The surah that opens with a three-part oath of the Divine One, who swears by the sky studded with The Houses, by the assurance that the Day of Resurrection shall come, and by His Own Universal Witness, which beholds all, that the believers shall have their reward, and the unbelievers their punishment, in the Hereafter. It takes is name from “the houses” (burūj) mentioned in verse 1, normally understood in conjunction to the constellations. The surah strengthened the heart of the Prophet Muhammad and his followers by referring to the fate of those who tortured earlier believers. The title expresses God’s power over the whole universe, from the stars in the sky to the evildoers referred to in this surah. Indeed, His all-encompassing power is a recurring theme throughout the surah.The surah is also known as: Signs of the Zodiac, The Constellations, The Houses of the Zodiac, The Towering Constellations, Zodiacal Signs.
1
وَالسَّماءِ ذاتِ البُروجِ
wa-s-samāʾi dhāti l-burūji
By the sky with its houses,
2
وَاليَومِ المَوعودِ
wa-l-yawmi l-mawʿūdi
by the Promised Day,
3
وَشاهِدٍ وَمَشهودٍ
wa-shāhidin wa-mashhūdin
by the Witness1 and the Witnessed:2That is the Prophet (ṣ); cf. 2:143; 4:41; 16:89; 33:45.That is, the Day of Judgement; cf. 11:103.
4
قُتِلَ أَصحابُ الأُخدودِ
qutila ʾaṣḥābu l-ʾukhdūdi
perish the Men of the Ditch!
5
النّارِ ذاتِ الوَقودِ
an-nāri dhāti l-waqūdi
The fire, abounding in fuel,
6
إِذ هُم عَلَيها قُعودٌ
ʾidh hum ʿalayhā quʿūdun
above which they sat
7
وَهُم عَلىٰ ما يَفعَلونَ بِالمُؤمِنينَ شُهودٌ
wa-hum ʿalā mā yafʿalūna bi-l-muʾminīna shuhūdun
as they were themselveswitnesses to what they did to the faithful.
8
وَما نَقَموا مِنهُم إِلّا أَن يُؤمِنوا بِاللَّهِ العَزيزِ الحَميدِ
wa-mā naqamū minhum ʾillā ʾan yuʾminū bi-llāhi l-ʿazīzi l-ḥamīdi
They were vindictive towards them onlybecause they had faith in Allah,the All-mighty, the All-laudable,
9
الَّذي لَهُ مُلكُ السَّماواتِ وَالأَرضِ ۚ وَاللَّهُ عَلىٰ كُلِّ شَيءٍ شَهيدٌ
alladhī lahū mulku s-samāwāti wa-l-ʾarḍi wa-llāhu ʿalā kulli shayʾin shahīdun
to whom belongs the kingdom of the heavensand the earth,and Allah is witness to all things.
10
إِنَّ الَّذينَ فَتَنُوا المُؤمِنينَ وَالمُؤمِناتِ ثُمَّ لَم يَتوبوا فَلَهُم عَذابُ جَهَنَّمَ وَلَهُم عَذابُ الحَريقِ
ʾinna lladhīna fatanū l-muʾminīna wa-l-muʾmināti thumma lam yatūbū fa-lahum ʿadhābu jahannama wa-lahum ʿadhābu l-ḥarīqi
Indeed those who persecutethe faithful men and women,and then do not repent,for them there is the punishment of hell,and for them there is the punishment of burning.
11
إِنَّ الَّذينَ آمَنوا وَعَمِلُوا الصّالِحاتِ لَهُم جَنّاتٌ تَجري مِن تَحتِهَا الأَنهارُ ۚ ذٰلِكَ الفَوزُ الكَبيرُ
ʾinna lladhīna ʾāmanū wa-ʿamilū ṣ-ṣāliḥāti lahum jannātun tajrī min taḥtihā l-ʾanhāru dhālika l-fawzu l-kabīru
Indeed those who have faith and do righteous deeds,—for them will be gardenswith streams running in them.That is the supreme success.
12
إِنَّ بَطشَ رَبِّكَ لَشَديدٌ
ʾinna baṭsha rabbika la-shadīdun
Indeed your Lord’s striking is severe.
13
إِنَّهُ هُوَ يُبدِئُ وَيُعيدُ
ʾinnahū huwa yubdiʾu wa-yuʿīdu
It is indeed He who originates and brings back again,
14
وَهُوَ الغَفورُ الوَدودُ
wa-huwa l-ghafūru l-wadūdu
and He is the All-forgiving, the All-affectionate,
15
ذُو العَرشِ المَجيدُ
dhū-l-ʿarshi l-majīdu
Lord of the Throne, the All-glorious,1Or ‘Lord of the Glorious Throne,’ in accordance with an alternate reading.
16
فَعّالٌ لِما يُريدُ
faʿʿālun li-mā yurīdu
doer of what He desires.
17
هَل أَتاكَ حَديثُ الجُنودِ
hal ʾatāka ḥadīthu l-junūdi
Did you receive the story of the hosts
18
فِرعَونَ وَثَمودَ
firʿawna wa-thamūda
of Pharaoh and Thamūd?
19
بَلِ الَّذينَ كَفَروا في تَكذيبٍ
bali lladhīna kafarū fī takdhībin
Rather the faithless dwell in denial,
20
وَاللَّهُ مِن وَرائِهِم مُحيطٌ
wa-llāhu min warāʾihim muḥīṭun
and Allah besieges them from all around.
21
بَل هُوَ قُرآنٌ مَجيدٌ
bal huwa qurʾānun majīdun
Rather it is a glorious Qurʾān,
22
في لَوحٍ مَحفوظٍ
fī lawḥin maḥfūẓin
in a preserved tablet.