Divine Methodology for Monthly Recitation of the Qur'an
CHAPTER TWO
Why are the longest Surahs at
the very beginning of the Qur’an
and the shortest at the very end?
If we are to recite the whole Qur’an cover-to-cover over a period of one lunar month, and hence need to determine which is the first Juz, and which is the second, etc., we have to direct our attention to the way the Qur’an is divided. We know that the Angel Gabriel pbuh came to the Prophet pbuh at intervals over a period of 23 years while conveying to his heart revelations of the Qur’an. Some of the revelations comprised short passages while others were quite long. The angel would instruct the blessed Prophet concerning the location where each revelation had to be inserted in the Book. This book is not concerned with the chronological sequence of revelations of the Qur’an; rather we direct attention to the order in which the Qur’an was divided into Suwar (plural of Surah) and the location chosen in the Qur’an for each Surah.
The first 11 Suwar of the Qur’an—after Surah al-Fatihah— but with the significant exception of Surah al-Anfal, i.e., al-Baqarah: 286 verses, Ale Imran: 200, al-Nisa’: 177, al-Maidah: 120, al-An’am: 166, al-A’raf: 206, al-Anfal: 75, al-Taubah: 129, Yunus: 109, Hud: 123 and Yusuf: 111 are all long Suwar. This cannot have been by accident. There must be a reason for this arrangement of the Suwar of the Qur’an. Why are all the long Suwar located at the very beginning of the Qur’an? Why is the longest Surah of all in the Qur’an, i.e., Surah al-Baqarah (with 286 verses) located at the very beginning of the Qur’an?
The last 18 Suwar of the Qur’an, on the other hand, are all about 10 verses in length, i.e., al-Qadr 5, al-Bayyinah 8, al-Zalzalah 8, al-‘Adiyat 11, al-Qariah 11, al-Takathur 8, al-‘Asr 3, al-Hamazah 9, al-Fil 5, Quraysh 4, alMa‘un 7, al-Kauthar 3, al-Kafirun 6, al-Nasr 3, al-Masad 5, alIkhlas 4, al-Falaq 5, and al-Nas 6.
Why does the Qur’an end with short Suwar, and why are the shortest Suwar of all, i.e., Surah al-Kawthar and Surah alNasr (with only 3 verses each), located almost at the very end of the Qur’an?
Finally, why is there a general continuous reduction in the length of the Suwar of the Qur’an from the beginning until its very end?
Here is a list of all Suwar of the Qur’an with the number of verses in each Surah. It should be quite easy for our gentle readers to recognize the gradual decrease in the length of Suwar from the beginning of the Qur’an to the end. Our readers should note that there are different views concerning the numbers of Ayat, or verses, in each Surah of the Qur’an, and this is precisely because the Qur’an was not revealed as a written document with verses clearly defined. Rather, human effort was needed to determine the number of verses in each Surah—hence the differing numbers:
1) Al-Fatihah 7;
Consistently long Suwar
2) al-Baqarah 286;
3) Al-e Imran 200;
4) al-Nisa’ 177;
5) al-Maidah 120;
6) al-An’am 166;
7) al-A’raf 206;
Long Suwar dispersed with medium-size Suwar
8) al-Anfal 75;
9) al-Taubah 129;
10) Yunus 109;
11) Hud 123;
12) Yusuf 111;
13) al-Ra’d 43;
14) Ibrahim 52;
15) al-Hijr 99;
16) al-Nahl 128;
17) al-Isra 111;
18) al-Kahf 110;
19) Maryam 98;
20) Ta Ha 135;
22) al-Hajj 78;
23) al-Mu’minun 118;
24) al-Nur 64;
25) al-Furqan 77;
26) al-Shu’ara 227;
Medium-size Suwar dispersed with short Suwar
27) al-Naml 93;
28) al-Qasas 88;
29) al-Ankabut 69;
30) al-Rum 60;
31) Luqman 34;
32) al-Sajdah 30;
33) al-Ahzab 73;
34) Saba’ 54;
35) Fatir 45;
36) Ya Sin 83;
37) al-Safat 182;
38) Sad 88;
39) al-Zumar 75;
59) al-Hashr; 24
60) Mumtahinah 13;
61) al-Saff 14;
62) al-Jumu’ah 11;
63) al-Munafiqun 11;
64) al-Taghabun 18;
65) al- alaq 12;
66) al-Tahrim 12;
67) al-Mulk 30;
68) al-Qalam 52;
69) al-Haqqah 52;
70) al-Ma‘arij 44;
71) Nuh 28;
Medium-size Suwar dispersed with short Suwar
40) Ghafir 85;
41) Fussilat 54;
42) al-Shura 53;
43) al-Zukhruf 89;
44) al-Dukhan 59;
45) al-Jathiyah 37;
46) al-Ahqaf 35;
47) Muhammad 38;
48) al-Fath 29;
49) al-Hujurat 18;
50) Qaf 45;
51) al-Dhariyat 60;
52) al-Tur 49;
53) al-Najm 62;
54) al-Qamar 55;
55) al-Rahman 78;
56) al-Waqi‘ah 96;
57) al-Hadid 29;
58) al-Mujadilah 22;
72) al-Jinn 28;
73) al-Muzzammil 20;
74) al-Muddaththir 56;
75) al-Qiyamah 40;
76) al-Insan 31;
77) al-Mursalat 50;
78) al-Naba’ 40;
79) al-Naziat 46;
80) ‘Abasa 42;
81) al-Takwir 29;
82) al-Infitar 19;
83) al-Mutaffifin 36;
84) al-Inshiqaq 25;
85) al-Buruj 22;
86) al-Tariq 17;
87) al-A‘la 19;
88) al-Ghashiyah 26;
89) al-Fajr 30;
Consistently short Suwar
90) al-Balad 20;
91) al-Shams 15;
92) al-Lail 21;
93) al-Duha 11;
94) al-Sharh 8;
95) al-Tin 8;
96) al-‘Alaq 19;
97) al-Qadr 5;
98) al-Bayyinah 8;
99) al-Zalzalah 8;
100) al-‘Adiyat 11;
101). al-Qariah 11;
102) al-Takathur 8;
103) al-‘Asr 3;
104) al-Humazah 9;
105) al-Fil 5;
106) Quraysh 4;
107) al-Ma‘un 7;
108) al-Kauthar 3;
109) al-Kafirun 6;
110) al-Nasr 3;
111) al-Masad 5;
112) al-Ikhlas 4;
113) al-Falaq 5;
114) al-Nas 6.
We remind our readers that it is not a matter of any significance to the subject matter of the book that there are minor differences in the number of verses located in some Suwar of the Qur’an. The differences have arisen because the numbering of the verses was not Divinely-revealed.
But there is a significant problem which must be addressed in the context of our recognition that the Suwar of the Qur’an continuously decline in size, from the beginning to the end; the problem is that there a Surah which is located before Surah al-Baqarah, and it is only seven verses in length. By virtue of its very short length of only seven verses, that Surah should logically be located at the end, rather than at the beginning of the Qur’an. Why then, is there such a short Surah located at the beginning of the Qur’an?
Surah al-Fatihah
Allah Most High has declared of the Qur’an that it is a noble and generous ‘recitation’ which is located in a ‘book’ which is guarded and protected:
Qur’an, al-Waqi’ah, 56:77-78
Behold, it is a truly noble recitation, [conveyed unto man] in a well-guarded Book
It is precisely because the book is guarded and protected that the reader needs a key with which to open the doors which guard the book from all sides:
Qur’an, Fussilat, 41:42
Nothing false can ever penetrate this Book to corrupt it— neither openly nor in a stealthy manner, since it has come down from One who is Wise, and ever to be praised.
Our conclusion is that the name of the Surah, i.e., al-Fatihah, indicates that it has a role to play in opening the doors to the Qur’an whenever the Qur’an is to be recited.
The Qur’an confirms that this Surah has this special status and role which makes it different from the rest of the Suwar (since it has to be constantly recited whenever the Qur’an is to be recited). It does so in this verse which separates the Surah from the rest of the Qur’an:
Qur’an, al-Hijr, 15: 87
Indeed, We have bestowed upon thee seven verses to be constantly recited, and (in addition), this sublime Qur’an.
Why does Allah Most High make mention (in the verse quoted above) first, of Surah al-Fatihah, and then, of the Qur’an. Our interpretation of this declaration is that Surah al-Fatihah should first be recited, whenever we wish to recite the Qur’an. This is the reason!
We can now safely recognize that the first Surah of the Qur’an, after the key which opens the Qur’an, i.e., the constantly-repeated Surah al-Fatihah, is Surah al-Baqarah.
to be continued . . . .
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