سُورَةُ الشَّرۡحِ
Surah 94 - Ash-Sharh
The Consolation
- 8 verses
- Juz 30
- Page 596 of the Mushaf
Ash-Sharh holds in eight short verses and speaks to one addressee in the singular. It begins with three statements put as questions: a breast opened, a load taken off the back, a name raised. The text then moves to a sentence it says twice in a row, with nothing changed between them: hardship comes with ease. It ends on two short orders to the same addressee: once the task is done, to stand up again; and to turn towards his Lord. The surah holds no account and no rule.
The main parts
The text of the surah
بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ أَلَمْ نَشْرَحْ لَكَ صَدْرَكَ
Did We not expand for you, [O Muhammad], your breast?
وَوَضَعْنَا عَنكَ وِزْرَكَ
And We removed from you your burden
ٱلَّذِىٓ أَنقَضَ ظَهْرَكَ
Which had weighed upon your back
وَرَفَعْنَا لَكَ ذِكْرَكَ
And raised high for you your repute.
فَإِنَّ مَعَ ٱلْعُسْرِ يُسْرًا
For indeed, with hardship [will be] ease.
إِنَّ مَعَ ٱلْعُسْرِ يُسْرًۭا
Indeed, with hardship [will be] ease.
فَإِذَا فَرَغْتَ فَٱنصَبْ
So when you have finished [your duties], then stand up [for worship].
وَإِلَىٰ رَبِّكَ فَٱرْغَب
And to your Lord direct [your] longing.
Key verses of the surah
The opening verse: a question put to the one the text addresses, about what was opened for him.
بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ أَلَمْ نَشْرَحْ لَكَ صَدْرَكَ
Did We not expand for you, [O Muhammad], your breast?
The verse that puts hardship and ease in one sentence; the next one takes it up again.
فَإِنَّ مَعَ ٱلْعُسْرِ يُسْرًا
For indeed, with hardship [will be] ease.
The repeat of verse 5, save for the connecting particle: the surah says the same thing twice.
إِنَّ مَعَ ٱلْعُسْرِ يُسْرًۭا
Indeed, with hardship [will be] ease.
What is surah Ash-Sharh about?
Of a lightening already done and of what comes next. Four verses say what was done for the addressee, two identical verses hold that hardship and ease go together, and two orders tell him what to do afterwards.
Does surah Ash-Sharh repeat a verse?
Yes. Verses 5 and 6 carry the same sentence; in the Arabic text, only the particle opening verse 5 sets them apart. Nothing is added between them: the text states twice over that hardship is attended by ease.
How does surah Ash-Sharh end?
With two orders, in verses 7 and 8: when the task is finished, to stand up again; then to turn towards his Lord. The surah therefore ends on an action asked for, not on an announcement.
How is surah Ash-Sharh built?
In three moves across eight verses: four verses on what was done, two twin verses at the centre, two verses asking for an action. No account, no rule, no proper name.
Why is surah Ash-Sharh called that?
“Ash-Sharh” names the act of opening, of making wide. The name comes from the verb used in the first verse (94:1), which asks whether the breast of the addressee has not been opened for him. The surah is also called by its opening words, which form that question.
How many verses does surah Ash-Sharh have?
Surah Ash-Sharh has 8 verses. It stands at number 94 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.