Surah Al-Burooj – Muhammad Abdulkareem

Al-Burooj ("The Mansions of the Stars") is the 85th surah of the Quran, in the 30th juz. It is a Meccan surah of 22 verses, 27th in the traditional order of revelation, after Ash-Shams. It recalls the People of the Ditch, who burned believers for their faith, to warn the persecutors of Mecca and to console the persecuted Muslims.

It opens with oaths by the sky with its great constellations (al-buruj), the promised Day, and the witness and the witnessed (85:1-3). Then: cursed were the People of the Ditch, of the fire full of fuel, as they sat by it watching what they did to the believers, whom they resented only for believing in God, the Mighty, the Praiseworthy (85:4-8). In Sahih Muslim, the Prophet ﷺ tells of a boy who held to his faith before a tyrant king; when the people believed after his death, the king had ditches dug and set ablaze for those who would not renounce it. Commentators relate this story to these verses.

Those who persecute believing men and women and do not repent will suffer Hell and burning, while those who believe and do good will have gardens beneath which rivers flow: that is the great triumph (85:10-11). Your Lord's grip is severe; He originates and restores, He is the Forgiving, the Loving, Lord of the glorious Throne, doer of whatever He wills (85:12-16). After recalling the armies of Pharaoh and Thamud, the surah ends: this is a glorious Quran, on a preserved tablet (85:21-22).

Jabir ibn Samura reports that the Prophet ﷺ used to recite Al-Buruj, At-Tariq and similar surahs in the noon and afternoon prayers (Abu Dawud and at-Tirmidhi, graded sahih).