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Sura 94
Aya 1

Chapter 94

Openingal-Sharḥ ( الشرح )

8 verses • revealed at Meccan

»The surah that opens with a reassurance to the Prophet Muḥammad that his divine appointment to receive God’s revelation has been nothing less than the Opening of the breast to sacred wisdom and guidance, and that thereby he has been honoured for all time, made well-able to bear the mantle of prophethood, and that ultimately and inevitably he shall be eased unto success. It is named “opening” after the phrase “did We not open” (a lam nashraḥ) in verse 1. The surah is a continuation of the reassurance and encouragement given in the previous surah.«

The surah is also known as Broadened Breast, Comfort, Consolation, Relief, The Expanding, The Expansion, The Opening Up, The Opening of The Heart, The Opening-Up of the Heart

بِسمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحمٰنِ الرَّحيمِ

Muhammad Asad: In The Name of God, The Most Gracious, The Dispenser of Grace:

1
أَلَم نَشرَح لَكَ صَدرَكَ

Muhammad Asad

THIS SURAH, revealed almost immediately after the preceding one, appears to be a direct continuation of the latter. Indeed, some renowned scholars of the first century after the hijrah - e.g., Ta'us ibn Kaysan, or the Caliph Umar ibn Abd al-Aziz (known as "the Second Umar") - regarded Ad-Duha and Ash-Sharh as one surah, and used to recite them in prayer accordingly, that is, without separating the one from the other by a second invocation "In the name of God" (Razi). Whether this view is accepted or not, there is no doubt that the present surah, like the preceding one, is addressed in the first instance to the Prophet and, through him, to every true follower of the Qur'an.
HAVE WE NOT opened up thy heart,1
  • Lit., "thy breast" or "bosom".