Sūrat al-Fīl

سورۃ الفیل

Sūrat al-Fīl, Makkī — revealed in Makkah. It has five (5) āyāt.

بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ

Bismillāhi l-Raḥmāni l-Raḥīm.

In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

أَلَمْ تَرَ كَيْفَ فَعَلَ رَبُّكَ بِأَصْحَابِ الْفِيلِ

a-lam tara kayfa faʿala rabbuka bi-aṣḥābi l-fīl.

"Have you not seen how your Lord dealt with the companions of the elephant?" (al-Fīl 105:1)

This sūra is named after the elephant — al-Fīl — hence its name is Sūrat al-Fīl.

A — did you not. Lam tara — did you not see — the eyes of vision — ruʾyā — seeing from the eyes. Some say there was no certainty of vision for them — some say the certainty of knowledge is sufficient. Kayfa — how? Faʿala — He dealt with, He treated. Rabbuka — your Lord, your Sustainer, your nurturer and provider who provides for you. Bi — with. Aṣḥāb — companions, associates, partners, colleagues. Al-fīl — the elephant.

Translation: "Did you not see how your Lord treated the companions of the elephant — (what punishment did He give them?)"

أَلَمْ يَجْعَلْ كَيْدَهُمْ فِي تَضْلِيلٍ

a-lam yajʿal kaydahum fī taḍlīl.

"Did He not make their plan go astray?" (al-Fīl 105:2)

A-lam yajʿal — did He not make. Kaydahum — their plan, their stratagem, their scheme — the plan, the design, the plot of those people. Fī — in. Fī taḍlīl — in misguidance, in failure, rendered ineffective.

Translation: "Did He not render their plan futile and ineffective?"

وَأَرْسَلَ عَلَيْهِمْ طَيْرًا أَبَابِيلَ

wa-arsala ʿalayhim ṭayran abābīl.

"And He sent against them birds in flocks." (al-Fīl 105:3)

Wa-arsala — and He sent, despatched. This came from a messenger and a divine command. ʿIlayhi — something of his reached him. ʿAlayhim — upon them. Ṭayran — birds — flying, soaring creatures. Abābīl — groups, flocks of birds — abābīl — the meaning of abābīl in Urdu and Persian is "swallows" — the common people think abābīl means swallows — this is completely wrong. Abābīl means "groups of flocks" — it has nothing to do with the specific bird called swallows.

Translation: "Did We not send against the companions of the elephant flocks of birds in their crowded groupings — (what were they doing? What did they do?)"

تَرْمِيهِم بِحِجَارَةٍ مِّن سِجِّيلٍ

tarmīhim bi-ḥijāratin min sijjīl.

"Pelting them with stones of baked clay." (al-Fīl 105:4)

Tarmīhim — pelting them. Bi — with. Ḥijāra — stones, clay pellets. Min sijjīl — from sijjīl — from hard clay, like a keel — the bird hovers at high altitude and the enemy or a foot-soldier at its platform uses the clay pellet like a soldier's weapon — and this is the pellet coming from the flints — they are sentry pellets — heavily built and strong — hard-hitting clay balls.

These are very strong and firm — some exegetes write that it is because Allah Most High appointed these birds for the protection of the Kaʿba al-Sharīf — he built a beautifully appointed house in Yemen and then came to Makkah and instructed the people to perform tawāf of it, go around it. And came around the biographies of Ibrāhīm and Ismāʿīl (upon them be peace) — if some then burned the house — so he came to Makkah with an army of elephants and Ibrāhima — when he came to Makkah poor Quraysh — what did Quraysh do? They prayed for divine protection and called out. From which direction were the Arabs running? They fled from the Arabs and the Arabs swept around them — the birds carried clay pellets — the pellets struck them like kangul (small stones). Some exegetes write that it was because Allah appointed these birds to guard the Kaʿba from Abraha's army — what could Quraysh do then? They prayed and made du'ā. In what way did the Arabs respond to them? They fled to the mountains and Abraha's army followed them — they fired at the birds and from the midst of the birds clay pellets struck against rocks and the clay pellets of the birds were going like scattered flowers and the birds carried them — and the clay pellets pelted them and laid them to waste like trodden straw.

Translation: "(These groups) hit them from every side with the clay pellets from their beaks (pelting the companions of the elephant)."

فَجَعَلَهُمْ كَعَصْفٍ مَّأْكُولٍ

fa-jaʿalahum ka-ʿaṣfin maʾkūl.

"And He made them like eaten straw." (al-Fīl 105:5)

Fa-jaʿalahum — then He made them, rendered them, reduced them. Ka-ʿaṣf — like chaff — ka-ʿaṣf — like the husk of grain — meaning He made them like grain-husks and straw, like chaff and straw. Maʾkūl — eaten, consumed.

Translation: "Then He reduced them (the companions of the elephant) to like eaten straw."

Esteemed readers! Some exegetes write that Abraha was a Najāshī king from the family of Negus who built a beautiful house in Yemen in imitation of the Kaʿba al-Sharīf — and he came over there and instructed people to perform ṭawāf of it — and they came around the lives of Ibrāhīm and Ismāʿīl (upon them be peace) — if someone burned it, he came with a large army to destroy the Kaʿba — poor Quraysh — what could Quraysh do? They prayed and made du'ā'. From all sides the Arabs were running — the birds came and pellets rained on them like kangul (little stones) — the birds hurled these at the soldiers and the soldiers of kangar (thorns) — the birds were sent as pellets and kangul — they scattered the pellets and they fell like kangul and left them like eaten chaff. If only you stayed on the path of religion! If you do, Allah will always keep your enemies at bay. Your enemies will be set alight and your enemies will be expelled. Do not be sorry — not a single one of you has good deeds — nor has God abandoned you. Do not create discord — remain firm on your unity: wa-kāna ḥaqqan ʿalaynā naṣru l-muʾminīn — "It has been an obligation upon Us to help the believers." The confirmation of faith is true — this is the true promise, and this is the guarantee.