And what will convey to thee what the Inevitable Reality is?
وَمَٓااَدْرٰيكَمَاالْحَٓاقَّةُۜ٣
Wama adraka ma alhaqqa
“And what will make thee know…”
وَمَآ أَدْرَىٰكَ
wa-mā adrāka, and what will make thee know
“And what will make thee know…”
The formula is wa-mā adrāka mā, “and what will make thee know what … is”. It appears in 13 verses and never asks about anything a person could have known.
What it asks about: the Inevitable Reality (69:3), Saqar (74:27), the Day of Judgment (77:14, 82:17, 82:18), Sijjīn (83:8), ʿIlliyyūn (83:19), the night comer (86:2), the steep path (90:12), the Night of Decree (97:2), the Striking Calamity (101:3, 101:10), and the Crusher (104:5).
Every one of them sits in a short sūra near the end of the muṣḥaf, and in nearly every case the answer follows immediately. The question is not a delay. It is a way of saying that the name alone will not carry the thing.
How this list was made
Every verse containing the word أَدْرَىٰكَ (adrāka), in muṣḥaf order.
Every verse the rule matches is in the list.
And what will convey to thee what Saqar is?
وَمَٓااَدْرٰيكَمَاسَقَرُۜ٢٧
Wama adraka ma saqar
And what will convey to thee what the Day of Decision is?
وَمَٓااَدْرٰيكَمَايَوْمُالْفَصْلِۜ١٤
Wama adraka ma yawmualfasl
And what will convey to thee what the Day of Judgment is?
وَمَٓااَدْرٰيكَمَايَوْمُالدّ۪ينِۙ١٧
Wama adraka ma yawmu addeeni
Then what will convey to thee what the Day of Judgment is! —
ثُمَّمَٓااَدْرٰيكَمَايَوْمُالدّ۪ينِۜ١٨
Thumma ma adraka mayawmu addeen
And what will convey to thee what Sijjīn is?
وَمَٓااَدْرٰيكَمَاسِجّ۪ينٌۜ٨
Wama adraka ma sijjeen
And what will convey to thee what ʿIlliyyūn is?
وَمَٓااَدْرٰيكَمَاعِلِّيُّونَۜ١٩
Wama adraka maAAilliyyoon
And what will convey to thee what the night-comer is?
وَمَٓااَدْرٰيكَمَاالطَّارِقُۙ٢
Wama adraka ma attariq
And what will convey to thee what the steep path is?
وَمَٓااَدْرٰيكَمَاالْعَقَبَةُۜ١٢
Wama adraka maalAAaqaba
And what will convey to thee what the Night of Determination is?
وَمَٓااَدْرٰيكَمَالَيْلَةُالْقَدْرِۜ٢
Wama adraka ma laylatualqadr
And what will convey to thee what the Calamity is?
وَمَٓااَدْرٰيكَمَاالْقَارِعَةُۜ٣
Wama adraka ma alqariAAa
And what will convey to thee what it is?
وَمَٓااَدْرٰيكَمَاهِيَهْۜ١٠
Wama adraka ma hiya
And what will convey to thee what the Crusher is?
وَمَٓااَدْرٰيكَمَاالْحُطَمَةُۜ٥
Wama adraka ma alhutama