Surah At-Tur

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 · At-Tur

﷽١﷾

وَٱلطُّورِ

Wat-Tur

By the Mount.

﷽٢﷾

وَكِتَٰبٍۢ مَّسْطُورٍۢ

Wa kitabin mastur

And by a Book inscribed.

﷽٣﷾

فِى رَقٍّۢ مَّنشُورٍۢ

Fi raqqin manshur

On a parchment unrolled.

﷽٤﷾

وَٱلْبَيْتِ ٱلْمَعْمُورِ

Wal-bayti al-ma'mur

And by the frequented house.

﷽٥﷾

وَٱلسَّقْفِ ٱلْمَرْفُوعِ

Was-saqfi al-marfu'

And by the canopy raised high.

﷽٦﷾

وَٱلْبَحْرِ ٱلْمَسْجُورِ

Wal-bahri al-masjur

And by the sea filled and swollen.

﷽٧﷾

إِنَّ عَذَابَ رَبِّكَ لَوَٰقِعٌۭ

Inna 'adhaba Rabbika lawaqi'

The punishment of your Lord will occur.

﷽٨﷾

مَّا لَهُۥ مِن دَافِعٍۢ

Ma lahu min dafi'

There is nothing to repel it.

﷽٩﷾

يَوْمَ تَمُورُ ٱلسَّمَآءُ مَوْرًۭا

Yawma tamuru as-sama'u mawra

On the Day the sky sways in a violent motion.

﷽١٠﷾

وَتَسِيرُ ٱلْجِبَالُ سَيْرًۭا

Wa tasiru al-jibalu sayra

And the mountains move away.

﷽١١﷾

فَوَيْلٌۭ يَوْمَئِذٍۢ لِّلْمُكَذِّبِينَ

Fawaylun yawma'idhin lil-mukadhdhibin

Woe that Day to the deniers.

﷽١٢﷾

ٱلَّذِينَ هُمْ فِى خَوْضٍۢ يَلْعَبُونَ

Alladhina hum fi khawdin yal'abun

Those who are playing in their vain talk.

﷽١٣﷾

يَوْمَ يُدَعُّونَ إِلَىٰ نَارِ جَهَنَّمَ دَعًّا

Yawma yuda''una ila nari jahannama da''a

On the Day they are shoved into the fire of Hell with a shove.

﷽١٤﷾

هَٰذِهِ ٱلنَّارُ ٱلَّتِى كُنتُم بِهَا تُكَذِّبُونَ

Hadhihi an-naru allati kuntum biha tukadhdhibun

This is the Fire you used to deny.

﷽١٥﷾

أَفَسِحْرٌ هَٰذَآ أَمْ أَنتُمْ لَا تُبْصِرُونَ

Afasihrun hadha am antum la tubsirun

Is this magic, or do you not see?

﷽١٦﷾

ٱصْلَوْهَا فَٱصْبِرُوٓا۟ أَوْ لَا تَصْبِرُوا۟ سَوَآءٌ عَلَيْكُمْ ۖ إِنَّمَا تُجْزَوْنَ مَا كُنتُمْ تَعْمَلُونَ

Islawha fasbiru aw la tasbiru sawa'un 'alaykum, innama tujzawna ma kuntum ta'malun

Enter it. Be patient with it or do not. It is the same for you. You are only being repaid for what you used to do.

﷽١٧﷾

إِنَّ ٱلْمُتَّقِينَ فِى جَنَّٰتٍۢ وَنَعِيمٍۢ

Inna al-muttaqina fi jannatin wa na'im

The God-conscious are in gardens and delight.

﷽١٨﷾

فَٰكِهِينَ بِمَآ ءَاتَىٰهُمْ رَبُّهُمْ وَوَقَىٰهُمْ رَبُّهُمْ عَذَابَ ٱلْجَحِيمِ

Fakihina bima atahum Rabbuhum wa waqahum Rabbuhum 'adhaba al-jahim

Enjoying what their Lord has given them, and their Lord has shielded them from the punishment of the Blaze.

﷽١٩﷾

كُلُوا۟ وَٱشْرَبُوا۟ هَنِيٓـًٔۢا بِمَا كُنتُمْ تَعْمَلُونَ

Kulu washrabu hani'an bima kuntum ta'malun

Eat and drink in enjoyment for what you used to do.

﷽٢٠﷾

مُتَّكِـِٔينَ عَلَىٰ سُرُرٍۢ مَّصْفُوفَةٍۢ ۖ وَزَوَّجْنَٰهُم بِحُورٍ عِينٍۢ

Muttaki'ina 'ala sururin masfufah, wa zawwajnahum bihurin 'in

Reclining on couches arranged in rows, and We pair them with companions of wide lovely eyes.

﷽٢١﷾

وَٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ وَٱتَّبَعَتْهُمْ ذُرِّيَّتُهُم بِإِيمَٰنٍ أَلْحَقْنَا بِهِمْ ذُرِّيَّتَهُمْ وَمَآ أَلَتْنَٰهُم مِّنْ عَمَلِهِم مِّن شَىْءٍۢ ۚ كُلُّ ٱمْرِئٍۭ بِمَا كَسَبَ رَهِينٌۭ

Walladhina amanu wattaba'at-hum dhurriyyatuhum bi-imanin alhaqna bihim dhurriyyatahum wa ma alatnahum min 'amalihim min shay', kullu imri'in bima kasaba rahin

Those who believed and whose descendants followed them in faith, We join their descendants to them, and We deprive them of nothing from their deeds. Every man is held in pledge for what he earned.

﷽٢٢﷾

وَأَمْدَدْنَٰهُم بِفَٰكِهَةٍۢ وَلَحْمٍۢ مِّمَّا يَشْتَهُونَ

Wa amdadnahum bifakihatin wa lahmin mimma yashtahun

And We supply them with fruit and meat from whatever they desire.

﷽٢٣﷾

يَتَنَٰزَعُونَ فِيهَا كَأْسًۭا لَّا لَغْوٌۭ فِيهَا وَلَا تَأْثِيمٌۭ

Yatanaza'una fiha ka'san la laghwun fiha wa la ta'thim

They pass a cup between them there, with no idle talk in it and no sin.

﷽٢٤﷾

۞ وَيَطُوفُ عَلَيْهِمْ غِلْمَانٌۭ لَّهُمْ كَأَنَّهُمْ لُؤْلُؤٌۭ مَّكْنُونٌۭ

Wa yatufu 'alayhim ghilmanun lahum ka'annahum lu'lu'un maknun

Boys of their own go round them, as if they were pearls kept hidden.

﷽٢٥﷾

وَأَقْبَلَ بَعْضُهُمْ عَلَىٰ بَعْضٍۢ يَتَسَآءَلُونَ

Wa aqbala ba'duhum 'ala ba'din yatasa'alun

They turn to one another, asking questions.

﷽٢٦﷾

قَالُوٓا۟ إِنَّا كُنَّا قَبْلُ فِىٓ أَهْلِنَا مُشْفِقِينَ

Qalu inna kunna qablu fi ahlina mushfiqin

They say: we used to be, among our people, afraid.

﷽٢٧﷾

فَمَنَّ ٱللَّهُ عَلَيْنَا وَوَقَىٰنَا عَذَابَ ٱلسَّمُومِ

Famanna Allahu 'alayna wa waqana 'adhaba as-samum

So Allah favored us and shielded us from the punishment of the scorching wind.

﷽٢٨﷾

إِنَّا كُنَّا مِن قَبْلُ نَدْعُوهُ ۖ إِنَّهُۥ هُوَ ٱلْبَرُّ ٱلرَّحِيمُ

Inna kunna min qablu nad'uh, innahu huwa al-Barru ar-Rahim

We used to call upon Him before. He is the Good, the Merciful.

﷽٢٩﷾

فَذَكِّرْ فَمَآ أَنتَ بِنِعْمَتِ رَبِّكَ بِكَاهِنٍۢ وَلَا مَجْنُونٍ

Fadhakkir fama anta bini'mati Rabbika bikahin wa la majnun

So remind. You are not, by the favor of your Lord, a soothsayer or a madman.

﷽٣٠﷾

أَمْ يَقُولُونَ شَاعِرٌۭ نَّتَرَبَّصُ بِهِۦ رَيْبَ ٱلْمَنُونِ

Am yaquluna sha'irun natarabbasu bihi rayba al-manun

Or do they say: a poet, for whom we await the misfortune of time?

﷽٣١﷾

قُلْ تَرَبَّصُوا۟ فَإِنِّى مَعَكُم مِّنَ ٱلْمُتَرَبِّصِينَ

Qul tarabbasu fa-inni ma'akum mina al-mutarabbisin

Say: wait, for I am with you among those waiting.

﷽٣٢﷾

أَمْ تَأْمُرُهُمْ أَحْلَٰمُهُم بِهَٰذَآ ۚ أَمْ هُمْ قَوْمٌۭ طَاغُونَ

Am ta'muruhum ahlamuhum bihadha am hum qawmun taghun

Or do their minds command them this, or are they a transgressing people?

﷽٣٣﷾

أَمْ يَقُولُونَ تَقَوَّلَهُۥ ۚ بَل لَّا يُؤْمِنُونَ

Am yaquluna taqawwalah, bal la yu'minun

Or do they say he invented it? Rather, they do not believe.

﷽٣٤﷾

فَلْيَأْتُوا۟ بِحَدِيثٍۢ مِّثْلِهِۦٓ إِن كَانُوا۟ صَٰدِقِينَ

Falya'tu bihadithin mithlihi in kanu sadiqin

Then let them produce a statement like it, if they are truthful.

﷽٣٥﷾

أَمْ خُلِقُوا۟ مِنْ غَيْرِ شَىْءٍ أَمْ هُمُ ٱلْخَٰلِقُونَ

Am khuliqu min ghayri shay'in am humu al-khaliqun

Were they created by nothing, or are they the creators?

﷽٣٦﷾

أَمْ خَلَقُوا۟ ٱلسَّمَٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضَ ۚ بَل لَّا يُوقِنُونَ

Am khalaqu as-samawati wal-ard, bal la yuqinun

Or did they create the heavens and the earth? Rather, they are not certain.

﷽٣٧﷾

أَمْ عِندَهُمْ خَزَآئِنُ رَبِّكَ أَمْ هُمُ ٱلْمُصَۣيْطِرُونَ

Am 'indahum khaza'inu Rabbika am humu al-musaytirun

Or do they hold the treasuries of your Lord, or are they the controllers?

﷽٣٨﷾

أَمْ لَهُمْ سُلَّمٌۭ يَسْتَمِعُونَ فِيهِ ۖ فَلْيَأْتِ مُسْتَمِعُهُم بِسُلْطَٰنٍۢ مُّبِينٍ

Am lahum sullamun yastami'una fih, falya'ti mustami'uhum bisultanin mubin

Or do they have a ladder by which they listen in? Then let their listener bring a clear authority.

﷽٣٩﷾

أَمْ لَهُ ٱلْبَنَٰتُ وَلَكُمُ ٱلْبَنُونَ

Am lahu al-banatu wa lakumu al-banun

Or does He have the daughters and you the sons?

﷽٤٠﷾

أَمْ تَسْـَٔلُهُمْ أَجْرًۭا فَهُم مِّن مَّغْرَمٍۢ مُّثْقَلُونَ

Am tas'aluhum ajran fahum min maghramin muthqalun

Or do you ask them a fee, so they are burdened by debt?

﷽٤١﷾

أَمْ عِندَهُمُ ٱلْغَيْبُ فَهُمْ يَكْتُبُونَ

Am 'indahumu al-ghaybu fahum yaktubun

Or do they hold the unseen, so they are writing it down?

﷽٤٢﷾

أَمْ يُرِيدُونَ كَيْدًۭا ۖ فَٱلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا۟ هُمُ ٱلْمَكِيدُونَ

Am yuriduna kayda, falladhina kafaru humu al-makidun

Or do they intend a plot? Those who disbelieved are the ones plotted against.

﷽٤٣﷾

أَمْ لَهُمْ إِلَٰهٌ غَيْرُ ٱللَّهِ ۚ سُبْحَٰنَ ٱللَّهِ عَمَّا يُشْرِكُونَ

Am lahum ilahun ghayru Allah, subhana Allahi 'amma yushrikun

Or do they have a god other than Allah? Glory to Allah above what they associate.

﷽٤٤﷾

وَإِن يَرَوْا۟ كِسْفًۭا مِّنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ سَاقِطًۭا يَقُولُوا۟ سَحَابٌۭ مَّرْكُومٌۭ

Wa in yaraw kisfan mina as-sama'i saqitan yaqulu sahabun markum

If they saw a fragment of the sky falling, they would say: clouds piled up.

﷽٤٥﷾

فَذَرْهُمْ حَتَّىٰ يُلَٰقُوا۟ يَوْمَهُمُ ٱلَّذِى فِيهِ يُصْعَقُونَ

Fadharhum hatta yulaqu yawmahumu alladhi fihi yus'aqun

So leave them until they meet their Day, on which they will be struck down.

﷽٤٦﷾

يَوْمَ لَا يُغْنِى عَنْهُمْ كَيْدُهُمْ شَيْـًۭٔا وَلَا هُمْ يُنصَرُونَ

Yawma la yughni 'anhum kayduhum shay'an wa la hum yunsarun

A Day when their plotting will avail them nothing, and they will not be helped.

﷽٤٧﷾

وَإِنَّ لِلَّذِينَ ظَلَمُوا۟ عَذَابًۭا دُونَ ذَٰلِكَ وَلَٰكِنَّ أَكْثَرَهُمْ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ

Wa inna lilladhina zalamu 'adhaban duna dhalika wa lakinna aktharahum la ya'lamun

For those who wronged there is a punishment before that, but most of them do not know.

﷽٤٨﷾

وَٱصْبِرْ لِحُكْمِ رَبِّكَ فَإِنَّكَ بِأَعْيُنِنَا ۖ وَسَبِّحْ بِحَمْدِ رَبِّكَ حِينَ تَقُومُ

Wasbir lihukmi Rabbika fa-innaka bi-a'yunina, wa sabbih bihamdi Rabbika hina taqum

So be patient for the decision of your Lord, for you are before Our eyes. And glorify your Lord with praise when you arise.

﷽٤٩﷾

وَمِنَ ٱلَّيْلِ فَسَبِّحْهُ وَإِدْبَٰرَ ٱلنُّجُومِ

Wa mina al-layli fasabbihhu wa idbara an-nujum

And in the night glorify Him, and at the retreat of the stars.

The Tafsir · The Breakdown

What The Surah Means

Overview

Surah At-Tur is forty-nine verses, chapter 52, Makki. It opens with five oaths sworn on a mountain, a written book, a frequented house, a raised canopy, and a swollen sea, and it closes by telling one man that he is under direct observation and should keep standing.

The center of the surah is a run of questions aimed at people who had run out of arguments. Al-Bukhari records that Jubayr ibn Mut'im heard the Prophet ﷺ reciting these verses in Maghrib while he was still a disbeliever, and said that his heart was about to fly. Verse 35 is the reason.

Were they created by nothing, or are they the creators. Two options, both absurd, and no third one offered.

Verses 1–16 · The Oaths and the Falling

By the Mount, and a Book inscribed, and the frequented house, and the raised canopy, and the swollen sea.

Five oaths, and each one is a fixed structure. A mountain, a written text, a house, a ceiling, a sea. Nothing in the list moves.

Inna 'adhaba Rabbika lawaqi', ma lahu min dafi': the punishment of your Lord will occur, and there is nothing to repel it. That is the entire content the five oaths support.

Yawma tamuru as-sama'u mawra wa tasiru al-jibalu sayra: the day the sky sways in a violent motion and the mountains move away. The fixed things in the oath list are the things described as unfixed on that Day.

Fadhalika yawma'idhin al-mukadhdhibin: so woe that day to the deniers, who are in their vain talk playing. Then the address, isbaruha aw la tasbiru sawa'un 'alaykum, be patient with it or do not, it is the same for you. The choice normally offered is withdrawn.

Five things that do not move, sworn on, to establish a day when nothing holds still.

Verses 17–28 · The Descendants Follow

We will join their descendants with them, and We will not deprive them of anything from their deeds.

Walladhina amanu wattaba'at-hum dhurriyyatuhum bi-iman alhaqna bihim dhurriyyatahum wa ma alatnahum min 'amalihim min shay': those who believed and whose descendants followed them in faith, We join the descendants to them without reducing anything from their deeds.

Ibn Kathir carries the position that the children are raised to the rank of the parents by the parents' honor, without the parents losing anything, which is the plain reading of the second half of the verse.

Kullu imri'in bima kasaba rahin: every man is held in pledge for what he earned. The verse that grants family reunion is followed immediately by the verse that individualizes the account. Both are true and neither cancels the other.

The passage then describes the gardens, and it is worth noticing what is said there. Qalu inna kunna qablu fi ahlina mushfiqin: they say, we used to be, among our people, afraid. Their reward is described in the language of a fear that has ended.

The family is joined and the account is still individual. The reunion does not cost the parent anything.

Verses 29–34 · The Accusations

So remind, for you are not, by the favor of your Lord, a soothsayer or a madman.

Fadhakkir fama anta bi-ni'mati Rabbika bikahin wa la majnun: the same defense as Al-Qalam and the same construction, by the favor of your Lord.

Am yaquluna sha'irun natarabbasu bihi rayba al-manun: do they say a poet for whom we await the misfortune of time. The strategy is stated openly. Wait for him to die, then the problem resolves itself.

Qul tarabbasu fa-inni ma'akum mina al-mutarabbisin: say, wait, for I am with you among those waiting. The reply accepts the terms and joins them in the waiting, which is the most confident answer available.

Am ta'muruhum ahlamuhum bihadha am hum qawmun taghun: do their minds command them this, or are they a transgressing people. The Quran names the two possible sources of their position, a reasoned conclusion or a disposition, and then verse 34 calls the bluff. Falya'tu bihadithin mithlih in kanu sadiqin. Let them produce a statement like it, if they are truthful.

Their plan was to outlive him. He told them he was waiting alongside them.

Verses 35–43 · The Question Nobody Answers

Were they created by nothing, or are they the creators?

Am khuliqu min ghayri shay'in am humu al-khaliqun: two options are offered. Either you came from nothing at all with no cause, or you made yourselves. The verse does not argue past that point because there is nowhere past it to go.

Am khalaqu as-samawati wal-ard, bal la yuqinun: or did they create the heavens and the earth. Rather, they are not certain. The conclusion drawn is not that they have a rival theory. It is that they lack certainty.

Am 'indahum khaza'inu Rabbika am humu al-musaytirun: or do they possess the treasuries of your Lord, or are they the controllers.

The run continues through eight more questions. A ladder they climb to eavesdrop, daughters assigned to Him and sons to themselves, a fee being charged that burdens them with debt, knowledge of the unseen being written down, a plot being run. Each is stated and left standing.

Am lahum ilahun ghayru Allah, subhana Allahi 'amma yushrikun: or do they have a god other than Allah. The series ends where it began, and no answer has been supplied by anyone in fourteen centuries.

Created by nothing, or the creators. Everything after that is the same question asked in different clothes.

Verses 44–49 · You Are Before Our Eyes

So be patient for the decision of your Lord, for you are before Our eyes.

Wa in yaraw kisfan mina as-sama'i saqitan yaqulu sahabun markum: if they saw a fragment of the sky falling they would say, clouds piled up. The verse describes a mind that will reinterpret anything, which is why the argument is closed rather than continued.

Fadharhum hatta yulaqu yawmahumu alladhi fihi yus'aqun: leave them until they meet their day. The instruction to stop negotiating with the audience, exactly as Al-Ma'arij ends.

Wasbir li-hukmi Rabbika fa-innaka bi-a'yunina: be patient for the decision of your Lord, for you are before Our eyes. Bi-a'yunina, in Our eyes, under Our observation. The command to endure is paired with the reason a man can endure, which is that the enduring is being watched.

Wa sabbih bihamdi Rabbika hina taqum, wa mina al-layli fasabbihhu wa idbara an-nujum: glorify Him when you arise, and in the night, and at the retreat of the stars. The surah ends with a schedule rather than a sentiment.

Be patient, because you are being watched while you do it. Then a schedule, and the surah closes.

Structural Summary

Forty-Nine Verses. You Are Before Our Eyes.

Verses 1–16The OathsFive fixed things sworn on, to establish a Day when the sky sways and the mountains move.

Verses 17–24The GardensThe God-conscious at ease, saying they used to be afraid among their people.

Verses 21The JoiningDescendants who followed in faith are joined to them, with nothing deducted, and every man still held in pledge.

Verses 29–34The AccusationsSoothsayer, madman, poet. Their plan was to outlast him, and he joined them in the waiting.

Verses 35–43The QuestionsCreated by nothing or the creators, and eleven more questions with no answer supplied.

Verses 44–47The ReinterpretationThey would call a falling sky a bank of clouds, so leave them to their day.

Verses 48–49The CommandBe patient, you are before Our eyes. Glorify Him when you rise, in the night, and as the stars retreat.

Why This Surah Is For You

Verse 35 is the most compact argument in scripture and it is worth memorizing in Arabic. Two options are offered, created by nothing or self created, and the third option is the one the verse leaves you to say yourself. Al-Bukhari records a man saying his heart was about to fly when he heard it.

Verse 48 is the answer to why patience is possible. Fa-innaka bi-a'yunina. Not be patient because it will pay off. Be patient because the enduring itself is under observation. That changes what patience is for.

Verse 30 names a strategy used against anyone who builds something that outlives a news cycle. Wait for time to take him. The reply in verse 31 is the model. Do not argue with it, agree to wait, and keep working.

Verse 21 is the verse for a man raising children into this. The descendants who followed in faith are joined to the parents, and the parents lose nothing. Then the next line individualizes the account so nobody coasts. Both halves belong together.

The Practice · Daily Integration

Forty-Nine Verses. Keep Standing.

Memorize verse 35 in Arabic. It is the shortest complete argument you will ever carry, and it fits in one breath.

When you are waiting on a verdict, recite verse 48. The endurance is being watched, which is the point of it.

Take the schedule in verse 49 literally. On rising, in the night, and as the stars retreat.

Stop arguing with people who reinterpret everything. Verse 44 describes them and verse 45 gives the instruction.

Were they created by nothing, or are they the creators. Be patient, because you are before His eyes.

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 / 98

The Verse

وَٱلطُّورِ

Wat-Tur

What does verse 1 say?