Division: 1[i]
1-2Learn-teach[ii] in the name of your Rabb[iii] Who formed. He formed man from an embryo!
3-5Learn-teach!
Yet, Your Rabb is superior to those who proclaim themselves supreme. It is your Rabb Who taught by the pen [through all sources of the knowledge].[iv] He taught man what he did not know.
(1/96, Al-Alaq/1-5)
Division: 2
6-8Certainly not as you think! Even though the return is to your Rabb, man certainly transgresses when he sees himself self sufficient.[v] 9-10Have you seen the one who forbids a servant when he fulfills Salah[vi] [supports financially and spiritually; strives to enlighten the community]? 11-12Have you ever thought, if that servant who fulfills Salah is upon the righteous path or commands taqwa! [being under the guardianship of Allah][vii]! 13Have you ever thought, if that one who forbids the one who fulfills Salah denied and turned away!... 14Does that one who forbids Salah not know that Allah definitely sees?
Note: The following Ayat (15-19) are not related to the previous Ayat and are not their continuation. These Ayat belong to the period when the polytheists of Mecca intensified their opposition to our Prophet during the 5th to 8th years of the conveyance. Unfortunately, they were arranged here by the team responsible for compiling the official Mushaf.
(1/96, Al-Alaq/6-14)
Division: 3
15-16Certainly not as you think! If that one who forbids the one who fulfills Salah; supports financially and spiritually; strives to enlighten the community does not desist from forbidding Salah; supporting financially and spiritually; striving to enlighten the community, indeed, We will drag him by his hair. 17Then, let him call his council/associates. 18We will call those who repel, prevent.
19Certainly not as you think! Do not obey that one who forbids fulfilling Salah; supporting financially and spiritually; striving to enlighten the community. Submit to your Rabb and let yourself to be close/let your Rabb make you close to Himself.
(1/96, Al-Alaq/15-19)
Division: 3/1
15-16Certainly not as you think! If that one who forbids the one who fulfills Salah; supports financially and spiritually; strives to enlighten the community does not desist from forbidding Salah; supporting financially and spiritually; striving to enlighten the community, indeed, We will keep adding new warnings against the false and flawed superstitions right before his eyes.
17Then, let him call his associates. 18 Very soon, we will respond with repelling and obstructive Ayat of the Qur’an.
19Certainly not as you think! Do not obey that one who forbids fulfilling Salah; supporting financially and spiritually; striving to enlighten the community. Submit to your Rabb and let yourself to be close/let your Rabb make you close to Himself.
[i] When freedom is taken away and the human dignity is broken; some deities and rabbs (a god that masters, nurtures, sustains, etc.) are fabricated; shirk [associating others with Allah], injustice, wrong deeds and chaos spread on the earth and the balance of the nature is disturbed, Allah sends a messenger and reveals a book to those peoples due to His mercy. Allah takes His mercy as His debt. So, Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) was chosen as the Messenger in Mecca under these conditions and he was revealed.
[ii] This command is directly to the Prophet, so it does not concern others. The word iqra, which we translated as “learn-teach!”, is generally translated in other interpretations of the Qur’an as “recite”. What meant here is not the activity of reading a book or a text. One can also recite when alone. The literal meaning of the word is “accumulate and distribute your accumulation”. Therefore, what actually meant with the use of this word is “learn and teach”. This is the essence of the duty of the prophets. The Messenger will later be informed about what he will learn and teach (8/87, Al-A’la/1-13; Division 20). For this reason, we translated this word as “learn-teach”.
[iii] Rabb means “The One Who disciplines and educates, One Who guides his creations to certain targets within the frame of a schedule, one who programs and manages the development”. This word, in absolute terms, is used for Allah alone. As to humans, it is used in such forms as “the rabb of the house”, “the rabb of the workplace”, etc. The English term closest to this term in the context of meaning is “boss”. While having a meaning close to rabb, this word does not cover the meaning of rabb entirely as it is used only in the commercial context. For this reason, since we did not have the possibility to explain the term rabb with multiple words, we had to leave it in its original Arabic form. Therefore, our readers should keep the above mentioned definition in their minds.
[iv] With the expression, “Who taught by the pen”, as used in the Ayah, the Messenger of Allah is given the direction to write down or have others write down the Ayat revealed to him; thus ensuring that the Ayat are preserved.
[v] When man believes that he becomes wealthy, he takes on Allah and transgresses, thinking what he does will not be recompensed; he pretends to be Allah, becomes irresponsible.
[vi] Outside of its literal meaning, the word Salah has always been translated and interpreted as the “daily prayer” for centuries. The literal meaning of Salah is “to support, to help, to share one’s burden; to assume the liability for solution and to backup”. The word “as-Salah” as mentioned in the Qur’an, became a proper name that means “to support financially and spiritually against the problems, to undertake the liability of solution for the problems”. The problems mentioned here are not only personal problems but also are such social issues as education and training, economic and political matters, etc. In short, Salah is the foundation and the symbol of the social nation. The word “as-Salah”, in our interpretation, is present both in its original Arabic form and also as used in English. The English use of the word “Salah” is detailed in our work, “Tebyinu’l Qur’an [Manifestation of the Qur’an]”.
[vii] Taqwa is a word that means “to avoid committing sin thus to evade the harm and the punishment that one may suffer on the day of judgment by entering under the guardianship of Allah and embracing the righteous deeds”. It was first mentioned in the Qur’an in the meaning of “refraining from associating others with Allah” and “to believe in Akhirat”, has then been expanded to cover all actions that reflect faith. Therefore, we used the term “taqwa” as “entering under the guardianship of Allah” and the term “muttaqi” as “the one who enters under the guardianship of Allah”.