Al-Balad — The City
سُورَةُ البَلَدِ
Verses
20
Revealed
35th
Period
Makkan
Juz
30
Al-Balad opens with an oath by Makkah — “this city” — the very ground beneath the Prophet's feet, sworn to by Allah while the Prophet ﷺ himself dwelt there. The surah then states a defining truth about human existence: laqad khalaqnal-insana fi kabad — we created man into hardship, toil, and struggle. Life is not designed to be effortless; it is a climb. The arrogant man imagines no one has power over him and boasts of the wealth he has burned through — forgetting that the One who gave him eyes, a tongue, and the knowledge of right and wrong sees everything.
The surah's heart is a single, vivid image: al-'aqabah, the steep mountain pass. Man has not yet attempted the hard upward climb — and the surah then defines exactly what that climb is: freeing a slave, feeding the hungry on a day of scarcity, caring for the orphan close to you and the destitute in the dust, and being among those who believe and counsel one another to patience and mercy. These are the companions of the right hand. Those who reject the signs are the companions of the left, over whom the Fire will be closed in.
Oath by the sacred cityLife is struggleThe gifts man forgetsThe steep pass (al-'aqabah)Right hand vs left hand
Before you begin
Start with sincerity — ask Allah to make this easy for you and to let what you learn benefit you. A short dua to begin with:
رَبِّ زِدْنِي عِلْمًا
Rabbi zidni ‘ilma — “My Lord, increase me in knowledge.” (Qur'an 20:114)
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Core message
Allah swears by the sacred city of Makkah, by the Prophet's presence in it, and by a father and his offspring — to affirm a foundational truth: man was created into kabad, hardship and toil. Life is inherently a struggle. Yet the heedless man imagines no one has power over him, boasts that he has squandered piles of wealth, and forgets the searching question: does he think no one has seen him?
1–3
لَآ أُقْسِمُ بِهَٰذَا ٱلْبَلَدِ•وَأَنتَ حِلٌّۢ بِهَٰذَا ٱلْبَلَدِ•وَوَالِدٍۢ وَمَا وَلَدَ
I swear by this city, Makkah - And you, [O Muhammad], are free of restriction in this city - And [by] the father and that which was born [of him],
4–5
لَقَدْ خَلَقْنَا ٱلْإِنسَٰنَ فِى كَبَدٍ•أَيَحْسَبُ أَن لَّن يَقْدِرَ عَلَيْهِ أَحَدٌۭ
We have certainly created man into hardship. Does he think that never will anyone overcome him?
6–7
يَقُولُ أَهْلَكْتُ مَالًۭا لُّبَدًا•أَيَحْسَبُ أَن لَّمْ يَرَهُۥٓ أَحَدٌ
He says, "I have spent wealth in abundance." Does he think that no one has seen him?
Memory hook — three oaths, one truth, two delusions
The opening is built in stages. Three oaths (vv.1–3): the city, the Prophet in it, and a parent and child. Then the one truth they confirm, v.4: laqad khalaqnal-insana fi kabad — man is made for struggle. Then two delusions of the arrogant (vv.5–7), each opening ayahsabu (“does he think…?”): that no one can overpower him, and that no one has seen him.
What is kabad? — v.4
Kabad means hardship, toil, and labour — the struggle woven into the fabric of human life from the womb onward. The verse reframes difficulty not as a malfunction but as the design. Knowing that life is meant to be a climb changes how a believer meets it: not with surprise or resentment, but with patience and purpose.
Section 1 — The oath and the struggle (vv. 1–7)
ٱلْبَلَدِ
al-balad
The city (Makkah)
v.1 — the sacred city sworn by; the surah's name
حِلٌّ
hill
Free of restriction
v.2 — the Prophet's standing in the city
وَالِدٍ وَمَا وَلَدَ
walidin wa ma walad
A father and what he begot
v.3 — the third oath
كَبَدٍ
kabad
Hardship / toil
v.4 — the condition man is created into
أَيَحْسَبُ
ayahsabu
Does he think?
v.5 & v.7 — the refrain exposing arrogance
أَهْلَكْتُ مَالًا
ahlaktu malan
I have spent / destroyed wealth
v.6 — the boast of the heedless
لُّبَدًا
lubada
In abundance / piled up
v.6 — describing the wealth he flaunts
لَّمْ يَرَهُ أَحَدٌ
lam yarahu ahad
No one has seen him
v.7 — his second delusion
Section 2 — The gifts and the two ways (vv. 8–12)
عَيْنَيْنِ
'aynayn
Two eyes
v.8 — the first gift man forgets
لِسَانًا وَشَفَتَيْنِ
lisanan wa shafatayn
A tongue and two lips
v.9 — the faculties of speech
ٱلنَّجْدَيْنِ
an-najdayn
The two ways / highways
v.10 — guidance to good and evil
ٱقْتَحَمَ
iqtahama
Broke through / stormed
v.11 — what he has not yet done
ٱلْعَقَبَةَ
al-'aqabah
The steep pass / ascent
v.11 — the central image of the surah
وَمَآ أَدْرَىٰكَ
wa ma adraka
What can make you know?
v.12 — building weight before the answer
Section 3 — The climb and the two companies (vv. 13–20)
فَكُّ رَقَبَةٍ
fakku raqabah
Freeing a slave / neck
v.13 — the first deed of the ascent
إِطْعَٰمٌ
it'am
Feeding
v.14 — on a day of severe hunger
يَتِيمًا ذَا مَقْرَبَةٍ
yatiman dha maqrabah
An orphan of near kinship
v.15 — a close relative in need
مِسْكِينًۭا ذَا مَتْرَبَةٍۢ
miskinan dha matrabah
A needy person in the dust
v.16 — destitute and clinging to the ground
تَوَاصَوْا۟ بِٱلصَّبْرِ
tawasaw bis-sabr
Counselled one another to patience
v.17 — the mark of the believers
ٱلْمَرْحَمَةِ
al-marhamah
Mercy / compassion
v.17 — the second mutual counsel
أَصْحَٰبُ ٱلْمَيْمَنَةِ
ashabul-maymanah
Companions of the right
v.18 — the successful ones
أَصْحَٰبُ ٱلْمَشْـَٔمَةِ
ashabul-mash'amah
Companions of the left
v.19 — those who rejected the signs
Note on length
At 20 verses, Al-Balad is short and almost always recited whole in a single rak'ah. Its short, punchy verses and the recurring rhyme of vv.13–16 (raqabah, masghabah, maqrabah, matrabah) make it both memorable and moving when recited with attention to its rising imagery of the steep climb.
Full surah — single rak'ah
Verses 1–20 · the natural recitation
Al-Balad is best recited whole so the central image — the steep pass and what it takes to climb it — builds without interruption.
The rhyming chain of vv.13–16 (raqabah … masghabah … maqrabah … matrabah) flows beautifully aloud; take care to articulate each ending clearly.
The final verse — 'alayhim narun mu'sadah — closes the surah on the fate of those who refused the climb, a sober note before ruku'.
Two-part split — for longer qiyam
Split at v.12
Rak'ah 1 — vv.1–12: the oath by the city, man's struggle, the boast of the arrogant, the gifts of Allah, and the question “what is the steep pass?” — ending right before the answer.
Rak'ah 2 — vv.13–20: the definition of the steep pass — the deeds, faith, and mutual counsel — then the sorting into the companions of the right and the left.
Natural stopping points
v.4
laqad khalaqnal-insana fi kabad — the thesis of the surah. “Man is created into hardship” is a complete, weighty statement after the oaths.
v.10
wa hadaynahun-najdayn — end of the list of gifts. The two ways close the catalogue of what Allah gave man.
v.12
wa ma adraka mal-'aqabah — a deliberate pause that holds the question open before the surah defines the steep pass.
v.17
wa tawasaw bil-marhamah — end of the climb's definition. A natural break before the verdict on the two companies.
v.20
'alayhim narun mu'sadah — the final verse. The closing image of the Fire shut tight ends the surah with no need for more.