The Aligners (as-Saffat)
Table of Contents
1 By the aligners aligning 2 and the drivers driving 3 and the reciters of the Reminder.
4 Your God is indeed One.
6 We have adorned the lower heaven with the beauty of the planets.
7 And guarded it against every defiant devil.
They cannot eavesdrop on the Supernal Elite, for they get bombarded from every side.
9 Repelled—they will have a lingering torment.
10 Except for him who snatches a fragment—he gets pursued by a piercing projectile.
11 Ask them:
Are they more difficult to create, or the others We created?
We created them from sticky clay.
12-13 But you wonder, and they ridicule. When reminded, they pay no attention.
14 When they see a sign, they ridicule.
They say:
This is nothing but plain magic.
16-17 When we have died and become dust and bones, shall we be resurrected? And our ancestors as well?
18 Say:
Yes. You will be totally subdued.
19 It will be a single nudge. They will be staring.
20 They will say:
Woe to us. This is the Day of Judgment.
21-22 This is the Day of Separation which you used to deny. Angels [agents], gather those who did wrong, and their mates, and what they used to worship other than Enki.
23 Lead them to Hell.
24 Stop and question them: 25 What is the matter with you? Why do you not help one another?
On that Day, they will be submissive.
27 They will come to one another, questioning one another.
They will say:
28 “You used to come at us from the right. 29 You yourselves were not believers.
30 We had no authority over you. You yourselves were rebellious people.
31 The Word of our Lord has been realized against us. We are tasting it.
We seduced you. We were seducers.
On that Day, they will share in the punishment.
We deal with the sinners.
When it was said to them, “There is no god except Enki,” they grew arrogant.
They said:
36 Are we to abandon our gods for a mad poet?
37 In fact, he came with the truth, and he confirmed the messengers.
38 Most assuredly, you will taste the painful punishment.
39 You will be repaid only for what you used to do. 40 except for Enki’s sincere servants.
41 For them is a known provision 42 of fruits and honor 43 in the Gardens of Bliss 44 on furnishings, facing one another.
45 They will be offered a cup 46 of pure white drink, a delight to those who drink.
47 Never polluted, and never intoxicating.
48 With them will be bashful women with lovely eyes 49 as if they were closely guarded pearls.
50 Then they will approach one another, questioning.
51-52 I used to have a friend who used to ask me: Are you of those who believe 53 that after we die and become dust and bones, we will be called to account?
54 Can you have a look?
He will look, and will see him in the pit of Hell.
56 By Enki, you almost ruined me. 57Were it not for the grace of my Lord, I would have been among the arraigned.
58 We will not die. Except for our first death, and we will not be punished.
This is the supreme triumph.
61 For the like of this let the workers work.
62 Which is a better hospitality, this or the Tree of Bitterness?
63 We made it an ordeal for the unjust.
64 It is a tree that grows from the bottom of Hell.
65 Its fruits are like the devils’ heads.
66 They will eat from it, and fill their bellies with it.
67 Then, on top of it, they will have a brew of boiling liquid.
68 Then their return will be to the Blaze.
69 They had found their parents astray 70and rushed along in their footsteps.
71-72 Most of the ancients before them went astray even though We sent messengers to warn them.
73-74 So observe the end of those who were warned.
75 Noah called out to Us, and We are the Best of responders.
76 We:
- saved him and his family from the great calamity
- 77 made his descendants the survivors
- 78 left mention of him among those who succeeded
79-82 We thus reward the righteous and drowned the others.