Al-Muzzammil

yāayyuhā l-muzamilu

You [Prophet], enfolded in your cloak!

qumi al-layla illā qalīlan

Stay up throughout the night, all but a small part of it,

niṣ'fahu awi unquṣ min'hu qalīlan

half, or a little less,

aw zid ʿalayhi warattili l-qur'āna tartīlan

or a little more; recite the Quran slowly and distinctly:

innā sanul'qī ʿalayka qawlan thaqīlan

We shall send a momentous message down to you.

inna nāshi-ata al-layli hiya ashaddu waṭan wa-aqwamu qīlan

Night prayer makes a deeper impression and sharpens words––

inna laka fī l-nahāri sabḥan ṭawīlan

you are kept busy for long periods of the day––

wa-udh'kuri is'ma rabbika watabattal ilayhi tabtīlan

so celebrate the name of your Lord and devote yourself wholeheart-edly to Him.

rabbu l-mashriqi wal-maghribi lā ilāha illā huwa fa-ittakhidh'hu wakīlan

He is Lord of the east and west, there is no god but Him, so take Him as your Protector,

wa-iṣ'bir ʿalā mā yaqūlūna wa-uh'jur'hum hajran jamīlan

patiently endure what they say, ignore them politely,

wadharnī wal-mukadhibīna ulī l-naʿmati wamahhil'hum qalīlan

and leave to Me those who deny the truth and live in luxury. Bear with them for a little while;

inna ladaynā ankālan wajaḥīman

We have fetters, a blazing fire,

waṭaʿāman dhā ghuṣṣatin waʿadhāban alīman

food that chokes, and agonizing torment in store for them

yawma tarjufu l-arḍu wal-jibālu wakānati l-jibālu kathīban mahīlan

on the Day when the earth and the mountains will shake. The mountains will become a heap of loose sand.

innā arsalnā ilaykum rasūlan shāhidan ʿalaykum kamā arsalnā ilā fir'ʿawna rasūlan

We have sent a messenger to you [people] to be your witness, just as We sent a messenger to Pharaoh,

faʿaṣā fir'ʿawnu l-rasūla fa-akhadhnāhu akhdhan wabīlan

but Pharaoh disobeyed the messenger and so We inflicted a heavy punishment on him.

fakayfa tattaqūna in kafartum yawman yajʿalu l-wil'dāna shīban

So if you disbelieve, how can you guard yourselves against a Day that will turn children’s hair grey,

al-samāu munfaṭirun bihi kāna waʿduhu mafʿūlan

a Day when the sky will be torn apart? God’s promise will certainly be fulfilled.

inna hādhihi tadhkiratun faman shāa ittakhadha ilā rabbihi sabīlan

This is a reminder. Let whoever wishes take the way to his Lord.

inna rabbaka yaʿlamu annaka taqūmu adnā min thuluthayi al-layli waniṣ'fahu wathuluthahu waṭāifatun mina alladhīna maʿaka wal-lahu yuqaddiru al-layla wal-nahāra ʿalima an lan tuḥ'ṣūhu fatāba ʿalaykum fa-iq'raū mā tayassara mina l-qur'āni ʿalima an sayakūnu minkum marḍā waākharūna yaḍribūna fī l-arḍi yabtaghūna min faḍli l-lahi waākharūna yuqātilūna fī sabīli l-lahi fa-iq'raū mā tayassara min'hu wa-aqīmū l-ṣalata waātū l-zakata wa-aqriḍū l-laha qarḍan ḥasanan wamā tuqaddimū li-anfusikum min khayrin tajidūhu ʿinda l-lahi huwa khayran wa-aʿẓama ajran wa-is'taghfirū l-laha inna l-laha ghafūrun raḥīmun

[Prophet], your Lord is well aware that you sometimes spend nearly two-thirds of the night at prayer––sometimes half, sometimes a third––as do some of your followers. God determines the division of night and day. He knows that you will not be able to keep a measure of it and He has relented towards all of you, so recite as much of the Quran as is easy for you. He knows that some of you will be sick, some of you travelling through the land seeking God’s bounty, some of you fighting in God’s way: recite as much as is easy for you, keep up the prayer, pay the prescribed alms, and make God a good loan. Whatever good you store up for yourselves will be improved and increased for you. Ask God for His forgiveness, He is most forgiving, most merciful.