The Holy Quran 10:24 — Surah Yunus

Arabic text

إِنَّمَا مَثَلُ ٱلْحَيَوٰةِ ٱلدُّنْيَا كَمَآءٍ أَنزَلْنَـٰهُ مِنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ فَٱخْتَلَطَ بِهِۦ نَبَاتُ ٱلْأَرْضِ مِمَّا يَأْكُلُ ٱلنَّاسُ وَٱلْأَنْعَـٰمُ حَتَّىٰٓ إِذَآ أَخَذَتِ ٱلْأَرْضُ زُخْرُفَهَا وَٱزَّيَّنَتْ وَظَنَّ أَهْلُهَآ أَنَّهُمْ قَـٰدِرُونَ عَلَيْهَآ أَتَىٰهَآ أَمْرُنَا لَيْلًا أَوْ نَهَارًا فَجَعَلْنَـٰهَا حَصِيدًا كَأَن لَّمْ تَغْنَ بِٱلْأَمْسِ ۚ كَذَٰلِكَ نُفَصِّلُ ٱلْـَٔايَـٰتِ لِقَوْمٍ يَتَفَكَّرُونَ

Translation

The example of the worldly life is like the water that We send from the sky, with which there mingles the plants of the earth that man and animals eat. (This process continues) Until the earth adopts her splendour (flourishes with vegetation), becomes beautified, and her inhabitants think that they are her masters (can harvest the crops whenever they please). Then Our command (Our punishment in the form of a disaster) comes to her (strikes the crops) by night or by day, turning her (the crop) into a pile of reaped harvest (useless to man), as if it had not even existed before. Thus do We explain the Aayaat for those who ponder (reject).

Tafsir (excerpt) — Tafsir Usmani

The parable of the life of this world: some have taken فَاخْتَلَطَ بِهٖ نَبَاتُ الْاَرْضِ (“with which the plants of the earth mingle”) to mean abundance of produce, because when the earth's produce is very vigorous it grows dense, and one part mingles and intertwines with another. Some have taken the letter “ba'” in “bihi” (“with it”)

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