Surah As-Sajdah

The main theme of the Surah is to remove the doubts of the people concerning Monotheism (Tawhid), the Hereafter, the Prophethood and to invite them to all these three realities. The disbelievers of Makkah when they talked of the Prophet ﷺin private, would say to one another, ‘This person is forging something very strange, sometimes he gives news of what will happen after death. He says: ‘When you have become dust you will be called to render your accounts and there will be Hell and Heaven.’ Sometimes he says: ‘These gods and goddesses and saints are nonentities: one God alone is the Deity.’ And sometimes he says: ‘The discourses which I recite are not my own but Allah’s Word. All these are strange things which he presents.’ The answer to these doubts and misgivings, forms the theme and subject matter of this Surah.

In regards to this the disbelievers have been told: “Most certainly it is Allah’s word which has been sent down in order to awaken a people who are sunk in heedlessness being deprived of the bounties and blessings of Prophethood. How can you call it a fabrication when its having been sent down from Allah, is clear and self-evident?” Then they have been told; use your common sense and judge for yourselves which of the things presented by the Qur’an is strange and novel. Look at the administration of the heavens and the earth: consider your own creation and structure. Don’t these things testify to the teaching which this Prophet ﷺis presenting before you in the Qur’an? Does the system of the universe point to Monotheism (Tawhid) or to polytheism (Shirk)?

Then a scene of the Hereafter has been depicted, the fruits of belief and the evil consequences of disbelief have been mentioned. The people are exhorted to give up disbelief even before they meet their doom and accept the teaching of the Qur’an which will be to their own advantage in the Hereafter. They are then told; it is Allah’s supreme mercy that He does not seize man immediately for his errors. He warns him prior to the punishment, by afflicting him with small troubles, hardships, calamities, losses and strokes of misfortune so that he may wake up and take admonition. Then it is said, “This is not the first and novel event of its kind that a Book has been sent down upon a man from Allah. Before this, the Book had been sent upon Musa also which you all know. There is nothing strange in this at which you should marvel. Be assured that this Book has come down from Allah and note it well that the same will happen now as has already happened in the time of Moses. Leadership now will be bestowed only on those who will accept this Divine Book. Those who reject it shall be doomed to failure. Will you like to meet the same doom yourself? Today you see that no one is listening to Muhammad ﷺexcept a few young men, some slaves and poor men and he is being made the target of curses and ugly remarks from every side. From this you have formed the wrong impression that his mission will fail. But this is only a deception of your eyes. In conclusion, the Prophet ﷺhas been addressed to the effect: “These people mock at what you say and ask as to when you will attain this decisive victory. Tell them: when the time comes for the final judgment regarding you and us, believing then will not profit you at all.”52