Al-Baqara

Al-Baqara, alternatively t ransliterated Al-Baqarah (Arabic: ‫اﻟﺒﻘﺮة‬, ’al-baqarah; lit. "The Heifer" or "The
Cow"), is the second and longest chapter (surah) of the Quran.[1] It consists of 286 verses
(āyāt) which begin with the "mysterious letters" ("muqatta'at") A.L.M.[2][3] In recitation the names of
the letters (alif, lām, and mīm) are used, not their sounds.[4]

Sura
2 of the
Quran
‫اﻟﺒﻘﺮة‬
Al-Baqarah
The Heifer

Classification Medinan

Position Juzʼ 1–3

No. of Rukus 40

No. of verses 286

Opening muqaṭṭaʻ āt Alif lam Meem

.

The surah encompasses a variety of topics and contains several commands for Muslims such as
enjoining fasting on the believer during the month of Ramadan;[5] forbidding interest or usury
(riba); and several famous verses such as The Throne Verse, Al-Baqara 256, and the final two or
three verses. The surah addresses a wide variety of topics, including substantial amounts of law,
and retells stories of Adam, Ibrahim (Abraham) and Musa (Moses). A major theme is guidance:
.
urging the pagans (Al-Mushrikeen) and the Jews of Medina to embrace Islam, and
warning them and the hypocrites (Munafiqun) of the fate God had visited in the past on
those who failed to heed his call.[6]

Al- Baqara is believed by Muslims to have been revealed at Medina over a long period
after the Hijrah, with the exception of the riba verses which Muslims believe were
revealed during the Farewell Pilgrimage, the last Hajj of Muhammad.[7][8] In particular,
verse 281 in this chapter is believed to be the last verse of the Quran to be revealed,
on the 10th of Dhul al Hijjah 10 A.H., when Muhammad was in the course of
performing his last Hajj, 80 or 90 days before he died.[9]