The Qur'an (Oxford World's Classics)

f
When you surge down from Arafat remember God at
the sacred place.
g
Remember Him: He has guided you. Before that
a
Worship at the sacred mosque.
b
Cf. 
8: 39 and note e to 2: 191 above.
c
If they are not prepared to pay for what it takes to defend themselves, then they will
bring ruin on themselves. The verse is also understood generally to outlaw suicide and
other forms of self-harm.
d
Shaving the head or cutting the hair is one of the rites performed by male pilgrims
after most of the other rites have been completed.
e
This means breaking the restrictions of ihram (consecration) termed tamattu
 .
f
It is lawful to trade while on pilgrimage.
g
This is one of the sites of the pilgrimage between Arafat and Mina –
– a plain called
Muzdalifa.
The Qur
an
2: 194
22

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you were astray. 
199Surge down where the rest of the people do,
a
and
ask forgiveness of God: He is most forgiving and merciful. 
200When
you have completed your rites, remember God as much as you
remember your own fathers, or even more. There are some who pray,
‘Our Lord, give us good in this world,’ and they will have no share in
the Hereafter; 
201others pray, ‘Our Lord, give us good in this world
and in the Hereafter, and protect us from the torment of the Fire.’
202They will have the share they have worked for: God is swift in
reckoning.
203Remember God on the appointed days.
b
If anyone is in a hurry
to leave after two days, there is no blame on him, nor is there any
blame on anyone who stays on, so long as they are mindful of God.
Be mindful of God, and remember that you will be gathered to Him.
204There is [a kind of] man whose views on the life of this world may
please you [Prophet], he even calls on God to witness what is in his
heart, yet he is the bitterest of opponents. 
205When he leaves, he sets
out to spread corruption in the land, destroying crops and live-
stock –
– God does not like corruption. 
206When he is told, ‘Beware of
God,’ his arrogance leads him to sin. Hell is enough for him: a
dreadful resting place. 
207But there is also a kind of man who gives
his life away to please God, and God is most compassionate to His
servants. 
208You who believe, enter wholeheartedly into submission
to God
c
and do not follow in Satan’s footsteps, for he is your sworn
enemy. 
209If you slip back after clear proof has come to you, then be
aware that God is almighty and wise.
210Are these people waiting for God to come to them in the
shadows of the clouds, together with the angels? But the matter
would already have been decided by then:
d
all matters are brought
back to God. 
211[Prophet], ask the Children of Israel how many clear
signs We brought them. If anyone alters God’s blessings after he has
received them, God is stern in punishment. 
212The life of this world
is made to seem glamorous to the disbelievers, and they laugh at
those who believe. But those who are mindful of God will be above
a
Some arrogant tribes used to take a di
fferent route from the masses.
b
These come after the day of sacri
fice, when two or three days are spent in Mina to
perform the rite of stoning the Devil.
c
Silm, which also means ‘peace’.
d
It will be too late for them to repent.
The Cow
23
2: 212

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them on the Day of Resurrection: God provides immeasurably for
whoever He pleases. 
213Mankind was a single community, then God
sent prophets to bring good news and warning, and with them He
sent the Scripture with the Truth, to judge between people in their
disagreements. It was only those to whom it was given who disagreed
about it after clear signs had come to them, because of rivalry
between them. So by His leave God guided the believers to the truth
they had di
ffered about: God guides whoever He will to a straight
path.
214Do you suppose that you will enter the Garden without first
having su
ffered like those before you? They were afflicted by mis-
fortune and hardship, and they were so shaken that even [their]
messenger and the believers with him cried, ‘When will God’s help
arrive?’ Truly, God’s help is near. 
215They ask you [Prophet] what
they should give. Say, ‘Whatever you give should be for parents,
close relatives, orphans, the needy, and travellers. God is well aware
of whatever good you do.
216Fighting is ordained for you, though you dislike it. You may
dislike something although it is good for you, or like something
although it is bad for you: God knows and you do not.’
217They ask
you [Prophet] about 
fighting in the prohibited month. Say, ‘Fighting
in that month is a great o
ffence, but to bar others from God’s path,
to disbelieve in Him, prevent access to the Sacred Mosque, and expel
its people, are still greater o
ffences in God’s eyes: persecution is
worse than killing.’
a
They will not stop 
fighting you [believers] until
they make you revoke your faith, if they can. If any of you revoke
your faith and die as disbelievers, your deeds will come to nothing in
this world and the Hereafter, and you will be inhabitants of the Fire,
there to remain. 
218But those who have believed, migrated, and
striven for God’s cause, it is they who can look forward to God’s
mercy: God is most forgiving and merciful.
219They ask you [Prophet] about intoxicants and gambling: say,
‘There is great sin in both, and some bene
fit for people: the sin is
greater than the bene
fit.’ They ask you what they should give: say,
‘Give what you can spare.’ In this way, God makes His messages
clear to you, so that you may re
flect 220on this world and the next.
a
To persecute people for believing in God is a worse o
ffence than for the aggrieved
party to 
fight back in the prohibited month. This further explains verse 191.