Surah Al-Waqiah: the three groups, themes and virtues
Surah Al-Waqiah (“The Inevitable Event”) is the 56th surah, a Makki surah of 96 verses about the Day of Judgement. It sorts all of humanity into three groups, then turns to the signs of Allah in everyday life. Here is its structure, its opening verses, and an honest look at the virtues reported about it.
Last updated: 3 October 2026
The opening verses
بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ إِذَا وَقَعَتِ ٱلْوَاقِعَةُ ﴿١﴾ لَيْسَ لِوَقْعَتِهَا كَاذِبَةٌ ﴿٢﴾ خَافِضَةٌۭ رَّافِعَةٌ ﴿٣﴾
The three groups of people
After describing the earth shaking and the mountains crumbling to dust (verses 4–6), the surah says people will be in three groups, then describes each:
| Group | Verses | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Those brought near (as-sabiqun) | 10–26 | The foremost in faith and good deeds: "a large group from the earlier generations and a few from the later". They are closest to Allah, in gardens of delight. |
| The people of the right (ashab al-yamin) | 27–40 | The righteous believers, among thornless lote trees and extended shade, with abundant fruit. |
| The people of the left (ashab ash-shimal) | 41–56 | Those who denied the resurrection and lived in luxury without gratitude, facing scorching wind and boiling water. |
The signs in everyday life
Verses 57–74 answer those who doubt the resurrection with questions about things they see daily: the seed of human life, the crops they plant, the water they drink and the fire they kindle. “Is it you who create it, or are We the Creator?” The section ends: “So glorify the name of your Lord, the Most Great.”
Verses 75–80 then swear by the positions of the stars that this is “a noble Quran, in a well-guarded Book, which none touch except the purified”, a passage often discussed in the etiquette of handling the Quran and reading without wudu. The surah closes with the moment of death and the three groups once more.
What is authentic about its virtue
Al-Waqiah is widely read at night because of a report that it protects from poverty. That report is weak, as the FAQ below explains. What is well established is how seriously the Prophet ﷺ took its message: it is among the surahs he said had turned his hair grey. Read it for what it teaches about the Hereafter and gratitude, not for a specific worldly promise.
Reciting and memorising it
The surah is made of short, rhyming verses, which makes it one of the easier longer surahs to memorise: many learners take ten verses a day and finish in about two weeks. Watch the long vowels at verse endings and the qalqalah where you stop on a qaf or daal. For the method, see how to memorise the Quran; for a teacher, the online hifz course. It follows Surah Ar-Rahman in the mushaf; see all 114 surahs.
Frequently asked questions
How many verses are in Surah Al-Waqiah?
96 verses, on pages 534 to 537 of the Madinah mushaf, in juz 27. It is a Makki surah.
Does reading Surah Al-Waqiah every night protect from poverty?
A narration attributed to Ibn Mas‘ud says whoever recites it every night will never be struck by poverty. Hadith scholars, including Imam Ahmad and others, judged its chain weak. Reading the surah is good in itself, but the specific promise is not established.
What does al-Waqiah mean?
Al-Waqi‘ah means “the Event that must happen”, one of the Quran’s names for the Day of Judgement. The surah takes its name from its first verse.
Is Al-Waqiah one of the surahs that turned the Prophet’s hair grey?
Yes. In a narration in at-Tirmidhi (3297), graded hasan, the Prophet ﷺ said that Hud, Al-Waqi‘ah, Al-Mursalat, An-Naba and At-Takwir had made him grey, because of the gravity of what they describe.
Memorise Al-Waqiah with a teacher
Three free one-to-one lessons in UK time, with every verse checked before you move on.