kashif_nazeer
~~~Alhamdulillah~~~
:salam2:
I hope this post finds everyone in the pink of health and eeman inshaAllah.I hope you all had a wonderful Eid inshaAllah.
I wrote the following ,in reply to an atheists question about the proof of Allah's existence.While the last 3 points about unique literary form and aesthetic appeal and rational concluson,I copied from a website and edited it,the rest of it I wrote down.Please do correct me if there is something wrong in it.Also point out any new things you would like to add to this point.I hope everyone benefits from this post as well inshaAllah.
Allow me to explain please.I have been sick so I wasn’t able to reply earlier.
Please read my comment carefully before commenting.
Like I said,if you haven’t met somene,seen him ,talked to him,how would you even know that person exists and acknowledge his presence?Would you prove it scientifically?Well,try.The thing is the only way you will be able to prove his/her existence is through the communication you have with him/her.For example I haven’t seen you met you or talked to you,I didn’t even know you existed until I logged on this website . So the only proof I have of you is our communication.I or you cannot prove your existence without this cruicial thing caled communication,which acquaints me with you.Without that I know nothing about you,where you live what you do etc.Hence my evidence is Qur’an the communication of Allah to mankind.So we have to analyse this communication before accepting or rejecting it.Now before calling it a random book,just please read my comment before commenting.Thank you.
I believe you must have read the Qur’an(or the translation so as to say.)
I believe Qur’an is the proof and evidence of existence of Allah due to it’s following charecteristics.
1)In the Qur’an the one who revieled the book acquaints us with Himself.
a)By His names:Allah has named Himself at many places in the Qur’an.Like Allah ,ArRahman(The Most Gracious),Ar-Raheem(The extremely merciful), Malik(The King),Quddus(The Holy One),Khaliqul(The creator),Al Bari(The originator),Al Ghaffar(The of forgiving),Hayyu(The ever Living),Qayyum(That which remains forever),ArRazzaq(The best Provider,Al a’lim(The all knowing)...etc.In fact in the first Surah(al Fatihah) He declares Himself as Rabbil Almeen(Lord,Owner,Master...of everything that exists.)
b)By His qualities(sifat):He tell us about his sifat or qualities in the Qur’an.Like Creator of the Heaven and the Earth,The Creator of Life and Death,this links Him to His names.How he provides for everything,this links Him to His name Ar-Razzaq.His knowledge(of apparent and hidden),this also links Him to His names.Similarly there are number of places where His qualities are mentioned.
c)Signs of His existence:He mentions the signs of His existence at a number of places in Qur’an in fact the very verses of Qur’an are called ayahs which is translated as “signs”.The sign He mentions about Himself in the Qur’an is the creation of heavens and earth,this links Him to His name in a) and quality in b),in the creation of life and death,this again links Him to His names and qualities.Also our creation and the creation of our mates and the love and mercy He placed between us and our mates,this is also one of the signs,it links Him to His name and qualities The Creator ,The Best Provider,The extremely Merciful.These are few of many signs you will come across and they need to be pondered upon.Similarly there are many other signs in the Qur’an.if you read the Qur’an you will come across them,then compare them to His names and qualities.
2)Allah acquaints us with ourselves:In the Qur’an Allah addresses us.He addresses us as “Oh mankind..”,”Oh you who believe..”.Allah told us about our type,He mentions the qualities of those who believe,disbelieve and a third type The hypocrites,you can find this description in many places one of which is surah al Baqarah verses 1 to 22.Apart from this many other charecteristics of mankind is mentioned but these are the three classification of mankind. So he not only acquaints us with Himself but also acquaints us with ourselves.
3)A guidance from Allah: Qur’an is a guidance from Allah to us.It claims this in Surah Al Baqarah 1-2 verses staright away.Apart from this there are many other places where it claims to be the guidance from Allah for us.
4)A criterion to judge between right and wrong:Qur’an is a criterion to judge between right and wrong.It lays the foundation for mankind to know what is right and what is wrong and tells us to avoid wrong and do what is right.There are many places where you will find verse pertaining to this charecteristics in the Qur’an if you study it.
5)The bearer of glad tidings and severe warnings:Allah through His message gives glad tidings of heaven to those who believe and do good and severe warning of hell for those who are arrogant and disbelieve.This is one of the most important parts of Qur’an where it is informing mankind of their fate.The fate of those who do good and those who do bad.It is really an important part as mankind from centuries had been worried about their fate in life after death.Now The Lord of the worlds is informing mankind about their fate through His message.When someone informs you about this,you have to take it seriously,since one’s eternity is involved.
6)News of the nations of the past and the messengers of the past:Qur’an also contains news of the nations of the past.Allah,through His words inform us about the nations of the past and their messngers.Messengers like Adam,Noah,Abraham,Isaac,Ismael,Jacob,Joseph,Moses,Mary,Jesus,Lot,Job(peace be upon them all)...etc.Also about the nationsof the past who did wrong and what was their fate,like Nation of Noah,of Lot,Of thamud,medians,etc.Through this Allah wants us to take lessons for lives.He wants us how to go through struggles of lives.The biggest and most striking of this lesson can by found in the story of Joseph(peace be upon him).How Allah helped Him inspite of the adversities that came in His life.Also there are other stories like that of dwellers of cave(ashabul kahf),the story of Al Khidr,in these are lessons for us.So that whenever we make mistake or feel we are in trouble we can refer to Qur’an and learn from them.These are stories of patience,stories of perseverance,stories about standing on truth and never giving up,stories to take lessons about the fate of thoise who committed excess on land no matter how strong they were.
7)Prophecies:There are prophecies of the day of ressurrection mentioned in the Qur’an.There is also a prophecy at the time of Prophet(sallahu alyhi wasallam) mentioned in the Qur’an.When the fight between Persia and Rome was flaring,Allah sent this prophecy in the Qur’an as Ghulibat irrum(Rome will dominate) and it came out to be true,this was assign of things to come.Similarly there are many other prophecies mentioned in the Qur’an,biggest of which is about the day of ressurection and people are warned of it.
8)The truth:Qur’an at many places has mentioned that it is the truth from Our Lord.The aim of this is to convince mankind to believe in it and not reject it for their own good.The straight path like of those with whom Allah was pleased in the past.
9)To be From Allah:Qur’an mentions at many places that it is from Allah.Now how many books have you come accross that made this claim?It says in the Qur’an that it is the truth from your Lord.Now this point is to be thought upon,how many books have said that?
10)Last message to mankind:Qur’an is the last message to mankind from Allah and after this no more messages would come.So those who believe in it and do righteous good deeds will be saved and those who remain arrogant and keep following their desires will not.This is one of the charecteristics of Qur’an that distinguishes it from any other books.
11)Message for mankind: Qur’an was revealed in Arabic language,to an Arab in the land of Arabs.This does not make it for arabs alone.No!It says exclusively in the Qur’an about Qur’an that it has not been sent except as a mercy for the whole MANKIND.Now one would say if it was for the whole mankidn why would it be revealed in Arabic?If the whole world spoke a single language Allah would have revealed it in a single language,but that is not the case,the whole world spoke different languages.This variety of languages and nationalities is not meant to divide us but to unite us as it says in the Qur’an:””” O mankind, indeed We have created you from male and female and made you peoples and tribes that you may know one another. Indeed, the most noble of you in the sight of Allah is the most righteous of you. Indeed, Allah is Knowing and Acquainted.”””(49:13)
Since the messenger was an arab the language spoken in his land was arabic thus it was revealed in arabic.It says in the Qur’an::””” This (Quran) is a Message for mankind (and a clear proof against them), in order that they may be warned thereby, and that they may know that He is the only One Ilah (God - Allah) - (none has the right to be worshipped but Allah), and that men of understanding may take heed.(14:52)”””.
12) The unique literary form of the Qur’an: According to Muslim and Non-Muslim scholarship, the Qur’an cannot be described as any of the known forms of Arabic speech; namely poetry and prose.
Taha Husayn,a prominent Egyptian Litterateur, during the course of a public lecture summarised how the Qur’an achieves this unique form:
“But you know that the Qur’an is not prose and that it is not verse either. It is rather Qur’an, and it cannot be called by any other name but this. It is not verse, and that is clear; for it does not bind itself to the bonds of verse.
And it is not prose, for it is bound by bonds peculiar to itself, not found elsewhere; some of the binds are related to the endings of its verses and some to that musical sound which is all its own. It is therefore neither verse nor
prose, but it is “a Book whose verses have been perfected the expounded, from One Who is Wise, All-Aware.”
We cannot therefore say its prose, and its text itself is not verse. It has been one of a kind, and nothing like it has ever preceded or followed it.”
Every expression of the Arabic language falls into the literary forms of Prose and Poetry. There are other ‘sub’
forms that fall into the above categories such as Kahin; a sub-form of rhymed prose. However all literary forms can be categorised as prose or poetry.
The Qur’an has its own unique form. It cannot be described as any of the known literary forms.
However due to similarities between saj’ and early Meccan chapters, some Western Scholars describe the Qur’an’s literary form as saj’. Angelika Neuwrith states,
“Saj’ is given up completely in the later suras where the rhyme makes use of a simple –un/-in – scheme to mark the end of rather long and syntactically complex verse….saj’ style is thus exclusively characteristic of the early suras”
These scholars who categorise the Qur’an as saj’ do so on the basis that the Qur’ans uniqueness is acknowledged.
To illustrate this R. A. Nicholson in his book ‘Literary History of the Arabs’ states,“Thus, as regards its external features, the style of the Koran is modelled upon saj’, or rhymed prose…but with such freedom that it may fairly be described as original.”
Although there is an attempt to try to describe the Qur’an as rhymed prose, western scholars concluded that it is a unique or an original form of saj’, thus supporting our hypothesis. To highlight this fact Bruce Lawrence states,“Those passages from the Qur’an that approach saj’ still elude all procrustean efforts to reduce them to an alternative form of saj’.”
There are three major opinions based upon modern and classical scholarship on how the Qur’an achieves this unique literary form and this unique form of saj’.
The Qur’an is not poetry because the totality of each surah does not conform to any of the al-Bihar and in many places exhibits inexact and irregular rhyme. Surah al-Kawthar (The Abundance) is a good example to show that it is not Arabic poetry, “Readers familiar with Arabic Poetry realize that it has long been distinguished by its wazn, bahr, ‘arud and
qafiya – exact measures of syllabic sounds and rhymes, which have to be strictly adhered to even at the expense
of grammar and shade of meaning at times. All this is categorically different from Qur’anic literary style.”
13) Aesthetic Reception : “Anyone who heard it had no option but to surrender to the Qur’an...every single part of his mind was touched by the pure sound of the languages music, and portion by portion, note by note, he embraced its harmony, the perfection of its pattern, its formal completion. It was not much as if something was recited to him by rather as if something had burned itself into him.”
Arbuthnot explains in his book “The Construction of the Bible and the Koran” this effect of the Qur’anic
style:
“It is confessedly the standard of the Arabic tongue... The style of the Koran is generally beautiful and fluent... and in many places, especially where the majesty and attributes of God are described, sublime and magnificent … He succeeded so well, and so strangely captivated the minds of his audience, that several of his opponents thought it the effect of witchcraft and enchantment.”
The aesthetic reception of the Qur’an is not a literary device as such, but it is a manifestation of its literary beauty on the human psyche. This aesthetic element may seem subjective but it highlights all the other objective literary structures and places them in the context of life, experience and humanity; thus making the Qur’an real.
The aesthetic reaction to the Qur'an has been seen throughout history which is perhaps best described by the following episode taken from Kermani’s article ‘The Aesthetic Reception of the Qur’an as reflected
in Early Muslim History’:“Abu Ubaid, a companion of the prophet mentions that a Bedouin listened to a man reciting ‘so shalt that thou art commanded’. After this he threw himself to the ground worshipping and said, “I threw myself down for the eloquence of this speech”.
Montet in his translation of the Qur’an explains this unique Qur’anic feature:
“All those who are acquainted with the Qur'an in Arabic agree in praising the beauty of this religious book; its grandeur of form is so sublime that no translation into any European language can allow us to appreciate it.”
Another great conversion story as handed down by the famous Islamic historians, Ibn Hisham and Ibn Kathir was that of the famous companion of the prophet, Umar. On the very day he had intended to kill the prophet he had heard that his sister Fatima and her husband had converted into the religion of Islam, infuriated he went to theirhouse. Just in front of the entrance he heard someone reciting the Qur'an to
them. Umar being a strong and tall man, stormed into the room, the reciter tried to hide away as fast as he could while his sister Fatima took the pages of the Qur'an and tried to hide them away “what is this balderdash I have heard?” Umar screamed, “‘you have not heard anything” Fatima and her husband tried to calm him down. Umar exclaimed “By God, I have been told that you have followed Muhammad and his religion.” After saying this Umar went to hit his brother-in-law, but his sister stepped in between them and Umar unintentionally hit her badly. “Yes we are Muslims and believe in God and His Apostle and you can do what you like”. Fatima and her husband Said exclaimed. Umar, however, already regretted his behaviour, and by looking at the blood on his sisters face he asked to read the scriptures she had tried to hide away. Fatima convinced him to perform a ritual washing, upon doing so she handed the pages to him. Umar started to read surah Taha and after only a few verses he stopped and cried “How beautiful and noble is this speech!”.
Umar the second Caliph of Islam had converted to the religion of Muhammad. Guillame suggest the reason for the Qur’ans aesthetic qualities:“It has a rhythm of peculiar beauty and a cadence that charms the ear. Many Christian Arabs speak of its style with warm admiration, and most Arabists acknowledge its excellence. When it is read aloud or recited it has an almost hypnotic effect…”
This effect of the Qur’an was changing the hearts and minds of many Arabs at the time of revelation.
The Non-Muslim Arabs at that time had realized its power and had tried to lessen the effect by shouting, clapping, singing and loud chatter. Abu-Zahra comments on this reality:
“The greatest among Muhammad’s enemies feared that the Qur'an would have a strong effect on them, while they preferred lack of faith to faith and aberration to right guidance. Thus, they agreed not to listen to this Qur'an. They knew that everyone listening was moved by its solemn expressive force that exceeded human strength. They saw that the people – even great personalities, the notables and mighty –one after another believed it, that Islam grew stronger, that the faithful became more numerous, polytheism became weaker, and their supporters became less.”Historians and linguists have agreed that the Arabs at the time of revelation were the greatest in their use of the Arabic language. The following quotation from Ibn Rashiq illustrates the importance attached to language. He writes:“Whenever a poet emerged in an Arab tribe, other tribes would come to congratulate, feasts would be prepared, the women would join together on lutes as they do at weddings, and old and young men would all rejoice at the good news. The Arabs used to congratulate each other only on the birth of a child and when a poet rose among them.”Ibn Khaldun, a notable scholar of the fourteenth century, remarked on the importance of poetry in Arab
life:
“It should be known that Arabs thought highly of poetry as a form of speech. Therefore, they made it the archives of their history, the evidence for what they considered right and wrong, and the principal basis of reference for most of their sciences and wisdom.”
An earlier scholar Ibn Faris elaborated on the same theme, but went further to comment on the quality of the poetry that was composed during the pre-Islamic era:
“Poetry is the archive of the Arabs; in it their genealogies have been preserved; it sheds light on the darkest and strangest things found in the Book of God and in the tradition of God's apostle and that of his companions. Perhaps a poem may be luckier than another, and one poem sweeter and more elegant than another, but none of the ancient poems lacks its degree of excellence.”
If a whole nation that excelled in the use of its own language failed to challenge the Qur’an then this reality should then make one think, as Gibb put it:
“Well then, if the Qur’an were his own composition other men could rival it. Let them produce ten verses like it. If they could not (and it is obvious that they could not) then let them accept the Qur’an as an outstanding evidential miracle.”
And as Hirschfield comments:
“The Qur’an is unapproachable as regards convincing power eloquence and even composition.”
When people used to listen the Qur’an they instantly fell in love with it.Be they those who believe in it or those who didn’t.
In Ramadan of the same year when muslims had migerated to Abyssinia for the fear of being prosecuted, the Prophet (Peace be upon him) went into the Holy Sanctuary where
there was a large host of Quraish polytheists, including some notables and celebrities. Suddenly he began reciting Sûrah An-Najm (Chapter 41 — The Star). The awe-inspiring Words of Allâh descended unawares upon them and they immediately got stunned by them. It was the first time for them to be shocked by the truthful Revelation. It had formerly been the favourite trick of those people who wished to dishonour Revelation, not only not to listen to it themselves but also to talk loudly and insolently when it was being read, so that even the true listeners may not be able to hear. They used to think that they were drowning the Voice of Allâh; in fact, they were piling up misery for themselves, for Allâh's Voice can never be silenced, "And those who disbelieve say:
"Listen not to this Qur'ân, and make noise in the midst of its (recitation) that you may
overcome." [41:26].
When the unspeakably fascinating Words of Allâh came into direct contact with their hearts, they were entranced and got oblivious of the materialistic world around them and were caught in a state of full attentiveness to the Divine Words to such an extent that when the Prophet (Peace be upon him) reached the stormy heart-beating ending:
"So fall you down in prostration to Allâh and worship Him (Alone)." [53:62]
The idolaters, unconsciously and with full compliance, prostrated themselves in absolute god-fearing and stainless devotion. It was in fact the wonderful moment of the Truth that cleaved through the obdurate souls of the haughty and the attitude of the scoffers. They stood aghast when they perceived that Allâh's Words had conquered their hearts and done the same thing that they had been trying hard to annihilate and exterminate.
14) Rational Deduction
This argument is based upon a well known historical fact, supported by Eastern and Western Scholarship. Before we start to discuss the historical realities of the Qur'an and linguistic capabilities of the Classical Arabs, we first need to explain what we mean by 'rational deduction'.
Rational Deduction is the thinking process starting with one universally accepted statement that no one can doubt, and using rational deduction, drawing logical conclusions that draw from that statement.
With regards to the Qur'an, the universally accepted statement is that the Arabs at the time of revelation reached the peak of expressing themselves in the Arabic language. The Qur'an came with a challenge - to produce 3 lines of Arabic that will match the linguistic and literary reality of the text. Many at the time of revelation attempted to challenge the Qur'an, and as can be seen by the preserved written challenges, they all failed. They came to the conclusion that it was a form of 'magic' and what is interesting to note is that they never claimed that Muhammad was the author or the Qur'an.
So who was the Author?
When questioning the authorship of the Qur'an, in the context of the 'universally accepted statement' and the other arguments below, one must first understand who the Qur'an could have possible come from. There are a few options:
i. An Arab ii. A non-Arab iii. Muhammad(sallahu alyhiwasallam) iv. The Creator
The Qur’an is matchless in its Arabic and beyond comparison amongst other literature. It defies sense for it to have been written by someone who could not understand Arabic. Think of a literary work in English e.g. Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein or Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre. Could one without English have been the author? Do the same for literature in other languages. Dante’s Divine Comedy, Cervantes’ Don Quixote, Tolstoy’s War and Peace, Aristophanes’ Clouds and so on. It would not be serious to claim that such work could be achieved without access to the language itself therefore the first option of a non-Arab authoring the Qur’an can be safely eliminated.
If the Qur’an was authored by an Arab then the test of inimitability would not pose a real challenge just as it does not in other languages. Whatever one writes another can write a little in the same style but the challenge has been attempted by leading authorities in Arabic throughout history and has left all exhausted. Whenever an Arab attempts a passage trying to imitate the Qur'an's style and literary form he/she remains utterly elusive so we can safely state that the author of the Qur’an could not have been an Arab.
Muhammad(sallahu alyhiwasallam), for all his greatness, was still an Arab like his brethren. It is also a matter of fact that the Prophet Muhammad(sallahu alyhi wasallam) was never accused of authoring the Qur’an by his contemporaries, even those who sought his death and ruin. Furthermore the hadith(recorded narrations attributed to the Prophet) are in a totally different style to the Qur'an. How can any man speak with two distinct styles over a 23 year period?
The only rational answer left is the Creator.
I hope this post finds everyone in the pink of health and eeman inshaAllah.I hope you all had a wonderful Eid inshaAllah.
I wrote the following ,in reply to an atheists question about the proof of Allah's existence.While the last 3 points about unique literary form and aesthetic appeal and rational concluson,I copied from a website and edited it,the rest of it I wrote down.Please do correct me if there is something wrong in it.Also point out any new things you would like to add to this point.I hope everyone benefits from this post as well inshaAllah.
Allow me to explain please.I have been sick so I wasn’t able to reply earlier.
Please read my comment carefully before commenting.
Like I said,if you haven’t met somene,seen him ,talked to him,how would you even know that person exists and acknowledge his presence?Would you prove it scientifically?Well,try.The thing is the only way you will be able to prove his/her existence is through the communication you have with him/her.For example I haven’t seen you met you or talked to you,I didn’t even know you existed until I logged on this website . So the only proof I have of you is our communication.I or you cannot prove your existence without this cruicial thing caled communication,which acquaints me with you.Without that I know nothing about you,where you live what you do etc.Hence my evidence is Qur’an the communication of Allah to mankind.So we have to analyse this communication before accepting or rejecting it.Now before calling it a random book,just please read my comment before commenting.Thank you.
I believe you must have read the Qur’an(or the translation so as to say.)
I believe Qur’an is the proof and evidence of existence of Allah due to it’s following charecteristics.
1)In the Qur’an the one who revieled the book acquaints us with Himself.
a)By His names:Allah has named Himself at many places in the Qur’an.Like Allah ,ArRahman(The Most Gracious),Ar-Raheem(The extremely merciful), Malik(The King),Quddus(The Holy One),Khaliqul(The creator),Al Bari(The originator),Al Ghaffar(The of forgiving),Hayyu(The ever Living),Qayyum(That which remains forever),ArRazzaq(The best Provider,Al a’lim(The all knowing)...etc.In fact in the first Surah(al Fatihah) He declares Himself as Rabbil Almeen(Lord,Owner,Master...of everything that exists.)
b)By His qualities(sifat):He tell us about his sifat or qualities in the Qur’an.Like Creator of the Heaven and the Earth,The Creator of Life and Death,this links Him to His names.How he provides for everything,this links Him to His name Ar-Razzaq.His knowledge(of apparent and hidden),this also links Him to His names.Similarly there are number of places where His qualities are mentioned.
c)Signs of His existence:He mentions the signs of His existence at a number of places in Qur’an in fact the very verses of Qur’an are called ayahs which is translated as “signs”.The sign He mentions about Himself in the Qur’an is the creation of heavens and earth,this links Him to His name in a) and quality in b),in the creation of life and death,this again links Him to His names and qualities.Also our creation and the creation of our mates and the love and mercy He placed between us and our mates,this is also one of the signs,it links Him to His name and qualities The Creator ,The Best Provider,The extremely Merciful.These are few of many signs you will come across and they need to be pondered upon.Similarly there are many other signs in the Qur’an.if you read the Qur’an you will come across them,then compare them to His names and qualities.
2)Allah acquaints us with ourselves:In the Qur’an Allah addresses us.He addresses us as “Oh mankind..”,”Oh you who believe..”.Allah told us about our type,He mentions the qualities of those who believe,disbelieve and a third type The hypocrites,you can find this description in many places one of which is surah al Baqarah verses 1 to 22.Apart from this many other charecteristics of mankind is mentioned but these are the three classification of mankind. So he not only acquaints us with Himself but also acquaints us with ourselves.
3)A guidance from Allah: Qur’an is a guidance from Allah to us.It claims this in Surah Al Baqarah 1-2 verses staright away.Apart from this there are many other places where it claims to be the guidance from Allah for us.
4)A criterion to judge between right and wrong:Qur’an is a criterion to judge between right and wrong.It lays the foundation for mankind to know what is right and what is wrong and tells us to avoid wrong and do what is right.There are many places where you will find verse pertaining to this charecteristics in the Qur’an if you study it.
5)The bearer of glad tidings and severe warnings:Allah through His message gives glad tidings of heaven to those who believe and do good and severe warning of hell for those who are arrogant and disbelieve.This is one of the most important parts of Qur’an where it is informing mankind of their fate.The fate of those who do good and those who do bad.It is really an important part as mankind from centuries had been worried about their fate in life after death.Now The Lord of the worlds is informing mankind about their fate through His message.When someone informs you about this,you have to take it seriously,since one’s eternity is involved.
6)News of the nations of the past and the messengers of the past:Qur’an also contains news of the nations of the past.Allah,through His words inform us about the nations of the past and their messngers.Messengers like Adam,Noah,Abraham,Isaac,Ismael,Jacob,Joseph,Moses,Mary,Jesus,Lot,Job(peace be upon them all)...etc.Also about the nationsof the past who did wrong and what was their fate,like Nation of Noah,of Lot,Of thamud,medians,etc.Through this Allah wants us to take lessons for lives.He wants us how to go through struggles of lives.The biggest and most striking of this lesson can by found in the story of Joseph(peace be upon him).How Allah helped Him inspite of the adversities that came in His life.Also there are other stories like that of dwellers of cave(ashabul kahf),the story of Al Khidr,in these are lessons for us.So that whenever we make mistake or feel we are in trouble we can refer to Qur’an and learn from them.These are stories of patience,stories of perseverance,stories about standing on truth and never giving up,stories to take lessons about the fate of thoise who committed excess on land no matter how strong they were.
7)Prophecies:There are prophecies of the day of ressurrection mentioned in the Qur’an.There is also a prophecy at the time of Prophet(sallahu alyhi wasallam) mentioned in the Qur’an.When the fight between Persia and Rome was flaring,Allah sent this prophecy in the Qur’an as Ghulibat irrum(Rome will dominate) and it came out to be true,this was assign of things to come.Similarly there are many other prophecies mentioned in the Qur’an,biggest of which is about the day of ressurection and people are warned of it.
8)The truth:Qur’an at many places has mentioned that it is the truth from Our Lord.The aim of this is to convince mankind to believe in it and not reject it for their own good.The straight path like of those with whom Allah was pleased in the past.
9)To be From Allah:Qur’an mentions at many places that it is from Allah.Now how many books have you come accross that made this claim?It says in the Qur’an that it is the truth from your Lord.Now this point is to be thought upon,how many books have said that?
10)Last message to mankind:Qur’an is the last message to mankind from Allah and after this no more messages would come.So those who believe in it and do righteous good deeds will be saved and those who remain arrogant and keep following their desires will not.This is one of the charecteristics of Qur’an that distinguishes it from any other books.
11)Message for mankind: Qur’an was revealed in Arabic language,to an Arab in the land of Arabs.This does not make it for arabs alone.No!It says exclusively in the Qur’an about Qur’an that it has not been sent except as a mercy for the whole MANKIND.Now one would say if it was for the whole mankidn why would it be revealed in Arabic?If the whole world spoke a single language Allah would have revealed it in a single language,but that is not the case,the whole world spoke different languages.This variety of languages and nationalities is not meant to divide us but to unite us as it says in the Qur’an:””” O mankind, indeed We have created you from male and female and made you peoples and tribes that you may know one another. Indeed, the most noble of you in the sight of Allah is the most righteous of you. Indeed, Allah is Knowing and Acquainted.”””(49:13)
Since the messenger was an arab the language spoken in his land was arabic thus it was revealed in arabic.It says in the Qur’an::””” This (Quran) is a Message for mankind (and a clear proof against them), in order that they may be warned thereby, and that they may know that He is the only One Ilah (God - Allah) - (none has the right to be worshipped but Allah), and that men of understanding may take heed.(14:52)”””.
12) The unique literary form of the Qur’an: According to Muslim and Non-Muslim scholarship, the Qur’an cannot be described as any of the known forms of Arabic speech; namely poetry and prose.
Taha Husayn,a prominent Egyptian Litterateur, during the course of a public lecture summarised how the Qur’an achieves this unique form:
“But you know that the Qur’an is not prose and that it is not verse either. It is rather Qur’an, and it cannot be called by any other name but this. It is not verse, and that is clear; for it does not bind itself to the bonds of verse.
And it is not prose, for it is bound by bonds peculiar to itself, not found elsewhere; some of the binds are related to the endings of its verses and some to that musical sound which is all its own. It is therefore neither verse nor
prose, but it is “a Book whose verses have been perfected the expounded, from One Who is Wise, All-Aware.”
We cannot therefore say its prose, and its text itself is not verse. It has been one of a kind, and nothing like it has ever preceded or followed it.”
Every expression of the Arabic language falls into the literary forms of Prose and Poetry. There are other ‘sub’
forms that fall into the above categories such as Kahin; a sub-form of rhymed prose. However all literary forms can be categorised as prose or poetry.
The Qur’an has its own unique form. It cannot be described as any of the known literary forms.
However due to similarities between saj’ and early Meccan chapters, some Western Scholars describe the Qur’an’s literary form as saj’. Angelika Neuwrith states,
“Saj’ is given up completely in the later suras where the rhyme makes use of a simple –un/-in – scheme to mark the end of rather long and syntactically complex verse….saj’ style is thus exclusively characteristic of the early suras”
These scholars who categorise the Qur’an as saj’ do so on the basis that the Qur’ans uniqueness is acknowledged.
To illustrate this R. A. Nicholson in his book ‘Literary History of the Arabs’ states,“Thus, as regards its external features, the style of the Koran is modelled upon saj’, or rhymed prose…but with such freedom that it may fairly be described as original.”
Although there is an attempt to try to describe the Qur’an as rhymed prose, western scholars concluded that it is a unique or an original form of saj’, thus supporting our hypothesis. To highlight this fact Bruce Lawrence states,“Those passages from the Qur’an that approach saj’ still elude all procrustean efforts to reduce them to an alternative form of saj’.”
There are three major opinions based upon modern and classical scholarship on how the Qur’an achieves this unique literary form and this unique form of saj’.
The Qur’an is not poetry because the totality of each surah does not conform to any of the al-Bihar and in many places exhibits inexact and irregular rhyme. Surah al-Kawthar (The Abundance) is a good example to show that it is not Arabic poetry, “Readers familiar with Arabic Poetry realize that it has long been distinguished by its wazn, bahr, ‘arud and
qafiya – exact measures of syllabic sounds and rhymes, which have to be strictly adhered to even at the expense
of grammar and shade of meaning at times. All this is categorically different from Qur’anic literary style.”
13) Aesthetic Reception : “Anyone who heard it had no option but to surrender to the Qur’an...every single part of his mind was touched by the pure sound of the languages music, and portion by portion, note by note, he embraced its harmony, the perfection of its pattern, its formal completion. It was not much as if something was recited to him by rather as if something had burned itself into him.”
Arbuthnot explains in his book “The Construction of the Bible and the Koran” this effect of the Qur’anic
style:
“It is confessedly the standard of the Arabic tongue... The style of the Koran is generally beautiful and fluent... and in many places, especially where the majesty and attributes of God are described, sublime and magnificent … He succeeded so well, and so strangely captivated the minds of his audience, that several of his opponents thought it the effect of witchcraft and enchantment.”
The aesthetic reception of the Qur’an is not a literary device as such, but it is a manifestation of its literary beauty on the human psyche. This aesthetic element may seem subjective but it highlights all the other objective literary structures and places them in the context of life, experience and humanity; thus making the Qur’an real.
The aesthetic reaction to the Qur'an has been seen throughout history which is perhaps best described by the following episode taken from Kermani’s article ‘The Aesthetic Reception of the Qur’an as reflected
in Early Muslim History’:“Abu Ubaid, a companion of the prophet mentions that a Bedouin listened to a man reciting ‘so shalt that thou art commanded’. After this he threw himself to the ground worshipping and said, “I threw myself down for the eloquence of this speech”.
Montet in his translation of the Qur’an explains this unique Qur’anic feature:
“All those who are acquainted with the Qur'an in Arabic agree in praising the beauty of this religious book; its grandeur of form is so sublime that no translation into any European language can allow us to appreciate it.”
Another great conversion story as handed down by the famous Islamic historians, Ibn Hisham and Ibn Kathir was that of the famous companion of the prophet, Umar. On the very day he had intended to kill the prophet he had heard that his sister Fatima and her husband had converted into the religion of Islam, infuriated he went to theirhouse. Just in front of the entrance he heard someone reciting the Qur'an to
them. Umar being a strong and tall man, stormed into the room, the reciter tried to hide away as fast as he could while his sister Fatima took the pages of the Qur'an and tried to hide them away “what is this balderdash I have heard?” Umar screamed, “‘you have not heard anything” Fatima and her husband tried to calm him down. Umar exclaimed “By God, I have been told that you have followed Muhammad and his religion.” After saying this Umar went to hit his brother-in-law, but his sister stepped in between them and Umar unintentionally hit her badly. “Yes we are Muslims and believe in God and His Apostle and you can do what you like”. Fatima and her husband Said exclaimed. Umar, however, already regretted his behaviour, and by looking at the blood on his sisters face he asked to read the scriptures she had tried to hide away. Fatima convinced him to perform a ritual washing, upon doing so she handed the pages to him. Umar started to read surah Taha and after only a few verses he stopped and cried “How beautiful and noble is this speech!”.
Umar the second Caliph of Islam had converted to the religion of Muhammad. Guillame suggest the reason for the Qur’ans aesthetic qualities:“It has a rhythm of peculiar beauty and a cadence that charms the ear. Many Christian Arabs speak of its style with warm admiration, and most Arabists acknowledge its excellence. When it is read aloud or recited it has an almost hypnotic effect…”
This effect of the Qur’an was changing the hearts and minds of many Arabs at the time of revelation.
The Non-Muslim Arabs at that time had realized its power and had tried to lessen the effect by shouting, clapping, singing and loud chatter. Abu-Zahra comments on this reality:
“The greatest among Muhammad’s enemies feared that the Qur'an would have a strong effect on them, while they preferred lack of faith to faith and aberration to right guidance. Thus, they agreed not to listen to this Qur'an. They knew that everyone listening was moved by its solemn expressive force that exceeded human strength. They saw that the people – even great personalities, the notables and mighty –one after another believed it, that Islam grew stronger, that the faithful became more numerous, polytheism became weaker, and their supporters became less.”Historians and linguists have agreed that the Arabs at the time of revelation were the greatest in their use of the Arabic language. The following quotation from Ibn Rashiq illustrates the importance attached to language. He writes:“Whenever a poet emerged in an Arab tribe, other tribes would come to congratulate, feasts would be prepared, the women would join together on lutes as they do at weddings, and old and young men would all rejoice at the good news. The Arabs used to congratulate each other only on the birth of a child and when a poet rose among them.”Ibn Khaldun, a notable scholar of the fourteenth century, remarked on the importance of poetry in Arab
life:
“It should be known that Arabs thought highly of poetry as a form of speech. Therefore, they made it the archives of their history, the evidence for what they considered right and wrong, and the principal basis of reference for most of their sciences and wisdom.”
An earlier scholar Ibn Faris elaborated on the same theme, but went further to comment on the quality of the poetry that was composed during the pre-Islamic era:
“Poetry is the archive of the Arabs; in it their genealogies have been preserved; it sheds light on the darkest and strangest things found in the Book of God and in the tradition of God's apostle and that of his companions. Perhaps a poem may be luckier than another, and one poem sweeter and more elegant than another, but none of the ancient poems lacks its degree of excellence.”
If a whole nation that excelled in the use of its own language failed to challenge the Qur’an then this reality should then make one think, as Gibb put it:
“Well then, if the Qur’an were his own composition other men could rival it. Let them produce ten verses like it. If they could not (and it is obvious that they could not) then let them accept the Qur’an as an outstanding evidential miracle.”
And as Hirschfield comments:
“The Qur’an is unapproachable as regards convincing power eloquence and even composition.”
When people used to listen the Qur’an they instantly fell in love with it.Be they those who believe in it or those who didn’t.
In Ramadan of the same year when muslims had migerated to Abyssinia for the fear of being prosecuted, the Prophet (Peace be upon him) went into the Holy Sanctuary where
there was a large host of Quraish polytheists, including some notables and celebrities. Suddenly he began reciting Sûrah An-Najm (Chapter 41 — The Star). The awe-inspiring Words of Allâh descended unawares upon them and they immediately got stunned by them. It was the first time for them to be shocked by the truthful Revelation. It had formerly been the favourite trick of those people who wished to dishonour Revelation, not only not to listen to it themselves but also to talk loudly and insolently when it was being read, so that even the true listeners may not be able to hear. They used to think that they were drowning the Voice of Allâh; in fact, they were piling up misery for themselves, for Allâh's Voice can never be silenced, "And those who disbelieve say:
"Listen not to this Qur'ân, and make noise in the midst of its (recitation) that you may
overcome." [41:26].
When the unspeakably fascinating Words of Allâh came into direct contact with their hearts, they were entranced and got oblivious of the materialistic world around them and were caught in a state of full attentiveness to the Divine Words to such an extent that when the Prophet (Peace be upon him) reached the stormy heart-beating ending:
"So fall you down in prostration to Allâh and worship Him (Alone)." [53:62]
The idolaters, unconsciously and with full compliance, prostrated themselves in absolute god-fearing and stainless devotion. It was in fact the wonderful moment of the Truth that cleaved through the obdurate souls of the haughty and the attitude of the scoffers. They stood aghast when they perceived that Allâh's Words had conquered their hearts and done the same thing that they had been trying hard to annihilate and exterminate.
14) Rational Deduction
This argument is based upon a well known historical fact, supported by Eastern and Western Scholarship. Before we start to discuss the historical realities of the Qur'an and linguistic capabilities of the Classical Arabs, we first need to explain what we mean by 'rational deduction'.
Rational Deduction is the thinking process starting with one universally accepted statement that no one can doubt, and using rational deduction, drawing logical conclusions that draw from that statement.
With regards to the Qur'an, the universally accepted statement is that the Arabs at the time of revelation reached the peak of expressing themselves in the Arabic language. The Qur'an came with a challenge - to produce 3 lines of Arabic that will match the linguistic and literary reality of the text. Many at the time of revelation attempted to challenge the Qur'an, and as can be seen by the preserved written challenges, they all failed. They came to the conclusion that it was a form of 'magic' and what is interesting to note is that they never claimed that Muhammad was the author or the Qur'an.
So who was the Author?
When questioning the authorship of the Qur'an, in the context of the 'universally accepted statement' and the other arguments below, one must first understand who the Qur'an could have possible come from. There are a few options:
i. An Arab ii. A non-Arab iii. Muhammad(sallahu alyhiwasallam) iv. The Creator
The Qur’an is matchless in its Arabic and beyond comparison amongst other literature. It defies sense for it to have been written by someone who could not understand Arabic. Think of a literary work in English e.g. Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein or Charlotte Brontë’s Jane Eyre. Could one without English have been the author? Do the same for literature in other languages. Dante’s Divine Comedy, Cervantes’ Don Quixote, Tolstoy’s War and Peace, Aristophanes’ Clouds and so on. It would not be serious to claim that such work could be achieved without access to the language itself therefore the first option of a non-Arab authoring the Qur’an can be safely eliminated.
If the Qur’an was authored by an Arab then the test of inimitability would not pose a real challenge just as it does not in other languages. Whatever one writes another can write a little in the same style but the challenge has been attempted by leading authorities in Arabic throughout history and has left all exhausted. Whenever an Arab attempts a passage trying to imitate the Qur'an's style and literary form he/she remains utterly elusive so we can safely state that the author of the Qur’an could not have been an Arab.
Muhammad(sallahu alyhiwasallam), for all his greatness, was still an Arab like his brethren. It is also a matter of fact that the Prophet Muhammad(sallahu alyhi wasallam) was never accused of authoring the Qur’an by his contemporaries, even those who sought his death and ruin. Furthermore the hadith(recorded narrations attributed to the Prophet) are in a totally different style to the Qur'an. How can any man speak with two distinct styles over a 23 year period?
The only rational answer left is the Creator.
