Social Quranevery verse · a conversation
Sign in
سُورَةُ الفُرۡقَانِ · 25:53
MeccanRevelation order ٤٢Juzʾ ١٩Page ٣٦٤

۞ وَهُوَ ٱلَّذِى مَرَجَ ٱلْبَحْرَيْنِ هَٰذَا عَذْبٌۭ فُرَاتٌۭ وَهَٰذَا مِلْحٌ أُجَاجٌۭ وَجَعَلَ بَيْنَهُمَا بَرْزَخًۭا وَحِجْرًۭا مَّحْجُورًۭا

٥٣
Saheeh International · EN

And it is He who has released [simultaneously] the two seas, one fresh and sweet and one salty and bitter, and He placed between them a barrier and prohibiting partition.

Bio

Introduction

This is āyah 53 of Sūrat Al-Furqaan (The Criterion), the 42nd sūrah in the traditional order of revelation. It was revealed in the Meccan period and sits within Juzʾ 19. Meccan verses tend to address faith, the oneness of God, and the hereafter.

This introduction is a starting point — the community and Bilal will enrich it over time.

Bio

Revelation & occasion

Asbāb al-Nuzūl
Period
Meccan
Order revealed
42 of 114
Surah
Al-Furqaan (25)
Occasion of revelation · Al-Wahidi

He it is who mixed the two oceans, this one sweet, delicious; that one salty, bitter. Hū [He] is one solitary letter that alludes to the solitary Lord. It is neither a name nor an attribute, but an allusion to a Lord who has no name and no attribute. The one letter is the h. The ū is the resting place of the breath. Do you not see that when you make its dual, you say humā, not hūmā? This is so that you will know that it is indeed one letter pointing to the One Lord. Whenever you say any of the names and attributes, you say them from the tip of the tongue, in contrast to hū, which comes forth from the midst of the spirit and goes by way of the core of the breast and the depth of the heart. The tongue and lips have nothing to do with it. When this word comes from the depths of the breasts of the men of the religion's road and the lords of the eye of certainty-those who have limpid hearts, high aspirations, and empty breasts- what they mean and understand is nothing but the Real. Unless someone becomes a chevalier of this sort, the reality of the He-ness will not be unveiled to him. A great man was walking on a road, and a dervish was coming toward him. He said, “Where are you coming from?” He said, “He.” He said, “Where are you going?” He said, “He.” He said, “What is your goal?” He said, “He.” No matter what he asked, he replied “He.” This is like what someone said: “So much is your image in my eyes that whatever I see I fancy is you.” And He it is who mixed the two oceans, this one sweet, delicious; that one salty, bitter. The salty ocean has no sweetness, and the sweet no saltiness. The two are one in substantiality, but God in His power made them differ in attribute. In the same way He created hearts, some of which are quarries of certainty and recognition and others of which are loci of doubt and ingratitude. Sweet, delicious is an allusion to the hearts of the friends, which are bright with the light of guidance and adorned with the ornament of faith and within which is shining the radiance of tawḤīd's sun.

Commentary

Tafsir

4 works

Hafiz Ibn Kathir

And had We willed, We would have raised a warner in every town (51)So obey not the disbelievers, but strive against them with the utmost endeavor with it (52)And it is He Who has let free the two seas, this is palatable and sweet, and that is salty and bitter; and He has set a barrier and a complete partition between them (53)And it is He Who has created man from water, and has appointed for him kindred by blood, and kindred by marriage. And your Lord is Ever All-Powerful to do what He wills (54) The Universality of the Prophet's Message, How He Was Supported in His Mission and Allah's Blessings to Mankind Allah says: وَلَوْ شِئْنَا لَبَعَثْنَا فِي كُلِّ قَرْيَةٍ نَّذِيرًا (And had We willed, We would have raised a warner in every town.) 'Calling them to Allah, but We have singled you out, O Muhammad, to be sent to all the people of earth, and We have commanded you to convey the Qur'…
Provenance

Chains of transmission

Oral — isnād

  1. ~610–632 CERevelation & memorisation

    Received by the Prophet ﷺ and preserved by the ḥuffāẓ (memorisers) among the Companions.

  2. 1st century AHMutawātir transmissionawaiting curation

    Carried by mass-transmission through the generations of qurrāʾ.

  3. TodayLiving chainsawaiting curation

    Continuous ijāzah chains link reciters today back to the Prophet ﷺ.

Verified isnād chains for this āyah will be added by curators.

Written — the manuscript record

  1. ~650 CEʿUthmānic codicesawaiting curation

    The standardised muṣḥaf sent to the great cities (e.g. the Topkapı and Samarqand codices).

  2. 8th–10th c.Early Ḥijāzī & Kūfic foliosawaiting curation

    Surviving leaves in Birmingham, Sanaa, Paris (BnF) and beyond.

  3. Modern printModern printawaiting curation

    The 1924 Cairo edition → today: the standard printed muṣḥaf used worldwide.

A curated chain of manuscript images for this exact āyah — roughly one per century — is coming. Help us source and verify them.

The wall

And now — what do you think?

The text, its history and the classical commentary are laid out above. Share your own understanding, ask a question, or reason with others.

Sign in to add your voice to this verse.
No reflections yet — be the first.
Provenance

Community resources

No community resources for this verse yet.