سُورَةُ المَاعُونِ
Surah 107 - Al-Maa'un
Almsgiving
- 7 verses
- Juz 30
- Page 602 of the Mushaf
Al-Maa'un has seven verses, split into two movements. The first opens on a question, then designates the one it speaks of by two acts: he pushes the orphan away and urges no one to feed the person in need. The second shifts number and moves to the plural: it takes aim at those who pray, and holds three traits against them, stated one after another - a prayer they turn away from, conduct meant to be seen, and a refusal bearing on the object the surah names last. The text tells no scene: it lines up attitudes, three of them about what is not given.
The main parts
The text of the surah
بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ أَرَءَيْتَ ٱلَّذِى يُكَذِّبُ بِٱلدِّينِ
Have you seen the one who denies the Recompense?
فَذَٰلِكَ ٱلَّذِى يَدُعُّ ٱلْيَتِيمَ
For that is the one who drives away the orphan
وَلَا يَحُضُّ عَلَىٰ طَعَامِ ٱلْمِسْكِينِ
And does not encourage the feeding of the poor.
فَوَيْلٌۭ لِّلْمُصَلِّينَ
So woe to those who pray
ٱلَّذِينَ هُمْ عَن صَلَاتِهِمْ سَاهُونَ
[But] who are heedless of their prayer -
ٱلَّذِينَ هُمْ يُرَآءُونَ
Those who make show [of their deeds]
وَيَمْنَعُونَ ٱلْمَاعُونَ
And withhold [simple] assistance.
Key verses of the surah
The verse that opens the second movement and changes who is meant: from singular to plural, from the denier to those who pray.
فَوَيْلٌۭ لِّلْمُصَلِّينَ
So woe to those who pray
The last verse: two words, which name the object withheld and close the text without adding anything.
وَيَمْنَعُونَ ٱلْمَاعُونَ
And withhold [simple] assistance.
What is surah Al-Maa'un about?
Of five attitudes, with no story and no one named. The text starts from a question about the one who calls the Recompense a lie, gives two of his acts, then widens to a group. What links the two halves is what is withheld from others.
What does surah Al-Maa'un say about prayer?
It describes none of its form. Verses 4 to 6 aim at those who pray while turning away from their prayer, and whose conduct is set by the eyes of others. These three verses come right after two acts towards the orphan and the hungry.
How is surah Al-Maa'un built?
In two halves, each held by a relative pronoun. Verses 1 and 2 use one in the singular; verses 5 and 6 use the same in the plural, repeated unchanged at the head of both. The seventh steps out of the pattern and closes the surah.
How does surah Al-Maa'un end?
With a verse of two words, naming a thing of everyday use and saying it is withheld. The word appears only here, and the text stops at once, with no conclusion and no return to what came before.
Why is surah Al-Maa'un called that?
“Al-Maa'un” names a thing of everyday use; translations render it as a utensil or as basic help. The name comes from the seventh and last verse, where the word appears just once. The surah thus bears the name of what is withheld in it.
How many verses does surah Al-Maa'un have?
Surah Al-Maa'un has 7 verses. It stands at number 107 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.