Surah At-Takwir Full Text — Idha ash-Shamsu Kuwwirat (Hafs)

About Surah At-Takwir

Surah At-Takwir is the 81st surah in the order of the mushaf, and one of the Meccan surahs — revealed to the Prophet ﷺ before the migration to Madinah. It contains 29 ayahs, and it is the fourth surah of Juz ‘Amma, the final part of the Quran that most Muslims begin their memorisation with.

The surah takes its name — “The Wrapping Up” — from its opening words, «idha ash-shamsu kuwwirat» (“when the sun is wrapped up”), the sun folded up and its light extinguished. In one breathless passage it unrolls twelve scenes of the Last Day, ending with the words “each soul will know what it has brought.” It then swears by the receding, sweeping stars, the night and the dawn that this Quran is the word of a noble messenger — Jibril — defends the Prophet ﷺ against the charge of madness, and closes by declaring itself a reminder for the worlds, for whoever wills to take a straight path.

The text shown on this page is the narration of Hafs ‘an ‘Asim, the reading used in most of the Muslim world, in the Uthmani script that follows the Madinah mushaf. The audio recitation is by Sheikh Saad Al-Ghamdi.

Virtues and place of Surah At-Takwir

1. A window onto the Day of Resurrection

Ibn Umar reported that the Prophet ﷺ said: “Whoever would be pleased to look at the Day of Resurrection as if seeing it with his own eyes, let him recite ‘When the sun is wrapped up’ (At-Takwir), ‘When the sky breaks apart’ (Al-Infitar) and ‘When the sky splits open’ (Al-Inshiqaq)” — recorded by at-Tirmidhi and Ahmad, and graded hasan. Reciting this surah is, by the Prophet’s ﷺ own description, a way of witnessing that Day before it comes.

2. Among the surahs that turned the Prophet’s ﷺ hair grey

The Prophet ﷺ said: “Hud, Al-Waqi‘ah, Al-Mursalat, ‘Amma yatasa’alun and Idha ash-shamsu kuwwirat have turned my hair grey” — recorded by at-Tirmidhi, a well-known hadith about the weight of these surahs’ descriptions of the Last Day. That At-Takwir is counted among them tells you how heavily its scenes pressed upon the heart of the one who received them.

3. The buried girl — and the truth of revelation

In the middle of its scenes of the Last Day, the surah pauses over al-maw’udah — the infant girl buried alive — who will be asked for what sin she was killed. This verse stands behind Islam’s abolition of female infanticide. And in its second half, the surah rings out an affirmation the world still needs: the Quran is revelation carried by Jibril, a trustworthy angel of power — not the word of a poet, a madman, or an accursed devil.

Themes of the Surah

1. Twelve scenes of the Last Day (ayahs 1–14)

Twelve scenes follow one another like a drumbeat: the sun wrapped up, the stars falling dim, the mountains set in motion, the pregnant camels abandoned, the wild beasts gathered, the seas set aflame, the souls paired, the buried infant girl asked for what sin she was killed, the pages spread open, the sky stripped away, Hellfire set ablaze, and Paradise brought near — then the verdict: “each soul will know what it has brought.”

Read from ayah 1 →

2. The oath and the noble messenger (ayahs 15–21)

Allah swears by the receding, sweeping stars, by the night as it departs and the dawn as it breathes: the Quran is truly the word of a noble messenger — Jibril — possessed of power, secure with the Lord of the Throne, obeyed there and trustworthy.

Read from ayah 15 →

3. Your companion is not mad (ayahs 22–25)

The surah turns to defend the Prophet ﷺ: your companion is no madman; he truly saw him — Jibril — on the clear horizon; he does not withhold the unseen he was given; and this is not the word of an accursed devil.

Read from ayah 22 →

4. A reminder for the worlds (ayahs 26–29)

A closing question hangs in the air — “so where are you going?” It is only a reminder for the worlds, for whoever among you wills to take a straight path — and you do not will except that Allah, Lord of the worlds, wills.

Read from ayah 26 →

Tips for reading and memorising

It is a short surah with very short ayahs — ideal for the early stages of Quran memorisation.
A simple plan is about six ayahs a day over five days.
Listen to the recitation above by Sheikh Saad Al-Ghamdi and repeat after him.
After the opening «idha…» (“when…”), the scenes repeat the pattern «wa-idha…» (“and when…”) — memorise them as a single flowing series.
Use the “font size” buttons at the top of the page for a comfortable read.
You can print the surah from your browser (Ctrl+P) for a clean paper copy.

Frequently asked questions

How many ayahs are in Surah At-Takwir?

Surah At-Takwir has 29 ayahs. It is the 81st surah in the order of the mushaf, and it is a Meccan surah.

Why is it called Surah At-Takwir?

It is called Surah At-Takwir (“The Wrapping Up” or “The Folding Up”) after its opening words «idha ash-shamsu kuwwirat» — “when the sun is wrapped up” — describing the sun being folded up and its light extinguished at the onset of the Last Day.

What is Surah At-Takwir about?

It opens with twelve scenes of the Last Day — the sun wrapped up, the stars falling dim, the mountains set in motion, the seas set aflame, the pages spread open, Hellfire set ablaze and Paradise brought near — until “each soul will know what it has brought.” It then swears by the stars, the night and the dawn that the Quran is the word of a noble messenger, defends the Prophet ﷺ against the charge of madness, and closes with a reminder for the worlds, for whoever wills to take a straight path.

Who is the “noble messenger” in ayah 19?

The “noble messenger” («rasulin karim») in ayah 19 is Jibril, according to the commentators — the angel who carried the revelation, described as possessed of power, secure with the Lord of the Throne, obeyed there and trustworthy. He is distinct from “your companion” in ayah 22, which refers to the Prophet ﷺ himself.

What does al-maw’udah refer to?

Al-maw’udah is the infant girl buried alive — a practice of pre-Islamic Arabia. In ayahs 8–9 the surah declares that on the Last Day she will be asked for what sin she was killed, a searing indictment of her killers. This verse stands behind Islam’s abolition of female infanticide.

Is there a hadith about Surah At-Takwir?

Yes. Ibn Umar reported that the Prophet ﷺ said: “Whoever would be pleased to look at the Day of Resurrection as if seeing it with his own eyes, let him recite ‘When the sun is wrapped up’ (At-Takwir), ‘When the sky breaks apart’ (Al-Infitar) and ‘When the sky splits open’ (Al-Inshiqaq)” — recorded by at-Tirmidhi and Ahmad, and graded hasan.

Is At-Takwir one of the surahs that turned the Prophet’s ﷺ hair grey?

Yes. The Prophet ﷺ said: “Hud, Al-Waqi‘ah, Al-Mursalat, ‘Amma yatasa’alun and Idha ash-shamsu kuwwirat have turned my hair grey” — recorded by at-Tirmidhi, a well-known hadith about the weight of these surahs’ descriptions of the Last Day.

How long does it take to read the full surah?

A complete recitation of Surah At-Takwir takes about 3 minutes at a moderate pace. Its verses are very short, which makes it well suited to daily reading and memorisation.

Which recitation is the text on this page based on?

The text shown on this page is the narration of Hafs ‘an ‘Asim — the most widely used reading in the Muslim world — written in the Uthmani script that follows the Madinah mushaf. The audio recitation on this page is by Sheikh Saad Al-Ghamdi.

Surah At-Takwir (The Wrapping Up) — Full Text in Clear Arabic Script

Listen to the recitation