Surah Al-Qaari'a

The name. Al-Qari'ah means "The Calamity," or "The Striking Blow," from its opening, repeated three times: the Qari'ah — what is the Qari'ah — and what can make you know what the Qari'ah is (101:1-3), a name for the Day of Judgment built entirely around the shock of the event rather than any of its details. It is Meccan, and holds off explaining what the word even refers to until several verses in, building suspense through repetition before it answers its own question.

What it is known for. The surah is known for its images of that day — people like moths scattered in every direction, and mountains like carded wool, pulled apart into loose fiber (101:4-5) — two comparisons often quoted for how they take something people already picture as fixed and orderly and describe it coming undone. It also carries the surah's account of the scales: whoever's good deeds are heavy will be in a pleasant life, and whoever's are light will have their refuge in an abyss (101:6-9), a verse frequently cited as the Quran's clearest statement that the Day of Judgment will be decided by weight, not by mere presence, of good deeds.

Reading it. At 11 ayahs it is a short surah, read in a few minutes. Its repeated opening question is a device shared with a handful of other short surahs in this part of the mushaf, so a first-time reader should not expect an immediate answer — the surah asks what the Qari'ah is twice before saying anything about it, and only reveals what "it" even names, the Fire, in its final line (101:11).