Az-Zalzalah

Az-Zalzalah: the cards as text

Qur'an and Tafsir, Surah 99. Draft written with AI help: awaiting scholar review.

  1. Card 1

    The ground people walk on has been keeping notes. One day it reads them out.

  2. Card 2

    One thing that gathers everything

    An old man asked the Prophet ﷺ for something to recite. Every suggestion was too much for him.

    He asked for one thing that held it all. He was given these eight ayat.

    He swore never to add to them.

  3. Card 3

    The last day, from the ground up

    1. 1-3: The ground gives way. The earth is shaken with its own great quake. It throws up what it has been carrying. A human being asks what is wrong with it.
    2. 4-5: The ground speaks. The question gets an answer. On that Day the earth reports its news, because its Lord has told it to.
    3. 6-8: A speck's weight. People go off in separate groups to be shown what they did. A speck's weight of good is seen. So is a speck's weight of evil.
  4. Card 4

    Az-Zalzalah 99:1-2: The surah starts with the thing everybody trusts: the ground.

    إِذَا زُلۡزِلَتِ ٱلۡأَرۡضُ زِلۡزَالَهَا ۝١ وَأَخۡرَجَتِ ٱلۡأَرۡضُ أَثۡقَالَهَا ۝٢

    1 When the earth is shaken with its [final] earthquake

    2 And the earth discharges its burdens

  5. Card 5

    "I killed for this?"

    The earth throws up its dead. In a hadith, its gold and silver too, in columns. A murderer looks at it and says: I killed for this? Everyone walks away. Nobody takes any.

  6. Card 6

    Az-Zalzalah 99:3: Then the only human line in the surah.

    وَقَالَ ٱلۡإِنسَٰنُ مَا لَهَا ۝٣

    3 And man says, "What is [wrong] with it?" -

  7. Card 7

    Az-Zalzalah 99:4: The human being's question gets an answer, from the earth itself.

    يَوۡمَئِذࣲ تُحَدِّثُ أَخۡبَارَهَا ۝٤

    4 That Day, it will report its news

  8. Card 8

    "Do you know what its news is?"

    The Prophet ﷺ asked his Companions that, then told them. The earth will testify about every person: this one did this, on this day, on my surface.

  9. Card 9

    The world as a studio

    Wahiduddin Khan, a modern Indian commentator, points to film and records: lifeless things already play back what happened. He calls the world one big studio, recording every moment.

  10. Card 10

    Az-Zalzalah 99:7-8: People are led off to be shown what they did. The measure:

    فَمَن يَعۡمَلۡ مِثۡقَالَ ذَرَّةٍ خَيۡرࣱا يَرَهُۥ ۝٧ وَمَن يَعۡمَلۡ مِثۡقَالَ ذَرَّةࣲ شَرࣱّا يَرَهُۥ ۝٨

    7 So whoever does an atom's weight of good will see it,

    8 And whoever does an atom's weight of evil will see it.

  11. Card 11

    Atom, ant or speck of dust

    The Arabic is dharrah: the smallest thing a person could see. A dust mote, or a tiny ant. It is reported that 'A'ishah gave one grape in charity, and asked how many specks it weighed.

  12. Card 12

    What about donkeys?

    The Prophet ﷺ was asked what a man earns by keeping donkeys. Nothing was revealed about them, he said, except this one ayah that covers everything. And he recited the lines about the speck.

  13. Card 13

    Reflect: In ayah 4, what does the earth do on that Day?

    Answer: It reports its news. The earth reports what was done on its surface. The Prophet [saw] explained that it testifies about every person. The question in ayah 3 comes from a human being.

  14. Card 14

    The end of Az-Zalzalah.

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