النازعات
An-Nazi'at
Angels who pull souls away, a Day that shakes twice, and the story of a king who thought he was the highest. It ends with the one question nobody can answer: when?
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In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.
By those who pull out harshly,
and those who draw out gently,
and those who glide along swimming,
racing ahead of one another,
carrying out what they are told.
On the Day the great shaking shakes,
followed by the one behind it,
hearts that Day will be pounding,
their eyes lowered.
They say, "Are we really going to be sent back the way we were,
even after we are crumbling bones?"
They say, "Then that would be a losing return!"
It will take only one single shout,
and there they are, wide awake on the surface.
Has the story of Musa reached you?
When his Lord called him in the holy valley of Tuwa:
"Go to Pharaoh. He has gone too far.
And say, 'Would you like to make yourself clean,
and let me guide you to your Lord, so you would stand in awe of Him?'"
So he showed him the greatest sign.
But he called it a lie and refused.
Then he turned his back and hurried away,
gathered everyone, and called out,
saying, "I am your lord, the highest!"
So Allah seized him, as a lesson for the next life and this one.
In that there is truly a lesson for anyone who stands in awe of Allah.
Are you harder to make, or the sky He built?
He raised its roof high and made it even,
darkened its night and brought out its morning.
And after that He spread the earth out wide.
He brought out from it its water and its pasture,
and set the mountains firm —
all of it for you and for your animals to enjoy.
So when the great overwhelming Day arrives,
the Day a person remembers everything they worked for,
and the Fire is brought into plain sight —
then as for the one who went too far
and chose this life instead,
the Fire is the home.
But as for the one who stood in awe before their Lord and kept themselves away from what they wrongly wanted,
the Garden is the home.
They ask you about the Hour: when will it come?
What could you say about it?
Only your Lord knows where it ends.
You are only here to warn whoever stands in awe of it.
The Day they see it, it will feel as if they had stayed only an evening, or a morning.
Verse meanings adapted for young readers · full translation at Quran.com
About An-Nazi'at
An-Nazi'at means “those who pull out”. The surah opens with five oaths in a row, and it never says outright who is being sworn by. Most scholars read them as angels — pulling souls out harshly, drawing them out gently, gliding, racing ahead, carrying out what they are told.
Then two shakes. The first one shakes everything, and the second comes right behind it. Hearts pound. Eyes drop. And people who used to say “we are never coming back from crumbling bones” find that it takes exactly one shout, and there they are — wide awake.
The middle of the surah is a story, and it is the longest one in Juz Amma so far. Musa is sent to Pharaoh with the gentlest possible opening: would you like to make yourself clean? Not a threat. An invitation. Pharaoh answers by calling it a lie, gathering a crowd, and announcing “I am your lord, the highest.” One verse later, that is over.
Then the surah turns and points at the sky. Are you harder to make, or that? He raised its roof, made it even, darkened its night, brought out its morning, spread the earth wide, set the mountains firm, and put water and pasture in it — all of it for you and for your animals to enjoy. The argument is simple enough for a child to follow: whoever made all that can certainly bring you back.
It closes on a question the Prophet ﷺ is asked and told not to answer. When is the Hour? Only your Lord knows where it ends. And on the Day it comes, a whole life will feel like an evening, or a single morning.
Verse 18 is worth stopping on. Allah sends Musa to the most powerful and most arrogant man alive, and the words He gives him are a question: “Would you like to make yourself clean?” No shouting, no ultimatum — an offer. Scholars have long pointed to this as the model for how to invite someone to something good, especially someone you find difficult. It is a useful thing to hand a child who is about to correct a sibling.
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For Parents
What does An-Nazi'at mean?
An-Nazi'at (النازعات) means “those who pull out” or “those who tear away”. It is named after its first verse, an oath by beings who pull something out with force. The surah does not name them; most scholars understand them as angels taking souls at death.
What is Surah An-Nazi'at about?
It opens with five oaths, then describes the two blasts of the Day of Judgement and the people who denied they could ever be brought back. It tells the story of Musa being sent to Pharaoh with a gentle invitation, and Pharaoh's refusal. It then points to the sky, the earth and the mountains as proof of Allah's power, and closes with the Hour — whose timing only Allah knows.
Who are the five things sworn by at the start?
The surah simply describes them: pulling out harshly, drawing out gently, gliding, racing ahead, carrying out a command. It never names them. The most common reading is angels, and the two kinds of pulling are often explained as how a soul leaves — hard for one person, easy for another. Because the Quran leaves it open, it is fine to tell a child that scholars understand these as angels and that Allah did not tell us more.
How do I explain Pharaoh to a young child?
Keep it to what the surah keeps it to. A king was given a clear sign and a kind invitation, and he said no because he wanted to be the most important thing there was. Verse 24 is the whole problem in five words: “I am your lord, the highest.” Children understand wanting to be the biggest. That is the door in.
How long is Surah An-Nazi'at?
An-Nazi'at is forty-six verses long and takes about two minutes to recite. It is the 79th surah of the Quran and was revealed in Mecca. Most of its verses are very short — two, three or four words — with the longer ones in the Musa section.
How can my child memorize An-Nazi'at?
Take it in four: the oaths and the two shakes (1–14), Musa and Pharaoh (15–26), the sky and the earth (27–33), and the Day with its two homes (34–46). Verses 1–5 all end the same way and are only two words each, so they usually come in one sitting. Verses 39 and 41 are near-identical, which makes the pair easy.