Quran Ayah at-Takwir (The Overthrowing, The Cessation) 81:15 - 70+ Translation Comparison

Popular and/or Featured Works

Muhammad Asad

BUT NAY! I call to witness the revolving stars

Arthur John Arberry

No! I swear by the slinkers

Yusuf Ali (Saudi Rev. 1985)

So verily I call to witness the planets - that recede

Listen:

Source Arabic and Literal tools

Arabic

فَلَا أُقْسِمُ بِالْخُنَّسِ

Arabic

فَلَآ أُقْسِمُ بِٱلْخُنَّسِ

www.quran.live

falā uq’simu bil-khunasi

www.quran.live

So, I ˹Allah˺ do swear by the receding

Word for Word
Dr. Shehnaz Shaikh, Ms. Kauser Katri, and more

But nay! I swear by the retreating planets,

Generally Accepted Translations of the Meaning

Muhammad Asad

BUT NAY! I call to witness the revolving stars

Yusuf Ali (Saudi Rev. 1985)

So verily I call to witness the planets - that recede

M. M. Pickthall

Oh, but I call to witness the planets

The Clear Quran, Dr. Mustafa Khattab

I do swear by the receding stars

Wahiduddin Khan

I swear by the receding stars

Safi Kaskas

I swear by the contracting planets,

Dr. Laleh Bakhtiar

So no! I swear an oath by the stars that recede,

T.B.Irving

So I swear by the planets

Shakir

But nay! I swear by the stars

Abdul Hye

So surely, I swear by the planets that recede;

Saeed Malik

So, Nay! I swear by the elusive ones--

The Study Quran

So I swear by those receding

Talal Itani & AI (2025)

I swear by the retreating stars.

Talal Itani (2012)

I swear by the galaxies

M. Farook Malik

But no! I swear by the retreating stars

Dr. Kamal Omar

Then, nay! I bring to witness (the heavenly bodies) that disappear and hide themselves (during the day)

Dr. Munir Munshey

No, (I swear) by the planets

Syed Vickar Ahamed

So truly I call to witness the receding stars that hide awa

Umm Muhammad (Sahih International)

So I swear by the retreating stars

Muhammad Sarwar

I do not need to swear by the orbitin

Muhammad Taqi Usmani

So, I swear by those (stars) that recede

Shabbir Ahmed

Oh, but I call to witness the revolving planets

Muhammad Mahmoud Ghali

Then no! swear by the constant sinkers

Hamid S. Aziz

But nay! I swear by (or call to witness) the Planets

Abdel Haleem

I swear by the planet

Abdul Majid Daryabadi

I swear by the receding stars

Ahmed Ali

So, I call the receding stars to witness

Aisha Bewley

No! I swear by the planets with their retrograde motion,

Ali Ünal

Oh, I swear by the stars which recede (disappearing in the sun’s light)

Ali Quli Qara'i

So I swear by the stars that return

[The Monotheist Group] (2017 Edition)

So I do swear by the collapsing stars.

Musharraf Hussain

So, I swear by the shining stars,

A.L. Bilal Muhammad et al (2018)

So indeed I call to witness the planets that recede

Ali Bakhtiari Nejad

So, I swear by the disappearing (and reappearing stars/planets),

Maududi

No indeed; I swear by the alternating star

Mohammad Shafi

No! [The misgivings of the people that do not believe in these revelations are not correct, and] I swear by the star

Controversial or status undetermined works

Ahmed Raza Khan (Barelvi)

Then I swear by those that recede;

Rashad Khalifa

I solemnly swear by the galaxies

Hasan Al-Fatih Qaribullah

Rather, I swear by the returnin

Faridul Haque

So by oath of those that revolve. (The planets.

Bijan Moeinian

I (God) swear by the stars

Maulana Muhammad Ali

Nay, I call to witness the stars

Muhammad Ahmed & Samira

So I do not swear/make oath by the planets

Sher Ali

Nay ! I call to witness those that recede while advancing

Edip Yuksel

So, I swear by the collapsing/elusive stars.

Amatul Rahman Omar

Nay, I call to witness those (planets) that recede while advancing in one direction

Dr. Mohammad Tahir-ul-Qadri

So I swear by (the heavenly spheres) which recede (after appearing)

Muhsin Khan & Muhammad al-Hilali

So verily, I swear by the planets that recede (i.e. disappear during the day and appear during the night)

Non-Muslim and/or Orientalist works

N J Dawood (2014)

I swear by the turning planets

Arthur John Arberry

No! I swear by the slinkers

Edward Henry Palmer

I need not swear by the stars that slink back

George Sale

Verily I swear by the stars which are retrograde

John Medows Rodwell

It needs not that I swear by the stars of retrograde motion

New, Partial, or In Progress Translations

Shuaib Abdullahi

So (Fa) I swear by (Laa' Uq'simu Bi) the planets (El'Khunnas)

Fode Drame

So I do swear by the Khunnas [heavy and slow-moving night particles].

Munir Mezyed

No indeed! I swear by the planets

Sahib Mustaqim Bleher

But I swear by the persisting stars,

Linda “iLHam” Barto

Truly, I [the Lord] attest by the planets that recede,…

Fadel Soliman, Bridges‘ Translation

So, no! I swear by those (stars) receding,

Irving & Mohamed Hegab

So I swear by the planets [that recede]

Samy Mahdy

So, no, I swear by the retreaters (Planets and stars).

Sayyid Qutb

I swear by the turning stars,

Ali Quli Qarai

So I swear by the stars that return,

Ahmed Hulusi

I swear by ‘al-Hunnas’ (the stars that are not observable during the day due to sunlight),

Safiur Rahman Mubarakpuri

But nay! I swear by Al-Khunnas.

A. S. Mohamed

I swear by the retreating planets

Torres Al Haneef (partial translation)

"So, I call to witness the planets that recede,"

Sayyed Abbas Sadr-Ameli

No, I swear by the orbiting planets

Mir Aneesuddin

So I do swear by those that withdraw,

Al-muntakhab fi tafsir al-Qur‘an al-Karim

I swear by the heavenly bodies that recede

The Wise Quran Project

So I swear by the retreaters,

Obsolete and/or older editions

Yusuf Ali (Orig. 1938)

So verily I call to witness the planets - that recede

[The Monotheist Group] (2013 Edition)

So I do swear by the planets that move away.

[The Monotheist Group] (2011 Edition)

So, I swear by the receding stars

OLD Literal Word for Word

But nay! I swear by the retreating planets

OLD Transliteration

Fala oqsimu bialkhunnasi

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