The Quran is the book of God. It has been preserved in its entirety since its revelation to the Prophet of Islam between CE 610 and 632. It is a book that brings glad tidings to humankind, along with divine admonition, and stresses the importance of man’s discovery of the Truth on a spiritual and intellectual level.

Translated from Arabic and commentary by
Maulana Wahiduddin Khan

In the name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

By the sun and its rising brightness and by the moon as it follows it, and by the day as it reveals its glory and by the night when it draws a veil over it, by the sky and how He built it and by the earth and how He spread it, by the soul and how He formed it, then inspired it to understand what was right and wrong for it. He who purifies it will indeed be successful, and he who corrupts it is sure to fail. (91: 1-10)

Almighty God has made threefold arrangements for the guidance of man. On the one hand, the universe has been so constructed that it has become the practical manifestation of God’s will. On the other hand, the human psyche has been infused with an intuitive consciousness of good and bad. Thereafter, it was arranged that Truth and falsehood, justice and injustice be revealed clearly through the prophets in a language understandable to the people. Even after this, if people do not adopt the right path, they are undoubtedly transgressors.

The Thamud tribe rejected the truth because of their arrogance, when the most wicked man among them rose up. Then the messenger of God said to them, ‘This is God’s she-camel. Let her drink.’ But they gave him the lie and hamstrung the she-camel. So, their Lord destroyed them for their crime and razed their city to the ground. He did not fear the consequences. (91: 11-15)

The she-camel of the Prophet Salih, in a way, symbolised the principle that one should respect the rights of others and discharge one’s duties to them accordingly, even if they are helpless and weak. It is quite possible that a creature which, to all appearances, is only a ‘she-camel’, may be God’s sign brought before people to test them.