Taha · Makki · ayah 128 of 135

Taha 20:128

أَفَلَمْ يَهْدِ لَهُمْ كَمْ أَهْلَكْنَا قَبْلَهُم مِّنَ ٱلْقُرُونِ يَمْشُونَ فِى مَسَـٰكِنِهِمْ ۗ إِنَّ فِى ذَٰلِكَ لَـَٔايَـٰتٍ لِّأُو۟لِى ٱلنُّهَىٰ

“Then, has it not become clear to them how many generations We destroyed before them as they walk among their dwellings? Indeed in that are signs for those of intelligence.”

Saheeh International

Essence

They walk where vanished generations lived; the signs are there for minds that know how to stop.

A reflection

The mind as the notch on a tent peg

A similar ayah in Surah al-Sajdah ends by asking whether they will not hear. This one ends differently: in that are signs for people of nuhā. The word for intellect here is unusual, and the lexicons give it a striking picture.

The root means an end, a limit. A nihy was a pool where floodwater came to rest behind a barrier that stopped it spilling. The notch at the head of a tent peg, which keeps the rope from slipping off, was its nuhya. And the mind, they say, is called nuhā because it holds you back from what is ugly.

So the intelligence this ayah honours is not speed or cleverness. It is the power to stop.

Picture a tense meeting where a plan is being rushed through. Everyone talks fast. Then the quietest person in the room says, 'Wait. What happened the last time we tried this?' The room goes still. That is nuhā: the notch that catches the rope before it slides.

The ruins are signs only for such minds. Everyone else walks past.

The full entry has 2 more reflections, questions to sit with, and "Live it today" - with the words, the roots and the tafsir alongside. Free, no account, works offline.