I'rab of Surah Al-Inshiqaq Ayah 6: word by word Arabic grammar
Surah Al-Inshiqaq (الانشقاق) · Meccan · Ayah 6
يَٰٓأَيُّهَا ٱلْإِنسَٰنُ إِنَّكَ كَادِحٌ إِلَىٰ رَبِّكَ كَدْحًۭا فَمُلَٰقِيهِ TransliterationYa ayyuha al-insanu innaka kadihun ila rabbika kadhan fa-mulaqih
MeaningO man, you are toiling hard toward your Lord, and you will surely meet Him.
This is the long-awaited main clause: O man, you are laboring hard toward your Lord and will meet Him. Ya ayyuha is a vocative call, al-insan is in apposition to it. Inna with its pronoun -ka forms an emphatic sentence; kadih (toiling) is its predicate. Kadhan is an absolute object reinforcing the verb-idea, and mulaqihi (one who will meet Him) is joined to kadih.
Word by word i'rab
vocative particle plus called noun (munada)
Ya is the call-particle and ayyuha is the addressed term built on a damma in the place of the accusative.
indeclinableappositive/explanatory substitute (badal or 'atf bayan)
Specifies who is being called; it follows ayyuha and takes a nominative ending in pronunciation.
nominativeemphatic particle inna with its noun (-ka)
Inna gives emphasis ('indeed you'), and the attached pronoun -ka ('you') is its noun in the accusative position.
accusativepredicate of inna (khabar inna)
An active participle 'striving, toiling hard,' serving as the predicate, hence its nominative ending.
nominativeprepositional phrase (jar wa majrur)
The preposition ila puts rabb in the genitive; the phrase attaches to kadih, with an implied sense 'toward meeting your Lord.'
genitiveabsolute object (maf'ul mutlaq)
A verbal noun from the same root as kadih that reinforces and intensifies the idea of toil, hence its accusative ending.
accusativeparticiple conjoined to kadih (ma'tuf)
The fa joins this active participle 'one who will meet Him' to kadih, so it shares the nominative; -hi means 'Him.'
nominativeDetailed i'rab
After the suspended conditions of verses 1-5, this verse delivers the main statement. Ya is a vocative particle and ayyuha is the called noun, built on a damma standing in the accusative position because it is a specified indefinite vocative. Al-insan is in apposition to ayyuha (a badal or explanatory substitute), following it in the nominative form. The emphatic inna takes the attached pronoun -ka as its noun, and the active participle kadih ('striving, toiling') is its predicate in the nominative. The phrase ila rabbika is genitive after the preposition ila and relates to kadih, with an implied 'toward meeting your Lord.' Kadhan is an absolute object (maf'ul mutlaq) that intensifies the toiling. Finally fa-mulaqihi is joined by the conjunction fa to kadih and shares its nominative, meaning the human being will inevitably meet his Lord.
Frequently asked
Why is al-insan nominative when it follows a vocative?
Al-insan is an appositive (badal or 'atf bayan) to ayyuha; because ayyuha carries a nominal damma, the noun explaining it takes the nominative form in pronunciation.
What is the function of 'kadhan'?
Kadhan is an absolute object (maf'ul mutlaq), a verbal noun from the same root as kadih used to emphasize and intensify the act of toiling toward one's Lord.
How does 'fa-mulaqihi' relate to 'kadih'?
The particle fa conjoins mulaqihi to kadih, so it takes the same nominative case; it states that after all his striving the human will certainly meet his Lord.