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سُورَةُ الأَنفَالِ · 8:1
MedinanRevelation order ٨٨Juzʾ ٩Page ١٧٧

بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَـٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ

بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ يَسْـَٔلُونَكَ عَنِ ٱلْأَنفَالِ ۖ قُلِ ٱلْأَنفَالُ لِلَّهِ وَٱلرَّسُولِ ۖ فَٱتَّقُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ وَأَصْلِحُوا۟ ذَاتَ بَيْنِكُمْ ۖ وَأَطِيعُوا۟ ٱللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُۥٓ إِن كُنتُم مُّؤْمِنِينَ

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Saheeh International · EN

They ask you, [O Muhammad], about the bounties [of war]. Say, "The [decision concerning] bounties is for Allah and the Messenger." So fear Allah and amend that which is between you and obey Allah and His Messenger, if you should be believers.

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Bio

Introduction

This is āyah 1 of Sūrat Al-Anfaal (The Spoils of War), the 88th sūrah in the traditional order of revelation. It was revealed in the Medinan period and sits within Juzʾ 9. Medinan verses often address community life, law, and the building of society.

This introduction is a starting point — the community and Bilal will enrich it over time.

Bio

Revelation & occasion

Asbāb al-Nuzūl
Period
Medinan
Order revealed
88 of 114
Surah
Al-Anfaal (8)
Occasion of revelation · Al-Wahidi

(They ask thee (O Muhammad) of the spoils of war. Say: The spoils of war belong to Allah and the messenger�) [8:1]. Abu Sa�id al-Nasruyiyy informed us> Abu Bakr al-Qati�i> �Abd Allah ibn Ahmad ibn Hanbal> his father> Abu Mu�awiyah> Abu Ishaq al-Shaybani> Muhammad ibn �Ubayd Allah al-Thaqafi> Sa�d ibn Abi Waqqas who said: �On the day of Badr my brother �Umayr was killed and I killed Sa�id ibn al-�As and took his sword which was named al-Kifah. I went to the Prophet, Allah bless him and give him peace, and he told me to go and put the sword with the captured booty which was still undivided. I went back in a state which only Allah knew as a result of the killing of my brother and the loss of my spoil. I did not go very far when Surah al-Anfal was revealed. The Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, called me and said: �Go and take back your sword!� �. �Ikrimah reported that Ibn �Abbas said: �On the day of Badr, the Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, said: �Whoever does such-and-such will get such-and-such�. And so the younger men went and the old remained under the banners. When it was time to divide the booty, those younger men came to ask for their share, but the old said: �Do not exclude us, for we were under the banners, and if you had been defeated, we would have been a shield for you�. And so Allah, exalted is He, revealed (They ask thee (O Muhammad) of the spoils of war. Say: The spoils of war belong to Allah and the messenger�), and the booty was divided on them in equal shares�. Abu Bakr ibn al-Harith informed us> �Abd Allah ibn Muhammad ibn Ja�far> Abu Yahya> Sahl ibn �Uthman> Yahya ibn Abi Za�idah> Ibn Abi al-Zinad> �Abd al-Rahman ibn al-Harith> Sulayman ibn Musa ibn al-Ashdaq> Makhul> Abu Salam al-Bahili> Abu Umamah al-Bahili> �Ubadah ibn al-Samit who said: �When the enemy was defeated on the day of Badr, a group of men followed them to exterminate them, while one group surrounded the Messenger of Allah, Allah bless him and give him peace, [to protect him] and another group seized the booty and spoils. When Allah banished the enemy and those who went after came back, they said: �The booty belongs to us, we have chased the enemy and it is through us that Allah has defeated and banished them�.

Commentary

Tafsir

4 works

Hafiz Ibn Kathir

There are seventy-five Ayat in this Surah. The word count of this Surah is one thousand, six hundred and thirty-one words and its letters number five thousand, two hundred and ninety-four. بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ In the Name of Allah the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful يَسْأَلُونَكَ عَنِ الْأَنفَالِ قُلِ الْأَنفَالُ لِلَّهِ وَالرَّسُولِ فَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ وَأَصْلِحُوا ذَاتَ بَيْنِكُمْ وَأَطِيعُوا اللَّهَ وَرَسُولَهُ إِن كُنتُم مُّؤْمِنِينَ (1. They ask you about Al-Anfal (the spoils of war). Say: "Al-Anfal are for Allah and the Messenger." So have Taqwa of Allah and settle all matters of difference among you, and obey Allah and His Messenger, if you are believers.) Meaning of Anfal Al-Bukhari recorded that Ibn 'Abbas said, "Al-Anfal are the spoils of war." Al-Bukhari also recorded that Sa'id bin Jubayr said, "I said to Ibn 'Abbas, 'Surat Al-Anfal?' He said, 'It was …
Provenance

Chains of transmission

Oral — isnād

  1. ~610–632 CERevelation & memorisation

    Received by the Prophet ﷺ and preserved by the ḥuffāẓ (memorisers) among the Companions.

  2. 1st century AHMutawātir transmissionawaiting curation

    Carried by mass-transmission through the generations of qurrāʾ.

  3. TodayLiving chainsawaiting curation

    Continuous ijāzah chains link reciters today back to the Prophet ﷺ.

Verified isnād chains for this āyah will be added by curators.

Written — the manuscript record

  1. ~650 CEʿUthmānic codicesawaiting curation

    The standardised muṣḥaf sent to the great cities (e.g. the Topkapı and Samarqand codices).

  2. 8th–10th c.Early Ḥijāzī & Kūfic foliosawaiting curation

    Surviving leaves in Birmingham, Sanaa, Paris (BnF) and beyond.

  3. Modern printModern printawaiting curation

    The 1924 Cairo edition → today: the standard printed muṣḥaf used worldwide.

A curated chain of manuscript images for this exact āyah — roughly one per century — is coming. Help us source and verify them.

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Provenance

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