“I am convinced about the veracity of my opinions, but I do consider it likely that they may turn out to be incorrect. Likewise, I am convinced about the incorrectness of the views different from mine, but I do concede the possibility that they may turn out to be correct.” — Imam Shafa’i

A short beautiful ayah, proclaiming concisely the qualities of the Holy Text. First, it is a discourse in Arabic second, it is free of any discrepancy and divergence and third, it escorts and ushers into awareness and consciousness of God Almighty .

The ayah preceding the index ayah in the Quran also describes yet another of its quality. I have therefore included it for the present discussion:
وَلَقَدۡ ضَرَبۡنَا لِلنَّاسِ فِىۡ هٰذَا الۡقُرۡاٰنِ مِنۡ كُلِّ مَثَلٍ لَّعَلَّهُمۡ يَتَذَكَّرُوۡنَ ۚ 
“And We have certainly presented for the people (or literally, We have struck for the people) in this Qur’an from every [kind of] example – that they might remember (or may reflect or receive admonition or may take heed”

The Holy Prophet came with a mission to explain and propagate Islam. How did he do this. What was his modus operandi? To the best of my knowledge, no long sermons or speeches have been attributed to him. He would just recite verses from the Quran to the people as he went about his assignment. Some of them would ask him questions about the Holy Text. Now his personal contribution emerges. He would teach, explain and elaborate the text and message of the Quran. Hence the Holy Book should be the first and central step towards teaching, learning and understanding our Deen. The facts reveal otherwise. Allow me to quote from the Prelude to this series of blogs “An Ayah of the Quran for thirty days”. I have stated therein “It should sound unbelievable but factually appears to be true: Many of our prevalent, widespread and important concepts and opinions about religious matters do not have a basis in the Quran and sometimes even appear to be in obvious conflict with the teachings of the Quran. It would be very educative and helpful to discuss an Ayah of the Quran once a month to see if it supports or rejects our views and actions in our daily life. I wish and hope this generates some soul searching and fruitful active discussion.” The Quran continues to draw honor and reverence in the Muslim community. Every Muslim house, with out exception will have a copy, nicely and safely stored in a high place. Many will even claim to “read” it. But this only involves uttering the words on their lips to earn ten units of piety per each letter in the Quran. However, it is not required nor desired to understand the meaning. Studying the Quran is not even thought of. It is really ironical. This book is and should be the first source and constant companion of every Muslim to understand, follow and practice our deen.

The Holy text constantly appeals and exhorts its readers to think, reflect and ponder on the issues discussed in the Quran. For example:
Surah Al-Baqara (2), Ayah 269:

“He granteth wisdom to whom He pleaseth; and he to whom wisdom is granted receiveth indeed a benefit overflowing; but none will grasp the Message but men of understanding”.

Note this clear and direct statement that only folks with understanding and common sense can get and comprehend the message of Islam. For a full discourse on this subject kindly refer to my blog “Role of Wisdom and Reason in the Shari’ah of Islam”. In practice, Muslims all over the planet have reduced it to a formality of honor. Fortunately, by the grace of God Almighty this trend is slowly but surely changing in the last decade or two both at individual and organized levels.

All of the previous revelations were in different languages. The latest proclamation is in Arabic. Not only is this the language of the masses of Arabia but “it is a beautiful language, straight and flexible, and fit to be the vehicle of sublime truths”. The Quran repeatedly stresses it’s expression in the Arabic language as can be seen in the following four ayahs :
(12/2) الر ۚ تِلكَ آياتُ الكِتابِ المُبينِ إِنّا أَنزَلناهُ قُرآنًا عَرَبِيًّا لَعَلَّكُم تَعقِلونَ
A.L.R. These are the Symbols2 (or Verses) of the perspicuous Book.; We have sent it down as an Arabic Qurān, in order that ye may learn wisdom.
(13/37) وَكَذٰلِكَ أَنزَلناهُ حُكمًا عَرَبِيًّا
Thus have We revealed it to be a judgment of authority in Arabic.
(14/4) وَما أَرسَلنا مِن رَسولٍ إِلّا بِلِسانِ قَومِهِ لِيُبَيِّنَ لَهُم
We sent not a messenger except (to teach) in the language1 of his (own) people, in order to make (things) clear to them.
وَلَو جَعَلناهُ قُرآنًا أَعجَمِيًّا لَقالوا لَولا فُصِّلَت آياتُهُ ۖ أَأَعجَمِيٌّ وَعَرَبِيٌّ ۗ قُل هُوَ لِلَّذينَ آمَنوا هُدًى وَشِفاءٌ ۖ وَالَّذينَ لا يُؤمِنونَ في آذانِهِم وَقرٌ وَهُوَ

(41/44) عَلَيهِم عَمًى ۚ أُولٰئِكَ يُنادَونَ مِن مَكانٍ بَعيد
“Had We sent this as a Qurān (in the language) other than Arabic, they would have said: “Why are not its verses explained in detail? What! (a Book) not in Arabic and (a Messenger an Arab?” Say: “It is a Guide and a Healing to those who believe; and for those who believe not, there is a deafness in their ears, and it is blindness in their (eyes): They are (as it were) being called from a place far distant!”

Why is this? Why this stress on a particular language. Is Arabic the language of God Almighty, or Islam or that of the Quran. No, most probably not. The four ayahs quoted above clearly bring out the reason. Since the objective was to deliver the message to Arabs, the recipient of the revelation it was set in their language so that they could comprehend. The Quran in these four ayahs describes itself “as an Arabic ordinance (hukm)” to enable the Arabian Prophet to propound it to the people of his immediate environment and, through them, to the whole world. Further it is stated therein that every prophets was entrusted with a message “in his own people’s tongue, so that he might make [the truth] clear unto them”. But the message of the Qur’an is universal and not restricted to the Arabs alone. This is brought out clearly in many places in the Quran, for example:
(7:158) قُل يا أَيُّهَا النّاسُ إِنّي رَسولُ اللَّهِ إِلَيكُم جَميعًا الَّذي لَهُ مُلكُ السَّماواتِ وَالأَرضِ

“Say [O Muhammad]: “O mankind! Verily, I am an apostle of God to all of you,” [sent by Him] unto whom the dominion over the heavens and the earth belongs!………”.
Please note that God Almighty has directed HIS Prophet to address the whole mankind يا أَيُّهَا النّاسُ from his base in Arabia.

Since every divine writ was meant to be understood by man, it is obvious that each had to be formulated in the language of the people whom the particular prophet was addressing in the first instance; and the Qur’an, notwithstanding its universal import is no exception in this respect. A wider meaning can be given to the word “language” used in these ayahs. Dr. Mohammad Asad asserts in a beautiful and scholarly style in his invaluable tafseer The Message of the Quran: “It is not merely a question of alphabets, letters, or words. Each age or people or world in a psychological sense casts its thoughts in a certain mould or form. God’s Message—being universal—can be expressed in all moulds and forms, and is equally valid and necessary for all grades of humanity, and must therefore be explained to each according to his or her capacity or receptivity. In this respect the Quran is marvelous. It is for the simplest as well as the most advanced.” An Arabic Quran literally means “an Arabic recitation” and this refers to “the supreme eloquence of the Quran, which cannot be matched”. The Quran itself has elaborated this point elsewhere:
(17/88) قُل لَئِنِ اجتَمَعَتِ الإِنسُ وَالجِنُّ عَلىٰ أَن يَأتوا بِمِثلِ هٰذَا القُرآنِ لا يَأتونَ بِمِثلِهِ وَلَو كانَ بَعضُهُم لِبَعضٍ ظَهيرًا

“Surely if mankind and jinn banded together to bring the like of this Quran, they would not bring the like thereof, even if they supported one another”.
Why does Quran fall back very often on parables (مَثَلٍ) as in the second ayah I have selected for this discussion? It does this to describe the state of affairs in Alam-e-Ghaib (the unseen world) which is “beyond the reach of a created being’s perception”. It is therefore per force necessary to talk in terms of allegories or parables relating to human experience and therefore appealing to human experience. Allaamaa Yousuf Ali describes beautifully in his tafseer “Men can only understand high spiritual truths by parables and similitudes and these are given abundantly in the Quran. The object is, not merely to tell stories, but to teach lessons of spiritual wisdom.” In fact the parable style is the most productive method to explain and understand the teachings of the Prophets. Hence it is used extensively in inspired scriptures. The Torah, Psalms, and the Gospel are all full of proverbs, and the book of wisdom of Solomon is called “Proverbs”. The Holy Quran often claims to be a complete moral and spiritual training program for man. In these ayahs, it claims to be a perfect book containing all the necessary teachings and answering every dissent of its rivals.
The word عِوَجٍ ie “without any deviousness (‘iwaj)” is also mentioned elsewhere in the Quran:
الحَمدُ لِلَّهِ الَّذي أَنزَلَ عَلىٰ عَبدِهِ الكِتابَ وَلَم يَجعَل لَهُ عِوَجًا ۜ(Surah 18/1)
“ALL PRAISE is due to God, who has bestowed. this divine writ from on high upon His servant, and has not allowed any deviousness to obscure its meaning”
“The term “iwaj” (عِوَجًا) signifies “crookedness”, “tortuousness” or “deviation” (e.g., from a path), as well as “distortion” or “deviousness” in the abstract sense of these words” declares Dr. Mohammad Asad in his laudable tafseer “The Message of the Quran”. This term announces in one word that the Holy Text is a simple and straight forward text free of any conflict, inconsistency or incongruity. “That is, there is nothing of double-dealing in it so that a common man should find it difficult to understand, but everything has been presented in it in a straightforward manner, from which everyone can know what this Book states as wrong and why, what it states as right and on what ground, what it wants the people to accept and what it wants them to reject, and what it enjoins and what it forbids” elaborates Maulana Maudoodi in his classical tafseer Tafheem-ul-Quran. In other words, a philosophical style is avoided in favor of “an eloquent and articulate language and in a very simple and pleasant style”. This ensures that the message is understood with certainty and without any perplexity even by the common man.

The Holy Text highlights this feature in a more direct way elsewhere:
(4/82) أَفَلا يَتَدَبَّرونَ القُرآنَ ۚ وَلَو كانَ مِن عِندِ غَيرِ اللَّهِ لَوَجَدوا فيهِ اختِلافًا كَثيرًا
“Had it issued from any but God, they would surely have found in it many an inner contradiction!”

This is all the more remarkable, since the Quran was revealed in bits and pieces over a period of twenty three years. A strong hint that it is a Divine endeavor and not composed by the Holy Prophet as suggested by his opponents.
The index ayah ends as “they will be god fearing” يَتَّقُوۡنَ and the preceding ayah discussed earlier closes as “they might remember” يَتَذَكَّرُوۡنَ,. Imam Amin Ahsan Islahi, in his excellent tafseer “Tadabbur-i-Quran” has drawn a subtle lesson from this comparison. He maintains “In other words, the first purpose of revealing the Qur’an in this manner is that those who are negligent receive reminders and the last purpose is to announce the punishment that is the inevitable result of this negligence and carelessness and which will necessarily result in this world. It will also inevitably happen if people persist in their stubbornness and will have to suffer from it in the hereafter as well.”

To sum up in a sentence, the Holy Quran, the only miracle of the Holy Prophet should be a constant, permanent and intelligible companion of every Muslim to learn, practice and propagate her/his creed and doctrine aka Islam.

……..and Allah knows best.
May Allah Ta’aala bless us with true understanding–“fahm”–of our Deen, Aameen.

Dr. Khalid Mitha