Mu' meneen Brothers and Sisters,

As Salaam Aleikum wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.  (May Allah's Peace, Mercy and Blessings be upon all of you)

One of our brothers/sisters has asked this question:

In your online translation - this is mentione, Madina (87) 286 Ayahs 40 Rukus; Ruku 1 what does (87) mean and how do you determine rukus when reading when reading quran in both english and arabic.

There is a number written at the end of each ayahs - what does this mean? In Surah Al-Baqara Surah 2 at the end of ayah 7 - 31 32 is mentioned. What is these 31 32 and why two numbers.

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Answer:

The numbering of quran verses

In the name of Allah, We praise Him, seek His help and ask for His forgiveness. Whoever Allah guides none can misguide, and whoever He allows to fall astray, none can guide them aright. We bear witness that there is none worthy of worship but Allah Alone, and we bear witness that Muhammad (saws) is His slave-servant and the seal of His Messengers.

Dear and beloved brother in Islam, before we address each of your questions, we would like to clarify at the outset and make known to you a few facts regarding the compilation of the Glorious Quran:

1. The Glorious Quran is not compiled in the sequence it was revealed; but rather whenever a Surah or Verses was revealed, the Messenger of Allah (saws) under the direct guidance and command of the Lord would assign its exact position and place in its sequence of compilation….thus we find that most of the first Surahs to be revealed in the early periods of Makkah are found placed at the end of the Quran in its compilation. This was done by the Messenger of Allah (saws) under the direct command and guidance of Allah Subhanah.
2. The names of each Surah were not revealed by Allah Subhanah, but were assigned by the muslims only as a recognition and reference to that Surah….that is why we find there are multiple names for some Surahs.
3. No numbers (Surah Numbers, Verse Numbers, Ruku Numbers, Juza or Para Numbers, etc.) were assigned during the Revelation of the Glorious Quran by Allah Subhanah. The believers themselves assigned these numbers at a much later date for easy reference.

Your Question: In your online translation - this is mentione, Madina (87) 286 Ayahs 40 Rukus; Ruku 1 what does (87) mean and how do you determine rukus when reading quran in both english and arabic.

When it is mentioned in the Quran that the 2^nd Surah Al-Baqarah Madina (87) 286 40 Rukus:

1. The Prophet (saws) office to the rank of Prophethood lasted approximately 23 years; the first 13 years of which he (saws) lived in Makkah and the balance 10 years in Madina. Thus if the Revelations were received in the Makkah period they are known as the Makki Surahs, and if the Revelations were received in the latter Madinah period, they were known as the Madani Surahs. The Surah Al-Baqarah was revealed after the Prophet (saws) had migrated to Madinah.
2. The number 2 denotes the position of this Surah in the Quran according to its sequence of compilation; ie. this is the 2^nd Surah of the Quran.
3. The number (87) denotes the position of this Surah according to its number in the sequence of Revelation; ie. this was the 87^th Surah of the Quran to be revealed.
4. The number 286 denotes the total number of verses or Aayahs that form this blessed Surah.
5. The number 40-rukus suggest that the Surah has been sub-divided into a total of 40 sub-divisions according to its contents.

Your Question: how do you determine rukus when reading when reading quran in both english and arabic.

After the compilation of the Quran in the sequence and manner as guided by Allah, to make it easy and convenient for those who wished to study and memorize the Glorious Quran, it was sub-divided in two ways:

1. They divided the Quran into 30 Juza or Paras of approximately equal length, so that those who wished to recite the full Quran in one month could recite one Para a day and thus accomplish their target. Please note that the sub-division of Juzas or Paras has more to do with the length rather than the subject matter.
2. Subsquently, each Surah was also sub-divided into Rukus or paragraphs according to its content for those who wished to study the Quran. The sub-division of Rukus has more to do with the subject matter than the actual length of the Ruku.

The Rukus of each Surah are determined by subject matter for those who wished to study the Quran, or for those who wished to recite a portion of the Quran in their prayers so that a full subject matter could be recited from its beginning to its conclusion.

Your Question: There is a number written at the end of each ayahs - what does this mean?

The Quran was revealed without the names of the particular Surahs or the Verse numbers; thus to distinguish one Surah from another each Surah was assigned a name, and each verse in that particular Surah was numbered for easy reference.

Thus the 1^st Surah Al-Fatihah has a total of 7-verses numbered from 1-7; the 2^nd Surah Al-Baqarah has a total of 286-verses numbered from 1-286; and so on.

Your Question: In Surah Al-Baqara Surah 2 at the end of ayah 7 - 31 32 is mentioned. What is these 31 32 and why two numbers. 

The numbers at the end of some Aayahs in the Quran translation are only as a reference to the foot-note or further commentary by the translator. Some Aayahs are long, or some Aayahs may need further explanations to expose its full meanings, or at times two different and distinct topics may be discussed in one Aayah….thus the translator of this particular translation thought it necessary to add two foot-notes or commentary to this one verse.

Whatever written of Truth and benefit is only due to Allah’s Assistance and Guidance, and whatever of error is of me alone. Allah Alone Knows Best and He is the Only Source of Strength.

Your brother and well wisher in Islam,

Burhan