Surah Yunus (10): Read Online and Download - English Translation

The sense is that the invitation to the Abode of Peace (Daru 's-Salam) is universal, open to all human beings and, in terms of this sense, guidance too is open to all. But, there is a kind of guidance that is special. Here, a seeker is made to stand on the straight path and given the ability to move ahead on course. This is Taufiq at its best. Only fortunate people are blessed with it.

Compared in the first two verses (24, 25) were the two Abodes of the present world and the world-to-come. Mention was also made of the states in which their dwellers were. The next four verses (26-29) de-scribe the reward and punishment of both. Taken up first were the people of Paradise. About them it was said that those who opted for good, the greatest good was that of 'Iman (belief and faith) supplemented by staunch adherence to al-'amalu 's-Salih (good deeds). They will have the best of returns for what they do, not simply what is coming to them as due, but much more than it.

The tafsir of this verse was given by the Holy Prophet ﷺ himself. He explained it by saying, ` at this place, اَلحُسنیٰ :al-husna: the best [ of return ] means Jannah (Paradise) and (ziyadah: something more) means the visit to the most exalted Allah with which the people of Jannah shall be honored. (Tafsir al-Qurtubi on the authority of Sayyidna Anas ؓ .

As for the reality of Paradise, this much every Muslim knows that it is a place of bliss beyond human imagination now. And as for the visit to Allah Ta` ala, that is far superior to whatever blessings there are.

According to a narration of Sayyidna Suhayb ؓ appearing in the Sahih of Muslim, the Holy Prophet ﷺ has been reported to have said, ` when the people of Jannah would have entered Jannah, Allah Ta` ala will address them: "Do you need anything? If so, tell Us. We shall fulfill it." The people of Jannah will submit: "You made our faces radiant with delight. You let us be in Jannah. You delivered us from Jahannam. What else can we ask for?" That will be the time when the hi jab obstructing the view in between will be removed. The people of Jannah, one and all, will be blessed with seeing their true Lord. They will then discover that this was a blessing far more sub-lime than all other blessings of Jannah, something they had not even thought about, something the Lord of all the worlds bestowed upon them without their having to ask for it simply out of His infinite affection and mercy!'

Then, the text describes the state of the same people of Jannah by saying that their faces will remain free of any effects of distaste, pain or sorrow, nor will they have to be worried about any disgrace. These are conditions everyone faces in the mortal world one or the other time - and those who go to Jahannam will face it in the Hereafter.

In contrast, the state of the people of Jahannam has been described by saying that those who came with evil deeds in their record will have an equal return for each evil without any increase in it. They will have disgrace all over them. There will be no one to save them from the punishment of Allah. Dark will be their faces, so dark as if layers upon layers of a night have covered them up.

In the two verses (27, 28) appearing next, there is a dialogue between the people of Jahannam and the idols or satans who had led them astray. The locale will be the plain of Resurrection. It was said: On that day, We shall gather everyone. Then, to the Mushriks We shall say that, ` you and your gods whom you had associated' with Us in Our divinity stay in your places where you are, so that you can find out the reality of your conviction.' After that, the connection between these people and their so-called gods as it existed in the mortal world will be disconnected. The result will be that their idols will speak up: ` you never worshipped us.' Making Allah their witness, they will say, ` as for us, we were certainly unaware of your worship' - because we have no senses, no movement and no intelligence to understand these matters.

Described in the sixth verse (30) is what would happen to both the peoples of Jannah and Jahannam by saying that, in this excruciating place called the plains of Resurrection, everyone would have assessed his or her respective deeds, individually and personally, whether they were beneficial or harmful. And they all would then be taken to their true Lord, the only One worthy of worship. At that time, all options of trust and support one usually looks up to will stand terminated. Even the idols the Mushriks used to take as their patrons and intercessors will evaporate in thin air en-block.

In the seventh and the eighth verses (31, 32), the Holy Qur'an has, in its typically wise and patronizing manner, beamed a few questions at the Mushriks to help them regain their sanity. Addressing the Holy Prophet ﷺ ، it was said that he should ask these people: Who gives you sustenance from the heavens and the earth? Who is the master-controller of your ears and eyes in that you hear and see as He wills and you do not if He wills otherwise? Who brings forth the living from the dead, such as vegetation and trees from the soil? Or, who brings forth humans and animals from the sperm, or a bird from an egg? And who brings forth the dead from the living, such as a lifeless sperm from humans and animals? And who is it that plans and manages the affairs of the whole universe?

After that, it was said when these questions will be addressed to them, all of them would say that all these things were created by One Allah! Then, the Holy Prophet ﷺ was to ask them: Why then, would you not fear Allah? When you know that it is Allah alone who creates, sustains and manages everything, why do you have to take someone else other than Him as deserving of your devotion and obedience?

In the concluding verse (32), it was said: فَذَٰلِكُمُ اللَّـهُ رَ‌بُّكُمُ الْحَقُّ ۖ فَمَاذَا بَعْدَ الْحَقِّ إِلَّا الضَّلَالُ (So, that is Allah, your Lord in truth. And what is there, after truth, but error?), that is, ` this is the Sacred Being whose attributes of perfection have just been mentioned. Once you have found the Truth, there remains nothing else to find except error and straying. In other words, once it stands proved that Allah Ta` ala is the only true and rightful object of worship, it is terribly senseless to abandon this truth and allow yourself to be diverted elsewhere.

important note

In relation to issues of religious beliefs embedded in this verse, it must be borne in mind that the statement: مَاذَا بَعْدَ الْحَقِّ إِلَّا الضَّلَالُ (What is there, after truth, but error?) proves that there is no intermediary link between truth and error. What is not the truth will be included in error and straying. There can be no such thing that is neither truth nor error. And it is also not possible that two opposite things could be the truth. This is an established rule in the sight of the majority of scholars in the Muslim Ummah. However, difference exists among ` Ulama' regarding minor and subsidiary juristic issues. In the view of some of them, both sides would be considered as on truth in Ijtihad-based issues and, according to the majority of them, there is consensus on the view that the taking of contra-position in Ijtihad-based problems cannot be termed as error and straying.