“There is no compulsion in religion.” Qur'an 2:256
A lone tree on a hill at golden hour
Day 11 of 30 · Why are we here?

Time and the human being

Before you read

Al-'Asr is three verses long. The scholar al-Shafi'i is reported to have said that if people reflected on this surah alone, it would be enough for them. It names four things that save a person from loss: faith, good deeds, urging truth, and urging patience.

Al-'Asr 103:1–3

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وَٱلْعَصْرِ

103:1(I swear) by the Time,

إِنَّ ٱلْإِنسَـٰنَ لَفِى خُسْرٍ

103:2man is in a state of loss indeed,

إِلَّا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ وَعَمِلُوا۟ ٱلصَّـٰلِحَـٰتِ وَتَوَاصَوْا۟ بِٱلْحَقِّ وَتَوَاصَوْا۟ بِٱلصَّبْرِ

103:3except those who believed and did righteous deeds, and exhorted each other to follow truth, and exhorted each other to observe patience.

At-Tin 95:1–8

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وَٱلتِّينِ وَٱلزَّيْتُونِ

95:1I swear by the Fig and the Olive,

وَطُورِ سِينِينَ

95:2and by Tūr, the mount of Sinai,

وَهَـٰذَا ٱلْبَلَدِ ٱلْأَمِينِ

95:3and by this peaceful city,

لَقَدْ خَلَقْنَا ٱلْإِنسَـٰنَ فِىٓ أَحْسَنِ تَقْوِيمٍ

95:4We have created man in the best composition,

ثُمَّ رَدَدْنَـٰهُ أَسْفَلَ سَـٰفِلِينَ

95:5then We turned him into the lowest of the low,

إِلَّا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ وَعَمِلُوا۟ ٱلصَّـٰلِحَـٰتِ فَلَهُمْ أَجْرٌ غَيْرُ مَمْنُونٍ

95:6except those who believed and did righteous deeds, because for them there is a reward never ending.

فَمَا يُكَذِّبُكَ بَعْدُ بِٱلدِّينِ

95:7So, what can make you, after all this, to deny the Requital?

أَلَيْسَ ٱللَّهُ بِأَحْكَمِ ٱلْحَـٰكِمِينَ

95:8Is Allah not the Greatest Ruler of all the rulers?

English translation: Mufti Muhammad Taqi Usmani, The Meanings of the Noble Qur'an, via Quran.com. Arabic: Uthmani script.

Which of the four is hardest for you?