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Meccan · Surah 35 of 114

Faatir 35:12

The Originator · ayah 12 of 45

وَمَا يَسْتَوِى ٱلْبَحْرَانِ هَٰذَا عَذْبٌۭ فُرَاتٌۭ سَآئِغٌۭ شَرَابُهُۥ وَهَٰذَا مِلْحٌ أُجَاجٌۭ ۖ وَمِن كُلٍّۢ تَأْكُلُونَ لَحْمًۭا طَرِيًّۭا وَتَسْتَخْرِجُونَ حِلْيَةًۭ تَلْبَسُونَهَا ۖ وَتَرَى ٱلْفُلْكَ فِيهِ مَوَاخِرَ لِتَبْتَغُوا۟ مِن فَضْلِهِۦ وَلَعَلَّكُمْ تَشْكُرُونَ

Wama yastawee albahranihatha AAathbun furatun sa-ighun sharabuhuwahatha milhun ojajun wamin kullinta/kuloona lahman tariyyan watastakhrijoona hilyatantalbasoonaha watara alfulka feehi mawakhiralitabtaghoo min fadlihi walaAAallakum tashkuroon

"And not alike are the two seas [i.e., bodies of water]. One is fresh and sweet, palatable for drinking, and one is salty and bitter. And from each you eat tender meat and extract ornaments which you wear, and you see the ships plowing through [them] that you might seek of His bounty; and perhaps you will be grateful."

Saheeh International translation

Recitation by Mishary Alafasy
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Other English translations

Abdel Haleem (Oxford)+

"The two bodies of water are not alike- one is palatable, sweet, and pleasant to drink, the other salty and bitter- yet from each you eat fresh fish and extract ornaments to wear, and in each you see the ships ploughing their course so that you may seek God’s bounty and be grateful."

Pickthall (classic)+

"And the two seas are not alike: this, fresh, sweet, good to drink, this (other) bitter, salt. And from them both ye eat fresh meat and derive the ornament that ye wear. And thou seest the ship cleaving them with its prow that ye may seek of His bounty, and that haply ye may give thanks."

Yusuf Ali (classic)+

"Nor are the two bodies of flowing water alike,- the one palatable, sweet, and pleasant to drink, and the other, salt and bitter. Yet from each (kind of water) do ye eat flesh fresh and tender, and ye extract ornaments to wear; and thou seest the ships therein that plough the waves, that ye may seek (thus) of the Bounty of Allah that ye may be grateful."

Tafsīr · classical commentary

Ibn Kathir

Abridged English, public domain

+

The Blessings and Signs of Allah

Allah says, pointing out His mighty power in creating different things, how He has created the two seas (kinds of water). The fresh, palatable sea (kind of water) refers to the rivers which flow among people, rivers great and small according to people's needs in all regions and areas and lands. This water is sweet and palatable for whoever wants to drink it.

وَهَـذَا مِلْحٌ أُجَاجٌ

and that is salty and bitter. means, unpalatable. This is the ocean in which the big ships sail, and is salty and undrinkable. Allah says:

وَهَـذَا مِلْحٌ أُجَاجٌ

(and that is salty and bittery.) Then Allah says:

وَمِن كُلٍّ تَأْكُلُونَ لَحْماً طَرِيّاً

(And from them both you eat fresh tender meat,) meaning, fish.

وَتَسْتَخْرِجُونَ حِلْيَةً تَلْبَسُونَهَا

(and derive the ornaments that you wear.) This is like the Ayah:

يَخْرُجُ مِنْهُمَا الُّلؤْلُؤُ وَالمَرْجَانُ فَبِأَىِّ ءَالاءِ رَبِّكُمَا تُكَذِّبَانِ

(Out of them both come out pearl and coral. Then which of the blessings of your Lord will you both (Jinn and men) deny) (55:22-23).

وَتَرَى الْفُلْكَ فِيهِ مَوَاخِرَ

And you see the ships cleaving, means, they travel through it, plowing through the water with their beak-shaped bows. Muja0hid said, The wind drives the ships, and the wind cannot drive any ships except the big ones.

وَلِتَبْتَغُواْ مِن فَضْلِهِ

that you may seek of His bounty, means, through your journeys to engage in trade from one land to another.

وَلَعَلَّكُمْ تَشْكُرُونَ

and that you may give thanks. means, that you may give thanks to your Lord for subjugating this mighty creation -- the sea -- to you, so that you can travel through it as you wish and go wherever you want, and nothing stops you؛ His power has subjugated for you whatever is in the heavens and on earth, and all of this is by His grace and mercy.

Tafsir Saʿdi

English translation, public domain

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35:11
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Всевышний подчеркнул свое могущество и напомнил людям о совершенстве Своей мудрости и Своего милосердия. Он сотворил воду пресной и соленой, облагодетельствовав тем самым все обитающие на земле творения. Воду рек Аллах сделал вкусной и пресной, пригодной для питья, садоводства и земледелия, а воду морей и океанов - соленой и горькой. Несмотря на многочисленные течения в океане, морская вода менее подвижна, чем речная, и именно повышенная соленость воды не позволяет ей изменять свои качества. Благодаря этому разлагающиеся тела морских животных не отравляют атмосферу и не портят воздух на земле. Кроме того, морская вода делает мясо обитающих в ней рыб и животных более вкусным. Поэтому Господь сказал, что из обеих вод люди добывают свежее мясо и украшения. Свежее мясо - это рыба, которую люди ловят без труда, а украшения - это жемчуг, кораллы и многие другие драгоценности, добываемые из морей. Все это свидетельствует о том, что моря приносят рабам Аллаха огромную пользу, которая отнюдь не ограничивается тем, что мы уже перечислили. Всевышний покорил моря и океаны человеку и научил его плавать по ним. Корабли и пароходы бороздят морские просторы и заплывают в далекие заморские страны. Они перевозят людей и их тяжелые грузы, а купцы и торговцы приобретают благодаря этому большую прибыль и вкушают милость Щедрого Господа.

Maʿārif al-Qur'ān

Mufti Shafi Usmani, English

+

In the next verse: وَمِن كُلٍّ تَأْكُلُونَ لَحْمًا طَرِ‌يًّا وَتَسْتَخْرِ‌جُونَ حِلْيَةً تَلْبَسُونَهَا (And from each, you eat fresh meat, and derive ornaments that you wear - 35:12), it is being said that one gets fresh meat, that is, fish to eat from both waters, sweet or brackish. In this verse, by alluding to fish as meat, the hint released is that fish is meat, already halal by itself. One does not have to slaughter it. This is contrary to the case of the animals found on land. Unless one slaughters them with the name of Allah, they do not become halal. Fish does not have this condition. It is meat, ready to eat. And the word: حِلْيَةً (hilyah) means ornament and refers to pearls. The verse tells us that the way pearls are found in brackish waters, they are also found in sweet waters, something contrary to the general belief, since it is well known that pearls are harvested from the brackish water of the seas. However, the reality is what is evident from the words of the Qur'an that they form in both - yes, much less in sweet waters and far more in the brackish waters of the sea. That they are found in seas excessively contributed to the popular belief that pearls come only from brackish waters.

By using the masculine form in the last word: تَلْبَسُونَهَا (talbasunaha: that you wear), a hint is being released that the use of pearls is permissible for men as well - contrary to gold and silver, the use of which as an ornament is not permissible for men. (Ruh-ul-Ma’ ani)

Tafsīr sourced from quran.com's open API. These are classical commentaries; for personal rulings consult a qualified scholar.

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