al-Muzzammil

بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ

يَا أَيُّهَا الْمُزَّمِّلُ

قُمِ اللَّيْلَ إِلَّا قَلِيلًا

نِّصْفَهُ أَوِ انقُصْ مِنْهُ قَلِيلًا

أَوْ زِدْ عَلَيْهِ وَرَتِّلِ الْقُرْآنَ تَرْتِيلًا

إِنَّا سَنُلْقِي عَلَيْكَ قَوْلًا ثَقِيلًا

1. O you wrapped in garment!
2. Stand [in prayer] all night, except a little.
3. Half of it or a little less than that,
4. Or a little more. And recite the Qur’an slowly and meditatively.
5. Since, We shall send down unto you a weighty Word.

The tone of the opening Verses of the blessed Chapter reflects that the Noble Prophet (S) is Divinely called unto steadfastness and preparedness for an immense obligation acting upon which requires spiritual growth. The blessed Verses say:

It would be of interest to note that the Noble Prophet is herein addressed as:

rather than

or

reflecting that it would be befitting to rise up, grow spiritually, and prepare oneself for embarking upon such great mission, rather than leading the life of a recluse. He is urged to rise at night, since his foes are asleep at the time and people desist from following their daily routines, hence further preparedness for meditation and spiritual growth. Likewise, he is urged to recite the Holy Qur’anic Verses, since they include all the required lessons in this respect. Recitation of the blessed Verses is the best means of strengthening one’s faith, steadfastness, fear of God Almighty, and spiritual growth.

The Arabic word tartil denotes "regularity, articulation, and being well-ordered," though it herein implies articulate, eloquent, and meditative recitation of the Qur’anic Verses, reflecting upon their meanings and impacts on one’s life. It goes without saying that such recitation of the Qur’anic Verses may easily lead man toward spiritual growth, moral nobilities, and fear of God Almighty. Some Qur’an exegetes maintain that establishing canonical prayers is herein intended, since a major part of such prayers lies in reciting Qur’anic Verses.

The clause

is contrasted with "sleeping," though it does not solely denote standing up. The point is that the different expressions denoting the spans of time spent in nightly vigilance actually implies "choice"; thus, the Noble Prophet (S) is free to choose to stay awake half of the night or sometime more or less, devoting his nightly vigilance to the recitation of the Qur’anic Verses. Firstly, mention is made of all night, except for a little, then the time span is reduced to half of the night and then to less than half.

Some exegetes hold that choosing amongst two thirds, half, and a third of the night is herein intended, as the closing Verse

reiterates the same statement. It is worthy of note that the last Verse clearly reflects that the Noble Prophet (S) was not alone in

but a group of the believers accompanied him in such spiritual growth and had recognized him as their model in this respect. Some Qur’an exegetes maintain that

bids the Noble Prophet to stand in prayer all nights except for some of them. According to this view, there is no exception in terms of the nightly spans of time, rather some nights is hereby intended. Nonetheless, such interpretation is not seemingly accurate taking into account the single nominal form

and the clause

Different exegetes suggest different interpretations for

as they address different aspects of the question. However, the weight of the Word seemingly implies that the Holy Qur’an, from different aspects, is herein intended. The Holy Qur’anic Verses are weighty in terms of contents, meaning, and their impacts on the believers’ hearts. The same theme is reflected elsewhere in the Holy Qur’an³:

Such

connotes the warnings, promises, obligations, hardships resulting from the propagation of the Prophetic call. The

alludes to the weight in the scales of deeds and their accounts on the Day of Resurrection and finally the burden of complete implementation of such plans. Inasmuch as the recitation of the Holy Qur’anic Verses is convenient and delightful, though acting upon their contents is hard, particularly on the threshold of the Prophetic call, when his milieu was imbued with the dark clouds of ignorance, idolatry, and superstitions. It was at that time that his obdurate and merciless foes were hand in hand against him and his companions, though they sought assistance from Qur’anic teachings, establishment of nightly prayers, and seeking closeness to the Pure Essence of the Lord and thereby succeeded in overcoming all hardships and carrying such heavy burden.

According to the exegetic work, Atyab al-Bayan, the

implies the proclamation of the Noble Imam ‘Ali ibn Abi Talib’s (as) caliphate and imamate, obliging him to confront so many obdurate foes. Accordingly, the Holy Qur’an is not herein intended, since it is said

"Recite the Qur’an so that you may receive the weighty word in future. Thus, the Holy Qur’an precedes the weighty word." ⁴

Some traditions have been narrated from the Infallible Imams (as) concerning of the word tartil, each of which addresses one of the aspects of the question. It is narrated from the Commander of the Faithful, Imam ‘Ali (as) that tartil herein reflects articulate recitation, unlike the hasty recitation of poetry and scattering the same like sand. One is supposed to recites the Verses in a manner that he may strike the hardened hearts and awaken them, without necessarily aiming at reaching the end of the Chapter [namely, it is significant to comprehend the meaning of the Verses].⁵

In this vein, it is narrated from the Noble Imam Sadiq (as) as saying

"The Holy Qur’an is not supposed to recite the Qur’anic Verses hastily, but they should be recited articulately. Whenever you come to a Verse treating of Hell, stop your recitation and invoke God Almighty for forgiveness. But, when you come to a Verse treating of Paradise, stop your recitation and invoke God Almighty to grant you Paradise [and prepare yourself for the same]." ⁶

It is also reported that the Noble Prophet recited the blessed Verses discretely and articulately with a sweet voice.⁷ Further Qur’anic Verses and traditions⁸ treat of the same significance reflecting that the blessed Qur’anic Verses are not supposed to be recited as if they are devoid of meaning, but in reciting them, particular attention is to be accorded to all the issues deepening their impacts on the reciters and the listeners. It should be borne in mind at all times that Qur’anic Verses are Divine Messages and it is incumbent upon the believers to act upon their contents.

It is unfortunate that many a Muslim have consigned such truth to oblivion and have contented themselves with reciting the mere words and completing the Chapters and the Holy Qur’an in its entirety, without according the least attention to the goals behind their Revelation and the Divine Messages imparted by them. It is true that Qur’anic Words deserve attention and reciting them entails Divine Blessings, but it should be borne in mind that reciting the words is a prelude to the comprehension of their contents.

It is noteworthy that the blessed Verses in question reflect that significance of nightly vigilance, establishing nightly prayers, and the recitation of the Qur’anic Verses when the neglectful are asleep. As mentioned above, praying at night and particularly at dawn immensely impacts the purity of the soul leading to spiritual growth, purity and awakening of the heart, strengthening the faith and will power, and solidifying the pillars of the fear of God Almighty in human heart and soul, such that man clearly witnesses them upon his first trial.

Thus, praying at night is accorded particular attention in the Qur’anic Verses and the traditions narrated from the Noble Prophet (S) and the Infallible Imams. In this respect, it is narrated from the Noble Imam Sadiq (as) as saying:

"Three things include Divine particular blessings: nightly prayers, feeding those who take fast at the time of breaking it, and visiting Muslim brethren." ⁹

According to another tradition narrated from Imam Sadiq (as) concerning the blessed Qur’anic Verse

he said:

"Nightly prayers efface the sins committed in the day." ¹⁰

A detailed discussion treating of the same topic is to be found above, under 17:79, where ten traditions of interest were also quoted.

Footnotes

1. 3. 59:21
2. 4. Tafsir Atyab al-Bayan, vol. 13, p. 249.
3. 5. Majma‘ al-Bayan, under the blessed Verse in question; Usul Kafi, the chapter on the articulate recitation of the Qur’an (bab tartil al-Qur’an).
4. 6. Majma‘ al-Bayan, ibid.; Usul Kafi, ibid.; Nur al-Thiqalayn, under the blessed Verse in question.
5. 7. Majma‘ al-Bayan, under the blessed Verse in question.
6. 8. For instance, Usul Kafi; Nur al-Thiqalayn; Durr al-Manthur; and other tradition and exegetic sources.
7. 9. Bihar al-Anwar, vol. 87, p. 143.
8. 10. Ibid.