ٱلْمَسَد : ١

  • تَبَّتۡ Perish
  • يَدَآ (the) hands
  • أَبِي (of) Abu
  • لَهَبٖ Lahab
  • وَتَبَّ and perish he
May the hands of Abū Lahab be ruined, and ruined is he.1
Footnotes
1 - Abū Lahab (the Prophet's uncle) , who was an enemy of Islām.
Al-Masad (the Palm Fiber) Meccan, consisting of 5 verses. When the Prophet may peace and salutation be upon him summoned his people and said, 'I am a warner to you, [standing] before a terrible chastisement', his uncle, Aboo Lahab, said, 'May you perish! Is that what you have called us out for?', whereupon the following was revealed: Perish, ruined be, the hands of Aboo Lahab, in other words, all of him - the use of 'hands' here to denote [all of] him is figurative, and is because most actions are performed by them; the statement is an invocation - and perish he!, may he be ruined! (this [tabba] is a predicate, as where one says, ahlakahu'Llaahu wa-qad halak, 'God destroyed him and he indeed is destroyed'. When the Prophet threatened him with the chastisement, he said, 'If what my brother's son says is true, then I shall ransom [myself] from it with my wealth and sons!'; so the following was revealed: