Contents
Surah An-Nazi’at is the 79th chapter in the Holy Quran and is proceeded by Surah Abasa and preceded by Surah An-Naba. This chapter is complied of 46 verses and is within juz’ 30 and was revealed in the city of Mecca. The name of Surah An-Nazi’at in the Quran is derived from its first verse which means those who intensely extract and wrest and perhaps in this case it means angels who do so in regard to the souls of human beings at the time of their death.
Facts about Surah Nazi’at
As yet another chapter revealed in the city of Mecca, Surah Nazi’at explores some fundamental issues regarding the inescapable truth every human being needs to take heed in; Matters such as the Day of Resurrection, the extraction of the soul, the battle between right and wrong and the reality behind the countless signs of God within creation. The 79th chapter of the Holy Quran strongly invites us to ponder upon these facts in order to give us a better perspective towards life and prepare ourselves for the ultimate goal of our existence.
79 Surah no.
Juz’ 30 Place
Makki Makki/Madani
81 Order of revelation
46 No. of verses
133 No. of words
553 No. of letters
Arabic Text and Translation of Surah Nazi’at
بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيم
In the name of Allah, the most compassionate, most merciful
وَالنَّازِعَاتِ غَرْقًا ﴿1﴾
By those [angels] who wrest [the soul] violently,
وَالنَّاشِطَاتِ نَشْطًا ﴿2﴾
by those who draw [it] out gently,
وَالسَّابِحَاتِ سَبْحًا ﴿3﴾
by those who swim smoothly,
فَالسَّابِقَاتِ سَبْقًا ﴿4﴾
by those who, racing, take the lead,
فَالْمُدَبِّرَاتِ أَمْرًا ﴿5﴾
by those who direct the affairs [of creatures]:
يَوْمَ تَرْجُفُ الرَّاجِفَةُ ﴿6﴾
the day when the Quaker quakes
تَتْبَعُهَا الرَّادِفَةُ ﴿7﴾
and is followed by the Successor,
قُلُوبٌ يَوْمَئِذٍ وَاجِفَةٌ ﴿8﴾
hearts will be trembling on that day,
أَبْصَارُهَا خَاشِعَةٌ ﴿9﴾
bearing a humbled look.
يَقُولُونَ أَإِنَّا لَمَرْدُودُونَ فِي الْحَافِرَةِ ﴿10﴾
They will say, ‘Are we being returned to our earlier state?
أَإِذَا كُنَّا عِظَامًا نَّخِرَةً ﴿11﴾
What, even after we have been decayed bones?!’
قَالُوا تِلْكَ إِذًا كَرَّةٌ خَاسِرَةٌ ﴿12﴾
They will say, ‘This is, then, a ruinous return!’
فَإِنَّمَا هِيَ زَجْرَةٌ وَاحِدَةٌ ﴿13﴾
Yet it will be only a single shout,
فَإِذَا هُم بِالسَّاهِرَةِ ﴿14﴾
and behold, they will be awake.
هَلْ أَتَاكَ حَدِيثُ مُوسَىٰ ﴿15﴾
Did you receive the story of Moses,
إِذْ نَادَاهُ رَبُّهُ بِالْوَادِ الْمُقَدَّسِ طُوًى ﴿16﴾
when his Lord called out to him in the holy valley of Tuwa?
اذْهَبْ إِلَىٰ فِرْعَوْنَ إِنَّهُ طَغَىٰ ﴿17﴾
[And said,] ‘Go to Pharaoh, for indeed he has rebelled,
فَقُلْ هَل لَّكَ إِلَىٰ أَن تَزَكَّىٰ ﴿18﴾
and say, ‘‘Would you purify yourself?
وَأَهْدِيَكَ إِلَىٰ رَبِّكَ فَتَخْشَىٰ ﴿19﴾
I will guide you to your Lord, that you may fear [Him]?’’ ’
فَأَرَاهُ الْآيَةَ الْكُبْرَىٰ ﴿20﴾
Then he showed him the greatest sign.
فَكَذَّبَ وَعَصَىٰ ﴿21﴾
But he denied, and disobeyed.
ثُمَّ أَدْبَرَ يَسْعَىٰ ﴿22﴾
Then he turned back, walking swiftly,
فَحَشَرَ فَنَادَىٰ ﴿23﴾
and gathered [the people] and proclaimed,
فَقَالَ أَنَا رَبُّكُمُ الْأَعْلَىٰ ﴿24﴾
saying, ‘I am your exalted lord!’
فَأَخَذَهُ اللَّـهُ نَكَالَ الْآخِرَةِ وَالْأُولَىٰ ﴿25﴾
So Allah seized him with the punishment of this life and the Hereafter.
إِنَّ فِي ذَٰلِكَ لَعِبْرَةً لِّمَن يَخْشَىٰ ﴿26﴾
There is indeed a moral in that for someone who fears!
أَأَنتُمْ أَشَدُّ خَلْقًا أَمِ السَّمَاءُ ۚ بَنَاهَا ﴿27﴾
Is your creation more prodigious or that of the heaven He has built?
رَفَعَ سَمْكَهَا فَسَوَّاهَا ﴿28﴾
He raised its vault and fashioned it,
وَأَغْطَشَ لَيْلَهَا وَأَخْرَجَ ضُحَاهَا ﴿29﴾
and darkened its night, and brought forth its forenoon.
وَالْأَرْضَ بَعْدَ ذَٰلِكَ دَحَاهَا ﴿30﴾
Thereafter He spread out the earth,
أَخْرَجَ مِنْهَا مَاءَهَا وَمَرْعَاهَا ﴿31﴾
brought forth from it its water and pastures,
وَالْجِبَالَ أَرْسَاهَا ﴿32﴾
setting firm the mountains,
مَتَاعًا لَّكُمْ وَلِأَنْعَامِكُمْ ﴿33﴾
as a [place of] sustenance for you and your livestock.
فَإِذَا جَاءَتِ الطَّامَّةُ الْكُبْرَىٰ ﴿34﴾
When the Greatest Catastrophe befalls
يَوْمَ يَتَذَكَّرُ الْإِنسَانُ مَا سَعَىٰ ﴿35﴾
—the day when man will remember his endeavors
وَبُرِّزَتِ الْجَحِيمُ لِمَن يَرَىٰ ﴿36﴾
and hell is brought into view for those who can see—
فَأَمَّا مَن طَغَىٰ ﴿37﴾
as for him who has been rebellious
وَآثَرَ الْحَيَاةَ الدُّنْيَا ﴿38﴾
and preferred the life of this world,
فَإِنَّ الْجَحِيمَ هِيَ الْمَأْوَىٰ ﴿39﴾
his refuge will indeed be hell.
وَأَمَّا مَنْ خَافَ مَقَامَ رَبِّهِ وَنَهَى النَّفْسَ عَنِ الْهَوَىٰ ﴿40﴾
But as for him who is awed to stand before his Lord and restrains his soul from [following] desires,
فَإِنَّ الْجَنَّةَ هِيَ الْمَأْوَىٰ ﴿41﴾
his refuge will indeed be paradise.
يَسْأَلُونَكَ عَنِ السَّاعَةِ أَيَّانَ مُرْسَاهَا ﴿42﴾
They ask you concerning the Hour, “When will it set in,
فِيمَ أَنتَ مِن ذِكْرَاهَا ﴿43﴾
considering your frequent mention of it?”
إِلَىٰ رَبِّكَ مُنتَهَاهَا ﴿44﴾
Its outcome is with your Lord.
إِنَّمَا أَنتَ مُنذِرُ مَن يَخْشَاهَا ﴿45﴾
You are only a warner for those who are afraid it.
كَأَنَّهُمْ يَوْمَ يَرَوْنَهَا لَمْ يَلْبَثُوا إِلَّا عَشِيَّةً أَوْ ضُحَاهَا ﴿46﴾
The day they see it, it shall be as if they had not stayed [in the world] except for an evening or forenoon.
Subjects and Contents of the Surah
Similar to Chapter An-Naba, this surah speaks of Qiyamah, its quality and torments and the fear it inflicts on to the hearts. By swearing upon certain objects in the first few verses of the Surah, Allah (swt) is placing emphasis on the inescapable reality of Qiyamah and how every human being will be facing it, though in different manners. Furthermore, as another attribute of chapters which have been revealed in the city of Mecca, examples of God’s might and its manifestation in creation are pointed out in order to wake the hearts of the people and call them to the upright religion.
By doing so, not only does God create a channel through which the people can contemplate about the signs surrounding them and discover the truth, but those signs are also a way for the people to better understand the concept and plausibility of resurrection and life after death. One can also find yet another brief account regarding the timeless story of Nabi Musa and finally, Allah explains that though Qiyamah is an undeniable truth, the time will remain hidden and is only for God to know.
Story of Prophet Musa in Surah An-Nazi’at
As mentioned above, the story narrated within Surah An-Nazi’at in the Quran is regarding Nabi Musa and his encounter with the Pharaoh. Allah the Exalted eludes to this story by firstly asking His Prophet if he has heard of it. What we need to understand from this method of addressing is that the question which has been raised is in order to show the importance of this story. Since it is obvious that Prophet Muhammad was informed of the matter earlier, bringing the story in such a fashion is to create interest and draw the attentions to the topic.
Objective of the Story and its Message
It is believed by scholars that one of the reasons God repeats the story of Prophet Musa in Surah An-Nazi’at is to reassure His Prophet and comfort his heart by reminding him once more that the prophets and messengers before him went through difficulty in order to guide their people and finally overcoming their opponents as well. Moreover, it is for us to know that the battle between right and wrong, light and darkness, justice and oppression has been continuing through the course of time and is not limited to our era.
Five Groups Mentioned in the Surah
If we look carefully, we will discover that there are different themes throughout this chapter which are there for a purpose. In the first five verses of Surah An-Nazi’at in the Quran, God swears upon with specific tasks delegated to them. Even though most scholars believe that what is meant by these five groups are the angels assigned by God to taka the souls and carry out God’s commands swiftly and unfailingly, some, however believe otherwise and state other things that could be intended by those who intensely wrest the souls of the disbelievers from their bodies, such as:
- Death itself
- Stars that seem to be pulled from one horizon to the other
- Arrows that are pulled in the bows of those who fight in the path of Allah
Other Explanations
Subsequent verse to this in which God swears upon certain groups have been given different explanations by scholars as well. For instance, where God swears upon those who take smoothly, some interpretations say they are angels who gently take the souls of the believers and some say they are wild animals that gradually migrate from one land to the other.
Moreover, some believe that those who swim are the angels that they are the angles who set the souls swimming within their bodies during life and then release them upon death, while some believe the meaning to that are ship that sail in the sea. And finally, those who take lead can either be angels that carry out the commands of God without hesitation, or the horses in the battlefields where the mujahideen ( those who struggle for Allah) fight in the path of God.
Benefits of Surah An-Nazi’at
It has been narrated from Prophet Muhammad – peace be upon him and his pure progeny – that:
Whoever recites Surah An-Nazi’at, their reckoning on the Day of Judgment will be as short and swift as performing an obligatory prayer. 1
In another hadith his eminence states:
One who recites Surah An-Nazi’at will not be alone in the grave and this surah will appear as his companion. 2
In addition to this, Imam Sadiq peace be upon him has said:
He who recited Surah An-Nazi’at when facing their enemy, will be concealed from their enemy and if they fear the enemy when entering upon the enemy, they will be saved and God will protect them. 3
Lessons to Learn from Surah An-Nazi’at
- There is no escape from Qiyamah when all souls will be held accountable
- The battle between right and wrong has roots in history from which we need to learn where to stand and how to navigate.
- We are surrounded by the signs of Allah and each sign can lead us to a truth if we contemplate and reflect.
- Qiyamah will be swift and easy for those who purified themselves for their Lord.
- Those who disobey will have a great chastisement in store for them.
- Qiyamah is a reality yet the time is hidden from all knowledge.
References
- Majma’ul bayan, vol. 10, p.250
- Mustadrakul wasa’il, vol. 4, p. 35
- Makarimul Akhlaq, p. 365
The benefits of Surah was quite interesting..
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Lesson from suratul naziat