Angels, death, the soul, stars, bows – or women: the opening verses of Q79 (al-Nāzi‘āt)

Among the parts of the Qurʾān that have defied Muslim interpreters and modern scholars alike are the introductory verses of some Makkan sūras which take the form of “oath clusters”. The introductory oaths of Q37, Q51, Q77, Q79, and Q100 are particularly enigmatic. ¹ Nöldeke describes these oaths as the most difficult for “Muslim exegetes as well as for us”. ²