“When they sat by it” Surah al-Buruj in light of Bystanding The place of ‘witnessing’ is a salient motif in Sūrah al-Burūj. At four points within the sūrah Allah draws our attention to forms of shahāda – ‘to witness’. He (subḥānahu wa ta’āla) swears by the shāhid ‘witness’ and mash-hūd…