وَٱلسَّمَآءِ وَٱلطَّارِقِ
By the sky and the knocker
By the heaven and the nightly star!
At-Tariq · Surah 86 of 114 · Makkan · 17 verses
Layered translations الطارق
The Nightcommer
Sahih International The Clear Quran
وَمَآ أَدْرَىٰكَ مَا ٱلطَّارِقُ
And what can make you know what is the knocker?
And what will make you realize what the nightly star is?
ٱلنَّجْمُ ٱلثَّاقِبُ
It is the piercing star1.
˹It is˺ the star of piercing brightness.
إِن كُلُّ نَفْسٍ لَّمَّا عَلَيْهَا حَافِظٌ
There is no soul but that it has over it a protector.
There is no soul without a vigilant angel ˹recording everything˺.
فَلْيَنظُرِ ٱلْإِنسَـٰنُ مِمَّ خُلِقَ
So let man observe from what he was created.
Let people then consider what they were created from!
خُلِقَ مِن مَّآءٍ دَافِقٍ
He was created from a fluid, ejected,
˹They were˺ created from a spurting fluid,
يَخْرُجُ مِنۢ بَيْنِ ٱلصُّلْبِ وَٱلتَّرَآئِبِ
Emerging from between the backbone and the ribs.
stemming from between the backbone and the ribcage.1
إِنَّهُۥ عَلَىٰ رَجْعِهِۦ لَقَادِرٌ
Indeed, He [i.e., Allāh], to return him [to life], is Able.
Surely He is fully capable of bringing them back ˹to life˺
يَوْمَ تُبْلَى ٱلسَّرَآئِرُ
The Day when secrets will be put on trial,1
on the Day all secrets will be disclosed.
فَمَا لَهُۥ مِن قُوَّةٍ وَلَا نَاصِرٍ
Then he [i.e., man] will have no power or any helper.
Then one will have neither power nor ˹any˺ helper.
وَٱلسَّمَآءِ ذَاتِ ٱلرَّجْعِ
By the sky which sends back1
By the sky with its recurring cycles,
وَٱلْأَرْضِ ذَاتِ ٱلصَّدْعِ
And [by] the earth which splits,1
and the earth with its sprouting plants!
إِنَّهُۥ لَقَوْلٌ فَصْلٌ
Indeed, it [i.e., the Qur’ān] is a decisive statement,
Surely this ˹Quran˺ is a decisive word,
وَمَا هُوَ بِٱلْهَزْلِ
And it is not amusement.
and is not to be taken lightly.
إِنَّهُمْ يَكِيدُونَ كَيْدًا
Indeed, they are planning a plan,
They are certainly devising ˹evil˺ plans,
وَأَكِيدُ كَيْدًا
But I am planning a plan.
but I too am planning.
فَمَهِّلِ ٱلْكَـٰفِرِينَ أَمْهِلْهُمْ رُوَيْدًۢا
So allow time for the disbelievers. Leave them awhile.1
So bear with the disbelievers ˹O Prophet˺. Let them be for ˹just˺ a little while.