ʿAbasa (‘He Frowned’), sūra (Chapter) eighty of the Qurʾān, a sūra that was revealed in Mecca. It is generally held to consist of forty-two verses and four rukūʿs (subdivisions within a sūra). This chapter was revealed after the Sūrat al-Najm (‘The Star’) and is also known by other names, such as al-Safara (‘The Scribes’), al-Ṣākhkha (‘The Deafening Noise’ or ‘The Blast’) and al-Aʿmā (‘The Blind Man’) (al-Sijistānī, 501, al-Ālūsī, 30/39).

The opening verses of this sūra (1–10) recount the story of a blind man approaching the Prophet and requesting to be taught about th…