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سُورَةُ الطَّارِقِ · 86:4
MeccanRevelation order ٣٦Juzʾ ٣٠Page ٥٩١

إِن كُلُّ نَفْسٍۢ لَّمَّا عَلَيْهَا حَافِظٌۭ

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Saheeh International · EN

There is no soul but that it has over it a protector.

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Introduction

This is āyah 4 of Sūrat At-Taariq (The Nightcommer), the 36th sūrah in the traditional order of revelation. It was revealed in the Meccan period and sits within Juzʾ 30. Meccan verses tend to address faith, the oneness of God, and the hereafter.

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

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Revelation & occasion

Asbāb al-Nuzūl
Period
Meccan
Order revealed
36 of 114
Surah
At-Taariq (86)

No specific occasion of revelation (Asbāb al-Nuzūl) is recorded for this āyah in al-Wāḥidī's collection. Many verses were revealed without a single triggering event.

Commentary

Tafsir

4 works

Hafiz Ibn Kathir

The Virtues of Surat At-Tariq An-Nasa'i recorded that Jabir said, "Mu'adh lead the Maghrib prayer and he recited Al-Baqarah and An-Nisa'. So the Prophet ﷺ said, أَفَتَّانٌ أَنْتَ يَا مُعَاذُ، مَا كَانَ يَكْفِيكَ أَنْ تَقْرَأَ بِالسَّمَاءِ وَالطَّارِقِ وَالشَّمْسِ وَضُحَاهَا وَنَحْوِهَا؟ (Are you putting the people to trial O Mu'adh? Was it not sufficient for you to recite As-Sama'i wat-Tariq, and Ash-Shamsi wa Duhaha, and something like them?) بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful. وَالسَّمَاءِ وَالطَّارِقِ - وَمَا أَدْرَاكَ مَا الطَّارِقُ - النَّجْمُ الثَّاقِبُ - إِن كُلُّ نَفْسٍ لَّمَّا عَلَيْهَا حَافِظٌ - فَلْيَنظُرِ الْإِنسَانُ مِمَّ خُلِقَ - خُلِقَ مِن مَّاءٍ دَافِقٍ - يَخْرُجُ مِن بَيْنِ الصُّلْبِ وَالتَّرَائِبِ - إِنَّهُ عَلَىٰ رَجْعِهِ لَقَادِرٌ - يَوْمَ تُبْلَى السَّرَائِرُ - فَمَا لَهُ مِن قُوَّةٍ وَلَا نَاصِرٍ …
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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And now — what do you think?

The text, its history and the classical commentary are laid out above. Share your own understanding, ask a question, or reason with others.

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Provenance

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