Al-Adiyat

Al-Adiyat or The War Horses which run swiftly or T.W.H.W.R.S[1] (Arabic: العاديات, al-ʿādiyāt, also known as "The Courser, The Chargers") is the 100th chapter (sūrah) of the Qur'an, with 11 āyāt or verses. Regarding the timing and contextual background of the revelation (asbāb al-nuzūl), it is an earlier "Meccan surah", which means it is believed to have been revealed in Mecca, rather than later in Medina.

Sura 100 of the Quran
سورة العاديا
Sūrat Al-ʿĀdiyāt
The Coursers Chargers War Horses
ClassificationMeccan
Other namesThe Chargers, The Assaulters
PositionJuzʼ 30
No. of verses11
No. of words40
No. of letters168
Quran
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Page from an 18th-century Qur'an showing al-Adiyat in naskh script with a Persian translation in red.

Summary
  • 1-6 Oaths that man is ungrateful to his God
  • 7-8 Man loves the things of this world
  • 9-11 Man’s secret thoughts shall be discovered in the judgment-day [2]

A one liner theme of surah al-adiyat would read that this surah gives an example that horses are more grateful to their owners than men are to their Rabb (Allah).[3]

  • First five ayaat of the surah consist of an oath as a metaphor enforcing the lesson.[4] They describe a scene of horses charging, panting, producing sparks by their hooves, raiding at the time of dawn, stirring up the cloud of dust and arriving a gathering.
  • The substantive proposition is in verses 6-8 that Man is ungrateful to his Lord and himself is a witness to it and he is immoderate in the love of worldly good.[5]
  • The last three ayaat conclude the surah with a rhetorical question that Does the man not know about the time when contents of the graves will be resurrected and that which is in men's breasts shall be brought to light on that Day their Sustainer will show that He has always been fully aware of them.

Text

Text and meaning

بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ ۝‎ [Bismi l-lāhi r-ramāni r-raīm(i)]
In the name of Allah,[lower-alpha 1] the Entirely Merciful, the Especially Merciful.[lower-alpha 2]


وَٱلْعَٰدِيَٰتِ ضَبْحًا ۝١‎ [Wal‘ādiyāti ḍabḥā(n)]
1 By the racers, panting,[lower-alpha 3]


فَٱلْمُورِيَٰتِ قَدْحًا ۝٢‎ [Falmūriyāti qadḥā(n)]
2 And the producers of sparks [when] striking[lower-alpha 4]


فَٱلْمُغِيرَٰتِ صُبْحًا ۝٣‎ [Falmughīrāti ṣubḥā(n)]
3 And the chargers at dawn,


{فَأَثَرْنَ بِهِۦ نَقْعًا ۝٤‎ [Fa’atharna bihī naq‘ā(n)]
4 Stirring up thereby [clouds of] dust,


فَوَسَطْنَ بِهِۦ جَمْعًا۝٥‎ [Fawasaṭna bihī jam‘ā(n)]
5 Arriving thereby in the center[lower-alpha 5] collectively,


إِنَّ ٱلْإِنسَٰنَ لِرَبِّهِۦ لَكَنُودٌ ۝٦‎ [’in-na l-’insāna lirab-bihī lakanūd(un)]
6 Indeed mankind, to his Lord, is ungrateful.


وَإِنَّهُۥ عَلَىٰ ذَٰلِكَ لَشَهِيدٌ ۝٧‎ [Wa’in-nahū ‘alā dhālika lashahīd(un)]
7 And indeed, he is to that a witness.[lower-alpha 6]


وَإِنَّهُۥ لِحُبِّ ٱلْخَيْرِ لَشَدِيدٌ ۝٨‎ [Wain-nahū liḥub-bi l-khayri lashadīd(un)]
8 And indeed he is, in love of wealth, intense.


أَفَلَا يَعْلَمُ إِذَا بُعْثِرَ مَا فِى ٱلْقُبُورِ ۝٩‎ [’afalā ya‘lamu ’idhā bu‘thira mā fi l-qubūr(i)]
9 But does he not know that when the contents of the graves are scattered


وَحُصِّلَ مَا فِى ٱلصُّدُورِ ۝١٠‎ [Waḥuṣ-ṣila mā fi ṣ-ṣudūr(i)]
10 And that within the breasts is obtained,[lower-alpha 7]


إِنَّ رَبَّهُم بِهِمْ يَوْمَئِذٍ لَّخَبِيرٌۢ ۝١١‎ [’in-na rab-bahum bihim yawma’idhi l-lakhabīr(un)]
11 Indeed, their Lord with them, that Day, is [fully] Aware.[lower-alpha 8]

Name of the surah

Hamiduddin Farahi is a celebrated Islamic scholar of Indian subcontinent is known for his groundbreaking work on the concept of Nazm, or Coherence, in the Quran. He writes that some sūrahs have been given names after some conspicuous words used in them.[6] Jalaluddin Al-Suyuti co-author of the classical Sunni tafsīr known as Tafsir al-Jalalayn after the word Adiyat with which it opens.

Period of revelation

Surahs in the Qur'an are not arranged in the chronological order of revelation[7] because the order of the wahy or chronological order of revelation is not a textual part of the Quran. Muhammad told his followers sahaba the placement in Quranic order of every Wahy revealed along with the original text of Quran.[8] Wm Theodore de Bary, an East Asian studies expert, describes that "The final process of collection and codification of the Quran text was guided by one over-arching principle: God's words must not in any way be distorted or sullied by human intervention. For this reason, no serious attempt, apparently, was made to edit the numerous revelations, organize them into thematic units, or present them in chronological order....".[9][10] The manuscript, or version, of the Quran we see today was compiled by Uthman, the third caliph (reign 644 to 656); a caliph being the political leader of a Caliphate (Islamic government).Before Uthman canonized the Quran there were different versions or codices, none of which exist today. These codices never gained general approval and were viewed by Muslims as the personal copies of individuals.[11] However, "the search for variants in the partial versions extant before the Caliph Uthman's alleged recension in the 640s has not yielded any differences of great significance".[12] Whether this Surah Al-Adiyat is a Makki or a Madani is disputed. But the subject matter of the Surah and its style clearly indicate that it is not only Makki, but was revealed in the early stage of Makkan period.[3] Abdullah bin Masud, Jabir, Hasan Basri, Ikrimah, and Ata say that it is Makki. Anas bin Malik, and Qatadah say that it is Madani; and from Ibn Abbas two views have been reported, first that it is a Makki Surah, and second that it is Madani. But the subject matter of the Surah and its style clearly indicate that it is not only Makki but was revealed in the earliest stage of Makkah. So the surah is considered to be Meccan conclusively.[13]

Hadith

According to hadith this surah is recommended in Maghrib prayer.

  • Hisham ibn Urwah said that his father used to recite the surahs like the Al-Adiyat is recited. Abu Dawud said: This indicates that those (traditions indicating long surahs) are abrogated, and this is more sound tradition.[14]

Notes
  1. Allah is a proper name belonging only to the one Almighty God, Creator and Sustainer of the heavens and the earth and all that is within them, the Eternal and Absolute, to whom alone all worship is due.
  2. Ar-Raḥmān and ar-Raḥeem are two names of Allah derived from the word "raḥmah" (mercy) . In Arabic grammar both are intensive forms of "merciful" (i.e., extremely merciful) . A complimentary and comprehensive meaning is intended by using both together. Raḥmān is used only to describe Allah, while raḥeem might be used to describe a person as well. The Prophet (ﷺ) was described in the Qur’ān as raḥeem. Raḥmān is above the human level (i.e., intensely merciful) . Since one usually understands intensity to be something of short duration, Allah describes Himself also as raḥeem (i.e., continually merciful) . Raḥmān also carries a wider meaning - merciful to all creation. Justice is a part of this mercy. Raḥeem includes the concept of speciality - especially and specifically merciful to the believers. Forgiveness is a part of this mercy. In addition, Raḥmān is adjectival, referring to an attribute of Allah and is part of His essence. Raḥeem is verbal, indicating what He does: i.e., bestowing and implementing mercy.
  3. i.e., the horses of those fighting for Allah's cause as they race to attack the enemy.
  4. Their hoofs while galloping over rocky terrain.
  5. i.e., penetrating into the enemy ranks during a surprise attack.
  6. Through his speech and his actions.
  7. i.e., when all secrets are made known.
  8. Fully acquainted and familiar with everything about each one of them.

References
  1. George Sale's translation
  2. Wherry, Elwood Morris (1896). A Complete Index to Sale's Text, Preliminary Discourse, and Notes. London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner, and Co. Public Domain This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
  3. Source: Malik Al-Qur'an Translation Translator: Muhammad Farooq-i-Azam Malik Edition: First, Hardback Published: 1997 Publisher: The Institute of Islamic Knowledge, Houston, Texas, USA
  4. Source: Yusuf Ali Al-Qur'an Translation Edition: First, Hardback Publisher: Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
  5. Mohammed, A Comprehensive Commentary on the Quran: Comprising Sale’s Translation and preliminary Discourse, with Additional Notes and Emendations (London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner, and Co., 1896). 4 vols.
  6. "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2010-06-13. Retrieved 2009-10-04.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  7. Robinson, Neal (2003). Discovering the Qur'an: A Contemporary Approach to a Veiled Text (PDF). Georgetown University Press. pp. 25–97. ISBN 1589010248.
  8. Israr Ahmed – Bayan-ul-Quran – Introduction
  9. Approaches to the Asian Classics, Irene Bloom, Wm Theodore de Bary, Columbia University Press, 1990, p. 65 ISBN 9780231070058
  10. Theodore De Bary, Wm; Bary, William Theodore De; Bloom, Irene (1990). Eastern Canons. ISBN 9780231070058.
  11. Esack, Farid (2005). The Qur'an: A User's Guide. Oxford England: Oneworld Publications. ISBN 978-1851683543.
  12. F. E. Peters, The Quest of the Historical Muhammad, International Journal of Middle East Studies, Vol. 23, No. 3 (Aug.,1991), p. 293
  13. "Chronological Order of Surahs". Archived from the original on 2018-01-13. Retrieved 2016-12-10.
  14. Sunan Abu Dawud 813 In-book reference  : Book 2, Hadith 423 English translation  : Book 2, Hadith 812
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