The surah that opens by naming the occurrence of the end of time with the title, The Imminent; for all who deny that it is coming will never belie it when finally it happens. It takes its name from verse 1, which mentions “the Imminent Hour” (al-wāqiʿah) i.e., the Day og Resurrection. The surah whose central message is stated in its opening verses: the Day of Judgement is inevitable and it will sort people into the humiliated and the richly rewarded. As in the previous surah, people are divided into three classes: those brought near to God (the best of the believers), those on the right (the ordinary believers), and those on the left (the disbelievers). Ample proof is given of God’s power and consequently His ability to bring about the Resurrection (verse 57 .).The surah is also known as That Which is Coming, The Indisputable Event, The Inevitable, The Inevitable Event, The Occurrence, The Terror
1
إِذا وَقَعَتِ الواقِعَةُ
ʾidhā waqaʿati l-wāqiʿatu
When the Imminent1 [Hour] befallsThat is, the Day of Resurrection and Judgement.
2
لَيسَ لِوَقعَتِها كاذِبَةٌ
laysa li-waqʿatihā kādhibatun
—there is no denying that it will befall—
3
خافِضَةٌ رافِعَةٌ
khāfiḍatun rāfiʿatun
[it will be] lowering, exalting.1That is, abasing the faithless and raising the faithful in station.
4
إِذا رُجَّتِ الأَرضُ رَجًّا
ʾidhā rujjati l-ʾarḍu rajjan
When the earth is shaken violently,
5
وَبُسَّتِ الجِبالُ بَسًّا
wa-bussati l-jibālu bassan
and the mountains are shattered into bits
6
فَكانَت هَباءً مُنبَثًّا
fa-kānat habāʾan munbathan
and become scattered dust,
7
وَكُنتُم أَزواجًا ثَلاثَةً
wa-kuntum ʾazwājan thalāthatan
you will be three groups:
8
فَأَصحابُ المَيمَنَةِ ما أَصحابُ المَيمَنَةِ
fa-ʾaṣḥābu l-maymanati mā ʾaṣḥābu l-maymanati
The People of the Right Hand—and what are the People of the Right Hand?
9
وَأَصحابُ المَشأَمَةِ ما أَصحابُ المَشأَمَةِ
wa-ʾaṣḥābu l-mashʾamati mā ʾaṣḥābu l-mashʾamati
And the People of the Left Hand—and what are the People of the Left Hand?
10
وَالسّابِقونَ السّابِقونَ
wa-s-sābiqūna s-sābiqūna
And the Foremost Ones are the foremost ones:1Cf. 2:148, 5:48, 23:61, 35:32, 57:21.
11
أُولٰئِكَ المُقَرَّبونَ
ʾulāʾika l-muqarrabūna
they are the ones brought near [to Allah],
12
في جَنّاتِ النَّعيمِ
fī jannāti n-naʿīmi
[who will reside] in the gardens of bliss.
13
ثُلَّةٌ مِنَ الأَوَّلينَ
thullatun mina l-ʾawwalīna
A multitude from the former [generations]1That is, from the communities of the former prophets.
14
وَقَليلٌ مِنَ الآخِرينَ
wa-qalīlun mina l-ʾākhirīna
and a few from the latter ones.
15
عَلىٰ سُرُرٍ مَوضونَةٍ
ʿalā sururin mawḍūnatin
On brocaded couches
16
مُتَّكِئينَ عَلَيها مُتَقابِلينَ
muttakiʾīna ʿalayhā mutaqābilīna
reclining on them, face to face.
17
يَطوفُ عَلَيهِم وِلدانٌ مُخَلَّدونَ
yaṭūfu ʿalayhim wildānun mukhalladūna
They will be waited upon by immortal youths,
18
بِأَكوابٍ وَأَباريقَ وَكَأسٍ مِن مَعينٍ
bi-ʾakwābin wa-ʾabārīqa wa-kaʾsin min maʿīnin
with goblets and ewersand a cup of a clear wine,1Or ‘flowing wine.’
19
لا يُصَدَّعونَ عَنها وَلا يُنزِفونَ
lā yuṣaddaʿūna ʿanhā wa-lā yunzifūna
which neither causes them headachenor stupefaction,
20
وَفاكِهَةٍ مِمّا يَتَخَيَّرونَ
wa-fākihatin mimmā yatakhayyarūna
and such fruits as they prefer
21
وَلَحمِ طَيرٍ مِمّا يَشتَهونَ
wa-laḥmi ṭayrin mimmā yashtahūna
and such flesh of fowls as they desire,
22
وَحورٌ عينٌ
wa-ḥūrun ʿīnun
and big-eyed houris
23
كَأَمثالِ اللُّؤلُؤِ المَكنونِ
ka-ʾamthāli l-luʾluʾi l-maknūni
like guarded pearls,
24
جَزاءً بِما كانوا يَعمَلونَ
jazāʾan bi-mā kānū yaʿmalūna
a reward for what they used to do.
25
لا يَسمَعونَ فيها لَغوًا وَلا تَأثيمًا
lā yasmaʿūna fīhā laghwan wa-lā taʾthīman
They will not hear thereinany vain talk or sinful speech,
26
إِلّا قيلًا سَلامًا سَلامًا
ʾillā qīlan salāman salāman
but only the watchword, ‘Peace!’ ‘Peace!’
27
وَأَصحابُ اليَمينِ ما أَصحابُ اليَمينِ
wa-ʾaṣhābu l-yamīni mā ʾaṣhābu l-yamīni
And the People of the Right Hand—what are the People of the Right Hand?
28
في سِدرٍ مَخضودٍ
fī sidrin makhḍūdin
Amid thornless lote trees
29
وَطَلحٍ مَنضودٍ
wa-ṭalḥin manḍūdin
and clustered spathes1This is according to the reading wa ṭalʿin manḍūd (instead of wa ṭalḥin manḍūd, meaning ‘and clustered plantains’) narrated from Imam ʿAlī and Imam Jaʿfar al-Ṣādiq (ʿa) and Ibn ʿAbbās. (Muʿjam, al-Kashshāf).
30
وَظِلٍّ مَمدودٍ
wa-ẓillin mamdūdin
and extended shade,1Or ‘twilight;’ see the note at 25:45.
31
وَماءٍ مَسكوبٍ
wa-māʾin maskūbin
and ever-flowing water
32
وَفاكِهَةٍ كَثيرَةٍ
wa-fākihatin kathīratin
and abundant fruits,
33
لا مَقطوعَةٍ وَلا مَمنوعَةٍ
lā maqṭūʿatin wa-lā mamnūʿatin
neither inaccessible, nor forbidden,
34
وَفُرُشٍ مَرفوعَةٍ
wa-furushin marfūʿatin
and noble spouses.
35
إِنّا أَنشَأناهُنَّ إِنشاءً
ʾinnā ʾanshaʾnāhunna ʾinshāʾan
We have created them with a special creation,
36
فَجَعَلناهُنَّ أَبكارًا
fa-jaʿalnāhunna ʾabkāran
and made them virgins,
37
عُرُبًا أَترابًا
ʿuruban ʾatrāban
loving, of a like age,
38
لِأَصحابِ اليَمينِ
li-ʾaṣḥābi l-yamīni
for the People of the Right Hand.
39
ثُلَّةٌ مِنَ الأَوَّلينَ
thullatun mina l-ʾawwalīna
A multitude from the former [generations]
40
وَثُلَّةٌ مِنَ الآخِرينَ
wa-thullatun mina l-ʾākhirīna
and a multitude from the latter [ones].
41
وَأَصحابُ الشِّمالِ ما أَصحابُ الشِّمالِ
wa-ʾaṣḥābu sh-shimāli mā ʾaṣḥābu sh-shimāli
And the People of the Left Hand—what are the People of the Left Hand?
42
في سَمومٍ وَحَميمٍ
fī samūmin wa-ḥamīmin
Amid infernal miasma and boiling water
43
وَظِلٍّ مِن يَحمومٍ
wa-ẓillin min yaḥmūmin
and the shadow of a dense black smoke,
44
لا بارِدٍ وَلا كَريمٍ
lā bāridin wa-lā karīmin
neither cool nor beneficial.1Cf. 77:30-31.
45
إِنَّهُم كانوا قَبلَ ذٰلِكَ مُترَفينَ
ʾinnahum kānū qabla dhālika mutrafīna
Indeed they had been affluent before this,
46
وَكانوا يُصِرّونَ عَلَى الحِنثِ العَظيمِ
wa-kānū yuṣirrūna ʿalā l-ḥinthi l-ʿaẓīmi
and they used to persist in the great sin.1That is, shirk. Cf. 31:13.
47
وَكانوا يَقولونَ أَئِذا مِتنا وَكُنّا تُرابًا وَعِظامًا أَإِنّا لَمَبعوثونَ
wa-kānū yaqūlūna ʾa-ʾidhā mitnā wa-kunnā turāban wa-ʿiẓāman ʾa-ʾinnā la-mabʿūthūna
And they used to say,‘What! When we are dead and become dustand bones,shall we be resurrected?
48
أَوَآباؤُنَا الأَوَّلونَ
ʾa-wa-ʾābāʾunā l-ʾawwalūna
And our forefathers too?’
49
قُل إِنَّ الأَوَّلينَ وَالآخِرينَ
qul ʾinna l-ʾawwalīna wa-l-ʾākhirīna
Say, ‘Indeed the former and latter generations
50
لَمَجموعونَ إِلىٰ ميقاتِ يَومٍ مَعلومٍ
la-majmūʿūna ʾilā mīqāti yawmin maʿlūmin
will all be gatheredfor the tryst of a known day.
51
ثُمَّ إِنَّكُم أَيُّهَا الضّالّونَ المُكَذِّبونَ
thumma ʾinnakum ʾayyuhā ḍ-ḍāllūna l-mukadhdhibūna
Then indeed,you, astray deniers,
52
لَآكِلونَ مِن شَجَرٍ مِن زَقّومٍ
la-ʾākilūna min shajarin min zaqqūmin
will surely eat from the Zaqqūm tree
53
فَمالِئونَ مِنهَا البُطونَ
fa-māliʾūna minhā l-buṭūna
and stuff your bellies with it,
54
فَشارِبونَ عَلَيهِ مِنَ الحَميمِ
fa-shāribūna ʿalayhi mina l-ḥamīmi
and drink boiling water on top of it,
55
فَشارِبونَ شُربَ الهيمِ
fa-shāribūna shurba l-hīmi
drinking like thirsty camels.’
56
هٰذا نُزُلُهُم يَومَ الدّينِ
hādhā nuzuluhum yawma d-dīni
Such will be the hospitality they receiveon the Day of Retribution.1Or ‘the Day of Judgement.’
57
نَحنُ خَلَقناكُم فَلَولا تُصَدِّقونَ
naḥnu khalaqnākum fa-law-lā tuṣaddiqūna
We created you.Then why do you not acknowledge it?
58
أَفَرَأَيتُم ما تُمنونَ
ʾa-fa-raʾaytum mā tumnūna
Have you considered the sperm that you emit?
59
أَأَنتُم تَخلُقونَهُ أَم نَحنُ الخالِقونَ
ʾa-ʾantum takhluqūnahū ʾam naḥnu l-khāliqūna
Is it you who create it,or are We the creator?
60
نَحنُ قَدَّرنا بَينَكُمُ المَوتَ وَما نَحنُ بِمَسبوقينَ
naḥnu qaddarnā baynakumu l-mawta wa-mā naḥnu bi-masbūqīna
We have ordained death among you,and We are not to be outmaneuvered
61
عَلىٰ أَن نُبَدِّلَ أَمثالَكُم وَنُنشِئَكُم في ما لا تَعلَمونَ
ʿalā ʾan nubaddila ʾamthālakum wa-nunshiʾakum fī mā lā taʿlamūna
from replacing you with your likesand recreating youin [a realm] you do not know.
62
وَلَقَد عَلِمتُمُ النَّشأَةَ الأولىٰ فَلَولا تَذَكَّرونَ
wa-la-qad ʿalimtumu n-nashʾata l-ʾūlā fa-law-lā tadhakkarūna
Certainly you have known the first genesis,then why do you not take admonition?
63
أَفَرَأَيتُم ما تَحرُثونَ
ʾa-fa-raʾaytum mā taḥruthūna
Have you considered what you sow?
64
أَأَنتُم تَزرَعونَهُ أَم نَحنُ الزّارِعونَ
ʾa-ʾantum tazraʿūnahū ʾam naḥnu z-zāriʿūna
Is it you who make it grow,or are We the grower?
65
لَو نَشاءُ لَجَعَلناهُ حُطامًا فَظَلتُم تَفَكَّهونَ
law nashāʾu la-jaʿalnāhu ḥuṭāman fa-ẓaltum tafakkahūna
If We wish, We surely turn it into chaff,whereat you are left stunned1 [saying to yourselves,]Or ‘regretful.’
66
إِنّا لَمُغرَمونَ
ʾinnā la-mughramūna
‘Indeed we have suffered loss!
67
بَل نَحنُ مَحرومونَ
bal naḥnu maḥrūmūna
Rather we are deprived!’
68
أَفَرَأَيتُمُ الماءَ الَّذي تَشرَبونَ
ʾa-fa-raʾaytumu l-māʾa lladhī tashrabūna
Have you considered the water that you drink?
69
أَأَنتُم أَنزَلتُموهُ مِنَ المُزنِ أَم نَحنُ المُنزِلونَ
ʾa-ʾantum ʾanzaltumūhu mina l-muzni ʾam naḥnu l-munzilūna
Is it you who bring it down from the rain cloud,or is it We who bring [it] down?
70
لَو نَشاءُ جَعَلناهُ أُجاجًا فَلَولا تَشكُرونَ
law nashāʾu jaʿalnāhu ʾujājan fa-law-lā tashkurūna
If We wish We can make it bitter.Then why do you not give thanks?
71
أَفَرَأَيتُمُ النّارَ الَّتي تورونَ
ʾa-fa-raʾaytumu n-nāra llatī tūrūna
Have you considered the fire that you kindle?
72
أَأَنتُم أَنشَأتُم شَجَرَتَها أَم نَحنُ المُنشِئونَ
ʾa-ʾantum ʾanshaʾtum shajaratahā ʾam naḥnu l-munshiʾūna
Was it you who caused its tree to grow,or were We the grower?
73
نَحنُ جَعَلناها تَذكِرَةً وَمَتاعًا لِلمُقوينَ
naḥnu jaʿalnāhā tadhkiratan wa-matāʿan li-l-muqwīna
It was We who made it a reminderand a boon for the desert-dwellers.
74
فَسَبِّح بِاسمِ رَبِّكَ العَظيمِ
fa-sabbiḥ bi-smi rabbika l-ʿaẓīmi
So celebrate the Name of your Lord, the All-supreme.
75
۞ فَلا أُقسِمُ بِمَواقِعِ النُّجومِ
fa-lā ʾuqsimu bi-mawāqiʿi n-nujūmi
So I swear1by the places where2 the stars set!3Or ‘I will not swear.’Or ‘by the times when.’Or ‘by the places where the stars fall.’ Or ‘I swear by the orbits of the stars.’
76
وَإِنَّهُ لَقَسَمٌ لَو تَعلَمونَ عَظيمٌ
wa-ʾinnahū la-qasamun law taʿlamūna ʿaẓīmun
And indeed it is a great oath, should you know.
77
إِنَّهُ لَقُرآنٌ كَريمٌ
ʾinnahū la-qurʾānun karīmun
This is indeed a noble Qurʾān,
78
في كِتابٍ مَكنونٍ
fī kitābin maknūnin
in a guarded Book,1That is, the Preserved Tablet.
79
لا يَمَسُّهُ إِلَّا المُطَهَّرونَ
lā yamassuhū ʾillā l-muṭahharūna
—no one touches it except the pure ones—
80
تَنزيلٌ مِن رَبِّ العالَمينَ
tanzīlun min rabbi l-ʿālamīna
gradually sent down from the Lord of all the worlds.
81
أَفَبِهٰذَا الحَديثِ أَنتُم مُدهِنونَ
ʾa-fa-bi-hādhā l-ḥadīthi ʾantum mudhinūna
What! Do you take lightly this discourse?
82
وَتَجعَلونَ رِزقَكُم أَنَّكُم تُكَذِّبونَ
wa-tajʿalūna rizqakum ʾannakum tukadhdhibūna
And make your denial of it your vocation?1Or ‘livelihood.’ According to the reading tajʿalūna shukrakum, narrated from Imam ʿAli ibn Abī Ṭālib and Imam al-Ṣādiq in al-Tafsīr al-Qummī under this verse, the translation will be ‘You make your denial of it your thanksgiving.’ That is, instead of being grateful for it, you deny it.
83
فَلَولا إِذا بَلَغَتِ الحُلقومَ
fa-law-lā ʾidhā balaghati l-ḥulqūma
So when it1 reaches the throat [of the dying person]That is, the soul, while leaving the body during the death-throes.
84
وَأَنتُم حينَئِذٍ تَنظُرونَ
wa-ʾantum ḥīnaʾidhin tanẓurūna
and at that moment you are looking on
85
وَنَحنُ أَقرَبُ إِلَيهِ مِنكُم وَلٰكِن لا تُبصِرونَ
wa-naḥnu ʾaqrabu ʾilayhi minkum wa-lākin lā tubṣirūna
—and We are nearer to him1 than you are,though you do not perceive—That is, to the dying person.
86
فَلَولا إِن كُنتُم غَيرَ مَدينينَ
fa-law-lā ʾin kuntum ghayra madīnīna
then why do you not, if you are not subject1Or ‘if you are not liable to retribution.’
87
تَرجِعونَها إِن كُنتُم صادِقينَ
tarjiʿūnahā ʾin kuntum ṣādiqīna
[to the Divine dispensation], restore it,should you be truthful?
88
فَأَمّا إِن كانَ مِنَ المُقَرَّبينَ
fa-ʾammā ʾin kāna mina l-muqarrabīna
Then, if he be of those brought near,1That is, of ‘the foremost ones’ mentioned in verses 10-11.
89
فَرَوحٌ وَرَيحانٌ وَجَنَّتُ نَعيمٍ
fa-rawḥun wa-rayḥānun wa-jannatu naʿīmin
then ease, abundance, and a garden of bliss.
90
وَأَمّا إِن كانَ مِن أَصحابِ اليَمينِ
wa-ʾammā ʾin kāna min ʾaṣḥābi l-yamīni
And if he be of the People of the Right Hand,
91
فَسَلامٌ لَكَ مِن أَصحابِ اليَمينِ
fa-salāmun laka min ʾaṣḥābi l-yamīni
then ‘Peace be on you,’[a greeting] from the People of the Right Hand!
92
وَأَمّا إِن كانَ مِنَ المُكَذِّبينَ الضّالّينَ
wa-ʾammā ʾin kāna mina l-mukadhdhibīna ḍ-ḍāllīna
But if he be of the impugners,the astray ones,
93
فَنُزُلٌ مِن حَميمٍ
fa-nuzulun min ḥamīmin
then a treat of boiling water
94
وَتَصلِيَةُ جَحيمٍ
wa-taṣliyatu jaḥīmin
and entry into hell.1Or ‘roasting in hell.’
95
إِنَّ هٰذا لَهُوَ حَقُّ اليَقينِ
ʾinna hādhā la-huwa ḥaqqu l-yaqīni
Indeed this is certain truth.
96
فَسَبِّح بِاسمِ رَبِّكَ العَظيمِ
fa-sabbiḥ bi-smi rabbika l-ʿaẓīmi
So celebrate the Name of your Lord, the All-supreme!