Surah al-‘Asr

It is Meccan according to the opinion of Ibn Abbas, Ibn al-Zubayr, and the majority, while it is Medinan according to the opinion of Mujahid, Qatadah, and Muqatil. Its verses are three, without disagreement. Despite its brevity, it encompasses a vast collection of knowledge. It is narrated from al-Shafi’i, may mercy be upon him, that he said: "If nothing else had been revealed other than this surah, it would have sufficed the people, because it encompasses all the sciences of the Quran."

Al-Tabarani recorded in al-Awsat and al-Bayhaqi in al-Shu'ab, from Abu Hudhayfah, who was a companion, that he said: "When two men from the companions of the Messenger of Allah, may Allah exalt his mention and grant him peace, would meet, they would not part until one of them recited to the other 'Surah al-‘Asr,' and then one of them would greet the other."

There is in this surah an indication of the state of the one whom "the piling up" (al-takathur) did not distract, and for this reason, it was placed after that surah.

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

“By the Asr (Time).” Muqatil said: The Glorified swore by the Asr prayer due to its excellence, for it is the Middle Prayer (al-Salat al-Wusta) according to the majority of scholars. This is based on the Prophet’s (peace and blessings be upon him) statement: “They occupied us from the Middle Prayer, the Asr prayer.” It is also written in the Mus-haf of Hafsa: “And the Middle Prayer, the Asr prayer.” Furthermore, the Hadith states: “Whoever misses the Asr prayer, it is as if he has been bereaved of his family and wealth.”

It is narrated that a woman was calling out in the streets of Medina, “Direct me to the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him).” When he saw her, he asked her what had happened. She said, “O Messenger of Allah, my husband was away, and I committed adultery, resulting in a child from that adultery. I threw the child into a vat of vinegar, where he died, and then I sold that vinegar. Is there any repentance for me?” The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) replied, “As for adultery, the penalty is stoning; as for the killing, its recompense is Hell; and as for selling the vinegar, you have committed a major sin—but I thought you had abandoned the Asr prayer.” The Imam mentioned this, and he is, by my life, a leader in transmitting such narrations, yet they are not relied upon by the masters of Hadith; so beware of following him in this.

The Asr prayer is singled out for excellence because performing it is more arduous due to people being busy with their trades and earnings at the end of the day, occupied with their livelihoods. It is also said that the Almighty swore by the time of that prayer because of the excellence of the prayer itself, or because Adam, the father of mankind (peace be upon him), was created in it on Friday. Qatada held this view, as it is narrated from him that he said: “Al-Asr is the late afternoon.” The Glorified swore by it, just as He swore by the Duha (Forenoon), because it contains signs of [Divine] power.

Al-Zajjaj said: Al-Asr means the day, and al-Asr means the night. This is supported by the saying of Humayd bin Thawr:

And the two Asrs did not delay, a day and a night, If they sought to attain what they intended.

It is also said that al-Asr refers to the morning and al-Asr to the evening—they are the two times of cool temperature (al-ibradan). Based on this, and the previous opinion, the oath is by one of the two things, though unspecified.

Others say it refers to the Era of Prophethood, as if He meant the time of his life (peace and blessings be upon him), regarding it as the most noble of eras due to the honoring of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him). It is also said to be the period of his life (peace and blessings be upon him) and what follows until the Day of Judgment. Its duration in past time is equal to the amount of time from Asr until sunset. This is evidenced by what al-Bukhari narrated from Salim ibn Abdullah, from his father, that he heard the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) say: “Your remaining time among those nations that passed before you is as the time between the Asr prayer and sunset.” It is noble because it is the time of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) and his nation, which is the best nation brought forth for mankind. Its being delayed does not harm it, just as the spear point is not harmed by being delayed from the ends of its shaft, nor the light by being delayed from the ends of the branches.

Ibn Abbas said: "It is Time (al-Dahr)." The Almighty swore by it because it encompasses all sorts of wonders; hence it is called "The Father of Wonders" (Abu al-Ajab). It is as if the Almighty, by swearing by it, is reminding [us] of the blessings and their opposites within it, to alert the human being who is prepared for loss or happiness. The Almighty refutes—by the very act of swearing by it—that it possesses any loss or that it has any input in it, contrary to those who attribute events to time itself. The attribution of "loss" thereafter to the "human being" indicates that it is a quality of his, not of time, as it is said:

They blame Time, while there are no faults in Time Save for the people of Time.

This is countered by the argument that the usage of al-Asr to mean that [Time/al-Dahr] is not apparent.