SURAH 73 — Al-Muzzammil — المزمل — “The Enwrapped One”
• Revelation Order: 3
• Event Anchor: Early spiritual preparation for prophetic mission (c. 610–613 CE)
Explanation:
Al-Muzzammil instructs the Prophet to establish night prayer, recite the Qur’an, cultivate patience, and prepare for the heavy responsibility ahead. This fits the earliest phase of revelation, when Muhammad was being spiritually shaped before facing public conflict. The surah anticipates future opposition (“bear patiently what they say”) while grounding the Prophet in disciplined devotion. Its combination of inner training and external anticipation aligns with the intimate formative period at the start of prophethood.
| Verse | Verse # | Meccan v Medinan | General Index |
|---|---|---|---|
| O you who wraps himself [in clothing], | 1 | Meccan | 5476 |
| Arise [to pray] the night, except for a little – | 2 | Meccan | 5477 |
| Half of it – or subtract from it a little | 3 | Meccan | 5478 |
| Or add to it, and recite the Qur’an with measured recitation. | 4 | Meccan | 5479 |
| Indeed, We will cast upon you a heavy word. | 5 | Meccan | 5480 |
| Indeed, the hours of the night are more effective for concurrence [of heart and tongue] and more suitable for words. | 6 | Meccan | 5481 |
| Indeed, for you by day is prolonged occupation. | 7 | Meccan | 5482 |
| And remember the name of your Lord and devote yourself to Him with [complete] devotion. | 8 | Meccan | 5483 |
| [He is] the Lord of the East and the West; there is no deity except Him, so take Him as Disposer of [your] affairs. | 9 | Meccan | 5484 |
| And be patient over what they say and avoid them with gracious avoidance. | 10 | Meccan | 5485 |
| And leave Me with [the matter of] the deniers, those of ease [in life], and allow them respite a little. | 11 | Meccan | 5486 |
| Indeed, with Us [for them] are shackles and burning fire | 12 | Meccan | 5487 |
| And food that chokes and a painful punishment – | 13 | Meccan | 5488 |
| On the Day the earth and the mountains will convulse and the mountains will become a heap of sand pouring down. | 14 | Meccan | 5489 |
| Indeed, We have sent to you a Messenger as a witness upon you just as We sent to Pharaoh a messenger. | 15 | Meccan | 5490 |
| But Pharaoh disobeyed the messenger, so We seized him with a ruinous seizure. | 16 | Meccan | 5491 |
| Then how can you fear, if you disbelieve, a Day that will make the children white- haired? | 17 | Meccan | 5492 |
| The heaven will break apart therefrom; ever is His promise fulfilled. | 18 | Meccan | 5493 |
| Indeed, this is a reminder, so whoever wills may take to his Lord a way. | 19 | Meccan | 5494 |
| Indeed, your Lord knows, [O Muhammad], that you stand [in prayer] almost two thirds of the night or half of it or a third of it, and [so do] a group of those with you. And Allah determines [the extent of] the night and the day. He has known that you [Muslims] will not be able to do it and has turned to you in forgiveness, so recite what is easy [for you] of the Qur’an. He has known that there will be among you those who are ill and others traveling throughout the land seeking [something] of the bounty of Allah and others fighting for the cause of Allah. So recite what is easy from it and establish prayer and give zakah and loan Allah a goodly loan. And whatever good you put forward for yourselves – you will find it with Allah. It is better and greater in reward. And seek forgiveness of Allah. Indeed, Allah is Forgiving and Merciful. | 20 | Meccan | 5495 |