سُوْرَةُ النَّمْلِ
Surah An-Naml (27) — Ayah 44
قِيلَ لَهَا ٱدْخُلِى ٱلصَّرْحَ ۖ فَلَمَّا رَأَتْهُ حَسِبَتْهُ لُجَّةً وَكَشَفَتْ عَن سَاقَيْهَا ۚ قَالَ إِنَّهُۥ صَرْحٌ مُّمَرَّدٌ مِّن قَوَارِيرَ ۗ قَالَتْ رَبِّ إِنِّى ظَلَمْتُ نَفْسِى وَأَسْلَمْتُ مَعَ سُلَيْمَـٰنَ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ ٱلْعَـٰلَمِينَ ﴿44﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
It was said to her: "Enter As-Sarh" (a glass surface with water underneath it or a palace): but when she saw it, she thought it was a pool, and she (tucked up her clothes) uncovering her legs. (Sulaimân (Solomon)) said: "Verily, it is a Sarh (a glass surface with water underneath it or a palace)." She said: "My Lord! Verily, I have wronged myself, and I submit [in Islâm, together with Sulaimân (Solomon)] to Allâh, the Lord of the ‘Âlamîn (mankind, jinn and all that exists)."
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
قِيلَ
qīla
It was said
لَهَا
lahā
to her
ٱدْخُلِى
ud'khulī
Enter
ٱلصَّرْحَ ۖ
l-ṣarḥa
the palace
فَلَمَّا
falammā
Then when
رَأَتْهُ
ra-athu
she saw it
حَسِبَتْهُ
ḥasibathu
she thought it
لُجَّةًۭ
lujjatan
(was) a pool
وَكَشَفَتْ
wakashafat
and she uncovered
عَن
ʿan
[on]
سَاقَيْهَا ۚ
sāqayhā
her shins
قَالَ
qāla
He said
إِنَّهُۥ
innahu
Indeed, it
صَرْحٌۭ
ṣarḥun
(is) a palace
مُّمَرَّدٌۭ
mumarradun
made smooth
مِّن
min
of
قَوَارِيرَ ۗ
qawārīra
glass
قَالَتْ
qālat
She said
رَبِّ
rabbi
My Lord
إِنِّى
innī
indeed, I
ظَلَمْتُ
ẓalamtu
[I] have wronged
نَفْسِى
nafsī
myself
وَأَسْلَمْتُ
wa-aslamtu
and I submit
مَعَ
maʿa
with
سُلَيْمَـٰنَ
sulaymāna
Sulaiman
لِلَّهِ
lillahi
to Allah
رَبِّ
rabbi
(the) Lord
ٱلْعَـٰلَمِينَ
l-ʿālamīna
(of) the worlds
Tafsir Taiseer ul-Quran — Maulana Abdul Rahman Kilani
Tafsir Taiseer ul-Quran (Facilitation of the Quran) is a comprehensive Quran commentary by Maulana Abdul Rahman Kilani, a renowned Salafi (Ahl al-Hadith) scholar from Pakistan. Known for his eloquent and accessible writing style, Kilani authored this tafsir with a focus on clarity — making Quranic meanings understandable to the common reader. The tafsir provides detailed historical context for verses related to battles and expeditions, and firmly refutes modernist ideologies using strong scriptural evidence. It is widely regarded as an invaluable resource for understanding the Quran and countering deviant interpretations. The tafsir is originally written in Urdu, translated to English by tohed.com.
44. It was said to her, "Enter the palace." But when she saw it, she thought it was a pool of water, so she lifted her skirt over her legs [42]. Solomon said, "This is a smooth floor of glass." She said, "My Lord! I have indeed wronged myself [43], and now I submit with Solomon to Allah, the Lord of all the worlds [44]."
[42]
The Second Test: The Courtyard Pool:
This was the second test of Bilqis’s intellect. Prophet Sulaiman (peace be upon him) had his palace courtyard constructed in such a way that glass was laid over it. But when a person entered the palace, the angle of view was such that the courtyard appeared to be a deep pool of water, with waves rippling across it. Its appearance was such that, just as from a distance a sand dune or a mirage appears to be surging water, so did this courtyard. He said to Bilqis, “Come, let us enter the palace now.” When Bilqis saw this scene in the courtyard, she thought it was a deep pool of water and lifted her garments from her shins. Then Sulaiman (peace be upon him) told her that there was no need to lift her garments; this was not a pool of water but a smooth glass floor. Thus, she was deceived in this test.
[43] That is, just as I mistook the glass courtyard for a deep, rippling pool of water and was mistaken, in the same way, I and my people, seeing the brilliance and radiance of the sun, began to consider it a deity—this too was our grave mistake and an injustice to ourselves.
[44]
The Faith of the Queen of Sheba Was Based on Insight:
When Bilqis believed in Allah, the Lord of all worlds, it was based on insight. Several incidents had already occurred which increasingly convinced her that Sulaiman (peace be upon him) was truly upon the truth, was a Prophet of Allah, and that her own religion was based on falsehood. First of all, from the content of the letter, she deduced that the sender of such a letter could not be an ordinary ruler. Then, the way the letter was delivered to her was also extraordinary. From the return of the gifts, she also realized that he was not a worldly ruler, and that she would never be able to withstand him in confrontation. Furthermore, the delegation that brought the gifts described the humble nature and pure character of the great ruler, which had deeply impressed her. Then, when she arrived before Prophet Sulaiman and saw the throne she had left behind now placed before her, she became convinced in her heart of Sulaiman’s prophethood. Now, at the time of entering the palace, what impressed her most was that such a great ruler, who possessed many times more wealth and luxury than she did, could be so grateful to Allah, so humble, and so modest. All these things together compelled her to openly declare her faith before Prophet Sulaiman.
The Rationalists’ Interpretation of ﴿وَكَشَفَتْ عَن سَاقَيْهَا﴾ and Its Response:
Regarding Bilqis entering Sulaiman’s palace and lifting her garments from her shins, rationalists have presented many unreasonable interpretations. For example, they say that Bilqis did not lift her garments from her shins, but rather lifted the cloths that were hanging on the walls of the glass palace, and that the meaning of ﴿لُجَّةٌ﴾ is not only deep water but also the brilliance and radiance like water, which was present in this glass palace. This is not the place for a detailed analysis of these unreasonable interpretations; I will briefly mention a couple of points. Allah the Exalted says: ﴿فَلَمَّا رَأَتْهُ حَسِبَتْهُ لُجَّةً وَكَشَفَتْ عَن سَاقَيْهَا﴾ (Bilqis saw the palace and thought it was deep water and lifted her garments from her shins), so the masculine pronoun is used for the palace. And although the word “wall” is not present here, even if it is assumed, it is also used in the masculine form [18: 82], but for the one whose shins the garment was lifted from, the feminine pronoun is used. Furthermore, a palace or any room has four walls, not two, whereas here the dual form is used. Thirdly, the word “saq” (shin) is used for the shin or the trunk of a tree, not for a wall or for the lower part of anything that is uniform throughout, where it cannot be determined where the “shin” begins.
[42]
The Second Test: The Courtyard Pool:
This was the second test of Bilqis’s intellect. Prophet Sulaiman (peace be upon him) had his palace courtyard constructed in such a way that glass was laid over it. But when a person entered the palace, the angle of view was such that the courtyard appeared to be a deep pool of water, with waves rippling across it. Its appearance was such that, just as from a distance a sand dune or a mirage appears to be surging water, so did this courtyard. He said to Bilqis, “Come, let us enter the palace now.” When Bilqis saw this scene in the courtyard, she thought it was a deep pool of water and lifted her garments from her shins. Then Sulaiman (peace be upon him) told her that there was no need to lift her garments; this was not a pool of water but a smooth glass floor. Thus, she was deceived in this test.
[43] That is, just as I mistook the glass courtyard for a deep, rippling pool of water and was mistaken, in the same way, I and my people, seeing the brilliance and radiance of the sun, began to consider it a deity—this too was our grave mistake and an injustice to ourselves.
[44]
The Faith of the Queen of Sheba Was Based on Insight:
When Bilqis believed in Allah, the Lord of all worlds, it was based on insight. Several incidents had already occurred which increasingly convinced her that Sulaiman (peace be upon him) was truly upon the truth, was a Prophet of Allah, and that her own religion was based on falsehood. First of all, from the content of the letter, she deduced that the sender of such a letter could not be an ordinary ruler. Then, the way the letter was delivered to her was also extraordinary. From the return of the gifts, she also realized that he was not a worldly ruler, and that she would never be able to withstand him in confrontation. Furthermore, the delegation that brought the gifts described the humble nature and pure character of the great ruler, which had deeply impressed her. Then, when she arrived before Prophet Sulaiman and saw the throne she had left behind now placed before her, she became convinced in her heart of Sulaiman’s prophethood. Now, at the time of entering the palace, what impressed her most was that such a great ruler, who possessed many times more wealth and luxury than she did, could be so grateful to Allah, so humble, and so modest. All these things together compelled her to openly declare her faith before Prophet Sulaiman.
The Rationalists’ Interpretation of ﴿وَكَشَفَتْ عَن سَاقَيْهَا﴾ and Its Response:
Regarding Bilqis entering Sulaiman’s palace and lifting her garments from her shins, rationalists have presented many unreasonable interpretations. For example, they say that Bilqis did not lift her garments from her shins, but rather lifted the cloths that were hanging on the walls of the glass palace, and that the meaning of ﴿لُجَّةٌ﴾ is not only deep water but also the brilliance and radiance like water, which was present in this glass palace. This is not the place for a detailed analysis of these unreasonable interpretations; I will briefly mention a couple of points. Allah the Exalted says: ﴿فَلَمَّا رَأَتْهُ حَسِبَتْهُ لُجَّةً وَكَشَفَتْ عَن سَاقَيْهَا﴾ (Bilqis saw the palace and thought it was deep water and lifted her garments from her shins), so the masculine pronoun is used for the palace. And although the word “wall” is not present here, even if it is assumed, it is also used in the masculine form [18: 82], but for the one whose shins the garment was lifted from, the feminine pronoun is used. Furthermore, a palace or any room has four walls, not two, whereas here the dual form is used. Thirdly, the word “saq” (shin) is used for the shin or the trunk of a tree, not for a wall or for the lower part of anything that is uniform throughout, where it cannot be determined where the “shin” begins.
