Surah 80 · Meccan · 42 Verses
عبس
SURAH 'ABASA
He Frowned
Offline reading is currently limited to popular surahs. Audio files aren't saved offline.
بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ
عَبَسَ وَتَوَلَّىٰٓ
He [i.e., the Prophet (ﷺ) ] frowned and turned away
Word by Word ▾
وَمَا يُدْرِيكَ لَعَلَّهُۥ يَزَّكَّىٰٓ
Word by Word ▾
أَوْ يَذَّكَّرُ فَتَنفَعَهُ ٱلذِّكْرَىٰٓ
Or be reminded and the remembrance would benefit him?
Word by Word ▾
أَمَّا مَنِ ٱسْتَغْنَىٰ
Word by Word ▾
فَأَنتَ لَهُۥ تَصَدَّىٰ
To him you give attention.
Word by Word ▾
وَمَا عَلَيْكَ أَلَّا يَزَّكَّىٰ
Word by Word ▾
وَأَمَّا مَن جَآءَكَ يَسْعَىٰ
But as for he who came to you striving [for knowledge]
Word by Word ▾
وَهُوَ يَخْشَىٰ
While he fears [Allāh],
Word by Word ▾
فَأَنتَ عَنْهُ تَلَهَّىٰ
From him you are distracted.
Word by Word ▾
كَلَّآ إِنَّهَا تَذْكِرَةٌۭ
No! Indeed, they [i.e., these verses] are a reminder;
Word by Word ▾
فِى صُحُفٍۢ مُّكَرَّمَةٍۢ
[It is recorded] in honored sheets,
Word by Word ▾
مَّرْفُوعَةٍۢ مُّطَهَّرَةٍۭ
Exalted and purified,
Word by Word ▾
بِأَيْدِى سَفَرَةٍۢ
[Carried] by the hands of messenger-angels,
Word by Word ▾
كِرَامٍۭ بَرَرَةٍۢ
Noble and dutiful.
Word by Word ▾
مِنْ أَىِّ شَىْءٍ خَلَقَهُۥ
From what thing [i.e., substance] did He create him?
Word by Word ▾
ثُمَّ إِذَا شَآءَ أَنشَرَهُۥ
Then when He wills, He will resurrect him.
Word by Word ▾
كَلَّا لَمَّا يَقْضِ مَآ أَمَرَهُۥ
No! He [i.e., man] has not yet accomplished what He commanded him.
Word by Word ▾
فَلْيَنظُرِ ٱلْإِنسَٰنُ إِلَىٰ طَعَامِهِۦٓ
Then let mankind look at his food -
Word by Word ▾
أَنَّا صَبَبْنَا ٱلْمَآءَ صَبًّۭا
How We poured down water in torrents,
Word by Word ▾
ثُمَّ شَقَقْنَا ٱلْأَرْضَ شَقًّۭا
Then We broke open the earth, splitting [it with sprouts],
Word by Word ▾
فَأَنۢبَتْنَا فِيهَا حَبًّۭا
And caused to grow within it grain
Word by Word ▾
وَعِنَبًۭا وَقَضْبًۭا
And grapes and herbage
Word by Word ▾
وَزَيْتُونًۭا وَنَخْلًۭا
And olive and palm trees
Word by Word ▾
وَحَدَآئِقَ غُلْبًۭا
And gardens of dense shrubbery
Word by Word ▾
وَفَٰكِهَةًۭ وَأَبًّۭا
And fruit and grass -
Word by Word ▾
مَّتَٰعًۭا لَّكُمْ وَلِأَنْعَٰمِكُمْ
[As] enjoyment [i.e., provision] for you and your grazing livestock.
Word by Word ▾
يَوْمَ يَفِرُّ ٱلْمَرْءُ مِنْ أَخِيهِ
On the Day a man will flee from his brother
Word by Word ▾
وَأُمِّهِۦ وَأَبِيهِ
And his mother and his father
Word by Word ▾
وَصَٰحِبَتِهِۦ وَبَنِيهِ
And his wife and his children,
Word by Word ▾
لِكُلِّ ٱمْرِئٍۢ مِّنْهُمْ يَوْمَئِذٍۢ شَأْنٌۭ يُغْنِيهِ
Word by Word ▾
وُجُوهٌۭ يَوْمَئِذٍۢ مُّسْفِرَةٌۭ
[Some] faces, that Day, will be bright -
Word by Word ▾
ضَاحِكَةٌۭ مُّسْتَبْشِرَةٌۭ
Laughing, rejoicing at good news.
Word by Word ▾
وَوُجُوهٌۭ يَوْمَئِذٍ عَلَيْهَا غَبَرَةٌۭ
And [other] faces, that Day, will have upon them dust.
Word by Word ▾
تَرْهَقُهَا قَتَرَةٌ
Blackness will cover them.
Word by Word ▾
أُو۟لَٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْكَفَرَةُ ٱلْفَجَرَةُ
Those are the disbelievers, the wicked ones.
Word by Word ▾
About This Surah
Surah Abasa corrects a moment when attention favored influential listeners over a blind seeker who came earnestly for instruction. It establishes the dignity and agency of disabled people, presents revelation as reminder, points to food and human dependence, and describes final accountability. The chapter must not be used for ableist pity, inspiration exploitation, or claims that disability reflects punishment or deficient faith.
Abasa opens with a correction: a blind man approaches seeking purification and reminder while attention is directed toward socially influential people. The Quran centers the sincere seeker and exposes prestige-based priorities. The passage establishes access, dignity, and agency rather than presenting disability as tragedy or spiritual deficiency.
The man is not reduced to an object of pity. Contemporary application should include accessible design, respectful communication, and listening to disabled people themselves. It must avoid “inspiration” content that uses disability for the emotional benefit of non-disabled audiences.
The revelation is described as a reminder in honored, purified pages carried by noble scribes. Human beings are then confronted with ingratitude and reminded of creation, measured development, death, burial, and resurrection. These are theological signs, not a complete medical account.
Food becomes another chain of dependence: rain, split earth, grain, grapes, vegetables, olives, palms, dense gardens, fruit, and pasture. Provision serves people and animals and invites gratitude rather than exploitative miracle marketing.
The final blast separates even close family relationships as each person faces sufficient concern. Bright and dusty faces represent outcomes. No reader may infer a disabled person’s status, suffering, or final fate from bodily condition.
Core Themes
- Correction of prestige-based attention
- Disabled dignity and agency
- Accessible reception of revelation
- Human creation, death, and return
- Food systems as signs of dependence
- Individual accountability beyond social status
Structure
Verses 1-10: The blind seeker and corrected priorities — 1-10
This section develops the blind seeker and corrected priorities across verses 1-10. Read it as part of Surah Abasa’s complete sequence; it does not independently create a private ruling, diagnosis, prediction, punishment power, or guaranteed outcome.
Verses 11-16: The honored reminder and noble scribes — 11-16
This section develops the honored reminder and noble scribes across verses 11-16. Read it as part of Surah Abasa’s complete sequence; it does not independently create a private ruling, diagnosis, prediction, punishment power, or guaranteed outcome.
Verses 17-32: Human origin, resurrection, and food provision — 17-32
This section develops human origin, resurrection, and food provision across verses 17-32. Read it as part of Surah Abasa’s complete sequence; it does not independently create a private ruling, diagnosis, prediction, punishment power, or guaranteed outcome.
Verses 33-42: The blast, family separation, and final faces — 33-42
This section develops the blast, family separation, and final faces across verses 33-42. Read it as part of Surah Abasa’s complete sequence; it does not independently create a private ruling, diagnosis, prediction, punishment power, or guaranteed outcome.
Reading Guide
Safety-focused reading step 1
Keep this boundary visible: Disability must not be described as punishment, deficient faith, tragedy, or a prop for inspiration. Compare the relevant passage with the complete surah before drawing any contemporary conclusion.
Safety-focused reading step 2
Keep this boundary visible: Disabled people’s agency and accessibility needs must remain central. Compare the relevant passage with the complete surah before drawing any contemporary conclusion.
Safety-focused reading step 3
Keep this boundary visible: Human-development verses are not a complete medical account. Compare the relevant passage with the complete surah before drawing any contemporary conclusion.
Safety-focused reading step 4
Keep this boundary visible: Final outcomes cannot be inferred from bodily ability, illness, poverty, or social status. Compare the relevant passage with the complete surah before drawing any contemporary conclusion.
Key Passages
The blind seeker and corrected priorities — 1-10
Verses 1-10 address the blind seeker and corrected priorities. Their placement in Surah Abasa supplies the immediate context; this overview identifies the movement without turning it into a stand-alone legal ruling, clinical diagnosis, current-event prediction, private enforcement authority, or guaranteed worldly result.
The honored reminder and noble scribes — 11-16
Verses 11-16 address the honored reminder and noble scribes. Their placement in Surah Abasa supplies the immediate context; this overview identifies the movement without turning it into a stand-alone legal ruling, clinical diagnosis, current-event prediction, private enforcement authority, or guaranteed worldly result.
Human origin, resurrection, and food provision — 17-32
Verses 17-32 address human origin, resurrection, and food provision. Their placement in Surah Abasa supplies the immediate context; this overview identifies the movement without turning it into a stand-alone legal ruling, clinical diagnosis, current-event prediction, private enforcement authority, or guaranteed worldly result.
The blast, family separation, and final faces — 33-42
Verses 33-42 address the blast, family separation, and final faces. Their placement in Surah Abasa supplies the immediate context; this overview identifies the movement without turning it into a stand-alone legal ruling, clinical diagnosis, current-event prediction, private enforcement authority, or guaranteed worldly result.
Recitation Note
No exclusive time, fixed repetition count, or guaranteed worldly outcome is asserted here for reciting Surah Abasa. Reading it is worship and study; any claim about protection, healing, provision, family outcomes, or a prescribed number requires separate exact evidence and narrow wording.
Interpretation Limits
- Disability must not be described as punishment, deficient faith, tragedy, or a prop for inspiration.
- Disabled people’s agency and accessibility needs must remain central.
- Human-development verses are not a complete medical account.
- Final outcomes cannot be inferred from bodily ability, illness, poverty, or social status.