Surah At-Takwir – Yousef Bin Noah Ahmad

At-Takwir ("The Overthrowing") is the 81st surah of the Quran, in the 30th juz. It is a Meccan surah of 29 verses, seventh in the traditional order of revelation, after Al-Masad. In a rapid series of images it describes the upheaval of the universe at the end of time, then affirms that the Quran is brought by a noble messenger and not by a devil.

The first fourteen verses form a chain of "when" clauses: when the sun is wrapped up, the stars fall and the seas are set ablaze; when the girl buried alive is asked for what sin she was killed (81:8-9); when the records are spread open and Paradise is brought near, every soul will know what it has brought (81:1-14).

Then comes an oath by the stars, the night and the dawn: this is the word of a noble and trusted messenger, Jibril, whom the Prophet ﷺ saw on the clear horizon, and not the word of an accursed devil (81:15-25). It is a reminder for whoever wills to go straight, yet you do not will unless God, Lord of the worlds, wills (81:27-29).

Ibn Umar reports that the Prophet ﷺ said: whoever would like to look at the Day of Resurrection as if seeing it with his own eyes, let him recite At-Takwir, Al-Infitar and Al-Inshiqaq (at-Tirmidhi, graded hasan; sahih according to al-Albani).