Surah Al-Qiyamah

Ta'awwudh · Seeking Refuge

أَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ

A'udhu billahi min ash-shaytani ar-rajim. I seek refuge in Allah from Satan, the accursed.

The Name · Bismillah

بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ

Bismillahi ar-Rahmani ar-Rahim. In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

أَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ مِنَ الشَّيْطَانِ الرَّجِيمِ

✦

بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ

The Surah · Al-Qiyamah

﴾١﴿ لَآ أُقْسِمُ بِيَوْمِ ٱلْقِيَٰمَةِ

La uqsimu bi-yawmi al-qiyamah

I swear by the Day of Resurrection.

﴾٢﴿ وَلَآ أُقْسِمُ بِٱلنَّفْسِ ٱللَّوَّامَةِ

Wa la uqsimu bin-nafsi al-lawwamah

And I swear by the self-reproaching soul.

﴾٣﴿ أَيَحْسَبُ ٱلْإِنسَٰنُ أَلَّن نَّجْمَعَ عِظَامَهُۥ

Ayahsabu al-insanu allan najma'a 'izamah

Does the human think We will not assemble his bones?

﴾٤﴿ بَلَىٰ قَٰدِرِينَ عَلَىٰٓ أَن نُّسَوِّىَ بَنَانَهُۥ

Bala qadirina 'ala an nusawwiya bananah

Yes. We are able to proportion his fingertips.

﴾٥﴿ بَلْ يُرِيدُ ٱلْإِنسَٰنُ لِيَفْجُرَ أَمَامَهُۥ

Bal yuridu al-insanu liyafjura amamah

Rather, the human wants to keep sinning ahead of himself.

﴾٦﴿ يَسْـَٔلُ أَيَّانَ يَوْمُ ٱلْقِيَٰمَةِ

Yas'alu ayyana yawmu al-qiyamah

He asks, when is the Day of Resurrection?

﴾٧﴿ فَإِذَا بَرِقَ ٱلْبَصَرُ

Fa-idha bariqa al-basar

So when the sight is dazzled,

﴾٨﴿ وَخَسَفَ ٱلْقَمَرُ

Wa khasafa al-qamar

and the moon is eclipsed,

﴾٩﴿ وَجُمِعَ ٱلشَّمْسُ وَٱلْقَمَرُ

Wa jumi'a ash-shamsu wal-qamar

and the sun and the moon are joined,

﴾١٠﴿ يَقُولُ ٱلْإِنسَٰنُ يَوْمَئِذٍ أَيْنَ ٱلْمَفَرُّ

Yaqulu al-insanu yawma'idhin ayna al-mafarr

the human will say that Day, where is the escape?

﴾١١﴿ كَلَّا لَا وَزَرَ

Kalla la wazar

No. There is no refuge.

﴾١٢﴿ إِلَىٰ رَبِّكَ يَوْمَئِذٍ ٱلْمُسْتَقَرُّ

Ila Rabbika yawma'idhin al-mustaqarr

To your Lord that Day is the place of rest.

﴾١٣﴿ يُنَبَّؤُا۟ ٱلْإِنسَٰنُ يَوْمَئِذٍۭ بِمَا قَدَّمَ وَأَخَّرَ

Yunabba'u al-insanu yawma'idhin bima qaddama wa akhkhar

The human will be informed that Day of what he sent forward and what he left behind.

﴾١٤﴿ بَلِ ٱلْإِنسَٰنُ عَلَىٰ نَفْسِهِۦ بَصِيرَةٌۭ

Bal al-insanu 'ala nafsihi basirah

Rather, the human is a clear witness against himself,

﴾١٥﴿ وَلَوْ أَلْقَىٰ مَعَاذِيرَهُۥ

Wa law alqa ma'adhirah

even if he presents his excuses.

﴾١٦﴿ لَا تُحَرِّكْ بِهِۦ لِسَانَكَ لِتَعْجَلَ بِهِۦٓ

La tuharrik bihi lisanaka lita'jala bih

Do not move your tongue with it to hasten it.

﴾١٧﴿ إِنَّ عَلَيْنَا جَمْعَهُۥ وَقُرْءَانَهُۥ

Inna 'alayna jam'ahu wa qur'anah

Upon Us is its collection and its recitation.

﴾١٨﴿ فَإِذَا قَرَأْنَٰهُ فَٱتَّبِعْ قُرْءَانَهُۥ

Fa-idha qara'nahu fattabi' qur'anah

So when We have recited it, follow its recitation.

﴾١٩﴿ ثُمَّ إِنَّ عَلَيْنَا بَيَانَهُۥ

Thumma inna 'alayna bayanah

Then upon Us is its clarification.

﴾٢٠﴿ كَلَّا بَلْ تُحِبُّونَ ٱلْعَاجِلَةَ

Kalla bal tuhibbuna al-'ajilah

No. You love the immediate,

﴾٢١﴿ وَتَذَرُونَ ٱلْءَاخِرَةَ

Wa tadharuna al-akhirah

and you leave the Hereafter.

﴾٢٢﴿ وُجُوهٌۭ يَوْمَئِذٍۢ نَّاضِرَةٌ

Wujuhun yawma'idhin nadirah

Faces that Day will be radiant,

﴾٢٣﴿ إِلَىٰ رَبِّهَا نَاظِرَةٌۭ

Ila Rabbiha nazirah

looking at their Lord.

﴾٢٤﴿ وَوُجُوهٌۭ يَوْمَئِذٍۭ بَاسِرَةٌۭ

Wa wujuhun yawma'idhin basirah

And faces that Day will be gloomy,

﴾٢٥﴿ تَظُنُّ أَن يُفْعَلَ بِهَا فَاقِرَةٌۭ

Tazunnu an yuf'ala biha faqirah

certain that something back breaking is about to be done to them.

﴾٢٦﴿ كَلَّآ إِذَا بَلَغَتِ ٱلتَّرَاقِىَ

Kalla idha balaghati at-taraqi

No. When it reaches the collarbones,

﴾٢٧﴿ وَقِيلَ مَنْ ۜ رَاقٍۢ

Wa qila man raq

and it is said, who can cure him?

﴾٢٨﴿ وَظَنَّ أَنَّهُ ٱلْفِرَاقُ

Wa zanna annahu al-firaq

and he becomes certain that this is the parting,

﴾٢٩﴿ وَٱلْتَفَّتِ ٱلسَّاقُ بِٱلسَّاقِ

Waltaffati as-saqu bis-saq

and the leg is wound around the leg,

﴾٣٠﴿ إِلَىٰ رَبِّكَ يَوْمَئِذٍ ٱلْمَسَاقُ

Ila Rabbika yawma'idhin al-masaq

to your Lord that Day is the driving.

﴾٣١﴿ فَلَا صَدَّقَ وَلَا صَلَّىٰ

Fala saddaqa wa la salla

He did not affirm and he did not pray,

﴾٣٢﴿ وَلَٰكِن كَذَّبَ وَتَوَلَّىٰ

Wa lakin kadhdhaba wa tawalla

but he denied and turned away.

﴾٣٣﴿ ثُمَّ ذَهَبَ إِلَىٰٓ أَهْلِهِۦ يَتَمَطَّىٰٓ

Thumma dhahaba ila ahlihi yatamatta

Then he went off to his family strutting.

﴾٣٤﴿ أَوْلَىٰ لَكَ فَأَوْلَىٰ

Awla laka fa-awla

Woe to you, and woe.

﴾٣٥﴿ ثُمَّ أَوْلَىٰ لَكَ فَأَوْلَىٰٓ

Thumma awla laka fa-awla

Then woe to you, and woe.

﴾٣٦﴿ أَيَحْسَبُ ٱلْإِنسَٰنُ أَن يُتْرَكَ سُدًى

Ayahsabu al-insanu an yutraka suda

Does the human think he will be left with no purpose?

﴾٣٧﴿ أَلَمْ يَكُ نُطْفَةًۭ مِّن مَّنِىٍّۢ يُمْنَىٰ

Alam yaku nutfatan min manyyin yumna

Was he not a drop of fluid emitted,

﴾٣٨﴿ ثُمَّ كَانَ عَلَقَةًۭ فَخَلَقَ فَسَوَّىٰ

Thumma kana 'alaqatan fakhalaqa fasawwa

then a clinging clot, so He created and proportioned,

﴾٣٩﴿ فَجَعَلَ مِنْهُ ٱلزَّوْجَيْنِ ٱلذَّكَرَ وَٱلْأُنثَىٰٓ

Faja'ala minhu az-zawjayni adh-dhakara wal-untha

and made from him the two mates, the male and the female?

﴾٤٠﴿ أَلَيْسَ ذَٰلِكَ بِقَٰدِرٍ عَلَىٰٓ أَن يُحْۦِىَ ٱلْمَوْتَىٰ

Alaysa dhalika bi-qadirin 'ala an yuhyiya al-mawta

Is that One not able to give life to the dead?

The Tafsir · The Breakdown

What The Surah Means

Overview

Surah Al-Qiyamah is forty verses, chapter 75, Makki. It swears by two things in its opening lines, the Day of Resurrection and the self-reproaching soul, and putting those two in the same oath is the whole argument of the surah in miniature. The Day is external and certain. The voice inside you that will not let a wrong action pass quietly is evidence of the same system.

In the middle of the surah, revelation interrupts itself. Four verses are addressed to the Prophet ﷺ about how to receive the Quran while it is being sent down, and then the subject returns. Al-Bukhari records the account from Ibn Abbas explaining those verses, that he used to move his tongue trying to hold it and was told to stop.

He swore by the Day, and then swore by the voice in you that already knows.

Verses 1–6 · The Two Oaths

I swear by the Day of Resurrection, and I swear by the self-reproaching soul.

An-nafs al-lawwamah: the soul that blames itself. Named under oath, alongside the Day. It is the one faculty in a man that argues against his own interest, and the Quran treats it as a witness worth swearing by.

Ayahsabu al-insanu allan najma'a 'izamah: does the human think We will not assemble his bones. The objection being answered is a physical one, and the answer is more precise than the objection.

Bala qadirina 'ala an nusawwiya bananah: yes, We are able to proportion his fingertips. Not the bones. The tips of the fingers, the smallest and most individually distinctive detail on a human body. The verse could have said the skeleton and it named the fingerprints instead.

Bal yuridu al-insanu liyafjura amamah: rather, the human wants to keep sinning ahead of himself. Ibn Kathir reads this as the desire to keep the road in front open for whatever he intends to do. The denial of the Day is not an intellectual position. It is a permission slip written in advance.

He asked about bones and was answered with fingertips. Then the real motive was named, which is wanting the road ahead kept clear.

Verses 7–15 · Where Is the Escape

When the sight is dazzled, and the moon is eclipsed, and the sun and the moon are joined, the human says that day: where is the escape?

Yaqulu al-insanu yawma'idhin ayna al-mafarr: the first word out of him is a question about exits. Kalla la wazar. No refuge. Ila Rabbika yawma'idhin al-mustaqarr. To your Lord that Day is the place of rest.

Yunabba'u al-insanu yawma'idhin bima qaddama wa akhkhar: he is informed of what he sent forward and what he left behind. Both columns are read out, the actions taken and the ones deferred.

Bal al-insanu 'ala nafsihi basirah: rather, the human is a clear witness against himself. Wa law alqa ma'adhirah: even if he presents his excuses. The Arabic is stronger than a translation carries. He is not judged by a witness. He is the witness.

He asks for the exit, is told there is none, and then discovers the case against him is being made by him.

Verses 16–19 · The Interruption

Do not move your tongue with it to hasten it. Upon Us is its collection and its recitation.

La tuharrik bihi lisanaka lita'jala bih: stop moving your tongue trying to rush it. Al-Bukhari records from Ibn Abbas that he used to repeat the words as they came, afraid of losing them, and that these verses came to stop him.

Inna 'alayna jam'ahu wa qur'anah: upon Us is its gathering and its recitation. The responsibility for preservation is taken off the man receiving it and stated as an obligation on the Sender.

Fa idha qara'nahu fattabi' qur'anah: so when We have recited it, follow its recitation. Listen first, repeat after. The sequence is reversed from what anxiety would produce.

Thumma inna 'alayna bayanah: then upon Us is its clarification. Even the understanding is guaranteed rather than demanded.

These four verses sit in the middle of a surah about resurrection, and the placement is the lesson. The most consequential message in history was being handed to a man who was told to stop gripping it.

He was told to stop trying to hold it. Collection, recitation, and clarification were all taken off his side of the table.

Verses 20–25 · You Love the Immediate

No. You love the immediate, and you leave the Hereafter.

Kalla bal tuhibbuna al-'ajilah, wa tadharuna al-akhirah: you love what is right now, and you leave what comes after. Al-'ajilah is the hurried thing, the one available today. This is the diagnosis under every behavior the surah describes.

Wujuhun yawma'idhin nadirah, ila Rabbiha nazirah: faces that Day radiant, looking at their Lord. Al-Bukhari and Muslim both carry narrations on the believers seeing their Lord, and the mainstream position among the mufassirun including Ibn Kathir reads this verse in that light.

Wa wujuhun yawma'idhin basirah, tazunnu an yuf'ala biha faqirah: faces gloomy, certain that something back breaking is about to be done to them. The word describes a blow that breaks the spine.

Two faces, one difference, and the difference was set by what each of them loved when the immediate thing was on the table.

Radiant and looking at Him, or gloomy and expecting the blow. The split was decided by what you loved while it was still cheap.

Verses 26–40 · The Collarbones and the Strut

No. When it reaches the collarbones, and it is said: who can cure him?

Idha balaghat at-taraqi: when the soul reaches the collarbones. The surah moves from the cosmic Day to a single bedroom, and it is the more frightening of the two scenes.

Wa qila man raq: and it is said, who can heal him. The question is asked out loud in the room. Wa zanna annahu al-firaq: and he becomes certain that this is the parting.

Waltaffati as-saqu bis-saq: and the leg is wound around the leg. Ila Rabbika yawma'idhin al-masaq: to your Lord that Day is the driving.

Fala saddaqa wa la salla, wa lakin kadhdhaba wa tawalla: he did not affirm and he did not pray, but he denied and turned away.

Thumma dhahaba ila ahlihi yatamatta: then he went off to his family strutting. This is the most damning verse in the surah, and it is entirely ordinary. No crime is described. He refused, he turned away, and then he walked home pleased with himself. That is the life being judged.

The surah closes by pointing at the beginning: was he not a drop of fluid emitted, then a clinging clot, then formed and proportioned. A laysa dhalika bi-qadirin 'ala an yuhyiya al-mawta. Is that One not able to give life to the dead.

He denied, turned away, and strutted home. Then the surah asks who made him out of a drop.

Structural Summary

Forty Verses. The Soul That Blames You.

Verses 120136The OathsThe Day, and the self-reproaching soul. Bones answered with fingertips. He wants the road ahead kept open.

Verses 7201313The ExitThe sight dazzled, sun and moon joined, and one question: where is the escape. There is none.

Verses 14201315The WitnessHe is a clear witness against himself, even with every excuse presented.

Verses 16201319The InterruptionStop gripping it. Its collection, its recitation, and its clarification are Ours.

Verses 20201325The DiagnosisYou love the immediate and leave the Hereafter. Two faces, one radiant, one expecting the blow.

Verses 26201335The CollarbonesThe soul rises, the room asks who can heal him, and the driving is toward your Lord.

Verses 36201340The DropHe did not pray, he turned away, he strutted home. And he began as a drop that was formed and proportioned.

Why This Surah Is For You

Verse 2 reframes something most men treat as a defect. The soul that blames you is sworn by, in the same breath as the Day of Resurrection. That voice after a bad decision is not weakness or anxiety. The Quran treats it as evidence and as equipment. A man who has silenced it has lost an instrument, not gained peace.

Verse 5 is the honest account of why people reject the Day. Not evidence, not argument. Wanting the road ahead kept clear for what is already planned. When you find yourself doubting something inconvenient, check what the doubt is protecting.

Verse 20 is the shortest diagnosis in the Quran of a modern life. You love the immediate. Everything engineered for your attention is engineered against this verse, and the surah does not ask you to hate the immediate. It notices what you leave behind while you love it.

Verse 33 should be read by any man who is respected. He denied, he turned away, and then he went home to his family strutting. There is no scandal in that verse. It is a man walking back into his house pleased with himself, and it is presented as the summary of a wasted life.

The Practice · Daily Integration

Forty Verses. Answer the Blame.

Stop overriding the self-reproaching voice. Verse 2 swears by it. When it speaks, write down what it said before you argue with it.

Read verses 26 to 30 slowly once a month. The collarbones, the question in the room, the parting. It is the only scene in the surah you are guaranteed to attend.

Audit one immediate pleasure per week against verse 20. Not to remove it. To notice what it is displacing.

Take verses 16 to 19 as permission to stop gripping. Preservation, delivery, and clarification were all assigned to Him. Do your part and put the outcome down.

The soul that blames you is under oath. It is not your enemy. It is the part of you that already knows.

آمِين

Prepared with discipline · Ameen

Verse-By-Verse · Test Yourself

The Quiz

Two questions per verse. Translation and a key Arabic word. Walk through it slow. The goal is comprehension, not speed.

Verse 11 / 80

The Verse

لَآ أُقْسِمُ بِيَوْمِ ٱلْقِيَٰمَةِ

La uqsimu bi-yawmi al-qiyamah

What does this verse say?