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First 10 Verses of Surah Kahf: Arabic, Transliteration and English
The first 10 verses of Surah Al-Kahf (18:1–10)
ٱلْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ ٱلَّذِىٓ أَنزَلَ عَلَىٰ عَبْدِهِ ٱلْكِتَـٰبَ وَلَمْ يَجْعَل لَّهُۥ عِوَجَا ۜ
al-ḥamdu lillahi alladhī anzala ʿalā ʿabdihi l-kitāba walam yajʿal lahu ʿiwajā
[All] praise is [due] to Allāh, who has sent down upon His Servant [Muḥammad (ﷺ)] the Book and has not made therein any deviance. (18:1)
قَيِّمًا لِّيُنذِرَ بَأْسًا شَدِيدًا مِّن لَّدُنْهُ وَيُبَشِّرَ ٱلْمُؤْمِنِينَ ٱلَّذِينَ يَعْمَلُونَ ٱلصَّـٰلِحَـٰتِ أَنَّ لَهُمْ أَجْرًا حَسَنًا
qayyiman liyundhira basan shadīdan min ladun'hu wayubashira l-mu'minīna alladhīna yaʿmalūna l-ṣāliḥāti anna lahum ajran ḥasanan
[He has made it] straight, to warn of severe punishment from Him and to give good tidings to the believers who do righteous deeds that they will have a good reward [i.e., Paradise]. (18:2)
مَّـٰكِثِينَ فِيهِ أَبَدًا
mākithīna fīhi abadan
In which they will remain forever (18:3)
وَيُنذِرَ ٱلَّذِينَ قَالُوا۟ ٱتَّخَذَ ٱللَّهُ وَلَدًا
wayundhira alladhīna qālū ittakhadha l-lahu waladan
And to warn those who say, "Allāh has taken a son". (18:4)
مَّا لَهُم بِهِۦ مِنْ عِلْمٍ وَلَا لِـَٔابَآئِهِمْ ۚ كَبُرَتْ كَلِمَةً تَخْرُجُ مِنْ أَفْوَٰهِهِمْ ۚ إِن يَقُولُونَ إِلَّا كَذِبًا
mā lahum bihi min ʿil'min walā liābāihim kaburat kalimatan takhruju min afwāhihim in yaqūlūna illā kadhiban
They have no knowledge of it, nor had their fathers. Grave is the word that comes out of their mouths; they speak not except a lie. (18:5)
فَلَعَلَّكَ بَـٰخِعٌ نَّفْسَكَ عَلَىٰٓ ءَاثَـٰرِهِمْ إِن لَّمْ يُؤْمِنُوا۟ بِهَـٰذَا ٱلْحَدِيثِ أَسَفًا
falaʿallaka bākhiʿun nafsaka ʿalā āthārihim in lam yu'minū bihādhā l-ḥadīthi asafan
Then perhaps you would kill yourself through grief over them, [O Muḥammad], if they do not believe in this message, [and] out of sorrow. (18:6)
إِنَّا جَعَلْنَا مَا عَلَى ٱلْأَرْضِ زِينَةً لَّهَا لِنَبْلُوَهُمْ أَيُّهُمْ أَحْسَنُ عَمَلًا
innā jaʿalnā mā ʿalā l-arḍi zīnatan lahā linabluwahum ayyuhum aḥsanu ʿamalan
Indeed, We have made that which is on the earth adornment for it that We may test them [as to] which of them is best in deed. (18:7)
وَإِنَّا لَجَـٰعِلُونَ مَا عَلَيْهَا صَعِيدًا جُرُزًا
wa-innā lajāʿilūna mā ʿalayhā ṣaʿīdan juruzan
And indeed, We will make that which is upon it [into] a barren ground. (18:8)
أَمْ حَسِبْتَ أَنَّ أَصْحَـٰبَ ٱلْكَهْفِ وَٱلرَّقِيمِ كَانُوا۟ مِنْ ءَايَـٰتِنَا عَجَبًا
am ḥasib'ta anna aṣḥāba l-kahfi wal-raqīmi kānū min āyātinā ʿajaban
Or have you thought that the companions of the cave and the inscription were, among Our signs, a wonder? (18:9)
إِذْ أَوَى ٱلْفِتْيَةُ إِلَى ٱلْكَهْفِ فَقَالُوا۟ رَبَّنَآ ءَاتِنَا مِن لَّدُنكَ رَحْمَةً وَهَيِّئْ لَنَا مِنْ أَمْرِنَا رَشَدًا
idh awā l-fit'yatu ilā l-kahfi faqālū rabbanā ātinā min ladunka raḥmatan wahayyi lanā min amrinā rashadan
[Mention] when the youths retreated to the cave and said, "Our Lord, grant us from Yourself mercy and prepare for us from our affair right guidance." (18:10)
Quran 18:1–10 Saheeh International
Key takeaways
- The first 10 verses of Surah Al-Kahf are 18:1–10. They end with the youths entering the cave and making a dua.
- The Prophet ﷺ said that whoever learns them by heart will be protected from the Dajjal, according to Sahih Muslim.
- One narrator of that hadith said the end of Al-Kahf instead of the beginning, which is why some people learn the last ten verses too.
- The hadith about the first ten verses doesn't name a day. The Friday reports are about reciting the whole surah.
- All ten verses take about 2 minutes to recite at Mishari al-Afasy's pace.
The first 10 verses of Surah Al-Kahf are 18:1–10, the opening of the Quran’s 18th surah. The Prophet ﷺ said that whoever learns them by heart will be protected from the Dajjal.
All ten verses are at the top of this page in Arabic, transliteration and English. Below: what they say, the hadith about them, the first-or-last question, and a five-day plan to memorize them.
Why memorize the first 10 verses of Surah Kahf?
Because of this hadith in Sahih Muslim:
The wording is “learns by heart”, so the promise is for memorizing the verses. A second hadith, from a long narration about the Dajjal, says what to do with them if you meet him:
Jami’ at-Tirmidhi has a shorter version that names only the first three verses:
The whole surah has a virtue of its own too. When a Companion recited Al-Kahf at night, a cloud came down over him:
What the first ten verses say
These notes follow Ibn Kathir’s tafsir.
Verses 1–5: the Book, a warning and good news. Allah praises Himself for sending down the Quran, which Ibn Kathir describes as “straight, neither distorted nor confusion therein”. It warns those who reject it and gives good news of a reward that lasts forever to believers who do good. Verse 4 warns those who say Allah has taken a son. Ibn Kathir cites Ibn Ishaq that this refers to pagan Arabs who called the angels Allah’s daughters.
Verse 6: comfort for the Prophet ﷺ. He was grieving that people wouldn’t believe. Ibn Kathir explains the verse as “do not destroy yourself with regret”: convey the message, and each person answers for his own choice.
Verses 7–8: the world is a test. Everything on the earth is its adornment, placed there to test who does best. Then it will be made bare, dry ground. Ibn Kathir calls this world “a place of trial, not a place of settlement”.
Verses 9–10: the people of the cave. Verse 9 asks whether the story of the cave was such a wonder. Ibn Kathir explains that Allah’s other signs, like the heavens and the earth, are greater still. Verse 10 introduces the young men who fled their people for their religion and took shelter in a cave, and it records their dua:
Arabic and word-by-word transliteration: Quran.com 18:10. Meaning: Saheeh International.
Ibn Kathir explains the second half as “direct our matter well”, meaning grant us a good end.
The first or the last 10 verses?
Both show up in searches, and the reason is in the hadith itself. Sahih Muslim records Abu ad-Darda’s hadith through a second chain and notes that its narrators differed.
Shu’bah said “at the end of Surah al-Kahf”, and Hammam said “at the beginning”. Sunan Abi Dawud 4323 records the same difference and names a second narrator who said “the closing verses”.
The other two hadith above both point to the beginning. Muslim 2937 says “the opening verses”, and Tirmidhi 2886 says “three Ayat from the beginning”.
That’s why the first ten are the ones usually learned, and some people learn both sets. The last ten are verses 101–110. See the last 10 verses of Surah Kahf for the text, what they say, and a plan to learn them.
Should you read them on Friday?
The hadith about the first ten verses doesn’t mention a day, so you can learn and review them any day.
The Friday tradition is about the whole surah. Ibn Kathir cites a report from al-Hakim that whoever recites Surah Al-Kahf on Friday will have light from one Friday to the next, and says al-Hakim called its chain sahih. Sunnah.com shows that report (Mishkat al-Masabih 2175) without a grade, so we haven’t quoted it here as a hadith.
How to memorize the first 10 verses of Surah Kahf
The ten verses take about 2 minutes to recite at Mishari al-Afasy’s pace. They vary a lot in length: verse 3 takes 3 seconds, while verses 2 and 10 take over 20 seconds each. Split the work so each day has about the same amount of sound:
| Day | New verses | Recitation time | Then |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1–2 | 32 sec | Recite verses 1–2 from memory |
| 2 | 3–5 | 27 sec | Recite verses 1–5 |
| 3 | 6–8 | 30 sec | Recite verses 1–8 |
| 4 | 9–10 | 33 sec | Recite all ten |
| 5 | None | Recite all ten twice without looking |
After day 5, keep them alive by reciting all ten once a day for a few weeks. They take about 2 minutes, so they fit before sleep or after a prayer.
For the general method, see how to memorize the Quran. If you’re building a set of short passages to know by heart, Ayatul Kursi and the last two verses of Surah Baqarah take about the same time to learn.
Frequently asked questions
What are the first 10 verses of Surah Kahf?
They are verses 1 to 10 of Surah Al-Kahf, the 18th surah. They begin "[All] praise is [due] to Allah, who has sent down upon His Servant the Book" and end with the dua of the youths in the cave: "Our Lord, grant us from Yourself mercy and prepare for us from our affair right guidance."
Why are the first 10 verses of Surah Kahf important?
The Prophet ﷺ said: "If anyone learns by heart the first ten verses of the Surah al-Kahf, he will be protected from the Dajjal" (Sahih Muslim 809). In another hadith he told anyone who meets the Dajjal to recite the opening verses of Al-Kahf over him (Sahih Muslim 2937).
Is it the first 10 or the last 10 verses of Surah Kahf?
The hadith in Sahih Muslim says the first ten, but its narrators differed: Shu'bah said "at the end of Surah al-Kahf", while Hammam said the beginning. Sunan Abi Dawud 4323 notes the same difference. Two other authentic hadith point to the opening verses (Sahih Muslim 2937, Jami' at-Tirmidhi 2886), which is why the first ten are the ones usually learned.
Can I read the first 10 verses of Surah Kahf on Friday?
The hadith about the first ten verses doesn't mention Friday, so it isn't tied to a day. The Friday reports are about reciting the whole of Surah Al-Kahf.
How long does it take to recite the first 10 verses of Surah Kahf?
About 2 minutes at Mishari al-Afasy's pace on Quran.com. The longest verse is verse 10, at 23 seconds, and the shortest is verse 3, at 3 seconds.
What is the famous verse of Surah Kahf?
No hadith singles out one verse of Al-Kahf. The authentic hadith name the first ten verses: the Prophet ﷺ said that whoever learns them by heart is protected from the Dajjal (Sahih Muslim 809). Which single verse is called famous depends on who you ask.
Sources
- Quran.com: Surah Al-Kahf 18:1–10 (Arabic, Saheeh International, word-by-word transliteration)
- Ibn Kathir, tafsir of 18:1–5 (Quran.com)
- Ibn Kathir, tafsir of 18:6–8 (Quran.com)
- Ibn Kathir, tafsir of 18:9–10 (Quran.com)
- Sahih Muslim 809a (sunnah.com)
- Sahih Muslim 809b (sunnah.com)
- Sunan Abi Dawud 4323 (sunnah.com)
- Sahih Muslim 2937a (sunnah.com)
- Jami' at-Tirmidhi 2886 (sunnah.com)
- Sahih al-Bukhari 5011 (sunnah.com)
- Mishkat al-Masabih 2175, shown without a grade (sunnah.com)
- Quran.com recitation timings, Mishari al-Afasy (api.qurancdn.com)