In the gradation of spiritual teaching (see Introduction to Sura 8), we saw that the first seven Suras sketched the early spiritual history of man, and led up to the formation of the new Ummat (Community) of Islam. Suras 8 to 16 formed another series dealing with the formation of the new Ummat and its consolidation, and Allah's dealing with man taken as an Ummat and considered in his social relations in organized communities (see Introduction to Suras 8, 10, and 16). We now come to a fresh series, (Suras 17 to 29), which may be considered in three parts. Suras 17 to 21 begin with an allusion to the Miraj (of which more later), and proceed to spiritual history as touching individuals rather than nations. The old prophets and stories of the past are now referred to from this point of view. Suras 22 to 25 refer to Hajj (pilgrimage), worship and prayer, chastity, privacy, etc., as related to a man's individual spiritual growth. Suras 26 to 29 go back to the old prophets and stories of the past, as illustrating the growth of the individual soul in its reactions against the lives of the communities and the reactions of the communities to the lives of its great individual souls.
Let us now consider Sura 17 by itself. It opens with the mystic Vision of the Ascension of the Holy Prophet: He was transported from the Sacred Mosque (of Mecca) to the Farthest Mosque (of Jerusalem) in a night and shown some of the Signs of Allah. The majority of Commentators take this Night Journey literally, but allow that there were other occasions on which a spiritual Journey or Vision occurred. Even on the supposition of a miraculous bodily Journey, it is conceded that the body was almost transformed into a spiritual fineness. The Hadith literature gives details of this Journey and its study helps elucidate its mystic meaning. The Holy Prophet was first transported to the seat of the earlier revelations in Jerusalem, and then taken through the seven heavens, even to the Sublime Throne, and initiated into the spiritual mysteries of the human soul struggling in Space and Time. The Spaniard, Miguel Asin, Arabic Professor in the University of Madrid, has shown that this Miraj literature had a great influence on the Medieval literature of Europe, and especially on the great Italian poem, the "Divine Comedy" (or Drama) of Dante, which towers like a landmark in medieval European literature.
The reference to this great mystic story of the Miraj is a fitting prelude to the journey of the human soul in its spiritual growth in life. The first steps in such growth must be through moral conduct -- the reciprocal rights of parents and children, kindness to our fellow men, courage and firmness in the hour of danger, a sense of personal responsibility, and a sense of Allah's Presence through prayer and praise. The Miraj is usually dated to the 27th night of the month of Rajab (though other dates, e.g., 17th of Rabi I, are also given) in the year before the Hijra. This fixes the date of the opening verse of the Sura, though portions of the Sura may have been a little earlier.
Summary.-The spiritual experiences of the men of Allah are given in order that Allah's Signs may be made clear to men: Man is misled into evil, and must be guided to a sense of personal responsibility. (Verses 1 to 22 and commentary C.128).
Our service to Allah is also shown in our human relations, goodness to parents and kinsmen and strangers in want, as well as kindness to children, purity in sex relations, justice, and respect for human life, protection of orphans, probity in all dealings, and avoidance of arrogance. (Verses 23 to 40 and commentary C.129).
Allah's glory is above all comparison, and the reception of His revelation marks off the man of faith from those who do not believe. But the Believers should speak fair and avoid dissension, for Allah doth encompass all men. (Verses 41 to 60 and commentary C.130).
Pride caused the fall of Iblis, but the children of Adam have been raised in excellence above other Creation. They will be judged by their deeds. Prayer is good at stated times and at night, and the Koran is offered as healing and mercy. (Verses 61 to 84 and commentary C.131).
Inspiration (the Koran) is a Sign of Allah's grace, and men should accept it without making carping excuses. Be humble in prayer and praise. (Verses 85 to 111 and commentary C.132).
C.128-(Verses 1 to 22)-It is the privilege of the men of Allah to see the sublimest mysteries of the spiritual world and instruct men in Righteousness; they warn and shield men against Evil. But nothing can lessen each soul's personal responsibility for its own deeds. It carries its fate round its own neck. Allah's gifts are for all, but not all receive the same gifts, nor are all gifts of equal dignity or excellence.
17:1 SURA 17. Bani Israil, or the Children of Israel. In the name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful. Glory to (Allah) Who did take His Servant for a journey by night from the Sacred Mosque to the Farthest Mosque, whose precincts We did Bless, -- in order that We might show him some of Our Signs: For He is the One Who heareth and seeth (all things).
17:2 We gave Moses the Book, and made it a Guide to the Children of Israel, (Commanding): "Take not other than Me as Disposer of (your) affairs."
17:3 O ye that are sprung from those whom We carried (in the Ark) with Noah! Verily he was a devotee most grateful.
17:4 And We gave (clear) warning to the Children of Israel in the Book, that twice would they do mischief on the earth and be elated with mighty arrogance (and twice would they be punished)!
17:5 When the first of the warnings came to pass, We sent against you Our servants given to terrible warfare: They entered the very inmost parts of your homes; and it was a warning (completely) fulfilled.
17:6 Then did We grant you the Return as against them: We gave you increase in resources and sons, and made you the most numerous in manpower.
17:7 If ye did well, ye did well for yourselves; if ye did evil, (ye did it) against yourselves. So when the second of the warnings came to pass, (We permitted your enemies) to disfigure your faces, and to enter your Temple as they had entered it before, and to visit with destruction all that fell into their power.
17:8 It may be that your Lord may (yet) show Mercy unto you; but if ye revert (to your sins), We shall revert (to Our Punishments): And We have made Hell a prison for those who reject (all Faith).
17:9 Verily this Koran doth guide to that which is most right (or stable), and giveth the glad tidings to the Believers who work deeds of righteousness, that they shall have a magnificent reward;
17:10 And to those who believe not in the Hereafter, (it announceth) that We have prepared for them a Penalty grievous (indeed).
17:11 Section 2. The prayer that man should make for good, he maketh for evil; for man is given to hasty (deeds).
17:12 We have made the Night and the Day as two (of Our) Signs: The Sign Of the Night have We obscured, while the Sign of the Day We have made to enlighten you; that ye may seek bounty from your Lord, and that ye may know the number and count of the years: All things have We explained in detail.
17:13 Every man's fate We have fastened on his own neck: On the Day of Judgment We shall bring out for him a scroll, which he will see spread open.
17:14 (It will be said to him:) "Read thine (own) record: Sufficient is thy soul this day to make out an account against thee."
17:15 Who receiveth guidance, receiveth it for his own benefit: Who goeth astray doth so to his own loss: No bearer of burdens can bear the burden of another: Nor would We visit with Our Wrath until We had sent an apostle (to give warning).
17:16 When We decide to destroy a population, We (first) send a definite order to those among them who are given the good things of this life and yet transgress; so that the word is proved true against them: Then (it is) We destroy them utterly.
17:17 How many generations have We destroyed after Noah? And enough is thy Lord to note and see the sins of His servants.
17:18 If any do wish for the transitory things (of this life), We readily grant them -- such things as We will, to such persons as We will: In the end have We provided Hell for them: They will burn therein, disgraced and rejected.
17:19 Those who do wish for the (things of) the Hereafter, and strive therefor with all due striving, and have Faith, -- they are the ones whose striving is acceptable (to Allah).
17:20 Of the bounties of thy Lord We bestow freely on all -- these as well as those: The bounties of thy Lord are not closed (to anyone).
17:21 See how We have bestowed more on some than on others; but verily the Hereafter is more in rank and gradation and more in excellence.
17:22 Take not with Allah another object of worship; or thou (O man!) wilt sit in disgrace and destitution.
C.129-(Verses 23 to 40)-To be worthy of the service of the One True Allah, we must love and serve His Creatures. The parents who cherished us in childhood deserve our humble reverence and service: Next come the rights of kinsman, those in want, and wayfaring strangers: To each according to his need, not in spendthrift show. And gentleness is needed to those whom we cannot help. Allah will provide. He has made life sacred and pure. Fulfill your trusts for orphans and deal with all in strictest probity. Pry not into evil from curiosity, and shun insolence: For Allah hates evil, -- the One, the Good, the Universal Lord!
17:23 Section 3. Thy Lord hath decreed that ye worship none but Him, and that ye be kind to parents. Whether one or both of them attain old age in thy life, say not to them a word of contempt, nor repel them, but address them in terms of honor.
17:24 And, out of kindness, lower to them the wing of humility, and say: "My Lord! Bestow on them Thy Mercy even as they cherished me in childhood."
17:25 Your Lord knoweth best what is in your hearts: If ye do deeds of righteousness, verily He is Most Forgiving to those who turn to Him again and again (in true penitence).
17:26 And render to the kindred their due rights, as (also) to those in want, and to the wayfarer: But squander not (your wealth) in the manner of a spendthrift.
17:27 Verily spendthrifts are brothers of the Evil Ones; and the Evil One is to his Lord (Himself) ungrateful.
17:28 And even if thou hast to turn away from them in pursuit of the Mercy from thy Lord which thou dost expect, yet speak to them a word of easy kindness.
17:29 Make not thy hand tied (like a niggard's) to thy neck, nor stretch it forth to its utmost reach, so that thou become blameworthy and destitute.
17:30 Verily thy Lord doth provide sustenance in abundance for whom He pleaseth, and He provideth in a just measure. For He doth know and regard all His servants.
17:31 Section 4. Kill not your children for fear of want: We shall provide sustenance for them as well as for you. Verily the killing of them is a great sin.
17:32 Nor come nigh to adultery: For it is a shameful (deed) and an evil, opening the road (to other evils).
17:33 Nor take life -- which Allah has made sacred -- except for just cause. And if anyone is slain wrongfully We have given his heir authority (to demand Qisas or to forgive): But let him not exceed bounds in the matter of taking life; for he is helped (by the Law).
17:34 Come not nigh to the orphan's property except to improve it, until he attains the age of full strength; and fulfill (every) engagement, for (every) engagement will be inquired into (on the Day of Reckoning).
17:35 Give full measure when ye measure, and weigh with a balance that is straight: That is the most fitting and the most advantageous in the final determination.
17:36 And pursue not that of which thou hast no knowledge; for every act of hearing, or of seeing or of (feeling in) the heart will be inquired into (on the Day of Reckoning).
17:37 Nor walk on the earth with insolence: For thou canst not rend the earth asunder, nor reach the mountains in height.
17:38 Of all such things the evil is hateful in the sight of thy Lord.
17:39 These are among the (precepts of) wisdom, which thy Lord has revealed to thee. Take not, with Allah, another object of worship, lest thou shouldst be thrown into Hell, blameworthy and rejected.
17:40 Has then you Lord (O Pagans!) preferred for you sons, and taken for Himself daughters among the angels? Truly ye utter a most dreadful saying!
C.130-(Verses 41 to 60)-There is none like unto Allah. Exalted beyond measure is He. All Creation declares His glory. His revelation is Truth, but is beyond comprehension to those who believe not in the Hereafter. Those who serve Him should beware lest words unseemly should escape them, whether to friend or foe. Avoid dissension, and know that Allah's Wrath when kindled is a terrible thing, but we rejoice that He forbears and forgives.
17:41 Section 5. We have explained (things) in various (ways) in this Koran, in order that they may receive admonition, but it only increases their flight (from the Truth)!
17:42 Say: If there had been (other) gods with Him, -- as they say, -- behold, they would certainly have sought out a way to the Lord of the Throne!
17:43 Glory to Him! He is high above all that they say! -- Exalted and Great (beyond measure)!
17:44 The seven heavens and the earth, and all beings therein, declare His glory: There is not a thing but celebrates His praise; and yet ye understand not how they declare His glory! Verily He is Oft-Forbearing, Most Forgiving!
17:45 When thou does recite the Koran, We put, between thee and those who believe not in the Hereafter, a veil invisible:
17:46 And We put coverings over their hearts (and minds) lest they should understand the Koran, and deafness into their ears: When thou dost commemorate thy Lord -- and Him alone -- in the Koran, they turn on their backs, fleeing (from the Truth).
17:47 We know best why it is they listen, when they listen to thee; and when they meet in private conference, behold, the wicked say, "Ye follow none other than a man bewitched!"
17:48 See what similes they strike for thee: But they have gone astray, and never can they find a way.
17:49 They say: "What! When we are reduced to bones and dust, should we really be raised up (to be) a new creation?"
17:50 Say: "(Nay!) Be ye stones or iron,
17:51 "Or created matter which, in your minds, is hardest (to be raised up), -- (Yet shall ye be raised up)!" Then will they say: "Who will cause us to return?" Say: "He Who created you first!" Then will they wag their heads towards thee, and say, "When will that be?" Say, "May be it will be quite soon!
17:52 "It will be on a Day when He will call you, and ye will answer (His call) with (words of) His praise, and ye will think that ye tarried but a little while!"
17:53 Section 6. Say to My servants that they should (only) say those things that are best: For Satan doth sow dissension among them: For Satan is to man an avowed enemy.
17:54 It is your Lord that knoweth you best: If He please, He granteth you mercy, or if He please, Punishment: We have not sent thee to be a disposer of their affairs for them.
17:55 And it is your Lord that knoweth best all beings that are in the heavens and on earth: We did bestow on some Prophets more (and other) gifts than on others: And We gave to David (the gift of) the Psalms.
17:56 Say: "Call on those -- besides Him -- whom ye fancy: They have neither the power to remove your troubles from you nor to change them."
17:57 Those whom they call upon do desire (for themselves) means of access to their Lord, -- Even those who are nearest: They hope for His Mercy and fear His Wrath: For the Wrath of thy Lord is something to take heed of.
17:58 There is not a population but We shall destroy it before the Day of Judgment or punish it with a dreadful Penalty: That is written in the (eternal) Record.
17:59 And We refrain from sending the Signs, only because the men of former generations treated them as false: We sent the She camel to the Thamud to open their eyes, but they treated her wrongfully: We only send the Signs by way of terror (and warning from evil).
17:60 Behold! We told thee that thy Lord doth encompass mankind round about: We granted the Vision which We showed thee, but as a trial for men, -- as also the Cursed Tree (mentioned) in the Koran: We put terror (and warning) into them, but it only increases their inordinate transgression!
C.131-(Verses 61 to 84)-Arrogance, jealousy, spite, and hatred were the cause of the fall of Iblis. Man was given pre-eminence above much of Allah's Creation, and owes higher responsibilities. He should give thanks for Allah's mercies, and remember the Day of Account. Not all the scheming of Evil will deflect Allah's righteous Plan to protect His chosen ones. They should pray without ceasing, and seek His true Guidance; for Truth will last, but Falsehood will perish.
17:61 Section 7. Behold! We said to the angels: "Bow down unto Adam": They bowed down except Iblis: He said, "Shall I bow down to one whom Thou didst create from clay?"
17:62 He said, "Seest Thou? This is the one whom Thou hast honored above me! If Thou wilt but respite me to the Day of Judgment, I will surely bring his descendants under my sway -- all but a few!"
17:63 (Allah) said: "Go thy way; if any of them follow thee, verily Hell will be the recompense of you (all) -- an ample recompense.
17:64 "Lead to destruction those whom thou canst among them, with thy (seductive) voice; make assaults on them with thy cavalry and thy infantry; mutually share with them wealth and children; and make promises to them." But Satan promises them nothing but deceit.
17:65 "As for My servants, no authority shalt thou have over them:" Enough is thy Lord for a Disposer of affairs.
17:66 You Lord is He that maketh the Ship go smoothly for you through the sea, in order that ye may seek of His Bounty. For He is unto you Most Merciful.
17:67 When distress seizes you at sea, those that ye call upon -- besides Himself -- leave you in the lurch! But when He brings you back safe to land, ye turn away (from Him). Most ungrateful is man!
17:68 Do ye then feel secure that He will not cause you to be swallowed up beneath the earth when ye are on land, or that He will not send against you a violent tornado (with showers of stones) so that ye shall find no one to carry out your affairs for you?
17:69 Or do ye feel secure that He will not send you back a second time to sea and send against you a heavy gale to drown you because of your ingratitude, so that ye find no helper therein against Us?
17:70 We have honored the sons of Adam; provided them with transport on land and sea; given them for sustenance things good and pure; and conferred on them special favors, above a great part of Our Creation.
17:71 Section 8. One day We shall call together all human beings with their (respective) Imams: Those who are given their record in their right hand will read it (with pleasure), and they will not be dealt with unjustly in the least.
17:72 But those who were blind in this world, will be blind in the Hereafter, and most astray from the Path.
17:73 And their purpose was to tempt thee away from that which We had revealed unto thee, to substitute in Our name something quite different: (In that case), behold! They would certainly have made thee (their) friend!
17:74 And had We not given thee strength, thou wouldst nearly have inclined to them a little.
17:75 In that case We should have made thee taste an equal portion (of punishment) in this life, and an equal portion in death: And moreover thou wouldst have found none to help thee against Us!
17:76 Their purpose was to scare thee off the land, in order to expel thee; but in that case they would not have stayed (therein) after thee, except for a little while.
17:77 (This was Our) way with the apostles We sent before thee: Thou wilt find no change in our ways.
17:78 Section 9. Establish regular prayers -- at the sun's decline till the darkness of the night, and the morning prayer and reading: For the prayer and reading in the morning carry their testimony.
17:79 And pray in the small watches of the morning: (It would be) an additional prayer (or spiritual profit) for thee: Soon will thy Lord raise thee to a Station of Praise and Glory!
17:80 Say: "O my Lord! Let my entry be by the Gate of Truth and Honor, and likewise my exit by the Gate of Truth and Honor; and grant me from Thy Presence an authority to aid (me)."
17:81 And say: "Truth has (now) arrived, and Falsehood perished: For Falsehood is (by its nature) bound to perish."
17:82 We send down (stage by stage) in the Koran that which is a healing and a mercy to those who believe: To the unjust it causes nothing but loss after loss.
17:83 Yet when We bestow Our favors on man, he turns away and becomes remote on his side (instead of coming to Us), and when evil seizes him he gives himself up to despair!
17:84 Say: "Everyone acts according to his own disposition: But your Lord knows best who it is that is best guided on the Way."
C.132-(Verses 85 to 111)-Who can define the Spirit of Inspiration? Its gift is the highest of Allah's Mercies to man. The Koran is divine, and no carpings can affect its greatness or the greatness of the Messenger who brought it to men. Those who reject it will be called to account on the Day of Judgment. Let not Pride and Ignorance rush, like Pharaoh, to the Punishment of the Hereafter. The Koran as revealed by stages teaches the Truth: Learn it and chant it, and praise the Beautiful Names of Allah for ever!
17:85 Section 10. They ask thee concerning the Spirit (of inspiration). Say: "The Spirit (cometh) by command of my Lord: Of knowledge it is only a little that is communicated to you, (O men!)"
17:86 If it were Our Will, We could take away that which We have sent thee by inspiration: Then wouldst thou find none to plead thy affair in that matter as against Us, --
17:87 Except for Mercy from thy Lord: For His Bounty is to thee (indeed) great.
17:88 Say: "If the whole of mankind and Jinns were to gather together to produce the like of this Koran, they could not produce the like thereof, even if they backed up each other with help and support.
17:89 And We have explained to man, in this Koran, every kind of similitude: Yet the greater part of men refuse (to receive it) except with ingratitude!
17:90 They say: "We shall not believe in thee, until thou cause a spring to gush forth for us from the earth,
17:91 "Or (until) thou have a garden of date trees and vines, and cause rivers to gush forth in their midst, carrying abundant water;
17:92 "Or thou cause the sky to fall in pieces, as thou sayest (will happen), against us; or thou bring Allah and the angels before (us) face to face;
17:93 "Or thou have a house adorned with gold, or thou mount a ladder right into the skies. No, we shall not even believe in thy mounting until thou send down to us a book that we could read." Say: "Glory to my Lord! Am I aught but a man, -- an apostle?"
17:94 Section 11. What kept men back from Belief when Guidance came to them, was nothing but this: They said, "Has Allah sent a man (like us) to be (His) Apostle?"
17:95 Say, "If there were settled, on earth, angels walking about in peace and quiet, We should certainly have sent them down from the heavens an angel for an apostle."
17:96 Say: "Enough is Allah for a witness between me and you: For He is well acquainted with His servants, and He sees (all things).
17:97 It is he whom Allah guides, that is on true guidance; but he whom He leaves astray -- for such wilt thou find no protector besides Him. On the Day of Judgment We shall gather them together, prone on their faces, blind, dumb, and deaf: Every time it shows abatement, We shall increase for them the fierceness of the Fire.
17:98 That is their recompense, because they rejected Our Signs, and said, "When we are reduced to bones and broken dust, should we really be raised up (to be) a new Creation?"
17:99 See they not that Allah, Who created the heavens and the earth, has power to create the like of them (anew)? Only He has decreed a term appointed, of which there is no doubt but the unjust refuse (to receive it) except with ingratitude.
17:100 Say: "If ye had control of the Treasures of the Mercy of my Lord, behold, ye would keep them back, for fear of spending them: For man is (ever) niggardly!"
17:101 Section 12. To Moses We did give Nine Clear Signs: Ask the Children of Israel: When he came to them, Pharaoh said to him: "O Moses! I consider thee, indeed to have been worked upon by sorcery!"
17:102 Moses said, "Thou knowest well that these things have been sent down by none but the Lord of the heavens and the earth as eye -- opening evidence: And I consider thee indeed, O Pharaoh, to be one doomed to destruction!"
17:103 So he resolved to remove them from the face of the earth: But We did drown him and all who were with him.
17:104 And We said thereafter to the Children of Israel, "Dwell securely in the land (of promise)": But when the second of the warnings came to pass, We gathered you together in a mingled crowd.
17:105 We sent down the (Koran) in Truth, and in Truth has it descended: And We sent thee but to give Glad Tidings and to warn (sinners).
17:106 (It is) a Koran which We have divided (into parts from time to time), in order that thou mightest recite it to men at intervals: We have revealed it by stages.
17:107 Say: "Whether ye believe it or not, it is true that those who were given knowledge beforehand, when it is recited to them, fall down on their faces in humble prostration,
17:108 "And they say: 'Glory to our Lord! Truly has the promise of our Lord been fulfilled!'"
17:109 They fall down on their faces in tears, and it increases their (earnest) humility.
17:110 Say: "Call upon Allah, or call upon Rahman: By whatever name ye call upon Him, (it is well): For to Him belong the Most Beautiful Names. Neither speak thy Prayer aloud, nor speak it in a low tone, but seek a middle course between."
17:111 Say: "Praise be to Allah, Who begets no son, and has no partner in (His) dominion: Nor (needs) He any to protect Him from humiliation: Yea, magnify Him for His greatness and glory!"
