harm touching (massa + ḍurr)
مَسَّكُمُ ٱلضُرُّ
massakumu l-ḍurru — harm touches you
Across these verses the verb massa ('to touch') paired with ḍurr ('harm') forms a recurring frame: harm 'touches' a person, the person calls upon God, and the response after removal exposes ingratitude or, in one case, an appeal to God's mercy within the call itself.
The pair massa and ḍurr recurs across different contexts in the verses given. In (6:17) and (10:107) the clause is conditional and addressed to a second-person singular: 'if Allah touches you with harm' (yamsaska llāhu bi-ḍurrin), with ḍurr indefinite and genitive after the preposition bi-. In (10:12), (16:53), (17:67) and (21:83) the verb is perfect and ḍurr is the definite subject in the nominative: 'harm' itself does the touching. In (30:33), (39:8) and (39:49) ḍurr is again the subject but indefinite (ḍurrun), touching 'the people' or 'the human'. In (12:88) the speakers state 'harm has touched us and our family' (massanā l-ḍurru). Read side by side, the occurrences show a repeated sequence: harm touches, the one touched calls upon God or his Lord (10:12; 16:53; 30:33; 39:8; 39:49), and when the harm is uncovered, deliverance or mercy comes, or a favor arrives, the same person passes on, turns away, forgets, joins others with God, or attributes it to his own knowledge (10:12; 17:67; 30:33; 39:8; 39:49). Against this pattern, (21:83) stands out: the one touched calls out to his Lord and appeals to His mercy, with no subsequent turning away narrated. The pair also sits in a fixed contrast in (6:17) and (10:107), where being touched with harm is set against being touched with, or intended for, good.
Where it occurs
- 6:17 Conditional clause: if Allah touches you with harm, none uncovers it except Him; paired with being touched with good.
- 10:12 When harm touches the human he calls upon Us; after We uncover his harm he passes on as if he had never called.
- 10:107 Conditional clause: if Allah touches you with harm, none uncovers it except Him; paired with His intending good.
- 12:88 Speakers report that harm has touched them and their family, as grounds for asking full measure and generosity.
- 16:53 When harm touches you, it is to Him that you cry out, after every blessing has been said to be from Allah.
- 17:67 When harm touches you in the sea, those you call upon are lost except Him; after deliverance you turn away.
- 21:83 One touched by harm calls out to his Lord, appealing to Him as most merciful of those who show mercy.
- 30:33 When harm touches the people they call their Lord turning back to Him; after tasting mercy a group joins others with their Lord.
- 39:8 When harm touches the human he calls his Lord turning back to Him; after a favor he forgets and sets up counterparts for Allah.
- 39:49 When harm touches the human he calls upon Us; after a favor he claims it was given on account of knowledge.
All Qur'anic expressions