Table of Contents

• The Contents of Surah Hud
• Section 1: Repentance Earns Pardon and the Bounties from Allah
• Surah Hud - Verse 1

123 verses in 10 sections

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمنِ الرَّحِيمِ

In The Name of Allah, The Beneficent, The Merciful

The Contents of Surah Hud

This holy Surah was revealed during the last years of the Prophet’s stay in Mecca, during which the Muslims were experiencing very hard times because of the passing away of Hadrat Abu-Talib and Hadrat Khadijah.

The blessed Prophet (S) once said: “Surah Hud made me age”, for the verse recommending perseverance and persistence has been revealed within this Surah. It says: “Persevere and persist as you have been ordered and your followers with you. ”

However, the impatience and lack of perseverance of the companions of the Prophet (S) annoyed him.

The contents of this Surah, which comprises 123 verses, deal with the history of the prophets; in particular, the story of Hadrat Noah (as). It also focuses upon economic problems.

Attention is devoted to the history of the prophets, presenting their message as a continuous historical process, and not as some isolated affairs. It insists on the fact that the history of the prophets is governed by laws, the study of which reveals the secrets of the rise and fall, the glorification and degradation of nations.

This indicates that religion is not separate from society, and society’s destiny depends entirely upon people’s religion and way of life.

The name of Hadrat Hud (as) has been repeated five times in this Surah which equals the number of its recurrence throughout the rest of the Qur’an.

As for the virtues implied in this Surah, there is a tradition narrated from the Prophet (S) who has said:

“He who recites this Surah, will reap rewards, the size of which would equal the number of all those who believed in Hud and the other prophets as well as those who refuted them, and he will be elevated in rank equal to those of the martyrs on the Day of Resurrection, and thus everything would be easy for him.”

Obviously, a mere cursory reading of the Surah would have not such a result; rather reading, meditating upon it and later combining it with practice, would place man along with the former believers and distance him from the rejecters of the prophets.

Section 1: Repentance Earns Pardon and the Bounties from Allah

Surah Hud - Verse 1

بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمنِ الرَّحِيمِ‌ الر كِتابٌ أُحْكِمَتْ آياتُهُ ثُمَّ فُصِّلَتْ مِنْ لَدُنْ حَكِيمٍ خَبِيرٍ (1)

In The Name of Allah, The Beneficent, The Merciful

1. “’Alif ‘A’, Lam ‘L’, Ra ‘R’. (This is) a Book whose verses are set firmly, then explained in detail, from One All-Wise, All-Aware.”

The Qur’an is made up of those very same alphabetical letters that are found in every Arabic text available for all. However, Allah has created a book out of these simple letters, the equivalent of which no one can produce.

Just as man makes bricks and ceramics out of soil, Allah creates thousands of flowers and plants, fruits and animals as well as man, out of the same materials. Of course just as we can notice Allah’s omnipotence in the system of creation, we can observe His omnipotence in the Book of Divine legislation as well.

There are some further explanations about the abbreviated letters mentioned at the beginning of Surah Al-Baqarah, No. 2 which need not to be repeated here.

The Qur’an is a decisive Book, containing one fundamental spirit; that is, the spirit of monotheism; besides all its stories, exhortations, Divine commandments, and its verses are the explanations of this very line.

The Qur’an is a decisive book which has not been distorted nor is it to be doubted.

It is not based on conjecture and presupposition, and so all its contents are irrevocable with sound foundations.

The foundations of the Qur’an are decisively firm and nothing will be able to penetrate or cause disruption in it. The further science advances, the more the secrets of this book are revealed and discovered.

The Qur’an is both demonstrative and irrevocable, while at the same time, encompassing all the dimensions of this worldly life and the life hereafter. The Qur’an has been revealed to the Prophet (S) in its totality, after which, it has been extensively explained. And as Allah is Wise, His Book is decisive, and as He is All-Aware, He has dealt with the details of all needs.

The verse says:

“’Alif ‘A’, Lam ‘L’, Ra ‘R’. (This is) a Book whose verses are set firmly, then explained in detail, from One All-Wise, All-Aware.”