Sūrah Al-Muzzammil The Enshrouded One: Tafsīr al-Ṭabarī The Source Commentary

Surah Overview

DetailInformationClassificationSignificance

SurahالمزملMakkī 20 versesNight prayer obligation, abrogation to voluntary, heavy word

Key DisagreementWas the night prayer in this surah mandatory or recommended?Legal statusAl-Ṭabarī: mandatory initially the Companions observed it for a year; then abrogated to voluntary in 73:20; through chains from Saʿīd ibn Jubayr and ʿĀʾishah

Competing OpinionsWhat is "qawlan thaqīlan" (a heavy word, 73:5)?Heavy word identityAl-Ṭabarī: the Quran itself heavy in its obligations, in its responsibility, and in the difficulty of receiving it through revelation; through chains from Ibn ʿAbbās

MethodologyAbrogation analysis using chain evidence on Companion practiceAbrogation + chain methodAl-Ṭabarī establishes the abrogation through chains showing Companions observed the mandatory night prayer then received the 73:20 relaxation

Key Themes from Al-Ṭabarī

The abrogation of the night prayer obligation (73:20) is one of al-Ṭabarī's most carefully analyzed abrogation cases. He traces through chains from ʿĀʾishah and Saʿīd ibn Jubayr: the Companions observed mandatory night prayer for a year standing so long their feet swelled until 73:20 was revealed with the relaxation: "He knew you would not be able to" and reduced the obligation to "whatever is easy of it." Al-Ṭabarī's tarjīḥ: 73:1–4 imposed mandatory night prayer; 73:20 abrogated this to voluntary, making qiyam al-layl a recommended but not obligatory act.

The "heavy word" (73:5) "We will soon cast upon you a heavy word (qawlan thaqīlan)" is analyzed through chains from Ibn ʿAbbās: the "heavy word" is the Quran itself. Al-Ṭabarī traces chains on the two dimensions of heaviness: (1) the weight of its obligations on the believers; (2) the physical weight of revelation on the Prophet he perspired even in winter when revelation descended. The pre-dawn prayer (73:2–4) is established as the preparation for receiving this heavy word.

يَا أَيُّهَا الْمُزَّمِّلُ قُمِ اللَّيْلَ إِلَّا قَلِيلًا نِّصْفَهُ أَوِ انقُصْ مِنْهُ قَلِيلًا Yā ayyuhā l-muzzammilu qumi l-layla illā qalīlan niṣfahu awi nquṣ minhu qalīlan "O you who wraps himself, arise the night, except for a little half of it or subtract from it a little." (73:1–3) Al-Ṭabarī presents chains from ʿĀʾishah on how the Companions observed this literally for a year before 73:20 relaxed the obligation.

إِنَّ نَاشِئَةَ اللَّيْلِ هِيَ أَشَدُّ وَطْئًا وَأَقْوَمُ قِيلًا Inna nāshiʾata l-layli hiya ashaddu waṭʾan wa-aqwamu qīlā "Indeed, the hours of the night are more effective for concurrence of heart and speech." (73:6) Al-Ṭabarī traces chains from Ibn ʿAbbās on "nāshiʾah al-layl" the rising of night, i.e., worship that begins at night and its unique quality: at night, the heart and tongue align without distraction.

Abrogation timeline: Al-Ṭabarī establishes through chains that the mandatory night prayer lasted one year before being abrogated to voluntary a specific chain-verified timeline.
Heavy word dimensions: The "qawlan thaqīlan" is analyzed as having two dimensions of heaviness obligations on believers and the physical weight of revelation on the Prophet.
Night prayer virtue: Despite the abrogation of obligation, al-Ṭabarī uses chains to show the night prayer remains the highest voluntary prayer the Prophet never abandoned it.
Swollen feet chain: The chains about Companions' swollen feet from extended night standing are presented as eyewitness historical accounts of the early Islamic practice.
Quranic reception: Al-Ṭabarī's analysis of the Prophet's physical experience of revelation perspiring, heaviness is traced through chains as establishing the reality of the revelatory experience.

Surah Overview

Key Themes from Al-Ṭabarī

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