77- Surat Almursalaat/Tafseer

50 Verses Meccan (revealed in Mecca)

A'auzu Bellahi mena alshaiytani alrajeem

I seek refuge in Allah from the accursed Satan

Besmi Ellahi Alrhmani Alraheem

In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

Wal-mursalati urfa (1).

By those that are sent one after the other.

Fal-asifati asfa (2).

And by those that blow violently.

Wal-nashirati nashra (3).

And by those that spread far and wide.

Fal-fariqati farqa (4).

And by those who differntiate, distinctly. 

Fal-mulqiyati zekra (5).

Then bring down the reminder.

Uzran aw nuzra (6).

Providing excuses or giving warning.

Innama tu-aduna la-waqi' (7).

Indeed, what you are promised is sure to occur.

Fa-iza al-nujumu tumisat (8).

So when the stars are obliterated.

Wa-iza alsamau furijat (9).

And when the sky is opened.

Wa-iza aljebalu nusifat (10).

And when the mountains are blown a.way

Wa-iza alrusulu auqqitat (11).

And when the Messengers have been assembled at the appointed time.

Li-ayyi yawmin aujjilat (12).

For what day was it postponed?.

Li-yawmi alfasl (13).

For the day of Judgement.

Wa-ma adraka ma yawmu alfasl  (14). 

And what will make You know what is the day of judgment?.

Waylun yawma-izin lel-mukazzibeen (15).

Woe, that day, to the deniers.

A-lam nuhliki al-awwaleen (16).

Did We not destroy the former people?.

Thumma nutbe-uhumu al-akhireen (17).

Then We follow them with the later ones.

Ka-zalika naf-alu bel-mujrimeen (18).

Thus do We deal with the criminals.

Waylun yawma-izin lel-mukazzibeen (19).

Woe, that day, to the deniers.

A-lam nakhluqkum men ma-in maheen (20).

Did We not create you from a disdained water.

Fa-ja'lnahu fee qararin makeen (21).

Then We placed it in a firm lodging.

Ila qadarin ma'lum (22).

For a known time.

Fa-qadarna fa-ne'ma Alqadirun (23).

Then we determined, so We are the best to determine.

Waylun yawma-izin lel-mukazzibeen (24).

Woe, that day, to the deniers.

A-lam naj'ali al-arda kifata (25).

Have We not made the earth a container.

Ahya-an wa amwata (26).

Of the living and the dead.

Wa Ja'lna feeha rawasiya shamikhatin wa asqaynakum ma'-an furata (27).

And We placed therein lofty, firmly set mountains, and provided you with sweet water to drink.

Waylun yawma-izin lel-mukazzibeen (28).

Woe, that day, to the deniers.

Intaliqu ila ma kuntum behi tukazzibun (29).

Proceed to what you used to deny it.

Intalequ ila zellin zee thalathi shu-ab (30).

Proceed to a shadow having three branches.

La zalilin wa la yughni mena al-lahab (31).

Having no cool shade and availing not against the flame.

Innaha tarmi be-shararin kal-qasr (32).

Indeed, it throws sparks as logs of wood.

Ka-annahu jimalatun sufr (33).

As if they were black camels.

Waylun yawma-izin lel-mukazzibeen (34).

Woe, that day, to the deniers.

Haza yawmu la yantiqun (35).

This is a day when they will not speak.

Wa-la you'zanu lahum fa-ya'tazirun (36).

Nor will it be permitted for them to make an excuse.

Waylun yawma-izin lel-mukazzibeen (37).

Woe, that day, to the deniers.

Haza yawmu alfasli jama'nakum wa al-awwaleen (38).

This is the day of Judgement, We have assembled you and the former people.

Fa-in kana lakum kaydun fa kedun (39).

So if you have a plan, then Plan against Me.

Waylun yawma-izin lel-mukazzibeen (40).

Woe, that day, to the deniers.

Inna al-muttaqeena fee zilalin wa auyun (41).

Indeed, the righteous will be among shades and springs.

Wa-fawakeha memma yashtahun (42).

And fruits from whatever they desire.

Kulu wa-shrabu hani-an bema kuntum ta'malun (43).

Eat and drink with pleasure for what you used to do.

Inna kazaleka najzee al-muhsineen (44).

Indeed, We thus reward the good doers.

Waylun yawma-izin lel-mukazzibeen (45).

Woe, that day, to the deniers.

Kulu wa-tamattau qalilan innakum mujrimun (46).

Eat and enjoy yourselves a little, indeed, you are criminals.

Waylun yawma-izin lel-mukazzibeen (47).

Woe, that day, to the deniers.

Wa-iza qeela lahumu erkau la yarka-oun (48).

And when it is said to them, Bow, they do not bow.

Waylun yawma-izin lel-mukazzibeen (49).

Woe, that day, to the deniers.

Fa-bi-ayyi hadithin ba'dahu you'menun (50).

Then in which statement, after it, will they believe?.

Simplified interpretation: 

 Surat Almursalaat begins with five oaths concerning two of Allah's soldiers to affirm the inevitability of the day of resurrection, then Allah describes some of its scenes, and He threatens the deniers throughout the Surah with a painful punishment in the Hereafter, as He repeats His saying "Woe, that day, to the deniers" ten times, interspersed with a description of Allah's great ability to create man and the earth, and His favor upon mankind, as well as the conditions of the infidels and the conditions of the righteous in the Hereafter.

 Surat Almursalaat was revealed when the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) was with His companions in a cave, as Abdullah narrated: "While we are with the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) in a cave, Surat Almursalaat was revealed to Him, and He recited it, and I heard it directly from His mouth, as soon as He recited its revelation, suddenly a snake sprang at us, and the Prophet (PBUH) said Kill it, we ran to kill it, but it escaped quickly, the Prophet (PBUH) said it has escaped your evil, and you too have escaped its evil" (Sahih Albukhari 4934).

Allah Almighty says in the first seven verses (1-7) "By those that are sent one after the other, and by those that blow violently, and by those that spread far and wide, and by those who differentiate, distinctly, then bring down the reminder, providing excuses or giving warning, Indeed, what you are promised is sure to occur", that is, Allah swears by by two of His soldiers: the winds and the Angels. He swears by two kinds of winds in the first three verses and by the Angels, who bring two kinds of reminder, in the other three verses, and both carry the tiding of a new life, and the tiding of a painful torment, where the winds sent down the rain which brings good tidings of life to the dead earth as mentioned in Surat Fatir Aya (9) "And it is Allah who sends the winds, and they stir the clouds, and drive them to a dead land and give life thereby to the earth after its lifelessness, thus is the resurrection", similarly it was one of Allah's soldiers for the destruction of the people of Ad as mentioned in Aya (6) of Surat Alhaqqah "And as for Ad, they were destroyed by screaming violent wind", likewise, the Angels descend with the Holy Quran that brings glad tidings of a new life in Paradise or a painful torment in Hellfire. These oaths come to confirm that the day of resurrection will certainly come, so what you are promised through Allah's reminder with which He sent His Angels is sure to occur, and the day of resurrection will inevitably happen, and then it will bring a new life for the righteous and a painful torment for the deniers and the criminals, just as the wind is a bringer of a new life or a cause of destruction and painful torment by which Allah destroys the disbelievers.

Allah Almighty says in the first seven verses (8-14) "So when the stars are obliterated, and when the sky is opened, and when the mountains are blown away, and when the Messengers have been assembled at the appointed time, for what day was it postponed?, for the day of Judgement, and what will make You know what is the day of judgment?", that is, Allah describes some of the scenes of that day, as the stars will be deprived from its light, the sky will be split, the mountains will be removed and it will be as mirage as mentioned in Aya (20) of Surat Alnaba', and the Messengers will be assembled at the appointed time,which is the day of resurrection as Allah says in Aya (69) of Surat Alzumar {And the Prophets and the witnesses will be brought, and it will be judged between them with truth, and they will not be wronged}, then Allah assures that these events are postponed for the day of resurrection, and Allah glorifies the affairs of the day of resurrection saying to His Messenger (PBUH) And what will make You know what is the day of judgment?.

 Allah Almighty says in the next verse (15) "Woe, that day, to the deniers", that is, Allah threatens the deniers, who deny the day of resurrection, for the first time with a painful torment and assures that their recompense will be Hellfire on the day of resurrection where the word woe (Wail) idiomatically carries the meaning of destruction and perishing and means that the torment will be theirs as a recompense for their deeds.

Allah Almighty says in the next four verse (16-19) "Did We not destroy the former people?, then We follow them with the later ones, thus do We deal with the criminals, woe, that day, to the deniers", that is, Allah assures that He has destroyed the previous nations, who belied His Messengers and belied Allah's signs, and destroyed the later ones who follow their path, and it was mentioned throughout the Holy Quran the torment that Allah has inflicted on the previous nations, such as Ad, Hud, and Pharaoh.  Then Allah threatens the deniers again with the painful torment. 

 Allah Almighty says in the next five verse (20-24) "Did We not create you from a disdained water, then We placed it in a firm lodging, for a known time, then we determined, so We are the best to determine, woe, that day, to the deniers", that is, And Allah shows How He created mankind, as He created man from an ejected water, coming out from between the backbone of a man and the ribs of a woman as mentioned in Surat Altariq, then this water settles in the woman's womb until the time of childbirth which Allah Almighty determines, then Allah decrees for him what He wills in his worldly life, and Allah is the best to determine, and then Allah threatens the deniers for the third time with the painful torment because if they have minds they would know that the One who begins creation is Able to repeat it, and that is even easier for Him. 

  Allah Almighty says in the next four verse (25-28) "Have We not made the earth a container, of the living and the dead, and We placed therein lofty, firmly set mountains, and provided you with sweet water to drink, woe, that day, to the deniers", that is, Allah lists some of the blessings that He has bestowed upon mankind, as He made the earth a container for the living who live on its surface, and for the dead who are buried in the graves, and He made therein the lofty and set firmly mountains and made them as pegs to remain anchored as mentioned in Surat Alnaba', and He watered the people sweet water which comes out from wells like Zamzam or from the rivers, and then Allah threatens the deniers for the fourth time who see these signs and persist on their disbelief and stubbornness.

 Allah Almighty says in the next four verse (29-34) "Proceed to what you used to deny it, Proceed to a shadow having three branches, having no cool shade and availing not against the flame, indeed, it throws sparks as logs of wood, as if they were black camels, woe, that day, to the deniers", that is, on the day of resurrection, it will be said to the deniers Go to Hellfire which you used to deny, Go to a shadow having three branches, so it is so hot that smoke rises in three branches, and that smoke is not a cool shade and will not avail you from the flames, and the Fire throws sparks as logs of wood, the word {Qasr} in Arabic means palace, castle, or tower, and most interpretations of this verse said that the sparks of Hellfire will be as large as the palace, but Ibn Abbas said: "We used to collect logs of wood, three cubits long or longer to store for heating purpose in winter, and we used to call it Al-Qasr. {Ka-annahu jemalatun sufr} means the ropes of a ship which are made in bundles till it become as wide as men's waists" (Sahih Albukhari 4933), similarly, the words {Jemalatun sufr} in the following verse have been interpreted differently, some said that they mean the ropes of ship, and others said that they mean the black camels. It makes sense to say that the sparks the size of logs of wood will appear while scattering in the air like the black camels; Because one cubit is 64 centimeters, so the sparks are about one meter ninety-two centimeters or more, based on the statement of Ibn Abbas that the logs of wood were three cubits long or more, and the length of the adult camel ranges from one meter eighty centimeters to two meters, and these logs of wood will look exactly like the black camel and not any other camel because at the very high temperatures, burnt things appear black, and the Hellfire is hottest of all where Allah's Messenger (PBUH) said in narration by Abu Hurayrah: ''This fire of yours which the sons of Adam kindle is one part from seventy parts of the heat of Hellfire, they said by Allah! It would have been enough O Messenger of Allah! He said it is sixty-nine parts more, all of them is like its heat" (Jami' Altirmidhi 2589), then Allah threatens the deniers for the fifth time with the painful torment on the day of resurrection. 

 Allah Almighty says in the next six verse (35-40) "This is a day when they will not speak, nor will it be permitted for them to make an excuse, woe, that day, to the deniers, this is the day of Judgement, We have assembled you and the former people, so if you have a plan, then Plan against Me, woe, that day, to the deniers", that is, on the day of resurrection, the disbelievers will not speak nor will they be permitted to offer excuses, as they will not be able to speak because of the horrors of that day and they can not offer excuses about their denial and stubbornness, and none will be speak on the day of resurrection except he whom Allah grants permission as mentioned in Aya (38) of  Surat Alnaba', then Allah threatens the deniers for the sixth time with the painful torment, and Allah will say to them on the day of resurrection this is the day of Judgement, so what you used to deny has become true, and We have gathered you and the former people from the graves, so if you have a ploy to escape from the torment today, then Try it, and then Allah threatens them for the seventh time with the painful torment.

  Allah Almighty says in the next four verse (41-44) "Indeed, the righteous will be among shades and springs, and fruits from whatever they desire, Eat and drink with pleasure for what you used to do, indeed, We thus reward the good doers", that is, While the criminal will find only smoke, offering them no cool shade nor protection from the flames, the righteous will dwell in shades and by springs, so they will dwell in gardens beneath which rivers flow, and they will find fruits from whatever kind they desire, and it will be said to them Eat and drink delightfully for what you used to do as they believed in Allah, followed the Messengers, and did righteous deeds, so the bliss will be their reward, and thus Allah rewards the good doers, who worship Allah as if they see Him, and if they can not see Him, then Allah sees them, so they act according to Allah's commands and prohibitions.

 Allah Almighty says in the next six verse (45-50) "Woe, that day, to the deniers, Eat and enjoy yourselves a little, indeed, you are criminals, woe, that day, to the deniers, and when it is said to them, Bow, they do not bow, woe, that day, to the deniers, then in which statement, after it, will they believe?", that is, Allah threatens the deniers for the eighth time with the painful torment. then Allah says to them as a threat Eat and enjoy yourselves a little, so Allah assures them that the worldly life is very short period, and its pleasures will quickly fade away, and they will know the consequence of their disbelief on the the day of resurrection, as Allah says to His Messenger (PBUH) in Aya (3) of Surat Alhijr {Let them eat and enjoy and be diverted by hope for they will know}, and then Allah threatens the deniers for the ninth time with the painful torment. The torment will be theirs because they refused to establish prayers and to bow down to Allah, Almighty, so He threatens them for the tenth and the last time with the painful torment, and then Allah says as a denunciation, if they do not believe in the Holy Quran, in which statement do they believe?. 

No one Knows its interpretation except Allah