24:1  This is a Surah We have revealed enjoining certain specific precepts in which Allah authoritatively binds people by a moral tie and a religious rite, A Surah in which divine representations of enlightenment, wisdom and spiritual light are intended to influence peoples' minds and actions that they may hopefully keep Allah in mind and lift to Him their inward sight

24:2  The woman and the man stained by adultery -in conduct- must be flogged. You flog them with repeated blows one hundred times and do not be moved with compassion on them, expressed in mercy, or else you will have failed to fulfill the duty ordained by Allah if indeed you believe in Allah and acknowledge His system of faith and worship and confess the Hereafter. And it is mandatory that their punishment be witnessed by an assemblage of those in whose hearts reigns piety

24:3  The man stained by adultery -in conduct- does not approach or cohabit but with a woman similarly stained or an idolatress. And the woman stained by adultery -in conduct- does not approach or cohabit but with a man similarly stained or an idolater, This defiled union is absolutely forbidden unto the believers in whose hearts reigns piety

24:4  And those who bring ill-fame upon virtuous women and do not support their accusation by four witnesses are offenders who must suffer for their offense. You flog them with the lash eighty strokes and deny them attestation in support of any matter whatsoever and forever, for such persons are indeed immoral and truly wicked

24:5  Exempt from this condemnation are those who in lowliest plight repentant stood and imprinted their deeds with wisdom and piety. They shall find Allah Ghafurun (Forgiving), Rahimun (Merciful) indeed

24:6  And when those who accuse their wives of adultery have no witnesses but themselves, then the evidence given by any of them alone shall be accepted if he binds himself by an oath solemnly declared four times in attestation of the truth of his statement

24:7  Then the fifth object to which he is sworn is that of an invocatory prayer inviting Allah's curse upon himself if he were lying

24:8  And the expedient which would avert her -the wife's- punishment is that she binds herself by an oath solemnly declared four times in attestation of the falsity of his - her husband's - statement

24:9  And the fifth object to which she is sworn is that of an invocatory prayer inviting the wrath of Allah upon herself if he were telling the truth

24:10  And had it not been for Allah's efficacious grace and mercy abounding in you he would not have granted people respite... But Allah is Tawabun (accepts repentance and the atonement made by the people). And Hakimun (the Source of wisdom and wise mysterious dispensations)

24:11  Indeed, those who have invented the lie -to defame the virtuous woman- are a group of people among you. Do not consider the incident a misfortune that has befallen you, on the contrary, it is to your advantage that it came out to light instead of being whispered about with bated breath. Every one of those involved in discrediting the faith shall be requited with what is commensurate with his share in the falsified incident. As to him whose spirit has moved him to lead the imprudent move* he shall suffer the torment laid upon the damned

24:12  If only the Muslims -men and women- as they heard the rumour realized, as they should have, that they are people of mind and reasoned high of Providence and of those who conformed to His will and thought of themselves as the model of chastity, and rejected the charge as falsehood personified

24:13  If only they -who laid the charge- supported their claim by four witnesses! And should they fail to accord with Allah's precepts and bind themselves by Allah's religious rite, then these are they whom Allah condemns in as much as they are worth and pronounces them wicked liars

24:14  And had it not been for Allah's efficacious grace and mercy abounding in you here and Hereafter, you would have been afflicted with the torment laid upon the damned for plunging into this affair

24:15  You simply give it a speaking tongue and you give utterance to words describing your thoughts of a subject you have but empty knowledge of and you treat it as a trivial or a light matter of no consequence when in fact it is considered by Allah of a grievous consequence

24:16  If only when you Muslims heard the news you exclaimed: "Allah forbid, we must not give this subject a speaking tongue. Glory be to You O Allah and extolled are Your glorious attributes; this is indeed falsehood personified"

24:17  Allah exhorts you not to reiterate such vile conduct ever if indeed you believe in Him with hearts imprinted with the image of religious and spiritual virtues

24:18  Allah renders His revelations explicit that they impart to you divine knowledge, wisdom and spiritual light, and He is 'Alimun (Omniscient), and Hakimun (The Source of wisdom and wise mysterious dispensations)

24:19  Indeed, those ill-tongued who just love to circulate and spread an injurious report to throw scandal on people-guilty or not guilty in the wide circle of the all as well as among those who conformed to Islam shall suffer heavily for it here and Hereafter. Allah is 'Alimun whereas you are not

24:20  And had it not been for Allah's efficacious grace and mercy abounding in you and that He displays a kind disposition and mercy to those who serve Him and to those who do not, He would have punished you, but His mercy is extended to all

24:21  O you who conformed to Allah's system of faith and worship: Do not follow the footsteps of AL-Shaytan (Satan) nor walk in the footsteps of those with characteristics befitting him. And he who follows the footsteps of AL-Shaytan must realize that he incites people and commands their sympathy to commit themselves to immorality and to all that is wrongful and obscene. And had it not been for Allah's efficacious grace and mercy abounding in you, He would never have vindicated any of you, but He does vindicate whom He will and Allah is Sami'un (Omnipresent with unlimited audition) and 'Alimu

24:22  And those of you in whom Allah's grace abounds must not resolve against helping the needy among their kindred and those in want as well as those who emigrated to where they could best serve Allah's cause. It is to their advantage to accord them forgiveness and not to entertain them with thoughts of ill-will. Would you not like that Allah forgives your iniquities, and Allah is Ghafurun and Rahimun

24:23  Cursed indeed here and Hereafter are those who seek to defame the virtuous women who are unaware of what is traduced in propagation, who are attentive to all the duties owed to Allah. They -these traducers- have come within the measure of Allah's wrath here and Hereafter and they must expect the torment that shall be laid upon the damned

24:24  The Day shall come when their tongues, their hands and their feet shall have much to answer for against them and bear witness to their actions

24:25  There and then shall Allah requite them with what is commensurate with their deeds and what is owed to Him of acts and rites, wherefore they shall realize that Allah is indeed the truth personified

24:26  Wicked women accord with wicked men and similarly, wicked men accord with wicked women. They both accord in one and their principles and practice accord well together, whereas women in whose hearts reigns piety accord well with men of piety, and men who are careful of the duties owed to Allah accord well with women of piety, their principles and practice accord well together. These are innocent of all that the wicked traduce in propagation and these are the blessed with the grace of Allah and with blessed provisions

24:27  O you who have conformed to Islam: Do not enter houses not your own until you have asked permission and greeted those who dwell therein. This is best for you and mannerly, it is hoped that you shall bear this in mind

24:28  And if you find no one therein -or they may be in but not in a condition to receive you- then you must not enter until you are permitted. And if you are asked to go back then you simply go back. This imparts to you sanctity of manners. Allah is 'Alimun of all that you do

24:29  However, you are free to enter houses not inhabited but where you gain your end or attain your object or desire (Hotels, guest house, sanctuary and the like); Allah is 'Alimun of all that you reveal as well as of all that you conceal

24:30  Say O Muhammad to those of the men who have conformed to Islam to restrain their eyes which include

24:32  And you may unite in matrimony with those who are single man or woman unmarried, legally divorced or widowed and those in whose hearts reigns piety among the men and the women who have been reduced to a servile state; If they are poor Allah will make His grace abound in them. Allah is Wasi'un (Omnipresent) His grace abounds in the Universe, and 'Alimun

24:33  And those who cannot marry because they lack the means may conform their life and conduct with the principles of morality until Allah makes His grace abound in them. And those on hand who wish to buy their freedom by performing certain paid-services deserve attention. You reduce a mutually binding agreement to writing if you believe that they qualify -stamped with virtues and sound minds- and give them -in benevolence and/or alms- something of the grace of Allah abounding in you. And do not force your female slaves -or any of your females- into prostitution for a worldly gain -a Pagan custom- nor make them recover their liberty by prostituting their honour if they seek chastity and purity. And he who forces them into sin shall suffer for it, whereas they -the women- shall, under the circumstances be recipients of Allah's Mercy and Forgiveness, for Allah is Ghafurun and Rahimu

24:34  We have sent down to you revelations featuring the spirit of truth guiding into all truth and conducting you from want of spiritual and intellectual sight into enlightenment and illumination. We quoted to you instances of punishment and We discoursed parables by which moral and spiritual relations are typically set fourth and We referred to the fate of some of those who existed before you, all serving as a deterrent and a warning for those who entertain the profound reverence dutiful to Allah

24:35  Allah is the Fountain-Head of physical and spiritual light illuminating the heavens and the earth. His light is beyond all comparison, (to be perceived by the human mind), it may be likened to the radiance emitting from a lustrous recess where a lamp stands enclosed in a glass tube or encased in glass featuring extraordinary brilliance as if it were an extra ordinary bright star lit by spiritual invisible combustion from a blessed tree, an olive tree (an ancient emblem of peace) standing in the open, never lost to view. It is not confined to the east nor to the west. Its oil almost emits light although not touched by a flame. Majestic light superimposed upon splendorous light attendant upon a manifestation of Allah Who attracts to His spiritual light whom He will, and Allah discourses to people parables by which moral and spiritual relations are typically set forth, and He is 'Alimun of all things

24:36  In these sacred houses of prayer which Allah had ordained be erected, remembrance applies to Him whose praises are celebrated and whose attributes are extolled morning and evening

24:37  By people whose feet are irresistibly drawn to these sacred places by the invisible and spiritual magnetic influence, people who are not distracted by trade or traffic from applying their remembrance to Allah. Nor are they distracted from religious observances, namely the act of worship alms giving, and holding in awe the Day of Judgement when the hearts sink -connoting extreme fear- and the eyes roll toward all and weep at what they are glad of or afraid of

24:38  By consequence shall Allah requite them for every deed at the gauge of the best of what they had accomplished and shall make all grace abound in them, Allah provides livelihood and fits out meritoriously and/ or gratuitously whom He will with what He will and with what is necessary for a certain purpose

24:39  As for those who deny Allah and do not acknowledge His Messengers' missions, their hopes shall be doomed to disappointment. Their deeds shall avail them nothing but the frustration or non-fulfillment of expectation, a situation standing similitude exact of a mirage* falsely viewed by the parched and thirsty traveler as water, and when he reaches the spot in question his hopes are doomed to disappointment. He finds what is known to be at variance with fact, an optical illusion. But he finds Allah, the Omnipresent, the truth personified, Who requites him with what is commensurate with his deeds, and Allah is swift indeed in putting the law in execution

24:40  Or a world of darkness similar to that found in the depth of an ocean where billowy waves are superimposed upon billowy waves topped by dark clouds creating a coat of darkness superimposed upon coats of darkness where he sits or moves misted with darkness that if he stretches his hand he can hardly see it*. And he whom Allah blinds his mind's eyes and darkens his eyes shall he devoid of spiritual light and his hopes shall he doomed to disappointment

24:41  Do you not see that all created beings animate and inanimate, in the heavens and on earth submit to Allah and celebrate His praises and extoll His glorious attributes (whether through the bodily structures. or through thoughts expressed in words), and so do the birds upon the wing extending their wings. Each group knows its mode of prayer and its mode of expressing admiration to Allah and extolling his glorious attributes, and Allah is 'Alimun of all that they do

24:42  And to Allah alone belong the sovereignty, the supreme dominion and supreme controlling power of the heavens and the earth; and to Him is the end and the purpose for which all are destined

24:43  Do you not see that Allah directs the course of the clouds as they form and by the air in motion make them join together in one body, then He condenses them into a dense mass wherefore you see rain drops issue from their midst. And He causes the clouds to heap upon each other like towers of mountains* -as clearly seen from an airoplane- Charged with hail or frozen raindrops, He makes them fall in showers to assail whom He will and drives them away from whom He will. The brightness of lightning emitted between the groups of clouds or between the clouds and the ground almost snatches away or blinds the sight

24:44  Allah is He Who causes the day and the night to succeed one another or occur in alternation. This is indeed an instructive example, a great incitement and a lesson to those of intellect who open their minds' eyes and lift to Allah their inward sight

24:45  And Allah created every animate being from water*. Some walk, moving or crawling with their bellies touching the ground -worms, reptiles- others are biped who walk on two feet -man and some animals- and others are quadruped which walk on four feet –mammals- Allah creates what He will, Allah is indeed Qadirun (Omnipotent) over all things

24:46  We have sent down revelations featuring the spirit of truth guiding into all truth and conducts from want of spiritual and intellectual sight into enlightenment and illumination, and Allah guides whom He will to a path of righteousness

24:47  And they say: We have conformed to Allah's system of faith and worship and acknowledged His Messenger, recognized his mission and obeyed his principles and commands. Then some of them have second thoughts and their behaviour proves that their words together with their actions do not accord. They refrained from joining the faithful in serving Allah's cause They are not really faithful

24:48  When asked to submit their reason to revelation and accept Allah and His Messenger as the arbiters who would judge between them, some of them object and express disapproval when they know they are losers

24:49  But when they know they are in the right and they shall justly win the case they do willingly submit

24:50  Do they reflect the morbidity inherent in their innermost being or do they doubt the Messenger's integrity or do they fear that Allah and His Messenger may deviate from the path of justice and from the principle of just dealing! No, but they are indeed the wrongful of actions

24:51  Contrast by contrary motives, the response of those in whose hearts reigns piety to the invitation by the Messenger to decide between them according to Allah's statutes and to the Messenger's final judgement is a response of obedience. They always say: "we have heard and we do obey" These are they whom Heaven will prosper

24:52  And he who obeys Allah and His Messenger and keeps in awe of Allah and entertains the profound reverence dutiful to Him shall he and such persons be the winners of Allah's mercy and blessings

24:53  And they -the hypocrites- make a solemn declaration with an appeal to Allah that should you O Muhammad command them to join forces even though it be at the cost of quitting their homes and forsaking their families, they shall obey. Say to them: "You may spare your oaths, the nature of your obedience declares itself in your actions which together with your words do not accord;" "Allah is 'Alimun indeed of all that you do."

24:54  Say to them O Muhammad: "Obey Allah and obey His Messenger and comply with their commands." And should you people turn your backs and close your heart's ears then you must realize that the Messenger's responsibility is simply the fulfillment of his duties and you –people- are responsible for the burden of wrongs you bear. Therefore, if you obey him, he is the spirit of truth that shall guide you into all truth, and he is only responsible for relating the divine message and the elucidation of its tex

24:55  Allah has promised those who have conformed to His system of faith and worship and imprinted their deeds with wisdom and piety a reward, "I shall depute them on earth", He declares "and delegate them to keep the scale and commission them with power to maintain the right", I shall set them in the appropriate social scale just as I deputed those before them in whose hearts reigned piety". "And I will confirm for them the religion I have chosen for them as the appropriate system of faith and worship". "I will also exchange the fear and the dread which fell upon them for peace of mind and soul provided they adore Me with appropriate acts and rites and do not incorporate with Me other deities" And he who henceforth denies, the divine origin of faith -Islam- or this system of faith and worship shall he and such persons be the faithless perverse who are morally depraved

24:56  And perform the act of worship and give alms and obey the Messenger of Allah so that you may hopefully invite His mercy and blessings

24:57  Do not entertain O Muhammad the idea nor think ever that the infidels are in a position to overpower Allah or upset His plan for those domiciled on earth. They are destined to the abode in Hell and how evil indeed is the destination

24:58  O you who have conformed to Islam: Those on hand serving, you and the children who have not reached the age of discretion must ask your permission before entering your rooms when you are improperly dressed: before dawn prayer, when undressed for the afternoon rest -siesta-, and following your last night prayer (when you are reedy to go to sleep); three prescribed periods of privacy. Other than these particular periods you are absolved and so are they to move freely and to come round -in an informal way- attending to each other. Thus does Allah distinctly express to you people His revelations guiding you to the proper way of life relative to moral conduct. Allah is 'Alimun and Hakimu

24:59  And when your children come of age or reach the age of discretion they must ask permission before they enter homes that are not their own and before they enter rooms where you are sitting and admitting of relaxation in discipline or sleeping, just as those who preceded them behaved. Thus does Allah distinctly express to you His revelations guiding you to the proper way of life relative to moral conduct. Allah is 'Alimun and Hakimun

24:60  And those of the women who are past reproductive life ( post menopausal) who have lost hope of matrimonial union are absolved to take oft their outer vestment provided they do not show or display any fictitious additions or adventitious ornaments which draw forth men's interest or cause them to come to them by influencing their appetites. However, if they conform their life and conduct to the principles of morality and use their outer garment, it is much better for them and may guard them against temptation and from being supposed. And Allah is Sami'un and 'Alimu

24:61  Absolved from blame are the blind and the lame, the sick and yourselves to eat at the homes of your fathers or your mothers, your brothers or your sisters, at the homes of your paternal uncles or your paternal aunts, your maternal uncles or your maternal aunts or at the homes you possess their keys or at the homes of your friends. Nor do you run into consequence should you eat together or separately. And when you enter houses greet one another with words expressive of good wishes and of Allah's blessings and expressive of courteous recognition. thus does Allah distinctly express to you His revelations guiding you to the proper way of life relative to moral conduct so that you may open your heart's ears and hopefully comprehend

24:62  Indeed, the faithful are those who have conformed to Islam and recognized Allah's Omnipotence and Authority and acknowledged His Messenger. And when they are in council with him on a matter of common interest they do not break off individually or in toto until they have been excused. Those of them who ask your permission O Muhammad under the circumstances are indeed true and sincere in their recognition of Allah and His Messenger. Therefore, should they ask your permission to leave for a valid reason, then you may excuse whom you will and invoke on their behalf Allah's forgiveness; Allah is indeed is Ghafurun and Rahimun.

24:63  O you who have conformed to Islam: Do not address the Messenger in the same manner you address one another nor mention his name without annexing to it an attribute irrespective of whether he is present or absent. Allah is fully aware of those of you who slip away quietly from the assemblies screening themselves behind others. Those who transgress the Messenger's command or willfully neglect it had better know that he who disobeys the Messenger disobeys Allah and by consequence may Allah close their hearts' ears and their minds' eyes or He may wed them to a calamity here and punish them severely Hereafter

24:64  Indeed, to Allah belong all that is in the heavens and all that is on earth. He is 'Alimun of your innermost being and of your disposition and your condition, and in Day of Judgement when all are sent back to assemble before Him for Judgement shall He inform them of all that they had done as recorded in their books and attested by their limbs and their senses; Allah is 'Alimun of the whole and of all in all