Sura al-Takwir
This article is an introduction to the Sura al-Takwir; to read its text see text:Sura al-Takwir.| 'Abas | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Sura Number | 81 |
| Juz' | 30 |
| Revelation | |
| Revelation Number | 7 |
| Makki/Madani | Makki |
| Information | |
| Verse Count | 29 |
| Word Count | 104 |
| Letter Count | 434\ |
Sūra al-Takwīr (Arabic: سُورَة التَکْویر) or Sūra Kuwwirat (Arabic: سورَة کُوِّرَت) is the eighty first sura of the Qur'an. It is a Makki sura of the Qur'an in the thirtieth juz' of the Qur'an. The word, "al-takwir", literally means to be convoluted and darkened. The title comes from the first verse of the sura. Sura al-Takwir is about the signs of the resurrection, the happenings on the day of the resurrection, the greatness of the Qur'an, and its influence.
A well-known verse of this sura is its ninth verse concerning the tradition of burying baby girls alive during the Age of Ignorance period, asking "for what sin she was slain?".
According to some hadiths, if one recites Sura al-Takwir, God will protect him or her against shames when the record of their actions is opened on the day of resurrection.
Introduction
- Naming
The title of sura is "al-Takwir" or "Kuwwirat", because the word, "kuwwirat" (whose infinitive is "takwir") has occurred in its first verse. "Al-Takwir" literally means "convolution, twist, being folded up, or being darkened".[1]
- Place and Order of Revelation
Sura al-Takwir is a Makki sura of the Qur'an and the seventh sura which was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad (s). In the present compilation of the Qur'an, the sura is the eighty first sura,[2] located in juz' thirty.
- Number of Verses and Other Features
Sura al-Takwir has twenty nine verses, 104 words, and 434 letters. With respect to its length, it counts as one of the mufassalat sura of the Qur'an (the ones with numerous short verses). In verses fifteen to eighteen of the sura, God swears to starts, the night, and the morning.[3]
Content
The content of the sura implies that it was revealed early after the Prophet's (s) bi'tha, because it rejects the accusations against the Prophet (s) made by polytheists.[4] The content of the sura can be divided into two main parts:
- The signs of the day of resurrection and its events: early verses of the sura are concerned with the signs of the resurrection and developments at the end of this world,[5] such as the sun being convoluted and twisted, the stars falling down, the mountains moving because of a strong earthquake, and people being immensely horrified.
- The greatness of the Qur'an and the exaltation of Jabra'il (Gabriel): the second part of the sura is concerned with the greatness of the Qur'an and the person who brought it down, as well as its influence on people's souls.[6] According to this part, the Qur'an was revealed to the Prophet (s) by a trusted messenger who is not penetrable by the Satan unlike what polytheists had claimed.[7]
| Truth of Quranic teachings about seeing one's actions on the day of resurrection | |||||||||||||||
| First topic: verses 1-14 Stages of observing one's actions | Second topic: verses 15-29 All Quranic teachings are true and are revealed by God | ||||||||||||||
| First stage: verses 1-6 The collapse of the present order of the world | First point: verses 15-26 Proof for the Quranic teachings being revealed by God | ||||||||||||||
| Second stage: verses 7-14 The setup of the Court of Divine Justice | Second point: verses 27-29 Truth-seekers being guided by the Qur'an | ||||||||||||||
Famous Verses
Condemnation of Burying-Alive the Girls:
| “ | "And when the girl buried-alive will be asked (8) for what sin she was killed.(9)" | ” |
| — Qur'an 81:8-9 | ||
It is said that these verses are concerned with a tradition in the Age of Ignorance: some people buried their newborn baby girls alive, lest they would cause any shames when they grew up.[9] According to exegetes of the Qur'an, during the age of ignorance, when a woman was about to give birth to her baby, her man dug a hole in the ground and had the woman sit on it. If the baby was a girl, he threw her into the hole, and if it was a boy, he kept him alive.[10]
Some hadiths have provided a very broad interpretation of the verse, which includes any sort of cutting off one's family ties (contrary to silat al-rahim) or cutting off one's love of Ahl al-Bayt (a). So, people will be punished in the afterlife if they cut off their family ties or do not love Ahl al-Bayt (a). When Imam al-Baqir (a) was asked about this verse, he said: "it refers to people who are killed because they loved us".[11]
Merites and Benefites
It is said that if one recites this sura, they will be protected against any shames when receiving the record of their actions. One will also be protected against any betrayals. It is also recommended to recite the sura in order to improve the pain or damage in one's eye.
External Links
Notes
- ↑ Khurramshāhī, Dānishnāma-yi Qurʾān, vol. 2, p. 1261.
- ↑ Maʿrifat, Āmūzish-i ʿulūm-i Qurʾān, vol. 1, p. 166.
- ↑ Khurramshāhī, Dānishnāma-yi Qurʾān, vol. 2, p. 1261.
- ↑ Ṭabāṭabāyī, al-Mīzān, vol. 20, p. 213.
- ↑ Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i nimūna, vol. 26, p. 166.
- ↑ Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i nimūna, vol. 26, p. 166.
- ↑ Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i nimūna, vol. 26, p. 193-198.
- ↑ Khamagar, Muhammad, Sakhtar-i suraha-yi Qur'an-i karim, Mu'assisa-yi Farhangi-yi Qur'an wa 'Itrat-i Nur al-Thaqalayn, Qom: Nashra, ed.1, 1392 Sh.
- ↑ Ṭabāṭabāyī, al-Mīzān, vol. 20, p. 214.
- ↑ Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i nimūna, vol. 26, p. 176.
- ↑ Makārim Shīrāzī, Tafsīr-i nimūna, vol. 26, p. 176.
References
- Baḥrānī, Sayyid Hāshim b. Sulaymān. Al-Burhān fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān. Fifteenth edition. Qom: Muʾassisat al-Biʿthat, 1415 AH.
- Khurramshāhī, Bahāʾ al-Dīn. Dānishnāma-yi Qurʾān wa Qurʾān pazhūhī. Tehran: Dūstān-Nāhīd, 1377 Sh.
- Makārim Shīrāzī, Nāṣir. Tafsīr-i nimūna. Tenth edition. Tehran: Dār al-Kutub al-Islāmīyya, 1371 Sh.
- Maʿrifat, Muḥammad Hādī. Āmūzish-i ʿulūm-i Qurʾān. [n.p]: Markaz Chāp wa Nashr-i Sāzmān-i Tablīghāt, 1371 Sh.
- Ṣadūq, Muḥammad b. ʿAlī al-. Thawāb al-aʿmāl wa ʿiqāb al-aʿmāl. Edited by Ṣādiq Ḥasanzāda. Tehran: Armaghān-i Ṭūbā, 1382 Sh.
- Ṭabāṭabāyī, Mūhammad Ḥusayn al-. Al-Mīzān fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān. Second edition. Beirut: Muʾassisat al-Aʿlamī li-l-Maṭbūʿāt, 1974.
- Ṭabrisī, Faḍl b. al-Ḥasan al-. Majmaʿ al-bayān fī tafsīr al-Qurʾān. Edited by Hāshim Rasūlī & Yazdī Ṭabāṭabāyī. Third edition. Tehran: Intishārāt-i Nāṣir Khusru, 1372 Sh.