أُحِلَّ لَكُمْ لَيْلَةَ ٱلصِّيَامِ ٱلرَّفَثُ إِلَىٰ نِسَآئِكُمْ ۚ هُنَّ لِبَاسٌ لَّكُمْ وَأَنتُمْ لِبَاسٌ لَّهُنَّ ۗ عَلِمَ ٱللَّهُ أَنَّكُمْ كُنتُمْ تَخْتَانُونَ أَنفُسَكُمْ فَتَابَ عَلَيْكُمْ وَعَفَا عَنكُمْ ۖ فَٱلْـَٔـٰنَ بَـٰشِرُوهُنَّ وَٱبْتَغُوا۟ مَا كَتَبَ ٱللَّهُ لَكُمْ ۚ وَكُلُوا۟ وَٱشْرَبُوا۟ حَتَّىٰ يَتَبَيَّنَ لَكُمُ ٱلْخَيْطُ ٱلْأَبْيَضُ مِنَ ٱلْخَيْطِ ٱلْأَسْوَدِ مِنَ ٱلْفَجْرِ ۖ ثُمَّ أَتِمُّوا۟ ٱلصِّيَامَ إِلَى ٱلَّيْلِ ۚ وَلَا تُبَـٰشِرُوهُنَّ وَأَنتُمْ عَـٰكِفُونَ فِى ٱلْمَسَـٰجِدِ ۗ تِلْكَ حُدُودُ ٱللَّهِ فَلَا تَقْرَبُوهَا ۗ كَذَٰلِكَ يُبَيِّنُ ٱللَّهُ ءَايَـٰتِهِۦ لِلنَّاسِ لَعَلَّهُمْ يَتَّقُونَ 187
Translations
It has been made permissible for you the night preceding fasting to go to your wives [for sexual relations]. They are a clothing for you and you are a clothing for them. Allāh knows that you used to deceive yourselves, so He accepted your repentance and forgave you. So now, have relations with them and seek that which Allāh has decreed for you [i.e., offspring]. And eat and drink until the white thread of dawn becomes distinct to you from the black thread [of night]. Then complete the fast until the night [i.e., sunset]. And do not have relations with them as long as you are staying for worship in the mosques. These are the limits [set by] Allāh, so do not approach them. Thus does Allāh make clear His verses [i.e., ordinances] to the people that they may become righteous.
Transliteration
Uhilla lakum laylata as-siyami ar-rafathu ila nisaikum hunna libasus lakum wa antum libasus lahunna alima Allahu annakum kuntum takhtanuna anfusakum fataba alaikum wa afa ankum fal-ana bashiruhunna wabtagh ma kataba Allahu lakum wa kuloo waashrab hatta yatabayyana lakum al-khaytu al-abyadu mina al-khayti as-aswad mina al-fajr thumma atimmu as-siyama ila al-layl wa la tubashiruhunna wa antum akifun fi al-masajid tilka hudud Allahi fa la taqrabuh kadhalika yubayyinu Allahu ayatihi li an-nasi laallahum yattaqun
Tafsir (Explanation)
This ayah permits intimate relations between spouses during the nights of Ramadan, a concession that addresses a common weakness among the early Muslims who had initially been restricted from such contact. The metaphor of spouses as clothing for one another emphasizes their mutual protection, comfort, and spiritual companionship. Classical scholars like Ibn Kathir explain that Allah acknowledges human nature while establishing clear boundaries: permissibility at night, prohibition during fasting hours and during I'tikaf (spiritual retreat in the mosque), with the command to cease eating and drinking at the white thread of dawn.
Revelation Context
This ayah was revealed in the context of Ramadan regulations in the second year of Hijrah. According to asbab al-nuzul, the early Muslims had been forbidden from intimate relations during Ramadan nights, which caused hardship. Some companions violated this ruling out of necessity, leading to a divine reprieve. This ayah establishes the balanced approach of Islamic law: acknowledging human needs while maintaining the spiritual discipline of fasting.
Related Hadiths
Sahih Bukhari 1915: The Prophet (ﷺ) said, 'Your wives are a provision (tilth) for you, so go unto your tilth as you will.' This affirms the permissibility of intimate relations during Ramadan nights. Sunan Abu Dawud 2345: Clarification of the time when eating and drinking become forbidden—at the appearance of the true dawn.
Themes
Key Lesson
This ayah teaches that Islam balances strict spiritual discipline with compassion for human needs and natural inclinations, while maintaining clear ethical boundaries. It reminds believers that religious observance should enhance—not diminish—family bonds and marital harmony.