Surah An-Nasr: Verse 1 - إذا جاء نصر الله والفتح... - English

Name of the Surah and place of its revelation

According to the consensus of scholars, this Surah was revealed in Madinah. Its other name is Surah At-Tawdi`. The word Tawdi` means 'to bid farewell'. As this Surah indicates the approach of the demise of the Holy Prophet ﷺ ، it bids farewell to him and is thus entitled Surah At-Tawdi'.

The Last Surah and the Last Verses of the Noble Qur’ an

It is recorded in Sahih of Muslim on the authority of Sayyidna Ibn ` Abbas ؓ ، that Surah An-Nasr was the last Surah to be revealed. [ Qurtubi ]. This means that this was the last complete Surah that was revealed to the Holy Prophet ﷺ . No complete Surah was revealed after this. Some individual verses reported to have been revealed after this are not in conflict with this statement, because no complete Surah was sent down after the present one. It is like Surah Al-Fatihah which is said to be the first Surah, while a few verses of Surah Al-'Alaq, a few verses of Surah Al-Muddaththir, and a few verses of other Surahs were revealed even before Surah Al-Fatihah, because it means that it was the first Surah to be revealed completely. No complete Surah was revealed before Al-Fatihah.

Sayyidna Ibn ` Umar ؓ reports that this Surah was revealed during the Farewell Pilgrimage, and shortly after that a fragment of verse [ 3] of Surah [ 5] الْيَوْمَ أَكْمَلْتُ لَكُمْ دِينَكُمْ (...Today, I have perfected your religion for you_[ 5:3]) was revealed. After these two revelations, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ lived only for eighty days, after which he passed away. After these two revelations, the Holy Prophet ﷺ received the verse of kalalah. Then the Holy Prophet ﷺ lived for fifty days. After that he received the following verse [ 9:128] of Surah [ 9] لَقَدْ جَاءَكُمْ رَ‌سُولٌ مِّنْ أَنفُسِكُمْ عَزِيزٌ عَلَيْهِ مَا عَنِتُّمْ (Surely, there has come to you a Messenger from amongst you, hard on whom is your suffering, for the good of you he craves...) After this revelation, he lived for 35 days. After this verse was revealed the following verse: [ 2:281] اتَّقُوا يَوْمًا تُرْ‌جَعُونَ فِيهِ إِلَى اللَّـهِ (And be fearful of a day when you shall be returned to Allah...). After this verse he lived only for twenty-one days, and according to Muqatil, he lived for seven days only and passed away. [ Qurtubi ]

Verse [ 110:1] إِذَا جَاءَ نَصْرُ‌ اللَّـهِ وَالْفَتْحُ (When there comes Allah's help and the victory). The expression 'victory' here is in reference to 'the promised Victory or Conquest of Makkah'. There is complete unanimity on this historical fact. However, the scholars disagree whether this Surah was revealed before or after the Conquest. The phrase idha ja'a [ when there comes ] apparently indicates that its revelation took place before the Conquest. Ruh-ul-Ma’ ani cites a narration from Al-Bahr-ul-Muhit which concurs with this view, in which it is stated that this Surah was revealed while returning from the expedition of Khaibar. It is a known fact that the victory of Khaibar took place prior to the Conquest of Makkah. Ruh-ul-Ma’ ani cites, on the authority of ` Abd Ibn Humaid, Sayyidna Qatadah's statement that the Prophet ﷺ lived for two years after the revelation of this Surah. Narratives report that it was revealed on the occasion of the Conquest of Makkah or on the occasion of the Farewell Pilgrimage may be explained by saying that the Holy Prophet ﷺ might have recited this Surah and proclaimed it on one of those occasions; as a result people must have thought that it was revealed on that occasion. Please refer to Bayan-ul Qur'an for fuller explanation.

Several Prophetic Traditions and statements of the Companions narrate that this Surah indicates that the Holy Prophet ﷺ has fulfilled his task, and accomplished his mission of life, and he could look forward to returning to his Lord in full favour as his death was approaching fast. The Surah teaches the Holy Prophet ﷺ the beautiful manners of asking Allah's forgiveness and offering constant praise and thanks to his Lord.

It is reported in Muqatil's narration that when this Surah was revealed, the Holy Prophet ﷺ recited it in a gathering of the blessed Companions, among whom were Sayyidna Abu Bakr, ` Umar, Sa'd Ibn Abi Waqqas ؓ . All were happy at the revelation of this Surah, because it contained the glad tidings of the Conquest of Makkah, but Sayyidna ` Abbas ؓ began to weep. The Holy Prophet ﷺ asked him the reason for weeping, and he replied that it covertly conveys the termination of your life and nearness of your death. The Holy Prophet ﷺ confirmed this. Sahih of Bukhari records a similar explanation of this Surah given by Sayyidna Ibn ` Abbas رضی اللہ تعالیٰ عنہما in which there is the addition that when Sayyidna ` Umar رضی اللہ تعالیٰ عنہ heard this, he concurred with him and said: 'I do not know anything about it other than what you [ Ibn ` Abbas ] have said'. [ Transmitted by Tirmidhi who graded it as hasan, Sahih vide Qurtubi ]

The Virtues of Surat An-Nasr

It has been mentioned previously that it (Surat An-Nasr) is equivalent to one-fourth of the Qur'an and that Surat Az-Zalzalah is equivalent to one-fourth of the Qur'an. An-Nasa'i recorded from `Ubaydullah bin `Abdullah bin `Utbah that Ibn `Abbas said to him, "O Ibn `Utbah! Do you know the last Surah of the Qur'an that was revealed" He answered, "Yes, it was

(When there comes the help of Allah and the Conquest.) (110:1)" He (Ibn `Abbas) He (Ibn `Abbas) said, "You have spoken truthfully."

In the Name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful.

This Surah informs of the Completion of the Life of Allah's Messenger

Al-Bukhari recorded from Ibn `Abbas that he said, "Umar used to bring me into the gatherings with the old men of (the battle of) Badr. However, it was as if one of them felt something in himself (against my attending). So he said, `Why do you (`Umar) bring this (youth) to sit with us when we have children like him (i.e., his age)' So `Umar replied, `Verily, he is among those whom you know. Then one day he called them and invited me to sit with them, and I do not think that he invited me to be among them that day except to show them. So he said, `What do you say about Allah's statement,

(When there comes the help of Allah and the Conquest.)' Some of them said, `We were commanded to praise Allah and seek His forgiveness when He helps us and gives us victory.' Some of them remained silent and did not say anything. Then he (`Umar) said to me, `Is this what you say, O Ibn `Abbas' I said, `No.' He then said, `What do you say' I said, `It was the end of the life of Allah's Messenger that Allah was informing him of. Allah said,

(When there comes the help of Allah and the Conquest.) which means, that is a sign of the end of your life.

(So, glorify the praises of your Lord, and ask His forgiveness. Verily, He is the One Who accepts the repentance and Who forgives.)' So, `Umar bin Al-Khattab said, `I do not know anything about it other than what you have said."' Al-Bukhari was alone in recording this Hadith. Imam Ahmad recorded from Ibn `Abbas that he said, "When

(When there comes the help of Allah and the Conquest.) was revealed, the Messenger of Allah said,

(My death has been announced to me.) And indeed he died during that year." Ahmad was alone in recording this Hadith. Al-Bukhari recorded that `A'ishah said, "The Messenger of Allah used to say often in his bowing and prostrating,

(Glory to You, O Allah, our Lord, and praise be to You. O Allah, forgive me.) He did this as his interpretation of the Qur'an (i.e., showing its implementation)." The rest of the group has also recorded this Hadith except for At-Tirmidhi. Imam Ahmad recorded from Masruq that `A'ishah said, "The Messenger of Allah used to often say towards the end of his life,

(Glory to Allah, and praise be unto Him. I seek Allah's forgiveness and I repent to Him.) And he said,

(Verily, my Lord has informed me that I will see a sign in my Ummah and He has commanded me that when I see it, I should glorify His praises and seek His forgiveness, for He is the One Who accepts repentance. And indeed I have seen it (i.e., the sign). (When there comes the help of Allah and the Conquest (Al-Fath). And you see that the people enter Allah's religion in crowds. So glorify the praises of your Lord, and ask His forgiveness. Verily, He is the One Who accepts the repentance and Who forgives.))" Muslim also recorded this Hadith. The meaning of Al-Fath here is the conquest of Makkah, and there is only one view concerning it. For indeed the different areas of the Arabs were waiting for the conquest of Makkah before they would accept Islam. They said, "If he (Muhammad is victorious over his people, then he is a (true) Prophet." So when Allah gave him victory over Makkah, they entered into the religion of Allah (Islam) in crowds. Thus, two years did not pass (after the conquest of Makkah) before the peninsula of the Arabs was laden with faith. And there did not remain any of the tribes of the Arabs except that they professed (their acceptance) of Islam. And all praise and blessings are due to Allah. Al-Bukhari recorded in his Sahih that `Amr bin Salamah said, "When Makkah was conquered, all of the people rushed to the Messenger of Allah to profess their Islam. The various regions were delaying their acceptance of Islam until Makkah was conquered. The people used to say, `Leave him and his people alone. If he is victorious over them he is a (true) Prophet."' We have researched the war expedition for conquest of Makkah in our book As-Surah. Therefore, whoever wishes he may review it there. And all praise and blessings are due to Allah.Imam Ahmad recorded from Abu `Ammar that a neighbor of Jabir bin `Abdullah told him, "I returned from a journey and Jabir bin `Abdullah came and greeted me. So I began to talk with him about the divisions among the people and what they had started doing. Thus, Jabir began to cry and he said, `I heard the Messenger of Allah saying,

(Verily, the people have entered into the religion of Allah in crowds and they will also leave it in crowds.)" This is the end of the Tafsir of Surat An-Nasr, and all praise and blessings are due to Allah.