥṣā limā labithū amadan
Then We awakened them that We might show which of the two factions was most precise in calculating what [extent] they had remained in time.
naḥnu naquṣṣu ʿalayka naba-ahum bil-ḥaqi innahum fit'yatun āmanū birabbihim wazid'nāhum hudan
It is We who relate to you, [O Muḥammad], their story in truth. Indeed, they were youths who believed in their Lord, and We increased them in guidance.
warabaṭnā ʿalā qulūbihim idh qāmū faqālū rabbunā rabbu l-samāwāti wal-arḍi lan nadʿuwā min dūnihi ilāhan laqad qul'nā idhan shaṭaṭan
And We bound [i.e., made firm] their hearts when they stood up and said, "Our Lord is the Lord of the heavens and the earth. Never will we invoke besides Him any deity. We would have certainly spoken, then, an excessive transgression.
hāulāi qawmunā ittakhadhū min dūnihi ālihatan lawlā yatūna ʿalayhim bisul'ṭānin bayyinin faman aẓlamu mimmani if'tarā ʿalā l-lahi kadhiban
These, our people, have taken besides Him deities. Why do they not bring for [worship of] them a clear evidence? And who is more unjust than one who invents about Allāh a lie?"
wa-idhi iʿ'tazaltumūhum wamā yaʿbudūna illā l-laha fawū ilā l-kahfi yanshur lakum rabbukum min raḥmatihi wayuhayyi lakum min amrikum mir'faqan
[The youths said to one another], "And when you have withdrawn from them and that which they worship other than Allāh, retreat to the cave. Your Lord will spread out for you of His mercy and will prepare for you from your affair facility."
watarā l-shamsa idhā ṭalaʿat tazāwaru ʿan kahfihim dhāta l-yamīni wa-idhā gharabat taqriḍuhum dhāta l-shimāli wahum fī fajwatin min'hu dhālika min āyāti l-lahi man yahdi l-lahu fahuwa l-muh'tadi waman yuḍ'lil falan tajida lahu waliyyan mur'shidan
And [had you been present], you would see the sun when it rose, inclining away from their cave on the right, and when it set, passing away from them on the left, while they were [lying] within an open space thereof. That was from the signs of Allāh. He whom Allāh guides is the [rightly] guided, but he whom He sends astray - never will you find for him a protecting guide.
wataḥsabuhum ayqāẓan wahum ruqūdun wanuqallibuhum dhāta l-yamīni wadhāta l-shimāli wakalbuhum bāsiṭun dhirāʿayhi bil-waṣīdi lawi iṭṭalaʿta ʿalayhim lawallayta min'hum firāran walamuli'ta min'hum ruʿ'ban
And you would think them awake, while they were asleep. And We turned them to the right and to the left, while their dog stretched his forelegs at the entrance. If you had looked at them, you would have turned from them in flight and been filled by them with terror.
wakadhālika baʿathnāhum liyatasāalū baynahum qāla qāilun min'hum kam labith'tum qālū labith'nā yawman aw baʿḍa yawmin qālū rabbukum aʿlamu bimā labith'tum fa-ib'ʿathū aḥadakum biwariqikum hādhihi ilā l-madīnati falyanẓur ayyuhā azkā ṭaʿāman falyatikum biriz'qin min'hu walyatalaṭṭaf walā yush'ʿiranna bikum aḥadan
And similarly, We awakened them that they might question one another. Said a speaker from among them, "How long have you remained [here]?" They said, "We have remained a day or part of a day." They said, "Your Lord is most knowing of how long you remained. So send one of you with this silver coin of yours to the city and let him look to which is the best of food and bring you provision from it and let him be cautious. And let no one be aware of you.
innahum in yaẓharū ʿalaykum yarjumūkum aw yuʿīdūkum fī millatihim walan tuf'liḥū idhan abadan
Indeed, if they come to know of you, they will stone you or return you to their religion. And never would you succeed, then - ever."
wakadhālika aʿtharnā ʿalayhim liyaʿlamū anna waʿda l-lahi ḥaqqun wa-anna l-sāʿata lā rayba fīhā idh yatanāzaʿūna baynahum amrahum faqālū ib'nū ʿalayhim bun'yānan rabbuhum aʿlamu bihim qāla alladhīna ghalabū ʿalā amrihim lanattakhidhanna ʿalayhim masjidan
And similarly, We caused them to be found that they [who found them] would know that the promise of Allāh is truth and that of the Hour there is no doubt. [That was] when they disputed among themselves about their affair and [then] said, "Construct over them a structure. Their Lord is most knowing about them." Said those who prevailed in the matter, "We will surely take [for ourselves] over them a masjid."
sayaqūlūna thalāthatun rābiʿuhum kalbuhum wayaqūlūna khamsatun sādisuhum kalbuhum rajman bil-ghaybi wayaqūlūna sabʿatun wathāminuhum kalbuhum qul rabbī aʿlamu biʿiddatihim mā yaʿlamuhum illā qalīlun falā tumāri fīhim illā mirāan ẓāhiran walā tastafti fīhim min'hum aḥadan
They [i.e., people] will say there were three, the fourth of them being their dog; and they will say there were five, the sixth of them being their dog - guessing at the unseen; and they will say there were seven, and the eighth of them was their dog. Say, [O Muḥammad], "My Lord is most knowing of their number. None knows them except a few. So do not argue about them except with an obvious argument and do not inquire about them among [the speculators] from anyone."
walā taqūlanna lishāy'in innī fāʿilun dhālika ghadan
And never say of anything, "Indeed, I will do that tomorrow,"
illā an yashāa l-lahu wa-udh'kur rabbaka idhā nasīta waqul ʿasā an yahdiyani rabbī li-aqraba min hādhā rashadan
Except [when adding], "If Allāh wills." And remember your Lord when you forget [it] and say, "Perhaps my Lord will guide me to what is nearer than this to right conduct."
walabithū fī kahfihim thalātha mi-atin sinīna wa-iz'dādū tis'ʿan
And they remained in their cave for three hundred years and exceeded by nine.
quli l-lahu aʿlamu bimā labithū lahu ghaybu l-samāwāti wal-arḍi abṣir bihi wa-asmiʿ mā lahum min dūnihi min waliyyin walā yush'riku fī ḥuk'mihi aḥadan
Say, "Allāh is most knowing of how long they remained. He has [knowledge of] the unseen [aspects] of the heavens and the earth. How Seeing is He and how Hearing! They have not besides Him any protector, and He shares not His legislation with anyone."
wa-ut'lu mā ūḥiya ilayka min kitābi rabbika lā mubaddila likalimātihi walan tajida min dūnihi mul'taḥadan
And recite, [O Muḥammad], what has been revealed to you of the Book of your Lord. There is no changer of His words, and never will you find in other than Him a refuge.
wa-iṣ'bir nafsaka maʿa alladhīna yadʿūna rabbahum bil-ghadati wal-ʿashiyi yurīdūna wajhahu walā taʿdu ʿaynāka ʿanhum turīdu zīnata l-ḥayati l-dun'yā walā tuṭiʿ man aghfalnā qalbahu ʿan dhik'rinā wa-ittabaʿa hawāhu wakāna amruhu furuṭan
And keep yourself patient [by being] with those who call upon their Lord in the morning and the evening, seeking His face [i.e., acceptance]. And let not your eyes pass beyond them, desiring adornments of the worldly life, and do not obey one whose heart We have made heedless of Our remembrance and who follows his desire and whose affair is ever [in] neglect.
waquli l-ḥaqu min rabbikum faman shāa falyu'min waman shāa falyakfur innā aʿtadnā lilẓẓālimīna nāran aḥāṭa bihim surādiquhā wa-in yastaghīthū yughāthū bimāin kal-muh'li yashwī l-wujūha bi'sa l-sharābu wasāat mur'tafaqan
And say, "The truth is from your Lord, so whoever wills - let him believe; and whoever wills - let him disbelieve." Indeed, We have prepared for the wrongdoers a fire whose walls will surround them. And if they call for relief, they will be relieved with water like murky oil, which scalds [their] faces. Wretched is the drink, and evil is the resting place.
inna alladhīna āmanū waʿamilū l-ṣāliḥāti innā lā nuḍīʿu ajra man aḥsana ʿamalan
Indeed, those who have believed and done righteous deeds - indeed, We will not allow to be lost the reward of any who did well in deeds.
ulāika lahum jannātu ʿadnin tajrī min taḥtihimu l-anhāru yuḥallawna fīhā min asāwira min dhahabin wayalbasūna thiyāban khuḍ'ran min sundusin wa-is'tabraqin muttakiīna fīhā ʿalā l-arāiki niʿ'ma l-thawābu waḥasunat mur'tafaqan
Those will have gardens of perpetual residence; beneath them rivers will flow. They will be adorned therein with bracelets of gold and will wear green garments of fine silk and brocade, reclining therein on adorned couches. Excellent is the reward, and good is the resting place.
wa-iḍ'rib lahum mathalan rajulayni jaʿalnā li-aḥadihimā jannatayni min aʿnābin waḥafafnāhumā binakhlin wajaʿalnā baynahumā zarʿan
And present to them an example of two men: We granted to one of them two gardens of grapevines, and We bordered them with palm trees and placed between them [fields of] crops.
kil'tā l-janatayni ātat ukulahā walam taẓlim min'hu shayan wafajjarnā khilālahumā naharan
Each of the two gardens produced its fruit and did not fall short thereof in anything. And We caused to gush forth within them a river.
wakāna lahu thamarun faqāla liṣāḥibihi wahuwa yuḥāwiruhu anā aktharu minka mālan wa-aʿazzu nafaran
And he had fruit, so he said to his companion while he was conversing with him, "I am greater than you in wealth and mightier in [numbers of] men."
wadakhala jannatahu wahuwa ẓālimun linafsihi qāla mā aẓunnu an tabīda hādhihi abadan
And he entered his garden while he was unjust to himself. He said, "I do not think that this will perish - ever.
wamā aẓunnu l-sāʿata qāimatan wala-in rudidttu ilā rabbī la-ajidanna khayran min'hā munqalaban
And I do not think the Hour will occur. And even if I should be brought back to my Lord, I will surely find better than this as a return."
qāla lahu ṣāḥibuhu wahuwa yuḥāwiruhu akafarta bi-alladhī khalaqaka min turābin thumma min nuṭ'fatin thumma sawwāka rajulan
His companion said to him while he was conversing with him, "Have you disbelieved in He who created you from dust and then from a sperm-drop and then proportioned you [as] a man?
lākinnā huwa l-lahu rabbī walā ush'riku birabbī aḥadan
But as for me, He is Allāh, my Lord, and I do not associate with my Lord anyone.
walawlā idh dakhalta jannataka qul'ta mā shāa l-lahu lā quwwata illā bil-lahi in tarani anā aqalla minka mālan wawaladan
And why did you, when you entered your garden, not say, 'What Allāh willed [has occurred]; there is no power except in Allāh'? Although you see me less than you in wealth and children,
faʿasā rabbī an yu'tiyani khayran min jannatika wayur'sila ʿalayhā ḥus'bānan mina l-samāi fatuṣ'biḥa ṣaʿīdan zalaqan
It may be that my Lord will give me [something] better than your garden and will send upon it a [disastrous] penalty from the sky, and it will become a smooth, dusty ground,
aw yuṣ'biḥa māuhā ghawran falan tastaṭīʿa lahu ṭalaban
Or its water will become sunken [into the earth], so you would never be able to seek it."
wa-uḥīṭa bithamarihi fa-aṣbaḥa yuqallibu kaffayhi ʿalā mā anfaqa fīhā wahiya khāwiyatun ʿalā ʿurūshihā wayaqūlu yālaytanī lam ush'rik birabbī aḥadan
And his fruits were encompassed [by ruin], so he began to turn his hands about [in dismay] over what he had spent on it, while it had collapsed upon its trellises, and said, "Oh, I wish I had not associated with my Lord anyone."
walam takun lahu fi-atun yanṣurūnahu min dūni l-lahi wamā kāna muntaṣiran
And there was for him no company to aid him other than Allāh, nor could he defend himself.
hunālika l-walāyatu lillahi l-ḥaqi huwa khayrun thawāban wakhayrun ʿuq'ban
There the authority is [completely] for Allāh, the Truth. He is best in reward and best in outcome.
wa-iḍ'rib lahum mathala l-ḥayati l-dun'yā kamāin anzalnāhu mina l-samāi fa-ikh'talaṭa bihi nabātu l-arḍi fa-aṣbaḥa hashīman tadhrūhu l-riyāḥu wakāna l-lahu ʿalā kulli shayin muq'tadiran
And present to them the example of the life of this world, [its being] like rain which We send down from the sky, and the vegetation of the earth mingles with it and [then] it becomes dry remnants, scattered by the winds. And Allāh is ever, over all things, Perfect in Ability.
al-mālu wal-banūna zīnatu l-ḥayati l-dun'yā wal-bāqiyātu l-ṣāliḥātu khayrun ʿinda rabbika thawāban wakhayrun amalan
Wealth and children are [but] adornment of the worldly life. But the enduring good deeds are better to your Lord for reward and better for [one's] hope.
wayawma nusayyiru l-jibāla watarā l-arḍa bārizatan waḥasharnāhum falam nughādir min'hum aḥadan
And [warn of] the Day when We will remove the mountains and you will see the earth exposed, and We will gather them and not leave behind from them anyone.
waʿuriḍū ʿalā rabbika ṣaffan laqad ji'tumūnā kamā khalaqnākum awwala marratin bal zaʿamtum allan najʿala lakum mawʿidan
And they will be presented before your Lord in rows, [and He will say], "You have certainly come to Us just as We created you the first time. But you claimed that We would never make for you an appointment."
wawuḍiʿa l-kitābu fatarā l-muj'rimīna mush'fiqīna mimmā fīhi wayaqūlūna yāwaylatanā māli hādhā l-kitābi lā yughādiru ṣaghīratan walā kabīratan illā aḥṣāhā wawajadū mā ʿamilū ḥāḍiran walā yaẓlimu rabbuka aḥadan
And the record [of deeds] will be placed [open], and you will see the criminals fearful of that within it, and they will say, "Oh, woe to us! What is this book that leaves nothing small or great except that it has enumerated it?" And they will find what they did present [before them]. And your Lord does injustice to no one.
wa-idh qul'nā lil'malāikati us'judū liādama fasajadū illā ib'līsa kāna mina l-jini fafasaqa ʿan amri rabbihi afatattakhidhūnahu wadhurriyyatahu awliyāa min dūnī wahum lakum ʿaduwwun bi'sa lilẓẓālimīna badalan
And [mention] when We said to the angels, "Prostrate to Adam," and they prostrated, except for Iblees. He was of the jinn and departed from [i.e., disobeyed] the command of his Lord. Then will you take him and his descendants as allies other than Me while they are enemies to you? Wretched it is for the wrongdoers as an exchange.
