20. [Ta’ha, Mecca 45]

The Quranic Text & Ali’s Version:

فَتَنَازَعُوا أَمْرَهُم بَيْنَهُمْ وَأَسَرُّوا النَّجْوَى ﴿٦٢﴾

20: 62.  So they disputed, one with another, over their affair, but they kept their talk secret.

C2586. They knew that they had here to deal with no ordinary man, but a man with powers above what they could conceive of.

But evil always thinks evil. Judging Moses and Aaron by their own standards, they thought that these two were also tricksters, with some tricks superior to their own. All they had to do was to stand together, and they must win.

I construe 20:63-64 to be private talk among themselves, followed by their open challenge to Moses in 20:65.

قَالُوا إِنْ هَذَانِ لَسَاحِرَ...

20: 63.  They said:

"These two are certainly (expert) magicians:

...انِ يُرِيدَانِ أَن يُخْرِجَاكُم مِّنْ أَرْضِكُم بِسِحْرِهِمَا...

their object is to drive you out from your land with their magic,

...وَيَذْهَبَا بِطَرِيقَتِكُمُ الْمُثْلَى ﴿٦٣﴾

and to do away with your most cherished institutions.

C2587. Cf. 20:104.

'Your most cherished institutions,' i.e., 'your ancestral and time- honoured religion and magic'.

Muthla, feminine of Amthal, most distinguished, honoured, cherished.

Tariqat: way of life, institutions, conduct.

Asad’s Version:

20:62

So they debated among themselves as to what to do; but they kept their counsel secret,

(20:63) saying [to one another]: "These two are surely sorcerers intent on driving you from your land 44 by their sorcery, and on doing away with your time-honoured way of life. 45

[ Ruby’s notes – this is a tactic that is being used in different forms and shape down through time to arouse unnecessary fear, hatred and cynicism to act vehemently against others and fight others when the process of exchange or engagements could have been constructive producing a win-win situation. In history these kinds of conspiracies and fear arousing have done disservice to societies. Often leaders use these tactics to further their vested interest at the cost of the people’s interest. Here perhaps the leaders, the counselors or even the sorcerers feeling the threat of being invalidated is using the same tactic of fear and vehement opposition to act aggressively. Human society must remain aware about this evil process through much wrong was done and much evil perpetrated. Here all the parties could have seen the merit of what Moses was saying without taking a preconceived hardline- position against it. And they there could have been a win-win outcome. ]]