سُورَةُ النَّاسِ
Surah 114 - An-Naas
Mankind
- 6 verses
- Juz 30
- Page 604 of the Mushaf
An-Naas is the last surah of the Mushaf. Six verses, a single request. The first three name the one with whom refuge is taken, through three titles set one after another without a verb: Lord, Sovereign, divinity - and each is referred to mankind. The last three say what protection is sought from: the one who whispers and withdraws, what he puts into people's breasts, and where he may come from, jinn as well as men. In Arabic the word for mankind ends five of the six verses, and all six rhyme on the same sound.
The main parts
The text of the surah
بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ قُلْ أَعُوذُ بِرَبِّ ٱلنَّاسِ
Say, "I seek refuge in the Lord of mankind,
مَلِكِ ٱلنَّاسِ
The Sovereign of mankind.
إِلَٰهِ ٱلنَّاسِ
The God of mankind,
مِن شَرِّ ٱلْوَسْوَاسِ ٱلْخَنَّاسِ
From the evil of the retreating whisperer -
ٱلَّذِى يُوَسْوِسُ فِى صُدُورِ ٱلنَّاسِ
Who whispers [evil] into the breasts of mankind -
مِنَ ٱلْجِنَّةِ وَٱلنَّاسِ
From among the jinn and mankind."
Key verses of the surah
The last verse of the Mushaf: it extends to two origins, jinn and men, what the surah asks protection against.
مِنَ ٱلْجِنَّةِ وَٱلنَّاسِ
From among the jinn and mankind."
What is surah An-Naas about?
About a request for refuge, like the surah before it, but turned toward a single object. Three verses name the one the request is addressed to, three others name what it is made against. No account, no rule, no other figure appears in it.
What does surah An-Naas ask protection against?
Against one thing only, described over three verses: the one who whispers then slips away, what he lays in people's breasts, and his origin - jinn or men. Where the preceding surah lists four evils, this one names a single one and describes it.
How is surah An-Naas built?
In two blocks of three verses. The first lines up three titles without a verb, each followed by the same word; the second describes what is guarded against in three steps: who, what, whence. The six verses all end on the same sound.
How does surah An-Naas end?
With its sixth verse, which is also the last of the Mushaf. It adds no new evil: it says where the one just described comes from, and holds to two possible origins. The text stops on that word, with no closing formula.
Why is surah An-Naas called that?
“An-Naas” means “Mankind”. The name is taken from the most repeated word of the surah: it ends five of its six verses, beginning with the first (114:1). The Mushaf itself closes on this word.
How many verses does surah An-Naas have?
Surah An-Naas has 6 verses. It stands at number 114 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.