Al-Kawthar الكوثر
Abundance
At three verses, Al-Kawthar is the shortest surah in the Quran, yet it answers a real wound: the Prophet ﷺ had just lost his son, and his Meccan opponents mocked him as "cut off" — abtar, a man with no line to carry his name forward. The surah's reply is total reversal. God has given him al-Kawthar ("abundance" — traditionally understood as both a river in Paradise and overflowing good in this life), commands him to pray and sacrifice in gratitude, and declares that it is his enemy, not him, who is truly cut off. Muslims recite it often for its brevity and its promise that loss does not have the last word.
إِنَّآ أَعْطَيْنَـٰكَ ٱلْكَوْثَرَ
We have truly given abundance to you [Prophet]––
فَصَلِّ لِرَبِّكَ وَٱنْحَرْ
so pray to your Lord and make your sacrifice to Him alone––
إِنَّ شَانِئَكَ هُوَ ٱلْأَبْتَرُ
it is the one who hates you who has been cut off.
Arabic text and translation (M.A.S. Abdel Haleem) via the Quran.Foundation API.
Frequently asked
Three verses — the shortest surah in the Quran.
Meccan, revealed in Makkah.
"Abundance" or "a great deal of good" — commentators traditionally identify it also as a specific river or fountain in Paradise granted to the Prophet ﷺ.
As a response to opponents who mocked the Prophet ﷺ as cut off from posterity after the death of his son — the surah promises him abundance instead.