The Holy Quran with Five Volume Commentary (Vol 3) — Page 635
PT. 15 AL-KAHF CH. 18 أَمْ حَسِبْتَ أَنَّ أَصْحُبَ الْكَهْفِ Dost thou think that the. 10 وَالرَّقِيمِ كَانُوْا مِنْ أَيْتِنَا عَجَبًا People of the Cave and the Inscription were a wonder among Our Signs?2050 discoveries and inventions have not fulfilled the purpose of making human life more peaceful and beautiful, all the works of these peoples would be brought to naught and entirely obliterated. The expression, And We shall make all that is thereon a barren soil, does not mean that the whole world will be destroyed. It only refers to the destruction of the works of Christian nations to whom these verses particularly apply. Since a similar expression viz. as (barren ground) used in v. 41 of this Surah in connection with the parable of "two gardens" clearly applies to the works of Western nations, as shown by the context, the expression (barren soil) must also be taken as applying to them. The words as shown under Important Words mean, a without herbage or land a land of which the herbage has been cut or eaten. Now, 'herbage' in Quranic terminology stands for the works of men, and according to this sense of the word, the verse would mean that all the progress that the western nations were to make and all their handiworks, their lofty and stately buildings, the beautiful scenery of their land and all their pomp, glory and grandeur would be destroyed. This means that a terrible visitation is in store for them. 2050. Important Words: he entered the cave. means, a cave excavated out of a mountain in the form of a house; a spacious cave; a place of refuge (Aqrab). (the Inscription) is derived from which means, he wrote a writing; he sealed, stamped, imprinted or impressed. means, he marked the writing with the dots or points, and made its letters distinct or plain. رقمه (raqqama-hu) means, he figured, variegated or decorated the garment or piece of cloth and made it striped or marked it with stripes. means, I marked the thing so as to distinguish it from other things, as, for instance, by writing and the like. means, he cauterized the camel. signifies any garment or piece of cloth figured, variegated or decorated with a certain or known figuring or decoration, such as is a mark; a book or writing. means, the Inscription (Lane & Aqrab). For different accounts of this word see at the end of the commentary of the present verse. Commentary: The verse declares the Dwellers of the Cave to be no novel or out of the ordinary thing but as only one of the so many signs of God. There was nothing about them which might be considered a departure from the ordinary laws of nature. It is, however, very regrettable that while means, | according to this verse the Dwellers اكتهف الكهف (the Cave) الكهف 1843