Tazkirul Quran, Qur’an 80:17–32
He Frowned (‘Abasa)
By Maulana Wahiduddin Khan
English text; the translator is not named in the archive’s data.
Translation
(17) Woe to man! How ungrateful he is! (18) Of what [stuff] has He created him? (19) Out of a drop of sperm! He creates and proportions him, (20) He makes his path easy for him. (21) Then He causes him to die and be buried. (22) Then when He pleases, He will bring him back to life. (23) Yet man declines to do His bidding. (24) Let man reflect on the food he eats. (25) We let the rain pour down in torrents (26) and then We cleaved the earth asunder. (27) We make the grain grow out of it, (28) and grape vines and vegetables, (29) and olive trees and date palms (30) and burgeoning enclosed gardens (31) and fruits and fodder (32) as provision for you and for your cattle to enjoy.
Commentary
(a) The driving force behind the true godliness required of a man is, in reality, his sense of gratitude. If he gives serious consideration to his creation and the various natural systems in operation around him, a sense of gratitude towards his Lord will eventually develop in him. The state of being resulting from these feelings of gratitude and obligation is known as godliness, or adoration of God in the real sense.