Learn Sūrat al-Baqarah
Read it below, then recite it aloud and let Qiraa correct you word by word.
What Sūrat al-Baqarah is about
Sūrat al-Baqarah is the longest sūrah of the Qurʼān, with 286 āyāt running through the first three juzʼ. It is named after the cow that Mūsā (Moses) told the Children of Israel to slaughter (2:67–73). It opens by calling this Book guidance for those mindful of Allah, who believe in the unseen and establish the prayer (2:2–3).
Much of the sūrah speaks to a community of believers and gives it its law: fasting in Ramaḍān (2:183–185), the Ḥajj (2:196), family life and divorce, spending, and the writing of debts (2:282). Between the laws come the stories of Ādam, Ibrāhīm (Abraham) and Ṭālūt, and Āyat al-Kursī (2:255). It ends with a prayer that no burden be laid on the believers beyond what they can bear (2:286).
- Āyāt 1–20
Guidance, and three ways of meeting it
The Book is guidance for the mindful, who believe in the unseen, pray and spend. Then come those who refuse to believe, and those who say they believe but do not. Parables of a fire that goes out and a storm in the dark describe them.
- Āyāt 21–39
Worship your Lord; the story of Ādam
All people are called to worship their Lord, who made the earth a resting place and sends the rain. Those in doubt are challenged to bring one sūrah like it (2:23). Allah teaches Ādam the names, Iblīs refuses to bow, and Ādam is forgiven after leaving the Garden (2:37).
- Āyāt 40–123
The Children of Israel
The Children of Israel are reminded of Allah’s favours and of their covenant: rescue from Firʿawn (Pharaoh), the parted sea, the calf, the manna and quails. The story of the cow (2:67–73) shows a people asking question after question. The passage ends by repeating its opening call to remember Allah’s favour (2:122).
- Āyāt 124–152
Ibrāhīm, the House and the qiblah
Ibrāhīm and Ismāʿīl (Ishmael) raise the foundations of the House and pray for a messenger from their descendants (2:127–129). The way of Ibrāhīm is the way of the prophets after him. The believers are turned to face al-Masjid al-Ḥarām in prayer (2:144), and told to remember Allah so that He remembers them (2:152).
- Āyāt 153–242
Patience, then laws for daily life
Believers are told to seek help through patience and prayer, for they will be tested with fear, hunger and loss (2:155). Laws follow: food, retaliation, bequests, fasting, fighting, the Ḥajj, wine and gambling, orphans, marriage and divorce. Among them comes a reminder that Allah is near and answers the one who calls (2:186).
- Āyāt 243–260
Ṭālūt, the Kursī, and life after death
Allah appoints Ṭālūt as king, and in his small army Dāwūd (David) kills Jālūt (Goliath) (2:247–251). Āyat al-Kursī describes Allah, the Living, the Sustainer, whose Kursī extends over the heavens and the earth (2:255). There is no compulsion in religion (2:256). Three accounts show that Allah gives life and death (2:258–260).
- Āyāt 261–286
Spending, usury, debts and a last prayer
Spending in Allah’s way grows like a grain that yields seven ears (2:261), and charity must not be spoiled by reminders or hurt. Ribā (usury) is forbidden (2:275). Debts are to be written down before witnesses (2:282). The sūrah closes with the believers’ faith and their prayer for pardon and help (2:285–286).
Learn it with Qiraa, in three steps
- 1
Listen as every word lights up
Play Al-Baqarah with a renowned reciter and follow each word as it is recited.
- 2
Recite it aloud
Qiraa’s AI Tutor follows you word by word through all 286 āyāt and marks any word you miss or say differently, so you know exactly what to fix.
- 3
Hold it from memory
Add it to your ḥifẓ plan, then use Test me: hear the start of an āyah and recite the next one from memory.
Free to start. Reading the whole Qurʼān is always free.
Sources
- The pages: the King Fahd Complex’s 15-line Madinah Muṣḥaf (Ḥafṣ ʿan ʿĀṣim), drawn in its QCF page fonts as in the Qiraa app. The text under each line, for search and screen readers, is the Uthmani text the app bundles (checked against Tanzil).
- Āyāt, juzʼ, pages and Makkan/Madinan: as marked in the Madinah Muṣḥaf.
- “What it is about” is Qiraa’s own summary of the āyāt cited beside each part. Each range opens in translation on Quran.com, so you can read it for yourself.
- Ḥadīth: the collections linked above, with the grade each one gives.