Al-Muddaththir
سُورَةُ المُدَّثِّرِ
بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ
In the name of Allah, the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful.
About Surah Al-Muddaththir
Meccan · 56 verses
Main Themes
The early call to prophethood, warning of the Day of Judgement, the nineteen guardians of Hell, purification of the heart
Significance
Al-Muddaththir (The One Wrapped in Garments) is considered by some scholars to be the first surah revealed after Al-Alaq, containing the first explicit command to "warn" (74:2) — signalling the transition from private revelation to public mission. The surah establishes the moral requirements for the one who carries the divine message: purity of garments as a symbol of purity of character, distance from filth, and sincerity devoid of expectation of return.
Key Verse Explained
Ayah 38–39 ("Every soul for what it has earned will be retained, except the companions of the right") presents the day of complete personal accountability — each soul held by its own deeds. Scholars note that the exception of "companions of the right" does not mean they escape review but that their record is ultimately met with mercy. The nineteen guardians of Hell mentioned in Ayah 30 generated extensive early Islamic theological discussion and served as one of the early contexts of Islamic-Jewish theological dialogue.
Related Practices
The command "And your garments purify" (74:4) is interpreted by scholars as referring to both physical purification (which grounds the Islamic emphasis on ritual cleanliness, tahara) and metaphorical purity of character. The surah's description of the sinner who "denies and turns away" (74:23) is widely cited in Islamic sermons on the psychology of rejection of truth.
بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ يَا أَيُّهَا الْمُدَّثِّرُ 1
O you who covers himself [with a garment],
قُمْ فَأَنْذِرْ 2
Arise and warn
وَرَبَّكَ فَكَبِّرْ 3
And your Lord glorify
وَثِيَابَكَ فَطَهِّرْ 4
And your clothing purify
وَالرُّجْزَ فَاهْجُرْ 5
And uncleanliness avoid
وَلَا تَمْنُنْ تَسْتَكْثِرُ 6
And do not confer favor to acquire more
وَلِرَبِّكَ فَاصْبِرْ 7
But for your Lord be patient.
فَإِذَا نُقِرَ فِي النَّاقُورِ 8
And when the trumpet is blown,
فَذَٰلِكَ يَوْمَئِذٍ يَوْمٌ عَسِيرٌ 9
That Day will be a difficult day
عَلَى الْكَافِرِينَ غَيْرُ يَسِيرٍ 10
For the disbelievers - not easy.
ذَرْنِي وَمَنْ خَلَقْتُ وَحِيدًا 11
Leave Me with the one I created alone
وَجَعَلْتُ لَهُ مَالًا مَمْدُودًا 12
And to whom I granted extensive wealth
وَبَنِينَ شُهُودًا 13
And children present [with him]
وَمَهَّدْتُ لَهُ تَمْهِيدًا 14
And spread [everything] before him, easing [his life].
ثُمَّ يَطْمَعُ أَنْ أَزِيدَ 15
Then he desires that I should add more.
كَلَّا ۖ إِنَّهُ كَانَ لِآيَاتِنَا عَنِيدًا 16
No! Indeed, he has been toward Our verses obstinate.
سَأُرْهِقُهُ صَعُودًا 17
I will cover him with arduous torment.
إِنَّهُ فَكَّرَ وَقَدَّرَ 18
Indeed, he thought and deliberated.
فَقُتِلَ كَيْفَ قَدَّرَ 19
So may he be destroyed [for] how he deliberated.
ثُمَّ قُتِلَ كَيْفَ قَدَّرَ 20
Then may he be destroyed [for] how he deliberated.
ثُمَّ نَظَرَ 21
Then he considered [again];
ثُمَّ عَبَسَ وَبَسَرَ 22
Then he frowned and scowled;
ثُمَّ أَدْبَرَ وَاسْتَكْبَرَ 23
Then he turned back and was arrogant
فَقَالَ إِنْ هَٰذَا إِلَّا سِحْرٌ يُؤْثَرُ 24
And said, "This is not but magic imitated [from others].
إِنْ هَٰذَا إِلَّا قَوْلُ الْبَشَرِ 25
This is not but the word of a human being."
سَأُصْلِيهِ سَقَرَ 26
I will drive him into Saqar.
وَمَا أَدْرَاكَ مَا سَقَرُ 27
And what can make you know what is Saqar?
لَا تُبْقِي وَلَا تَذَرُ 28
It lets nothing remain and leaves nothing [unburned],
لَوَّاحَةٌ لِلْبَشَرِ 29
Blackening the skins.
عَلَيْهَا تِسْعَةَ عَشَرَ 30
Over it are nineteen [angels].
وَمَا جَعَلْنَا أَصْحَابَ النَّارِ إِلَّا مَلَائِكَةً ۙ وَمَا جَعَلْنَا عِدَّتَهُمْ إِلَّا فِتْنَةً لِلَّذِينَ كَفَرُوا لِيَسْتَيْقِنَ الَّذِينَ أُوتُوا الْكِتَابَ وَيَزْدَادَ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا إِيمَانًا ۙ وَلَا يَرْتَابَ الَّذِينَ أُوتُوا الْكِتَابَ وَالْمُؤْمِنُونَ ۙ وَلِيَقُولَ الَّذِينَ فِي قُلُوبِهِمْ مَرَضٌ وَالْكَافِرُونَ مَاذَا أَرَادَ اللَّهُ بِهَٰذَا مَثَلًا ۚ كَذَٰلِكَ يُضِلُّ اللَّهُ مَنْ يَشَاءُ وَيَهْدِي مَنْ يَشَاءُ ۚ وَمَا يَعْلَمُ جُنُودَ رَبِّكَ إِلَّا هُوَ ۚ وَمَا هِيَ إِلَّا ذِكْرَىٰ لِلْبَشَرِ 31
And We have not made the keepers of the Fire except angels. And We have not made their number except as a trial for those who disbelieve - that those who were given the Scripture will be convinced and those who have believed will increase in faith and those who were given the Scripture and the believers will not doubt and that those in whose hearts is hypocrisy and the disbelievers will say, "What does Allah intend by this as an example?" Thus does Allah leave astray whom He wills and guides whom He wills. And none knows the soldiers of your Lord except Him. And mention of the Fire is not but a reminder to humanity.
كَلَّا وَالْقَمَرِ 32
No! By the moon
وَاللَّيْلِ إِذْ أَدْبَرَ 33
And [by] the night when it departs
وَالصُّبْحِ إِذَا أَسْفَرَ 34
And [by] the morning when it brightens,
إِنَّهَا لَإِحْدَى الْكُبَرِ 35
Indeed, the Fire is of the greatest [afflictions]
نَذِيرًا لِلْبَشَرِ 36
As a warning to humanity -
لِمَنْ شَاءَ مِنْكُمْ أَنْ يَتَقَدَّمَ أَوْ يَتَأَخَّرَ 37
To whoever wills among you to proceed or stay behind.
كُلُّ نَفْسٍ بِمَا كَسَبَتْ رَهِينَةٌ 38
Every soul, for what it has earned, will be retained
إِلَّا أَصْحَابَ الْيَمِينِ 39
Except the companions of the right,
فِي جَنَّاتٍ يَتَسَاءَلُونَ 40
[Who will be] in gardens, questioning each other
عَنِ الْمُجْرِمِينَ 41
About the criminals,
مَا سَلَكَكُمْ فِي سَقَرَ 42
[And asking them], "What put you into Saqar?"
قَالُوا لَمْ نَكُ مِنَ الْمُصَلِّينَ 43
They will say, "We were not of those who prayed,
وَلَمْ نَكُ نُطْعِمُ الْمِسْكِينَ 44
Nor did we used to feed the poor.
وَكُنَّا نَخُوضُ مَعَ الْخَائِضِينَ 45
And we used to enter into vain discourse with those who engaged [in it],
وَكُنَّا نُكَذِّبُ بِيَوْمِ الدِّينِ 46
And we used to deny the Day of Recompense
حَتَّىٰ أَتَانَا الْيَقِينُ 47
Until there came to us the certainty."
فَمَا تَنْفَعُهُمْ شَفَاعَةُ الشَّافِعِينَ 48
So there will not benefit them the intercession of [any] intercessors.
فَمَا لَهُمْ عَنِ التَّذْكِرَةِ مُعْرِضِينَ 49
Then what is [the matter] with them that they are, from the reminder, turning away
كَأَنَّهُمْ حُمُرٌ مُسْتَنْفِرَةٌ 50
As if they were alarmed donkeys
فَرَّتْ مِنْ قَسْوَرَةٍ 51
Fleeing from a lion?
بَلْ يُرِيدُ كُلُّ امْرِئٍ مِنْهُمْ أَنْ يُؤْتَىٰ صُحُفًا مُنَشَّرَةً 52
Rather, every person among them desires that he would be given scriptures spread about.
كَلَّا ۖ بَلْ لَا يَخَافُونَ الْآخِرَةَ 53
No! But they do not fear the Hereafter.
كَلَّا إِنَّهُ تَذْكِرَةٌ 54
No! Indeed, the Qur'an is a reminder
فَمَنْ شَاءَ ذَكَرَهُ 55
Then whoever wills will remember it.
وَمَا يَذْكُرُونَ إِلَّا أَنْ يَشَاءَ اللَّهُ ۚ هُوَ أَهْلُ التَّقْوَىٰ وَأَهْلُ الْمَغْفِرَةِ 56
And they will not remember except that Allah wills. He is worthy of fear and adequate for [granting] forgiveness.