Plan Or Play
Oppression does not look the same for everyone, nor is it experienced or understood in the same way. Each of us processes the definitions of life through the lens of our personal ability to connect, reason, and understand. What feels like suffocation to one may look like freedom to another, depending on how the heart and mind engage with what's being presented and their ability to differentiate the truth.
At its root, oppression is a degenerative form of reason—it distorts the natural human need for supplication, service, or even purpose, because it originates from the dominance of the oppressor. Their dominance is framed as more valuable, more validating, and more confident than the voice of the oppressed because of their power to forge blatantly. This imbalance is not only social but deeply spiritual.
When it comes to belief in Allah, those who lack faith and cause oppression often fail to notice the contradiction they live by. The struggle is strong because Allah has promised to protect the Qur’an from corruption. That means life is programmed to the natural laws set in life whether we regard it or not. The Qur’an therefore stands as a guard against falsehood, openly exposing the futility of oppressive control. Ironically, when an oppressor tries to manipulate or suppress, their very effort indirectly acknowledges Allah’s power and strength. Any intellectual evaluation of oppression reveals this contradiction because the oppressor must hide credibility, diminish truth, and forge narratives to decrease the value of the oppressed.
This is why trust is central—documented, required, and embedded across all areas of life. Oppression seeks to corrupt that trust, turning what should be genuine proofs into forged validations. The framework of faith gives us inherent forewarnings to guard trust, showing that it must be earned, not fabricated. It is designed to defend us against the oppressor, who unknowingly contradicts themselves when relying on generic dogma—when attempting a “one size fits all” attack—because their dominance is not true credibility, but merely a forgery of it.
This is why the corporate ladder of life and the ladder of faith share similar requirements: perseverance, proofs, accountability, and ascension. But the crucial difference is that Allah is the Watcher over all things. He considers the worldly ladders we climb while actively reminding us that the Qur’an is the Main book of life. And that His guidance is unconditionally present regardless of what we expect. So it is not to be picked up and discarded according to convenience, but to be lived sincerely in all matters.
Misunderstandings, both big and small, are often taken for granted by those who weaponize them. How can justice be defined if it is suppressed? It is easier for an oppressor to paint someone as ungrateful or irrational than to confront their own superficial dominance. But this false framing does not erase the truth—it only exposes the contradictions of their perpetration.
This is why the Qur’an lays out laws where the choices are within our control, but the outcomes remain beyond our control. The demands for proofs, witnesses, time, and respect in the pursuit of justice are part of the timeline of cultivating regard and understanding. Oppressors, when they manipulate these processes, end up playing a dangerous game against themselves. They attempt to control the forensic components of truth, as if suppression could ever become justification. Yet the Qur’an reminds us that no amount of deception can outlast the justice of Allah, and no false dominance can suppress what He has decreed to rise.
Bism Illah Al Rahman Al Raheem
Al Ahqaf - The Curved Sand-Hills
1. Ha-Mim.
[These letters are one of the miracles of the Qur’an, and none but Allah (Alone) knows their meanings].
2. The revelation of the Book (this Qur’an) is from Allah, the All-Mighty, the All-Wise.
3. We created not the heavens and the earth and all that is between them except with truth, and for an appointed term. But those who disbelieve turn away from that whereof they are warned.
4. Say (O Muhammad to these pagans): “Think! All that you invoke besides Allah show me! What have they created of the earth? Or have they a share in (the creation of) the heavens? Bring me a Book (revealed before this), or some trace of knowledge (in support of your claims), if you are truthful!”
5. And who is more astray than one who calls (invokes) besides Allah, such as will not answer him till the Day of Resurrection, and who are (even) unaware of their calls (invocations) to them?
6. And when mankind are gathered (on the Day of Resurrection), they (false deities) will become enemies for them and will deny their worshipping.
7. And when Our Clear Verses are recited to them, the disbelievers say of the truth (this Qur’an), when it reaches them: “This is plain magic!”
8. Or say they: “He (Muhammad ) has fabricated it.” Say: “If I have fabricated it, still you have no power to support me against Allah. He knows best of what you say among yourselves concerning it (i.e. this Qur’an)! Sufficient is He for a witness between me and you! And He is the Oft-Forgiving, the Most Merciful.”
9. Say (O Muhammad ):”I am not a new thing among the Messengers (of Allah) (i.e. I am not the first Messenger) nor do I know what will be done with me or with you. I only follow that which is revealed to me, and I am but a plain warner.”
10. Say: “Tell me! If this (Qur’an) is from Allah, and you deny it, and a witness from among the Children of Israel (‘Abdullah bin Salam ) testifies that this Qur’an is from Allah [like the Taurat (Torah)], so he believed (embraced Islam) while you are too proud (to believe).” Verily! Allah guides not the people who are Zalimun (polytheists, disbelievers and wrong-doing).
11. And those who disbelieve (strong and wealthy) say of those who believe (weak and poor): “Had it (Islamic Monotheism to which Muhammad is inviting mankind) been a good thing, they (weak and poor) would not have preceded us thereto!” And when they have not let themselves be guided by it (this Qur’an), they say: “This is an ancient lie!”
12. And before this was the Scripture of Musa (Moses) as a guide and a mercy. And this is a confirming Book (the Qur’an) in the Arabic language, to warn those who do wrong, and as glad tidings to the Muhsinun (good-doers – see V.2:112).
13. Verily, those who say: “Our Lord is (only) Allah,” and thereafter Istaqamu (i.e. stood firm and straight on the Islamic Faith of Monotheism by abstaining from all kinds of sins and evil deeds which Allah has forbidden and by performing all kinds of good deeds which He has ordained), on them shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve.
14. Such shall be the dwellers of Paradise, abiding therein (forever), a reward for what they used to do.
15. And We have enjoined on man to be dutiful and kind to his parents. His mother bears him with hardship and she brings him forth with hardship, and the bearing of him, and the weaning of him is thirty (30) months, till when he attains full strength and reaches forty years, he says: “My Lord! Grant me the power and ability that I may be grateful for Your Favour which You have bestowed upon me and upon my parents, and that I may do righteous good deeds, such as please You, and make my off-spring good. Truly, I have turned to You in repentance, and truly, I am one of the Muslims (submitting to Your Will).”
16. They are those from whom We shall accept the best of their deeds and overlook their evil deeds. (They shall be) among the dwellers of Paradise, a promise of truth, which they have been promised.
17. But he who says to his parents: “Fie upon you both! Do you hold out the promise to me that I shall be raised up (again) when generations before me have passed away (without rising)?” While they (father and mother) invoke Allah for help (and rebuke their son): “Woe to you! Believe! Verily, the Promise of Allah is true.” But he says: “This is nothing but the tales of the ancient.”
18. They are those against whom the Word (of torment) is justified among the previous generations of jinns and mankind that have passed away. Verily! They are ever the losers.
19. And for all, there will be degrees according to that which they did, that He (Allah) may recompense them in full for their deeds. And they will not be wronged.
20. On the Day when those who disbelieve (in the Oneness of Allah Islamic Monotheism) will be exposed to the Fire (it will be said): “You received your good things in the life of the world, and you took your pleasure therein. Now this Day you shall be recompensed with a torment of humiliation, because you were arrogant in the land without a right, and because you used to rebel and disobey (Allah).
21. And remember (Hud) the brother of ‘Ad, when he warned his people in Al-Ahqaf (the curved sand-hills in the southern part of Arabian Peninsula). And surely, there have passed away warners before him and after him (saying): “Worship none but Allah; truly, I fear for you the torment of a mighty Day.”
22. They said: “Have you come to turn us away from our aliha (gods)? Then bring us that with which you threaten us, if you are one of the truthful!”
23. He said: “The knowledge (of the time of its coming) is with Allah only, and I convey to you that wherewith I have been sent, but I see that you are a people given to ignorance!”
24. Then, when they saw it as a dense cloud coming towards their valleys, they said: “This is a cloud bringing us rain!” Nay, but it is that (torment) which you were asking to be hastened! a wind wherein is a painful torment!
25. Destroying everything by the Command of its Lord! So they became such that nothing could be seen except their dwellings! Thus do We recompense the people who are Mujrimun (polytheists, disbelievers, sinners, etc.)!
26. And indeed We had firmly established them with that wherewith We have not established you (O Quraish)! And We had assigned them the (faculties of) hearing (ears), seeing (eyes), and hearts, but their hearing (ears), seeing (eyes), and their hearts availed them nothing since they used to deny the Ayat (Allah’s Prophets and their Prophethood, proofs, evidences, verses, signs, revelations, etc.) of Allah, and they were completely encircled by that which they used to mock at!
27. And indeed We have destroyed towns (populations) round about you, and We have (repeatedly) shown (them) the Ayat (proofs, evidences, verses, lessons, signs, revelations, etc.) in various ways that they might return (to the truth and believe in the Oneness of Allah – Islamic Monotheism).
28. Then why did those whom they had taken for aliha (gods) besides Allah, as a way of approach (to Allah) not help them? Nay, but they vanished completely from them (when there came the torment). And that was their lie, and their inventions which they had been inventing (before their destruction).
29. And (remember) when We sent towards you (Muhammad ) Nafran (three to ten persons) of the jinns, (quietly) listening to the Qur’an, when they stood in the presence thereof, they said: “Listen in silence!” And when it was finished, they returned to their people, as warners.
30. They said: “O our people! Verily! We have heard a Book (this Qur’an) sent down after Musa (Moses), confirming what came before it, it guides to the truth and to a Straight Path (i.e. Islam).
31. O our people! Respond (with obedience) to Allah’s Caller (i.e. Allah’s Messenger Muhammad ), and believe in him (i.e. believe in that which Muhammad has brought from Allah and follow him). He (Allah) will forgive you of your sins, and will save you from a painful torment (i.e. Hell-fire) .
32. And whosoever does not respond to Allah’s Caller, he cannot escape on earth, and there will be no Auliya’ (protectors) for him besides Allah (from Allah’s Punishment). Those are in manifest error.
33. Do they not see that Allah, Who created the heavens and the earth, and was not wearied by their creation, is Able to give life to the dead? Yes, He surely is Able to do all things.
34. And on the Day when those who disbelieve will be exposed to the Fire (it will be said to them): “Is this not the truth?” They will say: “Yes, By our Lord!” He will say: “Then taste the torment, because you used to disbelieve!”
35. Therefore be patient (O Muhammad ) as did the Messengers of strong will and be in no haste about them (disbelievers). On the Day when they will see that (torment) with which they are promised (i.e. threatened, it will be) as if they had not stayed more than an hour in a single day. (O mankind! This Qur’an is sufficient as) a clear Message (or proclamation to save yourself from destruction). But shall any be destroyed except the people who are Al-Fasiqun (the rebellious, disobedient to Allah).
Bism Illah Al Rahman Al Raheem
Adh Dhariyat - The Winds That Scatter
1. By (the winds) that scatter dust.
2. And (the clouds) that bear heavy weight of water;
3. And (the ships) that float with ease and gentleness;
4. And those (angels) who distribute (provisions, rain, and other blessings) by (Allah’s) Command;-
5. Verily, that which you are promised (i.e. Resurrection in the Hereafter and receiving the reward or punishment of good or bad deeds, etc.) is surely true.
6. And verily, the Recompense is sure to happen.
7. By the heaven full of paths,
8. Certainly, you have different ideas (about Muhammad and the Qur’an).
9. Turned aside therefrom (i.e. from Muhammad and the Qur’an) is he who is turned aside (by the Decree and Preordainment ÇáÞÖÇ æÇáÞÏÑ of Allah).
10. Cursed be the liars,
11. Who are under a cover of heedlessness (think not about the gravity of the Hereafter),
12. They ask; “When will be the Day of Recompense?”
13. (It will be) a Day when they will be tried (i.e. burnt) over the Fire!
14. “Taste you your trial (burning)! This is what you used to ask to be hastened!”
15. Verily, the Muttaqun (pious – see V.2:2) will be in the midst of Gardens and Springs (in the Paradise),
16. Taking joy in the things which their Lord has given them. Verily, they were before this Muhsinun (good-doers – see V.2:112).
17. They used to sleep but little by night [invoking their Lord (Allah) and praying, with fear and hope].
18. And in the hours before dawn, they were (found) asking (Allah) for forgiveness,
19. And in their properties there was the right of the beggar, and the Mahrum (the poor who does not ask the others) ,
20. And on the earth are signs for those who have Faith with certainty,
21. And also in your ownselves. Will you not then see?
22. And in the heaven is your provision, and that which you are promised.
23. Then, by the Lord of the heaven and the earth, it is the truth (i.e. what has been promised to you), just as it is the truth that you can speak.
24. Has the story reached you, of the honoured guests [three angels; Jibrael (Gabriel) along with another two] of Ibrahim (Abraham)?
25. When they came in to him, and said, “Salam, (peace be upon you)!” He answered; “Salam, (peace be upon you ),” and said: “You are a people unknown to me,”
26. Then he turned to his household, so brought out a roasted calf [as the property of Ibrahim (Abraham) was mainly cows].
27. And placed it before them, (saying): “Will you not eat?”
28. Then he conceived a fear of them (when they ate not). They said: “Fear not.” And they gave him glad tidings of an intelligent son, having knowledge (about Allah and His religion of True Monotheism).
29. Then his wife came forward with a loud voice, she smote her face, and said: “A barren old woman!”
30. They said: “Even so says your Lord. Verily, He is the All-Wise, the All-Knower.”
31. [Ibrahim (Abraham)] said: “Then for what purpose you have come, O Messengers?”
32. They said: “We have been sent to a people who are Mujrimun (polytheists, sinners, criminals, disbelievers in Allah);
33. To send down upon them stones of baked clay.
34. Marked by your Lord for the Musrifun (polytheists, criminals, sinners those who trespass Allah’s set limits in evil-doings by committing great sins).
35. So We brought out from therein the believers.
36. But We found not there any household of the Muslims except one [i.e. Lout (Lot) and his two daughters].
37. And We have left there a sign (i.e. the place of the Dead Sea , well-known in Palestine) for those who fear the painful torment.
38. And in Musa (Moses) (too, there is a sign). When We sent him to Fir’aun (Pharaoh) with a manifest authority.
39. But [Fir’aun (Pharaoh)] turned away (from Belief in might) along with his hosts, and said: “A sorcerer, or a madman.”
40. So We took him and his hosts, and dumped them into the sea, while he was to be blamed.
41. And in ‘Ad (there is also a sign) when We sent against them the barren wind;
42. It spared nothing that it reached, but blew it into broken spreads of rotten ruins.
43. And in Thamud (there is also a sign), when they were told: “Enjoy yourselves for a while!”
44. But they insolently defied the Command of their Lord, so the Sa’iqah overtook them while they were looking.
45. Then they were unable to rise up, nor could they help themselves.
46. (So were) the people of Nuh (Noah) before them. Verily, they were a people who were Fasiqun (rebellious, disobedient to Allah).
47. With power did We construct the heaven. Verily, We are Able to extend the vastness of space thereof.
48. And We have spread out the earth, how Excellent Spreader (thereof) are We!
49. And of everything We have created pairs, that you may remember (the Grace of Allah).
50. So flee to Allah (from His Torment to His Mercy Islamic Monotheism), verily, I (Muhammad ) am a plain warner to you from Him.
51. And set not up (or worship) any other ilahan (god) along with Allah [Glorified be He (Alone), Exalted above all that they associate as partners with Him]. Verily, I (Muhammad ) am a plain warner to you from Him.
52. Likewise, no Messenger came to those before them, but they said: “A sorcerer or a madman!”
53. Have they (the people of the past) transmitted this saying to these (Quraish pagans)? Nay, they are themselves a people transgressing beyond bounds (in disbelief)!
54. So turn away (O Muhammad ) from them (Quraish pagans) you are not to be blamed (as you have conveyed Allah’s Message).
55. And remind (by preaching the Qur’an, O Muhammad ) for verily, the reminding profits the believers.
56. And I (Allah) created not the jinns and humans except they should worship Me (Alone).
57. I seek not any provision from them (i.e. provision for themselves or for My creatures) nor do I ask that they should feed Me (i.e. feed themselves or My creatures).
58. Verily, Allah is the All-Provider, Owner of Power, the Most Strong.
59. And verily, for those who do wrong, there is a portion of torment like to the evil portion of torment (which came for) their likes (of old), so let them not ask Me to hasten on!
60. Then, woe to those who disbelieve (in Allah and His Oneness Islamic Monotheism) from (that) their Day which they have been promised (for their punishment).
Bism Illah Al Rahman Al Raheem
Surah At-Tur - The Mount
1. By the Mount;
2. And by the Book Inscribed.
3. In parchment unrolled.
4. And by the Bait-ul-Ma’mur (the house over the heavens parable to the Ka’bah at Makkah, continuously visited by the angels);
5. And by the roof raised high (i.e. the heaven).
6. And by the sea kept filled (or it will be fire kindled on the Day of Resurrection).
7. Verily, the Torment of your Lord will surely come to pass,
8. There is none that can avert it;
9. On the Day when the heaven will shake with a dreadful shaking,
10. And the mountains will move away with a (horrible) movement.
11. Then woe that Day to the beliers;
12. Who are playing in falsehood .
13. The Day when they will be pushed down by force to the Fire of Hell, with a horrible, forceful pushing.
14. This is the Fire which you used to belie.
15. Is this magic, or do you not see?
16. Taste you therein its heat, and whether you are patient of it or impatient of it, it is all the same. You are only being requited for what you used to do.
17. Verily, the Muttaqun (pious – see V.2:2) will be in Gardens (Paradise), and Delight.
18. Enjoying in that which their Lord has bestowed on them, and (the fact that) their Lord saved them from the torment of the blazing Fire.
19. “Eat and drink with happiness because of what you used to do.”
20. They will recline (with ease) on thrones arranged in ranks. And We shall marry them to Houris (female, fair ones) with wide lovely eyes.
21. And those who believe and whose offspring follow them in Faith, to them shall We join their offspring, and We shall not decrease the reward of their deeds in anything. Every person is a pledge for that which he has earned.
22. And We shall provide them with fruit and meat, such as they desire.
23. There they shall pass from hand to hand a (wine) cup, free from any Laghw (dirty, false, evil vague talk between them), and free from sin (because it will be legal for them to drink).
24. And there will go round boy-servants of theirs, to serve them as if they were preserved pearls.
25. And some of them draw near to others, questioning.
26. Saying: “Aforetime, we were afraid with our families (from the punishment of Allah).
27. “But Allah has been gracious to us, and has saved us from the torment of the Fire.
28. “Verily, We used to invoke Him (Alone and none else) before. Verily, He is Al-Barr (the Most Subtle, Kind, Courteous, and Generous), the Most Merciful.”
29. Therefore, remind and preach (mankind, O Muhammad of Islamic Monotheism). By the Grace of Allah, you are neither a soothsayer, nor a madman.
30. Or do they say: “(Muhammad is) a poet! We await for him some calamity by time.!”
31. Say (O Muhammad to them): “Wait! I am with you, among the waiters!”
32. Do their minds command them this [i.e. to tell a lie against you (Muhammad )] or are they people exceeding the bounds (i.e. from Belief in Allah to disbelief).
33. Or do they say: “He (Muhammad ) has forged it (this Qur’an)?” Nay! They believe not!
34. Let them then produce a recital like unto it (the Qur’an) if they are truthful.
35. Were they created by nothing, or were they themselves the creators?
36. Or did they create the heavens and the earth? Nay, but they have no firm Belief.
37. Or are with them the treasures of your Lord? Or are they the tyrants with the authority to do as they like?
38. Or have they a stairway (to heaven), by means of which they listen (to the talks of the angels)? Then let their listener produce some manifest proof.
39. Or has He (Allah) only daughters and you have sons?
40. Or is it that you (O Muhammad ) ask a wage from them (for your preaching of Islamic Monotheism) so that they are burdened with a load of debt?
41. Or that the Ghaib (unseen) is with them, and they write it down?
42. Or do they intend a plot (against you O Muhammad )? But those who disbelieve (in the Oneness of Allah Islamic Monotheism) are themselves in a plot!
43. Or have they an ilah (a god) other than Allah? Glorified be Allah from all that they ascribe as partners (to Him)
44. And if they were to see a piece of the heaven falling down, they would say: “Clouds gathered in heaps!”
45. So leave them alone till they meet their Day, in which they will sink into a fainting (with horror).
46. The Day when their plotting shall not avail them at all nor will they be helped (i.e. they will receive their torment in Hell).
47. And verily, for those who do wrong, there is another punishment (i.e. the torment in this world and in their graves) before this, but most of them know not. [Tafsir At-Tabari, Vol. 27, Page 36].
48. So wait patiently (O Muhammad ) for the Decision of your Lord, for verily, you are under Our Eyes , and glorify the Praises of your Lord when you get up from sleep.
49. And in the night-time, also glorify His Praises, and at the setting of the stars.