Surah An-Nur (The Light) is the 24th sura of the Qur'an with 64 ayat. The general agreement of scholars is that this sura was revealed shortly before or after the Battle of the Trench in 5 AH. The surah begins with various explanations and decrees on or relating to corrupt sexual acts, family law, and specifications on the giving of testimony. Foremost amongst these rulings is God's punishment for adultery. This section ends with the pronouncement that good men and women should be paired together, as should corrupt men and corrupt women. This discussion turns into reflections on privacy and modesty, namely of hosts and women. Contained herein are several regulations and explanations of modesty, most directly lines traditionally used to argue for the wearing of hijab. After these prohibitions are cast for women, the text turns towards men, asking them not to oppress slave girls into prostitution, and to marry those women who need husbands, despite their poverty. After a second statement of the Quran's status as a clear sign from Allah SWT, the famed Ayat an-Nur appears. This is often referred to as "the Light Verse", or "the Parable of Light", a mystical group of lines that has been the subject of much scholarship and reflection.
