Have you ever wondered which verse in the Quran is the greatest? It’s Ayatul Kursi, the 255th verse of Surah Al-Baqarah, also known as ‘The Verse of the Throne’. This powerful ayah speaks of Allah’s supreme authority and contains some of His greatest names.
Reciting this majestic verse comes with remarkable rewards- from offering you protection to the promise of paradise. Let’s explore the virtues of Ayatul Kursi and see why it’s a verse worth reciting every day.
Ayatul Kursi in Arabic with Translation
ٱللَّهُ لَآ إِلَـٰهَ إِلَّا هُوَ ٱلْحَىُّ ٱلْقَيُّومُ ۚ
لَا تَأْخُذُهُۥ سِنَةٌۭ وَلَا نَوْمٌۭ ۚ
لَّهُۥ مَا فِى ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَمَا فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ ۗ
مَن ذَا ٱلَّذِى يَشْفَعُ عِندَهُۥٓ إِلَّا بِإِذْنِهِۦ ۚ
يَعْلَمُ مَا بَيْنَ أَيْدِيهِمْ وَمَا خَلْفَهُمْ ۖ
وَلَا يُحِيطُونَ بِشَىْءٍۢ مِّنْ عِلْمِهِۦٓ إِلَّا بِمَا شَآءَ ۚ
وَسِعَ كُرْسِيُّهُ ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَٱلْأَرْضَ ۖ
وَلَا يَـُٔودُهُۥ حِفْظُهُمَا ۚ
وَهُوَ ٱلْعَلِىُّ ٱلْعَظِيمُ ٢٥٥
Transliteration:
Allahu laaa ilaaha illaa huwal haiyul qai-yoom;
laa taakhuzuhoo sinatunw wa laa nawm;
lahoo maa fissamaawaati wa maa fil ard;
man zallazee yashfa’u indahooo illaa be iznih;
ya’lamu maa baina aideehim wa maa khalfahum;
wa laa yuheetoona beshai ‘immin ‘ilmihee illa be maa shaaaa;
wasi’a kursiyyuhus samaa waati wal arda
wa la ya’ooduho hifzuhumaa;
wa huwal aliyyul ‘azeem
Meaning:
“Allāh – there is no deity except Him, the Ever-Living, the Self-Sustaining.
Neither drowsiness overtakes Him nor sleep.
To Him belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on the earth.
Who is it that can intercede with Him except by His permission?
He knows what is [presently] before them and what will be after them,
and they encompass not a thing of His knowledge except for what He wills.
His Kursī extends over the heavens and the earth,
and their preservation tires Him not.
And He is the Most High, the Most Great.”
[Surah Al-Baqarah, 2: 255]
You can check our Quran app to read the full tafsir and hidden secrets of Ayat Al-Kursi.
9 Significance and Benefits of Ayatul Kursi
Ayatul Kursi has lots of virtues and powers. Here we’ll discuss some important ones from the hadith of our beloved Messenger ﷺ:
1. Ayatul Kursi is the greatest Ayah in the Quran
Ubay ibn Ka’b (R) narrated:
قَالَ رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم ” يَا أَبَا الْمُنْذِرِ أَتَدْرِي أَىُّ آيَةٍ مِنْ كِتَابِ اللَّهِ مَعَكَ أَعْظَمُ ” . قَالَ قُلْتُ اللَّهُ وَرَسُولُهُ أَعْلَمُ . قَالَ ” يَا أَبَا الْمُنْذِرِ أَتَدْرِي أَىُّ آيَةٍ مِنْ كِتَابِ اللَّهِ مَعَكَ أَعْظَمُ ” . قَالَ قُلْتُ اللَّهُ لاَ إِلَهَ إِلاَّ هُوَ الْحَىُّ الْقَيُّومُ . قَالَ فَضَرَبَ فِي صَدْرِي وَقَالَ ” وَاللَّهِ لِيَهْنِكَ الْعِلْمُ أَبَا الْمُنْذِرِ
Meaning: “Allah’s Messenger ﷺ said: O Abu’ al-Mundhir, do you know the verse from the Book of Allah which, according to you, is the greatest? I said: Allah and His Apostle ﷺ know best. He again said: Abu’l-Mundhir, do you know the verse from the Book of Allah which, according to you, is the greatest? I said: Allah, there is no god but He, the Living, the Eternal. Thereupon he struck me on my breast and said: May knowledge be pleasant for you, O Abu’l-Mundhir!” [Sahih Muslim: 810]
2. Ayatul Kursi is more precious than the heavens and the earth
Abdullah ibn Mas’ud (R) narrated:
مَا خَلَقَ اللَّهُ مِنْ سَمَاءٍ وَلاَ أَرْضٍ أَعْظَمَ مِنْ آيَةِ الْكُرْسِيِّ . قَالَ سُفْيَانُ لأَنَّ آيَةَ الْكُرْسِيِّ هُوَ كَلاَمُ اللَّهِ وَكَلاَمُ اللَّهِ أَعْظَمُ مِنْ خَلْقِ اللَّهِ مِنَ السَّمَاءِ وَالأَرْضِ
Meaning: “Allah has not created in the heavens nor in the earth what is more magnificent than Ayat Al-Kursi.” Sufyan said: “Because Ayat Al-Kursi is the Speech of Allah, and Allah’s Speech is greater than Allah’s creation of the heavens and the earth.” [Jami Tirmidhi: 2884]
3. Reciting Ayatul Kursi before sleep gives you protection
Abu Hurairah (R) narrated:
قَالَ وَكَّلَنِي رَسُولُ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم بِحِفْظِ زَكَاةِ رَمَضَانَ فَأَتَانِي آتٍ فَجَعَلَ يَحْثُو مِنَ الطَّعَامِ فَأَخَذْتُهُ فَقُلْتُ لأَرْفَعَنَّكَ إِلَى رَسُولِ اللَّهِ صلى الله عليه وسلم فَقَصَّ الْحَدِيثَ فَقَالَ إِذَا أَوَيْتَ إِلَى فِرَاشِكَ فَاقْرَأْ آيَةَ الْكُرْسِيِّ لَنْ يَزَالَ مَعَكَ مِنَ اللَّهِ حَافِظٌ وَلاَ يَقْرَبُكَ شَيْطَانٌ حَتَّى تُصْبِحَ. وَقَالَ النَّبِيُّ صلى الله عليه وسلم “ صَدَقَكَ وَهْوَ كَذُوبٌ ذَاكَ شَيْطَانٌ ”
Meaning: “Allah’s Messenger ﷺ ordered me to guard the Zakat revenue of Ramadan. Then somebody came to me and started stealing from the foodstuff. I caught him and said, “I will take you to Allah’s Messenger ﷺ!” Then Abu Huraira described the whole narration and said: That person said (to me), “(Please don’t take me to Allah’s Messenger ﷺand I will tell you a few words by which Allah will benefit you.) When you go to your bed, recite Ayat-al-Kursi, (2.255) for then there will be a guard from Allah who will protect you all night long, and Satan will not be able to come near you till dawn.” (When the Prophet ﷺ heard the story) he said (to me), ‘He (who came to you at night) told you the truth although he is a liar; and it was Satan.’” [Shahih Bukhari: 5010]
4. Guaranteed entry into Jannah reciting Ayatul Kursi after Fard Salah
The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said:
مَنْ قَرَأَ آيَةَ اَلْكُرْسِيِّ دُبُرَ كُلِّ صَلَاةٍ مَكْتُوبَةٍ لَمْ يَمْنَعْهُ مِنْ دُخُولِ اَلْجَنَّةِ إِلَّا اَلْمَوْتُ
Meaning: “Whoever reads Āyatul Kursī at the end of (after) each mandatory prayer, nothing prevents him from entering paradise except death.” [Sunan Nasai, Tabarani]
Learn more dua to read after Fard Salah.
5. Ayatul Kursi is the pinnacle of the Quran
Rasulullah ﷺ said:
لِكُلِّ شَيْءٍ سَنَامٌ وَإِنَّ سَنَامَ الْقُرْآنِ سُورَةُ الْبَقَرَةِ وَفِيهَا آيَةٌ هِيَ سَيِّدَةُ آىِ الْقُرْآنِ هِيَ آيَةُ الْكُرْسِيِّ
Meaning: “For everything there is a hump (pinnacle) and the hump (pinnacle) of the Qur’an is Surat Al-Baqarah, in it there is an Ayah which is the master of the Ayat in the Qur’an; [it is] Ayat Al-Kursi.” [Jami Tirmidhi: 2878; classified as weak]
6. Reciting Ayatul Kursi in the morning provides protection until evening, and vice versa
Abu Hurairah (R) narrated that the Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: “Whoever recites Ha Mim Al-Mu’min – up to – To Him is the return (40:1-3) and Ayat Al-Kursi when he reaches (gets up in) the morning, he will be protected by them until the evening. And whoever recites them when he reaches the evening, he will be protected by them until the morning.” [Jami` at-Tirmidhi 2879]
Besides Ayatul Kursi, are there many more duas to recite in the morning and evening.
7. Ayatul Kursi contains the greatest name of Allah
Asma bint Yazid narrated that the Prophet ﷺ said:
Allah’s greatest name is in these two Ayah:
اللّهُ لَا إِلَـهَ إِلاَّ هُوَ الْحَيُّ الْقَيُّومُ
Allah! None has the right to be worshipped but He, the Ever Living, the One Who sustains and protects all that exists) [Surah Al Baqarah,2 :255], and,
الم
–
اللّهُ لا إِلَـهَ إِلاَّ هُوَ الْحَيُّ الْقَيُّومُ
(Alif-Lam-Mim. Allah! None has the right to be worshipped but He, the Ever Living, the One Who sustains and protects all that exists), [Surah Ale Imran, 3:1-2]
8. Ayatul Kursi can be used for healing and Ruqyah
The glorious Quran is a healing for the believers. Allah himself says:
وَنُنَزِّلُ مِنَ ٱلْقُرْءَانِ مَا هُوَ شِفَآءٌۭ وَرَحْمَةٌۭ لِّلْمُؤْمِنِينَ ۙ وَلَا يَزِيدُ ٱلظَّـٰلِمِينَ إِلَّا خَسَارًۭا ٨٢
Meaning: “And We send down of the Qur’ān that which is healing and mercy for the believers, but it does not increase the wrongdoers except in loss.” [Surah Isra, 17: 82]
As Ayatul Kursi is the most precious Ayat in the Quran, it is used by Raqis (Islamic exorcists) for healing patients suffering from evil eye, madness, blindness, jinn, and more. Also, you can use it for self Ruqyah as well.
9. Saytan leaves the house where Ayatul Kursi is recited
Rasulullah ﷺ said in a hadith: “In Surah al-Baqarah there is an ayah which is the best of all the ayats of the Quran. It is never recited in a house but the Shaytan leaves: Ayatul Kursi.”
Conclusion
Ayatul Kursi is the most majestic verse that was revealed to our beloved Prophet Muhammad ﷺ. He recited it regularly and encouraged his companions to do the same. This not only helped him stay under Allah’s blessings at all times, but also kept evil away from him.
As part of his Ummah, you should learn about the virtues of Ayatul Kursi and recite it regularly. Doing so, you can remain in the blessings of Allah and express your praise in a way that the Magnificent One loves most.
