Overview - Surah 50: Qaf (Qaf)
The Surah emphasizes the theme of resurrection and the ultimate success of those who have faith in Allah and His Prophets.
Sections:
- Nature points out to the Resurrection.
- Allah is closer to us than our life-vein. The death, the end of the world, and the Resurrection.
- The Final judgment.
The Surah takes its name from the first Ayat, ق ۚ وَالْقُرْآنِ الْمَجِيدِ "Qaf. By the honored Qur'an..." (50:1).
There are 45 Ayat in this Surah.
Overview
| Total Ayat | 45 |
| Total Words * | 373 |
| Root Words * | 153 |
| Makki / Madani | Makki |
| Chronological Order* | 34th (according to Ibn Abbas) |
| Year of Revelation* | 5th year of Prophethood |
| Events during/before this Surah*
Physical beating and torture of some Muslims - 1st Migration of Muslims to Abyssinia, Public Invitation to Islam - Persecution of Muslims; antagonism - ridicule - derision - accusation - abuse and false propaganda., Revelation begins - Private Invitation to Islam , Revelation begins - Private Invitation to Islam , Revelation begins - Private Invitation to Islam
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| Events during/after still to occur*
2nd Migration to Abyssinia,Boycott of Banu Hashim Yr 1,Boycott of Banu Hashim Yr 2,Boycott of Banu Hashim Yr 3,Death of Abu Talib - Death of Khadijah - Stoning at Ta'if - al-Isra wal Mi'raj - Night Journey,1st Pledge of Aqabah,2nd Pledge of Aqabah,,Migration from Makkah to Madinah - Building of Masjid Nabi in Madinah - Treaty with Jews of Madinah - Marriage of Prophet to Aishah,Change of Qiblah from Jerusalem to Makkah - Battle of Badr,Battle of Uhud,,Battle of Ahzab - Expedition of Banu Quraydhah,Treaty of Hudaiybiyah - Letters to Kings and Rulers,,Conquest of Makkah - Battle of Hunain,Hajj led by Abu Bakr - Expedition of Tabuk,Farewell Hajj by Prophet - Death of Prophet - End of Divine Revelation
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| Names of Prophets Mentioned
Nuh, Lut
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| Surah Index
‘Aad, God (wills no wrong to His creation) , Angels, Date palms, Dates, Death, Disbelievers (bear what they say in patience) , Earth, Earth (condition of at the time of resurrection) , Earth (creation of) (in six days), Hell, Judgement, Judgement (Day) , Judgement (Day) (riven asunder), Knowledge (obligation upon man to obtain and impart) , Lot, Madyan, Mountains, Noah, Pharaoh, Prayer (prostration) , Prayer (times of day of) , Qur’an, Resurrection (Day) , Resurrection (of soul) , Thamud, Tubba, Weather (rain)
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Theme 1: Ressurection
Authentic traditions show that the Prophet used to recite this Surah generally in the Prayer on the Eid days. A woman named Umm Hisham bin Harithah, who was a neighbour of the Prophet, says that she was able to commit Surah Qaf to memory only because she often heard it from the Prophet in the Friday sermons. According to some other traditions he often recited it in the dawn (Fajr) Prayer. This makes it abundantly clear that this was an important Surah in the sight of the Prophet. That is why he made sure that its contents reached as many people as possible over and over again.
The reason for this importance can be easily understood by a careful study of the Surah. The theme of the entire Surah is the Hereafter. When the Prophet started preaching his message in Makkah what surprised the people most was the news that people would be resurrected after death, and they would have to render an account of their deeds. They said that “that was impossible”; human mind could not believe that would happen. After all, how could it be possible that when the body had disintegrated into dust the scattered particles would be reassembled after hundreds of thousands of years to make up the same body once again and raised up as a living body. God in response sent down this discourse. In it, on the one hand, arguments have been given for the possibility and occurrence of the Hereafter in a brief way, in short sentences, and, on the other, the people have been warned, as if to say: “Whether you express wonder and surprise, or you regard it as something remote from reason, or deny it altogether, in any case it cannot change the truth. The absolute, unalterable truth is that God knows the whereabouts of each and every particle of your body that has scattered away in the earth, and knows where and in what state it is. God’s one signal is enough to make all the scattered particles gather together again and to make you rise up once again as you had been made in the first instance. Likewise, this idea that you have been created and left free to yourselves in the world and that you have not been made answerable to anyone, is no more than a misunderstanding. The fact is that not only is God Himself directly aware of each act and word of yours, even of the ideas that pass in your mind, but His angels also are attached to each one of you, who are preserving the record of whatever you do and utter. When the time comes, you will come out of your graves at one call just as young shoots of vegetable sprout up from the earth on the first shower of the rain. Then this heedlessness which obstructs your vision will be removed and you will see with your own eyes all that you are denying today. At that time you will realise that you had not been created to be irresponsible in this world but accountable to all your deeds. The meting out of the rewards and punishments, the Hell and Heaven, which you regard as impossible and imaginary things, will at that time become visible realities for you. In consequence of your enmity and opposition to the Truth you will be cast into the same Hell which you regard as remote from reason today and the ones who fear the Merciful God and return to the path of righteousness, will be admitted to the same Paradise at whose mention you now express wonder and surprise.
- There is a mention of the word 'Qur'an' in the begining and end of the Surah
ق ۚ وَالْقُرْآنِ الْمَجِيدِ "Qaf. By the honored Qur'an..." (50:1)
نَّحْنُ أَعْلَمُ بِمَا يَقُولُونَ ۖ وَمَا أَنتَ عَلَيْهِم بِجَبَّارٍ ۖ فَذَكِّرْ بِالْقُرْآنِ مَن يَخَافُ وَعِيدِ "We are most knowing of what they say, and you are not over them a tyrant. But remind by the Qur'an whoever fears My threat." (50:45) - Giving life to the dead after death is mentioned in the begining and the end (50:3) (50:43)
Manuscripts / Inscriptions
- The Prophet would recite this Surah in the two Eid salahs along with Surah al-Qamar [Saheeh Muslim]
- Hisham bint Harithah memorised this Surah due to the frequency of the Prophet mentioning it in the Jummah Khutbah.
Total Word Count per Ayat (shows how many words per Ayat) = * | ||
- وَحَدَّثَنَا عَمْرٌو النَّاقِدُ، حَدَّثَنَا يَعْقُوبُ بْنُ إِبْرَاهِيمَ بْنِ سَعْدٍ، حَدَّثَنَا أَبِي، عَنْ مُحَمَّدِ، بْنِ إِسْحَاقَ قَالَ حَدَّثَنِي عَبْدُ اللَّهِ بْنُ أَبِي بَكْرِ بْنِ مُحَمَّدِ بْنِ عَمْرِو بْنِ حَزْمٍ الأَنْصَارِيُّ، عَنْ يَحْيَى بْنِ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ عَبْدِ الرَّحْمَنِ بْنِ سَعْدِ بْنِ زُرَارَةَ، عَنْ أُمِّ هِشَامٍ بِنْتِ حَارِثَةَ بْنِ النُّعْمَانِ، قَالَتْ لَقَدْ كَانَ تَنُّورُنَا وَتَنُّورُ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم وَاحِدًا سَنَتَيْنِ أَوْ سَنَةً وَبَعْضَ سَنَةٍ وَمَا أَخَذْتُ { ق وَالْقُرْآنِ الْمَجِيدِ} إِلاَّ عَنْ لِسَانِ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم يَقْرَؤُهَا كُلَّ يَوْمِ جُمُعَةٍ عَلَى الْمِنْبَرِ إِذَا خَطَبَ النَّاسَ
Umm Hisham bin Harithah bin An-Nu'man said, "Our oven and the oven of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) were the same for two years, or for one year and part of a year. And I only learned "Surah Qaf. By the Glorious Quran" from the tongue of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), who used to recited it every Friday from the Minbar, when he addresses the people." Sahih Muslim no. 1894
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حَدَّثَنَا يَحْيَى بْنُ يَحْيَى، قَالَ قَرَأْتُ عَلَى مَالِكٍ عَنْ ضَمْرَةَ بْنِ سَعِيدٍ الْمَازِنِيِّ، عَنْ عُبَيْدِ اللَّهِ بْنِ عَبْدِ اللَّهِ، أَنَّ عُمَرَ بْنَ الْخَطَّابِ، سَأَلَ أَبَا وَاقِدٍ اللَّيْثِيَّ مَا كَانَ يَقْرَأُ بِهِ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم فِي الأَضْحَى وَالْفِطْرِ فَقَالَ كَانَ يَقْرَأُ فِيهِمَا بِـ { ق وَالْقُرْآنِ الْمَجِيدِ} وَ { اقْتَرَبَتِ السَّاعَةُ وَانْشَقَّ الْقَمَرُ}
'Abdullah b. 'Umar reported that (his father) 'Umar b. Khattab asked Abu Waqid al-Laithi what the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) used to recite on 'Id-ul-Adha and 'Id-ul-Fitr. He said: He used to recite in them:" Qaf. By the Glorious Qur'an" (Surah Qaf)," The Hour drew near, and the moon was rent asunder" (Surah al-Qamar)" Sahih Muslim no. 1936
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حَدَّثَنَا أَبُو بَكْرِ بْنُ أَبِي شَيْبَةَ، حَدَّثَنَا شَرِيكٌ، وَابْنُ، عُيَيْنَةَ ح وَحَدَّثَنِي زُهَيْرُ بْنُ حَرْبٍ، حَدَّثَنَا ابْنُ عُيَيْنَةَ، عَنْ زِيَادِ بْنِ عِلاَقَةَ، عَنْ قُطْبَةَ بْنِ مَالِكٍ، سَمِعَ النَّبِيَّ صلى الله عليه وسلم يَقْرَأُ فِي الْفَجْرِ { وَالنَّخْلَ بَاسِقَاتٍ لَهَا طَلْعٌ نَضِيدٌ}
Qutba b. Malik reported that he had heard the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) reciting in the morning prayer this: " And the tall palm trees having flower spikes piled one above another" (Al-Qur'an (50:10). Sahih Muslim no.921
- Life after death is a reality and there is nothing strange about it.
- Allah has assigned two angels to each person for noting down each single word that he utters.
- Every disbeliever will be thrown into hell and hell shall be asked, "Are you full." Hell will answer, "Are there some more?"
- Admonish people with The Qur'an and bear with them in patience.
Tafsir Zone
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Sayyid Qutb Overview (Verses 16 - 18) A Journey Through Life The second part of the surah continues with the theme of resurrection. It seeks to treat those hearts that deny resurrection from a new angle, but makes some frightening statements. It speaks about the accurate monitoring to which reference has been made in the Prologue. It presents clear images of this monitoring, followed by images of man in the throes of death, then we see the opening of records and the reckoning before we are shown hell opening to receive those destined for it. Whenever a new group of them are thrown into it, it asks whether it can have some more. This is contrasted by the scene of heaven and the honour and favors bestowed on its dwellers. It is a single journey that begins with birth, goes through death and ends with resurrection and deed reckoning. It is a continuous, uninterrupted journey, charting the only way we must travel. Throughout the journey we are in God's hands and under His careful watch. We cannot escape. When we realize this, our hearts are filled with awe and apprehension. How else should we feel realizing that we are in the hands of the Almighty who knows our innermost thoughts and who overlooks nothing? When any of us thinks that the authorities, with all their intelligence and reporters, are after us, following our footsteps, we are perturbed and agitated. We lose our patience and our balance. No matter how widespread and far-reaching the intelligence apparatus is, any of us, however, can escape its attention once we close our door or our mouths. By contrast, God's watchful eye is with us wherever we may be. He monitors what is in our minds and knows all our secrets. What then should we feel, when we realize that we are under such watch, subject to the Almighty's power? Every Little Secret It is We who have created man, and We know what his soul whispers to him. We are closer to him than his jugular vein; with two receptors set to record, one on his right and one on his left, every word he utters [is noted down by] an ever-present watcher. (Verses 16-18) The first clause in these verses, `it is We who have created man' , indicates its message. A person who makes a machine is the one who best knows how it is put together and how it functions. Its maker did not create it, because he is not the one who originated the material used in its making; he is only the one who designed and manufactured it. How does this compare with the Creator who originates all things? Man is made by God's hand, and God knows every little detail about him. Hence He says: "We know what his soul whispers to him." (Verse 16) Thus man realizes that his inner thoughts are laid open. Nothing is hidden. Even the whispers of his soul, secret as these may be, are known to God, in preparation for the Day of Reckoning, which people often deny. "We are closer to him than his jugular vein." (Verse 16) Closer than the vein that transports his blood! This expression clearly describes the hand in control and the direct watch. When man imagines this fact, he is bound to experience a shiver down his spine. If man really understood the import of this statement, he would not dare say a single word that does not please God. He would not even allow a fleeting thought that is contrary to what is acceptable to God. This statement is sufficient to make man careful, always alert. The surah makes the control even stricter, showing man throughout his life as being under the ever-present watch of two angels, on his right and left, who record every move he makes, every word he says and every thought he entertains: "with two receptors set to record, one on his right and one on his left, every word he utters [ is noted down by] an ever-present watcher." (Verses 17-18) We do not know how these two angels record what they monitor. We need not in any case indulge in conjecture. Our attitude towards information that relates to the world beyond our perception is to accept it as it stands, believing in its import without seeking to know more. Such knowledge, were we to gain it, would not be of any use to us. In fact, it remains outside human experience. In our own world, we have come to know some means of recording that could have never been thought possible by our forefathers. Magnetic and video tapes record movement and voice and reproduce them for radio, cinema and television.2 All this happens within our own human environment. Hence, there is no need to try to assign to the angels a method of recording based on our own human experience, which may be totally irrelevant to their realm of which we know only what God has told us. It is enough that we should appreciate this fact, expressed here in a vivid picture, and feel when we are about to make any movement or utter a word that, to our right and left, there are two watchguards taking note of whatever we do or say, entering it in our record which will be presented to God who overlooks nothing. This is a fact, even though we may not understand how it is done. There is no doubt that it takes place, in some form. God has told us about it so that we take it into account, but also so we do not waste time and effort in trying to determine how it is done. Such was the method adopted by people who benefited by the Qur'an and by the Prophet's directives concerning the facts it speaks of. They took to heart what it said and acted on its basis. In a hadith reported by `Alqamah on the authority of Bilal ibn al-Harith, the Prophet is quoted as saying: "A man may say a word that is pleasing to God, without a thought of how far it can reach. God will credit him with His pleasure for it until the Day when he meets Him. Another man may say a word that is displeasing to God, without a thought of how far it can reach. God will record against him His displeasure for it until the Day when he meets Him." (Alqatnah commented: "Many are the words I refrained from saying on account of this hadith." [Related by Ahmad, al-Tirmidhi, al-Nasal and Ibn Majah.] It is reported that when Imam Ahmad was in the throes of death, he moaned in pain. It was said to him that even moans are recorded. He then stopped moaning until he died. In this way, such people practically lived the facts the Qur'an tells us about. |
Ibn Kathir (English)
Sayyid Qutb
Sha'rawi
Al Jalalain
الطبري - جامع البيان
ابن كثير - تفسير القرآن العظيم
القرطبي - الجامع لأحكام
البغوي - معالم التنزيل
ابن أبي حاتم الرازي - تفسير القرآن
ابن عاشور - التحرير والتنوير
ابن القيم - تفسير ابن قيّم
السيوطي - الدر المنثور
الشنقيطي - أضواء البيان
ابن الجوزي - زاد المسير
الآلوسي - روح المعاني
ابن عطية - المحرر الوجيز
الرازي - مفاتيح الغيب
أبو السعود - إرشاد العقل السليم
الزمخشري - الكشاف
البقاعي - نظم الدرر
الهداية إلى بلوغ النهاية — مكي ابن أبي طالب
القاسمي - محاسن التأويل
الماوردي - النكت والعيون
السعدي - تيسير الكريم الرحمن
عبد الرحمن الثعالبي - الجواهر الحسان
السمرقندي - بحر العلوم
أبو إسحاق الثعلبي - الكشف والبيان
الشوكاني - فتح القدير
النيسابوري - التفسير البسيط
أبو حيان - البحر المحيط
البيضاوي - أنوار التنزيل
النسفي - مدارك التنزيل
ابن جُزَيّ - التسهيل لعلوم التنزيل
علي الواحدي النيسابوري - الوجيز
السيوطي - تفسير الجلالين
المختصر في التفسير — مركز تفسير
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- Surah 50. Qaf - Saad al Ghamidi https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WDrJDIXMNbs&list=PLhM2xiAUdw2cAqW_o3zZkbhJNw0bnaBZN&index=50
- Surah 50. Qaf Mahmoud Khalil Al Hussary https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=26E8Qp3LF3c&list=PLxpAkjlGauHfMFWX22VZWOKpzjr-vH_BM&index=50
- Surah 50. Qaf Muhammad Al Luhaydan https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AD7U7keI5BQ&index=50&list=PLxpAkjlGauHfKAYuQLRNAZomoezhfhRZe
- Idris Akbar Surah Qaf https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aYpY1T-JQ34
- Surah 50. Qaf Surah 50. Qaf https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FVDP4Gcwvhw&list=PLxpAkjlGauHdUcO_uc-8F8J2NUQRDZjPG&index=50
