سُورَةُ الانفِطَارِ
Surah 82 - Al-Infitaar
The Cleaving
- 19 verses
- Juz 30
- Page 587 of the Mushaf
Al-Infitaar holds in nineteen verses. Four clauses open the text, all built alike: the sky torn, the stars scattered, the seas mingled, the graves turned over. The fifth gives what follows, each one then knowing what he has put forward and what he has put off. The text next speaks to man directly: it asks him what deceived him about his Lord, then recalls that he was created, set right, and put in the form intended. The denial is noted, and guardians are named, scribes who know what is done. The end sets two dwellings against each other, asks the same question twice about the day of Reckoning, and answers it in the last verse.
The main parts
The text of the surah
بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ إِذَا ٱلسَّمَآءُ ٱنفَطَرَتْ
When the sky breaks apart
وَإِذَا ٱلْكَوَاكِبُ ٱنتَثَرَتْ
And when the stars fall, scattering,
وَإِذَا ٱلْبِحَارُ فُجِّرَتْ
And when the seas are erupted
وَإِذَا ٱلْقُبُورُ بُعْثِرَتْ
And when the [contents of] graves are scattered,
عَلِمَتْ نَفْسٌۭ مَّا قَدَّمَتْ وَأَخَّرَتْ
A soul will [then] know what it has put forth and kept back.
يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلْإِنسَٰنُ مَا غَرَّكَ بِرَبِّكَ ٱلْكَرِيمِ
O mankind, what has deceived you concerning your Lord, the Generous,
ٱلَّذِى خَلَقَكَ فَسَوَّىٰكَ فَعَدَلَكَ
Who created you, proportioned you, and balanced you?
فِىٓ أَىِّ صُورَةٍۢ مَّا شَآءَ رَكَّبَكَ
In whatever form He willed has He assembled you.
كَلَّا بَلْ تُكَذِّبُونَ بِٱلدِّينِ
No! But you deny the Recompense.
وَإِنَّ عَلَيْكُمْ لَحَٰفِظِينَ
And indeed, [appointed] over you are keepers,
كِرَامًۭا كَٰتِبِينَ
Noble and recording;
يَعْلَمُونَ مَا تَفْعَلُونَ
They know whatever you do.
إِنَّ ٱلْأَبْرَارَ لَفِى نَعِيمٍۢ
Indeed, the righteous will be in pleasure,
وَإِنَّ ٱلْفُجَّارَ لَفِى جَحِيمٍۢ
And indeed, the wicked will be in Hellfire.
يَصْلَوْنَهَا يَوْمَ ٱلدِّينِ
They will [enter to] burn therein on the Day of Recompense,
وَمَا هُمْ عَنْهَا بِغَآئِبِينَ
And never therefrom will they be absent.
وَمَآ أَدْرَىٰكَ مَا يَوْمُ ٱلدِّينِ
And what can make you know what is the Day of Recompense?
ثُمَّ مَآ أَدْرَىٰكَ مَا يَوْمُ ٱلدِّينِ
Then, what can make you know what is the Day of Recompense?
يَوْمَ لَا تَمْلِكُ نَفْسٌۭ لِّنَفْسٍۢ شَيْـًۭٔا ۖ وَٱلْأَمْرُ يَوْمَئِذٍۢ لِّلَّهِ
It is the Day when a soul will not possess for another soul [power to do] a thing; and the command, that Day, is [entirely] with Allah.
Key verses of the surah
The call to man, which swings the text from the setting to a face to face.
يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلْإِنسَٰنُ مَا غَرَّكَ بِرَبِّكَ ٱلْكَرِيمِ
O mankind, what has deceived you concerning your Lord, the Generous,
The verse that names noble scribes, at the heart of the passage on the guardians.
كِرَامًۭا كَٰتِبِينَ
Noble and recording;
The last verse: no soul can do anything there for another, and the command goes back to Allah.
يَوْمَ لَا تَمْلِكُ نَفْسٌۭ لِّنَفْسٍۢ شَيْـًۭٔا ۖ وَٱلْأَمْرُ يَوْمَئِذٍۢ لِّلَّهِ
It is the Day when a soul will not possess for another soul [power to do] a thing; and the command, that Day, is [entirely] with Allah.
What is surah Al-Infitaar about?
Of an account kept without the knowledge of the one who owes it. The text opens the sky, opens the graves, then questions man about his assurance and tells him his deeds are written down. It holds one short movement, with no story and no rule.
What does surah Al-Infitaar say about the guardians?
Three verses, 10 to 12, and three traits only: they watch, they write, they know what is done. The text says neither their number nor where what they write goes. They come right after the denial, as its answer.
How is surah Al-Infitaar built?
In four short moves: a setting that comes apart, a question put in the second person, a note on what is written down, then two destinations. The repeat of verse 17 at verse 18, bar one word, marks the text's one point of emphasis.
How does surah Al-Infitaar end?
With a question asked, then asked again in the same terms, with no definition given in between. The last verse answers with one thing only: no one there has anything to give for another, and the decision belongs to Allah.
Why is surah Al-Infitaar called that?
“Al-Infitaar” means the tearing, the cleaving. The name comes from the first verse, where the sky is torn open; it is also the first of the four upheavals that open the surah. The word does not come back elsewhere in the text.
How many verses does surah Al-Infitaar have?
Surah Al-Infitaar has 19 verses. It stands at number 82 in the order of the Mushaf, which holds 114.
The Arabic text is that of the Mushaf. The summary, the outline and the answers on this page describe the text and how it is built: they are not religious commentary.