Name: The name of this chapter is Ta Ha and it has eight sections and one hundred and thirty-five verses. The chapter is named after the letters with which it begins. These letters address the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) as the perfect man, which shows that his light will reach its full resplendence even though it may appear initially like the sliver of a new moon. This resplendence is narrated in this chapter. Thus, its name represents the subject of this chapter.
Summary: The chapter begins by giving the glad tidings of success and this is done not only by the word Ta Ha, which indicates the perfection of the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), but also by stating in clear words that it is impossible, after the revelation of a Book like the Quran, for the one who receives it to remain unsuccessful in the world. He will definitely succeed. Then, Prophet Moses is mentioned in order to show that just as his light reached perfection despite all the difficulties, so will the light of Prophet Muhammad necessarily reach its perfection. The narrative of Prophet Moses continues into the next few sections. The second section is about Prophet Moses and Prophet Aaron going to Pharoah, the third is about their competition with the magicians, and the fourth section is about the destruction of Pharoah and how Bani Israel fell from their elevated status after this success and resorted to calf worship. The fifth section mentions the result of calf worship and thus conveys a lesson to the Muslims that if they fall for the worldly goods of this life, it will impede the achievement of their objective. The sixth section talks about the Resurrection to show that the large obstacles will eventually be removed and the people and nations that appear like mountains will ultimately turn to the truth. The seventh section states that the struggle between good and evil has persisted from time immemorial, and it is the truth that prevails in the end. This is illustrated with the story of Adam and Satan. The eighth section makes it known that the success of the truth and the punishment of the wicked is certain and it will come to pass. It also reveals the nature of the chastisement that will come to the opponents of the Holy Prophet.
Relationship with the previous chapter: The last chapter refuted the erroneous doctrines of Christianity and it was revealed that the doctrine of the sonship of God which Islam will confront, cannot survive the test of time. In the last section, it is hinted that the love of Holy Prophet will ultimately spread throughout the world. This subject has been further expanded in this chapter, and it is emphatically declared that the one to whom the Quran is revealed cannot remain unsuccessful and neither can its opponents escape the chastisement, just as the previous detractors of the truth were unable to avoid punishment. The nature of the punishment is also disclosed.
Period of revelation: This is a Makkan chapter and was revealed relatively early during the Holy Prophet’s mission. Refer to the note on the revelation of the chapter Bani Israel. In the story of the conversion of Hazrat Umar, it was the recitation of this chapter that made him abandon his murderous intention and to present himself as a devotee before the Holy Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him). The incident also proves that this chapter was in a written form at that time. Its revelation can be dated back to around the fifth year of the Call.
Bayan-ul-Quran 