Ya-Sin

Surah 36 of the Quran
يٰسٓ‎
Yā`Sīn
Yāʾ Sīn
ClassificationMeccan
PositionJuzʼ 22 to 23
No. of verses83
No. of Rukus5
No. of words730
No. of letters3068
Quran
History
Manuscripts
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Double-page with illuminated frames marking the start of Chapter Ya-Sin in a Malay Qur'an manuscript from Patani. Despite the special significance of surah Ya-sin in lives of all Muslims, "this is the only Southeast Asian Qur'an manuscript known in which the beginning of Surat Yasin is marked with illuminated frames".[1] 2nd half of the 19th century. British Library

Yā Sīn[2] (also Yaseen; Arabic: يٰسٓ, yāsīn; the letters 'Yā'' and 'Sīn') is the 36th chapter of the Quran. It has 83 verses (āyāt). It is regarded an earlier "Meccan surah". Some scholars maintain that verse 12 is from the Medinan period.[3] While the surah begins in Juz' 22, most of it is in Juz' 23.

The surah begins with the eponymous (muqatta'at) Arabic letters: يس (yā sīn).[4] The meaning of the letters yā sīn, while being primarily unknown, is debated amongst Muslim religious academics. One of the interpretations is "O human being!" referring to Prophet Muhammad since the verses that follow are translated as "By the Qur'an, full of Wisdom, Thou art indeed one of the messengers".[5] Tafsir al-Jalalayn, a Sunni beginners exegesis (tafsir), concludes, "God knows best what He means by these [letters]."[6]

The surah focuses on establishing the Qur'an as a divine source, and it warns of the fate of those who mock God's revelations and are stubborn. The surah tells of the punishments that plagued past generations of nonbelievers as a warning to present and future generations. Additionally, the surah reiterates God's sovereignty as exemplified by his creations through signs from nature.

The surah ends with arguments in favor of the existence of resurrection and God's sovereign power.

  1. ^ "A Malay Qur'an manuscript from Patani". British Library.
  2. ^ George Sale translates Y. S.
  3. ^ Joseph E. B. Lumbard, "Introduction to Sūrat Yā Sīn", in The Study Quran ed. S.H. Nasr, Caner Dagli, Maria Dakake, Joseph Lumbard, and Mohammed Rustom (HarperOne, 2015), p. 1069.
  4. ^ The Qur'an. A new translation by M.A.S. Abdel Haleem. Oxford University Press. 2004.
  5. ^ What is the meaning of the word Yasin? https://questionsonislam.com/question/what-meaning-word-yasin
  6. ^ Tafsir al-Jalalayn. Translated by Firas Hamza. Royal Al al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought. Amman, 2007.