TRANSLATIONS FROM THE QURAN ALTAF GAUHAR IDARA TARJUMAN-UL-QURAN ICHHRA, LAHORE (PAKISTAN)CONTENTS Introduction Sen ane i 10. il. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. Part I From the Preface to Tafheemul Quran The Muqaddemah of Tafheemul Quran Sec. I: The Theme and the Arrangement of the Quran Sec. II: Background to the Meccan and the Medinite Chapters Sec. III: The Quran Presents an Integrated Picture of Life Sec. IV: The Quran Represents an Invitation and a Movement Part ID Al-Fatihah : A Charter of Human Liberty Surah Bagarah : The Original Path A People Most Balanced The Fall of a Nation The Arrogance of Reason There is no Compulsion in Religion Parr JIT Torahimn’s Prayer In Moments of Distress The Quranic Concept of Justice On Prohibition On Interest The Doctrine of Abrogation Part IV The Concept of Taubah Repentance and Reparation Final Accountability for Actions Taubah : An Intimate Personal Act Taubah : The Quality of a Believer Act of True Repentance Page 1 45 48 52 3? 68 72 76 80 85 97 102 107 118 122 132 139 142 146 152 157 164Introduction aw The Source of Faith Ts translations were undertaken at a time when the only book to which I had access was the Quran. As Muslims we believe that Islam represents a complete code © of life. Yet, few of us make any effort to acquaint ourselves with the Quran which is the source of our faith. Those who have ae . educated in the Western tradition need to study the Quran wit! _ particular care so that they may either discard the pretence of being y Muslims or adopt their faith as a matter of conyiction ¥-The present ~~ 4° state of ‘no-acceptance, no-rejection’ makes our conduct ambi Since all our actions are governed mainly by considerations of & competition and success our formal attachment to Islam creates a - dichotomy in our life. Whether this dichotomy exists or not is “ts, ot nee ca question which everyone has to answer for himself. These translations ox may be of some help to those who recognise its existence and are _ anxious to resolve the contradictions which manifest themselves in Vis our thoughts and deeds. The subjects which I have chosen, namely;\7 justice, accountability, repentance, tolerance and faith are among those which have been particularly emphasized and repeatedly explained in the Quran. I have translated certain verses of the Quran relevant to these subjects largely on the basis of the exquisite (¢ Urdu Translation and the valuable explanatory notes in Tafheemul — ¢ Quran, by Syed Abul Aala Maududi. In order to understand the Fr" framework of belief, within which we should organise our lives, and the scheme of values, according to which we should make our decisions, we must begin with the study of the Quran. This is not an easy task. The first hurdle is our lack of knowledge of the Arabic language. If one is not fully conversant with the literature and tradition of a language one tends to concentrate on words. Eackword is rendered f into its equivalent in Urdu with precision and avtaracy. The per: spective is often lost due to the rigid requirements of this exercise. we