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103. Al-Asr · The Declining Day, Epoch

An oath by time introduces a compact judgment on the vulnerability of human life to loss. Faith, good action, and mutual encouragement toward truth and patience form an interconnected response that is both personal and shared.

Updated 20 October 2026Editorial review edition

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Meccan (traditional classification) · 3 verses

Editorial themes: Time · Faith and conduct · Truth · Patience

English: Marmaduke Pickthall (1930), public-domain translation. Arabic: Tanzil Project, Uthmani 1.1, used verbatim under its text licence. Text provenance & limitations →

A note on Arabic, English and verse numbering

Tanzil’s Arabic source includes the opening basmala with the first verse of surahs other than 9. Pickthall’s numbered translation includes it at 1:1; at other surah openings it is not repeated within the numbered English verse. This display preserves both source conventions. The Arabic is not a collection of all variant readings.

103:1 Compare translations ↗

بِسْمِ ٱللَّهِ ٱلرَّحْمَٰنِ ٱلرَّحِيمِ وَٱلْعَصْرِ

By the declining day,

103:2 Compare translations ↗

إِنَّ ٱلْإِنسَٰنَ لَفِى خُسْرٍ

Lo! man is a state of loss,

103:3 Compare translations ↗

إِلَّا ٱلَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا۟ وَعَمِلُوا۟ ٱلصَّٰلِحَٰتِ وَتَوَاصَوْا۟ بِٱلْحَقِّ وَتَوَاصَوْا۟ بِٱلصَّبْرِ

Save those who believe and do good works, and exhort one another to truth and exhort one another to endurance.

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