Surah Al-Asr is the 103rd Surah of the Quran. This Surah takes its name from the word al-Asr occurring in the first verse.
This Surah is the most comprehensive Surah in the Quran because it explains the way to success in just three brief verses. This article provides full translation and tafsir of Surah al-Asr, along with Arabic text.
Translation and Tafsir of Surah al-Asr
Here is the full Arabic text of Surah al-Asr:
Translation
- By Time,
- Verily Man is in loss,
- Except those who believe and do good works, and enjoin one another to truth and patience.
Tafsir
1. By Time
In this verse, Allah takes an oath on Time. Allah sometimes approves and strengthens His Verses through vows; He sometimes uses the names of some beings when He vows to indicate the importance and value of these beings for man.
So here in this verse, Allah manifests excellence of Time to make us understand that every moment is significant for success.
2. Verily Man is in loss
When the Quran states conclusively that Man is in loss, it implies loss both in this world and in the Hereafter.
3. Except those who believe and do good works, and enjoin one another to truth and patience.
In the third and last verse of this Surah, Allah mentions the conditions upon which our success and failure depends.
The first important condition is Belief — belief in Allah and His Attributes, belief in the Hereafter and Reckoning, reward and punishment, the Divine Books and the prophets.
The second condition is the willingness to perform righteous deeds. In the words of Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) (Ref:- Jami at-Tirmidhi Vol 4, Book 10, Hadith 2389):
Righteousness is good behaviour, and sin is what fluctuates in your chest, and you would hate that the people discovered it about you.
Thirdly, this verse asks us to enjoin one another towards truth and patience. In other words, we should live in isolation but rather try to create a believing and righteous society by encouraging one another.
Thus, regarding the comprehensiveness of Surah al-Asr, Imam Shafi (RA) has very rightly stated:
If the people only considered this Surah well, it alone would suffice them for their guidance.
