Surah 24 · Madinah · 64 āyāt

Phase 05 · Hijrah and the building of Madinah(1–5 AH) — view in timeline

An-NūrThe Light

النور

Revealed in Madinah in the years surrounding the incident of al-ifk, this surah legislates the boundaries of a chaste society: the ḥadd punishments for zinā and for false accusation, the etiquette of entering another's home, the command to lower the gaze, and the great parable of Allah's light. Its occasion is deeply personal — the slander against ʿĀʾishah bint Abī Bakr رضي الله عنها — yet its rulings are addressed to the whole community for all time.

Why it was revealed

Returning from the expedition against Banū al-Muṣṭaliq, ʿĀʾishah رضي الله عنها was inadvertently left behind when her howdah was lifted onto her camel without her inside it; she had stepped away to search for a lost necklace. Ṣafwān ibn al-Muʿaṭṭal, who had fallen behind the army, found her and brought her back to Madinah leading her camel. The chief hypocrite ʿAbdullāh ibn Ubayy seized on this to spread slander, and some believers repeated it before the Qurʾān descended with her vindication.

Drawn fromṢaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 4141; Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 2770; Ibn Kathīr on 24:11

ʿĀʾishah رضي الله عنها narrated the full episode at length: her distress, the month of illness and isolation from the household's usual affection while the rumour spread, the Prophet's ﷺ visit in which he said 'if you are innocent, Allah will declare your innocence,' and her own resolve to bear the accusation with the patience of Yaʿqūb — until the revelation of ten āyāt affirming her innocence was recited to the whole community.

Cited toṢaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 4141; Ṣaḥīḥ Muslim 2770

In the Prophet's ﷺ life

Loss5–6 AH · Age About 57 · Return march from Banū al-Muṣṭaliq

The lost necklace and the delay

ʿĀʾishah رضي الله عنها left the caravan briefly to search for a lost necklace; the men lifting her howdah assumed she was inside it, since she had grown light, and the army departed without her.

Recalled in āyah 11

إِنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ جَآءُو بِٱلْإِفْكِ عُصْبَةٌ مِّنكُمْ ۚ لَا تَحْسَبُوهُ شَرًّا لَّكُم ۖ بَلْ هُوَ خَيْرٌ لَّكُمْ ۚ لِكُلِّ ٱمْرِئٍ مِّنْهُم مَّا ٱكْتَسَبَ مِنَ ٱلْإِثْمِ ۚ وَٱلَّذِى تَوَلَّىٰ كِبْرَهُۥ مِنْهُمْ لَهُۥ عَذَابٌ عَظِيمٌ

Indeed, those who came with falsehood are a group among you. Do not think it bad for you; rather, it is good for you. For every person among them is what [punishment] he has earned from the sin, and he who took upon himself the greater portion thereof - for him is a great punishment [i.e., Hellfire].

  • Madd — 2 vowels
  • Madd — 2, 4 or 6 vowels
  • Madd — 6 vowels (lāzim)
  • Madd — 4 or 5 vowels (wājib)
  • Ghunnah — 2 vowels
  • Qalqalah
  • Ikhfāʾ
  • Ikhfāʾ shafawī
  • Idghām shafawī
  • Idghām with ghunnah
  • Idghām without ghunnah
  • Idghām mutajānisayn
  • Idghām mutaqāribayn
  • Iqlāb
  • Hamzat al-waṣl
  • Lām shamsiyyah
  • Silent letter

Tajwīd markup and colour convention: Quran.com API (v4) — text_uthmani_tajweed. Recitation audio: Quran.com / Quran Foundation Audio API (v4).

THEME 01Āyāt 1–10

The ḥadd of zinā and of false accusation

The surah opens with legislation, not preamble: the unmarried fornicator, man or woman, is lashed a hundred times, publicly, without pity overriding the law of Allah. Immediately after, those who accuse chaste women without producing four witnesses are lashed eighty times and disqualified as witnesses forever — protecting reputation is treated as seriously as deterring the crime itself.

Drawn fromAl-Qurṭubī on 24:4; Ibn Kathīr on 24:2

2

ٱلزَّانِيَةُ وَٱلزَّانِى فَٱجْلِدُوا۟ كُلَّ وَٰحِدٍ مِّنْهُمَا مِا۟ئَةَ جَلْدَةٍ ۖ وَلَا تَأْخُذْكُم بِهِمَا رَأْفَةٌ فِى دِينِ ٱللَّهِ إِن كُنتُمْ تُؤْمِنُونَ بِٱللَّهِ وَٱلْيَوْمِ ٱلْـَٔاخِرِ ۖ وَلْيَشْهَدْ عَذَابَهُمَا طَآئِفَةٌ مِّنَ ٱلْمُؤْمِنِينَ

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The [unmarried] woman or [unmarried] man found guilty of sexual intercourse - lash each one of them with a hundred lashes, and do not be taken by pity for them in the religion [i.e., law] of Allāh, if you should believe in Allāh and the Last Day. And let a group of the believers witness their punishment.

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4

وَٱلَّذِينَ يَرْمُونَ ٱلْمُحْصَنَـٰتِ ثُمَّ لَمْ يَأْتُوا۟ بِأَرْبَعَةِ شُهَدَآءَ فَٱجْلِدُوهُمْ ثَمَـٰنِينَ جَلْدَةً وَلَا تَقْبَلُوا۟ لَهُمْ شَهَـٰدَةً أَبَدًا ۚ وَأُو۟لَـٰٓئِكَ هُمُ ٱلْفَـٰسِقُونَ

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And those who accuse chaste women and then do not produce four witnesses - lash them with eighty lashes and do not accept from them testimony ever after. And those are the defiantly disobedient,

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From the tafsīr

The requirement that a group of believers witness the punishment serves both as deterrent and as a public reminder that the sharīʿah is not applied in secret or by private vengeance.

Cited toIbn Kathīr on 24:2

The four-witness requirement for qadhf (false accusation) is deliberately almost impossible to meet, which shows the law is structured to protect honour rather than to encourage accusation.

Cited toAl-Qurṭubī on 24:4

Key takeaways

Reflect

Where in your own speech do you repeat suspicion as though it were established fact?

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0 / 2 correct

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Question 1 of 2

What is required before someone can be legally accused of zinā under 24:4?

Question 2 of 2

Why does 24:2 command that a group of believers witness the punishment?

THEME 02Āyāt 11–20

The incident of al-ifk and the vindication of ʿĀʾishah

Allah addresses the fabricated slander directly: those who brought it are 'a group among you', and rather than being purely harmful, the episode is called good for the believers because it exposed hypocrisy and established a permanent legal principle. Each person bears only the sin they earned; the one who took the greater part of it — Ibn Ubayy — bears a great punishment.

Drawn fromAl-Qurṭubī on 24:11; Ibn Kathīr on 24:11

11

إِنَّ ٱلَّذِينَ جَآءُو بِٱلْإِفْكِ عُصْبَةٌ مِّنكُمْ ۚ لَا تَحْسَبُوهُ شَرًّا لَّكُم ۖ بَلْ هُوَ خَيْرٌ لَّكُمْ ۚ لِكُلِّ ٱمْرِئٍ مِّنْهُم مَّا ٱكْتَسَبَ مِنَ ٱلْإِثْمِ ۚ وَٱلَّذِى تَوَلَّىٰ كِبْرَهُۥ مِنْهُمْ لَهُۥ عَذَابٌ عَظِيمٌ

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Indeed, those who came with falsehood are a group among you. Do not think it bad for you; rather, it is good for you. For every person among them is what [punishment] he has earned from the sin, and he who took upon himself the greater portion thereof - for him is a great punishment [i.e., Hellfire].

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From the tafsīr

'A group among you' (ʿuṣbah minkum) shows it was several people, not one, and that some among them, like Ḥassān ibn Thābit, were later established to have repeated it without being architects of it, distinguishing degrees of culpability.

Cited toIbn Kathīr on 24:11

'Rather it is good for you' is explained as the establishment of the qadhf ruling, the exposure of the hypocrites, and the elevation of ʿĀʾishah's rank through a Qurʾān recited until the Last Day.

Cited toAl-Qurṭubī on 24:11

Key takeaways

Reflect

Have you ever passed on a rumour without asking whether you had any right to?

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0 / 2 correct

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Question 1 of 2

How does al-Qurṭubī explain 'rather it is good for you' in 24:11?

Question 2 of 2

According to Ibn Kathīr, what does 'a group among you' indicate about the slander of al-ifk?

THEME 03Āyāt 27–29

The etiquette of entering homes

Before addressing the gaze, the surah first regulates the space in which people are seen: do not enter houses other than your own until you seek permission and greet the occupants. This protects the privacy that makes lowering the gaze meaningful in the first place — you cannot guard sight in a home you had no right to enter.

Drawn fromAl-Saʿdī on 24:28; Ibn Kathīr on 24:27

27

يَـٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ لَا تَدْخُلُوا۟ بُيُوتًا غَيْرَ بُيُوتِكُمْ حَتَّىٰ تَسْتَأْنِسُوا۟ وَتُسَلِّمُوا۟ عَلَىٰٓ أَهْلِهَا ۚ ذَٰلِكُمْ خَيْرٌ لَّكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَذَكَّرُونَ

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O you who have believed, do not enter houses other than your own houses until you ascertain welcome and greet their inhabitants. That is best for you; perhaps you will be reminded [i.e., advised].

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From the tafsīr

Seeking permission (istiʾnās) precedes the greeting in the āyah's wording; the Salaf explained this as knocking or announcing oneself audibly, followed by salām, so the household is never caught unprepared.

Cited toIbn Kathīr on 24:27

If no one is found at home and permission is refused, the visitor must turn back without resentment, because that is purer for them — the instruction protects both parties' dignity.

Cited toAl-Saʿdī on 24:28

Key takeaways

Reflect

Do you observe the same etiquette of privacy in the homes of close relatives that you would with a stranger?

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Question 1 of 2

What two things must happen before entering someone else's house, per 24:27?

Question 2 of 2

What does al-Saʿdī say should happen if entry is refused?

THEME 04Āyāt 30–33

Lowering the gaze and the dress of believing men and women

The command to lower the gaze is given to believing men first, then to believing women in more detail, alongside the instruction to draw head-coverings over the chest and to display adornment only before a defined circle of close relations. The surah closes this section with mercy for those unable to marry, commanding chastity and forbidding compelling anyone into immorality for worldly gain.

Drawn fromAl-Qurṭubī on 24:31; Ibn Kathīr on 24:30–31

30

قُل لِّلْمُؤْمِنِينَ يَغُضُّوا۟ مِنْ أَبْصَـٰرِهِمْ وَيَحْفَظُوا۟ فُرُوجَهُمْ ۚ ذَٰلِكَ أَزْكَىٰ لَهُمْ ۗ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ خَبِيرٌۢ بِمَا يَصْنَعُونَ

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Tell the believing men to reduce [some] of their vision and guard their private parts. That is purer for them. Indeed, Allāh is [fully] Aware of what they do.

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31

وَقُل لِّلْمُؤْمِنَـٰتِ يَغْضُضْنَ مِنْ أَبْصَـٰرِهِنَّ وَيَحْفَظْنَ فُرُوجَهُنَّ وَلَا يُبْدِينَ زِينَتَهُنَّ إِلَّا مَا ظَهَرَ مِنْهَا ۖ وَلْيَضْرِبْنَ بِخُمُرِهِنَّ عَلَىٰ جُيُوبِهِنَّ ۖ وَلَا يُبْدِينَ زِينَتَهُنَّ إِلَّا لِبُعُولَتِهِنَّ أَوْ ءَابَآئِهِنَّ أَوْ ءَابَآءِ بُعُولَتِهِنَّ أَوْ أَبْنَآئِهِنَّ أَوْ أَبْنَآءِ بُعُولَتِهِنَّ أَوْ إِخْوَٰنِهِنَّ أَوْ بَنِىٓ إِخْوَٰنِهِنَّ أَوْ بَنِىٓ أَخَوَٰتِهِنَّ أَوْ نِسَآئِهِنَّ أَوْ مَا مَلَكَتْ أَيْمَـٰنُهُنَّ أَوِ ٱلتَّـٰبِعِينَ غَيْرِ أُو۟لِى ٱلْإِرْبَةِ مِنَ ٱلرِّجَالِ أَوِ ٱلطِّفْلِ ٱلَّذِينَ لَمْ يَظْهَرُوا۟ عَلَىٰ عَوْرَٰتِ ٱلنِّسَآءِ ۖ وَلَا يَضْرِبْنَ بِأَرْجُلِهِنَّ لِيُعْلَمَ مَا يُخْفِينَ مِن زِينَتِهِنَّ ۚ وَتُوبُوٓا۟ إِلَى ٱللَّهِ جَمِيعًا أَيُّهَ ٱلْمُؤْمِنُونَ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُفْلِحُونَ

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And tell the believing women to reduce [some] of their vision and guard their private parts and not expose their adornment except that which [necessarily] appears thereof and to wrap [a portion of] their headcovers over their chests and not expose their adornment [i.e., beauty] except to their husbands, their fathers, their husbands' fathers, their sons, their husbands' sons, their brothers, their brothers' sons, their sisters' sons, their women, that which their right hands possess [i.e., slaves], or those male attendants having no physical desire, or children who are not yet aware of the private aspects of women. And let them not stamp their feet to make known what they conceal of their adornment. And turn to Allāh in repentance, all of you, O believers, that you might succeed.

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33

وَلْيَسْتَعْفِفِ ٱلَّذِينَ لَا يَجِدُونَ نِكَاحًا حَتَّىٰ يُغْنِيَهُمُ ٱللَّهُ مِن فَضْلِهِۦ ۗ وَٱلَّذِينَ يَبْتَغُونَ ٱلْكِتَـٰبَ مِمَّا مَلَكَتْ أَيْمَـٰنُكُمْ فَكَاتِبُوهُمْ إِنْ عَلِمْتُمْ فِيهِمْ خَيْرًا ۖ وَءَاتُوهُم مِّن مَّالِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلَّذِىٓ ءَاتَىٰكُمْ ۚ وَلَا تُكْرِهُوا۟ فَتَيَـٰتِكُمْ عَلَى ٱلْبِغَآءِ إِنْ أَرَدْنَ تَحَصُّنًا لِّتَبْتَغُوا۟ عَرَضَ ٱلْحَيَوٰةِ ٱلدُّنْيَا ۚ وَمَن يُكْرِههُّنَّ فَإِنَّ ٱللَّهَ مِنۢ بَعْدِ إِكْرَٰهِهِنَّ غَفُورٌ رَّحِيمٌ

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But let them who find not [the means for] marriage abstain [from sexual relations] until Allāh enriches them from His bounty. And those who seek a contract [for eventual emancipation] from among whom your right hands possess - then make a contract with them if you know there is within them goodness and give them from the wealth of Allāh which He has given you. And do not compel your slave girls to prostitution, if they desire chastity, to seek [thereby] the temporary interests of worldly life. And if someone should compel them, then indeed, Allāh is [to them], after their compulsion, Forgiving and Merciful.

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From the tafsīr

The command to men precedes that to women, and 'reduce (yaghuḍḍū) of their vision' rather than an absolute prohibition acknowledges the incidental unavoidable glance while forbidding the deliberate, repeated look.

Cited toIbn Kathīr on 24:30–31

Classical scholars, including al-Qurṭubī, hold that the list of relatives in 24:31 before whom adornment may be disclosed is illustrative of maḥrams rather than exhaustive, as unmentioned relatives such as paternal and maternal uncles share the same exemption.

Cited toAl-Qurṭubī on 24:31

Key takeaways

Reflect

Which everyday habit of looking has become automatic enough that you no longer notice it needs guarding?

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Check yourself

0 / 2 correct

Answer from memory before scrolling back — retrieval is what makes it stick.

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Question 1 of 2

Whose gaze does the surah command to be lowered first?

Question 2 of 2

What does 24:33 forbid regarding slave women who desire chastity?

THEME 05Āyāt 35

The āyah of light

In the midst of household legislation the surah rises to one of the Qurʾān's most celebrated similes: Allah is the Light of the heavens and the earth, likened to a niche holding a radiant lamp within glass like a brilliant star, fed from a blessed olive tree belonging to neither east nor west, its oil almost glowing without fire touching it — light upon light, and Allah guides to His light whom He wills.

Drawn fromAl-Saʿdī on 24:35; Ibn Kathīr on 24:35

35

۞ ٱللَّهُ نُورُ ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضِ ۚ مَثَلُ نُورِهِۦ كَمِشْكَوٰةٍ فِيهَا مِصْبَاحٌ ۖ ٱلْمِصْبَاحُ فِى زُجَاجَةٍ ۖ ٱلزُّجَاجَةُ كَأَنَّهَا كَوْكَبٌ دُرِّىٌّ يُوقَدُ مِن شَجَرَةٍ مُّبَـٰرَكَةٍ زَيْتُونَةٍ لَّا شَرْقِيَّةٍ وَلَا غَرْبِيَّةٍ يَكَادُ زَيْتُهَا يُضِىٓءُ وَلَوْ لَمْ تَمْسَسْهُ نَارٌ ۚ نُّورٌ عَلَىٰ نُورٍ ۗ يَهْدِى ٱللَّهُ لِنُورِهِۦ مَن يَشَآءُ ۚ وَيَضْرِبُ ٱللَّهُ ٱلْأَمْثَـٰلَ لِلنَّاسِ ۗ وَٱللَّهُ بِكُلِّ شَىْءٍ عَلِيمٌ

Tajwīd markup unavailable for this āyah — text shown uncoloured

Allāh is the Light of the heavens and the earth. The example of His light is like a niche within which is a lamp; the lamp is within glass, the glass as if it were a pearly [white] star lit from [the oil of] a blessed olive tree, neither of the east nor of the west, whose oil would almost glow even if untouched by fire. Light upon light. Allāh guides to His light whom He wills. And Allāh presents examples for the people, and Allāh is Knowing of all things.

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From the tafsīr

The comparison is not that Allah's Essence is literally a lamp, but a parable for the guidance He places in the heart of a believer — its clarity compounding, like light upon light.

Cited toIbn Kathīr on 24:35

'Neither of the east nor of the west' describes an olive tree exposed to sun for the whole day, producing the purest oil — a fitting image for guidance untainted by any single direction or faction.

Cited toAl-Saʿdī on 24:35

Key takeaways

Reflect

What practice in your week most reliably adds 'light upon light' to your heart?

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Check yourself

0 / 2 correct

Answer from memory before scrolling back — retrieval is what makes it stick.

Questions and options are reshuffled and reworded each attempt

Question 1 of 2

According to Ibn Kathīr, what does the parable of light in 24:35 actually describe?

Question 2 of 2

How does al-Saʿdī explain 'neither of the east nor of the west'?

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VOCABULARY

Roots from this surah

Learn the three-letter root and you unlock every word built from it — across the whole Qur'an, not just this surah.

ن و ر

āyāt 35, 40

light

  • نُورlight
  • مُنِيرilluminating
  • أَنَارَhe illuminated

غ ض ض

āyāt 30, 31

to lower, reduce

  • يَغُضُّhe lowers
  • غَضِيضlowered
  • غَضَّ الطَّرْفَto lower the gaze

ح ف ظ

āyāt 30, 31

to guard, protect

  • يَحْفَظُhe guards
  • حَافِظguardian
  • حِفْظprotection

ش ه د

āyāt 2, 4, 6, 8, 13

to witness, testify

  • شَاهِدwitness
  • شَهَادَةtestimony
  • أَشْهَدَhe made testify

أ ف ك

āyāt 11, 12

falsehood, lie

  • إِفْكfalsehood/slander
  • أَفَّاكgreat liar
  • مَأْفُوكone deceived

ع ف ف

āyāt 33, 60

to abstain, be chaste

  • يَسْتَعْفِفhe abstains in chastity
  • عِفَّةchastity
  • عَفِيفchaste

ز ي ن

āyāt 31, 60

adornment, beauty

  • زِينَةadornment
  • زَيَّنَhe adorned
  • زَائِنadorning

أ ن س

āyāt 27, 28, 29

to seek familiarity/permission

  • تَسْتَأْنِسُوا۟you seek permission
  • إِنْسhuman company
  • أَنِيسcompanionable

Carry this with you

  • Divine law fixes clear boundaries that human sentiment may not override.
  • The bar to accuse someone of the gravest sexual sin is set deliberately high, protecting honour before it punishes vice.
  • A painful trial, borne with patience, can be turned into lasting good and a source of guidance for the whole ummah.
  • Privacy in the home is a legislated right, guarded by the etiquette of seeking permission before entry.
  • Guarding the gaze is commanded of men before women, and it is a matter of reducing habitual looking, not impossible avoidance.
  • Chastity is a shared communal duty; no one may be compelled into immorality for another's worldly gain.
  • Guidance in the heart is likened to light upon light — granted by Allah, not self-manufactured.
  • Repeating what you have not verified makes you a participant in slander, however sincerely you believed it.

Where this surah connects

Cross-surah threads

Parts of the Qurʾān explain other parts. Each thread below opens the same subject as it is argued across every other surah you have studied, in revelation order.

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Sources behind Sūrah An-Nūr

Every line of context, tafsīr and takeaway on this page traces back to one of these references. Ḥadīth numbers open on sunnah.com and āyah references open on quran.com, so you can check the claim rather than take it on trust. The Arabic text itself is fetched live from a verified public corpus.

FINAL ASSESSMENT

Full exam — the whole surah, from memory

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An-Nūr — full exam

1 / 10 · 0 correct

10 questions across 5 themes.

An-Nūr · The etiquette of entering homes

What does al-Saʿdī say should happen if entry is refused?

Arabic (Uthmānī script) and the Ṣaḥīḥ International translation are fetched live from the Quran.com API (v4), sourced from the King Fahd Complex muṣḥaf — api.quran.com API docs · Translation: Ṣaḥīḥ International · Integrity & testing protocol