An-Najm

Sūrat an-Najm (Arabic: سورة النجم‎, "The Star") is the 53rd sura of the Qur'an with 62 ayat. The surah that opens with the oath of the Divine One swearing by every one of the stars, as they descend and disappear beneath the horizon, that Muḥammad is indeed God’s awaited Messenger. It takes its name from Ayat#1, which mentions “the stars” (najm). The surah confirms the divine source of the Prophet’s message and refers to his ascension to heaven during the Night Journey (Ayah#1 ff.). The surah refutes the claims of the disbelievers about the goddesses and the angels (ayah#19 ff.), and lists several truths about God’s power. It closes with a warning of the imminent Day of Judgement.

Content

The first eighteen verses of this sura are considered to be some of the earliest revelations of the Qur'an. These verses address the legitimacy of Muhammad’s prophetic visions. The sura begins with the divine voice swearing by the collapsing star that “Your companion,” referring to Muhammad, has not gone mad, nor does he speak out of his desire. The passage evokes the process of vision by tracing the movement along the highest horizon and then coming down and drawing near to the distance of “two bows” length. The passage ends with the affirmation of the validity of the vision by stating that the heart of the prophet “did not lie in what it saw.”

Suraż

Suraż [ˈsuraʂ] is a town in north-eastern Poland situated in the Podlaskie Voivodeship since 1999 and, from 1975 to 1998, in the Białystok Voivodeship.

Suraż, which has a long and rich history, and was a royal town in the Kingdom of Poland, currently is one of the smallest municipalities of the country, with the population of only 1012 (as of June 30, 2012).

The history of Suraż dates back to the 11th century, when a defensive gord was established on the right bank of the Narew river. In 1390, King Władysław II Jagiełło handed Suraż, together with other towns in the area, to Mazovian Duke Janusz I of Warsaw. The Suraź Castle is mentioned in a 1392 Teutonic Knights chronicle, when it was destroyed by forces of Grand Master Engelhard Rabe. Some time in the late 15th century, a new castle was built, with a brick tower, and a prison. The castle was destroyed during the Swedish invasion of Poland (1655-1660).

Suraż received Magdeburg rights on September 16, 1445, from King Casimir IV. In 1520, it became seat of a powiat in the Land of Bielsk Podlaski, and in 1569, following the Union of Lublin, Suraż was annexed by the Kingdom of Poland: until the Partitions of Poland, it was part of Podlaskie Voivodeship (1513–1795). The town was inhabited by three communities - Polish, Jewish and Ruthenian.

Surah

A Surah (/ˈsʊərə/; also spelled Surat, Sura; Arabic: سورة‎ sūrah, plural سور suwar) is a chapter of the Qur'an. There are 114 chapters of the Qur'an, each divided into verses. The chapters or suras are of unequal length, the shortest chapter (Al-Kawthar) has only three ayat (verses) while the longest (Al-Baqara) contains 286 verses. Of the 114 chapters in the Qur'an, 86 are classified as Meccan, while 28 are Medinan. This classification is only approximate in regard to location of revelation; any chapter revealed after migration of Muhammad to Medina (Hijrah) is termed Medinan and any revealed before that event is termed as Meccan. The Meccan chapters generally deal with faith and scenes of the Hereafter while the Medinan chapters are more concerned with organizing the social life of the nascent Muslim community and leading Muslims to the goal of Dar al-Islam by showing strength. Except sura At-Tawba, all chapters or suras commence with 'In the Name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate'. This formula is known as the basmala and denotes the boundaries between chapters. The chapters are arranged roughly in order of descending size therefore the arrangement of the Qur'an is neither chronological nor thematic. Suras (chapters) are recited during the standing portions (Qiyam) of Muslim prayers. Sura Al-Fatiha, the first chapter of the Qur'an, is recited in every unit of prayer and some units of prayer also involve recitation of all or part of any other sura.

Sura (city)

Sura was a city in the southern part of ancient Babylonia, located west of the Euphrates River. It was well known for its agricultural produce, which included grapes, wheat, and barley. It was also a major center of Torah scholarship and home of an important yeshiva, which, together with the yeshivas in Pumbedita and Nehardea, gave rise to the Babylonian Talmud.

According to Rav Sherira Gaon, Sura (Hebrew: סורא) was identical to the town of Mata Mehasia (מתא מחסיא), which is also mentioned in the Talmud, but Matha-Mehasia is cited in the Talmud many times, either as a nearby town or a suburb of Sura, and the Talmudist academy in Matha-Mehasia served as a branch of the Sura Academy. Sura Academy was founded by Rav (Abba Arika) in the third century.

A Syriac source describes it as a town completely inhabited by Jews, situated between Māḥōzē (i.e. Al-Mada'in) and Al-Hira in southern Iraq. A responsum of Rabbi Natronai Gaon says that Sura was about 6 km from Al-Hira.

See also