This short Meccan surah is a counterpart to the previous surah, which includes the very first revelation Muhammad received in 610 C.E. This event was called "The Night of Glory." It may be compared to Moses' burning bush experience on Mt. Sinai, when he first encountered the divine. Because this surah is so short, I will quote it in its entirety:
"We sent it down on the Night of Glory. What will explain to you what that Night of Glory is? The Night of Glory is better than a thousand months; on that night the angels and the spirit descended again and again with their Lord's permission on every task. Peace it is until the rising of the dawn."
On the "Night of Glory," time was transcended and the prophet was given a vision of the divine--an ecstatic/mystical experience that pretty much all major religious figures experienced in their own unique ways.
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| Muhammad receiving a revelation from the angel Gabriel. |
