Surah An-Nas, or « Mankind, » is the 114th and final surah of the Quran. It is a short surah of only six verses, asking Allah for protection from the evil Satan.
This article provides the complete translation and tafsir of Surah an-Nas, along with the Arabic text.
First, the complete Arabic text of Surah An-Nas:
Translation
- Say: « I seek refuge in the Lord of men. »
- The Sovereign of men,
- God of men,
- against the evil of the treacherous, unscrupulous advisor
- who breathes evil into the hearts of men,
- whether he (the advisor) is a djinn, or a human being. »
Let us now look at the surah in detail, verse by verse.
Tafsir
1. Say: « I seek refuge with the Lord of mankind.
The surah opens with Allah commanding His Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) to seek refuge with the Lord, or in Arabic, Al-Rabb of mankind. Al-Rabb is one of the 99 names of Allah, and He affirms that the Lord of the heavens and the earth will be there for whoever seeks refuge in Him.
2. The Sovereign of Men,
Allah further affirms that He is always there so that humanity may seek refuge in Him by adding another of His names: The King or Al-Malik.
3. God of men,
Allah gives humans another reason to turn to Him: He is the God, or Al-Ilah, of humanity.
4. against the evil of the sneaky, treacherous advisor,
In this verse, Satan is called « the insidious whisperer » because he tempts humanity to commit sins by secretly whispering evil thoughts to us. Allah is the only power that can protect humanity from Satan.
5. who breathes evil into the hearts of men,
Once again, it is stated that Shaytan whispers in the hearts of humanity, implying that he does not come openly before us, but subtly misleads us.
6. whether he (the advisor) is a jinn, or a human being.
This verse can be interpreted in two different ways, following the previous verse. The first way is that Shaytaan whispers in the hearts of men and jinn, while the second interpretation can be that the Shayateen (the wicked ones) among men and jinn whisper in the hearts of other men and jinn, to mislead or deceive them.
It is beneficial to recite Surah An-Nas often, as a means of protection against evil.
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