Surah An-Naba

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.

✦

The Surah · An-Naba

﴾١﴿ عَمَّ يَتَسَآءَلُونَ

'Amma yatasa-alun

About what are they asking one another?

﴾٢﴿ عَنِ النَّبَإِ الْعَظِيمِ

'Ani an-naba-i al-'azim

About the great announcement.

﴾٣﴿ الَّذِي هُمْ فِيهِ مُخْتَلِفُونَ

Alladhi hum fihi mukhtalifun

Concerning which they are in disagreement.

﴾٤﴿ كَلَّا سَيَعْلَمُونَ

Kalla saya'lamun

No! They will come to know.

﴾٥﴿ ثُمَّ كَلَّا سَيَعْلَمُونَ

Thumma kalla saya'lamun

Then no! They will come to know.

﴾٦﴿ أَلَمْ نَجْعَلِ الْأَرْضَ مِهَادًا

Alam naj'al al-arda mihada

Did We not make the earth a resting place?

﴾٧﴿ وَالْجِبَالَ أَوْتَادًا

Wal-jibala awtada

And the mountains as pegs?

﴾٨﴿ وَخَلَقْنَاكُمْ أَزْوَاجًا

Wa khalaqnakum azwaja

And We created you in pairs.

﴾٩﴿ وَجَعَلْنَا نَوْمَكُمْ سُبَاتًا

Wa ja'alna nawmakum subata

And made your sleep for rest.

﴾١٠﴿ وَجَعَلْنَا اللَّيْلَ لِبَاسًا

Wa ja'alna al-layla libasa

And made the night a covering.

﴾١١﴿ وَجَعَلْنَا النَّهَارَ مَعَاشًا

Wa ja'alna an-nahara ma'asha

And made the day for livelihood.

﴾١٢﴿ وَبَنَيْنَا فَوْقَكُمْ سَبْعًا شِدَادًا

Wa banayna fawqakum sab'an shidada

And built above you seven strong heavens.

﴾١٣﴿ وَجَعَلْنَا سِرَاجًا وَهَّاجًا

Wa ja'alna sirajan wahhaja

And placed a blazing lamp.

﴾١٤﴿ وَأَنزَلْنَا مِنَ الْمُعْصِرَاتِ مَاءً ثَجَّاجًا

Wa anzalna min al-mu'sirati ma-an thajjaja

And sent down from the rain clouds pouring water.

﴾١٥﴿ لِنُخْرِجَ بِهِ حَبًّا وَنَبَاتًا

Li-nukhrija bihi habban wa nabata

To bring forth thereby grain and vegetation.

﴾١٦﴿ وَجَنَّاتٍ أَلْفَافًا

Wa jannatin alfafa

And gardens of dense growth.

﴾١٧﴿ إِنَّ يَوْمَ الْفَصْلِ كَانَ مِيقَاتًا

Inna yawma al-fasli kana miqata

Indeed, the Day of Decision is an appointed time.

﴾١٨﴿ يَوْمَ يُنفَخُ فِي الصُّورِ فَتَأْتُونَ أَفْوَاجًا

Yawma yunfakhu fi as-suri fa-ta-tuna afwaja

The Day the Trumpet is blown, and you will come in throngs.

﴾١٩﴿ وَفُتِحَتِ السَّمَاءُ فَكَانَتْ أَبْوَابًا

Wa futihat as-sama-u fa-kanat abwaba

And the sky is opened, becoming gateways.

﴾٢٠﴿ وَسُيِّرَتِ الْجِبَالُ فَكَانَتْ سَرَابًا

Wa suyyirat al-jibalu fa-kanat saraba

And the mountains are set in motion, becoming mirage.

﴾٢١﴿ إِنَّ جَهَنَّمَ كَانَتْ مِرْصَادًا

Inna jahannama kanat mirsada

Indeed, Hell has been lying in wait.

﴾٢٢﴿ لِلطَّاغِينَ مَآبًا

Lit-taghina ma-aba

For the transgressors, a place of return.

﴾٢٣﴿ لَابِثِينَ فِيهَا أَحْقَابًا

Labithina fiha ahqaba

They will remain therein for ages.

﴾٢٤﴿ لَا يَذُوقُونَ فِيهَا بَرْدًا وَلَا شَرَابًا

La yadhuquna fiha bardan wa la sharaba

They will not taste therein coolness or drink.

﴾٢٥﴿ إِلَّا حَمِيمًا وَغَسَّاقًا

Illa hamiman wa ghassaqa

Except scalding water and purulent discharge.

﴾٢٦﴿ جَزَاءً وِفَاقًا

Jaza-an wifaqa

A recompense suited to the deed.

﴾٢٧﴿ إِنَّهُمْ كَانُوا لَا يَرْجُونَ حِسَابًا

Innahum kanu la yarjuna hisaba

Indeed, they were not expecting an accounting.

﴾٢٨﴿ وَكَذَّبُوا بِآيَاتِنَا كِذَّابًا

Wa kadhdhabu bi-ayatina kidhdhaba

And denied Our verses with utter denial.

﴾٢٩﴿ وَكُلَّ شَيْءٍ أَحْصَيْنَاهُ كِتَابًا

Wa kulla shay-in ahsaynahu kitaba

But all things We have enumerated in a record.

﴾٣٠﴿ فَذُوقُوا فَلَن نَّزِيدَكُمْ إِلَّا عَذَابًا

Fa-dhuqu falan nazidakum illa 'adhaba

So taste, and We will not increase you except in torment.

﴾٣١﴿ إِنَّ لِلْمُتَّقِينَ مَفَازًا

Inna lil-muttaqina mafaza

Indeed, for the righteous is a place of triumph.

﴾٣٢﴿ حَدَائِقَ وَأَعْنَابًا

Hada-iqa wa a'naba

Gardens and grapevines.

﴾٣٣﴿ وَكَوَاعِبَ أَتْرَابًا

Wa kawa'iba atraba

And companions of equal age.

﴾٣٤﴿ وَكَأْسًا دِهَاقًا

Wa ka-san dihaqa

And a full cup.

﴾٣٥﴿ لَّا يَسْمَعُونَ فِيهَا لَغْوًا وَلَا كِذَّابًا

La yasma'una fiha laghwan wa la kidhdhaba

They will not hear therein idle talk or lying.

﴾٣٦﴿ جَزَاءً مِّن رَّبِّكَ عَطَاءً حِسَابًا

Jaza-an min Rabbika 'ata-an hisaba

A recompense from your Lord, a gift suited to the deeds.

﴾٣٧﴿ رَّبِّ السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ وَمَا بَيْنَهُمَا الرَّحْمَٰنِ ۖ لَا يَمْلِكُونَ مِنْهُ خِطَابًا

Rabbi as-samawati wal-ardi wa ma baynahuma ar-Rahman, la yamlikuna minhu khitaba

Lord of the heavens and the earth and what is between them, the Most Merciful — they cannot have authority to address Him.

﴾٣٨﴿ يَوْمَ يَقُومُ الرُّوحُ وَالْمَلَائِكَةُ صَفًّا ۖ لَّا يَتَكَلَّمُونَ إِلَّا مَنْ أَذِنَ لَهُ الرَّحْمَٰنُ وَقَالَ صَوَابًا

Yawma yaqumu ar-Ruhu wal-mala-ikatu saffa, la yatakallamuna illa man adhina lahu ar-Rahmanu wa qala sawaba

The Day when the Spirit and the angels stand in rows, they will not speak except whom the Most Merciful permits, and he speaks rightly.

﴾٣٩﴿ ذَٰلِكَ الْيَوْمُ الْحَقُّ ۖ فَمَن شَاءَ اتَّخَذَ إِلَىٰ رَبِّهِ مَآبًا

Dhalika al-yawmu al-haqq, faman sha-a ittakhadha ila Rabbihi ma-aba

That is the true Day. So whoever wills, may take to his Lord a return.

﴾٤٠﴿ إِنَّا أَنذَرْنَاكُمْ عَذَابًا قَرِيبًا يَوْمَ يَنظُرُ الْمَرْءُ مَا قَدَّمَتْ يَدَاهُ وَيَقُولُ الْكَافِرُ يَا لَيْتَنِي كُنتُ تُرَابًا

Inna andharnakum 'adhaban qariba yawma yanzuru al-mar-u ma qaddamat yadahu wa yaqulu al-kafiru ya laytani kuntu turaba

We have warned you of a near punishment, the Day when a man will see what his hands have sent forth, and the disbeliever will say: O, if only I were dust.

The Tafsir · The Breakdown

What The Surah Means

Overview

Surah An-Naba is forty verses, chapter 78 — the opening surah of Juz Amma and a Meccan revelation. Named after the naba al-'azim (the great announcement) in verse 2 — the Day of Resurrection itself. The Quraysh were arguing about this Day, dividing into those who half-believed, those who openly mocked, and those who suspended judgment. The surah cuts through the argument with a single structural move: invoke the order of creation as the evidence for the order of resurrection.

Five movements. Verses 1–5 name the argument and the verdict: they will know. Verses 6–16 list sixteen signs of divine arrangement in the world they already inhabit. Verses 17–20 describe the Day — Trumpet, throngs, sky as gateways, mountains as mirage. Verses 21–30 describe the destination of the transgressors: Hell lying in wait, the recompense suited to the deed, the underlying disposition of denial. Verses 31–36 describe the triumph of the muttaqun: gardens, grapevines, the full cup, no idle talk. Verses 37–40 close with the sovereignty of the Most Merciful and the disbeliever's final wish: if only I were dust.

About the great announcement. The signs. The Trumpet. The two destinations. The Spirit and angels in rows. The door open: whoever wills may take to his Lord a return. The disbeliever's closing wish: if only I were dust. The work of this life is becoming the man welcomed, not regretted, on that Day.

Verses 1–5 · The Great Announcement

About what are they asking? About the great announcement. No, they will know. Then no, they will know.

'Amma yatasa-alun: about what are they asking one another? The surah opens with a question. The classical scholars note: the question is rhetorical. The argument is so loud, so widespread, that Allah names it as the topic of mutual interrogation among the Quraysh.

'Ani an-naba-i al-'azim: about the great news. Naba is news of grave importance. Al-'azim means immense, mighty. The combination indicates a piece of news whose scale dwarfs every other. The Day of Resurrection is the great news. Everything else is small news.

Kalla saya'lamun, thumma kalla saya'lamun: no — they will come to know. Then no — they will come to know. The doubled kalla and the doubled saya'lamun. The repetition is intentional. The knowing is not optional. It is structural. The argument ends when the knowing arrives.

Verses 6–16 · The Sixteen Signs

The earth as bed. The mountains as pegs. Pairs. Sleep as rest. Night as garment. Day for livelihood. Seven heavens. Blazing lamp. Pouring rain. Grain. Gardens.

Alam naj'al al-arda mihada, wal-jibala awtada: did We not make the earth a bed, and the mountains as pegs? Mihad — a flattened, prepared resting place. Awtad — the tent pegs that stabilize. The image is of a habitable surface deliberately arranged, secured by mountain anchors. Modern geology confirms the function: mountain roots extending deep into the crust stabilize tectonic plates.

Wa khalaqnakum azwaja, wa ja'alna nawmakum subata: We created you in pairs, and made your sleep subat. Subat — cessation, a small death. The arrangement of complementary pairs and the daily rhythm of unconsciousness for restoration. Both designed.

The sixteen signs continue: the night as libas (garment, covering), the day for ma'ash (livelihood), the seven firm heavens, the blazing lamp (the sun), the pouring rain from clouds, the grains and vegetation, the gardens of dense growth. The implicit argument: the One who arranged all of this for your daily survival has arranged the Day of Resurrection. Both are part of the same divine system.

Sixteen signs. The One who arranged this arranged the Day. The order of creation is the evidence for the order of resurrection.

Verses 17–20 · The Day Described

The Day of Decision is an appointed time. The Trumpet. The throngs. The sky as gateways. The mountains as mirage.

Inna yawma al-fasli kana miqata: the Day of Decision is an appointed time. Yawm al-fasl — the Day of Separation, when the criteria that distinguished people in this life are finalized. Miqat — the fixed appointment. The Day is on the schedule.

Yawma yunfakhu fi as-suri fa-ta-tuna afwaja: the Day the Trumpet is blown and you will come in throngs. Afwaja — groups, throngs. The hadith literature describes humanity rising in groups, each according to its disposition and deeds.

Wa suyyirat al-jibalu fa-kanat saraba: the mountains are set in motion, becoming mirage. The most solid features of the dunya become illusion. The verse compresses the dissolution of stability into a single image.

Verses 21–30 · The Destination of the Transgressors

Hell lying in wait. A recompense suited to the deed. They did not expect the accounting. They denied with utter denial.

Inna jahannama kanat mirsada: indeed, Hell has been lying in wait. Mirsad — an ambush, a position of watching. The Fire is not a passive destination; it is described as actively waiting.

Jaza-an wifaqa: a recompense suited to the deed. Wifaq — matching, equivalent. The recompense is calibrated, not arbitrary. The punishment matches the crime.

Innahum kanu la yarjuna hisaba, wa kadhdhabu bi-ayatina kidhdhaba: they were not expecting an accounting, and denied Our verses with utter denial. Two verses naming the disposition that produced the destination. The verb raja' means to hope for, to fear, to expect. They neither hoped for nor feared the hisab. They denied the verses with kidhdhab — intense lying.

Wa kulla shay-in ahsaynahu kitaba: all things We have enumerated in a record. Every single thing was counted. There is no escape through forgetting, because nothing has been forgotten.

Hell lying in wait. The recompense matched. The disposition: not expecting the accounting, denying the verses. Audit yourself by the same measure.

Verses 31–36 · The Triumph of the Muttaqun

A place of triumph. Gardens. Grapevines. A full cup. No idle talk. A gift suited to the deeds.

Inna lil-muttaqina mafaza: indeed, for the righteous is a mafaza. Mafaza — a place of triumph, deliverance, success. The same root as fawz — the great victory. The destination is named in terms of arrival, not relief.

Hada-iqa wa a'naba, wa kawa'iba atraba, wa ka-san dihaqa: gardens, grapevines, companions of equal age, a full cup. The classical scholars are careful with these images: they are real, not metaphorical, but their reality exceeds what these earthly words can carry. The garden is more than the garden you can imagine.

La yasma'una fiha laghwan wa la kidhdhaba: they will not hear therein idle talk or lying. The verbal environment is purified. Laghw — empty speech, fluff. Kidhdhab — lying, deception. Both removed.

Jaza-an min Rabbika 'ata-an hisaba: a recompense from your Lord, a gift suited to the deeds. The reward is both earned (jaza) and given ('ata). The combination is the divine generosity: what you have earned is given as if it were a gift.

Gardens. Grapevines. Full cups. No idle talk. No lying. A reward both earned and given. A mafaza after the long journey.

Verses 37–40 · The Closing Sovereignty

Lord of the heavens and the earth. They cannot address Him. The Spirit and angels in rows. That is the true Day. Whoever wills, may take to his Lord a return. If only I were dust.

Rabbi as-samawati wal-ardi wa ma baynahuma ar-Rahman, la yamlikuna minhu khitaba: Lord of the heavens and the earth and what is between, the Most Merciful — they cannot have authority to address Him. The total sovereignty named. No one initiates speech with Allah on that Day. The silence is structural.

Yawma yaqumu ar-Ruhu wal-mala-ikatu saffa: the Day the Spirit and the angels stand in rows. Ar-Ruh is commonly identified by the scholars as Jibril alongside the angelic hosts. They stand in saff — perfect rows — and they too do not speak except by permission.

Dhalika al-yawmu al-haqq, faman sha-a ittakhadha ila Rabbihi ma-aba: that is the true Day. So whoever wills may take to his Lord a return. The verse leaves the door open. The choice is still available — for now. Ma-ab — a place of return. Take it to Him.

Wa yaqulu al-kafiru ya laytani kuntu turaba: the disbeliever will say: O, if only I were dust. The most desperate utterance in the Quran. Better never to have existed than to be the man seeing this. The wish is not granted. The accounting proceeds.

The disbeliever's closing wish: if only I were dust. The most desperate utterance in the Quran. The work of this life is to never become the man speaking this sentence.

Structural Summary

Forty Verses. The Great News.

Verses 1–5The ArgumentAbout the great announcement, concerning which they disagree. No, they will know — then no, they will know.

Verses 6–16The Sixteen SignsEarth as bed. Mountains as pegs. Pairs. Sleep. Night. Day. Seven heavens. The lamp. The rain. The gardens.

Verses 17–20The DayTrumpet. Throngs. Sky as gateways. Mountains as mirage. The Day of Decision is an appointed time.

Verses 21–30The TransgressorsHell lying in wait. Recompense suited. They were not expecting the accounting; they denied with denial.

Verses 31–36The MuttaqunGardens. Grapevines. Full cups. No idle talk. A reward both earned and given.

Verses 37–40The ClosingSovereignty. Spirit and angels in rows. The door open: take to your Lord a return. If only I were dust.

Why This Surah Is For You

An-Naba is the surah of structure. The argument is precise: the Day is not a leap of imagination but an extension of the same divine order you already inhabit. Verses 6–16 are the daily reminder. Look at the bed of the earth, the pegs of the mountains, the rhythm of sleep, the covering of night, the labor of day. The same hand arranged the Day.

Verses 27–28 are the diagnostic of the underlying disease. Innahum kanu la yarjuna hisaba, wa kadhdhabu bi-ayatina kidhdhaba. They were not expecting an accounting, and denied Our verses with utter denial. Apply this honestly. Where in your operating life are you behaving as if no hisab is coming? The behavior reveals the underlying expectation. The man who genuinely expects the accounting acts accordingly.

Verse 40 is the closing weight. The disbeliever's wish: if only I were dust. The work of this life is to never become the man speaking this sentence. The verse names what is at stake — not pleasure, not punishment as bargain, but the question of whether you would rather have never existed than to face what you built.

The Practice · Daily Integration

Forty Verses. The Door Is Open.

Seven verses per day spoken aloud — installed in six days. An-Naba opens Juz Amma and sets the cadence for the entire juz. Pair it with An-Nazi'at (79), its neighbor.

Carry verses 6–16 as the daily audit of the world. The bed. The pegs. The pairs. The sleep. The night. The day. The seven heavens. The lamp. The rain. The gardens. Sixteen signs. Recognize them as the work of a single hand.

Carry verses 27–28 as the diagnostic. Are you operating as a man who expects the hisab? If not, the denial is functional regardless of stated belief.

Carry verse 39 — faman sha-a ittakhadha ila Rabbihi ma-aba — as the standing invitation. The door is open. Take the return. Today.

Carry verse 40 as the final weight. The disbeliever's wish. Live so that you never reach for it.

About the great announcement. The signs are around you. The Trumpet is coming. The Spirit and angels in rows. The door is open. Whoever wills, may take to his Lord a return. Do not become the man wishing he were dust.

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.

Verses 1–51 / 20

The Verse

عَمَّ يَتَسَآءَلُونَ ۝ عَنِ النَّبَإِ الْعَظِيمِ ۝ الَّذِي هُمْ فِيهِ مُخْتَلِفُونَ ۝ كَلَّا سَيَعْلَمُونَ ۝ ثُمَّ كَلَّا سَيَعْلَمُونَ

'Amma yatasa-alun · 'Ani an-naba-i al-'azim · Alladhi hum fihi mukhtalifun · Kalla saya'lamun · Thumma kalla saya'lamun

What is the naba al-'azim?