Surah Al-Baqara: The Perfect Prayer for Seeking Guidance and Blessings

Al Quran: Discover the beautiful words and profound meaning of surah Al-Baqara, and learn how to recite it with proper Arabic and its translation.

Surah Al-Baqara

Al-Baqara, alternatively transliterated Al-Baqarah, is the second and longest chapter of the Quran. It consists of 286 verses which begin with the "mysterious letters" A.L.M. In recitation the names of the letters are used, not their sounds.The surah encompasses a variety of topics and contains several commands for Muslims such as enjoining fasting on the believer during the month of Ramadan; forbidding interest or usury; and several famous verses such as The Throne Verse, Al-Baqara 256, and the final two or three verses. The surah addresses a wide variety of topics, including substantial amounts of law, and retells stories of Adam, Ibrahim and Musa. A major theme is guidance: urging the pagans and the Jews of Medina to embrace Islam, and warning them and the hypocrites of the fate God had visited in the past on those who failed to heed his call.Al-Baqara was believed revealed at Medina over a long period after the Hijrah, with the exception of the riba verses which Muslims believe were revealed during the Farewell Pilgrimage, the last Hajj of Muhammad. In particular, verse 281 in this chapter is believed to be the last verse of the Quran to be revealed, on the 10th of Dhul al Hijjah 10 A.H., when Muhammad was in the course of performing his last Hajj, 80 or 90 days before he died.Following the muqatta'at, Al-Baqara begins with the declaration that the Quran is free of doubt and contains guidance for those who possess taqwa. Taqwā is grammatically linked to the triliteral root w-q-y evoking wariness, a sense of care and protection. These people, known as God-fearing, are defined as those who believe in al-ghaib, offer salah, spend zakat from what is provided to them, believe in Muhammad's prophethood and that of the other prophets, and the books revealed to them.There follows a description of the kafirs and munafiqs. The first of these verses uses the word kafir to describe one who conceals the truth, and Muhammad is advised that they will not believe despite his efforts because God has sealed their hearts and hearing, and covered their eyes, and that they will be punished with a great torment. Next is a detailed description of munafiqs, defined here as those who say they believe in God and the Last Judgment, but do not actually believe in them. It is said that they try to deceive God and the mumins but they deceive themselves without perception, that in their hearts is a disease which God increases, and that they will be punished with a painful torment. The munafiqs are also said to spread fasad in the land, while claiming to spread peace, and to call the believers fools. To the believers they say they believe, but when they go back to their devils, they tell confess their disbelief, but they do not know that God deceives them and increases their deviation. They are then called those who engage in a profitless trade, the purchase of error with guidance. The munafiqs are then likened to a person who starts a fire and feels safe in its immediate surrounding, but God extinguishes the fire and the person is covered in darkness. The Quran then calls them deaf, dumb, and blind. Another example given is that of a person wandering in rain, thunder and lightning in darkness, such that they would have to thrust their fingers into their ears out of the fear of death. The lightning is so bright that it almost takes away their sight, but they walk toward it whenever it strikes, and stay put when it is dark.Mankind is then asked to worship God to acquire taqwa, and a description of God's creations follows: the earth as a resting place, the sky as a canopy, and rain sent from the sky to bring forth fruit and provision. They are then advised to not set up others in worship beside God. Those who doubt that the Quran was revealed to Muhammad are then challenged to produce a surah similar to it. It is then said that they will never be able to fulfill this challenge and are asked to fear Hell, which is described as being fueled with men and stones and specifically prepared for the kafirs.The stories in this chapter are told to help the reader understand the theological conception of truth in Islam.Q2:8-20 in Surah Al Baqarah refer to the hypocrites. In the Meccan phase of Muhammad, there existed two groups, the Believers and the Mushrikeen. However, after Hijrah Muhammad had to deal with the opposition of those who openly accepted Islam while secretly plotting against Muslims. Their leader was Abd-Allah ibn Ubayy who was about to be crowned king before the arrival of Muhammad in Medina. The hypocrites benefitted from the Muslims while not losing their association with the disbelievers. They were considered disloyal to both parties and inclined towards those who benefited them the most in the worldly senseThe surah also sheds light on the concept of Nifaq, which is opposite of sincerity. It is of two types:1) Nifaq in belief: outwardly showing belief however in reality there is no belief2) Nifaq in practice: where people believe however they act like hypocrites. The signs of a hypocrite are lying, breaking promises, not keeping an amaanah or trust and when they argue they curse or use bad language.According to a prominent scholar, Kamaluddin Ahmed, Nifaq is something that is within the heart, hence no one knows of its existence except God. Therefore, no one can be called a hypocrite or Munaafiq through one's own self-assessment. This would amount to making Takfeer i.e. calling someone a Kafir since Nifaq in belief is kufr.26 Commences with ۞, an Islamic symbol.87-105 is preserved in the Ṣan‘ā’1 lower text.Condemnation of alcoholic beverages and gambling is also first found in the chapter, and it is one of only four chapters in the Quran to refer to Christians as Nazarenes instead of the more frequent terms People of the Book or "Helpers of Christ."Al-Baqarah contains several verses dealing with the subject of warfare. Q2:190-194 are quoted on the nature of battle in Islam.The surah includes a few Islamic rules related to varying subjects, such as: prayers, fasting, striving on the path of God, the pilgrimage to Mecca, the change of the direction of prayer from Jerusalem to Mecca, marriage and divorce, commerce, debt, and a great many of the ordinances concerning interest or usury.Quran 2 includes many verses which have virtues like the special Verse of the Throne. Muhammad is reported to have said,“Do not turn your houses into graves. Verily, Satan does not enter the house where Surat Al-Baqarah is recited.”Ad-Darimi also recorded that Ash-Sha`bi said that `Abdullah bin Mas`ud said, "Whoever recites ten Ayat from Surat Al-Baqarah in a night, then Satan will not enter his house that night. four from the beginning, Ayat Al-Kursi, the following two Ayat and the last three Ayat.Verse 255 is "The Throne Verse". It is the most famous verse of the Quran and is widely memorized and displayed in the Islamic world due to its emphatic description of God's omnipotence in Islam.Verse 256 is one of the most quoted verses in the Quran. It famously notes that "There is no compulsion in religion". Two other verses, 285 and 286, are sometimes considered part of "The Throne Verse".Verse 2:282 covers two specific Islamic jurisprudence issues: undertaking a loan and the status of women's testimony.Amin Ahsan Islahi in his Tafsir of Surah al-Baqarah says when there is a loan transaction for a specific period of time, it must be formally written down. Both the lender and the debtor must trust the writer. There must be two witnesses: two men, or one man and two women. The security of the writer must be guaranteed. The length of the contract should be stated exactly.: 2:282 al-Jalalayn says, "summon to bear witness the debt two witnesses men mature Muslim free men; or if the two witnesses be not men then one man and two women": 2:282 Moses is referenced several times in Al-Baqara :

Al Imran

Al-Fatiha

Al-Baqara

آلم

تفسير : alif lām mīm: god knows best what he means by these [letters].

تفسير : that, meaning, this, book, which muhammad (s) recites, in it there is no doubt, no uncertainty, that it is from god (the negation [lĀ rayba fĪhi] is the predicate of dhĀlika; the use of the demonstrative here is intended to glorify [the book]). a guidance (hudĀ is a second predicate, meaning that it [the book] ‘guides’), for the god-fearing, namely, those that tend towards piety by adhering to commands and avoiding things prohibited, thereby guarding themselves from the fire;

Thalika alkitabu la rayba feehi hudan lilmuttaqeena

تفسير : who believe in, that is, who accept the truth of, the unseen, what is hidden from them of the resurrection, paradise and the fire; and maintain the prayer, that is to say, who perform it giving it its proper due; and of what we have provided them, that is, of what we have bestowed upon them, expend, in obedience to god;

Allatheena yuminoona bialghaybi wayuqeemoona alssalata wamimma razaqnahum yunfiqoona

تفسير : and who believe in what has been revealed to you, namely, the qur’ān; and what was revealed before you, that is, the torah, the gospel and other [scriptures]; and of the hereafter, they are certain, that is, they know [it is real].

Waallatheena yuminoona bima onzila ilayka wama onzila min qablika wabialakhirati hum yooqinoona

تفسير : those, as described in the way mentioned, are upon guidance from their lord, those are the ones that will prosper, that is, who will succeed in entering paradise and be saved from the fire.

Olaika AAala hudan min rabbihim waolaika humu almuflihoona

تفسير : as for the disbelievers, the likes of abū jahl, abū lahab and such; alike it is for them whether you have warned them or have not warned them, they do not believe, as god knows very well, so do not hope that they will believe (read a-andhartahum pronouncing both hamzas, or by not pronouncing the second, making it an alif instead, and inserting an alif between the one not pronounced and the other one, or leaving [this insertion]; al-indhār [‘warning’] is to give knowledge of something, and simultaneously instil an element of fear).

Inna allatheena kafaroo sawaon AAalayhim aanthartahum am lam tunthirhum la yuminoona

تفسير : god has set a seal on their hearts, impressing on them and making certain that no good enters them; and on their hearing, [in which he has] deposited something so that they cannot profit from the truth they hear; and on their eyes is a covering, that is, a veil so that they do not see the truth; and for them there will be a mighty chastisement, that is, intense and everlasting.

Khatama Allahu AAala quloobihim waAAala samAAihim waAAala absarihim ghishawatun walahum AAathabun AAatheemun

تفسير : the following was revealed concerning the hypocrites: and some people there are who say, ‘we believe in god and the last day’, that is, in the day of resurrection because it is the very last day; but they are not believers (the [plural] import of man [in man yaqūl, ‘who says’] is taken into account here, as expressed by a pronoun [hum] that expresses this [plural] meaning).

Wamina alnnasi man yaqoolu amanna biAllahi wabialyawmi alakhiri wama hum bimumineena

تفسير : they would deceive god and the believers, by manifesting the opposite of the unbelief they hide, so that they can avoid his rulings in this world; and only themselves they deceive (yukhādi‘ūn), for the evil consequences of their deception will rebound upon them, as they are disgraced in this world when god makes known to his prophet what they are hiding, and they will be punished in the hereafter; and they are not aware, and they do not know that they are actually deceiving themselves (mukhāda‘a [although a third verbal form, from khāda‘a] actually denotes a one-way action, such as [when one says] ‘āqabtu al-lissa, ‘i punished the thief’ [using the third verbal form ‘āqaba]; the mention of ‘god’ in [this statement] is for [rhetorical] effect; a variant reading [for wa-mā yukhādi‘ūna] has wa-mā yakhda‘ūna).

YukhadiAAoona Allaha waallatheena amanoo wama yakhdaAAoona illa anfusahum wama yashAAuroona

تفسير : in their hearts is a sickness: doubt and hypocrisy, which ails their hearts, debilitating them; and god has increased their sickness with what he has revealed in the qur’ān, since they disbelieve it; and there awaits them a painful chastisement because they used to lie (read yukadhdhibūn to imply [that they used to call] the prophet of god [a liar], or yakdhibūn to imply their [mendacity when] saying ‘we believe’).

Fee quloobihim maradun fazadahumu Allahu maradan walahum AAathabun aleemun bima kanoo yakthiboona