“真正成功的必是信士。”（第1节）这是一个真实的应许；不，这是一个坚定的决定，确保信士获得成功。如果我们把它看作一个应许，我们就知道真主从不食言；如果我们说它是他的决定，那么没有人能够推翻真主的决定。所应许的成功，既包括今世的成功，也包括后世的成功；既包括个体信士的成功，也包括信士群体的成功。信士会在心中感受到这种成功，并会在日常生活中看到它逐步实现。真主所应许的成功，涵盖了人们所理解的一切成功，也涵盖了真主为他忠实的仆人所预备的一切。

“Truly, successful shall be the believers.” (Verse 1) It is a true promise; nay, it is a firm decision ensuring success for the believers. If we take it as a promise, we know God never fails to honour His promises; and if we say that it is His decision, then no one can ever foil a decision by God. What is promised is success in the life of this world and in the life to come; success for the individual believer and for the community of believers. A believer will feel this success in his heart and will see it coming true in his day to day life. The success God promises includes all that human beings associate with success and what God keeps in store for His faithful servants.

那么,这些忠实的仆人,即接受这份由真主所写、载有此项应许与明确成功宣告之文书的信士,究竟是谁呢?他们是那些被应许在今世尘世中获得一切善果、胜利、幸福、成功与美好供给的信士;并且进一步被应许在后世获得成功,届时他们将领受真主的酬赏,享受祂的喜悦。此外,他们还将获得唯有真主才知晓的更多恩赐,这些恩赐将在他们的两世之中赐予。这些将继承乐园并永居其中的信士,又是什么样的人呢?

So, who are those faithful servants, the believers who receive this document written by God, containing this promise and a clear declaration of success? Who are the believers promised all goodness, victory, happiness, success and goodly provisions in this life on earth; and further promised to be successful in the hereafter, when they receive God’s reward and enjoy His pleasure? They will also have much more that is known only to God, and this will be given in their two lives. Who are these believers who will inherit paradise where they will abide?

“经文第2至9节给出了他们详细的品质。他们是“在拜中谦卑的人，远离一切无益之事的人，积极行善施舍的人，除了与自己结为夫妻的人，或自己所拥有的奴婢之外，克制不与人同房的人——因为这样的人是无可指责的；而那些寻求超越此界限的人，确实是越界者；是信守自己的托付与盟约的人，并且谨守自己的拜功的人。”（第2至9节）那么，我们应当如何理解这些品质呢？”

Verses 2-9 give us a detailed list of their characteristics. They are the ones “who humble themselves in their prayer, who turn away from all that is frivolous, who are active in deeds of charity, who refrain from sex except with those joined to them in marriage, or those whom they rightfully possess – for then, they are free of all blame, whereas those who seek to go beyond that [limit] are indeed transgressors, who are faithful to their trusts and to their pledges, and who are diligent in their prayers.” (Verses 2-9) So, what do we make of these characteristics?

它们共同勾勒出穆斯林品格的最高境界。这一境界便是穆罕默德ﷺ的境界，他是真主的使者，是有史以来行走于大地之上最完美的人。真主教导他，赋予他高尚的品格，并且真主证明了他高贵的品德与生活方式：

Together they draw for us the character of a Muslim at its highest level. That is the level of Muhammad (peace be upon him), God’s Messenger and the most perfect human being ever to walk on the face of the earth. He was educated and given a refined character by God, and God certified to his noble character and way of life:

“积极践行天课（施舍）的人。”（第4节）真正的信士既已挺身表明对真主的顺服，并以拜功来彰显这一点，又已远离一切无益之事，便以积极行善施舍来成就这份信仰。

“Who are active in deeds of charity.” (Verse 4) Having come forward to declare their submission to God and demonstrate this in their prayer, and having turned away from all that is frivolous, true believers complement this by being active in charity.

阿拉伯语中表示慈善的词是"天课"（zakāt），但这个词常被用于更广泛的含义，远超其通常所指的、具有强制性的财务功修。这种慈善能够净化人的心灵与钱财。它使心灵摆脱自私与贪婪，当撒旦在我们面前描绘贫困的幽灵、低声散布泄气的念头时，它能够战胜这些低语，并彰显我们对真主的信靠。它还使我们的钱财，或剩余的钱财，变得纯洁而善良，免除一切义务，也免去对其合法性的疑虑。此外，慈善保护穆斯林社会免受极端贫困与极端富裕所造成的失衡，为穆斯林社群中的每一个人，尤其是弱势群体，提供社会保障，并保护社群免于瓦解。

The term used in Arabic for charity is zakāt, but this word is often used in a wider sense that goes far beyond the obligatory financial worship with which it is normally associated. Such charity purifies man’s heart and money. It purges hearts of selfishness and greed, and overcomes Satan’s whispers of discouragement as he raises before us the spectre of poverty, and demonstrates our trust in God. It also makes our money, or what is left of it, pure and good, free of all obligations and doubts concerning its being lawful. Furthermore, charity protects the Muslim community against the imbalance that results from the extremes of poverty on the one side and affluence on the other. It provides social security for all individuals in the Muslim community, particularly the weaker elements, and it protects the community against disintegration.

“那些守住贞洁的人……”（第5节）这是在指向人的灵魂、家庭与社会的纯洁，也指向保护自己、家庭与社会的途径。这一切都源于克制自己，不沉溺于罪恶，并把人心只引向合法之事。如此，穆斯林群体便得到保护，免于那种放纵无度的淫乱，而这种淫乱会破坏家庭，使来历不明的血缘关系增多并被视为可以接受。

“Who refrain from sex...” (Verse 5) This is a pointer to the purity of the human soul, the home and the community, and to the way of protecting oneself, family and society. It is all the result of refraining from indulgence in sin and turning people’s hearts only to what is permissible. Thus, the Muslim community is protected from the unrestrained promiscuity that undermines the family and allows dubious parenthood to increase and become acceptable.

一个对欲望毫无约束的社会，往往会使其社会结构本身遭到腐蚀，因为它剥夺了家庭的神圣性。家庭之家是社会结构中的基本单位，是孩子成长的摇篮。要使它成为健康的摇篮，就需要纯洁与安全，而这两者都能给丈夫和妻子带来安心，使彼此完全信任。于是，他们合力守护自己的家庭，并确保下一代得到健康的成长。

A community with no restraint on desire is wont to find its very social fabric corrupted, because it deprives itself of the sanctity for the family. The family home is the basic unit in the structure of the community. It is the cradle where children grow up. To serve as a healthy cradle, it needs purity and security, both of which give reassurance to the husband and wife so that each has full trust in the other. Thus, they cooperate to safeguard their home and ensure the healthy upbringing of their young ones.

"{他们}是那些忠于其所托付之物与其所立之约的人。"（第8节）他们，无论是个人还是集体，都信守自己的约定，履行自己的责任。个人与集体都有许多需要维护的托付，其中首要的是蕴含于其自身本性之中的托付，即他们被真主以正直的本性所造化，从而与其所属的整个宇宙相互和谐。

“Who are faithful to their trusts and to their pledges.” (Verse 8) They, individuals and community alike, honour their pledges and discharge their trust. Both the individual and the community have many types of trust to maintain, the first of which is the trust encapsulated in their own nature, i.e. they are created by God in an upright fashion so as to be in harmony with the rest of the universe to which they belong.

这一点通过支配宇宙的自然统一感来见证真主的独一。信士忠于这项伟大的托付，保护自己的本性不致偏离，使其持续见证真主的独一。其他的托付皆源于这一根本要素。

This testifies to God’s oneness by the natural feeling of unity that governs the universe. Believers are faithful to this great trust, and they protect their nature from deviation so that it continues to testify to God’s oneness. Other trusts are derived from this basic element.

第一个盟约是：真主在人的天性中所立下并植根其中的约定，要求人相信祂的存在和祂的独一。所有其他的盟约、誓约与条约，都源自这第一个盟约。信士每当许下某种承诺，便以真主为见证。对信士而言，践守自己的承诺，是敬畏真主、即敬畏（taqwā）的一部分。

The first pledge is that God has taken from, and made ingrained in human nature, committing it to believe in His existence and His oneness. All other pledges, covenants and treaties derive from this first one. When a believer commits himself to something, he makes God his witness. Honouring his commitments is, to a believer, part of being God-fearing, of taqwā.

穆斯林群体同样有责任维护其公共信托，并履行其对真主所作的誓约，以及由这些誓约产生的义务。本章以非常概括的措辞作出表述，以涵盖各种类型的信托与誓约。信众在任何时候都忠于所有这些事务。忠诚是他们品格的一部分。除非誓约与信托得到履行，否则任何群体都不可能期望生活安定有序，因此每个个人和群体都必须确信这一社群生活的基本准则。正是这一准则，使每个人都获得信任与安全感。

The Muslim community is also responsible for honouring its public trust, and for the fulfilment of its pledges to God and the duties that result from these pledges. The sūrah gives its statement in very general terms so as to include every type of trust and pledge. Believers are faithful to all these, at all times. Being faithful is part of their character. No community can hope to have a straightforward life unless pledges and trusts are fulfilled, so that every individual and group are certain of this basic rule of community life. It is the rule that gives everyone a sense of trust and security.

“以及那些在礼拜上恒守不懈的人。”（第9节）他们不会疏忽礼拜，也不会因懒惰而错过礼拜。他们也不会怠慢礼拜，而是按照礼拜应有的方式对待它。他们按时礼拜，遵守其中的义务部分和劝行部分，使之完整，不遗漏任何要紧之处。他们的礼拜是鲜活的，充盈着他们的心，并与他们的良心相互感应。礼拜维系着真主与人心之间的联结。因此，一个不经常认真对待礼拜的人，也不太可能勤勉而尽责地对待他与他人之间的关系。本章所描述的信士品质，始于礼拜，也终于礼拜，以此强调礼拜在信仰结构中无与伦比的重要地位。毕竟，礼拜是向真主所作的最完美的一种崇拜形式。

“And who are diligent in their prayers.” (Verse 9) They do not neglect their prayers or miss them through laziness. Nor do they fail to attend to them as prayer should be attended to. They offer them on time, attending to obligatory and recommended parts, making them complete, omitting nothing essential. Their prayer is alive, filling their hearts and interacting with their consciences. Prayer maintains a bond between God and human hearts. Therefore, a person who does not attend regularly to his prayer is unlikely to attend diligently and conscientiously to his bonds with other people. The qualities of believers outlined in this sūrah start with prayer and finish with prayer, so as to stress its unrivalled importance in the structure of faith. After all, prayer is the most perfect form of worship addressed to God.

在详细叙述信士的品质与特征之后,本章转而指出人自身之中所蕴含、引导人走向信仰的迹象。它讲述了人类发展的各个阶段,从人类起源的最初开始,直到末日复生,以此在今世与后世之间建立起牢固的联系:

Having given a detailed account of the qualities and characteristics of believers, the sūrah moves on to point out the indications available within man himself that lead to faith. It speaks of the various stages of development of a human being, starting with the very beginning of human origin, and ending with resurrection on the Day of Judgement, to establish a firm link between this life and the life to come:

诚然,我创造了人类,用的是泥土的精华。然后我把他变成一滴精子,安置在稳固的子宫里。然后我把精子变成凝血块,把凝血块变成肉团,把肉团变成骨骼,再给骨骼披上血肉。然后我使他成为另一种造物。

Indeed, We create man out of the essence of clay, then We place him, a gamete, in a safe place of rest. Then We create out of the gamete a clinging cell mass, and out of the clinging cell mass We create an embryo. Then We create within the embryo bones, then We clothe the bones with flesh. We then bring this into being as another creation.

尊贵的真主是最优秀的创造者。此后，你们注定要死亡；再此后，你们将在复活日被再次复活。（第12-16节）

Exalted be God, the best of creators. And then, after all this, you are destined to die; and then, you shall be restored to life on the Day of Resurrection. (Verses 12-16)

人类逐步形成，并且始终遵循同样的顺序，这首先证明了创造者的真实存在，也证明了这一形成过程中存在着有意的规划。这不可能是盲目巧合的结果，也不可能是一个随机的开端却导向一条从不失误、从不偏离的稳定轨迹。事实是，人类以这种方式而非其他任何可能的方式存在，是因为我们的造物主要这样安排，而祂是依照自己的计划与设计行事的。

The gradual formation of man, following the same sequence, confirms first the truth of the Originator, and also the deliberate planning in the course such formation follows. This cannot be the result of blind coincidence. Nor can it be a random beginning leading to a consistent line that never fails or deviates. The truth is that human beings come into existence in the way they do, rather than any other possible way, because our Creator wants it this way, and He does things according to His own plan and design.

此外,通过呈现这幅完整的图景,并表明各个阶段必然前后相continue依次发生,还说明:正如本章前十一节所指示的那样,信仰那位筹划万事的造物主,并遵循信士所遵循的行动之道,是人类在今世与后世都能达到的最完美境界的唯一途径。由此可见,本章开篇的两段经文是相互关联的。

Moreover, by giving this full picture with the different stages shown to follow each other without fail also indicates that belief in the Creator who plans everything and following the course of action believers follow, as indicated in the first eleven verses of the sūrah, is the only way to achieve the perfect standard human beings can achieve both in this life and in the hereafter. Thus, the two opening passages of the sūrah are interlinked.

“我确实从泥土的精华中创造了人。”（第12节）这句话暗示人的创造经历了若干阶段，只是没有具体说明。这一含义在阿拉伯原文中更为清晰：“sulālah”一词在英文中译作“essence”（精华），同时也含有一连串发展的意思。因此，它的意思是人要经历不同的阶段，一个接着一个，从最初的泥土，直到最终被造成为人。这是我们从《古兰经》中所了解到的真理。

这一点适用于人类的起源：人类始于泥土的精华。至于每个个体，则要经历众所周知的几个阶段：“然后，我们把他作为一滴精液，安置在稳固的住所中。”（第13节）产生人类新个体的造化之道及其繁衍方式，遵循真主所定的法则。一滴液体从男子体内射出，留在女子的子宫中。

This applies to the origin of the human race: it starts from an essence of clay. As for individual human beings, they go through well known stages: “Then We place him, a gamete, in a safe place of rest.” (Verse 13) The creation formula that brings about new individuals of the human race, and their method of reproduction, follows a line set by God. A drop of fluid is discharged from the man to settle in the woman’s uterus.

这并非整滴液体，而是构成这一滴液体的数十万个细胞中的一个。它在子宫内这个安全的空间中安顿下来，这一空间由髋骨支撑，保护它免受人体活动时所发生的震荡与碰撞。

It is not the whole drop; rather, a single cell out of hundreds of thousands forming this drop. It settles in this safe enclosure in the uterus which is supported by the hip bones, protecting it from the shocks and knocks that occur to the body as one moves about.

《古兰经》把配子视为人类被造过程中的一个阶段，它紧接在人的存在之后。这是真实的，但也值得深思。一个人在其完整的身形之中，带着他全部的特征、成分和品性，都被包含在这一配子之内。随后，它在开始其新的存在时，经过一系列新的阶段，发展成为胚胎。

The Qur’ānic text makes the gamete a stage in the succession of man’s creation, coming immediately after man’s existence. This is true, but it also deserves contemplation. A human being in his full stature, and with all his features, elements and characteristics, is enclosed within this gamete. It then develops into an embryo when it begins its new existence through a new series of stages.

配子阶段之后，男性精子使女性卵子受精，随后形成细胞团，细胞团附着于子宫壁上。细胞团不断生长，发展为胚胎。这个微小的造物沿着这条从不改变或偏离的路线继续前行，依照真主的法则，运用其潜在的能量，沿着既定的轨迹前进；这一法则将完美的设计与精密的筹划融为一体。

The gamete stage leads to that of a cell mass after the male sperm fertilizes the female egg, and then the cell mass clings to the wall of the uterus. The cell mass grows and becomes an embryo. This little creation continues in this line that never changes or deviates from its course. It moves along its marked line, using its latent energy according to God’s law which combines perfect design with elaborate planning.

接下来的阶段是骨骼的形成：“然后，我们在胚胎中造出骨骼”，之后是另一个阶段，即骨骼被血肉包裹。

The next stage is that of the emergence of bones: “Then We create within the embryo bones,” which is followed by another stage in which the bones are clothed with flesh.

我们对《古兰经》中关于胚胎发育的这一论述感到无比惊叹：这一事实早在胚胎学证实之前就已被提及。

We are overwhelmed with amazement here at this fact in the development of the embryo which is stated in the Qur’ān long before it was confirmed by embryology.

这一章continues描绘人生的各个阶段，以完成这段旅程。 Correction, translated properly: 这一章继续描绘人生的各个阶段，以完成这段旅程。

The sūrah continues to depict the different stages of life to complete the journey.

人类在地球上开始的生命，并不会止于地球，因为地球之外的一个要素构成了它不可或缺的一部分，并影响着它所走的道路。

Human life that began on earth does not however end there, because an element from outside the earth forms an essential part of it, influencing the path it travels.

这一真主灵魂的气息注入其中，使人的生命拥有了不同于肉体的目标，也有了不同于血肉之躯的归宿。因此，人的完满并不在这个大地上实现，而是在另一个截然不同的世界里成就："然后，在此之后，你们必将死去；然后，在复活日你们必将被重新复活。"（第15-16节）

The breathing of God’s spirit in it has given human life a goal different from that of the body, and a destination unlike that of the destination of flesh and blood. Hence it achieves its completeness somewhere other than this earth, in a totally different world: “And then, after all this, you are destined to die; and then, you shall be restored to life on the Day of Resurrection.” (Verses 15-16)

因此,死亡是人在地上生命的终点,是连接我们所知的今生与即将到来的后世之间的桥梁。由此可见,死亡是人生的一个阶段,而不是人生的终结。

Thus, death is the end of human life on earth, forming a bridge between the life we know and the life to come. As such, it is a stage in human life, not its end.

随后是复活，它预示着最后阶段的到来，那时完美的生命开始了，摆脱了尘世生活的一切缺陷、身体的需求、恐惧与忧虑，并且不会再通向其他阶段，因为它代表了人类所能达到的完美境界。

Then comes resurrection which heralds the last stage, when the perfect life begins, free of all the failings of earthly life, physical needs, fear and worry, and leading to no other stage because it represents the level of perfection human beings can attain.

然而，这一点只适用于那些遵循本章开头几节所勾勒的通往如此完美之道的人。这正是信士所走的道路。相反，那些在今世堕落到与牲畜无异的人，在后世将堕得更深，以至于处于最底层。他们不再是人类，因为他们成为了火狱的燃料，以石头和人作为燃料。

This, however, applies only to those who follow the way leading to such perfection, outlined in the opening verses of this sūrah. It is the way followed by believers. By contrast, those who in this life sink to the level of animals go further down in the life to come so that they are right at the bottom. They are no longer human beings, because they become part of the fuel of hell, fed by stones and men.

本章接着指出宇宙中一些众所周知、却常被人遗忘的迹象，这些迹象本应引导人们走向信仰。

The sūrah moves on to point out well known, yet often forgotten, aspects in the universe which should lead people to faith:

我们在你们上面创造了七层天体，我们对于创造物从不疏忽。我们从天上降下有定量的水，使它存留在大地上；我们确实能够将它removing。我们借这水为你们生长出椰枣树和葡萄的园圃，其中有许多果实，你们可以从中取食；还有生长在西奈山上的树，它出产油脂和可供全体食用的调味品。在牲畜中也有给你们的教训：我们让你们饮用它们腹中所产的东西，你们还从它们身上获得许多其他益处，并且食用它们的肉。你们也借它们以及船只而得到运载。

“我们从天空降下有定量的水，并使它留存在大地上；而且我们绝对能够将它全部夺去。”（第18节）在这里，我们看到那七个轨道或天体与大地之间存在直接联系。水从天空降落，与那些天体有直接的联系。事实上，正是支配宇宙的完美秩序，使水得以从天空降落并渗入大地。

“We send down water from the skies in accordance with a set measure, and We cause it to lodge in the earth; and We are most certainly able to take it all away.” (Verse 18) Here we have a direct link between those seven orbits or bodies and the earth. Water falls from the sky, and has a direct link with those bodies. In fact, it is the perfect order controlling the universe that allows water to so fall from the sky and settle into the earth.

只是最近，地质学家才提出了地下水来源于地表水和雨水、雨水渗入地下这一理论。在这一理论提出之前，人们普遍认为地下水与地表水互不相关。然而，《古兰经》早在一千四百多年前就陈述了这一事实。

It is only recently that geologists developed their theory that underground water comes from surface water and rain, which seeps through the earth. Before this theory was advanced, the general perception was that underground water was independent of surface water. Yet the Qur’ān stated this fact more than 1,400 years ago.

“我们从天上降下一定量的水。”一切都在精心的安排之中。雨水既不会多到造成洪灾与毁坏，也不会少到导致干旱与饥荒，更不会在不恰当的时候降临而毫无用处。

“We send down water from the skies in accordance with a set measure.” It is all according to an elaborate plan. It is neither too much so as to cause flooding and devastation, nor too little so as to cause drought and famine. Nor does it come at the wrong time when it would be of little use.

“我们使它留存于大地之中。”这里的画面，类似于受精卵植入子宫的情景，《古兰经》将其描述为“安全的栖身之所”。卵子与水都有其安定、稳妥的存留之处，以便孕育生命。由此我们又看到《古兰经》在场景与意象的艺术安排上的又一例证。

“And We cause it to lodge in the earth.” The picture here is akin to that of the fertilized egg that is implanted in the uterus, which is described in the Qur’ān as ‘a safe place of rest.’ Both the egg and the water have their settled and safe places of settlement in order to give rise to life. Here we see yet another example of the Qur’ānic method of artistic arrangement of scenes and images.

“我们确实有能力把它全部带走。”它可能沉入地底深处，经由其下岩层的裂隙，或借由其他方式。那使它停留在原位的主，也能使它远离人的触及。让它留在原位，正是真主的恩典。

“We are most certainly able to take it all away.” It can sink into the depths of the earth, through a schism in the rocky layer under it, or by some other means. The One who kept it stored in its place is also able to allow it to go beyond man’s reach. Keeping it in its place is part of God’s grace.

生命源于水。经文说：“我用水使你们得到椰枣树和葡萄园，其中有丰富的果实，你们可以食用。”（第19节）椰枣树和葡萄只是需要水才能生长的两种植物。同样，人类的生命之所以产生，也离不开精液，即男人排出的液体。《古兰经》所面向的人们很容易理解这两个例子，它们也指向许多其他依赖水才能生存的事物。

It is from water that life derives: “And by means of this water We bring forth for you gardens of date palms and vines, yielding abundant fruit, and from which you eat.” (Verse 19) Date trees and vines are only two types of plant life for the emergence of which water is essential. By the same token, the sperm, or fluid man discharges, is essential for the emergence of human life. Both examples are easily understood by those addressed by the Qur’ān. They also point to the numerous other examples that depend on water for life.