Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,

As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.  (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)

One of our brothers/sisters has asked this question:

May Allah reward you for your service.

In the translating the Quran the translator adds words within parantheses in the translation. For instance, "...reverence Allah, through whom ye demand your mutual (rights), and (reverence) the wombs (That bore you): for Allah ever watches over you." (S4:V1, Translation by: Pickthall).

Are these words in parantheses the translator`s additional interpretation?

Sometimes, as in the above instance, the paranthesised words stunt the meaning, in my humble opinion. That is: "reverence the wombs" would mean `reverence women` and "reverence the wombs (that bore you)", as paranthesised by the translator, will mean `reverence your mothers`. The former, again in my humble opinion, sounds like a better translation. Please give us your thoughts. Jazakallah.

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Answer:

Quran translation in brackets parenthesis

In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is none worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad (saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

Your Question: Are these words in parantheses the translator`s additional interpretation?

Dear and beloved brother in Islam, each language has its own peculiarities, and when one tries to translate that word or phrase from one language to another, more often than not, one might not find an exact word in the translated language which matches the exact peculiarities of the original text. Thus to maintain the flow of thought of the original language into the translated language, at times the translator would need to add a few words to convey the full meaning of the original text….thus the need arises for them to use brackets or parenthesis.

For example, for anyone who understands the English language, the sentence ‘Drop me to the airport’ could be easily understood! But if one were to translate the same phrase word-to-word in any other language (example Urdu) it would read:

‘Mughe airport ‘phek’ do’ which obviously is not the intended meaning in the original English text! Thus the translator who wishes to honor the word-to-word translation and also convey the closest meaning of the phrase from the original text to the translated language, might at times need to add an additional interpretation….thus it is only natural that he would use parenthesis to convey his interpretation in such situations.

Indeed the words in parenthesis are often times the translator’s additional efforts of interpretation, so that he may convey the full meaning of the original text into his translation from one language to another.

Listing the same example of Surah Nisaa verse 1 quoted by you from the translation by Brother Pickthall:

Allah Says in the Holy Quran Chapter 4 Surah Nisaa verse 1:

1 O mankind! Be careful of your duty to your Lord Who created you from a single soul and from it created its mate and from them twain hath spread abroad a multitude of men and women. Be careful of your duty toward Allah in Whom ye claim (your rights) of one another, and toward the wombs (that bore you). Lo! Allah hath been a Watcher over you.

The original text of the Quran uses the term ‘Arhaam’ (wombs)…..and if the intended meaning of the term (as according to you) should have been women in general, then the original text could very well have used the term ‘Nisaa’ for women which is available in the Arabic language.

Similarly, if the intended meaning of the term (as according to the translation of Brother Pickthall) should have been ‘mothers’; again there is a term available in the Arabic language for ‘mothers’ and that could have been used in the original text!

Sahih Al-Bukhari Hadith 8.17 Narrated by Abu Huraira

The Prophet (saws) said, "The word 'Ar-Rahm’ (womb) derives its name from ‘Ar-Rahmaan’ (i.e., one of the names of Allah) and Allah said: 'I will keep good relation with the one who will keep good relation with you, (womb, i.e. kith and kin) and sever the relation with him who will sever the relation with you, (womb, i.e. kith and kin).

Although the Arabic term ‘Ar-Rahm’ connotes the ‘womb’, and one may take it to imply ‘mothers’ as a specific translation, or stretch it to imply ‘women’; but in our humble opinion the term ‘Arhaam’ (plural of Ar-Rahm) used in the original text implies to all blood relations that arise from the wombs. Keeping in mind the guidance Allah and His Messenger (saws) have given regarding the rights of blood-relatives, kith and kin, etc. that arise from the ‘wombs’,…..this would be a much closer and more accurate interpretation than simply the specific ‘mother’ or ‘women’ in general. And Allah Alone Knows Best.

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me alone. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

Your brother and well wisher in Islam,

Burhan