سُوْرَةُ الْقَلَمِ
Surah Al-Qalam (68) — Ayah 42
يَوْمَ يُكْشَفُ عَن سَاقٍ وَيُدْعَوْنَ إِلَى ٱلسُّجُودِ فَلَا يَسْتَطِيعُونَ ﴿42﴾
Translation by Dr. Muhammad Muhsin Khan & Dr. Taqi-ud-Din al-Hilali
(Remember) the Day when the Shin shall be laid bare (i.e. the Day of Resurrection) and they shall be called to prostrate themselves (to Allâh), but they (hypocrites) shall not be able to do so.
Word by Word — Arabic, Transliteration & Meaning
يَوْمَ
yawma
(The) Day
يُكْشَفُ
yuk'shafu
will be uncovered
عَن
ʿan
from
سَاقٍۢ
sāqin
the shin
وَيُدْعَوْنَ
wayud'ʿawna
and they will be called
إِلَى
ilā
to
ٱلسُّجُودِ
l-sujūdi
prostrate
فَلَا
falā
but not
يَسْتَطِيعُونَ
yastaṭīʿūna
they will be able
Tafsir Taiseer ul-Quran — Maulana Abdul Rahman Kilani
Tafsir Taiseer ul-Quran (Facilitation of the Quran) is a comprehensive Quran commentary by Maulana Abdul Rahman Kilani, a renowned Salafi (Ahl al-Hadith) scholar from Pakistan. Known for his eloquent and accessible writing style, Kilani authored this tafsir with a focus on clarity — making Quranic meanings understandable to the common reader. The tafsir provides detailed historical context for verses related to battles and expeditions, and firmly refutes modernist ideologies using strong scriptural evidence. It is widely regarded as an invaluable resource for understanding the Quran and countering deviant interpretations. The tafsir is originally written in Urdu, translated to English by tohed.com.
42. The Day when the shin will be uncovered and they will be called to prostrate, but they will not be able to prostrate [19].
[19]
Mention of Allah’s Shin:
For the explanation of verses 42 and 43, consider the following hadith: Sayyiduna Abu Sa‘id Khudri ؓ says that the Prophet ﷺ said: “On the Day of Resurrection, the Lord will uncover His shin, and every believing man and believing woman will fall into prostration. Only those will remain who used to prostrate for show or to be heard by people. They will try to prostrate, but their backs will become stiff like a board.” [بخاري۔ كتاب التفسير]
Some scholars have translated ﴿يَوْمَ يُكْشَفُ عَنْ سَاقٍ﴾ as: “The day when the realities will be unveiled.” Even if this is an idiom of the Arabs, we cannot give preference to such an idiom over the statement of the Prophet ﷺ. As for the question of what Allah’s shin is like, whether it is like the shin of humans or has some other form, the answer is that we neither know this nor are we required to know it. Our duty is that if Allah has mentioned His shin, we accept it as it is, and do not go beyond that.
[19]
Mention of Allah’s Shin:
For the explanation of verses 42 and 43, consider the following hadith: Sayyiduna Abu Sa‘id Khudri ؓ says that the Prophet ﷺ said: “On the Day of Resurrection, the Lord will uncover His shin, and every believing man and believing woman will fall into prostration. Only those will remain who used to prostrate for show or to be heard by people. They will try to prostrate, but their backs will become stiff like a board.” [بخاري۔ كتاب التفسير]
Some scholars have translated ﴿يَوْمَ يُكْشَفُ عَنْ سَاقٍ﴾ as: “The day when the realities will be unveiled.” Even if this is an idiom of the Arabs, we cannot give preference to such an idiom over the statement of the Prophet ﷺ. As for the question of what Allah’s shin is like, whether it is like the shin of humans or has some other form, the answer is that we neither know this nor are we required to know it. Our duty is that if Allah has mentioned His shin, we accept it as it is, and do not go beyond that.
