Sūrat al-Muzzammil

Classification: Meccan (except for verses 10, 11, and 20, which are Medinan). Verse Count: 19 verses (some say 20). Chronology: Revealed after Sūrat al-Qalam.

1. O you who are wrapped in your garments,

2. Stand [in prayer] at night, except for a little—

3. Half of it, or subtract from it a little,

4. Or add to it, and recite the Qur’an with measured recitation.

{Al-Muzzammil}: The one who is mutazammil, meaning the one who has wrapped himself in his garments. The ta is assimilated into the zay. Similar to this is al-muddaththir for al-mutadaththir. It is also recited as al-mutazammil according to the original form.

Al-muzzammil can be read with a light zay, and with the mim either fatha or kasra, functioning as an active or passive participle from zammalahu. It refers to one who has been wrapped by another or has wrapped himself. The Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) was sleeping at night, wrapped in his qatifah (velvet cloak), so he was awakened and called out in a manner that rebukes the state he was in—that of wrapping himself in his cloak and preparing for deep sleep, as one does who is unconcerned with matters and indifferent to affairs. Do you not see the words of Dhu al-Rummah:

“How many a wasteland my she-camel has crossed, And a sleeper, indifferent to the night, wrapped in his cloak.”

He intends the lazy, sluggish person who does not rise for great matters or sufficient tasks, and who does not burden himself with hardships. Similar to this is:

“You are, in it, firm of heart, yet empty-bellied, Keeping vigil when the sleeper of the night is wrapped in his cloak.”

And in their proverbs: “Sa‘d brought them to water, while Sa‘d was wrapped in his cloak; It is not thus, O Sa‘d, that camels are brought to water.”

He censured him for wrapping himself in his cloak, making that the opposite of vigor and intelligence. He commanded that tahajjud (night prayer) be chosen over hujud (sleep), and that tashammur (girding oneself) be chosen over tazammul (wrapping oneself), and to lighten oneself for worship and striving for the sake of Allah. Indeed, the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) girded himself for this along with his companions until they were fully prepared; they turned to reviving their nights, abandoning sleep and comfort, and struggled in it until their feet swelled, their complexions turned pale, and the marks appeared on their faces, reaching a point where their Lord had mercy on them and lightened the burden for them.

It is said he was wrapped in a mirt (cloak) of ‘A’ishah’s while praying; in this case, it is not a rebuke, but a praise and an improvement of his state, and a command to persist and persevere in it. ‘A’ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) was asked what his wrapping was. She said: "It was a mirt fourteen cubits long; half was over me while I slept, and half was over him while he prayed." She was asked what it was made of, and she replied: "By Allah, it was neither khazz (silk-wool blend), nor qazz (raw silk), nor mar‘azzi (fine goat hair), nor ibrism (silk), nor wool. Its warp was hair and its weft was wabar (camel fur)."

It is also said: He entered upon Khadijah, having come trembling—the first time Gabriel came to him—his limbs shaking, and he said: "Wrap me, wrap me!" thinking something had afflicted him. While he was in that state, Gabriel called out: O you who are wrapped in your garments.

According to ‘Ikrimah, the meaning is: "O you who have taken on a heavy matter," meaning: you have carried it. Zaml is a load, and izdamalahu means to carry it.

{Rise the night}: Qum al-layl is recited with the mim in al-layl both damma and fatha. Al-Khalil ibn Ahmad said the purpose of this vowel is to facilitate pronunciation to avoid the meeting of two quiescent letters; whichever vowel is used, the purpose is achieved.

{Half of it}: A substitute (badal) for "the night."

{Except a little}: An exception from the half, as if He said: "Rise less than half the night." The pronoun in minhu (from it) and ‘alayhi (upon it) refers to the half. The meaning is a choice between two things: either to rise less than half the night definitively, or to choose between two options: decreasing from the half or increasing upon it.

If you wish, you may consider nisfahu a substitute for qalilan, making it a choice between three: rising the half in its entirety, rising less than it, or rising more than it. The half is described as "little" in relation to the whole. Or, if you wish, you may say: when the meaning of Rise the night except a little, half of it—if you substitute "half" for "night"—is "Rise less than half the night," then the pronoun in minhu and ‘alayhi refers to the "less than half." It is as if it were said: "Rise less than half the night, or rise less than that amount, or a little more than it." Thus, the choice is between the half and the third.

It is permissible, if you substitute nisfahu for qalilan and interpret it as such, to make the second qalilan mean half of the half, which is a quarter, as if it were said: "Or decrease from it a little, [which is] its half." And you may consider the increase upon this "little"—meaning the quarter—to be half of the quarter, as if it were said: "Or increase upon it a little, [which is] its half." It is also permissible to consider the increase, because it is absolute, as the completion of the third, making it a choice between the half, the third, and the quarter.

If you ask: Was the rising a duty or a voluntary act? I say: It is reported from ‘A’ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) that Allah made it voluntary after it had been a duty. It is said it was a duty before the five prayers were ordained, then it was abrogated by them, except for what they perform voluntarily. Al-Hasan said: Rising for a third of the night was a duty, and they were upon that for a year. It is said it was obligatory, and the choice was only in the amount, then it was abrogated after ten years. Al-Kalbi said: A man would rise until morning for fear of not knowing what was between the half, the third, and the two-thirds. Others said it was voluntary, evidenced by the choice in the amount and the verse: And from the night, perform tahajjud with it as an additional prayer for you (Al-Isra: 79).

{And recite the Qur'an with measured recitation}: Meaning: read it with slowness and deliberation, clarifying the letters and giving the vowels their full measure, until the recited portion resembles a murattal (well-spaced) set of teeth—which is the gap-toothed appearance likened to the light of a daisy. Do this with deliberation and do not recite it rapidly, as ‘Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) said: "The worst of travel is al-haqhaqah (rushing), and the worst of recitation is al-hadhramah (mumbling)," until the recited portion in its succession resembles teeth that are crowded together. ‘A’ishah (may Allah be pleased with her) was asked about the recitation of the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ), and she said: "It was not like this rapid recitation of yours; if the listener wanted to count its letters, he could count them." Tartilan is an emphasis on the obligation of the command, and that it is something the reciter cannot do without.

{Indeed, We shall cast upon you a heavy word}