Surah al-Muzammil (The Cloaked one) and Surah al-Muddaththir (The Hidden one) are studied together to understand the core message in the surahs. This study may help the believers to reflect what has been dealt with the surahs avoiding the misinterpretation centering the prophet as a person and his garments in both the surahs because of the surah names in the singular active participle form. Here are details of both surahs to have a closer look if we can avoid any misinterpretation that may have around us being an impediment for many of us to obey God and to follow His guidance, while we know that God sends His messenger with guidance and a religion of the truth having good news for the believers and warnings for the disbelievers in His guidance:
Surah al-Muzammil (Surah 73: Revelation order 3)
God has ordered His prophet to study the Quran at night
- O you the cloaked one (prophet) (73:1). You shall awake the night except for a little (73:2). Half of it, or you shall lessen a little from it (73:3). Or you shall add to it, and shall recite the Quran a progressive recitation (73:4). Indeed, we will place upon you (prophet) a difficult order (73:5). Indeed, rising at the night, which is difficult endeavor, even is more straight for recitation (73:6). Indeed, for you (prophet) there is lengthy activity in the day (73:7).
Note: God has addressed the prophet to whom has been revealed the Quran being his garment in metaphor what has surrounded him. Thus, it has been his responsibility to study it thoroughly to better understand it and the night has been the best time for him to do that even rising from sleep as he has been busy with other activities in the day time.
Prophet has been asked to remember and please God being his Lord
- And you (prophet) shall remember your Lord’s name and shall devote to Him a sincere devotion (73:8). Lord of the east and the west: there is no god except He. So you (prophet) shall take Him Advocate (73:9).
Note: God had strengthened His prophet’s heart at the very beginning of the revelation of the Quran confirming him that there is no god except He and he shall remember and please his Lord being sincerely devoted to Him as his Advocate.
Punishment for the deniers followed by the end of the world
- And you (prophet) shall be patient of what they say, and shall avoid them a gracious avoidance (73:10). And leave Me, and the deniers, possessors of the ease, and you shall give them a little respite (73:11). Indeed, with us are shackles and burning fire (73:12). Food that of choke and a painful punishment (73:13). A day the earth will quake and the mountains, and has become the mountains a heap of crumbling sand (73:14).
Note: God told His prophet to be patient while the deniers will enjoy now with what they have been given but they will have a painful punishment followed by the end of the world when the earth and the mountains will quake to make a heap of crumbling sand. They will be burnt in the hellfire being shackled in it and will have food having great difficulty to swallow.
Messenger has been sent as a witness over the people
- Indeed, we have sent to you a messenger as a witness upon you, as we had sent to Pharaoh a messenger (73:15). Then Pharaoh had disobeyed the messenger, so, we seized him with a devastating seizure (73:16).
Note: God has sent messenger to every community as a witness over the people, which is His system from the past while those who had disobeyed the messenger, He seized them with a devastating seizure like that what faced Pharaoh and his people.
A reminder that the world will come to an end
- Then how do you fear (God) if you disbelieve a day, the children will become grey-haired (73:17)? The heaven will be a breaking apart with it, has done to be fulfilled His promise (73:18). Indeed, this is a reminder; so whoever has willed has taken a path to his Lord (73:19).
Note: Those who disbelieve a day the world will come to an end do not fear God while it is a reminder that the heaven will be a breaking apart what He has promised.
To study the Quran awaking the night
- Your (prophet) Lord knows that you may awake less than two thirds of the night, and half of it, and one third of it, as well as a group of those who are with yourself (prophet). And God has designed the night and the day. He has known that you cannot keep it up, so He has turned to you that you shall read what has been easy of the Quran. He has known that there will be sick among you, and others may travel in the land seeking of God’s bounty, and others may fight in God’s way. So you shall read what has been easy of it, and shall establish the salat prayer (al-salata) and shall give the zakat (al-zakata) and shall loan God a good loan. And whatever of good you send forth for yourselves, you will find it with God, it will be better and greater reward. And you shall seek God’s forgiveness; indeed, God is Forgiving, Merciful (73:20).
Note: Here is a commandment for the prophet and for those who have believed with him to read the Quran every night as much as possible being the night is the best time for the prophet as well as for the believers, while it has been made mandatory to establish Salah and to give Zakah as well as to loan God a good loan and to seek His forgiveness.
Surah al-Muddaththir (Surah 74: Revelation order 4)
A messenger will come to purify garments
- O you the hidden one (messenger) (74:1). Come out that you shall warn (74:2). And your Lord that you shall glorify (74:3). And your garments that you shall purify (74:4). And the uncleanliness (extraneous) that you shall remove (74:5). And you do not expect to have more (74:6).
Note: God has prophesied in the Quran at the very beginning of its revelation that He will choose someone from among us down the generation to remove what is wrong in the Quran as well as to purify corruptions inserted into beliefs and practices of its followers, while the purifier has been warned not to exceed limits. Thus that our Lord is glorified through upholding the purified message as well as practicing the authorized practices avoiding unauthorized practices and misconceptions have been introduced, while the Quran as well as our beliefs and practices are referred as garments of the messenger in metaphor.
The end of the world
- And for your Lord that you shall be patient (74:7). Then, when has been blown into the trumpet (74:8). Then that day will be a difficult day (74:9). For the disbelievers, not easy (74:10).
Note: God knows that His chosen one (His messenger) will be denied by the most people what has been done in the past while he has been reminded to be patient for their denial as the disbelievers will be punished followed by the end of the world, which is not too far from now as there has been prediction on the end of the world to be in 1710 AH (19X90) or 2280 AD (19X120) with God’s permission confirmed by a code of the Quran.
A hint of a messenger to come
- Leave Me, and whom I (God) have created as individual (74:11). And I have given him abundant wealth (74:12). And children as witnesses (74:13). And I have made easy for him (74:14).
Note: God in the first person singular form describes a person letting us know that He has supported him what he needs to make easy for him what has been assigned to him. Thus, the attributes as assigned to him confirm that he is a God’s messenger having direct connection with a major covenant of God with all the prophets, i.e., placed in all the previous scripture (3:81) and the Quran (33:7), which is the final edition of scripture (33:40). According to the covenant a messenger will come to confirm what has been given to the prophets upon fulfillment of the covenant along with the related prophecies and promises in the Quran (15:9, 27:82 and 74:30).
Messenger’s initiatives, accomplishments and mistakes
- Then he expects that I should give him more (74:15). No, indeed, he has been stubborn to our signs (74:16). I will punish him (74:17). Indeed, he has thought and has planned (74:18). That he has been cursed how he has planned (74:19). Then he has been cursed how he has planned (74:20). Then he has looked (74:21). Then he has frowned and has scowled (74:22). Then he has turned back and has been arrogant (74:23). Then he said, “This is not except it is imitated magic! (74:24). This is not except a word of the human.” (74:25). I will cast him into Saqar (74:26). And what has made you know what Saqar is! (74:27). It does not let to stay nor does it let to leave (74:28). It is obvious to the human (74:29).
Note: God has given details of His messenger’s initiatives and accomplishments expecting from him to know that the messenger is chosen to deliver a specific message for a particular generation of people. The messenger has thought and planned about what he has to convey while God has made known of his accomplishments and intellectual punishment for making mistakes referring to saqar. Both his accomplishments and mistakes will stay with him even when he will not be among the believers what has been confirmed in (74:29). However, the messenger is chosen to deliver a specific message (reminder) to a particular generation of people and any mistakes made by any messenger do not disqualify him to be a messenger of God as the messenger is a simple minded human being as well, and this is the case that came down to us from the past, which has reflected in (22:52) not to have any doubt about it, while their mistakes may be a lesson for the believers to focus on the message given to them but not as person to avoid personality cult in the religion being a human tragedy.
Message and sign given to the messenger
- Over it is nineteen (74:30). And we have not made guardians of the Fire except angels, and we have not made their number except a warning for those who disbelieved, that it may ascertain those who have been given the scripture (Jews and Christians) and may increase faith of those who have believed (Muslims), and may not doubt those who have been given the scripture (Jews and Christians) and the believers (Muslims). And that may say those in their hearts there is a disease (hypocrites) and the disbelievers, “What has God meant by this allegory?” Thus, God misguides whomever He wills and He guides whomever He wills. And none knows your Lord’s soldiers except He. And it is not except a reminder for the human race (74:31). Nay, (I swear) by the moon (74:32). And the night when it departs (74:33). And the morning when it brightens (74:34). Indeed, it is undoubtedly one of the great (signs) (74:35). A warning to the human race (74:36). For whoever has willed among you that he may advance, or he may stay behind (74:37).
Note: God has precisely defined the message and the sign for the messenger to support him that the people can reflect and believe the messenger to accept the message sent with him as a gift from Him befitting it to the people living in a generation to do the righteous deeds. Thus, the message and the sign given to him can be spelled out: (1) The message given to the messenger is the Quran’s mathematical coding being the number 19 is a code, which is a common denominator for Quran’s numerical figures derived from it, (2) a reminder for the human race, (3) 19 is also a great sign to support the messenger followed by an oath of God referring to 3 items from His creation, and (4) a warning to the human race for whoever may advance or may stay behind as there is no compulsion in the religion but has made distinct the right from the wrong (2:256).
Consequence of denying the reminder is Hell
- A pledge to every soul for what it has earned (74:38). Except companions of the right (74:39), in Gardens, they ask (74:40), to the guilty (74:41). “What has brought you into Saqar?” (74:42). They have said, “We would not be with the salat observers (74:43), nor would we feed the poor (74:44). And we have done to indulge in vain talk with the vain talkers (74:45). And we have done to deny in a Day of the Judgment (74:46), until the certainty has come to us.” (74:47). Then it will not benefit them intercession of the intercessors (74:48).
Note: Upon receiving the records on a day of the Judgment, those who have stayed behind from the reminder will know that their destination is Hell and they do not have any intercessors to protect them from it, while those who have advanced with the reminder will be in Gardens. In response to a question from those who have destined to Gardens, those have destined to Hell will say that they are in a miserable situation today as they had denied in the reminder as they had not been certain in a day of the Judgment.
- So, what is for them they were averse from the reminder? (74:49). As if they were frightened zebras (74:50), had fled from a lion! (74:51). Nay, every person of them desires that he may be given pages of a scrolled (74:52). Nay, indeed, they do not fear the Hereafter (74:53). Nay, indeed, this is a warning (74:54). So whoever has willed, has taken heed to it (74:55). While none can take heed except that God wills. He is a source of the righteousness and is a source of the forgiveness (74:56).
Note: Thus, those who have destined to Hell were averse from the reminder as if they were frightened zebras had fled away from the lions, and they did not fear the Hereafter, even it was a reminder and a warning for them. However, none can take heed unless God wills as He is a source of righteousness and is a source of forgiveness.
Overview
Below are outlines from comparative study of surah al-muzammil and al-muddaththir may help us avoid misconception and misinterpretation came down to us or around us due to traditional mashup:
- In surah al-muzammil God has addressed the prophet, to whom the Quran has been revealed while in surah al-muddaththir has addressed the messenger to come to unveil its mathematical coding down the generation at appropriate time for appropriate community by His permission. Thus, Quran and its mathematical coding are two separate reminders delivered by two different messengers.
- Both the surah names are in the active participle form but in surah al-muzammil (The Cloaked one) God has addressed His prophet to study the Quran as much as he can read it in the night even rising from sleep referring to it his garment in metaphor while in surah al-muddaththir (The Hidden one) He has addressed His messenger to come out to purify Quran what is wrong in it as well as corrupt beliefs and practices down the generation referring to them as his garments in metaphor.
- In both surahs there is mention of the end of the world is an indication that the disbelievers in what has been given to the prophet as well as what has been given to the messenger will be punished on a day the world will come to an end, while we know that prophet has been given the Quran and the messenger has been given the Quran’s mathematical coding supported by a great sign, a number 19, which is also a common denominator of the derived facts.
- In surah al muzammil God has confirmed that a messenger has been sent as witness over the people and in surah al-muddaththir a messenger has been sent to bring people back to the Quran providing physical facts derived from it when they are away from it (27:82) not to have any confusion about what the believers should believe and practice while the people were averse from the reminder like the frightened zebras which had fled away from a lion.
- In surah al muzammil God has told His prophet to be patient while in surah al-muddaththir He has told His messenger the same that He will address the disbelievers as they cannot escape their punishment on a day of the Judgment followed by the end of the world.
- The information about revelation order and placement in the physical composition may help us to understand a close relation between these two surahs that surah al-muddaththir (revelation order 4) has been revealed followed by surah al-muzammil (revelation order 3), and surah al-muddaththir (surah 74) has been placed after surah al-muzammil (surah 73) in the physical composition while Quran has been referred as garment in metaphor both for the prophet and the messenger to come.
- The content of these two surahs is not the same but they are closely related, which can be mathematically confirmed if the total number of verses in surah al-muzammil, which is 20, and the total number of verses in surah al-muddaththir, which is 56 are added, the sum is a multiple of 19 -> 20 + 56 = 76(19x4) being a subject of comparative study to expose misinterpretation of these two surahs.
Conclusion
Comparative study of surah al-muzammil (The Cloaked one) and surah al-muddaththir (The Hidden one) may open a door for the true believers to reflect that Quran and its mathematical coding are two different messages being two in one to guide humanity in the right direction in right time. Thus, the prophet has delivered the Quran being inspired by God Himself in the high horizon (53:10) as well as being revealed to him brought it down by the Gabriel by His permission (2:97), while the messenger of covenant has delivered the Quran’s mathematical coding (74:30) upon fulfillment of a major covenant of God with the prophets placed in every scripture (3:81) including the Quran (33:7), and the related prophecies and promises in the Quran that the people of the generation may get back to the Quran to find appropriate beliefs and practices being certain witnessing the physical evidence (27:82, 15:9 and 74:30).
Peaceful Friday, salaam and God bless.
Tafazzal (11/19/2021).