Surah Al-Waqi'ah 56:79
سُورَةُ الوَاقِعَةِ · Meccan · Verse 79 of 96
لَّا يَمَسُّهُۥٓ إِلَّا ٱلْمُطَهَّرُونَ
Translation
that only the purified can touch,
English translation: M.A.S. Abdel Haleem.
Meaning and reflection
'None touch it except the purified.' Ibn Ashur and al-Biqa'i note the layered meaning of 'la yamassuhu illa al-mutahharun': at the celestial level, only the pure angels handle its guarded original; and for us, real contact with its meanings, genuine access to its light, is granted to hearts and hands made pure. Ask yourself: the verse links access to purity, the deepest reaches of the Qur'an open not to the clever but to the clean of heart. I can read the words with a distracted, hardened, or heedless soul and touch only the surface, while its true treasures stay veiled. It tells me that if the Book feels closed to me, the lock may be on my side. What purifying, of my intentions, my habits, my heart, might be the actual key to a Qur'an that currently feels flat and silent when I read it?
Grounded in classical tafsir: Ibn Ashur, al-Biqa'i, al-Saadi.
Topics that discuss this verse
Surah Al-Waqi'ah 56:79 is discussed in 5 study guides on Maani. Each guide gathers the key verses, Arabic words and lessons of one Quranic topic.
Reflect on this verse
Open Surah Al-Waqi'ah 56:79 in Maani to reflect on it through the Five Lenses: its wording, its context, what it means for you, its connections across the Quran and its lessons, grounded in classical tafsir.