Sūrat at-Takwīr (The Folding Up) is a very early Makkan revelation which gives great detail to the Day of Judgment and the integrity of the message of the Quran. It has been demonstrated that the sūrah has an overall ring structure with some smaller symmetrical structures found within.1
CONNECTIONS
[A/A’] – The sūrah begins with a list of awesome events which will occur on the Day of Judgment. Allah ﷻ will upend all that we thought possible in this world. The sun will be folded up, the mountains will be moved aside, the animals and people gathered, the oceans merged, and that will leave us with no choice but to present ourselves for judgment. On the other end of the sūrah, Allah ﷻ pointedly asks, “Where are you going?” People run from Allah ﷻ in this life, but will have nowhere to go in the next life. We can choose to follow the “reminder for all creation,” but whether we do so or not, ultimately “you do not will anything except that Allah, the Master of all creation, wills it,” because He is the One in control.
Interestingly, [A] can be demonstrated to be in a mirror structure.
And looking into [A1] further, we find another ring structure.
CONNECTIONS
[A1.1/A1.1’] – The section begins and ends with the destruction of the heavens above us. The sun, the stars, and even the sky itself will be dispensed with.
[A1.2/A1.2’] – With the removal of the largest land mass, room has been made for the scrolls of our deeds to unroll and spread on the open land.
[A1.3/A1.3’] – The original Arab audience highly valued she-camels as they are capable of producing offspring, and thus, more wealth for them. To hear that a full-term she-camel will be neglected shocked them. Allah ﷻ contrasts their care and concern for the she-camel with the lack of concern they had for the baby girls they would bury alive. The polytheist Arabs did not prioritize the correct things.
[A1.4/A1.4’] – Both the animals and the humans will be placed in order. Their initial chaos will turn to order by Allah’s leave.
[A1.5] – The overflowing oceans are what cause the humans and animals to begin their gathering. They are forced to stand for judgment because all exits are cut off.
Continuing our observations of the overall structure:
[B] – Allah ﷻ swears by stages of the night time ending. First the stars are visible, and flickering above. Then they seem to disappear as the night sky begins to brighten. Finally, the full morning arrives with the sun, and the glow of the stars is completely diminished. This, as some scholars opine, is the light of the Quran coming – described as “Light (nūr)” elsewhere in other suwar – and removing the need for all other revelation from previous prophets.
This is fitting as the response to the oaths is the next passage which praises the Messenger ﷺ, the Angel Gabriel, and the message itself.
Breaking down the second half further, it appears to form its own ring structure.
CONNECTIONS
[B1/B1’] – There is a contrast between Quran being conveyed through the noble Angel Gabriel and the false accusations against the Quran being the word of a devil.
[B2/B2’] – Allah ﷻ praises the Angel Gabriel, one who is privy to the secrets of the heavens, but remains trustworthy. Similarly, the Messenger ﷺ is described as not withholding information of the unseen. He does not sell the information, but spreads the message freely because it is a sign of his trustworthiness.
[B3] – The center, which confirms that the Messenger ﷺ is not possessed and therefore truly saw the Angel Gabriel, is affirmed by the surrounding text. The message, the angel messenger, and the Messenger ﷺ are all of the highest integrity.
And Allah ﷻ knows best.
Ali Khan, Nouman. “02. At-Takwir (Ayah 15-29)” Bayyinah TV, https://bayyinahtv.com/topics/1/categories/9/series/176/videos/1964
Mashallah Allah Hu Akbar