An-Najm is the first surah revealed containing a prostration: the Prophet ﷺ recited it and prostrated, and with him prostrated the Muslims, the idolaters, mankind and the jinn. It is one of the similar surahs he recited in pairs in each rak’ah, joining it with Ar-Rahman in the night prayer, and it belongs to the Mufassal.
It is one of the similar surahs that the Prophet ﷺ recited two by two in each rak’ah: he recited Ar-Rahman and An-Najm in one rak’ah.
Authentic (sahih)Muslim (822), Abu Dawud (1396) and Al-Firyabi
Ibn Mas’ud said: the first surah revealed containing a prostration was An-Najm; the Messenger of Allah ﷺ prostrated, and all who were behind him prostrated except one man.
A prostration is made at the verse “So prostrate to Allah and worship Him”. The Prophet ﷺ prostrated at it, and with him the Muslims, the idolaters, mankind and the jinn; Zayd ibn Thabit also recited it to him and he did not prostrate.
Authentic (sahih)Al-Bukhari Authentic (sahih)Al-Bukhari and Muslim
It belongs to the Mufassal by which the Prophet ﷺ was favoured over the other prophets, according to the hadith of Wathilah ibn al-Asqa’: “… and I was favoured with the Mufassal.”
Arabic text, translation, reference and authenticity grade of each hadith.
ولكن رسول الله ﷺ كان يقرأ النظائر في كل ركعة. الرحمن والنجم، في ركعة، والطور والذاريات في ركعة…
But the Messenger of Allah ﷺ used to recite the similar surahs (an-naza’ir) in each rak’ah: Ar-Rahman and An-Najm in one rak’ah, At-Tur and Adh-Dhariyat in one rak’ah…
أول سورة أنزلت فيها سجدة ﴿والنجم﴾ قال: فسجد رسول الله ﷺ، وسجد مَنْ خَلْفه إلا رجلاً رأيته أخذ كفًّا من تراب، فسجد عليه، فرأيته بعد ذلك قُتِل كافراً، وهو أمية بن خلف
The first surah revealed containing a prostration was An-Najm. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ prostrated, and all who were behind him prostrated, except a man whom I saw take a handful of earth and prostrate on it; I later saw him killed as a disbeliever: he was Umayyah ibn Khalaf.
سجد النبي ﷺ بالنجم، وسجد المسلمون معه، والمشركون، والإنس والجن
The Prophet ﷺ prostrated at An-Najm, and the Muslims prostrated with him, as did the idolaters, mankind and the jinn.
أنه قرأ على النبي ﷺ ﴿والنجم﴾ فلم يسجد فيها
Zayd ibn Thabit recited An-Najm to the Prophet ﷺ, and he did not prostrate in it.
Main purpose: To establish the truthfulness of the Revelation and that it comes from Allah.
An-Najm is an entirely Meccan surah, also called “Wan-najm”. It has sixty-two verses in the Kufan count and sixty-one in the others. Revealed after Al-Ikhlas, it is among the very first: only twenty-two surahs preceded it. It is the 53rd in the Qur’an. Ibn Mas’ud said: “The first surah revealed containing a prostration was An-Najm.”
The full Arabic text: introduction, virtues, themes, and a study of the chain and authenticity of each hadith.
