This name of the Surah comes after the word Al-waqi’ah that appears in the first verse of it. Waqiah means an Event, something that is going to happen.
Revelation
Surah Waqiah is a Macci surah. This means that it was revealed on our beloved Prophet (P.B.U.H) in Maccah, seven years before He (P.B.U.H) migrated. Some scholars say that it might have been partially revealed in Madinah and partially in Maccah. But, the majority does agree on the revelation being made in Maccah. Therefore, it is known to be a Macci Surah.
It has a total of 96 verses and is in the 27th Chapter of the Holy Quran.
But, what does Surah Waqiah talk about?
As the name suggests, Waqiah means an event, something that has happened or will happen in the future. Don’t we talk about an upcoming birthday? This Surah also does the same. It tells us Muslims about an inevitable event that will happen one day, i.e., the Day of Judgment and beyond.
Theme
Surah Waqiah goes ahead and challenges the idea of the Resurrection of the non-believers. They simply did not believe that we will be resurrected after death and the True Life will begin in the Hereafter.
Surah Waqiah Subject Matter
It talks about the two different sceneries that will happen after we are resurrected. There will be two types of people – the ones whose good deeds will exceed their bad and the others whose bad deeds will exceed the good. So, there will be the righteous and the wicked.
When talked about it with the disbelievers, they thought of it as a fragment of imagination. Something that is not possible. They used to argue that how is it possible that someone can wake up after being dead? How can we live forever in the Hereafter? These things did not seem to be digestible for them, and they kept on disbelieving.
Undoubtedly, the righteous will enter Heaven, and the wicked will go to Hell. Apart from this, it also talks about the three classes in which people will be divided on Judgment Day. Verse 7-56 describes these classes and talks about them in detail:
- The highest class: The best and foremost in character and rank
- The second class: The common man who is righteous but not at the level of the highest class ones.
- The Lowest class: These are the disbelievers. The people who kept on committing sins until their last breath. Moreover, these are the people who did not believe in God and indulged in polytheism.
Day of Resurrection
The Surah opens with an account of what will happen on the day the world ends. This will be known as the Day of Resurrection. Allah talks directly to the people and tells them that there is no denying that the day will come. No one can stop it from coming. On this day, the Earth will be shaken to its core. The shake will be so terrible, like no shake anyone has experienced before.
The huge, Giangantic Mountains will come down like a ball of wool. Do you remember how you play with kinetic sand? Once you are done making a shape, and you hold it in your hand, it falls down particle by particle. This is what’s going to happen with the mountains. They are going to become dust and float in the air like small dust particles.
Categories of People
How will we know who are the good people and who are the ones that are going to be punished? Only Allah can judge who is a sinner and who is not. We will know when Allah gives us our Book of Deeds or Records.
- The people who will get their Records in the right hand will be the ones who will enter Paradise
- The people who will get their Records in the left hand will be the ones who will enter Hell and are the sinners.
- The people who were the first to accept Islam and who were always foremost in obeying Allah will be the first ones to enter Paradise.
Who will be the first to enter Paradise?
First of all, these will be the companions of our beloved Prophet (P.B.U.H) and the people who accepted Islam and helped spread it. They were the ones who embraced Islam without any questions asked on the first call. They believed when no one believed. They worked day and night to spread Islam.
Also, the Muslims who performed good deeds all their life and worked towards making Allah happy and keeping His people happy will be the first ones to enter Paradise.
These two groups of people are the ones nearest to Allah, and the ones loved most by Him.
What will we get in Paradise?
How many times have you heard that Paradise is going to be the place of your dreams? Since childhood, we have heard that whatever you wish for will appear in front of your eyes in Paradise, right? I even imagined closing my eyes and opening them to a big bowl of ice cream with a lot of chocolate on it. This is exactly what will happen! All your desires will come true.
For the people who enter Paradise, they will sit on thrones. Yes, how cool is that going to be? Not only this, the thrones will be adorned with precious stones and gold and will look grand. Better than the thrones of the kings, isn’t it?
Houris and Immortal Boys
For the pious, there will be immortal boys who will be ready to serve them as they want. There will be jugs and cups and glasses full of wine from the wine river flowing in Paradise.
Yes, you read right! There will be Wine in Paradise. The best thing about the wine is that it will not intoxicate, nor will it end up hurting the head or having any sort of alcoholic effect that the wine in the world has. It is going to something surreal and nothing that they have experienced in the world.
For the pious men, they will be given houris. These are going to be more beautiful than anything you would ever have seen. Their eyes will be big, beautiful, and wide, just like preserved pearls. This is the beauty these houris will possess.
All this will be a reward for the patience they showed in the world and the other good deeds they did. Once they enter Paradise, there will be no bad thoughts, intentions, and backbiting, or anything of the sort. All these things happen on Earth, and there is no place for these things in Paradise.
The only sound that will echo of Salaam, and that is what will be heard there. They will get to choose from different fruits and the meat of different animals and will be served these.
What will the people who get their Records on the right hand get?
Now, the people who were good in the world and who got their Records on their right hand are also going to be entering Paradise. They will live among the fruit-laden banana trees and the thornless lote-trees. They will be overcast with long, extended shades which seem to have no end.
Also, they will be living near flowing streams, and the fruit will be available all the time. There will be no season, the supply will not finish, and they can eat as much as they like and whatever they like.
They will also live on thrones which will extend high up in the air, and beautiful, virgin maidens will provide them. In Paradise, these people will get their husbands, and the husband and wives will be of the same age, young and beautiful.
Most of these will be the first believers, and the rest will be the ones who did good deeds in the world and tried to follow Allah’s command whenever it was possible.
What will happen to the people who got their Records on the left hand?
One thing to be remembered is that Allah has told us in detail about what will happen to the people who will get their Records on the left hand to make us realize and do good deeds instead of bad. Once we know what will happen to sinners, we will be scared and not sin.
These are the people who will be thrown into boiling water. There will be a fierce, strong wind that will blow and make the water more lethal. The entire place will be filled with black smoke, and the smoke will be casting a shadow over the boiling hot water.
Some people believe that maybe the shadow will be calming and comfort the people in the boiling water. But, that is surely not the case. The shadow will neither give them comfort nor will it be a means to relax or relieve them of the pain.
The reason for such harsh treatment and punishment is that they did not believe that either they or their forefathers could be resurrected. These people went ahead and committed hideous sins like:
- Believing and worshipping some God except Allah
- Did not believe in the Oneness of Allah and that Prophet Muhammad (P.B.U.H) is the last Prophet of Muslims.
- Committed Murders
- Indulges in infidelity and many more.
They used to question our Prophet (P.B.U.H) if they might be resurrected. Hence, for them, in this Surah, Allah asks Prophet (P.B.U.H) to go ahead and tell them that old and the people before that will be resurrected and will be gathered together for the Day of Judgment a day that is sure to come.
The Deniers
Do you have any idea what the sinners and disbelievers will eat and drink? They will only get to eat from the trees of Zaquum, nothing else. This is a tree that will come out from the bottom and deepest part of Hell. This is the only thing that the disbelievers will get to eat, and they will have to fill their stomachs with this.
On top of it, they will get to drink boiling hot water and nothing else. For them, this is going to be the entertainment that they will get on the day.
Conversation
Then Allah goes ahead and talks directly to the disbelievers. He asks them that they think that they create babies in their wombs? Allah asks man that even though he puts the seed in the soil, who is the one who goes ahead and makes it sprout a tree from the tiny little seed? Allah says that it is Him and only Him who has the power to create.
If Allah is not willing, the seed will not grow and crumble in the soil and not grow anymore.
How does the water come down from the rainclouds? Is it humanly possible to go up and get the clouds to rain? It is Our Creator who makes the clouds rain, and we get water to drink. If Allah wants, the water can turn salty and become impossible to drink and use for human consumption.
Allah goes ahead and swears that the Quran is a very honorable recital and that no one can touch except Allah and his Angels. Moreover, the Quran is a book that has been revealed to not only mankind but the jinn and all other beings.
Allah asks the disbelievers that instead of going ahead and thanking Allah for giving them a book like Quran, they question Allah instead? Allah says that the three different types of people will enter either Paradise or Hell depending on their Records.
At the end of the Surah, Allah says that the Day of Resurrection and Paradise and Hell are realities and can’t be denied. It is a truth, and it will happen one day. The day is not fixed, but the Waqiah that is going to happen is inevitable.
What do you conclude from this Surah?
The purpose of Surah Waqiah is to let you know what happens on the Day of Resurrection. Allah does not hide anything and tells in great detail what will happen to the believers and what will happen to the sinners.
The reason for this is to make sure we know what is in store for us. Allah is kind enough to give us two options. We can be good or bad, and he has also gone ahead and explained the repercussions of both.
Islam is a very fair, simple, and just religion. So, what are you going to do? Do you want to be in Paradise or want to fall in the boiling water of Hell? Paradise is very simple; all you need to do is obey Allah, read and understand the Holy Quran, and listen and be respectful to your parents and elders.
Surah Waqiah Online
There is a misconception amongst people that reading and reciting Surahs online will not benefit those people like it benefits those people who open the Quran and read it. This is not true. The aim is to read and recite the Quran. There are many websites and places where you can download and listen to and even recite the Surah.
Reading Surah Waqiah Online can be easier for kids as they can listen to recitation and read along. Also, correct their mistakes while reading.
Surah Waqiah Benefits
There is no doubt about the fact that the Quran is filled with Surah that benefits us. But, particular Surahs were revealed for particular problems or as a solution for them.
Surah Waqiah, in particular, is known as the Surah of Wealth. According to Ibn Asakir, our Prophet (P.B.U.H) said that “Surah al Waqiah is the Surah of Wealth, so recite it and teach it to your children.”
From this saying, we get to know how important it is to recite it for financial stability and to save ourselves from poverty. Our Prophet (P.B.U.H) has described it as a big source of wealth.
There is no doubt that we as humans are always looking for ways to make money and work day and night to feed our family. Our fathers, brothers, mothers, and people around us strive so hard and take so much stress and tension to earn money.
Have you ever heard your parents worry over the bills? How often have you heard people fight over finances? How many times have you seen people lose their lives as they did not have money to pay for the various diseases they had?
Yes, the sad reality of life is that most, if not all, of our problems, spring from lack of finances.
But, how does Surah Waqiah help with this?
It has been declared a blessing for a handful of people and the entire Muslim Ummah. The reason for this is that it provides a lot of worldly benefits for us. It has been told that we should keep reciting it in abundance and also go ahead and teach it to our children.
So, if you are looking to earn lawful and just earnings (which you should exactly be striving for), this Surah will help you manifold.
When and how many times should it be recited?
The Surah hardly takes 5 minutes to recite. Even though it has a lot of verses, they are very small and simple. For the benefits it offers, it is surely very less to be asking for, right?
Even though there is no limitation to the maximum number of times you can recite it, it should be recited a minimum of once a day. Again, you can recite it at any time of the day.
But, the best time to recite it is right before you go to bed. Once you are done with the Isha prayers, you can sit down and recite them peacefully. This is sunnah. Yes, it is believed that our Prophet (P.B.U.H) would recite Surah Waqaih right before He (P.B.U.H) used to go to sleep. That would be one of the last things He (P.B.U.H) did at night.
According to Ibn Sunni 620, The Prophet (P.B.U.H) said, “Whoever recites Surah al Waqia at night would never encounter poverty.”
After this hadith, do we even need to think twice before including it in our nighttime routine? Who would be naïve enough not to reap the benefits this Surah will provide?
Another benefit that it gives is that if you have calligraphy or writing of Surah Waqiah on your wall, it will help attain financial stability. One reason for this thought is that you will unintentionally recite the Surah whenever you pass calligraphy, thus getting benefit from it.
Conclusion
The Quran is an amazing book, a book for all times. Each Surah is Allah speaking to use, and Subhan Allah does Allah speak to tell us what to do and what not to do. He wants man to do the right deeds and enter Paradise. For this reason, He has given us a sketch of what awaits us in Paradise through Surah Waqaih.
It also talks about the Day of Resurrection to make us firmer in our beliefs. On the other hand, He has also talked about Hell in detail to make us realize what the wrongdoers will get a taste of.
So, make it a habit of reciting the Surah before going to bed. The best thing is that it is very simple and a few recitations will be enough to learn it by heart.
May Allah shower his blessings on the Muslim Ummah, and may He make us from the ones He is happy with and let us enter Paradise.
