This Meccan sura celebrates the night when the first revelation of the Quran was sent down.
In the name of God, the Lord of Mercy, the Giver of Mercy
1 We sent it down on the Night of Glory [a]. 2 What will explain to you what that Night of Glory is? 3 The Night of Glory is better than a thousand months [b]; 4 on that night the angels and the Spirit [c] descend again and again with their Lord’s permission on every task; 5 [there is] peace that night until the break of dawn.
Footnotes
a. Laylat al-Qadr, or the Night of Power; may be taken to mean deliberate planning, management and organization, or it may mean value, position and rank.
b. Equal to more than 83 years, a reference to the human lifespan
c. The Angel Gabriel.
The Qur'an (Oxford World's Classics)
The Qur'an / a new translation by M. A. S. Abdel Haleem, copyright © 2004 Oxford World's Classics (Oxford University Press). Used by permission. All rights reserved.