Sūrah Qāf to Sūrah al-Taḥrīm

Introduction

This is the sixth chapter of the Qur’ān. It has seventeen sūrahs from Qāf to al-Taḥrīm. It is evident from the topics of these sūrahs that the first seven of them were revealed in Makkah and the last ten were revealed after migration in Madīnah.

Like other chapters of the Qur’ān, this chapter too begins with Makkan sūrahs and ends on Madīnan ones.

The addressees of this chapter are the Quraysh in the Makkan sūrahs, and Prophet Muḥammad (sws) and his followers in the Madīnan ones. The People of the Book are discussed in a secondary manner – in Makkan sūrahs because during their period of revelation they had started to openly support the Quraysh and openly oppose Prophet Muḥammad (sws), and in Madīnan ones because some groups of the hypocrites found among Muslims were under their influence.

The theme of this chapter is the validation of the Day of Judgement and meting out warnings and glad tidings to the Quraysh with its reference and tazkiyah and taṭhīr of the believers. The requirements of obeying and submitting to God and His Prophet are mentioned under this tazkiyah and taṭhīr and keeping in view the situation of that time.¹