The Qur'an (Oxford World's Classics)

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91. THE SUN
A Meccan sura, the central theme of which is purifying or corrupting the soul,
with the tribe of Thamud given as an example of corruption.
In the name of God, the Lord of Mercy, the Giver of Mercy
1 By the sun in its morning brightness 2 and by the moon as it follows
it, 3 by the day as it displays the sun’s glory 4 and by the night as it
conceals it, 5 by the sky and how He built it 6 and by the earth and
how He spread it, 7 by the soul and how He formed it 8 and inspired it
[to know] its own rebellion and piety! 9 The one who purifies his soul
succeeds 10 and the one who corrupts it fails. 11 In their arrogant
cruelty, the people of Thamud a called [their messenger] a liar,
12 when the most wicked man among them rose [against him]. b 13 The
messenger of God said to them, ‘[Leave] God’s camel to drink,’
14 but they called him a liar and hamstrung her. Their Lord destroyed
them for their crime and levelled them. 15 He did not hesitate c to
punish d them.
a See e.g. 7: 73–9 (on the tribe of Thamud).
b Cf. 54: 29.
c Literally ‘he does not fear’.
d One of the lexical meanings of uqba is jaza, here ‘to punish’; or ‘does not fear the
consequences’.