Surah 88
Surah Al-Ghashiyah (The Overwhelming)
الغاشية
Also written: Ghashiyah, Ghashiya
Surah Al-Ghashiyah (الغاشية) is surah 88 of the 114 surahs of the Quran. It has 26 ayahs, was revealed in Mecca (Meccan), and its name means “The Overwhelming”.
- Number
- 88
- Ayahs
- 26
- Revelation
- Meccan
- Meaning
- The Overwhelming
Names, meaning and Meccan/Medinan classification as listed in the quran-json dataset.
About Surah Al-Ghashiyah
Al-Ghashiyah, “The Overwhelming”, is named after a description of the Day of Judgement as an event that covers everyone. It opens with a question — has the news reached you? — and then paints two contrasting groups of faces: weary and humbled, or glowing and content. It then directs the listener’s eyes to familiar sights of desert life as evidence of the Creator.
A surah of contrasts
- Exhausted faces (88:2–7): labouring and worn out, entering a scorching fire, given a boiling spring to drink and food that neither nourishes nor satisfies hunger.
- Joyful faces (88:8–16): pleased with what their efforts earned, in a lofty garden where no idle talk is heard, with a flowing spring, raised couches, set cups, cushions and spread carpets.
- Look around you (88:17–20): at the camel and how it was created, the sky and how it was raised, the mountains and how they were set firm, the earth and how it was spread out.
- The Prophet’s role (88:21–26): he is a reminder, not a controller over people; their return and their account are with God.
Signs from everyday life
For the first listeners in Arabia, the camel, the open sky, the mountains and the spreading desert were the most ordinary things they saw. The surah asks them to look again with reflection. Commentators also note how verses 21–22 define the task of a messenger: to convey the message clearly, without compulsion.
In the prayers
According to Sahih Muslim, the Prophet recited Al-Ghashiyah together with Surah Al-A'la (87) in the Friday prayer and the Eid prayers, and the two are still commonly heard together on those occasions.
Frequently asked questions
- What is Al-Ghashiyah?
- A name for the Day of Judgement, meaning the event that overwhelms and covers everyone.
- How many verses are in Surah Al-Ghashiyah?
- 26.
- Is Al-Ghashiyah recited on Friday?
- Yes. Sahih Muslim reports that the Prophet recited it with Al-A'la in the Friday and Eid prayers.
- How many ayahs are in Surah Al-Ghashiyah?
- Surah Al-Ghashiyah has 26 ayahs. It is surah number 88 in the Quran and is Meccan.
- Can I read Surah Al-Ghashiyah in English or save it as a PDF?
- Yes. This page shows the Arabic text of every ayah with the Saheeh International English meaning under it. Use “Print / Save as PDF” for a clean printable copy that you can save as a PDF file from your browser.
- Is Surah Al-Ghashiyah the same as Surah Ghashiyah?
- Yes. Ghashiyah, Ghashiya and Al-Ghashiyah are different English spellings of the same surah name, الغاشية.
Summaries describe the surah’s content and commonly cited reports for general readers; they are not a tafsir or a religious ruling.
Making a video of Surah Al-Ghashiyah
Surah Al-Ghashiyah has 26 ayahs, so most videos use a passage from it rather than the whole surah. Choose the ayahs you want on the new-project page; one to five ayahs suit a Reel or Short, while longer passages work better in 16:9 for YouTube.
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Surah Al-Ghashiyah in Arabic with English meaning
Arabic: Uthmani script from The Noble Qur'an Encyclopedia (quranenc.com), Uthmani script, via quran-json (CC-BY-SA 4.0), shown as in the verified dataset; open-tanween marks use the equivalent codepoints this font draws, as in the editor. English meaning: Saheeh International (tanzil.net). A translation conveys the meaning; it is not the Quran itself.
هَلۡ أَتَىٰكَ حَدِيثُ ٱلۡغَٰشِيَةِ ١
88:1Has there reached you the report of the Overwhelming [event]
وُجُوهࣱ يَوۡمَئِذٍ خَٰشِعَةٌ ٢
88:2[Some] faces, that Day, will be humbled
عَامِلَةࣱ نَّاصِبَةࣱ ٣
88:3Working [hard] and exhausted
تَصۡلَىٰ نَارًا حَامِيَةࣰ ٤
88:4They will [enter to] burn in an intensely hot Fire
تُسۡقَىٰ مِنۡ عَيۡنٍ ءَانِيَةࣲ ٥
88:5They will be given drink from a boiling spring
لَّيۡسَ لَهُمۡ طَعَامٌ إِلَّا مِن ضَرِيعࣲ ٦
88:6For them there will be no food except from a poisonous, thorny plant
لَّا يُسۡمِنُ وَلَا يُغۡنِي مِن جُوعࣲ ٧
88:7Which neither nourishes nor avails against hunger
وُجُوهࣱ يَوۡمَئِذࣲ نَّاعِمَةࣱ ٨
88:8[Other] faces, that Day, will show pleasure
لِّسَعۡيِهَا رَاضِيَةࣱ ٩
88:9With their effort [they are] satisfied
فِي جَنَّةٍ عَالِيَةࣲ ١٠
88:10In an elevated garden
لَّا تَسۡمَعُ فِيهَا لَٰغِيَةࣰ ١١
88:11Wherein they will hear no unsuitable speech
فِيهَا عَيۡنࣱ جَارِيَةࣱ ١٢
88:12Within it is a flowing spring
فِيهَا سُرُرࣱ مَّرۡفُوعَةࣱ ١٣
88:13Within it are couches raised high
وَأَكۡوَابࣱ مَّوۡضُوعَةࣱ ١٤
88:14And cups put in place
وَنَمَارِقُ مَصۡفُوفَةࣱ ١٥
88:15And cushions lined up
وَزَرَابِيُّ مَبۡثُوثَةٌ ١٦
88:16And carpets spread around
أَفَلَا يَنظُرُونَ إِلَى ٱلۡإِبِلِ كَيۡفَ خُلِقَتۡ ١٧
88:17Then do they not look at the camels - how they are created
وَإِلَى ٱلسَّمَآءِ كَيۡفَ رُفِعَتۡ ١٨
88:18And at the sky - how it is raised
وَإِلَى ٱلۡجِبَالِ كَيۡفَ نُصِبَتۡ ١٩
88:19And at the mountains - how they are erected
وَإِلَى ٱلۡأَرۡضِ كَيۡفَ سُطِحَتۡ ٢٠
88:20And at the earth - how it is spread out
فَذَكِّرۡ إِنَّمَآ أَنتَ مُذَكِّرࣱ ٢١
88:21So remind, [O Muhammad]; you are only a reminder
لَّسۡتَ عَلَيۡهِم بِمُصَيۡطِرٍ ٢٢
88:22You are not over them a controller
إِلَّا مَن تَوَلَّىٰ وَكَفَرَ ٢٣
88:23However, he who turns away and disbelieves
فَيُعَذِّبُهُ ٱللَّهُ ٱلۡعَذَابَ ٱلۡأَكۡبَرَ ٢٤
88:24Then Allah will punish him with the greatest punishment
إِنَّ إِلَيۡنَآ إِيَابَهُمۡ ٢٥
88:25Indeed, to Us is their return
ثُمَّ إِنَّ عَلَيۡنَا حِسَابَهُم ٢٦
88:26Then indeed, upon Us is their account