سورة الفجر

The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) — Abu Sa'id al-Khudri said: When this verse was revealed, the face of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) changed so much that this state became apparent on his face, and the condition his companions saw in him was hard on them. So some of them went to Imam Ali ibn Abi Talib (peace be upon him) and said: "O Ali (peace be upon him)! Something has happened that has shown itself on the face of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family)." Imam Ali (peace be upon him) set out and came to the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family), embraced him from behind, kissed him between his shoulders and said: "O Prophet of Allah (peace be upon him and his family)! May my father and mother be sacrificed for you! What has happened to you today?" The Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) said: "Jibra'il came and recited to me: وَجِیءَ یَوْمَئِذٍ بِجَهَنَّمَ [And hell is made to appear on that day]. I said to him: 'How will it be brought?' He said: 'Seventy thousand angels will bring it and drag it forward with seventy thousand reins. Then hell will bolt in such a way that if it were let loose, it would burn everyone. Then I will present myself to it. It will say: I have no concern with you, O Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family), for Allah has forbidden your flesh to me. On that day everyone will say: O Allah! Save me, save me; while Muhammad (peace be upon him and his family) will say: O Lord! Save my ummah, save my ummah.'"

The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) — When this verse was revealed, وَ جیءَ یَوْمَئِذٍ بِجَهَنَّمَ یَوْمَئِذٍ یَتَذَکَّرُ الْإِنْسانُ وَ أَنَّی لَهُ الذِّکْری [And hell is made to appear on that day. On that day shall man be mindful, and what shall being mindful (then) avail him?], no one could speak to him (the Prophet) because of the intensity of the fear he had, until his brother rose and went to him and kissed his head and asked him about this news, and [the Prophet] said to him: "Jibra'il brought me this verse."

The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) — Imam Baqir (peace be upon him) said: When this verse: وَ جیءَ یَوْمَئِذٍ بِجَهَنَّمَ یَوْمَئِذٍ یَتَذَکَّرُ الْإِنْسانُ وَ أَنَّی لَهُ الذِّکْری [And hell is made to appear on that day. On that day shall man be mindful, and what shall being mindful (then) avail him?] was revealed, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) was asked about وَ جیءَ یَوْمَئِذٍ بِجَهَنَّمَ [And hell is made to appear on that day], and he said: "Ruh al-Amin has informed me that the One Allah, when He gathers together the first and the last, hell will be brought forth, drawn by a thousand reins, each rein held by a hundred thousand harsh, severe angels. It has a roar, rage and fiery breath, and it exhales such a fiery breath that if Allah did not hold the people back from it for the reckoning, it would destroy them all. Then a tongue of flame will come out of it that will surround all people, the good and the bad."

The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family) — When the Day of Resurrection comes, hell will be dragged with seventy thousand reins held in the hands of seventy thousand angels, and it will bolt in such a way that if Allah (the Exalted) did not restrain it, it would burn up the heavens and the earth.

Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): Jabir narrated from Imam Baqir (peace be upon him): When this verse was revealed, the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him and his family) was asked about it. He said: "Allah — there is no god but He — when He raises up the creatures and gathers the first and the last, will bring Hell forward. Hell is brought with a thousand reins, each rein held by one hundred thousand harsh and wrathful angels. It has a terrifying, roaring voice and a fearful shriek, and it lets out such a cry that, had Allah the Mighty and Majestic not held them back for the reckoning, it would have destroyed them all. Then Hell will stretch out its neck and encompass all the creatures, from the righteous to the wicked. At that time, every servant Allah has created, from angels to prophets, will all cry out: 'My Lord, save me, save me!' — while you [O Prophet] say: 'My Lord, save my ummah, save my ummah!' Then a bridge (Sirat) will be placed over Hell, finer than a hair and sharper than a sword, and upon it are three arches: on the first are trust and kinship, on the second is prayer, and on the third is the Lord of the worlds — there is no god but He. At that moment the creatures will be compelled to cross the Sirat, and trust and kinship will hold them back. If they are saved from these, prayer will hold them back, and if they are saved from that too, the end of the road reaches the Lord of the worlds, there is no god but He."

The Prophet (peace be upon him and his family): The sun at noon has a circle which it enters; when it enters that circle, the sun declines (from the zenith), and everything below the Throne glorifies Allah — and this is the hour in which my Lord sends blessings upon me. For this reason Allah has made prayer obligatory upon me and my ummah at this time, and He said: أَقِمِ الصَّلاةَ لِدُلُوکِ الشَّمْسِ إِلی غَسَقِ اللَّیْلِ [Establish the prayer from the decline of the sun until the darkness of the night] (al-Isra 17:78). And this is the same hour at which Hell will be brought forth on the Day of Resurrection. Any believer who is granted the ability at this hour to be prostrating, bowing, or standing (in prayer), Allah will forbid his body to the Fire.