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OATH

Do not, by your oaths, make Allah a pretext to avoid good action and guarding against evil and putting things right between people. Allah is All-Hearing, All-Knowing. (2:224)

Allah will not take you to task for inadvertent statements in your oaths, but He will take you to task for the intention your hearts have made. Allah is Ever-Forgiving, All-Forbearing. (2:225)

Those who swear to abstain from sexual relations with their wives can wait for a period of up to four months. If they then retract their oath, Allah is Ever-Forgiving, Most Merciful. (2:226)

Those who sell Allah’s contract and their own oaths for a paltry price, such people will have no portion in the hereafter and on the Day of Rising Allah will not speak to them or look at them or purify them. They will have a painful punishment. (3:77)

Those who believe say, ‘Are these the people who swore by Allah, with their most earnest oaths, that they were with you?’ Their actions have come to nothing and they now are losers. (5:53)

Allah does not take you to task for your inadvertent oaths, but He will take you to task for oaths you make intentionally. The expiation in that case is to feed ten poor people with the average amount you feed your family, or clothe them, or free a slave. Anyone without the means to do so should fast three days. That is the expiation for breaking oaths when you have sworn them. Keep your oaths. In this way Allah makes His Signs clear to you, so that hopefully you will be thankful. (5:89)

You who believe! When one of you is near to death and makes a will, two just men from among you should act as witnesses; or, if you are travelling when the misfortune of death occurs, two men who are strangers to you. You should detain them after prayer and, if you are doubtful, they should swear by Allah: ‘We will not sell it for any price, even to a near relative, and we will not conceal the testimony of Allah. If we did we would indeed be wrongdoers.’ If it then comes to light that the two of them have merited the allegation of wrongdoing, two others who have the most right to do so should take their place and swear by Allah: ‘Our testimony is truer than their testimony. We have not committed perjury. If we had we would indeed be wrongdoers.’ That makes it more likely that they will give their evidence properly or be afraid that their oaths will be refuted by subsequent oaths. Have fear of Allah and listen carefully. Allah does not guide deviant people. (5:106-108)

They have sworn by Allah with their most earnest oaths that if a Sign comes to them they will believe in it. Say: ‘The Signs are in Allah’s control alone.’ What will make you realise that even if a Sign did come, they would still not believe? (6:109)

If they break their oaths after making their treaty and defame your religion, then fight the leaders of disbelief–they have no binding oaths–so that hopefully they will stop. (9:12)

Will you not fight a people who have broken their oaths and resolved to expel the Messenger, and who initiated hostilities against you in the first place? Is it them you fear? Allah has more right to your fear if you are believers. (9:13)

They swear by Allah with their most earnest oaths that Allah will not raise up those who die, when, on the contrary, it is a binding promise on Him; but most people do not know it. (16:38)

Be true to Allah’s contract when you have agreed to it, and do not break your oaths once they are confirmed and you have made Allah your guarantee. Allah knows what you do. (16:91)

Do not be like a woman who spoils the thread she has spun by unravelling it after it is strong, by making your oaths a means of deceiving one another, merely because one community is bigger than another. Allah is only testing you by this. He will make clear to you on the Day of Rising the things about which you differed. (16:92)

Do not make your oaths a means of deceiving one another or your foot will slip after it was firmly placed and you will taste evil for barring access to the Way of Allah and you will have a terrible punishment. (16:94)

They have sworn by Allah with their most earnest oaths that if you give them the command, they will go out. Say: ‘Do not swear. Honourable obedience is enough. Allah is aware of what you do.’ (24:53)

They swore by Allah with their most earnest oaths that if a warner came to them they would be better guided than any other community. But then when a warner did come to them, it only increased their aversion. (35:42)

And I swear by the falling of the stars–and that is a mighty oath if you only knew. (56:75-76)

They made their oaths into a cloak and barred the Way of Allah, so they will have a humiliating punishment. (58:16)

They have made their oaths into a cloak and barred the Way of Allah. What they have done is truly evil. (63:2)

Allah has made the expiation of your oaths obligatory for you. Allah is your Master–He is the All-Knowing, the All-Wise. (66:2)

But do not obey any vile swearer of oaths, (68:10)

Or do you have oaths which bind Us, extending to the Day of Rising, that you will have whatever you decide? (68:39)

Is there not in that an oath for the intelligent? (89:5)

OBDURATE

The desert arabs are more obdurate in disbelief and hypocrisy and more likely not to know the limits which Allah has sent down to His Messenger. Allah is All-Knowing, All-Wise. (9:97)

Some of the desert Arabs around you are hypocrites and some of the people of Madina are obdurate in their hypocrisy. You do not know them but We know them. We will punish them twice over and then they will be returned to a terrible punishment. (9:101)

That was ‘Ad. They denied the Signs of their Lord and disobeyed His Messengers and followed the command of every obdurate tyrant. (11:59)

They asked for Allah’s victory, and every obdurate tyrant failed. (14:15)

(The Guards of Hell will be told,) ‘Hurl into Hell every obdurate disbeliever.’ (50:24)

No indeed! He is obdurate about Our Signs. (74:16)

OBEDIENCE / DISOBEDIENCE TO THE MESSENGERS, AND THE OBLIGATION OF THE MESSENGERS

Say, ‘Obey Allah and the Messenger.’ Then if they turn away, Allah does not love the disbelievers. (3:32)

Allah fulfilled His promise to you when you were slaughtering them by His permission. But then you faltered, disputing the command, and disobeyed after He showed you what you love. Among you are those who want this world and among you are those who want the hereafter. Then He turned you from them in order to test you–but He has pardoned you. Allah shows favour to the believers. (3:152)

Allah showed great kindness to the believers when He sent a Messenger to them from among themselves to recite His Signs to them and purify them and teach them the Book and Wisdom, even though before that they were clearly misguided. (3:164)

These are Allah’s limits. As for those who obey Allah and His Messenger, We will admit them into Gardens with rivers flowing under them, remaining in them timelessly, for ever. That is the Great Victory. (4:13)

As for those who disobey Allah and His Messenger and overstep His limits, We will admit them into a Fire, remaining in it timelessly, for ever. They will have a humiliating punishment. (4:14)

Some of the Jews distort the true meaning of words, saying, ‘We hear and disobey,’ and ‘Listen without listening,’ and ‘Listen to us!’ twisting them with their tongues, disparaging the religion. If they had said, ‘We hear and we obey,’ and ‘Listen,’ and, ‘Look at us!’ that would have been better for them and more upright. But Allah has cursed them for their disbelief. Very few of them believe. (4:46)

You who believe! Obey Allah and obey the Messenger and those in command among you. If you have a dispute about something, refer it back to Allah and the Messenger, if you believe in Allah and the Last Day. That is the best thing to do and gives the best result. (4:59)

We sent no Messenger except to be obeyed by Allah’s permission. If only when they wronged themselves they had come to you and asked Allah’s forgiveness and the Messenger had asked forgiveness for them they would have found Allah Ever-Returning, Most Merciful. (4:64)

No, by your Lord, they are not believers until they make you their judge in the disputes that break out between them, and then find no resistance within themselves to what you decide and submit themselves completely. (4:65)

Whoever obeys the Messenger has obeyed Allah. If anyone turns away, we did not send you to them as their keeper. (4:80)

When news of any matter reaches them they spread it about, whether it is of a reassuring or disquieting nature. If they had only referred it to the Messenger and those in command among them, those among them able to discern the truth about it would have had proper knowledge of it. If it were not for Allah’s favour to you and His mercy, all but a very few of you would have followed Satan. (4:83)

But if anyone opposes the Messenger after the guidance has become clear to him, and follows other than the path of the believers, We will hand him over to whatever he has turned to, and We will roast him in Hell. What an evil destination! (4:115)

Obey Allah and obey the Messenger and beware! If you turn your backs, know that Our Messenger is only responsible for clear transmission. (5:92)

Children of Adam! If Messengers come to you from among yourselves, recounting My Signs to you, those who guard against evil and put things right, will feel no fear and will know no sorrow. (7:35)

(Allah said, ‘Believers are) those who follow the Messenger, the Ummi, whom they find written down with them in the Torah and the Gospel, commanding them to do right and forbidding them to do wrong, making good things lawful for them and bad things forbidden for them, relieving them of their heavy loads and the chains which were around them. Those who believe in him and honour him and help him, and follow the Light that has been sent down with him, they are the ones who are successful.’ (7:157)

They will ask you about booty. Say: ‘Booty belongs to Allah and the Messenger. So have fear of Allah and put things right between you. Obey Allah and His Messenger if you are believers.’ (8:1)

You who believe! Obey Allah and His Messenger. And do not turn away from him when you are able to hear. (8:20)

Obey Allah and His Messenger and do not quarrel among yourselves lest you lose heart and your momentum disappear. And be steadfast. Allah is with the steadfast. (8:46)

Do they not know that whoever opposes Allah and His Messenger, will have the Fire of Hell, remaining in it timelessly, for ever? That is the great disgrace. (9:63)

The men and women of the believers are friends of one another. They command what is right and forbid what is wrong, and perform prayer and give the alms, and obey Allah and His Messenger. They are the people on whom Allah will have mercy. Allah is Almighty, All-Wise. (9:71)

It was not for people of Madina, and the desert arabs around them, to remain behind the Messenger of Allah nor to prefer themselves to him. That is because no thirst or weariness or hunger will afflict them in the Way of Allah, nor will they take a single step to infuriate the disbelievers, nor secure any gain from the enemy, without a right action being written down for them because of it. Allah does not let the wage of the good-doers go to waste. (9:120)

Harun had earlier said to them, ‘My people! It is just a trial for you. Your Lord is the All-Merciful, so follow me and obey my command!’ (20:90)

They say, ‘We believe in Allah and in the Messenger and we obey.’ Then after that a group of them turn away. Such people are not believers. (24:47)

The reply of the believers when they are summoned to Allah and His Messenger so that he can judge between them, is to say, ‘We hear and we obey.’ They are ones who are successful. (24:51)

All who obey Allah and His Messenger and have awe of Allah and fear of Him, they are the ones who are victorious. (24:52)

Say: ‘Obey Allah and obey the Messenger. Then if they turn away he is only responsible for what he is charged with and you are responsible for what you are charged with. If you obey him, you will be guided.’ The Messenger is only responsible for clear transmission. (24:54)

Perform prayer and give the alms and obey the Messenger so that hopefully mercy will be shown to you. (24:56)

The believers are those who believe in Allah and His Messenger and who, when they are with him on a matter of common concern, do not leave until they have asked him for permission. Those people who ask you for permission are the ones who truly believe in Allah and His Messenger. If they ask your permission to attend to their own affairs, give permission to any of them you please; and ask Allah’s forgiveness for them. Allah is Ever-Forgiving, Most Merciful. (24:62)

Do not make the Messenger’s summoning of you the same as your summoning of one another. Allah knows those of you who sneak away. Those who oppose his command should beware of a testing trial coming to them or a painful punishment striking them. (24:63)

(Nuh said,) ‘So have fear of Allah and obey me.’ (26:108, 26:110)

(Hud said,) ‘So have fear of Allah and obey me.’ (26:126, 26:131)

(Salih said,) ‘So have fear of Allah and obey me.’ (26:144)

(Salih said,) ‘So have fear of Allah and obey me. Do not obey the orders of the profligate.’ (26:150-151)

(Lut said,) ‘So have fear of Allah and obey me.’ (26:163)

(Shu‘ayb said,) ‘So have fear of Allah and obey me.’ (26:179)

You have an excellent model in the Messenger of Allah, for all who put their hope in Allah and the Last Day and remember Allah much. (33:21)

When Allah and His Messenger have decided something it is not for any man or woman of the believers to have a choice about it. Anyone who disobeys Allah and His Messenger is clearly misguided. (33:36)

They will say on the Day their faces are rolled over in the Fire, ‘If only we had obeyed Allah and obeyed the Messenger!’ (33:66)

He will put your actions right for you and forgive you your wrong deeds. All who obey Allah and His Messenger have won a mighty victory. (33:71)

You who believe! Obey Allah and obey the Messenger. Do not make your actions of no worth. (47:33)

Those who pledge you their allegiance pledge allegiance to Allah. Allah’s hand is over their hands. He who breaks his pledge only breaks it against himself. But as for him who fulfils the contract he has made with Allah, We will pay him an immense reward. (48:10)

The desert Arabs say, ‘We believe.’ Say: ‘You do not believe. Say rather, "We have become Muslim," for faith has not yet entered into your hearts. If you obey Allah and His Messenger, He will not undervalue your actions in any way. Allah is Ever-Forgiving, Most Merciful.’ (49:14)

Those who oppose Allah and His Messenger will be subdued and overcome as those before them were also subdued and overcome. We have sent down Clear Signs. The disbelievers will have a humiliating punishment. (58:5)

Do you not see those who were forbidden to confer together secretly returning to the very thing they were forbidden to do, and conferring together secretly in wrongdoing and enmity and disobedience to the Messenger? And when they come to you they greet you with words Allah has never used in greeting you, and say to themselves ‘Why does Allah not punish us for what we say?’ Hell will be enough for them! They will roast in it. What an evil destination! (58:8)

Are you afraid to give gifts of charity before your private consultation? If you do not and Allah turns to you, at least perform prayer and give the alms, and obey Allah and His Messenger. Allah is aware of what you do. (58:13)

Those who oppose Allah and His Messenger, such people will be among the most abased. (58:20)

You will not find people who believe in Allah and the Last Day having love for anyone who opposes Allah and His Messenger, though they be their fathers, their sons, their brothers or their clan. Allah has inscribed faith upon such people’s hearts and will reinforce them with a Spirit from Him and admit them into Gardens with rivers flowing under them, remaining in them timelessly, for ever. Allah is pleased with them and they are pleased with Him. Such people are the party of Allah. Truly it is the party of Allah who are successful. (58:22)

That is because they were entrenched in hostility towards Allah and His Messenger. If anyone is hostile towards Allah, Allah is Severe in Retribution. (59:4)

It is He Who raised up among the unlettered people a Messenger from them to recite His Signs to them and purify them and teach them the Book and Wisdom, even though before that they were clearly misguided. (62:2)

Obey Allah and obey the Messenger. But if you turn your backs, the Messenger is only responsible for clear transmission. (64:12)

So have fear of Allah, as much as you are able to, and listen and obey and spend for your own benefit. It is the people who are safe-guarded from the avarice of their own selves who are successful. (64:16)

(Allah has sent down) a Messenger reciting Allah’s Clear Signs to you to bring those who believe and do right actions out of the darkness into the Light. Whoever believes in Allah and acts rightly, We will admit him into Gardens with rivers flowing under them remaining in them timelessly, for ever and ever. Allah has provided for him excellently! (65:11)

OBEDIENCE TO ALLAH

They say, ‘Allah has a son.’ Glory be to Him! No, everything in the heavens and earth belongs to Him. Everything is obedient to Him. (2:116)

Say, ‘Do you argue with us about Allah when He is our Lord and your Lord? We have our actions and you have your actions. We act for Him alone.’ (2:139)

Safeguard the prayer–especially the middle one. Stand in obedience to Allah. (2:238)

The steadfast, the truthful, the obedient, the givers, and those who seek forgiveness before dawn. (3:17)

(The angels said,) ‘Maryam, obey your Lord and prostrate and bow with those who bow.’ (3:43)

Men have charge of women because Allah has preferred the one above the other and because they spend their wealth on them. Right-acting women are obedient (to Allah), guarding the unseen as Allah has guarded. If there are women whose disobedience you fear, you may admonish them, refuse to sleep with them, and then beat them. But if they obey you, do not look for a way to punish them. Allah is All-High, Most Great. (4:34)

Everyone in the heavens and earth belongs to Him. All are submissive to Him. (30:26)

But those of you who are obedient to Allah and His Messenger and act rightly will be given their reward twice over; and We have prepared generous provision for them. (33:31)

Men and women who are Muslims, men and women who are believers, men and women who are obedient, men and women who are truthful, men and women who are steadfast, men and women who are humble, men and women who give charity, men and women who fast, men and women who guard their chastity, men and women who remember Allah much: Allah has prepared forgiveness for them and an immense reward. (33:35)

It may be that if he does divorce you, his Lord will give him in exchange better wives than you: Muslim women, believing women, obedient women, penitent women, women who worship, women who fast much–previously married women as well as virgins. (66:5)

And Maryam, the daughter of ‘Imran, who guarded her chastity–We breathed Our Spirit into her and she confirmed the Words of her Lord and His Book and was one of the obedient. (66:12)

OBSCENITY

And Lut, when he said to his people, ‘Do you commit an obscenity not perpetrated before you by anyone in all the worlds? (7:80)

When Lut said to his people, ‘You are committing an obscenity not perpetrated before you by anyone in all the worlds.’ (29:28)

OBSTRUCT

Who could do greater wrong than someone who bars access to the mosques of Allah, preventing His name from being remembered in them, and goes about destroying them? Such people will never be able to enter them–except in fear. They will have disgrace in this world and in the hereafter they will have a terrible punishment. (2:114)

They will ask you about the Sacred Month and fighting in it. Say, ‘Fighting in it is a serious matter; but barring access to the Way of Allah and rejecting Him and barring access to the Sacred Mosque (Masjid al-Haram) and expelling its people from it are far more serious in the sight of Allah. Discord is worse than killing.’ They will not stop fighting you until they make you revert from your religion, if they are able. As for any of you who revert from their religion and die disbeliever, their actions will come to nothing in this world and the hereafter. They are the Companions of the Fire, remaining in it timelessly, for ever. (2:217)

Say, ‘People of the Book, why do you bar those who believe from the Way of Allah, seeking in it something crooked, when you yourselves are witnesses to it? Allah is not unaware of what you do.’ (3:99)

Some of them believe in him, and some bar access to him. Hell will suffice as a Searing Blaze! (4:55)

Because of wrongdoing on the part of the Jews, We made forbidden for them some good things which had previously been lawful for them; and because of their obstructing many people from the Way of Allah. (4:160)

Those who disbelieve and bar access to the Way of Allah have gone very far astray. (4:167)

You who believe! Do not profane the sacred rites of Allah or the sacred months, or the sacrificial animals, or the ritual garlands, or those heading for the Sacred House, desiring profit and good pleasure from their Lord. When your pilgrimage is over, then you may hunt. Do not let hatred for a people who debar you from the Sacred Mosque (Masjid al-Haram) incite you into going beyond the limits. Help each other to goodness and heedfulness. Do not help each other to wrongdoing and enmity. Have fear of Allah. Allah is severe in retribution. (5:2)

Satan wants to stir up enmity and hatred between you by means of wine and gambling, and to debar you from remembrance of Allah and from prayer. Will you not then give them up? (5:91)

The Companions of the Garden will call out to the Companions of the Fire, ‘We have found that what our Lord promised us is true. Have you found that what your Lord promised you is true?’ They will say, ‘Yes, we have!’ Between them a herald will proclaim: ‘May the curse of Allah be on the wrongdoers, those who bar access to the Way of Allah, seeking in it something crooked, and reject the hereafter.’ (7:44-45)

Do not lie in wait on every pathway, threatening people, barring those who believe from the Way of Allah, seeking in it something crooked. Remember when you were few and He increased your number: see the final fate of the corrupters! (7:86)

But why should Allah not punish them now when they bar access to the Sacred Mosque (Masjid al-Haram)? They are not its guardians. Only people who guard against evil can be its guardians. But most of them do not know that. (8:34)

Those who disbelieve spend their wealth barring access to the Way of Allah. They will spend it; then they will regret it; then they will be overthrown. Those who disbelieve will be gathered into Hell. (8:36)

Do not be like those who left their homes in arrogance, showing off to people and barring them from the way of Allah–Allah encompasses what they do. (8:47)

They have sold Allah’s Signs for a paltry price, and they have barred access to His Way. What they have done is truly evil. (9:9)

You who believe! Many of the rabbis and monks devour people’s property under false pretences and bar people from access to the Way of Allah. As for those who hoard up gold and silver and do not spend it in the Way of Allah, give them the news of a painful punishment. (9:34)

... Allah’s curse is on the wrongdoers, those who bar access to the way of Allah seeking in it something crooked and reject the hereafter. (11:18-19)

The woman whose house it was solicited him (Yusuf). She barred the doors and said, ‘Come over here!’ He said, ‘Allah is my refuge! He is My lord and has been good to me with where I live. Those who do wrong will surely not succeed.’ (12:23)

What then of Him Who is standing over every self seeing everything it does? Yet still they associate others with Allah! Say: ‘Name them! Or would you inform Him of something in the earth He does not know, or are they words which are simply guesswork on your part?’ However, the plotting of those who disbelieve seems good to them and they bar the way. Anyone misguided by Allah has no guide. (13:33)

(Woe to) those who prefer the life of this world to the hereafter, and bar access to the way of Allah, seeking in it something crooked; they are greatly misguided. (14:3)

Their Messengers said, ‘Is there any doubt about Allah, the Bringer into Being of the heavens and the earth? He summons you to forgive you for your wrong actions and to defer you until a specified time.’ They said, ‘You are nothing but human beings like ourselves who want to debar us from what our fathers worshipped; so bring us a clear authority.’ (14:10)

As for those who disbelieved and barred access to the way of Allah, We will heap punishment on top of their punishment because of the corruption they brought about. (16:88)

Do not let those who have no faith in it and follow their whims and desires debar you from it or you will be destroyed. (20:16)

Those who disbelieve and bar access to the Way of Allah and to the Sacred Mosque (Masjid al-Haram) which We have appointed for all mankind–equally for those who live near it and those who come from far away–those who desire to profane it with wrongdoing, We will let them taste a painful punishment. (22:25)

They are debarred from hearing it. (26:212)

(The hoopoe said,) ‘I found both her and her people prostrating to the sun instead of Allah. Satan has made their actions seem good to them and debarred them from the Way so they are not guided.’ (27:24)

Do not let them debar you from Allah’s Signs after they have been sent down to you. Call people to your Lord and on no account be one of the idolaters. (28:87)

And ‘Ad and Thamud–it must be clear to you from their dwelling places! Satan made their actions seem good to them and so debarred them from the Way, even though they were intelligent people. (29:38)

Allah knows the obstructers among you and those who say to their brothers, ‘Come to us,’ and who only come to fight a very little, (33:18)

Those deemed great will say to those deemed weak, ‘Did we debar you from the guidance when it came to you? No, it is you who were evildoers.’ (34:32)

When Our Clear Signs are recited to them, they say, ‘This is nothing but a man who wants to debar you from what your fathers used to worship.’ They say, ‘This is nothing but an invented lie.’ Those who disbelieve say to the truth when it comes to them, ‘This is nothing but downright magic.’ (34:43)

Pharaoh said, ‘Haman, build me a tower so that perhaps I may gain means of access, access to the heavens, so that I can look on Musa’s God. Truly I think he is a liar.’ That is how Pharaoh’s evil actions were made attractive to him and he debarred others from the Path. Pharaoh’s scheming led to nothing but ruin. (40:36-37)

They debar them from the path, yet they still think they are guided. (43:37)

Do not let Satan bar your way. He truly is an outright enemy to you. (43:62)

As for those who disbelieve and bar others from the Way of Allah, Allah will make their actions go astray. (47:1)

Those who disbelieve and obstruct the Way of Allah and are entrenched in hostility towards the Messenger after the guidance has become clear to them, do not harm Allah in any way and He makes their actions come to nothing. (47:32)

Those who disbelieve and obstruct the Way of Allah, and then die disbeliever, Allah will not forgive them. (47:34)

They are those who disbelieved and debarred you from the Sacred Mosque (Masjid al-Haram) and prevented the sacrifice from reaching its proper place, and had it not been for some men and women who are believers, whom you did not know and might trample underfoot, and so unknowingly incur blame on their account–so that Allah might admit into His mercy those He wills–and had those among them who disbelieve been clearly distinguishable, We would have punished them with a painful punishment. (48:25)

They made their oaths into a cloak and barred the Way of Allah, so they will have a humiliating punishment. (58:16)

They have made their oaths into a cloak and barred the Way of Allah. What they have done is truly evil. (63:2)

OFFSPRING

(Ibrahim said,) ‘Our Lord! I have settled some of my offspring by Your Sacred House in an uncultivated valley. Our Lord! Let them perform prayer! Make the hearts of mankind incline towards them and provide them with fruits, so that hopefully they will be thankful.’ (14:37)

When We said to the angels, ‘Prostrate yourselves to Adam,’ they prostrated with the exception of Diabolis. He was one of the jinn and wantonly deviated from his Lord’s command. Do you take him and his offspring as protectors apart from Me when they are your enemy? How evil is the exchange the wrongdoers make! (18:50)

And We will unite those who believed with their offspring, who followed them in faith, and We will not undervalue their own actions in any way. Every man is in pledge for what he earned. (52:21)

OIL

By means of it (water) We produce gardens of dates and grapes for you, in which there are many fruits for you and from which you eat, and a tree springing forth from Mount Sinai yielding oil and a seasoning to those who eat. (23:19-20)

Allah is the Light of the heavens and the earth. The metaphor of His Light is that of a niche in which is a lamp, the lamp inside a glass, the glass like a brilliant star, lit from a blessed tree, an olive, neither of the east nor of the west, its oil all but giving off light even if no fire touches it. Light upon Light. Allah guides to His Light whoever He wills and Allah makes metaphors for mankind and Allah has knowledge of all things. (24:35)

When heaven is split apart and goes red like dregs of oil. (55:37)

OLD AGE

Would any of you like to have a garden of dates and grapes, with rivers flowing underneath and containing all kinds of fruits, then to be stricken with old age and have children who are weak, and then for a fierce whirlwind containing fire to come and strike it so that it goes up in flames? In this way Allah makes His Signs clear to you, so that hopefully you will reflect. (2:266)

He said, ‘My Lord, how can I possibly have a son when I have reached old age and my wife is barren?’ He said, ‘It will be so. Allah does whatever He wills.’ (3:40)

She said, ‘Woe is me! How can I give birth when I am an old woman and my husband here is an aged man? This is indeed an astonishing thing!’ (11:72)

They said, ‘Your Eminence! He has an old and venerable father, so take one of us instead of him. We see without a doubt that you are of the people who do good.’ (12:78)

(Ibrahim said,) ‘Praise be to Allah Who, despite my old age, has given me Isma‘il and Ishaq. My Lord is the Hearer of Prayer.’ (14:39)

He (Ibrahim) said, ‘Do you bring me this good news despite the fact of old age having reached me? What kind of good news are you bringing me?’ (15:54)

Allah created you and then will take you back again. And some of you revert to the lowest form of life so that after having knowledge, you know nothing at all. Allah is All-Knowing, All-Powerful. (16:70)

Your Lord has decreed that you should worship none but Him, and that you should show kindness to your parents. Whether one or both of them reach old age with you, do not say ‘Ugh!’ to them out of irritation and do not be harsh with them but speak to them with gentleness and generosity. (17:23)

Remembering your Lord’s mercy to His servant Zakariyya, when he called on his Lord in secret and said, ‘My Lord, my bones have lost their strength and my head is crowned with white, but in calling on You, My Lord, I have never been disappointed.’ (19:2-4)

He (Zakariyya) said, ‘My Lord! How can I have a boy when my wife is barren and I have reached advanced old age?’ (19:8)

Mankind! If you are in any doubt about the Rising, know that We created you from dust then from a drop of sperm then from a clot of blood then from a lump of flesh, formed yet unformed, so We may make things clear to you. We make whatever We want stay in the womb until a specified time and then We bring you out as children so that you can reach your full maturity. Some of you die and some of you revert to the lowest form of life so that, after having knowledge, they then know nothing at all. And you see the earth dead and barren; then when We send down water onto it it quivers and swells and sprouts with luxuriant plants of every kind. (22:5)

When he (Musa) arrived at the water of Madyan, he found a crowd of people drawing water there. Standing apart from them, he found two women, holding back their sheep. He said, ‘What are you two doing here?’ They said, ‘We cannot draw water until the shepherds have driven off their sheep. You see our father is a very old man.’ (28:23)

It is Allah Who created you from a weak beginning then after weakness gave you strength then after strength ordained weakness and grey hair. He creates whatever He wills. He is All-Knowing, All-Powerful. (30:54)

When We rescued him (Lut) and all his family–except an old woman among those who stayed behind. (37:134-135)

It is He Who created you from earth, then from a drop of sperm, then from a clot of blood, then He brings you out as infants, then so you may achieve full strength, then so you may become old men–though some of you may die before that time–so that you may reach a predetermined age and so that hopefully you will use your intellect. (40:67)

His wife came up with a shriek and struck her face and said, ‘What, and me a barren old woman!’ (51:29)

OLD WOMAN

She (Ibrahim’s wife) said, ‘Woe is me! How can I give birth when I am an old woman and my husband here is an aged man? This is indeed an astonishing thing!’ (11:72)

Therefore We rescued him (Lut) and all his family–except for an old woman who remained behind. (26:170-171)

OLIVE

It is He Who sends down water from the sky from which We bring forth growth of every kind, and from that We bring forth the green shoots and from them We bring forth close-packed seeds, and from the spathes of the date palm date clusters hanging down, and gardens of grapes and olives and pomegranates, both similar and dissimilar. Look at their fruits as they bear fruit and ripen. There are Signs in that for people who believe. (6:99)

It is He Who produces gardens, both cultivated and wild, and palm-trees and crops of diverse kinds, and olives and pomegranates, both similar and dissimilar. Eat of their fruits when they bear fruit and pay their due on the day of their harvest, and do not be profligate. He does not love the profligate. (6:141)

And by it He makes crops grow for you and olives and dates and grapes and fruit of every kind. There is certainly a Sign in that for people who reflect. (16:11)

Then We make grain grow in it, and grapes and herbs and olives and dates, (80:27-29)

By the fig and the olive. (95:1)

ON FOOT

If you are afraid, then perform prayer on foot or mounted. But when you are safe, remember Allah in the way He taught you when previously you did not know. (2:239)

Announce the Pilgrimage to mankind. They will come to you on foot and on every sort of lean animal, coming by every distant road. (22:27)

ONENESS OF ALLAH (TAWHID)

Your God is One God. There is no god but Him, the All-Merciful, the Most Merciful. (2:163)

Allah, there is no god but Him, the Living, the Self-Sustaining. He is not subject to drowsiness or sleep. Everything in the heavens and the earth belongs to Him. Who can intercede with Him except by His permission? He knows what is before them and what is behind them but they cannot grasp any of His knowledge save what He wills. His Footstool encompasses the heavens and the earth and their preservation does not tire Him. He is the Most High, the Magnificent. (2:255)

Allah, there is no god but Him, the Living, the Self-Sustaining. (3:2)

It is He Who forms you in the womb however He wills. There is no god but Him, the Almighty, the All-Wise. (3:6)

Allah bears witness that there is no god but Him, as do the angels and the people of knowledge, upholding justice. There is no god but Him, the Almighty, the All-Wise. (3:18)

Allah, there is no god but Him. He will gather you to the Day of Rising about which there is no doubt. And whose speech could be truer than Allah’s? (4:87)

Those who say that Allah is the third of three are disbelievers. There is no god but One God. If they do not stop saying what they say, a painful punishment will afflict those among them who disbelieve. (5:73)

That is Allah, your Lord. There is no god but Him, the Creator of everything. So worship Him. He is responsible for everything. (6:102)

Follow what has been revealed to you from your Lord–there is no god but Him–and turn away from the idolaters. (6:106)

Say: ‘Mankind! I am the Messenger of Allah to you all, of Him to Whom the kingdom of the heavens and earth belongs. There is no god but Him. He gives life and causes to die.’ So believe in Allah and His Messenger, the Ummi, who believes in Allah and His words, and follow him so that hopefully you will be guided.’ (7:158)

They have taken their rabbis and monks as lords besides Allah, and also the Messiah, son of Maryam. Yet they were commanded to worship only one God. There is no god but Him! Glory be to Him above anything they associate with Him! (9:31)

But if they turn away, say, ‘Allah is enough for me. There is no god but Him. I have put my trust in Him. He is the Lord of the Mighty Throne.’ (9:129)

We brought the tribe of Israel across the sea and Pharaoh and his troops pursued them out of tyranny and enmity. Then, when he was on the point of drowning, he said, ‘I believe that there is no god but Him in whom the tribe of Israel believe. I am one of the Muslims.’ (10:90)

If they do not respond to you then know that it has been sent down with Allah’s knowledge and that there is no god but Him. So will you not become Muslims? (11:14)

And to ‘Ad We sent their brother Hud. He said, ‘My people! Worship Allah. You have no god apart from Him. You are merely fabricators.’ (11:50)

To Thamud We sent their brother Salih. He said, ‘My people, worship Allah! You have no god apart from Him. He brought you into being from the earth and made you its inhabitants. So ask His forgiveness and then repent to Him. My Lord is Close and Quick to Respond.’ (11:61)

And to Madyan their brother Shu‘ayb. He said, ‘My people, worship Allah! You have no god apart from Him. Do not give short measure and short weight. I see you prospering and I fear for you the punishment of an all-encompassing Day.’ (11:84)

In the same way We have sent you among a nation before which other nations passed away, to recite to them what We have revealed to you. Yet they still reject the All-Merciful. Say: ‘He is my Lord; there is no god but Him. I put my trust in Him and I turn to Him.’ (13:30)

He sends down angels with the Spirit of His command to any of His servants He wills: ‘Give warning that there is no god but Me, so have fear of Me!’ (16:2)

Say: ‘If there had, as you say, been other gods together with Him, they would have sought a way to the Master of the Throne.’ (17:42)

Allah, there is no god but Him. The Most Beautiful Names are His. (20:8)

(A voice called out to Musa,) ‘I am Allah. There is no god but Me, so worship Me and perform prayer to remember Me.’ (20:14)

(Musa said,) ‘Your god is Allah alone, there is no god but Him. He encompasses all things in His knowledge.’ (20:98)

We sent no Messenger before you without revealing to him: ‘There is no god but Me, so worship Me.’ (21:25)

And Dhu’n-Nun when he left in anger and thought We would not punish him. He called out in the pitch darkness: ‘There is no god but You! Glory be to You! Truly I have been one of the wrongdoers.’ (21:87)

We sent Nuh to his people and he said, ‘My people, worship Allah. You have no god other than Him. So will you not guard against evil?’ (23:23)

And (We) sent a Messenger to them from themselves: ‘Worship Allah. You have no god other than Him! So will you not guard against evil?’ (23:32)

Allah has no son and there is no other god accompanying Him, for then each god would have gone off with what he created and one of them would have been exalted above the other. Glory be to Allah above what they describe. (23:91)

Exalted be Allah, the King, the Real. There is no god but Him, Lord of the Noble Throne. (23:116)

(The hoopoe said,) ‘Allah–there is no god but Him–the Lord of the Mighty Throne.’ (27:26)

He is Allah. There is no god but Him. Praise be to Him in this world and the hereafter. Judgement belongs to Him. You will be returned to Him. (28:70)

Do not call on any other god along with Allah. There is no god but Him. All things are passing except His Face. Judgement belongs to Him. You will be returned to Him. (28:88)

Mankind! Remember Allah’s blessing to you. Is there any creator other than Allah providing for you from heaven and earth? There is no god but Him. So how have you been perverted? (35:3)

Your God is One: Lord of the heavens and the earth and everything between them; Lord of the Easts. (37:4-5)

When they were told, ‘There is no god but Allah,’ they were arrogant. (37:35)

Say: ‘I am only a warner. There is no god except Allah, the One, the All-Conquering.’ (38:65)

He created you from a single self, then produced its mate from it, and sent down livestock to you–eight kinds in pairs. He creates you stage by stage in your mothers’ wombs in a threefold darkness. That is Allah, your Lord. Sovereignty is His. There is no god but Him. So what has made you deviate? (39:6)

The Forgiver of wrong action, the Accepter of repentance, the Severe in retribution, the Possessor of abundance. There is no god but Him. He is the final destination. (40:3)

That is Allah, your Lord, the Creator of everything. There is no god but Him–so how have you been perverted? (40:62)

He is the Living–there is no god but Him–so call on Him, making your religion sincerely His. Praise be to Allah, the Lord of all the worlds. (40:65)

It is He Who is God in heaven and God on earth. He is the All-Wise, the All-Knowing. (43:84)

There is no god but Him–He gives life and causes to die–your Lord and the Lord of your forefathers, the previous peoples. (44:8)

Know then that there is no god except Allah and ask forgiveness for your wrongdoing, and for the men and women who believe. Allah knows both your activity and your repose. (47:19)

He is Allah–there is no god but Him. He is the Knower of the Unseen and the Visible. He is the All-Merciful, the Most Merciful. (59:22)

He is Allah–there is no god but Him. He is the King, the Most Pure, the Perfect Peace, the Trustworthy, the Safeguarder, the Almighty, the Compeller, the Supremely Great. Glory be to Allah above all they associate with Him. (59:23)

Allah–there is no god but Him. So let the believers put their trust in Allah. (64:13)

Lord of the East and West–there is no god but Him–so take Him as your Guardian. (73:9)

Say: ‘He is Allah, Absolute Oneness.’ (112:1)

ONION

And when you said, ‘Musa, we will not put up with just one kind of food so ask your Lord to supply to us some of what the earth produces–its green vegetables, cucumbers, grains, lentils and onions,’ he said, ‘Do you want to replace what is better with what is inferior? Go back to Egypt, then you will have what you are asking for.’ Abasement and destitution were stamped upon them. They brought down anger from Allah upon themselves. That was because they rejected Allah’s Signs and killed the Prophets without any right to do so. That was because they rebelled and went beyond the limits. (2:61)

ORNAMENT

After he left, Musa’s people adopted a calf made from their ornaments, a form which made a lowing sound. Did they not see that it could not speak to them or guide them to any way? They adopted it and so they were wrongdoers. (7:148)

It is He Who made the sea subservient to you so that you can eat fresh flesh from it and bring out from it ornaments to wear. And you see the ships cleaving through it so that you can seek His bounty, and so that hopefully you will show thanks. (16:14)

The two seas are not the same: the one is sweet, refreshing, delicious to drink, the other salty, bitter to the taste. Yet from both of them you eat fresh flesh and extract ornaments for yourselves to wear; and you see ships on them, cleaving through the waves so that you can seek His bounty and so that hopefully you will be thankful. (35:12)

Were it not that mankind might all become one community, We would have given those who reject the All-Merciful silver roofs to their houses and silver stairways to ascend and silver doors to their houses and silver couches on which to recline, and gold ornaments. All that is merely the trappings of the life of this world. But the hereafter with your Lord is for those who guard against evil. (43:33-35)

ORPHAN

Remember when We made a covenant with the tribe of Israel: ‘Worship none but Allah and be good to your parents and to relatives and orphans and the very poor. And speak good words to people. And perform prayer and give the alms.’ But then you turned away–except a few of you–you turned aside. (2:83)

It is not devoutness to turn your faces to the East or to the West. Rather, those with true devoutness are those who believe in Allah and the Last Day, the Angels, the Book and the Prophets, and who, despite their love for it, give away their wealth to their relatives and to orphans and the very poor, and to travellers and beggars and to set slaves free, and who perform prayer and give the alms; those who honour their contracts when they make them, and are steadfast in poverty and illness and in battle. Those are the people who are true. They are the people who guard against evil. (2:177)

They will ask you what they should give away. Say, ‘Any wealth you give away should go to your parents and relatives and to orphans and the very poor and travellers.’ Whatever good you do, Allah knows it. (2:215)

... In this way Allah makes the Signs clear to you, so that hopefully you will reflect on this world and the hereafter. They will ask you about the property of orphans. Say, ‘Managing it in their best interests is best.’ If you mix your property with theirs, they are your brothers. Allah knows a squanderer from a good manager. If Allah had wanted, He could have been hard on you. Allah is Almighty, All-Wise. (2:219-220)

Give orphans their property, and do not substitute bad things for good. Do not assimilate their property into your own. Doing that is a serious crime. (4:2)

If you are afraid of not behaving justly towards orphans, then marry other permissible women, two, three or four. But if you are afraid of not treating them equally, then only one, or those you own as slaves. That makes it more likely that you will not be unfair. (4:3)

Keep a close check on orphans until they reach a marriageable age, then if you perceive that they have sound judgement hand over their property to them. Do not consume it extravagantly and precipitately before they come of age. Those who are wealthy should abstain from it altogether. Those who are poor should use it sensibly and correctly. When you hand over their property to them ensure that there are witnesses on their behalf. Allah suffices as a Reckoner. (4:6)

If other relatives or orphans or poor people attend the sharing-out, provide for them out of it and speak to them correctly and courteously. (4:8)

People who consume the property of orphans wrongfully consume nothing in their bellies except fire. They will roast in a Searing Blaze. (4:10)

Worship Allah and do not associate anything with Him. Be good to your parents and relatives and to orphans and the very poor, and to neighbours who are related to you and neighbours who are not related to you, and to companions and travellers and your slaves. Allah does not love anyone vain or boastful. (4:36)

They request from you a ruling concerning women. Say, ‘Allah gives you a ruling about them; and also what is recited to you in the Book about orphan girls to whom you do not give the inheritance they are owed, while at the same time desiring to marry them; and also about young children who are denied their rights: that you should act justly with respect to orphans.’ Whatever good you do, Allah knows it. (4:127)

And (He instructs) that you do not go near the property of orphans before they reach maturity–except in a good way; that you give full measure and full weight with justice–We impose on no self any more than it can bear; that you are equitable when you speak–even if a near relative is concerned; and that you fulfil Allah’s contract. That is what He instructs you to do, so that hopefully you will pay heed. (6:152)

Know that when you take any booty a fifth of it belongs to Allah, and to the Messenger, and to close relatives, orphans, the very poor and travellers, if you believe in Allah and in what We sent down to Our servant on the Day of Discrimination, the day the two groups met–Allah has power over all things. (8:41)

Do not go near the property of orphans before they reach maturity, except in a good way. Fulfil your contracts. Contracts will be asked about. (17:34)

(He said to Musa,) ‘As for the wall, it belonged to two young orphans in the town and there was a treasure underneath it, belonging to them. Their father was one of the righteous and your Lord wanted them to come of age and then to unearth their treasure as a mercy from Him. I did not do it of my own volition. That is the explanation of the things about which you were not able to restrain yourself.’ (18:82)

Whatever booty Allah gives to His Messenger from city dwellers belongs to Allah and to the Messenger and to near relatives and orphans and the very poor and travellers, so that it does not become something which merely revolves between the rich among you. Whatever the Messenger gives you you should accept and whatever he forbids you you should forgo. Have fear of Allah–Allah is severe in retribution. (59:7)

They give food, despite their love for it, to the poor and orphans and captives. (76:8)

No indeed! You do not honour orphans. (89:17)

What will convey to you what the steep ascent is? It is freeing a slave or feeding on a day of hunger an orphaned relative or a poor man in the dust; (90:12-16)

Did He not find you orphaned and shelter you? (93:6)

So as for orphans, do not oppress them. (93:9)

He is the one who harshly rebuffs the orphan. (107:2)

OVERCOMING

When Satan made their actions appear good to them, saying, ‘No one will overcome you today for I am at your side.’ But when the two parties came in sight of one another, he turned right round on his heels saying, ‘I wash my hands of you. I see what you do not see. I fear Allah. Allah is severe in retribution.’ (8:48)

O Prophet! Spur on the believers to fight. If there are twenty of you who are steadfast, they will overcome two hundred; and if there are a hundred of you, they will overcome a thousand of those who disbelieve, because they are people who do not understand. (8:65)

Now Allah has made it lighter on you, knowing there is weakness in you. If there are a hundred of you who are steadfast, they will overcome two hundred; and if there are a thousand of you, they will overcome two thousand with Allah’s permission. Allah is with the steadfast. (8:66)

(Salih said,) ‘My people! Here is the she-camel of Allah as a Sign for you. So leave her alone to eat on Allah’s earth and do not inflict any harm on her or you will be overcome by an imminent punishment.’ (11:64)