نَالَattain

Example sentences

• صفاء الْعِبَادَات لَا ينَال إِلَّا بصفاء التَّوْحِيد

  The purity of worship is attained only through the purity of monotheism.

  يُنَالُ — is attained. PASSIVE present — 'is attained, reached', not 'attains'. Arabic shifts to passive by reworking the inner vowels, so purity is shown as something received; the doer is left unnamed on purpose.

  From: Worship God Alone →

• وَإِذا تعرفوا إِلَى مُلُوكهمْ وكبرائهم وتقربوا إِلَيْهِم لينالوا بهم الْعِزَّة والرفعة فتعرف أَنْت إِلَى الله وتودد إِلَيْهِ

  And if they seek to know their kings and leaders and draw close to them to obtain honor and elevation through them, you seek to know God and draw close to Him.

  لِيَنَالُوا — so that they may obtain. Here the little 'li-' means 'in order to', and it pushes the following verb into the subjunctive mood, the shape Arabic uses for an aim being pursued. The '-u' is the plural 'they': they cultivate the great 'so as to gain' by them.

  From: Contentment with What God Wills →

• تنَلْ بذلك غَايَة الْعِزّ والرفعة

  In doing so, you achieve the ultimate honor and elevation.

  تَنَلْ — you achieve. This verb is in the clipped jussive shape because it answers the preceding command as its result: 'seek God... [and] you will attain'. Arabic lets a command be followed by a jussive verb meaning 'and then you will...', with no 'if' word spelled out.

  From: Contentment with What God Wills →

• وهو صنعة ومعيشة ينال بها الرجل السعادة والدنيا،

  It is a craft and a livelihood through which a person attains happiness and worldly success.

  يَنَالُ — he attains. A present verb 'attains / gains', whose subject (the person) comes after it. It opens a relative-style clause: 'by which a person gains...'. It pairs with the pronoun-preposition next to show the means. The doer is named further on.

  From: Intention in Islam →

• أو أرجعه إلى منزله الذي خرج منه بما نال من أجر،

  or bringing him back to his home from which he departed with what he has gained of reward,

  نَالَ — he has gained. A past-tense verb, 'he obtained', with 'he' built in, inside the clause describing what he carries back. The doer is inside the form; it names the act of gaining the reward.

  From: Paradise for Those Who Strive →

• أَوْ نَالَ الْقَضَاءَ فَسَعَى فِي حِفْظِ مَنْزِلَتِهِ،

  Or he attained the judgeship and strove to preserve his position,

  نالَ — he attained. A past-tense verb carrying its own 'he' subject within the form, reaching for an object that follows it. It opens the second figure's story by stating what he obtained, with the doer built into the verb rather than named separately.

  From: Guidance for the Seeker →

• أَمَا نَالَ لِلرَّجُلِ أَنْ يَعْلَمَ مَنْزِلَهُ فَأَقَامَهُ،

  Could the man not have known his station and remained there?

  نَالَ — attain. A past verb meaning it was attained or became due, its 'it' subject built in. It heads the reproachful question, with the person it was due for named next.

  From: A Stranger Finds the Prophet →

• وَهُمْ الَّذِينَ نَالُوا مَعِيَّةَ اللَّهِ مَعَ الصَّابِرِينَ

  And they are those who attained God's companionship with the steadfast.

  نَالُوا — they attained. A past-tense verb whose plural ending carries the subject 'they' inside it, so no separate pronoun is needed. It is the action of the relative clause, telling what the group achieved, with the doer built into the verb.

  From: Three States of the Heart →

• مَنْ عَايَنَ بِعَيْنِ بَصِيرَتِهِ تَنَاهِيَ الْأُمُورِ فِي بِدَايَاتِهَا نَالَ خَيْرَهَا،

  Whoever, with the eye of his insight, perceives the ends of matters in their beginnings obtains their good.

  نَالَ — obtains. A past-tense verb that serves as the result of the 'whoever' condition; like the condition-verb it reads as a present general truth. Its 'he' subject is built in: whoever perceives... obtains. It pairs the outcome with the condition stated earlier.

  From: Guarding the Heart from Heedlessness →

• وَإِنْ نَالَ الْأَمَلَ، اِزْدَادَ خَيْرًا

  And if one attained hope, he increased in good.

  نَالَ — he attained. A past-tense 'he' verb serving as the condition after 'if', its subject a generic 'one' built into the form. It states the supposed case, attaining one's hope, with the result delivered by the verb later in the line.

  From: Preparing for Death and Repentance →