Surah Al-Maun

• Revealed in: Makkah
• Number of ayat: 7

Another name for Surah Al-Maun:

This surah is also called Surah ad-Deen. It was the name given by the companions of Prophet Muhammad (sallallahu alaihi wasallam). A lot of companions thought that if one really understood this surah, he would get a pretty good picture of what this religion is about.

Translation of Surah Al-Maun:

When we look at the shallow translation of this Surah, the ayats are as follows:

Ayat #1: Did you see the one who calls the religion a lie?
(‘You’ here refers to Prophet Muhammad (sallallahu alaihi wa sallam))

Ayat #2: Moreover, that is the one who pushes the orphan.

Ayat #3: He doesn’t encourage allowing the poor person to eat.

Ayat #4: The worst destruction is for the praying ones.

Ayat #5: They are completely heedless, careless, frivolous, mindless when they approach their prayer.

Ayat #6: They, in fact, are the ones who do things for display (show off).

Ayat #7: And they even stop the smallest of gifts.

Meaning of Ma’un

Ma’un refers to the smallest of gifts. It is a small thing that we don’t really bother about. For example, someone asks for a pencil, and we give it. This kind of small thing is called Ma’un.

When we look at the translation, Surah Al-Ma’un seems to have two main sections:

• First Part (Ayahs 1-3): This is about a person
  – who considers the religion a lie,
  – pushes the orphan, and
  – doesn’t encourage feeding the poor

• Second Part (Ayahs 4-7): This part describes a group of:
  – People who pray,
  – And their minds are not in their prayers,
  – And they pray to show off,
  – And are cheap when it comes to giving others.

Confusion Among Scholars:

Scholars have been confused and bothered about why these two groups are mentioned together, especially the second group, which prays. Usually, we think of Muslims when we talk about people who pray, and those who show off are considered hypocrites. In the time of Prophet Muhammad (sallallahu alaihi wasallam), hypocrisy was a problem in Madina. This leads to the idea that the second part of the Surah might have been revealed in Madina, while the first part was revealed in Makkah. Since the Surah is only 7 ayats long, this separation is confusing.

One Group, One Message:

As we study further, it becomes clear that the Surah is not talking about two different groups, but the entire Surah is about one subject, it’s got one audience and it’s actually criticizing one group of people. Most evidence suggests that this Surah was revealed in Makkah.