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In the whole of the Quran there is a perfect fluency, a superb clarity and soundness, a firm coherence,
and a well-established harmony and proportion, and a strong mutual support and interrelation amongst its sentences and their parts, and an elevated correspondence amongst its verses and their purposes
Although this is
a fact testified to by the leading
figures in Arabic philology,
literature and semantics, like
Zamakhshari, Sakkaki, and ‘Abd al-Qahir
al-Jurjani-and, though there are
seven or eight factors to counter
fluency, soundness, coherence,
harmony, proportion, inter-relation
and correspondence, these factors
rather enrich the Quran’s
fluency, soundness and coherence.
Like branches and twigs stemming
from the trunk of a tree for the
production of fruit, which will
complete the beauty and growth of
the tree, these factors sometimes
show themselves not to cause
discords in the fluent harmony of
the Quran’s composition but to
express new, richer and
complementary meanings.
Although
the Quran was revealed in
parts over twenty years for
different needs and purposes,
it has such a perfect harmony
that it is as if it were
revealed all at once.
Although
the Quran was revealed over
twenty years on different
occasions, its parts are so
mutually supportive that it is
as if it were revealed only on
one particular occasion.
Although
the Quran came in answer to
different, repeated questions,
its parts are so united and
harmonious with each other
that it is as if it were the
answer to a single question.
Although
the Quran came to judge of
various, diverse cases and
events, it displays such a
perfect order that it is as if
it were the judgment delivered
on a single case or event.
Although
the Quran was revealed by
Divine courtesy in styles
varied to suit innumerable
people of different levels of
understanding and of different
moods and temperament, its
parts exhibit so beautiful a
similarity, correspondence,
and fluency that it is as if
it were addressing a single
degree of understanding and a
single temperament.
Although
the Quran speaks to
innumerable varieties of
people, remote from one
another in time, space, and
character, it has such an easy
way of explanation, such a
purity of style, and such a
clear way of description that
it is as if it were addressing
only a single homogenous
group, and each different
group thinks that it is being
addressed uniquely and
specifically. Although the Quran
was revealed for the gradual
guidance of different peoples
in various purpose, it has
such a perfect
straightforwardness, sensitive
balance, and beautiful order,
that it is as if it were
pursuing a single purpose
only. Despite being the
reasons of confusion, all
these factors add to the
miraculousness of the Quran’s
explanations, and to its
fluency of style and harmony.
Anyone with an
unbiased heart, a sound conscience,
and a good taste, sees in the
explanations of the Quran a
graceful fluency, an exquisite
proportion, a pleasant harmony, and
a matchless eloquence. Also, anyone
with a sound power of seeing and
insight sees that the Quran has
an eye with which to see the whole
of the universe with all its inner
and outer dimensions like a single
page and read all the meanings
contained in it. Since it would
cover volumes to explain this truth
with examples, I will, referring the
reader to Signs of (the Quran’s)
Miraculousness and the Words written
so far, not go further here.
Miraculousness in
the ways verses conclude
This relates to
the qualities of miraculousness
which the Quran displays through
its summaries and its unique style
of using God’s Beautiful Names by
way of concluding many of its
verses.
The Quran of
miraculous explanation generally
concludes the verses with summaries.
These summaries either comprise
certain Divine Beautiful Names in
which the contents of the verses
originate, or contain in epitome the
whole meanings of the verses or
all-comprehensive principles
concerning the main aims of the Quran,
or confirm and corroborate the
verses or incite the mind to
meditation. In these summaries are,
therefore, traces from the elevated
wisdom of the Quran or drops from
the water of life of Divine guidance
or sparks from the lightning of the
miraculousness of the Quran.
I will point out
briefly only ten of the numerous
traces and, of the many examples of
several aspects of each trace, I
will mention only one, and append a
brief statement of the meaning of
one truth out of many contained in
each example.
Most of those
traces are found together in most of
the verses and form a real design of
miraculousness. Also, most of the
verses I will mention as examples
are also examples for most of the
traces. With respect to the verses
already mentioned in the previous
Words, I will content myself with a
short reference to the meanings of
those of them cited as examples
here.
With its miraculous expression,
the wise Quran spreads out
before the eyes the acts and works
of the Majestic Maker. Then it
concludes either with the Divine
Name or Names which originate
those acts and works, as with
proof of one of the essential aims
of the Quran like Divine Unity
or the Resurrection.
For example:
In
the verse, He it is who
created for you all that is in
the earth. Then turned He to the
heaven, and fashioned it as
seven heavens. He is the Knower
of all things.(2:29), in a
manner to build up to a
particular result or important
goal, the verse mentions the
most comprehensive works which
testify to Divine Knowledge and
Power through their purposes and
order, and concludes with the
Name, the Knower.
While
in the verse, Have We not
made the earth a cradle, and the
mountains masts? And We have
created you in pairs. ... Surely
the Day of Decision is a time
appointed. (78:6-8, 12), it
mentions the mighty acts and
tremendous works of Almighty
God, and concludes with the Day
of Resurrection, which is the
Day of Judgment.
The
Quran lays out before the eyes
of mankind the works of Divine art
without specifying the Divine Name
which originates each of those
works, and concludes with either
mentioning the Names together or
referring them to the intellect.
For example:
Say:
‘Who provides for you from
the sky and the earth, or
who owns all hearing and
sight (of which you have a
portion); and who brings
forth the living from the
dead and brings forth the
dead from the living; and
who rules and directs all
affairs?’ They will say:
‘God’. Then say: ‘Will
you not then fear (God) and
keep your duty (concerning
both this world and the
next)? Such then is God,
Your Lord, the Truth.
(10:31-2)
At
the beginning, it says:
‘Who is it who, having
prepared the heaven and
earth as two sources of
your provision, sends rain
from there and brings
forth grains from here?
Can anyone else other than
God subjugate the heaven
and the earth as two
stores of your provision?
That being so, praise and
thanksgiving are due to
Him exclusively.’
In
the second part it means:
‘Who is it who owns your
eyes and ears, which are
the most precious among
the parts of your bodies?
From which shop or factory
did you buy them? It is
only your Lord Who is able
to give you those subtle
faculties of hearing and
sight, and it is also He
who creates and nurtures
you. Therefore, there is
no Lord save He and it is
only He Who deserves
worship.’
In
the third part, it
signifies: ‘Who is it
who gives life to the dead
earth every spring and
quickens hundreds of
thousands of species that
died in the previous
autumn or winter? Who else
other than the Truth, the
Creator of the whole
universe, is able to do
that? For sure, only He
does that. Moreover, as He
gives life to the earth,
He will also raise you to
life again after your
death, and send you to a
Supreme Tribunal.’
In
the fourth part it
explains: ‘Who else
other than God can
administer this vast
universe with perfect
order like a palace or a
town? Since no one other
than God can do that, the
Power Which governs easily
the whole of the universe
with all its spheres, is
so perfect and infinite
that It feels no need for
any partners and helpers.
The One Who governs the
vast universe, does not
leave smaller creatures to
other hands. Therefore,
you must admit God
willingly or unwillingly.’
Thus, the
first and fourth parts suggest
God, while the second suggests
the Lord, and the third
suggests the Truth. Understand
from this the miraculousness
in Such then is God, your
Lord, the Truth. After
presenting the mighty acts of
Almighty God, and the
important products of His
Power, the Qur’an mentions
the Names God, the Lord, and
the Truth, and thereby points
out the origin of those acts
and products.
An
example of how the Quran
urges the intellect to
reflect on the works of God
and recognize Him: Surely
in the creation of the
heavens and the earth, and
the alternation of night and
day, and the ships sailing
on the sea for the benefit
of mankind, and the water
which God sends down from
the sky, thereby reviving
the earth after its death,
and dispersing all kinds of
beasts therein, and (in His)
directing and disposal of
the winds, and the clouds
subjugated between heaven
and earth: are signs for
people who use their
intellects. (3:26-7)
The verse
enumerates the works and
manifestations of Divine
creation-like the
manifestation of Divine
Sovereignty in the creation of
the heavens and the earth; of
Divine Lordship in the
alternation of night and day,
which demonstrate the
perfection of Almighty God’s
Power and the grandeur of His
Lordship, and testify to His
Oneness; the manifestation of
Mercy in subduing the sea and
the ship which are of great
use for the social life of
mankind; the manifestation of
the greatness of Power in
sending water from the sky
down to the earth and thereby
reviving the earth together
with its innumerable creatures
and making it like an
exquisite place of
resurrection and gathering;
the manifestation of Power and
Compassion in creating
innumerable varieties of
beasts from simple earth; the
manifestation of Mercy and
Wisdom in charging the winds
to serve in pollination of
plants and the respiration of
animate beings; and the
manifestation of Lordship in
accumulating and dispersing
the clouds (which are the
means of Mercy) and suspending
them between the heavens and
the earth-like assembling and
then dispersing an army for
rest. After enumerating all
these works and manifestations
of Divine acting without
mentioning the Names
originating them, the verse
concludes: are signs for
people who use their
intellects, and urges the
intellect to reflect fully on
the truths they contain.
It
sometimes occurs that the Quran
describes the acts of Almighty
God in detail, and then
concludes with a summary.
Through detailed description it
gives conviction, then impresses
them on the mind through
summary.
For example:
So
will your Lord choose you,
and teach you the
interpretation of dreams,
and all social and natural
phenomena, and perfect His
blessing upon you and upon
the family of Jacob, as He
perfected it formerly on
your forefathers Abraham and
Isaac; surely your Lord is
All-Knowing, All-Wise.
(12:6)
This verse
points to the Divine blessings
on the Prophet Joseph and his
father and forefathers, and
says: ‘He has distinguished
you with Prophethood among
mankind and, by connecting the
chain of Prophets to yours,
made your lineage the most
honored and prominent among
all other lineages. He has
also made your house a place
of education and guidance
where knowledge of God and
Divine wisdom are taught, and
combined in you, through that
knowledge and wisdom,
felicitous spiritual
sovereignty of the world with
eternal happiness in the
Hereafter. He will equip
you-Joseph-with that knowledge
and wisdom and make you a
dignified ruler in the world
and a noble Prophet and a wise
guide.’ By concluding with
Surely Your Lord is
All-Knowing, All-Wise, the
verse summarizes all those
blessings and means: ‘His
Lordship, Wisdom and eternal
Knowledge require that, as
with your father and
forefathers, He shall also
manifest through you His Names
the All-Knowing and the
All-Wise.’
Say:
‘O God, Master of the
Kingdom, You give the
Kingdom to whom You will,
and seize the Kingdom from
whom You will, You exalt
whom You will and You abase
whom You will; in Your hand
is the good; You are
Powerful over everything.
You make the night to enter
into the day and You make
the day to enter into the
night, You bring forth the
living from the dead and You
bring forth the dead from
the living, and You provide
whoever You will without
measure.
(3:26-7)
These
verses point out God’s
execution of His Laws in the
social life of mankind and in
the universe. They emphasize
that honor and degradation,
wealth and poverty directly
depend on Almighty God’s
Will and Choice. Down to the
most insignificant happenings
in the realm of multiplicity,
nothing is out of the domain
of Divine Will, and there is
no place for chance.
After
pointing out this essential
principle specifically, the
verse continues by affirming
that man’s provision, which
is most essential to him in
his worldly life, originates
directly from the treasury of
Mercy of the Real Provider,
and means: ‘Your provision
is dependent on the vitality
of the earth, the revival of
which is possible through the
coming of spring. Only the One
Who has subdued the sun and
the moon, and alternates night
and day, can bring spring. If
this is so, then again only
the One Who fills the whole
surface of the earth with
fruits, is able to give one an
apple as provision, and become
one’s real provider.’
Finally, by
concluding with and You
provide whomever You will
without measure, the verses
summarize all those acts that
they had previously described
in detail, and affirm that the
One Who provides you without
measure does all those things.
The Quran
sometimes mentions God’s
creation and creatures in a
certain series, and by showing
that there is a purposeful order
and balance in their existence
and life, it is as if it gives a
kind of radiance and brightness
to them. Then it points to the
Divine Name or Names originating
that order, which, like mirrors,
reflect Him. It is as if those
creatures mentioned were each a
word and the Names were the
meanings of those words, or the
creatures were each a fruit and
the Names were their seeds or
substantial parts.
For example:
We
created man of an extraction
of clay, then We set him, a
sperm, in a safe lodging,
then We created the sperm
drop into something
suspended (on the wall of
the womb), and We created
that suspended thing into
something like a lump of
flesh chewed, and We created
of the lump bones, and We
clothed the bones in
muscular tissue, and then We
built him in another
creation. So blessed be God,
of the highest and most
blessed degree of creating.
(23:12-4)
The Quran
mentions the curious,
extraordinary and wonderful,
well-ordered,
well-proportioned stages of
man’s creation in such a
manner that, as if in a
mirror, So blessed be God, of
the highest and most blessed
degree of creating is seen in
it, and whoever reads or
listens to it cannot help but
utter that phrase of blessing.
It is a fact that one of the
scribes whom God’s
Messengers employed to record
the Revelations he received
uttered this phrase before the
Messenger recited it, so that
he wondered whether he too was
receiving Revelation. Whereas
it is the perfect order,
coherence and clarity of the
verses that they led to that
phrase even before its
recitation.
Surely
your Lord is God, Who
created the heavens and the
earth in six days-then set
Himself upon the Supreme
Throne, covering the day
with the night, pursuing
each other urgently-and the
sun, and the moon, and the
stars subservient, by His
command. Truly, His are the
creation and the command.
Blessed be God, the Lord of
the Worlds.
(7:54)
Through
this verse, the Quran
demonstrates the
tremendousness of God’s
Power and the Sovereignty of
His Lordship by indicating
how, like soldiers, the sun,
the moon and the stars are
obedient to His commands; and
the Majesty of the
All-Powerful One seated on the
Throne of Lordship, Who, by
making night and day
continuously follow each other
like ribbons or lines of white
and black, inscribes the sign
of His Lordship on the pages
of the universe. Therefore,
whoever reads or hears this
verse feels eagerness to utter
Blessed be God, the Lord of
the Worlds. That means
this phrase is the summary of
the preceding lines in the
context, its substance or seed
or fruit.
The Quran
sometimes mentions certain
physical or material things or
substances which are of various
qualities and subject to change
and disintegration. Then, it
connects them-and thereby
transforms them in order to
change them into stable,
unchanging realities-to certain
universal and permanent Divine
Names of light, or concludes
with a summary urging reflection
and taking a lesson.
For example,
the verse,
And
He taught Adam the names,
all of them; then He
presented them unto the
angels and said, ‘Now tell
me the names of these, if
you speak truly.’ They
said, ‘Glory be to You! We
know not save what You have
taught us. Surely You are
the All-Knowing, the
All-Wise.’
(2:31-2)
The verses
mention first the particular
reality that what made Adam
superior to the angels in
deserving rule of the earth in
the name of God was the
knowledge given to Him as a
Divine gift, and then the
defeat of the angels before
Adam with regard to knowledge.
The Qur’an concludes its
description of that event with
two universal Names of God:
You are the All-Knowing, the
All-Wise. That is, the angels
acknowledge: ‘Since You are
the All-Knowing and the
All-Wise, You instructed Adam
in the names and made him
superior to us through the
knowledge You gave him. You
are also the All-Wise, and
therefore give us what You
give according to our
capacities and give him
superiority because of the
capacity he has.’
While in the
verses,
And
surely in the cattle there
is a lesson for you; We give
you to drink of what is in
their bellies, between filth
and blood, pure milk, sweet
to drinkers. And of the
fruits of the palms and the
vines, you take therefrom a
strong drink and a provision
fair. Surely in that is a
sign for a people who
understand. And your Lord
inspired the bee, saying:
‘Take for yourself, of the
mountains, houses, and of
the trees, and of what they
are building. Then eat of
every kind of fruit, and
follow the ways of your Lord
easy to go upon.’ Then
comes there forth out of
their bellies a fluid of
diverse hues wherein is
healing for man. Indeed in
this there is a sign for a
people who reflect.
(16:66-9)
After
demonstrating that Almighty
God has made for men some of
His animal creatures like
sheep, goats, cows, and camels
each a source of pure and
delicious milk, and some of
His vegetable creatures like
date-palms and vines, the
tables of sweet, pleasant, and
delicious bounties, and some
of the miracles of His Power
like the bee, a producer of
sweet drink wherein is
healing, in order to urge men
to compare with these other
similar gifts to reflect and
take lessons, the verses
conclude with Indeed in this
there is a sign for a people
who reflect.
It
sometimes occurs that a verse
lays out many results and
decrees of Divine Lordship, and
unites them with a bond of unity
or inserts in them a universal
principle.
For example:
God,
there is no god but He, the
Living, the Self-Subsistent.
Slumber overtakes Him not,
nor sleep. To Him belongs
all that is in the heavens
and what is in the earth.
Who is there that shall
intercede with Him save by
His leave? He knows what is
before them (in time and
space) and what is behind
them (in time and space),
and they comprehend not
anything of His Knowledge
save such as He wills. His
Seat comprises the heavens
and the earth; the upholding
of them oppresses Him not;
He is the All-High, the
Tremendous.
(2:255)
Together
with proving the Divine Unity
in ten ways of affirmation in
ten different colors in ten
sentences or phrases, this
verse called the Verse of the
(Supreme) Seat categorically
and severely rejects and
refutes associating partners
with God with the question Who
is there that shall intercede
with Him save by His leave?
Further, since there is in
this verse the manifestation
of the Greatest Name of God,
the meanings it contains
concerning Divine truths are
of the highest degree, and it
shows an act expressive of
Lordship in Its highest
degree. Also, after mentioning
the all-encompassing
preserving or upholding of God
in the greatest degree-His
control of the whole of the
heavens and the earth together
at the same time-as a bond of
unity or an aspect of oneness,
it summarizes the origins of
those great manifestations in
He is the All-High, the
Tremendous.
Another
example:
It
is God Who has created the
heavens and the earth, and
sends down from heaven water
wherewith He brings forth
fruits for your sustenance.
And He subjected to you the
ships to run upon the sea at
His commandment; and He
subjected to you the sun and
moon constant upon their
courses, and He subjected to
you the night and day, and
gives you of all you ask
Him. If you count the
bounties of God, you can
never number them.
(14:32-4)
Together
with showing how Almighty God
has created this vast universe
like a palace for man and how,
making the heavens and the
earth like two servants of
man, He sends down from heaven
water to the earth to provide
for man, these verses also
state that, in order that
everyone in the world may
benefit from the fruits and
grains raised in all the parts
of the world and that people
may make their livelihood
through bartering the products
of their labor, He has
subjected ships to man. That
is, He has created the sea,
the winds, and trees of which
ships are made in such a form
and with such qualities that
as if the wind were a whip,
the ship a horse, and the sea
a desert lying under man’s
feet. In addition to enabling
men to have relations with the
whole of the earth through
ships, He has also subdued
mighty rivers as natural means
of transportation for men.
Furthermore, in order to bring
about seasons and present to
men His multifarious bounties
produced in them, the True
Giver of Bounties has made the
sun and the moon run on their
courses and created them like
two obedient servants or two
wheels to steer that vast
revolving machine. Besides, He
has appointed the night as a
cloak, a cover for man’s
rest and sleep, and the day,
as a means of making his
livelihood.
Thus, after
enumerating those favors of
God, in order to show how
broad is the circle of those
favors and how uncountable are
the favors themselves, the
verses end in this summary: He
gives you of all you ask Him.
If you count the bounties of
God, you can never number
them. That is, whatever man
has asked in the tongue of his
capacity and natural
neediness, God has given it to
him, His favors upon man are
too many to enumerate.
Certainly, if those favors are
presented to him on the table
of the heavens and the earth
and the sun, the moon, the
night, and the day are among
those favors, then of course
it is impossible to count
them.
It
sometimes occurs that in order
to show that the apparent causes
have no creative part in
bringing about the associated
effect or result, the Qur’an
presents the purposes for the
existence of something and the
results it yields.
It does so
because the unconscious and ‘lifeless’
causes are only an apparent
veil, and extremely wise
purposes and significant results
can only be willed and pursued
by an All-Knowing and All-Wise
One. Also, by mentioning the
purposes and results, the Qur’an
demonstrates that although the
causes seem to inattentive eyes
to be adjacent or attached to
the result, in reality there is
a great distance between them.
The causes are so far from the
creation of the result that even
the greatest of the causes are
unable to invent a new result.
Thus, in the great distance
between the causes and the
result, the Divine Names appear
as stars and connect them with
each other. Like the line of
mountain peaks seeming to be
meeting the skirts of the sky on
the horizon, although there is a
vast space between in which all
the stars rise and set, there is
likewise distance so great
between the causes and result
that it can only be seen through
the telescope of faith and the
light of the Qur’an.
For example:
Let
man consider the food (he
eats): We pour out the rains
abundantly, then We split
the earth in fissures and
therein make the grains
grow, and grapes, and fresh
herbage, and olives, and
palms, and enclosed gardens
dense with lofty trees, and
fruits and pastures,
provision for you and for
your cattle.
(80:24-32)
After
mentioning the miracles of
Divine Power in a purposeful
order, through the phrase
Provision for you and for your
cattle, the verses draw
attention to the purpose
without mentioning the causes,
and prove that there is a free
Agent Who pursues that purpose
along with the series of all
those causes and results, and
that the causes are only a
veil hiding Him from manifest
sight. Through the phrase,
Provision for you and for your
cattle, the verses declare
that the ‘material or
natural’ causes have no
creative part in bringing
about the results, and mean:
The water necessary for your
and your cattle’s provision
comes from the heaven. Since
that water has no ability to
have mercy on you and your
cattle and thereby provide for
you, it does not come by
itself, rather it is sent
down. Then, earth splits in
clefts for vegetation to grow
in to provide for you. But
unfeeling, unconscious earth
has no ability to consider
your provision and have mercy
on you, and therefore does not
split by itself; rather
someone else opens that ‘door’
to you and hands you your
provision. Also, since
pasturage and trees are far
from thinking about your
provision and producing fruits
and grains out of mercy for
you, in reality they are, as
the verses demonstrate,
threads, ropes or cables which
an All-Wise, All-Merciful One
stretches out from behind a
veil to extend His bounties to
living beings. Thus, in these
verses several Divine Names
like the All-Merciful, the
All-Compassionate, the
All-Provider, the All-Giver of
Bounties, and the
All-Magnificent manifest
themselves.
Do
you not see how God drives
the clouds lightly, then
gathers them together, in
piles and completes the
circuit between them? Then
you see the rain issuing out
of the midst of them. And He
causes (clouds like)
mountains charged with hail
to descend from the heaven,
and He makes it to fall on
whom He wills, and from whom
He wills He turns it aside.
The brightness of His
lightning all but takes away
the sight! God turns about
the night and the day.
Truly, in that is a lesson
for men of insight. God has
created every moving
creature of water; some of
them go upon their bellies;
and some of them go upon two
feet, and some of them go on
four feet; God creates
whatever He wills. Surely
God is All-Powerful over all
things.
(24:43-5)
These
verses explain the curious
Divine disposals in sending
the rain from the accumulated
clouds, which are among the
most important of the miracles
of Divine Lordship and the
most curious veils over the
Divine treasuries of Mercy.
While the particles forming
the clouds are scattered in
the atmosphere, they come
together, like the assembling
of a dispersed army at the
call of a trumpet, to form a
cloud at the command of God.
Then, like small troops coming
from different directions to
form an army, God joins the
clouds together in a way to
enable the completion of an
electric circuit between them,
and causes those piled-up
masses of clouds resembling
mountains and charged with
either rain or snow or hail,
to pour down the water of life
to all living beings on the
earth.
The rain
does not come down by itself.
Rather, it is sent down
because it comes for certain
purposes and according to
need. While the atmosphere is
clear and nothing is seen in
it by way of clouds, the
mountain-like forms of clouds,
gathered like a striking
assembly, do not assemble of
their own accord, but rather
One Who knows the living
beings with all their needs
gathers them together to send
rain therefrom. Thus, all
these events together suggest
several Divine Names like the
All-Powerful, the All-Knowing,
the All-Disposer of Things,
the All-Arranger, the
All-Upbringing, the
All-Helper, and the Reviver.
In
order to convince the heart of
the wonderful acts of God
Almighty in the Hereafter and to
prepare the intellect to confirm
them, the Qur’an sometimes
mentions His amazing actions in
the world, or describes His
miraculous acts pertaining to
the future and the Hereafter in
such a manner that we are
convinced of them through
something familiarly observed
every day.
For example:
Does
man not regard how We have
created him of a sperm-drop?
Yet lo, he is a manifest
adversary. And he has coined
for Us a similitude, and has
forgotten his creation; he
says, ‘Who will revive the
bones when they have rotted
away?’ Say: ‘He will
revive them Who originated
them the first time; He
knows all creation, Who has
made for you out of the
green tree fire and lo, from
it you kindle.’ Is not He
Who created the heavens and
the earth able to create the
like of them? Yes indeed; He
is the All-Creator, the
All-Knowing. His command,
when He wills a thing, is to
say to it ‘Be’, and it
is. So glory be to Him, in
Whose hand is the dominion
of everything, and unto Him
you will be returned.
(36:77-83)
In the
verses above, the Quran
proves the raising of the dead
in seven or eight ways. First,
it presents the first creation
of people and means: ‘You
see how you are created
through the stages of a
sperm-drop, something
suspended on the wall of the
mother’s womb, something
like a lump of chewed flesh,
the bones and the clothing of
bones in muscular tissue.
Then, as you do witness this,
how can you deny the other
creation, the raising of the
dead, which is like the first
one, even easier than it?’
By
reminding man of His great
favors to him through He
has made for you out of the
green tree fire, Almighty
God means: ‘The One Who
bestows such favors on you
does not leave you to
yourselves, so that you enter
the grave and lie there not to
be raised again.’ Also He
suggests: ‘While you see how
dead or dried trees are
revived and turn green, how
can you deem it unlikely that
wood-like bones will be
revived again? Further, is He
Who created the heavens and
the earth unable to create
man, who is the fruit of the
heavens and the earth? Does
One Who governs a huge tree
attach no importance to the
fruit of that tree and leave
it to others? Do you think
that He will leave man, the
result of the tree of
creation, to his own devices
or to others and thereby allow
that tree of creation, all
parts of which have been
kneaded with wisdom, to go to
waste?’ Again He means: ‘The
One Who will revive you on the
Day of Judgment is such that
the whole of the universe is
like an obedient soldier
before Him. It submits itself
with perfect obedience to His
command of ‘Be!’, and
it is. The creation of
spring is as easy for Him as
the creation of a single
flower. It is absolutely
improper and irrational to see
Him as impotent and challenge
His Power, saying: Who will
revive the bones?
Then,
through the sentence So
glory be to Him, in Whose hand
is the dominion of all things,
the Qur’an signifies: ‘The
dominion of everything is in
His hand; the keys to all
things are with Him. He turns
about the night and the day,
and winter and summer, as
easily as turning over the
pages of a book. He is such an
All-Powerful One of Majesty
that like closing down one of
two houses and opening up the
other, He closes one of the
two worlds, this one and the
next, and opens the other.’
Since this is so and as the
result of all proofs, unto Him
you will be returned. That is,
He will raise you out of your
graves, and gathering all of
you in the place of Mustering,
call you to account for
whatever you did while in the
world.’
Thus, all
those verses prepare the mind
and the heart to accept the
Resurrection because they show
its like among the Divine acts
in the world.
The Quran
sometimes mentions God’s acts
in the other world in such a
manner that by suggesting their
like in the world, it leaves no
room for denial or for deeming
them improbable.
For
example, in the suras
beginning with When the
sun is folded up (al-Takwir,
81.1), and When the
heaven is cleft asunder
(al-Infitar, 82.1),
and When the heaven is
split asunder (al-Inshiqaq,
84.1), the Qur’an
describes the mighty
upheavals and Divine
operations during the
destruction of the world and
the Great Gathering in such
a manner that, since man
observes their like in
spring and autumn, and in
some disastrous events like
earthquakes and big storms,
he feels no difficulty in
accepting these revolutions,
which cause dread to the
heart and cannot be
comprehended by the mind.
Since it would be too
lengthy even to summarize
the meaning of those suras,
I shall be content with
pointing out a single verse
as an example. The verse-
When the rolls
of pages are laid open.
(81:10)
states
that on the Day of
Judgment everyone will
find the deeds he did in
the world, recorded in a
roll of pages, laid open
before him. Since this
seems so incredible on
first hearing, the mind
has great difficulty in
comprehending it. However,
in the general revival
observed in spring there
are many events similar to
that laying open of the
pages, as well as to
others which the sura
mentions concerning the
final destruction of the
world and the
Resurrection. For every
fruit-bearing tree or
flowering plant has deeds,
actions, duties and its
kind of worship which it
does so as to demonstrate
the Divine Names
manifested in it. All of
its deeds (the cycles of
its life from germination
to blossoming and yielding
fruits) are recorded in
its seed or seeds to be
exhibited in a subsequent
spring on earth. As in the
tongue of its form and
shape it displays the
deeds of its source or
origin in the clearest
way, so also through its
branches, twigs, leaves,
flowers and fruits it lays
open the pages of those
deeds. Thus, the One Who
does this work before our
eyes as the manifestations
of His Names the All-Wise,
the All-Preserving, the
All-Arranging, the
All-Upbringing, and the
All-Subtle, is He Who
says: When the rolls of
pages are laid open.
You
can compare the other points
with this and, if you are
able, understand them.
However, in order to help
you, I will explain the
verse When the sun is
folded up (al-Takwir,
81.1).
Besides
the brilliant metaphor in
the expression ‘fold up’
(meaning ‘roll’ or ‘wrap
up’) the verse also
alludes to several related
events.
By
drawing back first
non-existence, then the
ether, and then the skies,
like veils, Almighty God
brought out of the
treasury of His Mercy a
brilliant lamp like the
sun to illuminate the
world and displayed it to
the world. After the world
is closed up, He will wrap
up that brilliant in its
veils again and remove it.
The
sun is an official of God
charged with spreading out
its goods of light and
folding round the head of
the world light and
darkness alternately. Each
evening it gathers up its
goods and conceals them
and sometimes it does
little business because of
the veil of a cloud, and
sometimes it withdraws to
some degree from doing
business due to the veil
the moon draws over its
face, and closes its book
of account for a short,
fixed time. A time will
come and this official
will resign from its post.
Even if there is no cause
for its dismissal, due to
the two black spots on its
face growing, as they have
begun to do, through
Divine command the sun
will draw back the light
that it sends to the earth
by Divine leave and wrap
it around its own head.
God will order it: ‘You
have no longer any duty to
carry out concerning the
earth. Now go to Hell and
burn those who, by
worshipping you, insulted
an obedient official like
you with disloyalty as if
you had claimed divinity.’
Through its black-spotted
face, the sun exhibits the
meaning of the decree, When
the sun is folded up.
It
sometimes occurs that the wise
Quran mentions a particular
purpose and in order to urge the
minds to think in universal
terms, confirms and establishes
that purpose through Divine
Names, which function as
universal rules.
For example:
God
has indeed heard the
statement of the woman who
argues with you concerning
her husband, and complains
unto God, and God hears your
conversation. Surely God is
All-Hearing, All-Seeing.
(58:1)
The Quran
says: ‘Almighty God is
absolutely All-Hearing; He
hears everything. He even
hears through His Name of
Truth a wife arguing with
you and complaining about
her husband, which which is
a most particular matter. A
woman is most compassionate
among human beings and a
mine of care and tenderness
leading to self-sacrifice.
So, as a requirement of His
being the All-Compassionate,
Almighty God hears her
complaint and heeds it as a
matter of great importance,
and through His Name of
Truth considers it
seriously.’ Thus, by way
of concluding a universal
principle from a particular
event, One Who-not belonging
to the realm of
contingencies-hears and sees
a particular, minor incident
among creatures, must of
necessity hear and see all
things; One Who claims
Lordship over the universe,
must be aware of the
troubles of wronged
insignificant creatures in
the universe and hear their
cries. One Who is not aware
of their suffering and does
not hear their lamentations
cannot be the Lord. Thus,
the sentence Surely God is
All-Hearing, All-Seeing,
establishes those two mighty
truths.
Glorified
be Who took His servant by
night from the Sacred Mosque
(Masjid al-Haram), to Masjid
al-Aqsa’ (in Quds), Whose
neighborhood We have
blessed, that We might show
him of Our signs. Surely He
is the All-Hearing the
All-Seeing.
(17:1)
After
mentioning the Noble Prophet’s
journey from Masjid al-Haram
in Makka to Masjid al-Aqsa’
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